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[
"Jeff Dunham",
"2009-present",
"What was he doing in 2009?",
"Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central.",
"What was the shows name?",
"The Jeff Dunham Show",
"How many viewers watched it?",
"Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled",
"Why was it canceled?",
"amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows.",
"What did he do afterward?",
"Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sictom 30 Rock,"
] | C_12aced0306034efd8cb7f77cc42ae917_0 | Did he do anything after that ? | 6 | Did Jeff Dunham do anything after the show ? | Jeff Dunham | In March 2009, Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central. It included a fourth stand-up special to air in 2010, DVDs, a consumer products partnership, a 60-city tour beginning in September 2010, and an order for a television series called The Jeff Dunham Show that premiered on October 22, 2009. Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled after only one season, amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows. Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sictom 30 Rock, playing a ventriloquist named Rick Wayne and his dummy Pumpkin from Stone Mountain, Georgia. In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in "Hart to Hart", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance, as two security guards. He appeared in the 2010 Steve Carell/Paul Rudd comedy, Dinner for Schmucks, as Lewis, with a new puppet named Diane. His fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, premiered on September 25, 2011, on Comedy Central. His fifth special, Minding the Monsters, which was taped in Savannah, premiered on Comedy Central on October 7, 2012. His sixth special, All Over the Map, which was taped in various international cities, premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2014. On March 28, 2014, Country Music Television premiered Achmed Saves America, an animated film starring Achmed the Dead Terrorist. Dunham's seventh special, Unhinged in Hollywood, premiered on September 17, 2015. Rather than premiering on Comedy Central, the special instead aired on NBC. CANNOTANSWER | In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in "Hart to Hart", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance, | Jeffrey Douglas Dunham (born April 18, 1962) is an American ventriloquist, stand-up comedian and actor who has also appeared on numerous television shows, including Late Show with David Letterman, Comedy Central Presents, The Tonight Show and Sonny With a Chance. He has six specials that run on Comedy Central: Arguing with Myself, Spark of Insanity, Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special, Controlled Chaos, Minding the Monsters, and All Over the Map. Dunham also starred in The Jeff Dunham Show, a series on the network in 2009.
His style has been described as "a dressed-down, more digestible version of Don Rickles with multiple personality disorder". Time described his characters as "politically incorrect, gratuitously insulting and ill tempered." Dunham has been credited with reviving ventriloquism and doing more to promote the art form than anyone since Edgar Bergen.
Dunham has been called "America's favorite comedian" by Slate. According to the concert industry publication Pollstar, he is the top-grossing standup act in North America and among the most successful acts in Europe as well. As of November 2009, he has sold over four million DVDs, an additional $7 million in merchandise sales, and received more than 350 million hits on YouTube as of October 2009; his introduction of Achmed the Dead Terrorist in Spark of Insanity was ranked as the ninth most watched YouTube video at the time. A Very Special Christmas Special was the most-watched telecast in Comedy Central history, with the DVD selling over 400,000 copies in its first two weeks. Forbes ranked Dunham as the third highest-paid comedian in the United States behind Jerry Seinfeld and Chris Rock and reported that he was one of the highest-earning comics from June 2008 to June 2009, earning approximately $30 million during that period. Dunham also does occasional acting roles. He achieved the Guinness Book of World Records record for "Most tickets sold for a stand-up comedy tour" for his Spark of Insanity tour, performing in 386 venues worldwide.
Early life
Dunham was born on April 18, 1962, in Dallas, Texas. When he was three months old, he was adopted by real estate appraiser Howard Dunham, and his homemaker wife Joyce, who raised him in a devoutly Presbyterian household in an affluent Dallas neighborhood, as an only child.
He began ventriloquism in 1970 at age eight, when his parents gave him a Mortimer Snerd dummy for Christmas, and an accompanying how-to album. The next day he checked out a how-to book on ventriloquism from the library, and explained in 2011 that he still had it, remarking that he was "a thief in the third grade". By the fourth grade, Dunham decided he not only wanted to be a professional ventriloquist, but the best one ever. Dunham began practicing for hours in front of a mirror, studying the routines of Edgar Bergen, and the how-to record Jimmy Nelson's Instant Ventriloquism, finding ventriloquism to be a learned skill, similar to juggling, that anyone with a normal speaking voice can acquire. Dunham has explained that, as an only child, he enjoyed being alone, likening his solitude to a "warm blanket" with which he could explore his own thoughts and ideas, which prepared him for the solitude of living alone when he later moved to Los Angeles as a struggling comedian.
When Dunham was in the sixth grade, he began attending the Vent Haven ConVENTion in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky, an annual international meeting of ventriloquists that includes competitions, where he met Jimmy Nelson in person. Dunham has missed only one ConVENTion since then, in 1977. The organizers of the ConVENTion eventually declared Dunham a "retired champion", ineligible from entering any more competitions, as other attendees were too intimidated to compete against him. The Vent Haven Museum devotes a section to Dunham, alongside Señor Wences and Dunham's idol, Edgar Bergen.
Career
Beginnings
Dunham began performing for audiences as a teenager, in various venues such as school, church, and during his job at Six Flags. By his middle school years, he began to perform for banquets attended by local celebrities such as Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach, having developed his style of lampooning those he performed for, using the puppets to say things too risque for him to say without them. Dunham's television debut came in 1976 when the still prepubescent performer caught the attention of Dallas reporters like Bill O'Reilly, who interviewed Dunham for a local news story. Dunham later did commercials for Datsun dealerships in Dallas and Tyler while still in high school. While emceeing a high school talent show, he dealt with a heckler, and won over the rest of the audience. During this period he became so associated with his craft that he and one of his dummies "cowrote" a column in the school paper, and he would pose with his dummies for yearbooks as an inexpensive way to acquire professional photos of his act for promotional purposes. He was voted Most Likely to Succeed, and in 1980, after he graduated from high school, Dunham gave himself a career goal of obtaining, within ten years, an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, which was seen as the "holy grail" for comedians.
That year Dunham began attending Baylor University, hoping to graduate with a degree in communications, while performing around campus. He would also fly around the country on weekends, doing up to 100 private shows a year, entertaining corporate customers such as General Electric, whose CEO, Jack Welch, he mocked during his routine. By his junior year in college (1983–84), Dunham was making $70,000 a year, and as word spread of his act, he landed featured spots opening for Bob Hope and George Burns, though he still perceived his act as raw, as he did not have any knowledge of standup comedy beyond his Bill Cosby albums.
He caught a break in 1985 when he was asked to join the Broadway show Sugar Babies with Mickey Rooney and Ann Miller, replacing an outgoing variety act. For the naive and devoutly-raised Dunham, Broadway was a new world filled with beautiful showgirls and crusty stagehands, and his first taste of entertainment industry egos came when Rooney called Dunham into his dressing room, and told him he was there for one reason alone: so that Rooney could change his costumes. He performed at the Westbury Music Fair on Long Island. These early experiences, in which he used characters like José Jalapeño on a Stick, taught him the value of modifying his act regionally, as the jalapeño jokes that worked well in Texas were not as well received by audiences in Long Island. After graduating from Baylor University in 1986, he continued honing his act in comedy clubs in the Southwest with new characters such as Peanut and José Jalapeño, but struggled against the perception he relates from fellow comedians that he was not a true comedian because he relied on props.
His experience at Catch a Rising Star in New York City served as a bitter confirmation of where ventriloquists stood in the comedic food chain, as the emcee at that club gave Dunham little respect. According to Dunham, after he arrived at the club in the evening and informed the emcee that he was a ventriloquist, the emcee reacted with derision, telling Dunham that he would be given a late time slot, and after that time slot came and passed, kept postponing Dunham's stage time until Dunham left the club.
By the end of 1988, Dunham felt his career had gone as far as it could go in Texas, and he moved to Los Angeles, California, never having, as he has commented, "a real job", much to the concern of his parents, who assumed he would relegate his act to local venues such as church groups. When he first arrived in Los Angeles, the comedy in his act bombed. Dunham attributes this initial reaction to his underdeveloped comedy, explaining that while the characters' personalities were developed at that point, his jokes were not. In addition to this, the comedy world was not welcoming to ventriloquists, and his manager, Judi Brown-Marmel, did not use the word "ventriloquist" when finding bookings for him, choosing to present him as a comedy duo. After Dunham became friends with Mike Lacey, owner of The Comedy & Magic Club in Hermosa Beach, Lacey gave Dunham a steady slot at the club, where Dunham sharpened his act by observing the techniques of comedians like Jerry Seinfeld, and taking the advice of colleague Bill Engvall, moving away from his G-rated material toward edgier, more adult themes.
The Tonight Show
At the end of 1988, Dunham was told by James McCawley, a talent booker for The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, that Dunham would be given a spot on the coveted program. Though the 26-year-old Dunham was elated that his 10-year goal was arriving two years early, McCawley later cancelled Dunham's appearance after attending, with Roseanne Barr, a public performance of Dunham's the day before Dunham's scheduled Tonight Show taping. McCawley informed Dunham on the day of the scheduled taping that he had been wrong in his initial assessment of Dunham, whom he now said was not ready for The Tonight Show. Dunham continued to tighten his act in Los Angeles clubs, performing the same six-minute segment with Peanut a total of nine times for McCawley over the next few months. Finally at the Ice-House in Pasadena in April 1990, after Dunham did the same segment, McCawley informed Dunham that he would finally get his Tonight Show appearance. Dunham and Peanut appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson on April 6, 1990, alongside guests Bob Hope and B.B. King. Following his bit, he was invited to sit on Johnny Carson's couch, a mark of approval on Carson's show. Upon sitting down next to Carson's desk, Dunham pulled out Walter, who told Carson sidekick Ed McMahon, "Stop sending me all your damn mail." At the time, Dunham saw his Tonight Show appearance as his big break, but was frustrated at his parents' initial disapproval over Walter's use of the words "hell" and "damn", and he would toil in obscurity for another twelve years, continuing his stand up at venues such as The Improv chain, and appearing in small roles on TV. One of these was a 1996 episode of Ellen, in which he appeared with Walter. Dunham also appeared with Walter in a TV commercial for Hertz. Dunham would appear on The Tonight Show a total of four times, as well as similar TV venues such as Hot Country Nights, appearing in one segment with Reba McEntire. This exposure helped make Dunham a large theater headliner, a rare accomplishment for a ventriloquist, but by the mid-1990s, his television appearances had dwindled, and with them, so did his stage audiences.
Dunham moved back to clubs, more than 200 appearances a year. To maintain a connection with his fan base, he would use question cards that he had audiences fill out for his performances to build a database, which was tailor-made for the burgeoning World Wide Web. Though he was voted Funniest Male Standup at the American Comedy Awards in 1998, his club work kept him away from his wife and daughters between two and three weeks each month, which put a strain on his marriage, and made paying bills for his expanded family difficult. By 2002, Dunham was hoping to obtain more TV work to raise his profile and ease his standup schedule. Such exposure was elusive until a successful appearance on The Best Damn Sports Show Period, where Dunham and Walter made jokes at the expense of co-hosts Tom Arnold, Michael Irvin, John Salley and John Kruk, generating laughter from them, and giving Dunham much-needed exposure. In 2003, Dunham was the frontrunner to replace Jimmy Kimmel on Fox NFL Sunday, but hosts Howie Long and Terry Bradshaw were not amenable to the idea of being upstaged by a puppet, and, as Dunham tells it, did not provide a welcoming atmosphere to Dunham, nor allow him to speak much during his appearance.
First Comedy Central specials
On July 18, 2003, Dunham appeared on Comedy Central Presents, his first solo appearance on Comedy Central. During his half hour piece, he showcased José Jalapeño on a Stick, Walter, an early version of Melvin the Superhero Guy and Peanut, whom Dunham had begun to merchandise into a line of dolls. The appearance was successful, but Comedy Central resisted giving Dunham more airtime, feeling that he was not a good fit for them. By 2005 Dunham decided to gamble on financing his own comedy DVD, Jeff Dunham: Arguing with Myself, which was taped in Santa Ana, California. Dunham's manager, Judi Brown-Marmel, lobbied the network to air it, pointing to Dunham's drawing power and merchandising profits, and arguing that the network needed more diverse content. Surprised by the high ratings of the first Blue Collar Comics concert movie that same year, the network began to reconsider its brand. In late 2006, Comedy Central aired Arguing with Myself, drawing two million viewers when it aired, and selling two million DVDs.
In 2007, Dunham appeared as The Amazing Ken with José Jalapeño on a Stick in the Larry the Cable Guy feature film Delta Farce.
His second special, Jeff Dunham: Spark of Insanity, was taped at the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. that same year. It served not only to cement Dunham's stardom, but to introduce his most controversial character, Achmed the Dead Terrorist, which became a viral Internet sensation. A clip of Achmed from Insanity attracted over 140 million hits on YouTube, making it the ninth most watched clip on that website as of October 2009.
By 2008, Dunham's characters had crossed language barriers, with his specials dubbed for audiences in various countries such as France, and Dunham attracting requests for performances in South Africa, Australia, Norway, Denmark, China, and the Middle East. Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special was taped at the Pabst Theater in Milwaukee, Wisconsin that same year, and premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2008, watched by 6.6 million people. It became available on DVD and Blu-ray on November 18, 2008. The special's premiere was the highest rated telecast in Comedy Central's history.
In September 2008, his career reached new heights as he began performing in arenas filled with tens of thousands of people. Dunham was somewhat wary of such large venues, but adapted by adjusting the timing of his often rapid exchanges with the puppets so that audience members farthest from the stage could have time to react.
In addition to his comedy specials, Dunham also released his first music album, Don't Come Home for Christmas, on November 4, 2008. It contains original Christmas songs as well as a parody of "Jingle Bells" by Achmed entitled "Jingle Bombs". All the songs, with the exception of "Jingle Bombs", were written and accompanied by Brian Haner, who joined Dunham's act as "Guitar Guy". His first onscreen appearance was in Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special.
2009–present
In March 2009, Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central. It included a fourth stand-up special to air in 2010, DVDs, a consumer products partnership, a 60-city tour beginning in September 2010, and an order for a television series called The Jeff Dunham Show that premiered on October 22, 2009. Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled after only one season, amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows.
Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sitcom 30 Rock, playing a ventriloquist named Rick Wayne and his dummy Pumpkin from Stone Mountain, Georgia. In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in "Hart to Hart", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance, as two security guards. He appeared in the 2010 Steve Carell/Paul Rudd comedy, Dinner for Schmucks, as Lewis, with a new puppet named Diane.
His fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, premiered on September 25, 2011, on Comedy Central. His fifth special, Minding the Monsters, which was taped in Savannah, premiered on Comedy Central on October 7, 2012. His sixth special, All Over the Map, which was taped in various international cities, premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2014.
On March 28, 2014, Country Music Television premiered Achmed Saves America, an animated film starring Achmed the Dead Terrorist.
Dunham's seventh special, Unhinged in Hollywood, premiered on September 17, 2015. Rather than premiering on Comedy Central, the special instead aired on NBC.
Critical praise and controversy
In January 2008, Dunham was voted by fans the Top Comic in Comedy Central's "Stand-Up Showdown". He is the only person ever to win the "Ventriloquist of the Year" Award twice. He was nominated "Comedian of the Year" by the TNN Music City News Country Awards, and has drawn praise from the Dallas Morning News for his technique and timing. Critics, such as Randee Dawn of The Hollywood Reporter, accused Dunham's characters of being racist caricatures, sexist, and homophobic.
In 2008, a TV commercial for a ringtone which featured Dunham's character Achmed the Dead Terrorist (see Characters below) was banned by the South African Advertising Standards Authority after a complaint was filed by a citizen stating that the ad was offensive to Muslims, and portrayed all Muslims as terrorists. Dunham responded that "Achmed makes it clear in my act that he is not Muslim." However, the ASA noted that the name Achmed was of Arab origin and was one of the names of Muhammad. Dunham responded, "I've skewered whites, blacks, Hispanics, Christians, Jews, Muslims, gays, straights, rednecks, addicts, the elderly, and my wife. As a standup comic, it is my job to make the majority of people laugh, and I believe that comedy is the last true form of free speech ... I'm considering renaming Achmed 'Bill'", he added. Dunham has conceded that he does exhibit particular sensitivity to the "conservative country crowd" or those characterized by "basic Christian values", as they are one of his largest constituencies, and part of his upbringing.
Dunham was heckled and criticized for mocking TV critics during a July 2009 press tour to promote his then-upcoming Comedy Central TV series, The Jeff Dunham Show, as well as Comedy Central programming chief Lauren Correo. In October 2009 The Jeff Dunham Show enjoyed good initial ratings, but was not well liked by critics, some of whom either questioned the wisdom of translating his act into a series, or cited Dunham, his previous specials, or ventriloquism itself as reasons for disliking the show.
J.P. Williams, the producer of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, has opined that Dunham's act is not funny on its own merits, and that his material gets a greater reaction because of the puppet characters than it would otherwise garner by itself. Blue Collar veteran Bill Engvall, a friend of Dunham's, insists otherwise, saying that Dunham is inherently funny with or without the puppets.
In a 2014 show in Malaysia, the government requested that he not use or name Achmed in his show. Due to the restriction, but to avoid disappointing fans, Achmed was renamed to be "Jacques Merde, the Dead French Terrorist" (Jacques Merde meaning "Jack Shit").
Books
In 2003, BRASMA Publications released Dear Walter, a collection of questions asked of Dunham's fictional curmudgeon at live performances, authored by Dunham and Walter Cummings. His autobiography, All By My Selves: Walter, Peanut, Achmed and Me, was published by Dutton in 2010.
Characters
Recurring characters
Walter
Walter is a retired, grumpy old man with arms always crossed in discontent. Dunham was inspired to create Walter when he watched Bette Davis's final appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, giving her honest, unfiltered candor to Walter, and patterning Walter's frown on Dunham's own. He has a brash, negative and often sarcastic view on today's world. He is a Vietnam War veteran and a former welder, and "doesn't give a damn" about anyone, especially his own wife and certain audience members. Walter appeared in every Comedy Central special. He's been married for several decades. When Dunham asks him if he remembers the happiest moment of his life after Walter tells him he has been married for forty-six years, Walter responds, "Forty-seven years ago!" Dunham created the Walter puppet himself, including both the initial sculpture and the silicone mold, though he eventually began using professional effects companies for the latter stages with his subsequent puppets.
Peanut
Peanut is a hyperactive, purple-skinned "woozle" with white fur covering most of his body, a tuft of green hair on the top of his head, and one sneaker on his left foot. Dunham explains in Arguing with Myself that Peanut is from a small Micronesian island, and that they met in Florida. Peanut's humor is not based on a particular motif or stereotype, as those of the other characters, and he has been described as "the bad kid". He often makes fun of Dunham, and torments and mocks José Jalapeño on a Stick. Touching upon his unusual appearance and personality, he asks Dunham in Arguing with Myself, after Dunham denies ever having done drugs, "Then how the hell did you come up with me?"
José Jalapeño on a Stick
José is a talking jalapeño pepper on a stick who wears a small sombrero. José, who speaks with a thick Spanish accent, is typically paired with Peanut, who often makes fun of José, uses appeals to Latino stereotypes when doing so, and makes fun of his being on a stick. Although José was not Dunham's first puppet, it was the first that Dunham made himself.
Bubba J
Bubba J is a beer-drinking redneck that Dunham describes in Arguing with Myself and A Very Special Christmas Special as "white trash trailer park", and whom Dunham uses for humor centered on such stereotypes. To this end, he frequently does jokes involving Bubba J's love of drinking beer and NASCAR, and his low intelligence. Touching upon such stereotypes, Bubba mentions in Arguing with Myself that he met his wife at a family reunion, and remembers seeing her with a corn dog in one hand, a beer in another, and leaning against a ferris wheel, "making it tilt". Although he does not appear onstage, Bubba appears as the backstage security guard in Controlled Chaos. He was inspired by Edgar Bergen's puppet, Mortimer Snerd.
Achmed the Dead Terrorist
Achmed is the skeletal corpse of an incompetent suicide bomber, whom Dunham uses to satirize the contemporary issue of terrorism. He is known for yelling, "Silence! I keel you!" to Dunham and people laughing in the audience. Achmed first appeared in Spark of Insanity, and has appeared in every Dunham special since then. In Spark of Insanity the audience learns several things about Achmed. When Dunham says that Achmed must be dead because he's a skeleton, Achmed responds, "It's a flesh wound." When Dunham inquires as to how he died, Achmed explains his incompetence with explosives, while also casting aspersions on Dunham's sexual prowess by saying that they both suffer from "premature detonation". Although he frequently mentions working for Osama Bin Laden, Achmed denies being a Muslim and says "Look at my ass! It says 'Made in China'!" He says he is afraid of Walter, partially because he's "one mean son of a bitch" and finds Walter's flatulence to be more potent than Saddam Hussein's mustard gas. In Very Special Christmas Special, he sings a song called "Jingle Bombs".
By June 2009, the sketch in which Dunham introduced Achmed had amassed nearly 200 million views on YouTube. The large, round, articulated eyes of puppets such as Achmed and Achmed Junior are constructed by the same effects artist who created the dinosaur eyes for the Jurassic Park films. The character starred in Achmed Saves America, an animated film that premiered on Country Music Television in March 2014. In the film, which depicts the mishap that led to the character's skeletonization, Achmed finds himself in an American town called Americaville, which he plots to blow up, before developing an affinity for American culture.
Non-recurring and retired characters
Sweet Daddy Dee
Dunham introduces Sweet Daddy Dee in Arguing with Myself as his "new manager". He calls himself a "pimp", which he says stands for "Player In the Management Profession." According to Sweet Daddy, because he is a pimp, that makes Jeff the "ho". When Dunham objects, Daddy Dee points out that Dunham makes people laugh and feel good for a living. When Dunham agrees that this is the case, Daddy Dee says, "You a ho." When Dunham asks what he would say if he told him that he was a comedian only because he enjoyed it, Daddy Dee responds, "You a dumb ho." Unlike Bubba J, he hates NASCAR. Sweet Daddy's headstone is featured in the beginning of the special Minding the Monsters.
Melvin the Superhero Guy
Melvin wears a blue superhero costume, and is used to poke fun at superheroes. When asked about his superhuman powers, he indicates that he has X-ray vision, adding, "I love looking at boobies!" He appears to have no other powers, however: When Dunham asks how far he can fly, he responds, "How far can you throw me?", and when asked if he can stop a bullet like Superman, he responds, "Yeah. Once". Dunham portrays Melvin as unimpressed with other superheroes: When told Superman can leap tall buildings in a single bound, Melvin dismisses him as a "showoff," arguing that he can simply walk around them, observes that Aquaman has the same powers as SpongeBob SquarePants, asserts that the Flash's super speed is derived from methamphetamine, that the Hulk's vaunted ability to get stronger as he gets angrier merely mirrors "every white trash guy on COPS," and makes innuendo about the questionable relationship between Batman and the underage Robin. Melvin's first onscreen appearance was in the July 2003 Comedy Central Presents episode, in which he had small, black, beady eyes. By his next appearance, in Spark of Insanity, he had been modified to have large, blue, crossed eyes. He has an enormous nose, which he claims is his symbol, and whose similarity in shape to that of a penis is alluded to in the act. Dunham sculpted the current version of Melvin's head himself, and hired an effects company called Renegade Effects Groups to create the rubber mold and complete the puppet, before then installing the mechanics himself. Melvin's headstone is featured in the beginning of the special Minding the Monsters. As revealed in the DVD release, this signifies that he will no longer be used.
Little Jeff
Little Jeff is a miniature version of Dunham himself, usually dressed in the same clothes Dunham wears during each show. His first onscreen appearance was in the 1989 television program A&E's An Evening at The Improv. He later appeared in Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos as a puppet that Peanut used when attempting his hand at ventriloquism. Peanut named the doll "Little Ugly Ass-Jeff", and uses him to insult Dunham.
Diane
Diane first appeared with Dunham in the 2010 film Dinner for Schmucks as "Debbie", his character's "wife". She made her stand-up debut in Dunham's Identity Crisis Tour 2010.
Achmed Junior
Achmed Junior is the estranged son of Achmed. He was designed by Mad magazine illustrator Tom Richmond. He first appeared during the Identity Crisis Tour 2010, and made his first onscreen appearance in Dunham's fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos. Like his father, Achmed Junior is the victim of a bomb, which resulted in the destruction of the half of his face and body. He speaks with a British accent because he was raised in Britain after the accident. Much to his father's consternation, he expresses an attraction to Dunham's male stage hand, Marnell, appears on stage to address Achmed's loss of balance. Conflict also stems from the fact that unlike his father, Achmed Junior does not wish to be a suicide bomber.
Seamus
Seamus is a grumpy, beer-drinking, Irish infant who first appears in Relative Disaster, which was filmed in Ireland. Dunham, himself an adopted child, introduces him as a son that he has adopted in order to "pay it forward". Despite being an infant, he is a belligerent heavy drinker, traits with which Dunham pokes fun at Irish stereotypes. Dunham also establishes Seamus as a fan of United States President Donald Trump in order to poke fun at Trump, Hillary Clinton, and the 2016 United States presidential election.
Larry the Adviser
Larry is the personal adviser to Donald Trump. He has unkempt orange hair, big bulgy eyes and has a cigarette in one hand. Jeff lightly shakes him to give the feeling of jitteriness. Larry is constantly on edge and is implied to be unnerved for having worked with Trump for "four hours". He nevertheless "supports" the president.
Others
Other characters that Dunham has voiced include Little Peanut, a miniature version of Peanut that Dunham has used to counter Peanut's use of Little Jeff; and an unseen worm inside a bottle of tequila, both of which he has used, for example, in his appearance on A&E's An Evening at The Improv.
In the 2020 United States presidential election, Dunham adapted the Walter puppet into "Wonald Grump" and "Ben Hiden," caricatures of Donald Trump and Joe Biden, respectively, for a mock debate moderated by Achmed.
Personal life
Dunham met his first wife, Paige Brown, at the Comedy Corner in West Palm Beach, Florida. They began dating in December 1992. In May 1994, Dunham married Brown and adopted her one-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Bree. Their daughters Ashlyn and Kenna were born in 1995 and 1997, respectively. Dunham's time away while performing proved a strain on the marriage, and in November 2008, he filed for divorce. By mid-2009, Dunham was in a relationship with Audrey Murdick, a certified nutritionist, personal trainer, and competition bodybuilder, and on December 25, 2011 they became engaged. On October 12, 2012, the couple married. On May 14, 2015, Dunham announced, via Facebook, that he and Audrey were expecting twin boys. In October, she gave birth to James Jeffrey and Jack Steven.
In addition to building the dummies he uses in his act, Dunham also restores antique ones as a hobby, such as The Umpire, a mechanized dummy built in 1941 to work the plate at a girls' softball game, which went unused and packed away for 50 years before Dunham acquired it in early 2008.
Dunham has harbored a love of helicopters since childhood and is fond of building and flying his own kit helicopters from Rotorway helicopter kits. At the time he finished writing his autobiography in June 2010, he was beginning to build his fourth kit. He is also an aficionado of muscle cars and Apple, Inc. products. According to the July 16, 2012, television documentary The Batmobile, Dunham owns the original Batmobile used in the Tim Burton film Batman, which he had outfitted with Corvette engine to make it street legal.
Tours
Filmography
Documentaries and specials
Acting
References
External links
Jeff Dunham at Comedy Central
1962 births
20th-century American comedians
21st-century American comedians
American adoptees
American male voice actors
American Presbyterians
American puppeteers
American stand-up comedians
Baylor University alumni
Living people
People from Dallas
Male actors from Dallas
Ventriloquists
Puppet designers | true | [
"I'd Do Anything may refer to:\nI'd Do Anything (2004 TV series), a 2004 American reality series that aired on ESPN\nI'd Do Anything (2008 TV series), a 2008 talent show-themed television series that aired on the BBC\n\"I'd Do Anything\" (Oliver! song), from the musical Oliver!\n\"I'd Do Anything\" (Simple Plan song)\n\"I'd Do Anything\" (Dead or Alive song)",
"\"Anything\" is a song by rapper Jay-Z that is found on the Vinyl 12\" \"Anything (The Berlin Remixes)\" 1999 with a Remix of DJ Tomekk from Def Jam Germany and later on Beanie Sigel's 2000 album The Truth. It is produced by Sam Sneed and P. Skam, who sample Lionel Bart's \"I'll Do Anything\" for the track's beat and chorus. The sample from Oliver! heavily popularized \"Anything\", as did the Annie sample on \"Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)\", \"Anything\" was also a bonus track on Jay-Z's album Vol. 3... Life and Times of S. Carter (UK/Europe edition) as is \"Anything (Mr. Drunk Mix)\" on the Japanese version of the album.\n\nJay-Z admitted to Angie Martinez in a 2009 interview on the BET program Food for Thought that he hoped the song would be a success like \"Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)\" due to their similarities but was surprised when it wasn't, even saying \"I dropped the record and then nothing\". The song did, however, achieve moderate success in the UK reaching #18 on the singles chart. A music video for the song was also released, which was directed by Chris Robinson.\n\n\"Anything (The Berlin Remixes)\"\n\nFormats and track listings\n\nVinyl 12\"\n\nA-side\n \"Anything (GBZ Remix)\"\t\t\n \"Anything (GBZ Remix Instrumental)\"\n\nB-side\n \"Anything (DJ Tomekk Remix)\"\t\n \"Anything (Original Version)\"\t\n \"Anything (Original Version Instrumental)\"\n\nFormats and track listings\n\nCD\n \"Anything (Radio Edit)\"\n \"So Ghetto\"\n \"There's Been a Murder\"\n \"Anything (Video)\"\n\nVinyl\n\nA-side\n \"Anything (Radio Edit) (3:47)\"\n \"Anything (LP Version) (4:47)\"\n \"Anything (Instrumental) (4:48)\"\n\nB-side\n \"Big Pimpin' (Radio Edit) (3:56)\"\n \"Big Pimpin' (LP Version) (4:44)\"\n \"Big Pimpin' (Instrumental) (4:59)\"\n\nCharts\n\nSee also\nList of songs recorded by Jay-Z\n\nReferences\n\n2000 singles\nJay-Z songs\nMusic videos directed by Chris Robinson (director)\nSongs written by Jay-Z\nSongs written by Lionel Bart\nRoc-A-Fella Records singles\n2000 songs"
] |
[
"Jeff Dunham",
"2009-present",
"What was he doing in 2009?",
"Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central.",
"What was the shows name?",
"The Jeff Dunham Show",
"How many viewers watched it?",
"Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled",
"Why was it canceled?",
"amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows.",
"What did he do afterward?",
"Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sictom 30 Rock,",
"Did he do anything after that ?",
"In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in \"Hart to Hart\", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance,"
] | C_12aced0306034efd8cb7f77cc42ae917_0 | Did he ever go back to Comedy Central? | 7 | Did Jeff Dunham ever go back to Comedy Central? | Jeff Dunham | In March 2009, Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central. It included a fourth stand-up special to air in 2010, DVDs, a consumer products partnership, a 60-city tour beginning in September 2010, and an order for a television series called The Jeff Dunham Show that premiered on October 22, 2009. Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled after only one season, amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows. Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sictom 30 Rock, playing a ventriloquist named Rick Wayne and his dummy Pumpkin from Stone Mountain, Georgia. In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in "Hart to Hart", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance, as two security guards. He appeared in the 2010 Steve Carell/Paul Rudd comedy, Dinner for Schmucks, as Lewis, with a new puppet named Diane. His fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, premiered on September 25, 2011, on Comedy Central. His fifth special, Minding the Monsters, which was taped in Savannah, premiered on Comedy Central on October 7, 2012. His sixth special, All Over the Map, which was taped in various international cities, premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2014. On March 28, 2014, Country Music Television premiered Achmed Saves America, an animated film starring Achmed the Dead Terrorist. Dunham's seventh special, Unhinged in Hollywood, premiered on September 17, 2015. Rather than premiering on Comedy Central, the special instead aired on NBC. CANNOTANSWER | His fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, premiered on September 25, 2011, on Comedy Central. | Jeffrey Douglas Dunham (born April 18, 1962) is an American ventriloquist, stand-up comedian and actor who has also appeared on numerous television shows, including Late Show with David Letterman, Comedy Central Presents, The Tonight Show and Sonny With a Chance. He has six specials that run on Comedy Central: Arguing with Myself, Spark of Insanity, Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special, Controlled Chaos, Minding the Monsters, and All Over the Map. Dunham also starred in The Jeff Dunham Show, a series on the network in 2009.
His style has been described as "a dressed-down, more digestible version of Don Rickles with multiple personality disorder". Time described his characters as "politically incorrect, gratuitously insulting and ill tempered." Dunham has been credited with reviving ventriloquism and doing more to promote the art form than anyone since Edgar Bergen.
Dunham has been called "America's favorite comedian" by Slate. According to the concert industry publication Pollstar, he is the top-grossing standup act in North America and among the most successful acts in Europe as well. As of November 2009, he has sold over four million DVDs, an additional $7 million in merchandise sales, and received more than 350 million hits on YouTube as of October 2009; his introduction of Achmed the Dead Terrorist in Spark of Insanity was ranked as the ninth most watched YouTube video at the time. A Very Special Christmas Special was the most-watched telecast in Comedy Central history, with the DVD selling over 400,000 copies in its first two weeks. Forbes ranked Dunham as the third highest-paid comedian in the United States behind Jerry Seinfeld and Chris Rock and reported that he was one of the highest-earning comics from June 2008 to June 2009, earning approximately $30 million during that period. Dunham also does occasional acting roles. He achieved the Guinness Book of World Records record for "Most tickets sold for a stand-up comedy tour" for his Spark of Insanity tour, performing in 386 venues worldwide.
Early life
Dunham was born on April 18, 1962, in Dallas, Texas. When he was three months old, he was adopted by real estate appraiser Howard Dunham, and his homemaker wife Joyce, who raised him in a devoutly Presbyterian household in an affluent Dallas neighborhood, as an only child.
He began ventriloquism in 1970 at age eight, when his parents gave him a Mortimer Snerd dummy for Christmas, and an accompanying how-to album. The next day he checked out a how-to book on ventriloquism from the library, and explained in 2011 that he still had it, remarking that he was "a thief in the third grade". By the fourth grade, Dunham decided he not only wanted to be a professional ventriloquist, but the best one ever. Dunham began practicing for hours in front of a mirror, studying the routines of Edgar Bergen, and the how-to record Jimmy Nelson's Instant Ventriloquism, finding ventriloquism to be a learned skill, similar to juggling, that anyone with a normal speaking voice can acquire. Dunham has explained that, as an only child, he enjoyed being alone, likening his solitude to a "warm blanket" with which he could explore his own thoughts and ideas, which prepared him for the solitude of living alone when he later moved to Los Angeles as a struggling comedian.
When Dunham was in the sixth grade, he began attending the Vent Haven ConVENTion in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky, an annual international meeting of ventriloquists that includes competitions, where he met Jimmy Nelson in person. Dunham has missed only one ConVENTion since then, in 1977. The organizers of the ConVENTion eventually declared Dunham a "retired champion", ineligible from entering any more competitions, as other attendees were too intimidated to compete against him. The Vent Haven Museum devotes a section to Dunham, alongside Señor Wences and Dunham's idol, Edgar Bergen.
Career
Beginnings
Dunham began performing for audiences as a teenager, in various venues such as school, church, and during his job at Six Flags. By his middle school years, he began to perform for banquets attended by local celebrities such as Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach, having developed his style of lampooning those he performed for, using the puppets to say things too risque for him to say without them. Dunham's television debut came in 1976 when the still prepubescent performer caught the attention of Dallas reporters like Bill O'Reilly, who interviewed Dunham for a local news story. Dunham later did commercials for Datsun dealerships in Dallas and Tyler while still in high school. While emceeing a high school talent show, he dealt with a heckler, and won over the rest of the audience. During this period he became so associated with his craft that he and one of his dummies "cowrote" a column in the school paper, and he would pose with his dummies for yearbooks as an inexpensive way to acquire professional photos of his act for promotional purposes. He was voted Most Likely to Succeed, and in 1980, after he graduated from high school, Dunham gave himself a career goal of obtaining, within ten years, an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, which was seen as the "holy grail" for comedians.
That year Dunham began attending Baylor University, hoping to graduate with a degree in communications, while performing around campus. He would also fly around the country on weekends, doing up to 100 private shows a year, entertaining corporate customers such as General Electric, whose CEO, Jack Welch, he mocked during his routine. By his junior year in college (1983–84), Dunham was making $70,000 a year, and as word spread of his act, he landed featured spots opening for Bob Hope and George Burns, though he still perceived his act as raw, as he did not have any knowledge of standup comedy beyond his Bill Cosby albums.
He caught a break in 1985 when he was asked to join the Broadway show Sugar Babies with Mickey Rooney and Ann Miller, replacing an outgoing variety act. For the naive and devoutly-raised Dunham, Broadway was a new world filled with beautiful showgirls and crusty stagehands, and his first taste of entertainment industry egos came when Rooney called Dunham into his dressing room, and told him he was there for one reason alone: so that Rooney could change his costumes. He performed at the Westbury Music Fair on Long Island. These early experiences, in which he used characters like José Jalapeño on a Stick, taught him the value of modifying his act regionally, as the jalapeño jokes that worked well in Texas were not as well received by audiences in Long Island. After graduating from Baylor University in 1986, he continued honing his act in comedy clubs in the Southwest with new characters such as Peanut and José Jalapeño, but struggled against the perception he relates from fellow comedians that he was not a true comedian because he relied on props.
His experience at Catch a Rising Star in New York City served as a bitter confirmation of where ventriloquists stood in the comedic food chain, as the emcee at that club gave Dunham little respect. According to Dunham, after he arrived at the club in the evening and informed the emcee that he was a ventriloquist, the emcee reacted with derision, telling Dunham that he would be given a late time slot, and after that time slot came and passed, kept postponing Dunham's stage time until Dunham left the club.
By the end of 1988, Dunham felt his career had gone as far as it could go in Texas, and he moved to Los Angeles, California, never having, as he has commented, "a real job", much to the concern of his parents, who assumed he would relegate his act to local venues such as church groups. When he first arrived in Los Angeles, the comedy in his act bombed. Dunham attributes this initial reaction to his underdeveloped comedy, explaining that while the characters' personalities were developed at that point, his jokes were not. In addition to this, the comedy world was not welcoming to ventriloquists, and his manager, Judi Brown-Marmel, did not use the word "ventriloquist" when finding bookings for him, choosing to present him as a comedy duo. After Dunham became friends with Mike Lacey, owner of The Comedy & Magic Club in Hermosa Beach, Lacey gave Dunham a steady slot at the club, where Dunham sharpened his act by observing the techniques of comedians like Jerry Seinfeld, and taking the advice of colleague Bill Engvall, moving away from his G-rated material toward edgier, more adult themes.
The Tonight Show
At the end of 1988, Dunham was told by James McCawley, a talent booker for The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, that Dunham would be given a spot on the coveted program. Though the 26-year-old Dunham was elated that his 10-year goal was arriving two years early, McCawley later cancelled Dunham's appearance after attending, with Roseanne Barr, a public performance of Dunham's the day before Dunham's scheduled Tonight Show taping. McCawley informed Dunham on the day of the scheduled taping that he had been wrong in his initial assessment of Dunham, whom he now said was not ready for The Tonight Show. Dunham continued to tighten his act in Los Angeles clubs, performing the same six-minute segment with Peanut a total of nine times for McCawley over the next few months. Finally at the Ice-House in Pasadena in April 1990, after Dunham did the same segment, McCawley informed Dunham that he would finally get his Tonight Show appearance. Dunham and Peanut appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson on April 6, 1990, alongside guests Bob Hope and B.B. King. Following his bit, he was invited to sit on Johnny Carson's couch, a mark of approval on Carson's show. Upon sitting down next to Carson's desk, Dunham pulled out Walter, who told Carson sidekick Ed McMahon, "Stop sending me all your damn mail." At the time, Dunham saw his Tonight Show appearance as his big break, but was frustrated at his parents' initial disapproval over Walter's use of the words "hell" and "damn", and he would toil in obscurity for another twelve years, continuing his stand up at venues such as The Improv chain, and appearing in small roles on TV. One of these was a 1996 episode of Ellen, in which he appeared with Walter. Dunham also appeared with Walter in a TV commercial for Hertz. Dunham would appear on The Tonight Show a total of four times, as well as similar TV venues such as Hot Country Nights, appearing in one segment with Reba McEntire. This exposure helped make Dunham a large theater headliner, a rare accomplishment for a ventriloquist, but by the mid-1990s, his television appearances had dwindled, and with them, so did his stage audiences.
Dunham moved back to clubs, more than 200 appearances a year. To maintain a connection with his fan base, he would use question cards that he had audiences fill out for his performances to build a database, which was tailor-made for the burgeoning World Wide Web. Though he was voted Funniest Male Standup at the American Comedy Awards in 1998, his club work kept him away from his wife and daughters between two and three weeks each month, which put a strain on his marriage, and made paying bills for his expanded family difficult. By 2002, Dunham was hoping to obtain more TV work to raise his profile and ease his standup schedule. Such exposure was elusive until a successful appearance on The Best Damn Sports Show Period, where Dunham and Walter made jokes at the expense of co-hosts Tom Arnold, Michael Irvin, John Salley and John Kruk, generating laughter from them, and giving Dunham much-needed exposure. In 2003, Dunham was the frontrunner to replace Jimmy Kimmel on Fox NFL Sunday, but hosts Howie Long and Terry Bradshaw were not amenable to the idea of being upstaged by a puppet, and, as Dunham tells it, did not provide a welcoming atmosphere to Dunham, nor allow him to speak much during his appearance.
First Comedy Central specials
On July 18, 2003, Dunham appeared on Comedy Central Presents, his first solo appearance on Comedy Central. During his half hour piece, he showcased José Jalapeño on a Stick, Walter, an early version of Melvin the Superhero Guy and Peanut, whom Dunham had begun to merchandise into a line of dolls. The appearance was successful, but Comedy Central resisted giving Dunham more airtime, feeling that he was not a good fit for them. By 2005 Dunham decided to gamble on financing his own comedy DVD, Jeff Dunham: Arguing with Myself, which was taped in Santa Ana, California. Dunham's manager, Judi Brown-Marmel, lobbied the network to air it, pointing to Dunham's drawing power and merchandising profits, and arguing that the network needed more diverse content. Surprised by the high ratings of the first Blue Collar Comics concert movie that same year, the network began to reconsider its brand. In late 2006, Comedy Central aired Arguing with Myself, drawing two million viewers when it aired, and selling two million DVDs.
In 2007, Dunham appeared as The Amazing Ken with José Jalapeño on a Stick in the Larry the Cable Guy feature film Delta Farce.
His second special, Jeff Dunham: Spark of Insanity, was taped at the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. that same year. It served not only to cement Dunham's stardom, but to introduce his most controversial character, Achmed the Dead Terrorist, which became a viral Internet sensation. A clip of Achmed from Insanity attracted over 140 million hits on YouTube, making it the ninth most watched clip on that website as of October 2009.
By 2008, Dunham's characters had crossed language barriers, with his specials dubbed for audiences in various countries such as France, and Dunham attracting requests for performances in South Africa, Australia, Norway, Denmark, China, and the Middle East. Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special was taped at the Pabst Theater in Milwaukee, Wisconsin that same year, and premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2008, watched by 6.6 million people. It became available on DVD and Blu-ray on November 18, 2008. The special's premiere was the highest rated telecast in Comedy Central's history.
In September 2008, his career reached new heights as he began performing in arenas filled with tens of thousands of people. Dunham was somewhat wary of such large venues, but adapted by adjusting the timing of his often rapid exchanges with the puppets so that audience members farthest from the stage could have time to react.
In addition to his comedy specials, Dunham also released his first music album, Don't Come Home for Christmas, on November 4, 2008. It contains original Christmas songs as well as a parody of "Jingle Bells" by Achmed entitled "Jingle Bombs". All the songs, with the exception of "Jingle Bombs", were written and accompanied by Brian Haner, who joined Dunham's act as "Guitar Guy". His first onscreen appearance was in Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special.
2009–present
In March 2009, Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central. It included a fourth stand-up special to air in 2010, DVDs, a consumer products partnership, a 60-city tour beginning in September 2010, and an order for a television series called The Jeff Dunham Show that premiered on October 22, 2009. Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled after only one season, amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows.
Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sitcom 30 Rock, playing a ventriloquist named Rick Wayne and his dummy Pumpkin from Stone Mountain, Georgia. In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in "Hart to Hart", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance, as two security guards. He appeared in the 2010 Steve Carell/Paul Rudd comedy, Dinner for Schmucks, as Lewis, with a new puppet named Diane.
His fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, premiered on September 25, 2011, on Comedy Central. His fifth special, Minding the Monsters, which was taped in Savannah, premiered on Comedy Central on October 7, 2012. His sixth special, All Over the Map, which was taped in various international cities, premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2014.
On March 28, 2014, Country Music Television premiered Achmed Saves America, an animated film starring Achmed the Dead Terrorist.
Dunham's seventh special, Unhinged in Hollywood, premiered on September 17, 2015. Rather than premiering on Comedy Central, the special instead aired on NBC.
Critical praise and controversy
In January 2008, Dunham was voted by fans the Top Comic in Comedy Central's "Stand-Up Showdown". He is the only person ever to win the "Ventriloquist of the Year" Award twice. He was nominated "Comedian of the Year" by the TNN Music City News Country Awards, and has drawn praise from the Dallas Morning News for his technique and timing. Critics, such as Randee Dawn of The Hollywood Reporter, accused Dunham's characters of being racist caricatures, sexist, and homophobic.
In 2008, a TV commercial for a ringtone which featured Dunham's character Achmed the Dead Terrorist (see Characters below) was banned by the South African Advertising Standards Authority after a complaint was filed by a citizen stating that the ad was offensive to Muslims, and portrayed all Muslims as terrorists. Dunham responded that "Achmed makes it clear in my act that he is not Muslim." However, the ASA noted that the name Achmed was of Arab origin and was one of the names of Muhammad. Dunham responded, "I've skewered whites, blacks, Hispanics, Christians, Jews, Muslims, gays, straights, rednecks, addicts, the elderly, and my wife. As a standup comic, it is my job to make the majority of people laugh, and I believe that comedy is the last true form of free speech ... I'm considering renaming Achmed 'Bill'", he added. Dunham has conceded that he does exhibit particular sensitivity to the "conservative country crowd" or those characterized by "basic Christian values", as they are one of his largest constituencies, and part of his upbringing.
Dunham was heckled and criticized for mocking TV critics during a July 2009 press tour to promote his then-upcoming Comedy Central TV series, The Jeff Dunham Show, as well as Comedy Central programming chief Lauren Correo. In October 2009 The Jeff Dunham Show enjoyed good initial ratings, but was not well liked by critics, some of whom either questioned the wisdom of translating his act into a series, or cited Dunham, his previous specials, or ventriloquism itself as reasons for disliking the show.
J.P. Williams, the producer of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, has opined that Dunham's act is not funny on its own merits, and that his material gets a greater reaction because of the puppet characters than it would otherwise garner by itself. Blue Collar veteran Bill Engvall, a friend of Dunham's, insists otherwise, saying that Dunham is inherently funny with or without the puppets.
In a 2014 show in Malaysia, the government requested that he not use or name Achmed in his show. Due to the restriction, but to avoid disappointing fans, Achmed was renamed to be "Jacques Merde, the Dead French Terrorist" (Jacques Merde meaning "Jack Shit").
Books
In 2003, BRASMA Publications released Dear Walter, a collection of questions asked of Dunham's fictional curmudgeon at live performances, authored by Dunham and Walter Cummings. His autobiography, All By My Selves: Walter, Peanut, Achmed and Me, was published by Dutton in 2010.
Characters
Recurring characters
Walter
Walter is a retired, grumpy old man with arms always crossed in discontent. Dunham was inspired to create Walter when he watched Bette Davis's final appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, giving her honest, unfiltered candor to Walter, and patterning Walter's frown on Dunham's own. He has a brash, negative and often sarcastic view on today's world. He is a Vietnam War veteran and a former welder, and "doesn't give a damn" about anyone, especially his own wife and certain audience members. Walter appeared in every Comedy Central special. He's been married for several decades. When Dunham asks him if he remembers the happiest moment of his life after Walter tells him he has been married for forty-six years, Walter responds, "Forty-seven years ago!" Dunham created the Walter puppet himself, including both the initial sculpture and the silicone mold, though he eventually began using professional effects companies for the latter stages with his subsequent puppets.
Peanut
Peanut is a hyperactive, purple-skinned "woozle" with white fur covering most of his body, a tuft of green hair on the top of his head, and one sneaker on his left foot. Dunham explains in Arguing with Myself that Peanut is from a small Micronesian island, and that they met in Florida. Peanut's humor is not based on a particular motif or stereotype, as those of the other characters, and he has been described as "the bad kid". He often makes fun of Dunham, and torments and mocks José Jalapeño on a Stick. Touching upon his unusual appearance and personality, he asks Dunham in Arguing with Myself, after Dunham denies ever having done drugs, "Then how the hell did you come up with me?"
José Jalapeño on a Stick
José is a talking jalapeño pepper on a stick who wears a small sombrero. José, who speaks with a thick Spanish accent, is typically paired with Peanut, who often makes fun of José, uses appeals to Latino stereotypes when doing so, and makes fun of his being on a stick. Although José was not Dunham's first puppet, it was the first that Dunham made himself.
Bubba J
Bubba J is a beer-drinking redneck that Dunham describes in Arguing with Myself and A Very Special Christmas Special as "white trash trailer park", and whom Dunham uses for humor centered on such stereotypes. To this end, he frequently does jokes involving Bubba J's love of drinking beer and NASCAR, and his low intelligence. Touching upon such stereotypes, Bubba mentions in Arguing with Myself that he met his wife at a family reunion, and remembers seeing her with a corn dog in one hand, a beer in another, and leaning against a ferris wheel, "making it tilt". Although he does not appear onstage, Bubba appears as the backstage security guard in Controlled Chaos. He was inspired by Edgar Bergen's puppet, Mortimer Snerd.
Achmed the Dead Terrorist
Achmed is the skeletal corpse of an incompetent suicide bomber, whom Dunham uses to satirize the contemporary issue of terrorism. He is known for yelling, "Silence! I keel you!" to Dunham and people laughing in the audience. Achmed first appeared in Spark of Insanity, and has appeared in every Dunham special since then. In Spark of Insanity the audience learns several things about Achmed. When Dunham says that Achmed must be dead because he's a skeleton, Achmed responds, "It's a flesh wound." When Dunham inquires as to how he died, Achmed explains his incompetence with explosives, while also casting aspersions on Dunham's sexual prowess by saying that they both suffer from "premature detonation". Although he frequently mentions working for Osama Bin Laden, Achmed denies being a Muslim and says "Look at my ass! It says 'Made in China'!" He says he is afraid of Walter, partially because he's "one mean son of a bitch" and finds Walter's flatulence to be more potent than Saddam Hussein's mustard gas. In Very Special Christmas Special, he sings a song called "Jingle Bombs".
By June 2009, the sketch in which Dunham introduced Achmed had amassed nearly 200 million views on YouTube. The large, round, articulated eyes of puppets such as Achmed and Achmed Junior are constructed by the same effects artist who created the dinosaur eyes for the Jurassic Park films. The character starred in Achmed Saves America, an animated film that premiered on Country Music Television in March 2014. In the film, which depicts the mishap that led to the character's skeletonization, Achmed finds himself in an American town called Americaville, which he plots to blow up, before developing an affinity for American culture.
Non-recurring and retired characters
Sweet Daddy Dee
Dunham introduces Sweet Daddy Dee in Arguing with Myself as his "new manager". He calls himself a "pimp", which he says stands for "Player In the Management Profession." According to Sweet Daddy, because he is a pimp, that makes Jeff the "ho". When Dunham objects, Daddy Dee points out that Dunham makes people laugh and feel good for a living. When Dunham agrees that this is the case, Daddy Dee says, "You a ho." When Dunham asks what he would say if he told him that he was a comedian only because he enjoyed it, Daddy Dee responds, "You a dumb ho." Unlike Bubba J, he hates NASCAR. Sweet Daddy's headstone is featured in the beginning of the special Minding the Monsters.
Melvin the Superhero Guy
Melvin wears a blue superhero costume, and is used to poke fun at superheroes. When asked about his superhuman powers, he indicates that he has X-ray vision, adding, "I love looking at boobies!" He appears to have no other powers, however: When Dunham asks how far he can fly, he responds, "How far can you throw me?", and when asked if he can stop a bullet like Superman, he responds, "Yeah. Once". Dunham portrays Melvin as unimpressed with other superheroes: When told Superman can leap tall buildings in a single bound, Melvin dismisses him as a "showoff," arguing that he can simply walk around them, observes that Aquaman has the same powers as SpongeBob SquarePants, asserts that the Flash's super speed is derived from methamphetamine, that the Hulk's vaunted ability to get stronger as he gets angrier merely mirrors "every white trash guy on COPS," and makes innuendo about the questionable relationship between Batman and the underage Robin. Melvin's first onscreen appearance was in the July 2003 Comedy Central Presents episode, in which he had small, black, beady eyes. By his next appearance, in Spark of Insanity, he had been modified to have large, blue, crossed eyes. He has an enormous nose, which he claims is his symbol, and whose similarity in shape to that of a penis is alluded to in the act. Dunham sculpted the current version of Melvin's head himself, and hired an effects company called Renegade Effects Groups to create the rubber mold and complete the puppet, before then installing the mechanics himself. Melvin's headstone is featured in the beginning of the special Minding the Monsters. As revealed in the DVD release, this signifies that he will no longer be used.
Little Jeff
Little Jeff is a miniature version of Dunham himself, usually dressed in the same clothes Dunham wears during each show. His first onscreen appearance was in the 1989 television program A&E's An Evening at The Improv. He later appeared in Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos as a puppet that Peanut used when attempting his hand at ventriloquism. Peanut named the doll "Little Ugly Ass-Jeff", and uses him to insult Dunham.
Diane
Diane first appeared with Dunham in the 2010 film Dinner for Schmucks as "Debbie", his character's "wife". She made her stand-up debut in Dunham's Identity Crisis Tour 2010.
Achmed Junior
Achmed Junior is the estranged son of Achmed. He was designed by Mad magazine illustrator Tom Richmond. He first appeared during the Identity Crisis Tour 2010, and made his first onscreen appearance in Dunham's fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos. Like his father, Achmed Junior is the victim of a bomb, which resulted in the destruction of the half of his face and body. He speaks with a British accent because he was raised in Britain after the accident. Much to his father's consternation, he expresses an attraction to Dunham's male stage hand, Marnell, appears on stage to address Achmed's loss of balance. Conflict also stems from the fact that unlike his father, Achmed Junior does not wish to be a suicide bomber.
Seamus
Seamus is a grumpy, beer-drinking, Irish infant who first appears in Relative Disaster, which was filmed in Ireland. Dunham, himself an adopted child, introduces him as a son that he has adopted in order to "pay it forward". Despite being an infant, he is a belligerent heavy drinker, traits with which Dunham pokes fun at Irish stereotypes. Dunham also establishes Seamus as a fan of United States President Donald Trump in order to poke fun at Trump, Hillary Clinton, and the 2016 United States presidential election.
Larry the Adviser
Larry is the personal adviser to Donald Trump. He has unkempt orange hair, big bulgy eyes and has a cigarette in one hand. Jeff lightly shakes him to give the feeling of jitteriness. Larry is constantly on edge and is implied to be unnerved for having worked with Trump for "four hours". He nevertheless "supports" the president.
Others
Other characters that Dunham has voiced include Little Peanut, a miniature version of Peanut that Dunham has used to counter Peanut's use of Little Jeff; and an unseen worm inside a bottle of tequila, both of which he has used, for example, in his appearance on A&E's An Evening at The Improv.
In the 2020 United States presidential election, Dunham adapted the Walter puppet into "Wonald Grump" and "Ben Hiden," caricatures of Donald Trump and Joe Biden, respectively, for a mock debate moderated by Achmed.
Personal life
Dunham met his first wife, Paige Brown, at the Comedy Corner in West Palm Beach, Florida. They began dating in December 1992. In May 1994, Dunham married Brown and adopted her one-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Bree. Their daughters Ashlyn and Kenna were born in 1995 and 1997, respectively. Dunham's time away while performing proved a strain on the marriage, and in November 2008, he filed for divorce. By mid-2009, Dunham was in a relationship with Audrey Murdick, a certified nutritionist, personal trainer, and competition bodybuilder, and on December 25, 2011 they became engaged. On October 12, 2012, the couple married. On May 14, 2015, Dunham announced, via Facebook, that he and Audrey were expecting twin boys. In October, she gave birth to James Jeffrey and Jack Steven.
In addition to building the dummies he uses in his act, Dunham also restores antique ones as a hobby, such as The Umpire, a mechanized dummy built in 1941 to work the plate at a girls' softball game, which went unused and packed away for 50 years before Dunham acquired it in early 2008.
Dunham has harbored a love of helicopters since childhood and is fond of building and flying his own kit helicopters from Rotorway helicopter kits. At the time he finished writing his autobiography in June 2010, he was beginning to build his fourth kit. He is also an aficionado of muscle cars and Apple, Inc. products. According to the July 16, 2012, television documentary The Batmobile, Dunham owns the original Batmobile used in the Tim Burton film Batman, which he had outfitted with Corvette engine to make it street legal.
Tours
Filmography
Documentaries and specials
Acting
References
External links
Jeff Dunham at Comedy Central
1962 births
20th-century American comedians
21st-century American comedians
American adoptees
American male voice actors
American Presbyterians
American puppeteers
American stand-up comedians
Baylor University alumni
Living people
People from Dallas
Male actors from Dallas
Ventriloquists
Puppet designers | true | [
"The Jeselnik Offensive is an American late-night television series that aired on Comedy Central. It was hosted by stand-up comedian Anthony Jeselnik, who extended his onstage character into weekly, topical humor with a sociopathic, dark twist. The show primarily consisted of a monologue and two panelists who joined Jeselnik in adding a humorous take on shocking, lurid news stories. The series premiered February 19, 2013, on Comedy Central and was renewed for a second season on April 26, 2013, and aired July 9, 2013. On November 11, 2013, Comedy Central cancelled The Jeselnik Offensive after two seasons, due to low ratings.\n\nFormat\nThe Jeselnik Offensive has been described as combination of the late-night comedy series and a podcast. Each episode opens with a monologue from Jeselnik, which focuses on tragic news and dark humor. The following segment can sometimes be a comedic remote or an audience-participation game (\"Which Kind of Asian Is This?\"). Several recurring bits are used: \"Sacred Cow\" is a segment that takes a subject deemed off limits, and proceeds to make several jokes about it. Each segment uses its platform to tackle such \"off-topic\" topics as cancer, bullying and missing children through jokes. The following two segments feature guest panelists who continue the wicked take on news. The final segment, \"Defend Your Tweet,\" in which Jeselnik digs up an old tweet by each of the panelists and confronts them with it. At the end of each show, Jeselnik looks back at faux \"Best Moments\" from the broadcast, and closes the show with his sign-off phrase, \"Good night, kids, go read a book.\"\n\nThe series was taped at Hollywood Center Studios in Los Angeles.\n\nHistory\nIn preparing the show, Comedy Central was looking for a half-hour, four-nights-a-week show following The Colbert Report titled Midnight. Jeselnik's main draw was the monologue, where he felt he could tell jokes that he was unable to do on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, where he worked in 2009. For the pilot, Jeselnik did a test interview with a celebrity but felt \"so wrong [...] it just fit me like a bad suit.\" For the show's first episode, Jeselnik performs cancer-related standup for a cancer support group. \"I had to fight with Comedy Central to put that on the first episode,\" said Jeselnik. The network felt uneasy using the sketch as an introduction. Jeselnik pointed to the premiere episode of Chappelle's Show, in which Dave Chappelle plays a blind African-American Klansman, which he regarded as \"one of the edgiest things they ever did.\" As such, the sketch opened the first episode and received a positive reception; Jay Leno called to inform Jeselnik how much he loved the cancer segment. Season 2 premiered July 9.\n\nJeselnik revealed in his Netflix Special \"Thoughts and Prayers\" that Comedy Central threatened to cancel the show after Jeselnik made a joke about the Boston Marathon bombing the day it happened on his Twitter account. After Jeselnik told Comedy Central he wouldn't delete it (once they threatened to fire only him), they then informed him that they would simply cancel the show and fire everyone who worked on the show to which Jeselnik then deleted the joke citing \"what I could not do, what I cannot do, is walk up to my cameraman and say, 'Hey, buddy, no work for you on Monday; I had this sweet Tweet.'\"\n\nEpisodes\n\nSeason 1 (2013)\n\nSeason 2 (2013)\n\nReception\nThe series received positive reviews. Kevin McFarland of The A.V. Club wrote, \"The Jeselnik Offensive is one of the best [Comedy Central shows]. It's a highly intriguing and reliably funny take on the late-night format,\" adding, \"Jeselnik and his writers prove that the key to making jokes about touchy subjects is actually being funny instead of simply trying to be edgy.\"\n\nSee also\nList of programs broadcast by Comedy Central\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n The Jeselnik Offensive\n\n2010s American black comedy television series\n2010s American late-night television series\n2013 American television series debuts\n2013 American television series endings\nEnglish-language television shows\nComedy Central original programming",
"Hypocritical Oaf is the third album by comedian Doug Benson, released by Comedy Central Records as a CD/DVD.\n\nTrack listing\n\nCD\n\"Deets\" – 4:36\n\"Peanut Lady\" – 2:44\n\"The Track with the Stupid Fart Joke\" – 5:22\n\"Breakfast Window\" – 3:30\n\"Time to Go Fred Travalena On Your Asses\" – 2:51\n\"Weak Back Problems\" – 4:04\n\"Pot the Vote\" – 2:55\n\"Sitting There In Your Own Filth\" – 3:52\n\"Booty / Weedy Text\" – 5:15\n\"Follow Me\" – 2:56\n\"Too Trunk to Dweet\" – 1:58\n\"Big Finish\" – 9:42\n\nDVD\n\"Comedy Central Presents\" (2004)\n\"Comedy Central Presents\" (2009)\n\nReception\n\nHypocritical Oaf received positive reviews, mostly praised by fans. Allmusic wrote, \"the comedian is highly skilled and can work a lot of sex talk and fart jokes into these topics, as if he was a rambling, baked comedy ninja being cheered on by an equally baked audience.\n\nChart positions\n\nReferences\n\n2010 live albums\nComedy Central Records live albums\nStand-up comedy albums\n2010s comedy albums\n2010s spoken word albums\nSpoken word albums by American artists\nLive spoken word albums\nDoug Benson albums"
] |
[
"Jeff Dunham",
"2009-present",
"What was he doing in 2009?",
"Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central.",
"What was the shows name?",
"The Jeff Dunham Show",
"How many viewers watched it?",
"Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled",
"Why was it canceled?",
"amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows.",
"What did he do afterward?",
"Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sictom 30 Rock,",
"Did he do anything after that ?",
"In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in \"Hart to Hart\", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance,",
"Did he ever go back to Comedy Central?",
"His fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, premiered on September 25, 2011, on Comedy Central."
] | C_12aced0306034efd8cb7f77cc42ae917_0 | Whats the latest year that he has produced any more work? | 8 | Whats the latest year that Jeff Dunham has produced any more work? | Jeff Dunham | In March 2009, Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central. It included a fourth stand-up special to air in 2010, DVDs, a consumer products partnership, a 60-city tour beginning in September 2010, and an order for a television series called The Jeff Dunham Show that premiered on October 22, 2009. Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled after only one season, amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows. Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sictom 30 Rock, playing a ventriloquist named Rick Wayne and his dummy Pumpkin from Stone Mountain, Georgia. In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in "Hart to Hart", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance, as two security guards. He appeared in the 2010 Steve Carell/Paul Rudd comedy, Dinner for Schmucks, as Lewis, with a new puppet named Diane. His fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, premiered on September 25, 2011, on Comedy Central. His fifth special, Minding the Monsters, which was taped in Savannah, premiered on Comedy Central on October 7, 2012. His sixth special, All Over the Map, which was taped in various international cities, premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2014. On March 28, 2014, Country Music Television premiered Achmed Saves America, an animated film starring Achmed the Dead Terrorist. Dunham's seventh special, Unhinged in Hollywood, premiered on September 17, 2015. Rather than premiering on Comedy Central, the special instead aired on NBC. CANNOTANSWER | Dunham's seventh special, Unhinged in Hollywood, premiered on September 17, 2015. | Jeffrey Douglas Dunham (born April 18, 1962) is an American ventriloquist, stand-up comedian and actor who has also appeared on numerous television shows, including Late Show with David Letterman, Comedy Central Presents, The Tonight Show and Sonny With a Chance. He has six specials that run on Comedy Central: Arguing with Myself, Spark of Insanity, Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special, Controlled Chaos, Minding the Monsters, and All Over the Map. Dunham also starred in The Jeff Dunham Show, a series on the network in 2009.
His style has been described as "a dressed-down, more digestible version of Don Rickles with multiple personality disorder". Time described his characters as "politically incorrect, gratuitously insulting and ill tempered." Dunham has been credited with reviving ventriloquism and doing more to promote the art form than anyone since Edgar Bergen.
Dunham has been called "America's favorite comedian" by Slate. According to the concert industry publication Pollstar, he is the top-grossing standup act in North America and among the most successful acts in Europe as well. As of November 2009, he has sold over four million DVDs, an additional $7 million in merchandise sales, and received more than 350 million hits on YouTube as of October 2009; his introduction of Achmed the Dead Terrorist in Spark of Insanity was ranked as the ninth most watched YouTube video at the time. A Very Special Christmas Special was the most-watched telecast in Comedy Central history, with the DVD selling over 400,000 copies in its first two weeks. Forbes ranked Dunham as the third highest-paid comedian in the United States behind Jerry Seinfeld and Chris Rock and reported that he was one of the highest-earning comics from June 2008 to June 2009, earning approximately $30 million during that period. Dunham also does occasional acting roles. He achieved the Guinness Book of World Records record for "Most tickets sold for a stand-up comedy tour" for his Spark of Insanity tour, performing in 386 venues worldwide.
Early life
Dunham was born on April 18, 1962, in Dallas, Texas. When he was three months old, he was adopted by real estate appraiser Howard Dunham, and his homemaker wife Joyce, who raised him in a devoutly Presbyterian household in an affluent Dallas neighborhood, as an only child.
He began ventriloquism in 1970 at age eight, when his parents gave him a Mortimer Snerd dummy for Christmas, and an accompanying how-to album. The next day he checked out a how-to book on ventriloquism from the library, and explained in 2011 that he still had it, remarking that he was "a thief in the third grade". By the fourth grade, Dunham decided he not only wanted to be a professional ventriloquist, but the best one ever. Dunham began practicing for hours in front of a mirror, studying the routines of Edgar Bergen, and the how-to record Jimmy Nelson's Instant Ventriloquism, finding ventriloquism to be a learned skill, similar to juggling, that anyone with a normal speaking voice can acquire. Dunham has explained that, as an only child, he enjoyed being alone, likening his solitude to a "warm blanket" with which he could explore his own thoughts and ideas, which prepared him for the solitude of living alone when he later moved to Los Angeles as a struggling comedian.
When Dunham was in the sixth grade, he began attending the Vent Haven ConVENTion in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky, an annual international meeting of ventriloquists that includes competitions, where he met Jimmy Nelson in person. Dunham has missed only one ConVENTion since then, in 1977. The organizers of the ConVENTion eventually declared Dunham a "retired champion", ineligible from entering any more competitions, as other attendees were too intimidated to compete against him. The Vent Haven Museum devotes a section to Dunham, alongside Señor Wences and Dunham's idol, Edgar Bergen.
Career
Beginnings
Dunham began performing for audiences as a teenager, in various venues such as school, church, and during his job at Six Flags. By his middle school years, he began to perform for banquets attended by local celebrities such as Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach, having developed his style of lampooning those he performed for, using the puppets to say things too risque for him to say without them. Dunham's television debut came in 1976 when the still prepubescent performer caught the attention of Dallas reporters like Bill O'Reilly, who interviewed Dunham for a local news story. Dunham later did commercials for Datsun dealerships in Dallas and Tyler while still in high school. While emceeing a high school talent show, he dealt with a heckler, and won over the rest of the audience. During this period he became so associated with his craft that he and one of his dummies "cowrote" a column in the school paper, and he would pose with his dummies for yearbooks as an inexpensive way to acquire professional photos of his act for promotional purposes. He was voted Most Likely to Succeed, and in 1980, after he graduated from high school, Dunham gave himself a career goal of obtaining, within ten years, an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, which was seen as the "holy grail" for comedians.
That year Dunham began attending Baylor University, hoping to graduate with a degree in communications, while performing around campus. He would also fly around the country on weekends, doing up to 100 private shows a year, entertaining corporate customers such as General Electric, whose CEO, Jack Welch, he mocked during his routine. By his junior year in college (1983–84), Dunham was making $70,000 a year, and as word spread of his act, he landed featured spots opening for Bob Hope and George Burns, though he still perceived his act as raw, as he did not have any knowledge of standup comedy beyond his Bill Cosby albums.
He caught a break in 1985 when he was asked to join the Broadway show Sugar Babies with Mickey Rooney and Ann Miller, replacing an outgoing variety act. For the naive and devoutly-raised Dunham, Broadway was a new world filled with beautiful showgirls and crusty stagehands, and his first taste of entertainment industry egos came when Rooney called Dunham into his dressing room, and told him he was there for one reason alone: so that Rooney could change his costumes. He performed at the Westbury Music Fair on Long Island. These early experiences, in which he used characters like José Jalapeño on a Stick, taught him the value of modifying his act regionally, as the jalapeño jokes that worked well in Texas were not as well received by audiences in Long Island. After graduating from Baylor University in 1986, he continued honing his act in comedy clubs in the Southwest with new characters such as Peanut and José Jalapeño, but struggled against the perception he relates from fellow comedians that he was not a true comedian because he relied on props.
His experience at Catch a Rising Star in New York City served as a bitter confirmation of where ventriloquists stood in the comedic food chain, as the emcee at that club gave Dunham little respect. According to Dunham, after he arrived at the club in the evening and informed the emcee that he was a ventriloquist, the emcee reacted with derision, telling Dunham that he would be given a late time slot, and after that time slot came and passed, kept postponing Dunham's stage time until Dunham left the club.
By the end of 1988, Dunham felt his career had gone as far as it could go in Texas, and he moved to Los Angeles, California, never having, as he has commented, "a real job", much to the concern of his parents, who assumed he would relegate his act to local venues such as church groups. When he first arrived in Los Angeles, the comedy in his act bombed. Dunham attributes this initial reaction to his underdeveloped comedy, explaining that while the characters' personalities were developed at that point, his jokes were not. In addition to this, the comedy world was not welcoming to ventriloquists, and his manager, Judi Brown-Marmel, did not use the word "ventriloquist" when finding bookings for him, choosing to present him as a comedy duo. After Dunham became friends with Mike Lacey, owner of The Comedy & Magic Club in Hermosa Beach, Lacey gave Dunham a steady slot at the club, where Dunham sharpened his act by observing the techniques of comedians like Jerry Seinfeld, and taking the advice of colleague Bill Engvall, moving away from his G-rated material toward edgier, more adult themes.
The Tonight Show
At the end of 1988, Dunham was told by James McCawley, a talent booker for The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, that Dunham would be given a spot on the coveted program. Though the 26-year-old Dunham was elated that his 10-year goal was arriving two years early, McCawley later cancelled Dunham's appearance after attending, with Roseanne Barr, a public performance of Dunham's the day before Dunham's scheduled Tonight Show taping. McCawley informed Dunham on the day of the scheduled taping that he had been wrong in his initial assessment of Dunham, whom he now said was not ready for The Tonight Show. Dunham continued to tighten his act in Los Angeles clubs, performing the same six-minute segment with Peanut a total of nine times for McCawley over the next few months. Finally at the Ice-House in Pasadena in April 1990, after Dunham did the same segment, McCawley informed Dunham that he would finally get his Tonight Show appearance. Dunham and Peanut appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson on April 6, 1990, alongside guests Bob Hope and B.B. King. Following his bit, he was invited to sit on Johnny Carson's couch, a mark of approval on Carson's show. Upon sitting down next to Carson's desk, Dunham pulled out Walter, who told Carson sidekick Ed McMahon, "Stop sending me all your damn mail." At the time, Dunham saw his Tonight Show appearance as his big break, but was frustrated at his parents' initial disapproval over Walter's use of the words "hell" and "damn", and he would toil in obscurity for another twelve years, continuing his stand up at venues such as The Improv chain, and appearing in small roles on TV. One of these was a 1996 episode of Ellen, in which he appeared with Walter. Dunham also appeared with Walter in a TV commercial for Hertz. Dunham would appear on The Tonight Show a total of four times, as well as similar TV venues such as Hot Country Nights, appearing in one segment with Reba McEntire. This exposure helped make Dunham a large theater headliner, a rare accomplishment for a ventriloquist, but by the mid-1990s, his television appearances had dwindled, and with them, so did his stage audiences.
Dunham moved back to clubs, more than 200 appearances a year. To maintain a connection with his fan base, he would use question cards that he had audiences fill out for his performances to build a database, which was tailor-made for the burgeoning World Wide Web. Though he was voted Funniest Male Standup at the American Comedy Awards in 1998, his club work kept him away from his wife and daughters between two and three weeks each month, which put a strain on his marriage, and made paying bills for his expanded family difficult. By 2002, Dunham was hoping to obtain more TV work to raise his profile and ease his standup schedule. Such exposure was elusive until a successful appearance on The Best Damn Sports Show Period, where Dunham and Walter made jokes at the expense of co-hosts Tom Arnold, Michael Irvin, John Salley and John Kruk, generating laughter from them, and giving Dunham much-needed exposure. In 2003, Dunham was the frontrunner to replace Jimmy Kimmel on Fox NFL Sunday, but hosts Howie Long and Terry Bradshaw were not amenable to the idea of being upstaged by a puppet, and, as Dunham tells it, did not provide a welcoming atmosphere to Dunham, nor allow him to speak much during his appearance.
First Comedy Central specials
On July 18, 2003, Dunham appeared on Comedy Central Presents, his first solo appearance on Comedy Central. During his half hour piece, he showcased José Jalapeño on a Stick, Walter, an early version of Melvin the Superhero Guy and Peanut, whom Dunham had begun to merchandise into a line of dolls. The appearance was successful, but Comedy Central resisted giving Dunham more airtime, feeling that he was not a good fit for them. By 2005 Dunham decided to gamble on financing his own comedy DVD, Jeff Dunham: Arguing with Myself, which was taped in Santa Ana, California. Dunham's manager, Judi Brown-Marmel, lobbied the network to air it, pointing to Dunham's drawing power and merchandising profits, and arguing that the network needed more diverse content. Surprised by the high ratings of the first Blue Collar Comics concert movie that same year, the network began to reconsider its brand. In late 2006, Comedy Central aired Arguing with Myself, drawing two million viewers when it aired, and selling two million DVDs.
In 2007, Dunham appeared as The Amazing Ken with José Jalapeño on a Stick in the Larry the Cable Guy feature film Delta Farce.
His second special, Jeff Dunham: Spark of Insanity, was taped at the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. that same year. It served not only to cement Dunham's stardom, but to introduce his most controversial character, Achmed the Dead Terrorist, which became a viral Internet sensation. A clip of Achmed from Insanity attracted over 140 million hits on YouTube, making it the ninth most watched clip on that website as of October 2009.
By 2008, Dunham's characters had crossed language barriers, with his specials dubbed for audiences in various countries such as France, and Dunham attracting requests for performances in South Africa, Australia, Norway, Denmark, China, and the Middle East. Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special was taped at the Pabst Theater in Milwaukee, Wisconsin that same year, and premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2008, watched by 6.6 million people. It became available on DVD and Blu-ray on November 18, 2008. The special's premiere was the highest rated telecast in Comedy Central's history.
In September 2008, his career reached new heights as he began performing in arenas filled with tens of thousands of people. Dunham was somewhat wary of such large venues, but adapted by adjusting the timing of his often rapid exchanges with the puppets so that audience members farthest from the stage could have time to react.
In addition to his comedy specials, Dunham also released his first music album, Don't Come Home for Christmas, on November 4, 2008. It contains original Christmas songs as well as a parody of "Jingle Bells" by Achmed entitled "Jingle Bombs". All the songs, with the exception of "Jingle Bombs", were written and accompanied by Brian Haner, who joined Dunham's act as "Guitar Guy". His first onscreen appearance was in Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special.
2009–present
In March 2009, Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central. It included a fourth stand-up special to air in 2010, DVDs, a consumer products partnership, a 60-city tour beginning in September 2010, and an order for a television series called The Jeff Dunham Show that premiered on October 22, 2009. Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled after only one season, amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows.
Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sitcom 30 Rock, playing a ventriloquist named Rick Wayne and his dummy Pumpkin from Stone Mountain, Georgia. In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in "Hart to Hart", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance, as two security guards. He appeared in the 2010 Steve Carell/Paul Rudd comedy, Dinner for Schmucks, as Lewis, with a new puppet named Diane.
His fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, premiered on September 25, 2011, on Comedy Central. His fifth special, Minding the Monsters, which was taped in Savannah, premiered on Comedy Central on October 7, 2012. His sixth special, All Over the Map, which was taped in various international cities, premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2014.
On March 28, 2014, Country Music Television premiered Achmed Saves America, an animated film starring Achmed the Dead Terrorist.
Dunham's seventh special, Unhinged in Hollywood, premiered on September 17, 2015. Rather than premiering on Comedy Central, the special instead aired on NBC.
Critical praise and controversy
In January 2008, Dunham was voted by fans the Top Comic in Comedy Central's "Stand-Up Showdown". He is the only person ever to win the "Ventriloquist of the Year" Award twice. He was nominated "Comedian of the Year" by the TNN Music City News Country Awards, and has drawn praise from the Dallas Morning News for his technique and timing. Critics, such as Randee Dawn of The Hollywood Reporter, accused Dunham's characters of being racist caricatures, sexist, and homophobic.
In 2008, a TV commercial for a ringtone which featured Dunham's character Achmed the Dead Terrorist (see Characters below) was banned by the South African Advertising Standards Authority after a complaint was filed by a citizen stating that the ad was offensive to Muslims, and portrayed all Muslims as terrorists. Dunham responded that "Achmed makes it clear in my act that he is not Muslim." However, the ASA noted that the name Achmed was of Arab origin and was one of the names of Muhammad. Dunham responded, "I've skewered whites, blacks, Hispanics, Christians, Jews, Muslims, gays, straights, rednecks, addicts, the elderly, and my wife. As a standup comic, it is my job to make the majority of people laugh, and I believe that comedy is the last true form of free speech ... I'm considering renaming Achmed 'Bill'", he added. Dunham has conceded that he does exhibit particular sensitivity to the "conservative country crowd" or those characterized by "basic Christian values", as they are one of his largest constituencies, and part of his upbringing.
Dunham was heckled and criticized for mocking TV critics during a July 2009 press tour to promote his then-upcoming Comedy Central TV series, The Jeff Dunham Show, as well as Comedy Central programming chief Lauren Correo. In October 2009 The Jeff Dunham Show enjoyed good initial ratings, but was not well liked by critics, some of whom either questioned the wisdom of translating his act into a series, or cited Dunham, his previous specials, or ventriloquism itself as reasons for disliking the show.
J.P. Williams, the producer of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, has opined that Dunham's act is not funny on its own merits, and that his material gets a greater reaction because of the puppet characters than it would otherwise garner by itself. Blue Collar veteran Bill Engvall, a friend of Dunham's, insists otherwise, saying that Dunham is inherently funny with or without the puppets.
In a 2014 show in Malaysia, the government requested that he not use or name Achmed in his show. Due to the restriction, but to avoid disappointing fans, Achmed was renamed to be "Jacques Merde, the Dead French Terrorist" (Jacques Merde meaning "Jack Shit").
Books
In 2003, BRASMA Publications released Dear Walter, a collection of questions asked of Dunham's fictional curmudgeon at live performances, authored by Dunham and Walter Cummings. His autobiography, All By My Selves: Walter, Peanut, Achmed and Me, was published by Dutton in 2010.
Characters
Recurring characters
Walter
Walter is a retired, grumpy old man with arms always crossed in discontent. Dunham was inspired to create Walter when he watched Bette Davis's final appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, giving her honest, unfiltered candor to Walter, and patterning Walter's frown on Dunham's own. He has a brash, negative and often sarcastic view on today's world. He is a Vietnam War veteran and a former welder, and "doesn't give a damn" about anyone, especially his own wife and certain audience members. Walter appeared in every Comedy Central special. He's been married for several decades. When Dunham asks him if he remembers the happiest moment of his life after Walter tells him he has been married for forty-six years, Walter responds, "Forty-seven years ago!" Dunham created the Walter puppet himself, including both the initial sculpture and the silicone mold, though he eventually began using professional effects companies for the latter stages with his subsequent puppets.
Peanut
Peanut is a hyperactive, purple-skinned "woozle" with white fur covering most of his body, a tuft of green hair on the top of his head, and one sneaker on his left foot. Dunham explains in Arguing with Myself that Peanut is from a small Micronesian island, and that they met in Florida. Peanut's humor is not based on a particular motif or stereotype, as those of the other characters, and he has been described as "the bad kid". He often makes fun of Dunham, and torments and mocks José Jalapeño on a Stick. Touching upon his unusual appearance and personality, he asks Dunham in Arguing with Myself, after Dunham denies ever having done drugs, "Then how the hell did you come up with me?"
José Jalapeño on a Stick
José is a talking jalapeño pepper on a stick who wears a small sombrero. José, who speaks with a thick Spanish accent, is typically paired with Peanut, who often makes fun of José, uses appeals to Latino stereotypes when doing so, and makes fun of his being on a stick. Although José was not Dunham's first puppet, it was the first that Dunham made himself.
Bubba J
Bubba J is a beer-drinking redneck that Dunham describes in Arguing with Myself and A Very Special Christmas Special as "white trash trailer park", and whom Dunham uses for humor centered on such stereotypes. To this end, he frequently does jokes involving Bubba J's love of drinking beer and NASCAR, and his low intelligence. Touching upon such stereotypes, Bubba mentions in Arguing with Myself that he met his wife at a family reunion, and remembers seeing her with a corn dog in one hand, a beer in another, and leaning against a ferris wheel, "making it tilt". Although he does not appear onstage, Bubba appears as the backstage security guard in Controlled Chaos. He was inspired by Edgar Bergen's puppet, Mortimer Snerd.
Achmed the Dead Terrorist
Achmed is the skeletal corpse of an incompetent suicide bomber, whom Dunham uses to satirize the contemporary issue of terrorism. He is known for yelling, "Silence! I keel you!" to Dunham and people laughing in the audience. Achmed first appeared in Spark of Insanity, and has appeared in every Dunham special since then. In Spark of Insanity the audience learns several things about Achmed. When Dunham says that Achmed must be dead because he's a skeleton, Achmed responds, "It's a flesh wound." When Dunham inquires as to how he died, Achmed explains his incompetence with explosives, while also casting aspersions on Dunham's sexual prowess by saying that they both suffer from "premature detonation". Although he frequently mentions working for Osama Bin Laden, Achmed denies being a Muslim and says "Look at my ass! It says 'Made in China'!" He says he is afraid of Walter, partially because he's "one mean son of a bitch" and finds Walter's flatulence to be more potent than Saddam Hussein's mustard gas. In Very Special Christmas Special, he sings a song called "Jingle Bombs".
By June 2009, the sketch in which Dunham introduced Achmed had amassed nearly 200 million views on YouTube. The large, round, articulated eyes of puppets such as Achmed and Achmed Junior are constructed by the same effects artist who created the dinosaur eyes for the Jurassic Park films. The character starred in Achmed Saves America, an animated film that premiered on Country Music Television in March 2014. In the film, which depicts the mishap that led to the character's skeletonization, Achmed finds himself in an American town called Americaville, which he plots to blow up, before developing an affinity for American culture.
Non-recurring and retired characters
Sweet Daddy Dee
Dunham introduces Sweet Daddy Dee in Arguing with Myself as his "new manager". He calls himself a "pimp", which he says stands for "Player In the Management Profession." According to Sweet Daddy, because he is a pimp, that makes Jeff the "ho". When Dunham objects, Daddy Dee points out that Dunham makes people laugh and feel good for a living. When Dunham agrees that this is the case, Daddy Dee says, "You a ho." When Dunham asks what he would say if he told him that he was a comedian only because he enjoyed it, Daddy Dee responds, "You a dumb ho." Unlike Bubba J, he hates NASCAR. Sweet Daddy's headstone is featured in the beginning of the special Minding the Monsters.
Melvin the Superhero Guy
Melvin wears a blue superhero costume, and is used to poke fun at superheroes. When asked about his superhuman powers, he indicates that he has X-ray vision, adding, "I love looking at boobies!" He appears to have no other powers, however: When Dunham asks how far he can fly, he responds, "How far can you throw me?", and when asked if he can stop a bullet like Superman, he responds, "Yeah. Once". Dunham portrays Melvin as unimpressed with other superheroes: When told Superman can leap tall buildings in a single bound, Melvin dismisses him as a "showoff," arguing that he can simply walk around them, observes that Aquaman has the same powers as SpongeBob SquarePants, asserts that the Flash's super speed is derived from methamphetamine, that the Hulk's vaunted ability to get stronger as he gets angrier merely mirrors "every white trash guy on COPS," and makes innuendo about the questionable relationship between Batman and the underage Robin. Melvin's first onscreen appearance was in the July 2003 Comedy Central Presents episode, in which he had small, black, beady eyes. By his next appearance, in Spark of Insanity, he had been modified to have large, blue, crossed eyes. He has an enormous nose, which he claims is his symbol, and whose similarity in shape to that of a penis is alluded to in the act. Dunham sculpted the current version of Melvin's head himself, and hired an effects company called Renegade Effects Groups to create the rubber mold and complete the puppet, before then installing the mechanics himself. Melvin's headstone is featured in the beginning of the special Minding the Monsters. As revealed in the DVD release, this signifies that he will no longer be used.
Little Jeff
Little Jeff is a miniature version of Dunham himself, usually dressed in the same clothes Dunham wears during each show. His first onscreen appearance was in the 1989 television program A&E's An Evening at The Improv. He later appeared in Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos as a puppet that Peanut used when attempting his hand at ventriloquism. Peanut named the doll "Little Ugly Ass-Jeff", and uses him to insult Dunham.
Diane
Diane first appeared with Dunham in the 2010 film Dinner for Schmucks as "Debbie", his character's "wife". She made her stand-up debut in Dunham's Identity Crisis Tour 2010.
Achmed Junior
Achmed Junior is the estranged son of Achmed. He was designed by Mad magazine illustrator Tom Richmond. He first appeared during the Identity Crisis Tour 2010, and made his first onscreen appearance in Dunham's fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos. Like his father, Achmed Junior is the victim of a bomb, which resulted in the destruction of the half of his face and body. He speaks with a British accent because he was raised in Britain after the accident. Much to his father's consternation, he expresses an attraction to Dunham's male stage hand, Marnell, appears on stage to address Achmed's loss of balance. Conflict also stems from the fact that unlike his father, Achmed Junior does not wish to be a suicide bomber.
Seamus
Seamus is a grumpy, beer-drinking, Irish infant who first appears in Relative Disaster, which was filmed in Ireland. Dunham, himself an adopted child, introduces him as a son that he has adopted in order to "pay it forward". Despite being an infant, he is a belligerent heavy drinker, traits with which Dunham pokes fun at Irish stereotypes. Dunham also establishes Seamus as a fan of United States President Donald Trump in order to poke fun at Trump, Hillary Clinton, and the 2016 United States presidential election.
Larry the Adviser
Larry is the personal adviser to Donald Trump. He has unkempt orange hair, big bulgy eyes and has a cigarette in one hand. Jeff lightly shakes him to give the feeling of jitteriness. Larry is constantly on edge and is implied to be unnerved for having worked with Trump for "four hours". He nevertheless "supports" the president.
Others
Other characters that Dunham has voiced include Little Peanut, a miniature version of Peanut that Dunham has used to counter Peanut's use of Little Jeff; and an unseen worm inside a bottle of tequila, both of which he has used, for example, in his appearance on A&E's An Evening at The Improv.
In the 2020 United States presidential election, Dunham adapted the Walter puppet into "Wonald Grump" and "Ben Hiden," caricatures of Donald Trump and Joe Biden, respectively, for a mock debate moderated by Achmed.
Personal life
Dunham met his first wife, Paige Brown, at the Comedy Corner in West Palm Beach, Florida. They began dating in December 1992. In May 1994, Dunham married Brown and adopted her one-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Bree. Their daughters Ashlyn and Kenna were born in 1995 and 1997, respectively. Dunham's time away while performing proved a strain on the marriage, and in November 2008, he filed for divorce. By mid-2009, Dunham was in a relationship with Audrey Murdick, a certified nutritionist, personal trainer, and competition bodybuilder, and on December 25, 2011 they became engaged. On October 12, 2012, the couple married. On May 14, 2015, Dunham announced, via Facebook, that he and Audrey were expecting twin boys. In October, she gave birth to James Jeffrey and Jack Steven.
In addition to building the dummies he uses in his act, Dunham also restores antique ones as a hobby, such as The Umpire, a mechanized dummy built in 1941 to work the plate at a girls' softball game, which went unused and packed away for 50 years before Dunham acquired it in early 2008.
Dunham has harbored a love of helicopters since childhood and is fond of building and flying his own kit helicopters from Rotorway helicopter kits. At the time he finished writing his autobiography in June 2010, he was beginning to build his fourth kit. He is also an aficionado of muscle cars and Apple, Inc. products. According to the July 16, 2012, television documentary The Batmobile, Dunham owns the original Batmobile used in the Tim Burton film Batman, which he had outfitted with Corvette engine to make it street legal.
Tours
Filmography
Documentaries and specials
Acting
References
External links
Jeff Dunham at Comedy Central
1962 births
20th-century American comedians
21st-century American comedians
American adoptees
American male voice actors
American Presbyterians
American puppeteers
American stand-up comedians
Baylor University alumni
Living people
People from Dallas
Male actors from Dallas
Ventriloquists
Puppet designers | true | [
"WHATS'ON is a professional scheduling software package for broadcasting and media companies, created by the Belgian company MEDIAGENIX. CEO of this company is Fabrice Macquignon (since 2020).\n\nHistory\nThe software was first created for the Vlaamse Televisie Maatschappij in 1992 as a scheduling system for linear TV.\n\nFeatures\nIn 1999 the system was extended to include radio scheduling. Version 20 of the package includes video on demand, video streaming, podcasting and theme channel support. WHATS'ON includes support for revenue share licence agreements and it introduces the first fully embedded workflow engine that will further optimize the data flow between Digital asset management systems, play-out suites and finance systems. It cannot be modified.\n\nMarket\nThe scheduling software is in use by public broadcasters such as Danish radio, beIN Sports, NRK, RTBF, TG4, Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroep, Netherlands Public Broadcasting as well as by private broadcasters, including TV 2 (Denmark), TVN (Poland) and a number of stations from the SBS Broadcasting Group.\n\nIn total more than 400 channels in more than 18 countries are managed by WHATS’ON.\n\nWideOrbit distributes WHATS'ON in the USA.\n\nExternal links\nMEDIAGENIX Homepage\nWideOrbit Homepage\n\nReferences\n\nBusiness software",
"Tim Steward is a musician, singer, and songwriter from Brisbane, Australia. \nSteward was born in the United Kingdom and moved to Townsville, Australia in 1983, and Brisbane in 1989. Steward is most well known for his work in band Screamfeeder which formed in 1991, of which he is the singer, guitarist and principal songwriter.\n\nHe is also currently performing in Brisbane band We All Want To, who have released three critically acclaimed albums.\n\nIn 2006, Steward released his first solo studio album under Reverberation entitled How Does It End. Other bands/projects he has been involved with include Psycho Skate Smurfs on Smack, Lethal Injections, The Madmen and The Whats. He also played a role in promoting other Brisbane indie artists in the 90s through his record label Stone Groove.\n\nDiscography\n\nTim Steward studio albums\n How Does it End (2006)\n\nScreamfeeder studio albums\n Flour (album) (1992)\n Burn Out Your Name (1993)\n Fill Yourself With Music (1995)\n Kitten Licks (1996)\n Rocks on the Soul (2000)\n Take You Apart (2003)\n Pop Guilt (2017)\n\nScreamfeeder EPs\n Felicitator (1994)\n Closing Alaska (1997)\n Home Age (1999)\n Delusions Of Grandchildren (2005)\n\nScreamfeeder singles\n Fingers and Toes (1993)\n Fill Yourself With Music (1995)\n Who's Counting?/Sweet Little Oranges (1995)\n Dart (1996)\n Static (1996)\n Gravity (1996)\n Triple Hook (1998)\n Hi Cs (1998)\n Above The Dove (2000)\n Stopless (2000)\n Mr Tuba (2001)\n Ice Patrol (2003)\n 12345 (2003)\n I Don't Know What To Do Any More (2003)\n Bunny (2004)\n Alone in a Crowd (2015)\n All Over It Again (2016)\n Karen Trust Me (2016)\n\nCompilations \n Seven Year Glitch (1996) A collection of live recordings, rarities, non-album tracks and pre-Screamfeeder songs.\n Introducing: Screamfeeder (2004) A collection of singles and almost singles.\n Cargo Embargo (B Sides & More) (2011) – digital release only, A collection of all the band's b sides and selected songs which appeared on non-Australian versions of albums.\n\nLive Releases \n Live at The Zoo, Brisbane, March 2013\n Live at Woodland, December 2011\n Great Northern Hotel, Byron Bay, 13/1/98\n The Corner, Melbourne, 9/1/98\n Tim & Kellie Live in the Library, Singapore\n Tim and Kellie Live at The Zoo, 2001\n Tim Plays Solo 2002\n\nWe All Want To studio albums\n We All Want To (2010)\n Come Up Invisible (2012)\n The Haze (2015)\n\nWe All Want To EPs\n Back to the Car (2009)\n No Signs (2013)\n Sally Can't See (2013)(US promo EP)\n\nThe Whats\n All Mouth No Trousers LP\n A Bit Of Everything with The Whats EP\n\nThe Madmen\n Almost Past Caring Single\n Tower Single\n Cool Kinda Kid Single\n Thunder Egg EP''\n\nAwards\n Tim Steward's solo studio album How Does it End was cited as Best Album of 2006 on Fasterlouder.com.au. \n Tim also won the Skinny's/Rockinghorse Alternative Award and Ellaway's Song of the Year for the song \"Not the Same\" in the 2007 Q Song Awards. \n In 2012 Steward was recognised with a star on the Brunswick Street Mall ‘Walk of Fame’ honouring Queensland's finest and most accomplished musicians. \n The second We All Want To album (Come Up Invisible) was included in the AMP Long List and selected as a finalist for the Q Song Album of the Year in August 2013.\n Tim was awarded the Grant McLennan Fellowship in 2015, traveling to the UK in 2016 to spend a month songwriting. The songs written there appeared on Screamfeeder's Pop Guilt, and will appear on future WE ALL WANT TO releases.\n\nReferences\nScreamfeeder Website\nAbout Tim\nAbout THE WHATS\nWE ALL WANT TO Website\n\nAustralian male singers\nPeople from Brisbane\nLiving people\n1966 births\nLow Transit Industries artists"
] |
[
"Jeff Dunham",
"2009-present",
"What was he doing in 2009?",
"Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central.",
"What was the shows name?",
"The Jeff Dunham Show",
"How many viewers watched it?",
"Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled",
"Why was it canceled?",
"amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows.",
"What did he do afterward?",
"Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sictom 30 Rock,",
"Did he do anything after that ?",
"In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in \"Hart to Hart\", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance,",
"Did he ever go back to Comedy Central?",
"His fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, premiered on September 25, 2011, on Comedy Central.",
"Whats the latest year that he has produced any more work?",
"Dunham's seventh special, Unhinged in Hollywood, premiered on September 17, 2015."
] | C_12aced0306034efd8cb7f77cc42ae917_0 | Has he done any thing in 2018? | 9 | Has Jeff Dunham done any thing in 2018? | Jeff Dunham | In March 2009, Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central. It included a fourth stand-up special to air in 2010, DVDs, a consumer products partnership, a 60-city tour beginning in September 2010, and an order for a television series called The Jeff Dunham Show that premiered on October 22, 2009. Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled after only one season, amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows. Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sictom 30 Rock, playing a ventriloquist named Rick Wayne and his dummy Pumpkin from Stone Mountain, Georgia. In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in "Hart to Hart", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance, as two security guards. He appeared in the 2010 Steve Carell/Paul Rudd comedy, Dinner for Schmucks, as Lewis, with a new puppet named Diane. His fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, premiered on September 25, 2011, on Comedy Central. His fifth special, Minding the Monsters, which was taped in Savannah, premiered on Comedy Central on October 7, 2012. His sixth special, All Over the Map, which was taped in various international cities, premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2014. On March 28, 2014, Country Music Television premiered Achmed Saves America, an animated film starring Achmed the Dead Terrorist. Dunham's seventh special, Unhinged in Hollywood, premiered on September 17, 2015. Rather than premiering on Comedy Central, the special instead aired on NBC. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Jeffrey Douglas Dunham (born April 18, 1962) is an American ventriloquist, stand-up comedian and actor who has also appeared on numerous television shows, including Late Show with David Letterman, Comedy Central Presents, The Tonight Show and Sonny With a Chance. He has six specials that run on Comedy Central: Arguing with Myself, Spark of Insanity, Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special, Controlled Chaos, Minding the Monsters, and All Over the Map. Dunham also starred in The Jeff Dunham Show, a series on the network in 2009.
His style has been described as "a dressed-down, more digestible version of Don Rickles with multiple personality disorder". Time described his characters as "politically incorrect, gratuitously insulting and ill tempered." Dunham has been credited with reviving ventriloquism and doing more to promote the art form than anyone since Edgar Bergen.
Dunham has been called "America's favorite comedian" by Slate. According to the concert industry publication Pollstar, he is the top-grossing standup act in North America and among the most successful acts in Europe as well. As of November 2009, he has sold over four million DVDs, an additional $7 million in merchandise sales, and received more than 350 million hits on YouTube as of October 2009; his introduction of Achmed the Dead Terrorist in Spark of Insanity was ranked as the ninth most watched YouTube video at the time. A Very Special Christmas Special was the most-watched telecast in Comedy Central history, with the DVD selling over 400,000 copies in its first two weeks. Forbes ranked Dunham as the third highest-paid comedian in the United States behind Jerry Seinfeld and Chris Rock and reported that he was one of the highest-earning comics from June 2008 to June 2009, earning approximately $30 million during that period. Dunham also does occasional acting roles. He achieved the Guinness Book of World Records record for "Most tickets sold for a stand-up comedy tour" for his Spark of Insanity tour, performing in 386 venues worldwide.
Early life
Dunham was born on April 18, 1962, in Dallas, Texas. When he was three months old, he was adopted by real estate appraiser Howard Dunham, and his homemaker wife Joyce, who raised him in a devoutly Presbyterian household in an affluent Dallas neighborhood, as an only child.
He began ventriloquism in 1970 at age eight, when his parents gave him a Mortimer Snerd dummy for Christmas, and an accompanying how-to album. The next day he checked out a how-to book on ventriloquism from the library, and explained in 2011 that he still had it, remarking that he was "a thief in the third grade". By the fourth grade, Dunham decided he not only wanted to be a professional ventriloquist, but the best one ever. Dunham began practicing for hours in front of a mirror, studying the routines of Edgar Bergen, and the how-to record Jimmy Nelson's Instant Ventriloquism, finding ventriloquism to be a learned skill, similar to juggling, that anyone with a normal speaking voice can acquire. Dunham has explained that, as an only child, he enjoyed being alone, likening his solitude to a "warm blanket" with which he could explore his own thoughts and ideas, which prepared him for the solitude of living alone when he later moved to Los Angeles as a struggling comedian.
When Dunham was in the sixth grade, he began attending the Vent Haven ConVENTion in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky, an annual international meeting of ventriloquists that includes competitions, where he met Jimmy Nelson in person. Dunham has missed only one ConVENTion since then, in 1977. The organizers of the ConVENTion eventually declared Dunham a "retired champion", ineligible from entering any more competitions, as other attendees were too intimidated to compete against him. The Vent Haven Museum devotes a section to Dunham, alongside Señor Wences and Dunham's idol, Edgar Bergen.
Career
Beginnings
Dunham began performing for audiences as a teenager, in various venues such as school, church, and during his job at Six Flags. By his middle school years, he began to perform for banquets attended by local celebrities such as Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach, having developed his style of lampooning those he performed for, using the puppets to say things too risque for him to say without them. Dunham's television debut came in 1976 when the still prepubescent performer caught the attention of Dallas reporters like Bill O'Reilly, who interviewed Dunham for a local news story. Dunham later did commercials for Datsun dealerships in Dallas and Tyler while still in high school. While emceeing a high school talent show, he dealt with a heckler, and won over the rest of the audience. During this period he became so associated with his craft that he and one of his dummies "cowrote" a column in the school paper, and he would pose with his dummies for yearbooks as an inexpensive way to acquire professional photos of his act for promotional purposes. He was voted Most Likely to Succeed, and in 1980, after he graduated from high school, Dunham gave himself a career goal of obtaining, within ten years, an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, which was seen as the "holy grail" for comedians.
That year Dunham began attending Baylor University, hoping to graduate with a degree in communications, while performing around campus. He would also fly around the country on weekends, doing up to 100 private shows a year, entertaining corporate customers such as General Electric, whose CEO, Jack Welch, he mocked during his routine. By his junior year in college (1983–84), Dunham was making $70,000 a year, and as word spread of his act, he landed featured spots opening for Bob Hope and George Burns, though he still perceived his act as raw, as he did not have any knowledge of standup comedy beyond his Bill Cosby albums.
He caught a break in 1985 when he was asked to join the Broadway show Sugar Babies with Mickey Rooney and Ann Miller, replacing an outgoing variety act. For the naive and devoutly-raised Dunham, Broadway was a new world filled with beautiful showgirls and crusty stagehands, and his first taste of entertainment industry egos came when Rooney called Dunham into his dressing room, and told him he was there for one reason alone: so that Rooney could change his costumes. He performed at the Westbury Music Fair on Long Island. These early experiences, in which he used characters like José Jalapeño on a Stick, taught him the value of modifying his act regionally, as the jalapeño jokes that worked well in Texas were not as well received by audiences in Long Island. After graduating from Baylor University in 1986, he continued honing his act in comedy clubs in the Southwest with new characters such as Peanut and José Jalapeño, but struggled against the perception he relates from fellow comedians that he was not a true comedian because he relied on props.
His experience at Catch a Rising Star in New York City served as a bitter confirmation of where ventriloquists stood in the comedic food chain, as the emcee at that club gave Dunham little respect. According to Dunham, after he arrived at the club in the evening and informed the emcee that he was a ventriloquist, the emcee reacted with derision, telling Dunham that he would be given a late time slot, and after that time slot came and passed, kept postponing Dunham's stage time until Dunham left the club.
By the end of 1988, Dunham felt his career had gone as far as it could go in Texas, and he moved to Los Angeles, California, never having, as he has commented, "a real job", much to the concern of his parents, who assumed he would relegate his act to local venues such as church groups. When he first arrived in Los Angeles, the comedy in his act bombed. Dunham attributes this initial reaction to his underdeveloped comedy, explaining that while the characters' personalities were developed at that point, his jokes were not. In addition to this, the comedy world was not welcoming to ventriloquists, and his manager, Judi Brown-Marmel, did not use the word "ventriloquist" when finding bookings for him, choosing to present him as a comedy duo. After Dunham became friends with Mike Lacey, owner of The Comedy & Magic Club in Hermosa Beach, Lacey gave Dunham a steady slot at the club, where Dunham sharpened his act by observing the techniques of comedians like Jerry Seinfeld, and taking the advice of colleague Bill Engvall, moving away from his G-rated material toward edgier, more adult themes.
The Tonight Show
At the end of 1988, Dunham was told by James McCawley, a talent booker for The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, that Dunham would be given a spot on the coveted program. Though the 26-year-old Dunham was elated that his 10-year goal was arriving two years early, McCawley later cancelled Dunham's appearance after attending, with Roseanne Barr, a public performance of Dunham's the day before Dunham's scheduled Tonight Show taping. McCawley informed Dunham on the day of the scheduled taping that he had been wrong in his initial assessment of Dunham, whom he now said was not ready for The Tonight Show. Dunham continued to tighten his act in Los Angeles clubs, performing the same six-minute segment with Peanut a total of nine times for McCawley over the next few months. Finally at the Ice-House in Pasadena in April 1990, after Dunham did the same segment, McCawley informed Dunham that he would finally get his Tonight Show appearance. Dunham and Peanut appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson on April 6, 1990, alongside guests Bob Hope and B.B. King. Following his bit, he was invited to sit on Johnny Carson's couch, a mark of approval on Carson's show. Upon sitting down next to Carson's desk, Dunham pulled out Walter, who told Carson sidekick Ed McMahon, "Stop sending me all your damn mail." At the time, Dunham saw his Tonight Show appearance as his big break, but was frustrated at his parents' initial disapproval over Walter's use of the words "hell" and "damn", and he would toil in obscurity for another twelve years, continuing his stand up at venues such as The Improv chain, and appearing in small roles on TV. One of these was a 1996 episode of Ellen, in which he appeared with Walter. Dunham also appeared with Walter in a TV commercial for Hertz. Dunham would appear on The Tonight Show a total of four times, as well as similar TV venues such as Hot Country Nights, appearing in one segment with Reba McEntire. This exposure helped make Dunham a large theater headliner, a rare accomplishment for a ventriloquist, but by the mid-1990s, his television appearances had dwindled, and with them, so did his stage audiences.
Dunham moved back to clubs, more than 200 appearances a year. To maintain a connection with his fan base, he would use question cards that he had audiences fill out for his performances to build a database, which was tailor-made for the burgeoning World Wide Web. Though he was voted Funniest Male Standup at the American Comedy Awards in 1998, his club work kept him away from his wife and daughters between two and three weeks each month, which put a strain on his marriage, and made paying bills for his expanded family difficult. By 2002, Dunham was hoping to obtain more TV work to raise his profile and ease his standup schedule. Such exposure was elusive until a successful appearance on The Best Damn Sports Show Period, where Dunham and Walter made jokes at the expense of co-hosts Tom Arnold, Michael Irvin, John Salley and John Kruk, generating laughter from them, and giving Dunham much-needed exposure. In 2003, Dunham was the frontrunner to replace Jimmy Kimmel on Fox NFL Sunday, but hosts Howie Long and Terry Bradshaw were not amenable to the idea of being upstaged by a puppet, and, as Dunham tells it, did not provide a welcoming atmosphere to Dunham, nor allow him to speak much during his appearance.
First Comedy Central specials
On July 18, 2003, Dunham appeared on Comedy Central Presents, his first solo appearance on Comedy Central. During his half hour piece, he showcased José Jalapeño on a Stick, Walter, an early version of Melvin the Superhero Guy and Peanut, whom Dunham had begun to merchandise into a line of dolls. The appearance was successful, but Comedy Central resisted giving Dunham more airtime, feeling that he was not a good fit for them. By 2005 Dunham decided to gamble on financing his own comedy DVD, Jeff Dunham: Arguing with Myself, which was taped in Santa Ana, California. Dunham's manager, Judi Brown-Marmel, lobbied the network to air it, pointing to Dunham's drawing power and merchandising profits, and arguing that the network needed more diverse content. Surprised by the high ratings of the first Blue Collar Comics concert movie that same year, the network began to reconsider its brand. In late 2006, Comedy Central aired Arguing with Myself, drawing two million viewers when it aired, and selling two million DVDs.
In 2007, Dunham appeared as The Amazing Ken with José Jalapeño on a Stick in the Larry the Cable Guy feature film Delta Farce.
His second special, Jeff Dunham: Spark of Insanity, was taped at the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. that same year. It served not only to cement Dunham's stardom, but to introduce his most controversial character, Achmed the Dead Terrorist, which became a viral Internet sensation. A clip of Achmed from Insanity attracted over 140 million hits on YouTube, making it the ninth most watched clip on that website as of October 2009.
By 2008, Dunham's characters had crossed language barriers, with his specials dubbed for audiences in various countries such as France, and Dunham attracting requests for performances in South Africa, Australia, Norway, Denmark, China, and the Middle East. Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special was taped at the Pabst Theater in Milwaukee, Wisconsin that same year, and premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2008, watched by 6.6 million people. It became available on DVD and Blu-ray on November 18, 2008. The special's premiere was the highest rated telecast in Comedy Central's history.
In September 2008, his career reached new heights as he began performing in arenas filled with tens of thousands of people. Dunham was somewhat wary of such large venues, but adapted by adjusting the timing of his often rapid exchanges with the puppets so that audience members farthest from the stage could have time to react.
In addition to his comedy specials, Dunham also released his first music album, Don't Come Home for Christmas, on November 4, 2008. It contains original Christmas songs as well as a parody of "Jingle Bells" by Achmed entitled "Jingle Bombs". All the songs, with the exception of "Jingle Bombs", were written and accompanied by Brian Haner, who joined Dunham's act as "Guitar Guy". His first onscreen appearance was in Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special.
2009–present
In March 2009, Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central. It included a fourth stand-up special to air in 2010, DVDs, a consumer products partnership, a 60-city tour beginning in September 2010, and an order for a television series called The Jeff Dunham Show that premiered on October 22, 2009. Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled after only one season, amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows.
Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sitcom 30 Rock, playing a ventriloquist named Rick Wayne and his dummy Pumpkin from Stone Mountain, Georgia. In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in "Hart to Hart", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance, as two security guards. He appeared in the 2010 Steve Carell/Paul Rudd comedy, Dinner for Schmucks, as Lewis, with a new puppet named Diane.
His fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, premiered on September 25, 2011, on Comedy Central. His fifth special, Minding the Monsters, which was taped in Savannah, premiered on Comedy Central on October 7, 2012. His sixth special, All Over the Map, which was taped in various international cities, premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2014.
On March 28, 2014, Country Music Television premiered Achmed Saves America, an animated film starring Achmed the Dead Terrorist.
Dunham's seventh special, Unhinged in Hollywood, premiered on September 17, 2015. Rather than premiering on Comedy Central, the special instead aired on NBC.
Critical praise and controversy
In January 2008, Dunham was voted by fans the Top Comic in Comedy Central's "Stand-Up Showdown". He is the only person ever to win the "Ventriloquist of the Year" Award twice. He was nominated "Comedian of the Year" by the TNN Music City News Country Awards, and has drawn praise from the Dallas Morning News for his technique and timing. Critics, such as Randee Dawn of The Hollywood Reporter, accused Dunham's characters of being racist caricatures, sexist, and homophobic.
In 2008, a TV commercial for a ringtone which featured Dunham's character Achmed the Dead Terrorist (see Characters below) was banned by the South African Advertising Standards Authority after a complaint was filed by a citizen stating that the ad was offensive to Muslims, and portrayed all Muslims as terrorists. Dunham responded that "Achmed makes it clear in my act that he is not Muslim." However, the ASA noted that the name Achmed was of Arab origin and was one of the names of Muhammad. Dunham responded, "I've skewered whites, blacks, Hispanics, Christians, Jews, Muslims, gays, straights, rednecks, addicts, the elderly, and my wife. As a standup comic, it is my job to make the majority of people laugh, and I believe that comedy is the last true form of free speech ... I'm considering renaming Achmed 'Bill'", he added. Dunham has conceded that he does exhibit particular sensitivity to the "conservative country crowd" or those characterized by "basic Christian values", as they are one of his largest constituencies, and part of his upbringing.
Dunham was heckled and criticized for mocking TV critics during a July 2009 press tour to promote his then-upcoming Comedy Central TV series, The Jeff Dunham Show, as well as Comedy Central programming chief Lauren Correo. In October 2009 The Jeff Dunham Show enjoyed good initial ratings, but was not well liked by critics, some of whom either questioned the wisdom of translating his act into a series, or cited Dunham, his previous specials, or ventriloquism itself as reasons for disliking the show.
J.P. Williams, the producer of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, has opined that Dunham's act is not funny on its own merits, and that his material gets a greater reaction because of the puppet characters than it would otherwise garner by itself. Blue Collar veteran Bill Engvall, a friend of Dunham's, insists otherwise, saying that Dunham is inherently funny with or without the puppets.
In a 2014 show in Malaysia, the government requested that he not use or name Achmed in his show. Due to the restriction, but to avoid disappointing fans, Achmed was renamed to be "Jacques Merde, the Dead French Terrorist" (Jacques Merde meaning "Jack Shit").
Books
In 2003, BRASMA Publications released Dear Walter, a collection of questions asked of Dunham's fictional curmudgeon at live performances, authored by Dunham and Walter Cummings. His autobiography, All By My Selves: Walter, Peanut, Achmed and Me, was published by Dutton in 2010.
Characters
Recurring characters
Walter
Walter is a retired, grumpy old man with arms always crossed in discontent. Dunham was inspired to create Walter when he watched Bette Davis's final appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, giving her honest, unfiltered candor to Walter, and patterning Walter's frown on Dunham's own. He has a brash, negative and often sarcastic view on today's world. He is a Vietnam War veteran and a former welder, and "doesn't give a damn" about anyone, especially his own wife and certain audience members. Walter appeared in every Comedy Central special. He's been married for several decades. When Dunham asks him if he remembers the happiest moment of his life after Walter tells him he has been married for forty-six years, Walter responds, "Forty-seven years ago!" Dunham created the Walter puppet himself, including both the initial sculpture and the silicone mold, though he eventually began using professional effects companies for the latter stages with his subsequent puppets.
Peanut
Peanut is a hyperactive, purple-skinned "woozle" with white fur covering most of his body, a tuft of green hair on the top of his head, and one sneaker on his left foot. Dunham explains in Arguing with Myself that Peanut is from a small Micronesian island, and that they met in Florida. Peanut's humor is not based on a particular motif or stereotype, as those of the other characters, and he has been described as "the bad kid". He often makes fun of Dunham, and torments and mocks José Jalapeño on a Stick. Touching upon his unusual appearance and personality, he asks Dunham in Arguing with Myself, after Dunham denies ever having done drugs, "Then how the hell did you come up with me?"
José Jalapeño on a Stick
José is a talking jalapeño pepper on a stick who wears a small sombrero. José, who speaks with a thick Spanish accent, is typically paired with Peanut, who often makes fun of José, uses appeals to Latino stereotypes when doing so, and makes fun of his being on a stick. Although José was not Dunham's first puppet, it was the first that Dunham made himself.
Bubba J
Bubba J is a beer-drinking redneck that Dunham describes in Arguing with Myself and A Very Special Christmas Special as "white trash trailer park", and whom Dunham uses for humor centered on such stereotypes. To this end, he frequently does jokes involving Bubba J's love of drinking beer and NASCAR, and his low intelligence. Touching upon such stereotypes, Bubba mentions in Arguing with Myself that he met his wife at a family reunion, and remembers seeing her with a corn dog in one hand, a beer in another, and leaning against a ferris wheel, "making it tilt". Although he does not appear onstage, Bubba appears as the backstage security guard in Controlled Chaos. He was inspired by Edgar Bergen's puppet, Mortimer Snerd.
Achmed the Dead Terrorist
Achmed is the skeletal corpse of an incompetent suicide bomber, whom Dunham uses to satirize the contemporary issue of terrorism. He is known for yelling, "Silence! I keel you!" to Dunham and people laughing in the audience. Achmed first appeared in Spark of Insanity, and has appeared in every Dunham special since then. In Spark of Insanity the audience learns several things about Achmed. When Dunham says that Achmed must be dead because he's a skeleton, Achmed responds, "It's a flesh wound." When Dunham inquires as to how he died, Achmed explains his incompetence with explosives, while also casting aspersions on Dunham's sexual prowess by saying that they both suffer from "premature detonation". Although he frequently mentions working for Osama Bin Laden, Achmed denies being a Muslim and says "Look at my ass! It says 'Made in China'!" He says he is afraid of Walter, partially because he's "one mean son of a bitch" and finds Walter's flatulence to be more potent than Saddam Hussein's mustard gas. In Very Special Christmas Special, he sings a song called "Jingle Bombs".
By June 2009, the sketch in which Dunham introduced Achmed had amassed nearly 200 million views on YouTube. The large, round, articulated eyes of puppets such as Achmed and Achmed Junior are constructed by the same effects artist who created the dinosaur eyes for the Jurassic Park films. The character starred in Achmed Saves America, an animated film that premiered on Country Music Television in March 2014. In the film, which depicts the mishap that led to the character's skeletonization, Achmed finds himself in an American town called Americaville, which he plots to blow up, before developing an affinity for American culture.
Non-recurring and retired characters
Sweet Daddy Dee
Dunham introduces Sweet Daddy Dee in Arguing with Myself as his "new manager". He calls himself a "pimp", which he says stands for "Player In the Management Profession." According to Sweet Daddy, because he is a pimp, that makes Jeff the "ho". When Dunham objects, Daddy Dee points out that Dunham makes people laugh and feel good for a living. When Dunham agrees that this is the case, Daddy Dee says, "You a ho." When Dunham asks what he would say if he told him that he was a comedian only because he enjoyed it, Daddy Dee responds, "You a dumb ho." Unlike Bubba J, he hates NASCAR. Sweet Daddy's headstone is featured in the beginning of the special Minding the Monsters.
Melvin the Superhero Guy
Melvin wears a blue superhero costume, and is used to poke fun at superheroes. When asked about his superhuman powers, he indicates that he has X-ray vision, adding, "I love looking at boobies!" He appears to have no other powers, however: When Dunham asks how far he can fly, he responds, "How far can you throw me?", and when asked if he can stop a bullet like Superman, he responds, "Yeah. Once". Dunham portrays Melvin as unimpressed with other superheroes: When told Superman can leap tall buildings in a single bound, Melvin dismisses him as a "showoff," arguing that he can simply walk around them, observes that Aquaman has the same powers as SpongeBob SquarePants, asserts that the Flash's super speed is derived from methamphetamine, that the Hulk's vaunted ability to get stronger as he gets angrier merely mirrors "every white trash guy on COPS," and makes innuendo about the questionable relationship between Batman and the underage Robin. Melvin's first onscreen appearance was in the July 2003 Comedy Central Presents episode, in which he had small, black, beady eyes. By his next appearance, in Spark of Insanity, he had been modified to have large, blue, crossed eyes. He has an enormous nose, which he claims is his symbol, and whose similarity in shape to that of a penis is alluded to in the act. Dunham sculpted the current version of Melvin's head himself, and hired an effects company called Renegade Effects Groups to create the rubber mold and complete the puppet, before then installing the mechanics himself. Melvin's headstone is featured in the beginning of the special Minding the Monsters. As revealed in the DVD release, this signifies that he will no longer be used.
Little Jeff
Little Jeff is a miniature version of Dunham himself, usually dressed in the same clothes Dunham wears during each show. His first onscreen appearance was in the 1989 television program A&E's An Evening at The Improv. He later appeared in Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos as a puppet that Peanut used when attempting his hand at ventriloquism. Peanut named the doll "Little Ugly Ass-Jeff", and uses him to insult Dunham.
Diane
Diane first appeared with Dunham in the 2010 film Dinner for Schmucks as "Debbie", his character's "wife". She made her stand-up debut in Dunham's Identity Crisis Tour 2010.
Achmed Junior
Achmed Junior is the estranged son of Achmed. He was designed by Mad magazine illustrator Tom Richmond. He first appeared during the Identity Crisis Tour 2010, and made his first onscreen appearance in Dunham's fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos. Like his father, Achmed Junior is the victim of a bomb, which resulted in the destruction of the half of his face and body. He speaks with a British accent because he was raised in Britain after the accident. Much to his father's consternation, he expresses an attraction to Dunham's male stage hand, Marnell, appears on stage to address Achmed's loss of balance. Conflict also stems from the fact that unlike his father, Achmed Junior does not wish to be a suicide bomber.
Seamus
Seamus is a grumpy, beer-drinking, Irish infant who first appears in Relative Disaster, which was filmed in Ireland. Dunham, himself an adopted child, introduces him as a son that he has adopted in order to "pay it forward". Despite being an infant, he is a belligerent heavy drinker, traits with which Dunham pokes fun at Irish stereotypes. Dunham also establishes Seamus as a fan of United States President Donald Trump in order to poke fun at Trump, Hillary Clinton, and the 2016 United States presidential election.
Larry the Adviser
Larry is the personal adviser to Donald Trump. He has unkempt orange hair, big bulgy eyes and has a cigarette in one hand. Jeff lightly shakes him to give the feeling of jitteriness. Larry is constantly on edge and is implied to be unnerved for having worked with Trump for "four hours". He nevertheless "supports" the president.
Others
Other characters that Dunham has voiced include Little Peanut, a miniature version of Peanut that Dunham has used to counter Peanut's use of Little Jeff; and an unseen worm inside a bottle of tequila, both of which he has used, for example, in his appearance on A&E's An Evening at The Improv.
In the 2020 United States presidential election, Dunham adapted the Walter puppet into "Wonald Grump" and "Ben Hiden," caricatures of Donald Trump and Joe Biden, respectively, for a mock debate moderated by Achmed.
Personal life
Dunham met his first wife, Paige Brown, at the Comedy Corner in West Palm Beach, Florida. They began dating in December 1992. In May 1994, Dunham married Brown and adopted her one-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Bree. Their daughters Ashlyn and Kenna were born in 1995 and 1997, respectively. Dunham's time away while performing proved a strain on the marriage, and in November 2008, he filed for divorce. By mid-2009, Dunham was in a relationship with Audrey Murdick, a certified nutritionist, personal trainer, and competition bodybuilder, and on December 25, 2011 they became engaged. On October 12, 2012, the couple married. On May 14, 2015, Dunham announced, via Facebook, that he and Audrey were expecting twin boys. In October, she gave birth to James Jeffrey and Jack Steven.
In addition to building the dummies he uses in his act, Dunham also restores antique ones as a hobby, such as The Umpire, a mechanized dummy built in 1941 to work the plate at a girls' softball game, which went unused and packed away for 50 years before Dunham acquired it in early 2008.
Dunham has harbored a love of helicopters since childhood and is fond of building and flying his own kit helicopters from Rotorway helicopter kits. At the time he finished writing his autobiography in June 2010, he was beginning to build his fourth kit. He is also an aficionado of muscle cars and Apple, Inc. products. According to the July 16, 2012, television documentary The Batmobile, Dunham owns the original Batmobile used in the Tim Burton film Batman, which he had outfitted with Corvette engine to make it street legal.
Tours
Filmography
Documentaries and specials
Acting
References
External links
Jeff Dunham at Comedy Central
1962 births
20th-century American comedians
21st-century American comedians
American adoptees
American male voice actors
American Presbyterians
American puppeteers
American stand-up comedians
Baylor University alumni
Living people
People from Dallas
Male actors from Dallas
Ventriloquists
Puppet designers | false | [
"Drusilla Norman Beyfus (born 1927) is a British etiquette writer. She was married to the journalist and critic Milton Shulman.\n\nPublications (selected)\n1968: The English Marriage: what it is like to be married today\n1969: Lady Behave: a guide to modern manners for the 1970s (with Anne Edwards) \n1985: The Bride's Book\n1992: Courtship - The Done Thing: modern manners in miniature \n1992: Modern Manners: the essential guide to living in the '90s\n1992: Parties - The Done Thing: modern manners in miniature \n1993: Business: the Done Thing\n1993: Sex: the Done Thing\n1994: Modern Manners: the complete guide to contemporary etiquette\n\nReferences\n\n1927 births\nLiving people\nPeople from Hampstead\nEtiquette writers\nEnglish Jewish writers",
"The Worst Thing in the World is a Big Finish Productions audio drama featuring Lisa Bowerman as Bernice Summerfield, a character from the spin-off media based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who.\n\nPlot \nThe Drome was set \nNow Benny finds herself in a desperate fight for her life. A fight so desperate that she will be forced to do something she has never done before, a horror that she never imagined she could bring herself to commit. The worst thing in the world.\n\nCast\nBernice Summerfield - Lisa Bowerman\nJason Kane - Stephen Fewell\nMarvin Glass - Bernard Holley\nHannah Glass - Jane Milligan\nJane Peters - Jenny Livsey\nZombettes - Karen Baldwin, Sean Conolloy, Simon Guerrier, Joseph Lidster, Edward Salt\n\nTrivia\nBernard Holley has appeared on Doctor Who on TV: Peter Haydon (The Tomb of the Cybermen, 1967) and Axon Man (The Claws of Axos, 1971)\n\nExternal links\nBig Finish Productions - Professor Bernice Summerfield: The Worst Thing in the World \nWorst Things in the World \n\nWorst Thing in the World\nWorst Thing in the World"
] |
[
"Jeff Dunham",
"2009-present",
"What was he doing in 2009?",
"Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central.",
"What was the shows name?",
"The Jeff Dunham Show",
"How many viewers watched it?",
"Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled",
"Why was it canceled?",
"amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows.",
"What did he do afterward?",
"Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sictom 30 Rock,",
"Did he do anything after that ?",
"In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in \"Hart to Hart\", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance,",
"Did he ever go back to Comedy Central?",
"His fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, premiered on September 25, 2011, on Comedy Central.",
"Whats the latest year that he has produced any more work?",
"Dunham's seventh special, Unhinged in Hollywood, premiered on September 17, 2015.",
"Has he done any thing in 2018?",
"I don't know."
] | C_12aced0306034efd8cb7f77cc42ae917_0 | Is he on any shows right now? | 10 | Is Jeff Dunham on any shows right now? | Jeff Dunham | In March 2009, Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central. It included a fourth stand-up special to air in 2010, DVDs, a consumer products partnership, a 60-city tour beginning in September 2010, and an order for a television series called The Jeff Dunham Show that premiered on October 22, 2009. Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled after only one season, amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows. Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sictom 30 Rock, playing a ventriloquist named Rick Wayne and his dummy Pumpkin from Stone Mountain, Georgia. In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in "Hart to Hart", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance, as two security guards. He appeared in the 2010 Steve Carell/Paul Rudd comedy, Dinner for Schmucks, as Lewis, with a new puppet named Diane. His fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, premiered on September 25, 2011, on Comedy Central. His fifth special, Minding the Monsters, which was taped in Savannah, premiered on Comedy Central on October 7, 2012. His sixth special, All Over the Map, which was taped in various international cities, premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2014. On March 28, 2014, Country Music Television premiered Achmed Saves America, an animated film starring Achmed the Dead Terrorist. Dunham's seventh special, Unhinged in Hollywood, premiered on September 17, 2015. Rather than premiering on Comedy Central, the special instead aired on NBC. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Jeffrey Douglas Dunham (born April 18, 1962) is an American ventriloquist, stand-up comedian and actor who has also appeared on numerous television shows, including Late Show with David Letterman, Comedy Central Presents, The Tonight Show and Sonny With a Chance. He has six specials that run on Comedy Central: Arguing with Myself, Spark of Insanity, Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special, Controlled Chaos, Minding the Monsters, and All Over the Map. Dunham also starred in The Jeff Dunham Show, a series on the network in 2009.
His style has been described as "a dressed-down, more digestible version of Don Rickles with multiple personality disorder". Time described his characters as "politically incorrect, gratuitously insulting and ill tempered." Dunham has been credited with reviving ventriloquism and doing more to promote the art form than anyone since Edgar Bergen.
Dunham has been called "America's favorite comedian" by Slate. According to the concert industry publication Pollstar, he is the top-grossing standup act in North America and among the most successful acts in Europe as well. As of November 2009, he has sold over four million DVDs, an additional $7 million in merchandise sales, and received more than 350 million hits on YouTube as of October 2009; his introduction of Achmed the Dead Terrorist in Spark of Insanity was ranked as the ninth most watched YouTube video at the time. A Very Special Christmas Special was the most-watched telecast in Comedy Central history, with the DVD selling over 400,000 copies in its first two weeks. Forbes ranked Dunham as the third highest-paid comedian in the United States behind Jerry Seinfeld and Chris Rock and reported that he was one of the highest-earning comics from June 2008 to June 2009, earning approximately $30 million during that period. Dunham also does occasional acting roles. He achieved the Guinness Book of World Records record for "Most tickets sold for a stand-up comedy tour" for his Spark of Insanity tour, performing in 386 venues worldwide.
Early life
Dunham was born on April 18, 1962, in Dallas, Texas. When he was three months old, he was adopted by real estate appraiser Howard Dunham, and his homemaker wife Joyce, who raised him in a devoutly Presbyterian household in an affluent Dallas neighborhood, as an only child.
He began ventriloquism in 1970 at age eight, when his parents gave him a Mortimer Snerd dummy for Christmas, and an accompanying how-to album. The next day he checked out a how-to book on ventriloquism from the library, and explained in 2011 that he still had it, remarking that he was "a thief in the third grade". By the fourth grade, Dunham decided he not only wanted to be a professional ventriloquist, but the best one ever. Dunham began practicing for hours in front of a mirror, studying the routines of Edgar Bergen, and the how-to record Jimmy Nelson's Instant Ventriloquism, finding ventriloquism to be a learned skill, similar to juggling, that anyone with a normal speaking voice can acquire. Dunham has explained that, as an only child, he enjoyed being alone, likening his solitude to a "warm blanket" with which he could explore his own thoughts and ideas, which prepared him for the solitude of living alone when he later moved to Los Angeles as a struggling comedian.
When Dunham was in the sixth grade, he began attending the Vent Haven ConVENTion in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky, an annual international meeting of ventriloquists that includes competitions, where he met Jimmy Nelson in person. Dunham has missed only one ConVENTion since then, in 1977. The organizers of the ConVENTion eventually declared Dunham a "retired champion", ineligible from entering any more competitions, as other attendees were too intimidated to compete against him. The Vent Haven Museum devotes a section to Dunham, alongside Señor Wences and Dunham's idol, Edgar Bergen.
Career
Beginnings
Dunham began performing for audiences as a teenager, in various venues such as school, church, and during his job at Six Flags. By his middle school years, he began to perform for banquets attended by local celebrities such as Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach, having developed his style of lampooning those he performed for, using the puppets to say things too risque for him to say without them. Dunham's television debut came in 1976 when the still prepubescent performer caught the attention of Dallas reporters like Bill O'Reilly, who interviewed Dunham for a local news story. Dunham later did commercials for Datsun dealerships in Dallas and Tyler while still in high school. While emceeing a high school talent show, he dealt with a heckler, and won over the rest of the audience. During this period he became so associated with his craft that he and one of his dummies "cowrote" a column in the school paper, and he would pose with his dummies for yearbooks as an inexpensive way to acquire professional photos of his act for promotional purposes. He was voted Most Likely to Succeed, and in 1980, after he graduated from high school, Dunham gave himself a career goal of obtaining, within ten years, an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, which was seen as the "holy grail" for comedians.
That year Dunham began attending Baylor University, hoping to graduate with a degree in communications, while performing around campus. He would also fly around the country on weekends, doing up to 100 private shows a year, entertaining corporate customers such as General Electric, whose CEO, Jack Welch, he mocked during his routine. By his junior year in college (1983–84), Dunham was making $70,000 a year, and as word spread of his act, he landed featured spots opening for Bob Hope and George Burns, though he still perceived his act as raw, as he did not have any knowledge of standup comedy beyond his Bill Cosby albums.
He caught a break in 1985 when he was asked to join the Broadway show Sugar Babies with Mickey Rooney and Ann Miller, replacing an outgoing variety act. For the naive and devoutly-raised Dunham, Broadway was a new world filled with beautiful showgirls and crusty stagehands, and his first taste of entertainment industry egos came when Rooney called Dunham into his dressing room, and told him he was there for one reason alone: so that Rooney could change his costumes. He performed at the Westbury Music Fair on Long Island. These early experiences, in which he used characters like José Jalapeño on a Stick, taught him the value of modifying his act regionally, as the jalapeño jokes that worked well in Texas were not as well received by audiences in Long Island. After graduating from Baylor University in 1986, he continued honing his act in comedy clubs in the Southwest with new characters such as Peanut and José Jalapeño, but struggled against the perception he relates from fellow comedians that he was not a true comedian because he relied on props.
His experience at Catch a Rising Star in New York City served as a bitter confirmation of where ventriloquists stood in the comedic food chain, as the emcee at that club gave Dunham little respect. According to Dunham, after he arrived at the club in the evening and informed the emcee that he was a ventriloquist, the emcee reacted with derision, telling Dunham that he would be given a late time slot, and after that time slot came and passed, kept postponing Dunham's stage time until Dunham left the club.
By the end of 1988, Dunham felt his career had gone as far as it could go in Texas, and he moved to Los Angeles, California, never having, as he has commented, "a real job", much to the concern of his parents, who assumed he would relegate his act to local venues such as church groups. When he first arrived in Los Angeles, the comedy in his act bombed. Dunham attributes this initial reaction to his underdeveloped comedy, explaining that while the characters' personalities were developed at that point, his jokes were not. In addition to this, the comedy world was not welcoming to ventriloquists, and his manager, Judi Brown-Marmel, did not use the word "ventriloquist" when finding bookings for him, choosing to present him as a comedy duo. After Dunham became friends with Mike Lacey, owner of The Comedy & Magic Club in Hermosa Beach, Lacey gave Dunham a steady slot at the club, where Dunham sharpened his act by observing the techniques of comedians like Jerry Seinfeld, and taking the advice of colleague Bill Engvall, moving away from his G-rated material toward edgier, more adult themes.
The Tonight Show
At the end of 1988, Dunham was told by James McCawley, a talent booker for The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, that Dunham would be given a spot on the coveted program. Though the 26-year-old Dunham was elated that his 10-year goal was arriving two years early, McCawley later cancelled Dunham's appearance after attending, with Roseanne Barr, a public performance of Dunham's the day before Dunham's scheduled Tonight Show taping. McCawley informed Dunham on the day of the scheduled taping that he had been wrong in his initial assessment of Dunham, whom he now said was not ready for The Tonight Show. Dunham continued to tighten his act in Los Angeles clubs, performing the same six-minute segment with Peanut a total of nine times for McCawley over the next few months. Finally at the Ice-House in Pasadena in April 1990, after Dunham did the same segment, McCawley informed Dunham that he would finally get his Tonight Show appearance. Dunham and Peanut appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson on April 6, 1990, alongside guests Bob Hope and B.B. King. Following his bit, he was invited to sit on Johnny Carson's couch, a mark of approval on Carson's show. Upon sitting down next to Carson's desk, Dunham pulled out Walter, who told Carson sidekick Ed McMahon, "Stop sending me all your damn mail." At the time, Dunham saw his Tonight Show appearance as his big break, but was frustrated at his parents' initial disapproval over Walter's use of the words "hell" and "damn", and he would toil in obscurity for another twelve years, continuing his stand up at venues such as The Improv chain, and appearing in small roles on TV. One of these was a 1996 episode of Ellen, in which he appeared with Walter. Dunham also appeared with Walter in a TV commercial for Hertz. Dunham would appear on The Tonight Show a total of four times, as well as similar TV venues such as Hot Country Nights, appearing in one segment with Reba McEntire. This exposure helped make Dunham a large theater headliner, a rare accomplishment for a ventriloquist, but by the mid-1990s, his television appearances had dwindled, and with them, so did his stage audiences.
Dunham moved back to clubs, more than 200 appearances a year. To maintain a connection with his fan base, he would use question cards that he had audiences fill out for his performances to build a database, which was tailor-made for the burgeoning World Wide Web. Though he was voted Funniest Male Standup at the American Comedy Awards in 1998, his club work kept him away from his wife and daughters between two and three weeks each month, which put a strain on his marriage, and made paying bills for his expanded family difficult. By 2002, Dunham was hoping to obtain more TV work to raise his profile and ease his standup schedule. Such exposure was elusive until a successful appearance on The Best Damn Sports Show Period, where Dunham and Walter made jokes at the expense of co-hosts Tom Arnold, Michael Irvin, John Salley and John Kruk, generating laughter from them, and giving Dunham much-needed exposure. In 2003, Dunham was the frontrunner to replace Jimmy Kimmel on Fox NFL Sunday, but hosts Howie Long and Terry Bradshaw were not amenable to the idea of being upstaged by a puppet, and, as Dunham tells it, did not provide a welcoming atmosphere to Dunham, nor allow him to speak much during his appearance.
First Comedy Central specials
On July 18, 2003, Dunham appeared on Comedy Central Presents, his first solo appearance on Comedy Central. During his half hour piece, he showcased José Jalapeño on a Stick, Walter, an early version of Melvin the Superhero Guy and Peanut, whom Dunham had begun to merchandise into a line of dolls. The appearance was successful, but Comedy Central resisted giving Dunham more airtime, feeling that he was not a good fit for them. By 2005 Dunham decided to gamble on financing his own comedy DVD, Jeff Dunham: Arguing with Myself, which was taped in Santa Ana, California. Dunham's manager, Judi Brown-Marmel, lobbied the network to air it, pointing to Dunham's drawing power and merchandising profits, and arguing that the network needed more diverse content. Surprised by the high ratings of the first Blue Collar Comics concert movie that same year, the network began to reconsider its brand. In late 2006, Comedy Central aired Arguing with Myself, drawing two million viewers when it aired, and selling two million DVDs.
In 2007, Dunham appeared as The Amazing Ken with José Jalapeño on a Stick in the Larry the Cable Guy feature film Delta Farce.
His second special, Jeff Dunham: Spark of Insanity, was taped at the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. that same year. It served not only to cement Dunham's stardom, but to introduce his most controversial character, Achmed the Dead Terrorist, which became a viral Internet sensation. A clip of Achmed from Insanity attracted over 140 million hits on YouTube, making it the ninth most watched clip on that website as of October 2009.
By 2008, Dunham's characters had crossed language barriers, with his specials dubbed for audiences in various countries such as France, and Dunham attracting requests for performances in South Africa, Australia, Norway, Denmark, China, and the Middle East. Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special was taped at the Pabst Theater in Milwaukee, Wisconsin that same year, and premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2008, watched by 6.6 million people. It became available on DVD and Blu-ray on November 18, 2008. The special's premiere was the highest rated telecast in Comedy Central's history.
In September 2008, his career reached new heights as he began performing in arenas filled with tens of thousands of people. Dunham was somewhat wary of such large venues, but adapted by adjusting the timing of his often rapid exchanges with the puppets so that audience members farthest from the stage could have time to react.
In addition to his comedy specials, Dunham also released his first music album, Don't Come Home for Christmas, on November 4, 2008. It contains original Christmas songs as well as a parody of "Jingle Bells" by Achmed entitled "Jingle Bombs". All the songs, with the exception of "Jingle Bombs", were written and accompanied by Brian Haner, who joined Dunham's act as "Guitar Guy". His first onscreen appearance was in Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special.
2009–present
In March 2009, Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central. It included a fourth stand-up special to air in 2010, DVDs, a consumer products partnership, a 60-city tour beginning in September 2010, and an order for a television series called The Jeff Dunham Show that premiered on October 22, 2009. Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled after only one season, amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows.
Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sitcom 30 Rock, playing a ventriloquist named Rick Wayne and his dummy Pumpkin from Stone Mountain, Georgia. In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in "Hart to Hart", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance, as two security guards. He appeared in the 2010 Steve Carell/Paul Rudd comedy, Dinner for Schmucks, as Lewis, with a new puppet named Diane.
His fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, premiered on September 25, 2011, on Comedy Central. His fifth special, Minding the Monsters, which was taped in Savannah, premiered on Comedy Central on October 7, 2012. His sixth special, All Over the Map, which was taped in various international cities, premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2014.
On March 28, 2014, Country Music Television premiered Achmed Saves America, an animated film starring Achmed the Dead Terrorist.
Dunham's seventh special, Unhinged in Hollywood, premiered on September 17, 2015. Rather than premiering on Comedy Central, the special instead aired on NBC.
Critical praise and controversy
In January 2008, Dunham was voted by fans the Top Comic in Comedy Central's "Stand-Up Showdown". He is the only person ever to win the "Ventriloquist of the Year" Award twice. He was nominated "Comedian of the Year" by the TNN Music City News Country Awards, and has drawn praise from the Dallas Morning News for his technique and timing. Critics, such as Randee Dawn of The Hollywood Reporter, accused Dunham's characters of being racist caricatures, sexist, and homophobic.
In 2008, a TV commercial for a ringtone which featured Dunham's character Achmed the Dead Terrorist (see Characters below) was banned by the South African Advertising Standards Authority after a complaint was filed by a citizen stating that the ad was offensive to Muslims, and portrayed all Muslims as terrorists. Dunham responded that "Achmed makes it clear in my act that he is not Muslim." However, the ASA noted that the name Achmed was of Arab origin and was one of the names of Muhammad. Dunham responded, "I've skewered whites, blacks, Hispanics, Christians, Jews, Muslims, gays, straights, rednecks, addicts, the elderly, and my wife. As a standup comic, it is my job to make the majority of people laugh, and I believe that comedy is the last true form of free speech ... I'm considering renaming Achmed 'Bill'", he added. Dunham has conceded that he does exhibit particular sensitivity to the "conservative country crowd" or those characterized by "basic Christian values", as they are one of his largest constituencies, and part of his upbringing.
Dunham was heckled and criticized for mocking TV critics during a July 2009 press tour to promote his then-upcoming Comedy Central TV series, The Jeff Dunham Show, as well as Comedy Central programming chief Lauren Correo. In October 2009 The Jeff Dunham Show enjoyed good initial ratings, but was not well liked by critics, some of whom either questioned the wisdom of translating his act into a series, or cited Dunham, his previous specials, or ventriloquism itself as reasons for disliking the show.
J.P. Williams, the producer of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, has opined that Dunham's act is not funny on its own merits, and that his material gets a greater reaction because of the puppet characters than it would otherwise garner by itself. Blue Collar veteran Bill Engvall, a friend of Dunham's, insists otherwise, saying that Dunham is inherently funny with or without the puppets.
In a 2014 show in Malaysia, the government requested that he not use or name Achmed in his show. Due to the restriction, but to avoid disappointing fans, Achmed was renamed to be "Jacques Merde, the Dead French Terrorist" (Jacques Merde meaning "Jack Shit").
Books
In 2003, BRASMA Publications released Dear Walter, a collection of questions asked of Dunham's fictional curmudgeon at live performances, authored by Dunham and Walter Cummings. His autobiography, All By My Selves: Walter, Peanut, Achmed and Me, was published by Dutton in 2010.
Characters
Recurring characters
Walter
Walter is a retired, grumpy old man with arms always crossed in discontent. Dunham was inspired to create Walter when he watched Bette Davis's final appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, giving her honest, unfiltered candor to Walter, and patterning Walter's frown on Dunham's own. He has a brash, negative and often sarcastic view on today's world. He is a Vietnam War veteran and a former welder, and "doesn't give a damn" about anyone, especially his own wife and certain audience members. Walter appeared in every Comedy Central special. He's been married for several decades. When Dunham asks him if he remembers the happiest moment of his life after Walter tells him he has been married for forty-six years, Walter responds, "Forty-seven years ago!" Dunham created the Walter puppet himself, including both the initial sculpture and the silicone mold, though he eventually began using professional effects companies for the latter stages with his subsequent puppets.
Peanut
Peanut is a hyperactive, purple-skinned "woozle" with white fur covering most of his body, a tuft of green hair on the top of his head, and one sneaker on his left foot. Dunham explains in Arguing with Myself that Peanut is from a small Micronesian island, and that they met in Florida. Peanut's humor is not based on a particular motif or stereotype, as those of the other characters, and he has been described as "the bad kid". He often makes fun of Dunham, and torments and mocks José Jalapeño on a Stick. Touching upon his unusual appearance and personality, he asks Dunham in Arguing with Myself, after Dunham denies ever having done drugs, "Then how the hell did you come up with me?"
José Jalapeño on a Stick
José is a talking jalapeño pepper on a stick who wears a small sombrero. José, who speaks with a thick Spanish accent, is typically paired with Peanut, who often makes fun of José, uses appeals to Latino stereotypes when doing so, and makes fun of his being on a stick. Although José was not Dunham's first puppet, it was the first that Dunham made himself.
Bubba J
Bubba J is a beer-drinking redneck that Dunham describes in Arguing with Myself and A Very Special Christmas Special as "white trash trailer park", and whom Dunham uses for humor centered on such stereotypes. To this end, he frequently does jokes involving Bubba J's love of drinking beer and NASCAR, and his low intelligence. Touching upon such stereotypes, Bubba mentions in Arguing with Myself that he met his wife at a family reunion, and remembers seeing her with a corn dog in one hand, a beer in another, and leaning against a ferris wheel, "making it tilt". Although he does not appear onstage, Bubba appears as the backstage security guard in Controlled Chaos. He was inspired by Edgar Bergen's puppet, Mortimer Snerd.
Achmed the Dead Terrorist
Achmed is the skeletal corpse of an incompetent suicide bomber, whom Dunham uses to satirize the contemporary issue of terrorism. He is known for yelling, "Silence! I keel you!" to Dunham and people laughing in the audience. Achmed first appeared in Spark of Insanity, and has appeared in every Dunham special since then. In Spark of Insanity the audience learns several things about Achmed. When Dunham says that Achmed must be dead because he's a skeleton, Achmed responds, "It's a flesh wound." When Dunham inquires as to how he died, Achmed explains his incompetence with explosives, while also casting aspersions on Dunham's sexual prowess by saying that they both suffer from "premature detonation". Although he frequently mentions working for Osama Bin Laden, Achmed denies being a Muslim and says "Look at my ass! It says 'Made in China'!" He says he is afraid of Walter, partially because he's "one mean son of a bitch" and finds Walter's flatulence to be more potent than Saddam Hussein's mustard gas. In Very Special Christmas Special, he sings a song called "Jingle Bombs".
By June 2009, the sketch in which Dunham introduced Achmed had amassed nearly 200 million views on YouTube. The large, round, articulated eyes of puppets such as Achmed and Achmed Junior are constructed by the same effects artist who created the dinosaur eyes for the Jurassic Park films. The character starred in Achmed Saves America, an animated film that premiered on Country Music Television in March 2014. In the film, which depicts the mishap that led to the character's skeletonization, Achmed finds himself in an American town called Americaville, which he plots to blow up, before developing an affinity for American culture.
Non-recurring and retired characters
Sweet Daddy Dee
Dunham introduces Sweet Daddy Dee in Arguing with Myself as his "new manager". He calls himself a "pimp", which he says stands for "Player In the Management Profession." According to Sweet Daddy, because he is a pimp, that makes Jeff the "ho". When Dunham objects, Daddy Dee points out that Dunham makes people laugh and feel good for a living. When Dunham agrees that this is the case, Daddy Dee says, "You a ho." When Dunham asks what he would say if he told him that he was a comedian only because he enjoyed it, Daddy Dee responds, "You a dumb ho." Unlike Bubba J, he hates NASCAR. Sweet Daddy's headstone is featured in the beginning of the special Minding the Monsters.
Melvin the Superhero Guy
Melvin wears a blue superhero costume, and is used to poke fun at superheroes. When asked about his superhuman powers, he indicates that he has X-ray vision, adding, "I love looking at boobies!" He appears to have no other powers, however: When Dunham asks how far he can fly, he responds, "How far can you throw me?", and when asked if he can stop a bullet like Superman, he responds, "Yeah. Once". Dunham portrays Melvin as unimpressed with other superheroes: When told Superman can leap tall buildings in a single bound, Melvin dismisses him as a "showoff," arguing that he can simply walk around them, observes that Aquaman has the same powers as SpongeBob SquarePants, asserts that the Flash's super speed is derived from methamphetamine, that the Hulk's vaunted ability to get stronger as he gets angrier merely mirrors "every white trash guy on COPS," and makes innuendo about the questionable relationship between Batman and the underage Robin. Melvin's first onscreen appearance was in the July 2003 Comedy Central Presents episode, in which he had small, black, beady eyes. By his next appearance, in Spark of Insanity, he had been modified to have large, blue, crossed eyes. He has an enormous nose, which he claims is his symbol, and whose similarity in shape to that of a penis is alluded to in the act. Dunham sculpted the current version of Melvin's head himself, and hired an effects company called Renegade Effects Groups to create the rubber mold and complete the puppet, before then installing the mechanics himself. Melvin's headstone is featured in the beginning of the special Minding the Monsters. As revealed in the DVD release, this signifies that he will no longer be used.
Little Jeff
Little Jeff is a miniature version of Dunham himself, usually dressed in the same clothes Dunham wears during each show. His first onscreen appearance was in the 1989 television program A&E's An Evening at The Improv. He later appeared in Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos as a puppet that Peanut used when attempting his hand at ventriloquism. Peanut named the doll "Little Ugly Ass-Jeff", and uses him to insult Dunham.
Diane
Diane first appeared with Dunham in the 2010 film Dinner for Schmucks as "Debbie", his character's "wife". She made her stand-up debut in Dunham's Identity Crisis Tour 2010.
Achmed Junior
Achmed Junior is the estranged son of Achmed. He was designed by Mad magazine illustrator Tom Richmond. He first appeared during the Identity Crisis Tour 2010, and made his first onscreen appearance in Dunham's fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos. Like his father, Achmed Junior is the victim of a bomb, which resulted in the destruction of the half of his face and body. He speaks with a British accent because he was raised in Britain after the accident. Much to his father's consternation, he expresses an attraction to Dunham's male stage hand, Marnell, appears on stage to address Achmed's loss of balance. Conflict also stems from the fact that unlike his father, Achmed Junior does not wish to be a suicide bomber.
Seamus
Seamus is a grumpy, beer-drinking, Irish infant who first appears in Relative Disaster, which was filmed in Ireland. Dunham, himself an adopted child, introduces him as a son that he has adopted in order to "pay it forward". Despite being an infant, he is a belligerent heavy drinker, traits with which Dunham pokes fun at Irish stereotypes. Dunham also establishes Seamus as a fan of United States President Donald Trump in order to poke fun at Trump, Hillary Clinton, and the 2016 United States presidential election.
Larry the Adviser
Larry is the personal adviser to Donald Trump. He has unkempt orange hair, big bulgy eyes and has a cigarette in one hand. Jeff lightly shakes him to give the feeling of jitteriness. Larry is constantly on edge and is implied to be unnerved for having worked with Trump for "four hours". He nevertheless "supports" the president.
Others
Other characters that Dunham has voiced include Little Peanut, a miniature version of Peanut that Dunham has used to counter Peanut's use of Little Jeff; and an unseen worm inside a bottle of tequila, both of which he has used, for example, in his appearance on A&E's An Evening at The Improv.
In the 2020 United States presidential election, Dunham adapted the Walter puppet into "Wonald Grump" and "Ben Hiden," caricatures of Donald Trump and Joe Biden, respectively, for a mock debate moderated by Achmed.
Personal life
Dunham met his first wife, Paige Brown, at the Comedy Corner in West Palm Beach, Florida. They began dating in December 1992. In May 1994, Dunham married Brown and adopted her one-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Bree. Their daughters Ashlyn and Kenna were born in 1995 and 1997, respectively. Dunham's time away while performing proved a strain on the marriage, and in November 2008, he filed for divorce. By mid-2009, Dunham was in a relationship with Audrey Murdick, a certified nutritionist, personal trainer, and competition bodybuilder, and on December 25, 2011 they became engaged. On October 12, 2012, the couple married. On May 14, 2015, Dunham announced, via Facebook, that he and Audrey were expecting twin boys. In October, she gave birth to James Jeffrey and Jack Steven.
In addition to building the dummies he uses in his act, Dunham also restores antique ones as a hobby, such as The Umpire, a mechanized dummy built in 1941 to work the plate at a girls' softball game, which went unused and packed away for 50 years before Dunham acquired it in early 2008.
Dunham has harbored a love of helicopters since childhood and is fond of building and flying his own kit helicopters from Rotorway helicopter kits. At the time he finished writing his autobiography in June 2010, he was beginning to build his fourth kit. He is also an aficionado of muscle cars and Apple, Inc. products. According to the July 16, 2012, television documentary The Batmobile, Dunham owns the original Batmobile used in the Tim Burton film Batman, which he had outfitted with Corvette engine to make it street legal.
Tours
Filmography
Documentaries and specials
Acting
References
External links
Jeff Dunham at Comedy Central
1962 births
20th-century American comedians
21st-century American comedians
American adoptees
American male voice actors
American Presbyterians
American puppeteers
American stand-up comedians
Baylor University alumni
Living people
People from Dallas
Male actors from Dallas
Ventriloquists
Puppet designers | false | [
"Eslah TV a local television station in Herat Province of Afghanistan launched in 2013. It is run by an Afghan organization called Afghan Society for Social Reforms and Development.\n\nIts focus is on the social issues of the society and includes a range of Islamic teaching and other educational programs. Right now it is only available in Herat province.\n\nShows\nThe channel is still in its initial stages and is working on improvements. It has a number of shows on political, social and educational affairs. There are also special shows for different occasions.\n\nExternal links\nEslah TV Homepage\nEslah TV Facebook Page\n\nTelevision channels and stations established in 2013\nTelevision stations in Afghanistan",
"Roger Kurt Dobkowitz (born July 30, 1945 in San Francisco, California) is an American television producer best known for his 36-year tenure on the CBS game show The Price Is Right. In addition to The Price Is Right, Dobkowitz also worked on other game shows, such as Family Feud, Double Dare, Now You See It, and Match Game. Dobkowitz graduated from San Francisco State University in 1972 after completing a thesis, An Historical Study of Prime-Time Network Audience Participation Shows 1948-1968.\n\nThe Price Is Right\nDobkowitz started as a member of the production staff with The Price Is Right when the show debuted in 1972, and became a producer in 1984. He created eighteen of the show's pricing games (one of which, Gas Money, debuted on the first new episode after his departure). He won five Emmy Awards for his work on the show.\n\nDobkowitz left Price in July 2008, following production on the show's 36th season. While Variety reported that it was unclear whether his termination was voluntary, Drew Carey stated in an interview with Esquire that Dobkowitz was fired by new executive producer Mike Richards. Dobkowitz confirmed this, later admitting he had objected to Richards's hiring; it was one of numerous controversial personnel decisions Richards made shortly after arriving, including the firing of announcer Rich Fields.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \n Roger Dobkowitz' official website\n\n1945 births\nLiving people\nBusinesspeople from San Francisco\nSan Francisco State University alumni\nThe Price Is Right"
] |
[
"Jeff Dunham",
"2009-present",
"What was he doing in 2009?",
"Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central.",
"What was the shows name?",
"The Jeff Dunham Show",
"How many viewers watched it?",
"Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled",
"Why was it canceled?",
"amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows.",
"What did he do afterward?",
"Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sictom 30 Rock,",
"Did he do anything after that ?",
"In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in \"Hart to Hart\", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance,",
"Did he ever go back to Comedy Central?",
"His fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, premiered on September 25, 2011, on Comedy Central.",
"Whats the latest year that he has produced any more work?",
"Dunham's seventh special, Unhinged in Hollywood, premiered on September 17, 2015.",
"Has he done any thing in 2018?",
"I don't know.",
"Is he on any shows right now?",
"I don't know."
] | C_12aced0306034efd8cb7f77cc42ae917_0 | Does he still have a lot of viewers? | 11 | Does Jeff Dunham still have a lot of viewers? | Jeff Dunham | In March 2009, Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central. It included a fourth stand-up special to air in 2010, DVDs, a consumer products partnership, a 60-city tour beginning in September 2010, and an order for a television series called The Jeff Dunham Show that premiered on October 22, 2009. Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled after only one season, amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows. Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sictom 30 Rock, playing a ventriloquist named Rick Wayne and his dummy Pumpkin from Stone Mountain, Georgia. In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in "Hart to Hart", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance, as two security guards. He appeared in the 2010 Steve Carell/Paul Rudd comedy, Dinner for Schmucks, as Lewis, with a new puppet named Diane. His fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, premiered on September 25, 2011, on Comedy Central. His fifth special, Minding the Monsters, which was taped in Savannah, premiered on Comedy Central on October 7, 2012. His sixth special, All Over the Map, which was taped in various international cities, premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2014. On March 28, 2014, Country Music Television premiered Achmed Saves America, an animated film starring Achmed the Dead Terrorist. Dunham's seventh special, Unhinged in Hollywood, premiered on September 17, 2015. Rather than premiering on Comedy Central, the special instead aired on NBC. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Jeffrey Douglas Dunham (born April 18, 1962) is an American ventriloquist, stand-up comedian and actor who has also appeared on numerous television shows, including Late Show with David Letterman, Comedy Central Presents, The Tonight Show and Sonny With a Chance. He has six specials that run on Comedy Central: Arguing with Myself, Spark of Insanity, Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special, Controlled Chaos, Minding the Monsters, and All Over the Map. Dunham also starred in The Jeff Dunham Show, a series on the network in 2009.
His style has been described as "a dressed-down, more digestible version of Don Rickles with multiple personality disorder". Time described his characters as "politically incorrect, gratuitously insulting and ill tempered." Dunham has been credited with reviving ventriloquism and doing more to promote the art form than anyone since Edgar Bergen.
Dunham has been called "America's favorite comedian" by Slate. According to the concert industry publication Pollstar, he is the top-grossing standup act in North America and among the most successful acts in Europe as well. As of November 2009, he has sold over four million DVDs, an additional $7 million in merchandise sales, and received more than 350 million hits on YouTube as of October 2009; his introduction of Achmed the Dead Terrorist in Spark of Insanity was ranked as the ninth most watched YouTube video at the time. A Very Special Christmas Special was the most-watched telecast in Comedy Central history, with the DVD selling over 400,000 copies in its first two weeks. Forbes ranked Dunham as the third highest-paid comedian in the United States behind Jerry Seinfeld and Chris Rock and reported that he was one of the highest-earning comics from June 2008 to June 2009, earning approximately $30 million during that period. Dunham also does occasional acting roles. He achieved the Guinness Book of World Records record for "Most tickets sold for a stand-up comedy tour" for his Spark of Insanity tour, performing in 386 venues worldwide.
Early life
Dunham was born on April 18, 1962, in Dallas, Texas. When he was three months old, he was adopted by real estate appraiser Howard Dunham, and his homemaker wife Joyce, who raised him in a devoutly Presbyterian household in an affluent Dallas neighborhood, as an only child.
He began ventriloquism in 1970 at age eight, when his parents gave him a Mortimer Snerd dummy for Christmas, and an accompanying how-to album. The next day he checked out a how-to book on ventriloquism from the library, and explained in 2011 that he still had it, remarking that he was "a thief in the third grade". By the fourth grade, Dunham decided he not only wanted to be a professional ventriloquist, but the best one ever. Dunham began practicing for hours in front of a mirror, studying the routines of Edgar Bergen, and the how-to record Jimmy Nelson's Instant Ventriloquism, finding ventriloquism to be a learned skill, similar to juggling, that anyone with a normal speaking voice can acquire. Dunham has explained that, as an only child, he enjoyed being alone, likening his solitude to a "warm blanket" with which he could explore his own thoughts and ideas, which prepared him for the solitude of living alone when he later moved to Los Angeles as a struggling comedian.
When Dunham was in the sixth grade, he began attending the Vent Haven ConVENTion in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky, an annual international meeting of ventriloquists that includes competitions, where he met Jimmy Nelson in person. Dunham has missed only one ConVENTion since then, in 1977. The organizers of the ConVENTion eventually declared Dunham a "retired champion", ineligible from entering any more competitions, as other attendees were too intimidated to compete against him. The Vent Haven Museum devotes a section to Dunham, alongside Señor Wences and Dunham's idol, Edgar Bergen.
Career
Beginnings
Dunham began performing for audiences as a teenager, in various venues such as school, church, and during his job at Six Flags. By his middle school years, he began to perform for banquets attended by local celebrities such as Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach, having developed his style of lampooning those he performed for, using the puppets to say things too risque for him to say without them. Dunham's television debut came in 1976 when the still prepubescent performer caught the attention of Dallas reporters like Bill O'Reilly, who interviewed Dunham for a local news story. Dunham later did commercials for Datsun dealerships in Dallas and Tyler while still in high school. While emceeing a high school talent show, he dealt with a heckler, and won over the rest of the audience. During this period he became so associated with his craft that he and one of his dummies "cowrote" a column in the school paper, and he would pose with his dummies for yearbooks as an inexpensive way to acquire professional photos of his act for promotional purposes. He was voted Most Likely to Succeed, and in 1980, after he graduated from high school, Dunham gave himself a career goal of obtaining, within ten years, an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, which was seen as the "holy grail" for comedians.
That year Dunham began attending Baylor University, hoping to graduate with a degree in communications, while performing around campus. He would also fly around the country on weekends, doing up to 100 private shows a year, entertaining corporate customers such as General Electric, whose CEO, Jack Welch, he mocked during his routine. By his junior year in college (1983–84), Dunham was making $70,000 a year, and as word spread of his act, he landed featured spots opening for Bob Hope and George Burns, though he still perceived his act as raw, as he did not have any knowledge of standup comedy beyond his Bill Cosby albums.
He caught a break in 1985 when he was asked to join the Broadway show Sugar Babies with Mickey Rooney and Ann Miller, replacing an outgoing variety act. For the naive and devoutly-raised Dunham, Broadway was a new world filled with beautiful showgirls and crusty stagehands, and his first taste of entertainment industry egos came when Rooney called Dunham into his dressing room, and told him he was there for one reason alone: so that Rooney could change his costumes. He performed at the Westbury Music Fair on Long Island. These early experiences, in which he used characters like José Jalapeño on a Stick, taught him the value of modifying his act regionally, as the jalapeño jokes that worked well in Texas were not as well received by audiences in Long Island. After graduating from Baylor University in 1986, he continued honing his act in comedy clubs in the Southwest with new characters such as Peanut and José Jalapeño, but struggled against the perception he relates from fellow comedians that he was not a true comedian because he relied on props.
His experience at Catch a Rising Star in New York City served as a bitter confirmation of where ventriloquists stood in the comedic food chain, as the emcee at that club gave Dunham little respect. According to Dunham, after he arrived at the club in the evening and informed the emcee that he was a ventriloquist, the emcee reacted with derision, telling Dunham that he would be given a late time slot, and after that time slot came and passed, kept postponing Dunham's stage time until Dunham left the club.
By the end of 1988, Dunham felt his career had gone as far as it could go in Texas, and he moved to Los Angeles, California, never having, as he has commented, "a real job", much to the concern of his parents, who assumed he would relegate his act to local venues such as church groups. When he first arrived in Los Angeles, the comedy in his act bombed. Dunham attributes this initial reaction to his underdeveloped comedy, explaining that while the characters' personalities were developed at that point, his jokes were not. In addition to this, the comedy world was not welcoming to ventriloquists, and his manager, Judi Brown-Marmel, did not use the word "ventriloquist" when finding bookings for him, choosing to present him as a comedy duo. After Dunham became friends with Mike Lacey, owner of The Comedy & Magic Club in Hermosa Beach, Lacey gave Dunham a steady slot at the club, where Dunham sharpened his act by observing the techniques of comedians like Jerry Seinfeld, and taking the advice of colleague Bill Engvall, moving away from his G-rated material toward edgier, more adult themes.
The Tonight Show
At the end of 1988, Dunham was told by James McCawley, a talent booker for The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, that Dunham would be given a spot on the coveted program. Though the 26-year-old Dunham was elated that his 10-year goal was arriving two years early, McCawley later cancelled Dunham's appearance after attending, with Roseanne Barr, a public performance of Dunham's the day before Dunham's scheduled Tonight Show taping. McCawley informed Dunham on the day of the scheduled taping that he had been wrong in his initial assessment of Dunham, whom he now said was not ready for The Tonight Show. Dunham continued to tighten his act in Los Angeles clubs, performing the same six-minute segment with Peanut a total of nine times for McCawley over the next few months. Finally at the Ice-House in Pasadena in April 1990, after Dunham did the same segment, McCawley informed Dunham that he would finally get his Tonight Show appearance. Dunham and Peanut appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson on April 6, 1990, alongside guests Bob Hope and B.B. King. Following his bit, he was invited to sit on Johnny Carson's couch, a mark of approval on Carson's show. Upon sitting down next to Carson's desk, Dunham pulled out Walter, who told Carson sidekick Ed McMahon, "Stop sending me all your damn mail." At the time, Dunham saw his Tonight Show appearance as his big break, but was frustrated at his parents' initial disapproval over Walter's use of the words "hell" and "damn", and he would toil in obscurity for another twelve years, continuing his stand up at venues such as The Improv chain, and appearing in small roles on TV. One of these was a 1996 episode of Ellen, in which he appeared with Walter. Dunham also appeared with Walter in a TV commercial for Hertz. Dunham would appear on The Tonight Show a total of four times, as well as similar TV venues such as Hot Country Nights, appearing in one segment with Reba McEntire. This exposure helped make Dunham a large theater headliner, a rare accomplishment for a ventriloquist, but by the mid-1990s, his television appearances had dwindled, and with them, so did his stage audiences.
Dunham moved back to clubs, more than 200 appearances a year. To maintain a connection with his fan base, he would use question cards that he had audiences fill out for his performances to build a database, which was tailor-made for the burgeoning World Wide Web. Though he was voted Funniest Male Standup at the American Comedy Awards in 1998, his club work kept him away from his wife and daughters between two and three weeks each month, which put a strain on his marriage, and made paying bills for his expanded family difficult. By 2002, Dunham was hoping to obtain more TV work to raise his profile and ease his standup schedule. Such exposure was elusive until a successful appearance on The Best Damn Sports Show Period, where Dunham and Walter made jokes at the expense of co-hosts Tom Arnold, Michael Irvin, John Salley and John Kruk, generating laughter from them, and giving Dunham much-needed exposure. In 2003, Dunham was the frontrunner to replace Jimmy Kimmel on Fox NFL Sunday, but hosts Howie Long and Terry Bradshaw were not amenable to the idea of being upstaged by a puppet, and, as Dunham tells it, did not provide a welcoming atmosphere to Dunham, nor allow him to speak much during his appearance.
First Comedy Central specials
On July 18, 2003, Dunham appeared on Comedy Central Presents, his first solo appearance on Comedy Central. During his half hour piece, he showcased José Jalapeño on a Stick, Walter, an early version of Melvin the Superhero Guy and Peanut, whom Dunham had begun to merchandise into a line of dolls. The appearance was successful, but Comedy Central resisted giving Dunham more airtime, feeling that he was not a good fit for them. By 2005 Dunham decided to gamble on financing his own comedy DVD, Jeff Dunham: Arguing with Myself, which was taped in Santa Ana, California. Dunham's manager, Judi Brown-Marmel, lobbied the network to air it, pointing to Dunham's drawing power and merchandising profits, and arguing that the network needed more diverse content. Surprised by the high ratings of the first Blue Collar Comics concert movie that same year, the network began to reconsider its brand. In late 2006, Comedy Central aired Arguing with Myself, drawing two million viewers when it aired, and selling two million DVDs.
In 2007, Dunham appeared as The Amazing Ken with José Jalapeño on a Stick in the Larry the Cable Guy feature film Delta Farce.
His second special, Jeff Dunham: Spark of Insanity, was taped at the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. that same year. It served not only to cement Dunham's stardom, but to introduce his most controversial character, Achmed the Dead Terrorist, which became a viral Internet sensation. A clip of Achmed from Insanity attracted over 140 million hits on YouTube, making it the ninth most watched clip on that website as of October 2009.
By 2008, Dunham's characters had crossed language barriers, with his specials dubbed for audiences in various countries such as France, and Dunham attracting requests for performances in South Africa, Australia, Norway, Denmark, China, and the Middle East. Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special was taped at the Pabst Theater in Milwaukee, Wisconsin that same year, and premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2008, watched by 6.6 million people. It became available on DVD and Blu-ray on November 18, 2008. The special's premiere was the highest rated telecast in Comedy Central's history.
In September 2008, his career reached new heights as he began performing in arenas filled with tens of thousands of people. Dunham was somewhat wary of such large venues, but adapted by adjusting the timing of his often rapid exchanges with the puppets so that audience members farthest from the stage could have time to react.
In addition to his comedy specials, Dunham also released his first music album, Don't Come Home for Christmas, on November 4, 2008. It contains original Christmas songs as well as a parody of "Jingle Bells" by Achmed entitled "Jingle Bombs". All the songs, with the exception of "Jingle Bombs", were written and accompanied by Brian Haner, who joined Dunham's act as "Guitar Guy". His first onscreen appearance was in Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special.
2009–present
In March 2009, Dunham signed a multi-platform deal with Comedy Central. It included a fourth stand-up special to air in 2010, DVDs, a consumer products partnership, a 60-city tour beginning in September 2010, and an order for a television series called The Jeff Dunham Show that premiered on October 22, 2009. Despite having the most-watched premiere in Comedy Central history, and higher average ratings than other shows on that network initially, the show was canceled after only one season, amid poor reviews, dwindling ratings and higher production costs than other Comedy Central shows.
Dunham appeared in a guest role with Bubba J on NBC's sitcom 30 Rock, playing a ventriloquist named Rick Wayne and his dummy Pumpkin from Stone Mountain, Georgia. In November 2009 Dunham also appeared with Walter in "Hart to Hart", an episode of the Disney Channel series Sonny With a Chance, as two security guards. He appeared in the 2010 Steve Carell/Paul Rudd comedy, Dinner for Schmucks, as Lewis, with a new puppet named Diane.
His fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, premiered on September 25, 2011, on Comedy Central. His fifth special, Minding the Monsters, which was taped in Savannah, premiered on Comedy Central on October 7, 2012. His sixth special, All Over the Map, which was taped in various international cities, premiered on Comedy Central on November 16, 2014.
On March 28, 2014, Country Music Television premiered Achmed Saves America, an animated film starring Achmed the Dead Terrorist.
Dunham's seventh special, Unhinged in Hollywood, premiered on September 17, 2015. Rather than premiering on Comedy Central, the special instead aired on NBC.
Critical praise and controversy
In January 2008, Dunham was voted by fans the Top Comic in Comedy Central's "Stand-Up Showdown". He is the only person ever to win the "Ventriloquist of the Year" Award twice. He was nominated "Comedian of the Year" by the TNN Music City News Country Awards, and has drawn praise from the Dallas Morning News for his technique and timing. Critics, such as Randee Dawn of The Hollywood Reporter, accused Dunham's characters of being racist caricatures, sexist, and homophobic.
In 2008, a TV commercial for a ringtone which featured Dunham's character Achmed the Dead Terrorist (see Characters below) was banned by the South African Advertising Standards Authority after a complaint was filed by a citizen stating that the ad was offensive to Muslims, and portrayed all Muslims as terrorists. Dunham responded that "Achmed makes it clear in my act that he is not Muslim." However, the ASA noted that the name Achmed was of Arab origin and was one of the names of Muhammad. Dunham responded, "I've skewered whites, blacks, Hispanics, Christians, Jews, Muslims, gays, straights, rednecks, addicts, the elderly, and my wife. As a standup comic, it is my job to make the majority of people laugh, and I believe that comedy is the last true form of free speech ... I'm considering renaming Achmed 'Bill'", he added. Dunham has conceded that he does exhibit particular sensitivity to the "conservative country crowd" or those characterized by "basic Christian values", as they are one of his largest constituencies, and part of his upbringing.
Dunham was heckled and criticized for mocking TV critics during a July 2009 press tour to promote his then-upcoming Comedy Central TV series, The Jeff Dunham Show, as well as Comedy Central programming chief Lauren Correo. In October 2009 The Jeff Dunham Show enjoyed good initial ratings, but was not well liked by critics, some of whom either questioned the wisdom of translating his act into a series, or cited Dunham, his previous specials, or ventriloquism itself as reasons for disliking the show.
J.P. Williams, the producer of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, has opined that Dunham's act is not funny on its own merits, and that his material gets a greater reaction because of the puppet characters than it would otherwise garner by itself. Blue Collar veteran Bill Engvall, a friend of Dunham's, insists otherwise, saying that Dunham is inherently funny with or without the puppets.
In a 2014 show in Malaysia, the government requested that he not use or name Achmed in his show. Due to the restriction, but to avoid disappointing fans, Achmed was renamed to be "Jacques Merde, the Dead French Terrorist" (Jacques Merde meaning "Jack Shit").
Books
In 2003, BRASMA Publications released Dear Walter, a collection of questions asked of Dunham's fictional curmudgeon at live performances, authored by Dunham and Walter Cummings. His autobiography, All By My Selves: Walter, Peanut, Achmed and Me, was published by Dutton in 2010.
Characters
Recurring characters
Walter
Walter is a retired, grumpy old man with arms always crossed in discontent. Dunham was inspired to create Walter when he watched Bette Davis's final appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, giving her honest, unfiltered candor to Walter, and patterning Walter's frown on Dunham's own. He has a brash, negative and often sarcastic view on today's world. He is a Vietnam War veteran and a former welder, and "doesn't give a damn" about anyone, especially his own wife and certain audience members. Walter appeared in every Comedy Central special. He's been married for several decades. When Dunham asks him if he remembers the happiest moment of his life after Walter tells him he has been married for forty-six years, Walter responds, "Forty-seven years ago!" Dunham created the Walter puppet himself, including both the initial sculpture and the silicone mold, though he eventually began using professional effects companies for the latter stages with his subsequent puppets.
Peanut
Peanut is a hyperactive, purple-skinned "woozle" with white fur covering most of his body, a tuft of green hair on the top of his head, and one sneaker on his left foot. Dunham explains in Arguing with Myself that Peanut is from a small Micronesian island, and that they met in Florida. Peanut's humor is not based on a particular motif or stereotype, as those of the other characters, and he has been described as "the bad kid". He often makes fun of Dunham, and torments and mocks José Jalapeño on a Stick. Touching upon his unusual appearance and personality, he asks Dunham in Arguing with Myself, after Dunham denies ever having done drugs, "Then how the hell did you come up with me?"
José Jalapeño on a Stick
José is a talking jalapeño pepper on a stick who wears a small sombrero. José, who speaks with a thick Spanish accent, is typically paired with Peanut, who often makes fun of José, uses appeals to Latino stereotypes when doing so, and makes fun of his being on a stick. Although José was not Dunham's first puppet, it was the first that Dunham made himself.
Bubba J
Bubba J is a beer-drinking redneck that Dunham describes in Arguing with Myself and A Very Special Christmas Special as "white trash trailer park", and whom Dunham uses for humor centered on such stereotypes. To this end, he frequently does jokes involving Bubba J's love of drinking beer and NASCAR, and his low intelligence. Touching upon such stereotypes, Bubba mentions in Arguing with Myself that he met his wife at a family reunion, and remembers seeing her with a corn dog in one hand, a beer in another, and leaning against a ferris wheel, "making it tilt". Although he does not appear onstage, Bubba appears as the backstage security guard in Controlled Chaos. He was inspired by Edgar Bergen's puppet, Mortimer Snerd.
Achmed the Dead Terrorist
Achmed is the skeletal corpse of an incompetent suicide bomber, whom Dunham uses to satirize the contemporary issue of terrorism. He is known for yelling, "Silence! I keel you!" to Dunham and people laughing in the audience. Achmed first appeared in Spark of Insanity, and has appeared in every Dunham special since then. In Spark of Insanity the audience learns several things about Achmed. When Dunham says that Achmed must be dead because he's a skeleton, Achmed responds, "It's a flesh wound." When Dunham inquires as to how he died, Achmed explains his incompetence with explosives, while also casting aspersions on Dunham's sexual prowess by saying that they both suffer from "premature detonation". Although he frequently mentions working for Osama Bin Laden, Achmed denies being a Muslim and says "Look at my ass! It says 'Made in China'!" He says he is afraid of Walter, partially because he's "one mean son of a bitch" and finds Walter's flatulence to be more potent than Saddam Hussein's mustard gas. In Very Special Christmas Special, he sings a song called "Jingle Bombs".
By June 2009, the sketch in which Dunham introduced Achmed had amassed nearly 200 million views on YouTube. The large, round, articulated eyes of puppets such as Achmed and Achmed Junior are constructed by the same effects artist who created the dinosaur eyes for the Jurassic Park films. The character starred in Achmed Saves America, an animated film that premiered on Country Music Television in March 2014. In the film, which depicts the mishap that led to the character's skeletonization, Achmed finds himself in an American town called Americaville, which he plots to blow up, before developing an affinity for American culture.
Non-recurring and retired characters
Sweet Daddy Dee
Dunham introduces Sweet Daddy Dee in Arguing with Myself as his "new manager". He calls himself a "pimp", which he says stands for "Player In the Management Profession." According to Sweet Daddy, because he is a pimp, that makes Jeff the "ho". When Dunham objects, Daddy Dee points out that Dunham makes people laugh and feel good for a living. When Dunham agrees that this is the case, Daddy Dee says, "You a ho." When Dunham asks what he would say if he told him that he was a comedian only because he enjoyed it, Daddy Dee responds, "You a dumb ho." Unlike Bubba J, he hates NASCAR. Sweet Daddy's headstone is featured in the beginning of the special Minding the Monsters.
Melvin the Superhero Guy
Melvin wears a blue superhero costume, and is used to poke fun at superheroes. When asked about his superhuman powers, he indicates that he has X-ray vision, adding, "I love looking at boobies!" He appears to have no other powers, however: When Dunham asks how far he can fly, he responds, "How far can you throw me?", and when asked if he can stop a bullet like Superman, he responds, "Yeah. Once". Dunham portrays Melvin as unimpressed with other superheroes: When told Superman can leap tall buildings in a single bound, Melvin dismisses him as a "showoff," arguing that he can simply walk around them, observes that Aquaman has the same powers as SpongeBob SquarePants, asserts that the Flash's super speed is derived from methamphetamine, that the Hulk's vaunted ability to get stronger as he gets angrier merely mirrors "every white trash guy on COPS," and makes innuendo about the questionable relationship between Batman and the underage Robin. Melvin's first onscreen appearance was in the July 2003 Comedy Central Presents episode, in which he had small, black, beady eyes. By his next appearance, in Spark of Insanity, he had been modified to have large, blue, crossed eyes. He has an enormous nose, which he claims is his symbol, and whose similarity in shape to that of a penis is alluded to in the act. Dunham sculpted the current version of Melvin's head himself, and hired an effects company called Renegade Effects Groups to create the rubber mold and complete the puppet, before then installing the mechanics himself. Melvin's headstone is featured in the beginning of the special Minding the Monsters. As revealed in the DVD release, this signifies that he will no longer be used.
Little Jeff
Little Jeff is a miniature version of Dunham himself, usually dressed in the same clothes Dunham wears during each show. His first onscreen appearance was in the 1989 television program A&E's An Evening at The Improv. He later appeared in Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos as a puppet that Peanut used when attempting his hand at ventriloquism. Peanut named the doll "Little Ugly Ass-Jeff", and uses him to insult Dunham.
Diane
Diane first appeared with Dunham in the 2010 film Dinner for Schmucks as "Debbie", his character's "wife". She made her stand-up debut in Dunham's Identity Crisis Tour 2010.
Achmed Junior
Achmed Junior is the estranged son of Achmed. He was designed by Mad magazine illustrator Tom Richmond. He first appeared during the Identity Crisis Tour 2010, and made his first onscreen appearance in Dunham's fourth special, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos. Like his father, Achmed Junior is the victim of a bomb, which resulted in the destruction of the half of his face and body. He speaks with a British accent because he was raised in Britain after the accident. Much to his father's consternation, he expresses an attraction to Dunham's male stage hand, Marnell, appears on stage to address Achmed's loss of balance. Conflict also stems from the fact that unlike his father, Achmed Junior does not wish to be a suicide bomber.
Seamus
Seamus is a grumpy, beer-drinking, Irish infant who first appears in Relative Disaster, which was filmed in Ireland. Dunham, himself an adopted child, introduces him as a son that he has adopted in order to "pay it forward". Despite being an infant, he is a belligerent heavy drinker, traits with which Dunham pokes fun at Irish stereotypes. Dunham also establishes Seamus as a fan of United States President Donald Trump in order to poke fun at Trump, Hillary Clinton, and the 2016 United States presidential election.
Larry the Adviser
Larry is the personal adviser to Donald Trump. He has unkempt orange hair, big bulgy eyes and has a cigarette in one hand. Jeff lightly shakes him to give the feeling of jitteriness. Larry is constantly on edge and is implied to be unnerved for having worked with Trump for "four hours". He nevertheless "supports" the president.
Others
Other characters that Dunham has voiced include Little Peanut, a miniature version of Peanut that Dunham has used to counter Peanut's use of Little Jeff; and an unseen worm inside a bottle of tequila, both of which he has used, for example, in his appearance on A&E's An Evening at The Improv.
In the 2020 United States presidential election, Dunham adapted the Walter puppet into "Wonald Grump" and "Ben Hiden," caricatures of Donald Trump and Joe Biden, respectively, for a mock debate moderated by Achmed.
Personal life
Dunham met his first wife, Paige Brown, at the Comedy Corner in West Palm Beach, Florida. They began dating in December 1992. In May 1994, Dunham married Brown and adopted her one-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Bree. Their daughters Ashlyn and Kenna were born in 1995 and 1997, respectively. Dunham's time away while performing proved a strain on the marriage, and in November 2008, he filed for divorce. By mid-2009, Dunham was in a relationship with Audrey Murdick, a certified nutritionist, personal trainer, and competition bodybuilder, and on December 25, 2011 they became engaged. On October 12, 2012, the couple married. On May 14, 2015, Dunham announced, via Facebook, that he and Audrey were expecting twin boys. In October, she gave birth to James Jeffrey and Jack Steven.
In addition to building the dummies he uses in his act, Dunham also restores antique ones as a hobby, such as The Umpire, a mechanized dummy built in 1941 to work the plate at a girls' softball game, which went unused and packed away for 50 years before Dunham acquired it in early 2008.
Dunham has harbored a love of helicopters since childhood and is fond of building and flying his own kit helicopters from Rotorway helicopter kits. At the time he finished writing his autobiography in June 2010, he was beginning to build his fourth kit. He is also an aficionado of muscle cars and Apple, Inc. products. According to the July 16, 2012, television documentary The Batmobile, Dunham owns the original Batmobile used in the Tim Burton film Batman, which he had outfitted with Corvette engine to make it street legal.
Tours
Filmography
Documentaries and specials
Acting
References
External links
Jeff Dunham at Comedy Central
1962 births
20th-century American comedians
21st-century American comedians
American adoptees
American male voice actors
American Presbyterians
American puppeteers
American stand-up comedians
Baylor University alumni
Living people
People from Dallas
Male actors from Dallas
Ventriloquists
Puppet designers | false | [
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"Jerry Garcia",
"Childhood and early life"
] | C_a95583dc963548a79d885ace2c196575_1 | Where are his ancestors from | 1 | Where are Jerry Garcia's ancestors from? | Jerry Garcia | Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (nee Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting. Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family--who had emigrated from Spain in 1919--would often sing during reunions. Garcia experienced several tragedies during his youth. At age four, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains, two-thirds of Garcia's right middle finger was accidentally cut off. Garcia and his brother Tiff were chopping wood. Jerry steadied a piece of wood with his finger, but Tiff miscalculated and the axe severed most of Jerry's middle finger. After his mother wrapped his hand in a towel, Garcia's father drove him over 30 miles to the nearest hospital. A few weeks later, Garcia -- who had not looked at his finger since the accident -- was surprised to discover most of it missing when the bandage he was wearing came off during a bath. Garcia later confided that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood. Less than a year after he lost most of his finger, his father died. Vacationing with his family near Arcata in Northern California in 1947, Garcia's father went fly fishing in the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest. Not long after entering the river, Garcia's father slipped on a rock, lost his balance and was swept away by the river's rapids. He drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw his father fall into the river, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, lends weight to McNally's claim. Jackson's evidence was that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death failed to mention Garcia was present when he died. CANNOTANSWER | Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. | Jerome John Garcia (August 1, 1942 – August 9, 1995) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known for being a principal songwriter, the lead guitarist and a vocalist with the rock band the Grateful Dead, of which he was a founding member and which came to prominence during the counterculture of the 1960s. Although he disavowed the role, Garcia was viewed by many as the leader of the band.
As one of its founders, Garcia performed with the Grateful Dead for their entire 30-year career (1965–1995). Garcia also founded and participated in a variety of side projects, including the Saunders–Garcia Band (with longtime friend Merl Saunders), the Jerry Garcia Band, Old & In the Way, the Garcia/Grisman and Garcia/Kahn acoustic duos, Legion of Mary, and New Riders of the Purple Sage (which he co-founded with John Dawson and David Nelson). He also released several solo albums, and contributed to a number of albums by other artists over the years as a session musician. He was well known for his distinctive guitar playing, and was ranked 13th in Rolling Stones "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" cover story in 2003. In the 2015 version of the list he was ranked at #46.
Garcia was also renowned for his musical and technical ability, particularly his ability to play a variety of instruments and sustain long improvisations with the Grateful Dead. Garcia believed that improvisation took stress away from his playing and allowed him to make spur of the moment decisions that he would not have made intentionally. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Garcia noted that "my own preferences are for improvisation, for making it up as I go along. The idea of picking, of eliminating possibilities by deciding, that's difficult for me". Originating from the days of the "acid tests", these improvisations were a form of exploration rather than playing a song already written.
Later in life, Garcia struggled with diabetes and in 1986, went into a diabetic coma that nearly cost him his life. Although his overall health improved somewhat after that, he continued to struggle with obesity, smoking, and longstanding heroin and cocaine addictions. He was staying in a California drug rehabilitation facility when he died of a heart attack on August 9, 1995, at the age of 53.
Early life
Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (née Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting.
Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family—which had immigrated from Spain in 1919—would often sing during reunions.
In 1946, two-thirds of four-year-old Garcia's right middle finger was cut off by his brother in a wood splitting accident, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Garcia later confessed that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood.
Less than a year after this incident his father died in a fly fishing accident when the family was vacationing near Arcata in Northern California. He slipped after entering the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest, and drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw the incident, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, notes that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death did not mention Jerry being present when he died.
Excelsior District
Following his father's death, Garcia's mother Ruth took over her husband's bar, buying out his partner for full ownership. She began working full-time there, sending Jerry and his brother to live nearby with her parents, Tillie and William Clifford. During the five-year period in which he lived with his grandparents, Garcia enjoyed a large amount of autonomy and attended Monroe Elementary School. At the school, Garcia was greatly encouraged in his artistic abilities by his third grade teacher: through her, he discovered that "being a creative person was a viable possibility in life." According to Garcia, it was around this time that he was opened up to country and bluegrass music by his grandmother, whom he recalled enjoyed listening to the Grand Ole Opry. His elder brother, Clifford, however, staunchly believed the contrary, insisting that Garcia was "fantasizing all [that] ... she'd been to Opry, but she didn't listen to it on the radio." It was at this point that Garcia started playing the banjo, his first stringed instrument.
Menlo Park
In 1953, Garcia's mother married Wally Matusiewicz. Subsequently, Garcia and his brother moved back home with their mother and new stepfather. However, due to the roughneck reputation of their neighborhood at the time, Garcia's mother moved their family to Menlo Park. During their stay in Menlo Park, Garcia became acquainted with racism and antisemitism, things he disliked intensely. The same year, Garcia was also introduced to rock and roll and rhythm and blues by his brother, and enjoyed listening to Ray Charles, John Lee Hooker, B. B. King, Hank Ballard, and, later, Chuck Berry. Clifford often memorized the vocals for his favorite songs, and would then make Garcia learn the harmony parts, a move to which Garcia later attributed much of his early ear training.
In mid-1957, Garcia began smoking cigarettes and was introduced to marijuana. Garcia would later reminisce about the first time he smoked marijuana: "Me and a friend of mine went up into the hills with two joints, the San Francisco foothills, and smoked these joints and just got so high and laughed and roared and went skipping down the streets doing funny things and just having a helluva time". During this time, Garcia also studied at what is now the San Francisco Art Institute. The teacher there was Wally Hedrick, an artist who came to prominence during the 1960s. During the classes, he often encouraged Garcia in his drawing and painting skills. Hedrick also introduced Garcia to the fiction of Jack Kerouac, whom Garcia later cited as a major influence.
San Francisco
In June, Garcia graduated from the local Menlo Oaks school. He then moved with his family back to San Francisco, where they lived in an apartment above the family bar, a newly built replacement for the original, that had been torn down to make way for a freeway entrance. Two months later, on Garcia's fifteenth birthday, his mother bought an accordion for him, to his great disappointment. Garcia had long been captivated by many rhythm and blues artists, especially Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley, leaving him craving an electric guitar. After some pleading, his mother exchanged the accordion for a Danelectro with a small amplifier at a local pawnshop. Garcia's stepfather, who was somewhat proficient with instruments, helped tune his guitar to an unusual open tuning.
Cazadero
After a short stint at Denman Junior High School, Garcia attended tenth grade at Balboa High School in 1958, where he often got into trouble for skipping classes and fighting. Consequently, in 1959, Garcia's mother again moved the family to a safer environment, to Cazadero, a small town in Sonoma County, north of San Francisco. This turn of events did not sit well with Garcia, who had to travel by bus to Analy High School in Sebastopol, the nearest school. Garcia did, however, join a band at his school known as the Chords. After performing in and winning a contest, the band's reward was recording a song. They chose "Raunchy" by Bill Justis.
Recording career
Relocation and band beginnings
Garcia stole his mother's car in 1960, and was given the option of joining the United States Army in lieu of prison. He received basic training at Fort Ord. After training, he was transferred to Fort Winfield Scott in the Presidio of San Francisco. Garcia spent most of his time in the army at his leisure, missing roll call and accruing many counts of being AWOL. As a result, Garcia was given a general discharge on December 14, 1960.
In January 1961, Garcia drove down to East Palo Alto to see Laird Grant, an old friend from middle school. He had bought a 1950 Cadillac sedan from a cook in the army, which barely made it to Grant's residence before it broke down. Garcia spent the next few weeks sleeping where friends would allow, eventually using his car as a home. Through Grant, Garcia met Dave McQueen in February, who, after hearing Garcia perform some blues music, introduced him to local people and to the Chateau, a rooming house located near Stanford University which was then a popular hangout.
On February 20, 1961, Garcia got into a car with Paul Speegle, a sixteen-year-old artist and acquaintance of Garcia; Lee Adams, the house manager of the Chateau and driver of the car; and Alan Trist, a companion of theirs. After speeding past the Palo Alto Veterans Hospital, the driver encountered a curve and, speeding around , crashed into the guard rail, sending the car rolling turbulently. Garcia was hurled through the windshield of the car into a nearby field with such force he was literally thrown out of his shoes and would later be unable to recall the ejection. Lee Adams, the driver, and Alan Trist, who was seated in the back, were thrown from the car as well, suffering from abdominal injuries and a spine fracture, respectively. Garcia escaped with a broken collarbone, while Speegle, still in the car, was fatally injured.
Lee's reckless driving and crash served as an awakening for Garcia, who later commented: "That's where my life began. Before then I was always living at less than capacity. I was idling. That was the slingshot for the rest of my life. It was like a second chance. Then I got serious". It was at this time that Garcia began to realize that he needed to begin playing the guitar in earnest—a move which meant giving up his love of drawing and painting.
In April 1961, Garcia first met Robert Hunter, who would become a long-time friend of and lyricist for the Grateful Dead, collaborating principally with Garcia. The two involved themselves in the South Bay and San Francisco art and music scenes, sometimes playing at Menlo Park's Kepler's Books. Garcia performed his first concert with Hunter, each earning five dollars. Garcia and Hunter also played in bands (the Wildwood Boys and the Hart Valley Drifters) with David Nelson, who would later play with Garcia in the New Riders of the Purple Sage and contribute to several Grateful Dead album songs.
In 1962, Garcia met Phil Lesh, the eventual bassist of the Grateful Dead, during a party in Menlo Park's bohemian Perry Lane neighborhood (where author Ken Kesey lived). Lesh would later write in his autobiography that Garcia reminded him of pictures he had seen of the composer Claude Debussy, with his "dark, curly hair, goatee, Impressionist eyes". While attending another party in Palo Alto, Lesh approached Garcia to suggest they record Garcia on Lesh's tape recorder and produce a radio show for the progressive, community-supported Berkeley radio station KPFA. Using an old Wollensak tape recorder, they recorded "Matty Groves" and "The Long Black Veil", among several other tunes. The recordings became a central feature of a 90-minute KPFA special broadcast, "The Long Black Veil and Other Ballads: An Evening with Jerry Garcia". The link between KPFA and the Grateful Dead continues to this day, having included many fundraisers, interviews, live concert broadcasts, taped band performances and all-day or all-weekend "Dead-only" marathons.
Garcia soon began playing and teaching acoustic guitar and banjo. One of Garcia's students was Bob Matthews, who later engineered many of the Grateful Dead's albums. Matthews attended Menlo-Atherton High School and was friends with Bob Weir, and on New Year's Eve 1963, he introduced Weir and Garcia.
Between 1962 and 1964, Garcia sang and performed mainly bluegrass, old-time, and folk music. One of the bands Garcia performed with was the Sleepy Hollow Hog Stompers, a bluegrass act. The group consisted of Garcia on guitar, banjo, vocals, and harmonica, Marshall Leicester on banjo, guitar, and vocals, and Dick Arnold on fiddle and vocals. Soon after this, Garcia, Weir, Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, and several of their friends formed a jug band called Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions. Around this time, the psychedelic drug LSD was gaining popularity. Garcia first began using LSD in 1964; later, when asked how it changed his life, he remarked: "Well, it changed everything [...] the effect was that it freed me because I suddenly realized that my little attempt at having a straight life and doing that was really a fiction and just wasn't going to work out. Luckily I wasn't far enough into it for it to be shattering or anything; it was like a realization that just made me feel immensely relieved."
In 1965, Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions evolved into the Warlocks, with the addition of Phil Lesh on bass guitar and Bill Kreutzmann on percussion. However, the band discovered that another group (which would later become the Velvet Underground) had recently selected the same name. In response, Garcia came up with "Grateful Dead" by opening a Funk & Wagnalls dictionary to an entry for "Grateful dead". The definition for "Grateful dead" was "a dead person, or his angel, showing gratitude to someone who, as an act of charity, arranged their burial". The band's first reaction was disapproval. Garcia later explained the group's reaction: "I didn't like it really, I just found it to be really powerful. [Bob] Weir didn't like it, [Bill] Kreutzmann didn't like it and nobody really wanted to hear about it." Despite their dislike of the name, it quickly spread by word of mouth, and soon became their official title.
Career with the Grateful Dead
Garcia served as lead guitarist, as well as one of the principal vocalists and songwriters of the Grateful Dead for its entire career. Garcia composed such songs as "Dark Star", "Franklin's Tower", and "Scarlet Begonias", among many others. Robert Hunter, an ardent collaborator with the band, wrote the lyrics to all but a few of Garcia's songs.
Garcia was well-noted for his "soulful extended guitar improvisations", which would frequently feature interplay between him and his fellow band members. His fame, as well as the band's, arguably rested on their ability to never play a song the same way twice. Often, Garcia would take cues from rhythm guitarist Bob Weir, remarking that "there are some [...] kinds of ideas that would really throw me if I had to create a harmonic bridge between all the things going on rhythmically with two drums and Phil [Lesh's] innovative bass playing. Weir's ability to solve that sort of problem is extraordinary. [...] Harmonically, I take a lot of my solo cues from Bob."
When asked to describe his approach to soloing, Garcia commented: "It keeps on changing. I still basically revolve around the melody and the way it's broken up into phrases as I perceive them. With most solos, I tend to play something that phrases the way the melody does; my phrases may be more dense or have different value, but they'll occur in the same places in the song. [...]"
Garcia and the band toured almost constantly from their formation in 1965 until Garcia's death in 1995. Periodically, there were breaks due to exhaustion or health problems, often due to Garcia's drug use. During their three-decade span, the Grateful Dead played 2,314 shows.
Garcia's guitar-playing was eclectic. He melded elements from the various kinds of music that influenced him. Echoes of bluegrass playing (such as Arthur Smith and Doc Watson) could be heard. There was also early rock (like Lonnie Mack, James Burton, and Chuck Berry), contemporary blues (Freddie King and Lowell Fulsom), country and western (Roy Nichols and Don Rich), and jazz (Charlie Christian and Django Reinhardt) to be heard in Garcia's style. Don Rich was the sparkling country guitar player in Buck Owens's "the Buckaroos" band of the 1960s, but besides Rich's style, both Garcia's pedal steel guitar playing (on Grateful Dead records and others) and his standard electric guitar work, were influenced by another of Owens's Buckaroos of that time, pedal steel player Tom Brumley. And as an improvisational soloist, John Coltrane was one of his greatest personal and musical influences.
Garcia later described his playing style as having "descended from barroom rock and roll, country guitar. Just 'cause that's where all my stuff comes from. It's like that blues instrumental stuff that was happening in the late Fifties and early Sixties, like Freddie King." Garcia's style could vary with the song being played and the instrument he was using, but his playing had a number of so-called "signatures". Among these were lead lines based on rhythmic triplets (examples include the songs "Good Morning Little School Girl", "New Speedway Boogie", "Brokedown Palace", "Deal", "Loser", "Truckin'", "That's It for the Other One", "U.S. Blues", "Sugaree", and "Don't Ease Me In").
Side projects
In addition to the Grateful Dead, Garcia had numerous side projects, the most notable being the Jerry Garcia Band. He was also involved with various acoustic projects such as Old & In the Way and other bluegrass bands, including collaborations with noted bluegrass mandolinist David Grisman. The documentary film Grateful Dawg, co-produced by Gillian Grisman and former NBC producer Pamela Hamilton chronicles the deep, long-term friendship between Garcia and Grisman. When Garcia and Grisman released Not For Kids Only, Hamilton produced their interview and concert for NBC. After several years of producing stories on the Grateful Dead and band members' side projects, Hamilton interviewed Bob Weir for a feature on Garcia's death marking the end of an era.
Other groups of which Garcia was a member at one time or another include the Black Mountain Boys, Legion of Mary, Reconstruction, and the Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band. Garcia was also a fan of jazz artists and improvisation: he played with jazz keyboardists Merl Saunders and Howard Wales for many years in various groups and jam sessions, and he appeared on saxophonist Ornette Coleman's 1988 album, Virgin Beauty. His collaboration with Merl Saunders and Muruga Booker on the world music album Blues From the Rainforest launched the Rainforest Band.
Garcia also spent a lot of time in the recording studio helping out fellow musician friends in session work, often adding guitar, vocals, pedal steel, sometimes banjo and piano and even producing. He played on over 50 studio albums, the styles of which were eclectic and varied, including bluegrass, rock, folk, blues, country, jazz, electronic music, gospel, funk, and reggae. Artists who sought Garcia's help included the likes of Jefferson Airplane (most notably Surrealistic Pillow, Garcia being listed as their "spiritual advisor"). Garcia himself recalled in a mid-1967 interview that he'd played the high lead on "Today," played on "Plastic Fantastic Lover" and "Comin' Back to Me" on that album. Others include Tom Fogerty, David Bromberg, Robert Hunter (Liberty, on Relix Records), Paul Pena, Peter Rowan, Warren Zevon, Country Joe McDonald, Pete Sears, Ken Nordine, Ornette Coleman, Bruce Hornsby, Bob Dylan, It's a Beautiful Day, and many more. In 1995 Garcia played on three tracks for the CD Blue Incantation by guitarist Sanjay Mishra, making it his last studio collaboration.
Throughout the early 1970s, Garcia, Lesh, Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart, and David Crosby collaborated intermittently with MIT-educated composer and biologist Ned Lagin on several projects in the realm of early ambient music; these include the album Seastones (released by the Ned Lagin on the Round Records subsidiary) and L, an unfinished dance work composed by Ned Lagin. In 1970, Garcia participated in the soundtrack for the film Zabriskie Point.
Garcia also played pedal steel guitar for fellow-San Francisco musicians New Riders of the Purple Sage from their initial dates in 1969 to October 1971, when increased commitments with the Dead forced him to opt out of the group. He appears as a band member on their debut album New Riders of the Purple Sage, and produced Home, Home on the Road, a 1974 live album by the band. He also contributed pedal steel guitar to the enduring hit "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young. Garcia also played steel guitar licks on Brewer & Shipley's 1970 album Tarkio. Despite considering himself a novice on the pedal steel, Garcia routinely ranked high in player polls. After a long lapse from playing the pedal steel, he played it once more during several of the Dead's concerts with Bob Dylan in the summer of 1987.
In 1988, Garcia agreed to perform at several major benefits including the "Soviet American Peace Walk" concert at the Band Shell, in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, that drew 25,000 people. He was asked to play by longtime friend and fellow musician, Pete Sears, who played piano with all the bands that day, and also procured all the other musicians. Garcia, Mickey Hart and Steve Parish played the show, then were given a police escort to a Grateful Dead show across the bay later that night. Garcia also played with Nick Gravenites and Pete Sears at a benefit given for Vietnam Veteran and peace activist Brian Willson, who lost both legs below the knee when he attempted to block a train carrying weapons to military dictatorships in El Salvador.
Having previously studied at the San Francisco Art Institute as a teenager, Garcia embarked on a second career in the visual arts in the late 1980s. He created a number of drawings, etchings, and water colors. Garcia's artistic endeavors were represented by the Weir Gallery in Berkeley, California from 1989 to 1996. During this period, Roberta Weir (unrelated to Garcia's bandmate Bob Weir) provided Garcia with new art techniques to use, sponsored his first solo show in 1990, and prepared blank etching plates for him to draw on. These would then be processed and printed by gallery staff and brought back to Garcia for approval and signature, usually with a passing of stacks of paper backstage at a Dead show. His annual shows at the Weir Gallery garnered much attention, leading to further shows in New York and other cities. Garcia was an early adopter of digital art media; his artistic style was as varied as his musical output, and he carried small notebooks for pen and ink sketches wherever he toured. Roberta Weir continues to maintain an archive of the artwork of Jerry Garcia. Perhaps the most widely seen pieces of Jerry Garcia's art are the many editions of men's neckties produced by Stonehenge Ltd. and Mulberry Neckware. Some began as etchings, other designs came from his drawings, paintings, and digital art. Garcia's artwork has since expanded into everything from hotel rooms, wet suits, men's sport shirts, a women's wear line, boxer shorts, hair accessories, cummerbunds, silk scarves and wool rugs.
Personal life
Garcia met his first wife, Sara Ruppenthal, in 1963. She was working at the coffee house in the back of Kepler's Books, where Garcia, Hunter, and Nelson regularly performed. They married on April 23, 1963, and on December 8 of that year their daughter Heather was born.
Carolyn Adams, a Merry Prankster also known as "Mountain Girl" or "M.G.," had a daughter, Sunshine, with Ken Kesey. Mountain Girl married another Prankster, George Walker, but they soon separated. She and Sunshine then moved into 710 Ashbury with Garcia in late 1966 where they would ultimately live together until 1975. In 1994, Sara and Jerry officially divorced after a long separation. Adams gave birth to Garcia's second and third daughters, Annabelle Walker Garcia (February 2, 1970) and Theresa Adams "Trixie" Garcia (September 21, 1974).
In August 1970, Garcia's mother Ruth was involved in a car crash near Twin Peaks in San Francisco. Garcia, who was recording the album American Beauty at the time, often left the sessions to visit his mother with his brother Clifford. She died on September 28, 1970.
In the midst of a March 1973 Grateful Dead engagement at Long Island's Nassau Coliseum, Garcia met Deborah Koons, an aspiring filmmaker from a wealthy Cincinnati, Ohio-based family who would much later marry him and become his widow. After a brief correspondence, he began his relationship with her in mid-1974. This gradually strained his relationship with Adams and culminated in Garcia leaving Adams for Koons in late 1975. The end of his relationship with Koons in 1977 precipitated a brief reconciliation with Adams, including the reestablishment of their household. However, she did not agree with the guitarist's persistent use of narcotics and moved with the children to the Eugene, Oregon area, living near Kesey, in 1978.
Following Adams' departure, Garcia had an affair with Amy Moore. She was a Kentucky-born member of the extended "Grateful Dead family", and the mistress of Texas oil heir Roy Cullen. Their affair lasted circa 1980–1981, and inspired the Garcia-Hunter song "Run for the Roses."
Adams and Garcia were married on December 31, 1981, largely as a result of mutual tax exigencies. Despite the legal codification of their union, she remained in Oregon, while Garcia continued to live near the Grateful Dead's offices in San Rafael, California. Garcia lived with a variety of housemates, including longtime Grateful Dead employee and Jerry Garcia Band manager Rock Scully. Scully, who co-managed the Grateful Dead throughout the mid-to-late 1960s before serving as the band's "advance man" and publicist, was dismissed by the group in 1984 for enabling Garcia's addictions and for allegedly embezzling the Garcia Band's profits. Another housemate was Nora Sage, a Deadhead who became Garcia's housekeeper while studying at the Golden Gate University School of Law. The exact nature of their relationship remains unclear, although it is believed to have been platonic due to Garcia's addictions. She later became his art representative.
While they would briefly reunite following his diabetic coma, Garcia and Adams ultimately divorced in 1994. Phil Lesh has subsequently stated that he rarely saw Adams on any of the band tours. In a 1991 Rolling Stone interview, Garcia stated that "we haven't really lived together since the Seventies".
During the autumn of 1978, Garcia developed a friendship with Shimer College student Manasha Matheson, an artist and music enthusiast. They remained friends over the following nine years before initiating a romantic relationship in Hartford, Connecticut on the Grateful Dead's spring 1987 tour. Jerry and Manasha became parents with the birth of their daughter, Keelin Noel Garcia, on December 20, 1987. On August 17, 1990, Jerry and Manasha married at their San Anselmo, California home in a spiritual ceremony free of legal convention. In 1991, Garcia expressed his delight in finding the time to "actually be a father" to Keelin in contrast to his past relationships with his children. A year later, Garcia dedicated his first art book, Paintings, Drawings and Sketches, "For Manasha, with love, Jerry."
In January 1993, Barbara "Brigid" Meier, a former girlfriend from the early 1960s, reentered Garcia's life for a brief period. Meier claimed, Garcia had considered her to be the "love of his life" and proposed to her during a Hawaiian vacation shortly after their relationship recommenced. Garcia's "love of his life" sentiment was not reserved for one lover, as he expressed the same feelings to several other women in his life. At Garcia's 1995 funeral, Koons declared that she was "the love of his life" while paying her final respects, whereupon Meier and Ruppenthal, who were both in attendance, simultaneously exclaimed, "He said that to me!"
The affair with Meier marked the breakup of Jerry's family life with Manasha and Keelin. Garcia ended the affair with Meier forty-five days later while on tour in Chicago with the Grateful Dead after she confronted him about his drug use.
Shortly thereafter, Garcia renewed his acquaintance with Deborah Koons in the spring of 1993. They married on February 14, 1994, in Sausalito, California. Garcia and Koons were married at the time of his death.
Lifestyle and health
Because of their public profile, Garcia and his collaborators were occasionally singled out in the American government's war on drugs. On October 2, 1967, 710 Ashbury Street in San Francisco (where the Grateful Dead had taken up residence the year before) was raided after a police tip-off. Grateful Dead members Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan were apprehended on marijuana charges which were later dropped, although Garcia himself was not arrested. The following year, Garcia's picture was used in a defamatory context in a campaign commercial for Richard Nixon.
Most of the band were arrested again in January 1970, after they flew to New Orleans from Hawaii. After returning to their hotel from a performance, the band checked into their rooms, only to be quickly raided by police. Approximately fifteen people were arrested on the spot, including many of the road crew, management, and nearly all of the Grateful Dead except for Garcia, who arrived later, outgoing keyboardist Tom Constanten, who abstained from all drugs as a member of the Church of Scientology, and McKernan, who eschewed illegal drugs in favor of alcohol.
According to Bill Kreutzmann, the band's use of cocaine accelerated throughout the early 1970s. After using heroin in a brothel in 1974 (likely on the band's second European tour), Garcia was introduced to a smokeable form of the drug (initially advertised as refined opium) colloquially known as "Persian" or "Persian Base" during the group's 1975 hiatus. Influenced by the stresses of creating and releasing The Grateful Dead Movie and the acrimonious collapse of the band's independent record labels over the next two years, Garcia became increasingly dependent upon both substances. These factors, combined with the alcohol and drug abuse of several other members of the Grateful Dead, resulted in a turbulent atmosphere. By 1978, the band's chemistry began "cracking and crumbling", resulting in poor group cohesion. As a result, Keith and Donna Jean Godchaux left the band in February 1979.
With the addition of keyboardist/vocalist Brent Mydland that year amid the ongoing coalescence of the Deadhead subculture, the band reached new commercial heights as a touring group on the American arena circuit in the early 1980s, enabling them to forsake studio recording for several years. Nevertheless, this was offset by such factors as the band's atypically large payroll and Garcia's $700-a-day () drug addiction, resulting in the guitarist taking on a frenetic slate of solo touring outside of the Grateful Dead's rigorous schedule, including abbreviated acoustic duo concerts with Jerry Garcia Band bassist John Kahn that were widely rumored to be a funding conduit for their respective addictions.
Though things seemed to be getting better for the band, Garcia's health was declining. By 1983, Garcia's demeanor onstage had appeared to change. Despite still playing the guitar with great passion and intensity, there were times that he would appear disengaged; as such, shows were often inconsistent. Years of heavy tobacco smoking had affected his voice, and he gained considerable weight. By 1984, he would often rest his chin on the microphone during performances. The so-called "endless tour"—the result of years of financial risks, drug use, and poor business decisions—had taken its toll.
Garcia's decade-long heroin addiction culminated in the rest of the band holding an intervention in January 1985. Given the choice between the band or the drugs, Garcia agreed to check into a rehabilitation center in Oakland, California. A few days later in January, before the start of his program in Oakland, Garcia was arrested for drug possession in Golden Gate Park; he subsequently attended a drug diversion program. Throughout 1985, he tapered his drug use on tour and at home with the assistance of Nora Sage; by the spring of 1986, he was completely abstinent.
Precipitated by an unhealthy weight, dehydration, bad eating habits, and a recent relapse on the Grateful Dead's first stadium tour, Garcia collapsed into a diabetic coma in July 1986, waking up five days later. He later spoke about this period of unconsciousness as surreal: "Well, I had some very weird experiences. My main experience was one of furious activity and tremendous struggle in a sort of futuristic, space-ship vehicle with insectoid presences. After I came out of my coma, I had this image of myself as these little hunks of protoplasm that were stuck together kind of like stamps with perforations between them that you could snap off." Garcia's coma had a profound effect on him: it forced him to have to relearn how to play the guitar, as well as other, more basic skills. Within a handful of months, he had recovered, playing with the Jerry Garcia Band and the Grateful Dead again later that year.
After Garcia's recovery, the band released a comeback album In the Dark in 1987, which became their best-selling studio album. Inspired by Garcia's improved health, a successful album and the continuing emergence of Mydland as a third frontman, the band's energy and chemistry reached a new peak in the late 1980s.
Amid a litany of personal problems, Mydland died of a speedball overdose in July 1990. His death greatly affected Garcia, leading him to believe that the band's chemistry would never be the same. Before beginning the fall tour, the band acquired keyboardists Vince Welnick and Bruce Hornsby. The power of Hornsby's performances drove Garcia to new heights on stage. However, as the band continued through 1991, Garcia became concerned with the band's future. He was exhausted from five straight years of touring. He thought a break was necessary, mainly so that the band could come back with fresh material. The idea was put off by the pressures of management, and the touring continued. Garcia began using heroin again after several years of intermittent prescription opiate use. Though his relapse was brief, the band was quick to react. Soon after the last show of the tour in Denver, Garcia was confronted by the band with another intervention. After a disastrous meeting, Garcia invited Phil Lesh over to his home in San Rafael, California, where he explained that after the meeting he would start attending a methadone clinic. Garcia said that he wanted to clean up in his own way, and return to making music.
After returning from the band's 1992 summer tour, Garcia became sick, a throwback to his diabetic coma in 1986. Manasha Garcia nursed Jerry back to health and organized a team of health professionals which included acupuncturist Yen Wei Choong and Randy Baker, MD, a holistic family physician to treat him at home. Garcia recovered over the following days, despite the Grateful Dead having to cancel their fall tour to allow him time to recuperate. Garcia reduced his cigarette smoking and began losing weight. He also became a vegetarian.
Despite these improvements, Garcia's physical and mental condition continued to decline throughout 1993 and 1994. He began to use narcotics again to dull the pain.
In light of his second drug relapse and current condition, Garcia checked himself into the Betty Ford Center during July 1995. His stay was limited, lasting only two weeks. Motivated by the experience, he then checked into the Serenity Knolls treatment center in Forest Knolls, California, where he died.
Death
Garcia died in his room at the rehabilitation clinic on August 9, 1995. The cause of death was a heart attack. Garcia had long struggled with drug addiction, weight problems, sleep apnea, heavy smoking, and diabetes—all of which contributed to his physical decline. Lesh remarked that, upon hearing of Garcia's death, "I was struck numb. I had lost my oldest surviving friend, my brother." Garcia's funeral was held on August 12, at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Belvedere. It was attended by his family, the remaining Grateful Dead members, and their friends, including former pro basketball player Bill Walton and musician Bob Dylan. Deborah Koons barred two of Garcia's former wives from the ceremony.
On August 13, about 25,000 people attended a municipally sanctioned public memorial at the Polo Fields of San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. Crowds produced hundreds of flowers, gifts, images, and a bagpipe rendition of "Amazing Grace" in remembrance. In the Haight, a single white rose was reportedly tied to a tree near the Dead's former Haight-Ashbury house, where a group of followers gathered to mourn.
On the morning of April 4, 1996, after a total lunar eclipse earlier that day, Weir and Deborah Koons accompanied by Sanjay Mishra, spread half of Garcia's ashes into the Ganges at the holy city of Rishikesh, India, a site sacred to Hindus. The remaining ashes were poured into the San Francisco Bay. Koons did not allow former wife Carolyn Garcia to attend the spreading of the ashes.
Musical equipment
Garcia played many guitars during his career, which ranged from student and budget models to custom-made instruments. During his thirty-five year career as a professional musician, Garcia used about 25 guitars.
In 1965, when Garcia was playing with the Warlocks, he used a Guild Starfire, which he also used on the début album of the Grateful Dead. Beginning in late 1967 and ending in 1968, Garcia played black or gold mid-1950s Gibson Les Paul guitars with P-90 pickups. In 1969, he picked up the Gibson SG and used it for most of that year and 1970, except for a small period in between where he used a sunburst Fender Stratocaster.
During Garcia's "pedal steel flirtation period" (as Bob Weir referred to it in Anthem to Beauty), from approximately 1969 to 1972, he initially played a Fender instrument before upgrading to the ZB Custom D-10, especially in his earlier public performances. Although this was a double neck guitar, Garcia used the "E9 neck and the three pedals to raise the tone and two levers to lower it." He employed an Emmons D-10 at the Grateful Dead's and New Riders of the Purple Sage's final appearances at the Fillmore East in April 1971.
In 1969, Garcia played pedal steel on three notable outside recordings: the track "The Farm" on the Jefferson Airplane album Volunteers, the track "Oh Mommy" by Brewer and Shipley and the hit single "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young from their album Déjà Vu, released in 1970. Garcia played on the latter album in exchange for harmony lessons for the Grateful Dead, who were at the time recording Workingman's Dead.
In 1971, Garcia began playing a sunburst Les Paul. In March and April 1971 – the time period during which the Grateful Dead recorded its second live album, Grateful Dead – Garcia played the "Peanut," a guitar he had received from Rick Turner, who had custom built the guitar's body and incorporated the neck, pickups, and hardware from an early '60s Les Paul.
In May, Garcia began using a 1957 natural finish Stratocaster that had been given to him by Graham Nash. Garcia added an alligator sticker to the pickguard in the fall of that year. "Alligator" would remain Garcia's principal electric guitar until August 1973.
In the summer of 1971, Garcia also played a double-cutaway Les Paul TV Junior.
While Alligator was in the shop in the summer of 1972, he briefly reverted to the sunburst Stratocaster; this can be seen in Sunshine Daydream.
In late 1972, Garcia purchased the first guitar ("Eagle") made by Alembic luthier Doug Irwin for $850 (). Enamored of Irwin's talents, he immediately commissioned his own custom instrument. This guitar, nicknamed "Wolf" for a memorable sticker Garcia added below the tailpiece, was delivered in May 1973 and replaced Alligator on stage in September. It cost $1,500 (), an extremely high price for the era.
Wolf was made with an ebony fingerboard and featured numerous embellishments like alternating grain designs in the headstock, ivory inlays, and fret marker dots made of sterling silver. The body was composed of western maple wood which had a core of purpleheart. Garcia later had Irwin (who ultimately left Alembic to start his own business) replace the electronics inside the guitar, at which point he added his own logo to the headstock alongside the Alembic logo. The system included two interchangeable plates for configuring pickups: one was made for strictly single coils, while the other accommodated humbuckers. Shortly after receiving the modified instrument, Garcia commissioned another custom guitar from Irwin with one caveat: "Don't hold back."
During the Grateful Dead's 1974 European tour, Wolf was dropped on several occasions, one of which caused a minor crack in the headstock. Following filming of The Grateful Dead Movie (in which the guitar is prominently visible) a month later, Garcia returned it to Irwin for repairs. Throughout its absence, Garcia predominantly played several Travis Bean guitars, including the TB1000A (1975) and the TB500 (1976-1977). On September 28, 1977, Irwin delivered the refurbished Wolf back to Garcia. The wolf sticker which gave the guitar its name had now been inlaid into the instrument; it also featured an effects loop between the pick-ups and controls (so inline effects would "see" the same signal at all times) which was bypassable. Irwin also put a new face on the headstock with only his logo (he later claimed to have built the guitar himself, though pictures through time clearly show the progression of logos, from Alembic, to Alembic & Irwin, to only Irwin).
Nearly seven years after he commissioned it, Garcia received his second custom guitar ("Tiger") from Irwin in the summer of 1979.
He first employed the instrument in concert at a Grateful Dead performance at the Oakland Auditorium Arena on August 4, 1979. Its name was derived from the inlay on the preamp cover.
The body of Tiger was of rich quality: the top layer was cocobolo, with the preceding layers being maple stripe, vermilion, and flame maple, in that order. The neck was made of western maple with an ebony fingerboard. The pickups consisted of a single coil DiMarzio SDS-1 and two humbucker DiMarzio Super IIs which were easily removable due to Garcia's preference for replacing his pickups every year or two. The electronics were composed of an effects bypass loop, which allowed Garcia to control the sound of his effects through the tone and volume controls on the guitar, and a preamplifier/buffer which rested behind a plate in the back of the guitar. Fully outfitted, Tiger weighed . This was Garcia's principal guitar for the next eleven years, and most played.
In the late 1980s Garcia, Weir and CSN (along with many others) endorsed Alvarez Yairi acoustic guitars. There are many photographs circulating (mostly promotional) of Garcia playing a DY99 Virtuoso Custom with a Modulus Graphite neck. He opted to play with the less decorated model but the promotional photo from the Alvarez Yairi catalog has him holding the "tree of life" model. This hand-built guitar was notable for the collaboration between Japanese luthier Kazuo Yairi and Modulus Graphite of San Rafael. As with most things Garcia, with his passing, the DY99 model is highly valued among collectors.
In 1990, Irwin completed "Rosebud", Garcia's fourth custom guitar. It was similar to his previous guitar Tiger in many respects, but featured different inlays and electronics, tone and volume controls, and weight. Rosebud, unlike Tiger, was configured with three humbuckers; the neck and bridge pickups shared a tone control, while the middle had its own. Atop the guitar was a Roland GK-2 pickup which fed the controller set inside the guitar. The GK2 was used in junction with the Roland GR-50 rack mount synthesizer. The GR-50 synthesizer in turn drove a Korg M1R synthesizer producing the MIDI effects heard during live performances of this period as heard on the Grateful Dead recording Without a Net. Sections of the guitar were hollowed out to bring the weight down to . The inlay, a dancing skeleton holding a rose, covers a plate just below the bridge. The final cost of the instrument was $11,000 ().
In 1993, carpenter-turned-luthier Stephen Cripe tried his hand at making an instrument for Garcia. After researching Tiger through pictures and films, Cripe set out on what would soon become known as "Lightning Bolt", again named for its inlay.
The guitar used Brazilian rosewood for the fingerboard and East Indian rosewood for the body, which, with admitted irony from Cripe, had been taken from a 19th-century bed used by opium smokers. Built purely from guesswork, Lightning Bolt was a hit with Garcia, who began using the guitar exclusively. Soon after, Garcia requested that Cripe build a backup of the guitar. Cripe, who had not measured or photographed the original, was told simply to "wing it."
Cripe later delivered the backup, which was known by the name "Top Hat". Garcia bought it from him for $6,500, making it the first guitar that Cripe had ever sold. However, infatuated with Lightning Bolt, Garcia rarely used the backup.
After Garcia's death, the ownership of Wolf and Tiger came into question. According to Garcia's will, his guitars were bequeathed to Doug Irwin, who had constructed them.
The remaining Grateful Dead members disagreed – they considered his guitars to be property of the band, leading to a lawsuit between the two parties. In 2001, Irwin won the case. However, nearly having been left destitute from a traffic accident in 1998, he decided to place the guitars up for auction in hopes of being able to start another guitar workshop.
On May 8, 2002, Wolf and Tiger, among other memorabilia, were placed for auction at Studio 54 in New York City. Tiger was sold for $957,500, and Wolf for $789,500. Together, the pair sold for $1.74 million, setting a new world record. Wolf went into in the private collection of Daniel Pritzker who kept it in a secure climate controlled room in a private residence at Utica, N.Y. Tiger went to the private collection of Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay.
In May 2017, Wolf was again auctioned, but this time for charity. Pritzker decided to sell the guitar and donate all proceeds to the Montgomery, Alabama based Southern Poverty Law Center.
Brian Halligan placed the winning bid totaling $1.9M.
For the majority of 2019 Wolf and Tiger were included in the Play it Loud exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. On June 23, 2019 John Mayer played Wolf with Dead & Co. at Citi Field.
Legacy
Garcia was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Grateful Dead in 1994. He declined to attend the ceremony; the band jokingly brought a cardboard cutout of Garcia out on stage in his absence.
In 1987, Vermont ice cream maker Ben & Jerry's introduced their Cherry Garcia flavor dedicated to him. It was the first ice cream flavor dedicated to a musician.
In 2003, Rolling Stone ranked Jerry Garcia 13th in their list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".
According to fellow Bay Area guitar player Henry Kaiser, Garcia is "the most recorded guitarist in history. With more than 2,200 Grateful Dead concerts, and 1,000 Jerry Garcia Band concerts captured on tape – as well as numerous studio sessions – there are about 15,000 hours of his guitar work preserved for the ages."
On July 30, 2004, Melvin Seals was the first Jerry Garcia Band (JGB) member to headline an outdoor music and camping festival called "The Grateful Garcia Gathering". Jerry Garcia Band drummer David Kemper joined Melvin Seals and JGB in 2007. Other musicians and friends of Garcia include Donna Jean Godchaux, Mookie Siegel, Pete Sears, G.E. Smith, Chuck Hammer, Barry Sless, Jackie Greene, Brian Lesh, Sanjay Mishra, and Mark Karan.
On July 21, 2005, the San Francisco Recreation and Park Commission passed a resolution to name the amphitheater in McLaren Park "The Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." The amphitheater is located in the Excelsior District, where Garcia grew up. The first show to happen at the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater was Jerry Day 2005 on August 7, 2005. Jerry's brother, Tiff Garcia, was the first person to welcome everybody to the "Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." Jerry Day is an annual celebration of Garcia in his childhood neighborhood. The dedication ceremony (Jerry Day 2) on October 29, 2005, was officiated by mayor Gavin Newsom.
On September 24, 2005, the Comes a Time: A Celebration of the Music & Spirit of Jerry Garcia tribute concert was held at the Hearst Greek Theatre in Berkeley, California. The concert featured Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, Mickey Hart, Bruce Hornsby, Trey Anastasio, Warren Haynes, Jimmy Herring, Michael Kang, Jay Lane, Jeff Chimenti, Mark Karan, Robin Sylvester, Kenny Brooks, Melvin Seals, Merl Saunders, Marty Holland, Stu Allen, Gloria Jones, and Jackie LaBranch.
Georgia-based composer Lee Johnson released an orchestral tribute to the music of the Grateful Dead, recorded with the Russian National Orchestra, entitled "Dead Symphony: Lee Johnson Symphony No. 6." Johnson was interviewed on NPR on the July 26, 2008 broadcast of Weekend Edition, and gave much credit to the genius and craft of Garcia's songwriting. A live performance with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Johnson himself, was held Friday, August 1.
In 2010 the Santa Barbara Bowl in California opened Jerry Garcia Glen along the walk up to the venue. There is a statue of Garcia's right hand along the way.
Seattle rock band Soundgarden wrote and recorded the instrumental song "Jerry Garcia's Finger", dedicated to the singer, which was released as a b-side with their single "Pretty Noose".
Numerous music festivals across the United States and Uxbridge, Middlesex, UK hold annual events in memory of Jerry Garcia.
On May 14, 2015, an all-star lineup held a tribute concert for Garcia at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland. The event was called "Dear Jerry".
In 2015, Hunter and Garcia were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Hunter accepted the award along with Garcia's daughter, Trixie Garcia, who accepted on behalf of her father.
In 2015, Jerry Garcia's wife, Manasha Garcia and their daughter, Keelin Garcia launched The Jerry Garcia Foundation, a nonprofit charity that supports projects for artistic, environmental, and humanitarian causes. The Foundation's Board members are Bob Weir, Peter Shapiro, Glenn Fischer, Irwin Sternberg, Daniel Shiner, TRI Studios CEO, Christopher McCutcheon and Fender Music Foundation Executive Director,
Lynn Robison. Keelin Garcia said, "It is a tremendous honor to participate in nonprofit work that is in accordance with my father's values."
In 2018, Jerry Garcia family members, Keelin Garcia and Manasha Garcia launched the Jerry Garcia Music Arts independent music label.
On November 18, 2021, it was announced Jonah Hill would portray Garcia in a forthcoming Grateful Dead biopic written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski directed by Martin Scorsese for Apple TV+.
Discography
New Riders of the Purple Sage – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1971
Hooteroll? – Howard Wales and Jerry Garcia – 1971
Garcia – Jerry Garcia – 1972
Live at Keystone – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1973
Compliments – Jerry Garcia – 1974
Old & In the Way – Old & In the Way – 1975
Reflections – Jerry Garcia – 1976
Cats Under the Stars – Jerry Garcia Band – 1978
Run for the Roses – Jerry Garcia – 1982
Vintage NRPS – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1986
Keystone Encores – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1988
Almost Acoustic – Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band – 1988
Jerry Garcia / David Grisman – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1991
Jerry Garcia Band – Jerry Garcia Band – 1991
Not for Kids Only – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1993
Notes
References
Sources
External links
The official homepage of Jerry Garcia
Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics
Jerry Garcia on Fretbase
The Jerry Site
Official Grateful Dead website
Jerry Garcia discography at deaddisc.com
Jerry Garcia autopsy
Jerry Day: A Civic and Cultural Celebration of Jerry Garcia held in San Francisco
FBI Records: The Vault - Jerry Garcia at vault.fbi.gov
Jerry Garcia's Army personnel file at the National Archives
TEAM
Garcia's Guitars & Gear Directory
American banjoists
American rock guitarists
American male guitarists
American bluegrass musicians
American people of Galician descent
American people of Swedish descent
American people of Irish descent
American people of Spanish descent
American amputees
American bluegrass guitarists
American country guitarists
American folk guitarists
American rock singers
American blues guitarists
American male singer-songwriters
Deaths from diabetes
Grateful Dead members
20th century in San Francisco
Lead guitarists
Pedal steel guitarists
Guitarists from San Francisco
San Francisco Art Institute alumni
United States Army soldiers
American Episcopalians
Hispanic and Latino American singers
Hispanic and Latino American musicians
1942 births
1995 deaths
People from Sebastopol, California
Singers from San Francisco
20th-century American singers
Psychedelic drug advocates
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20th-century American guitarists
Old & In the Way members
Reconstruction (band) members
Jerry Garcia Band members
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Rainforest Band members
Legion of Mary (band) members
Musicians with physical disabilities
20th-century American male singers
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American country rock musicians | false | [
"An ancestor is a progenitor from which individuals or groups are descended.\n\nAncestor, ancestors, or ancestry may also refer to:\n\nArt\nAncestor (sculpture), a 1965 public sculpture in Madison, Wisconsin\n\nBooks\nAncestor (novel), a 2006 novel by Scott Sigler\n\nFilm, TV, and games\nThe Ancestor, a 1936 Italian film\nAncestors (TV series), a public television mini-series on family history\nThe Ancestors (Stargate)\n Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey, a video game developed by Panache Digital Games\n\nMusic\nAncestor (band), Black Metal band originally from Cuba and based in the U.S\nAncestors (band), a metal band from Los Angeles, California\nAlbums\nAncestors (Renee Rosnes album), 1995\nAncestors (Mario Pavone album), 2008\nAncestors (Wadada Leo Smith album), 2012\nAncestors (EP), a 1997 EP by Edith FrostThe Ancestors'', an album by Tim Berne\n\nSee also\nAncestry.com, a genealogy website\n Descendant (disambiguation)\n Primitive (disambiguation)\n Progenitor",
"Ancient Murphy: Greatest Hits of the 20th Century Vol. 1 is a compilation album of tracks by The Ancestors both previously unreleased and from their released albums.\n\nTrack listing\n\"Already Broken\" – 5:56. From A Good Thief Tips His Hat (1999)\n\"End of the World\" – 3:57. From Brigadoon\n\"Helo\" – 4:06. From Brigadoon (1994)\n\"Turning\" – 4:08. Previously unreleased (1993)\n\"(Not Only) Human\" – 4:6. From Brigadoon\n\"Syd\" – 4:11. From Brigadoon (1994)\n\"Naniwan\" – 3:46. Freviously unreleased (1992)\n\"Black for the Gold\" – 4:44. From The Enemies Dance (1991)\n\"Just Like Me\" – 4:35. From The Ancestors (1988)\n\"Stand\" – 5:17. Previously unreleased (1995)\n\"Analog\" – 5:43. Previously unreleased (1994)\n\"Watching Cities Fall\" – 4:44. Previously unreleased (1993)\n\"Cathedral\" – 5:32. Previously unreleased (1993)\n\"Just Need Some\" – 6:22. From Brigadoon (1994)\n\"The Rain\" – 5:46. From The Enemies Dance (1991)\n\nReferences\n\n2007 albums\nThe Ancestors (band) albums"
] |
[
"Jerry Garcia",
"Childhood and early life",
"Where are his ancestors from",
"Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain."
] | C_a95583dc963548a79d885ace2c196575_1 | Where else are his ancestors from | 2 | Besides northwest Spain, where else are Jerry Garcia's ancestors from? | Jerry Garcia | Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (nee Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting. Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family--who had emigrated from Spain in 1919--would often sing during reunions. Garcia experienced several tragedies during his youth. At age four, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains, two-thirds of Garcia's right middle finger was accidentally cut off. Garcia and his brother Tiff were chopping wood. Jerry steadied a piece of wood with his finger, but Tiff miscalculated and the axe severed most of Jerry's middle finger. After his mother wrapped his hand in a towel, Garcia's father drove him over 30 miles to the nearest hospital. A few weeks later, Garcia -- who had not looked at his finger since the accident -- was surprised to discover most of it missing when the bandage he was wearing came off during a bath. Garcia later confided that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood. Less than a year after he lost most of his finger, his father died. Vacationing with his family near Arcata in Northern California in 1947, Garcia's father went fly fishing in the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest. Not long after entering the river, Garcia's father slipped on a rock, lost his balance and was swept away by the river's rapids. He drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw his father fall into the river, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, lends weight to McNally's claim. Jackson's evidence was that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death failed to mention Garcia was present when he died. CANNOTANSWER | His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. | Jerome John Garcia (August 1, 1942 – August 9, 1995) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known for being a principal songwriter, the lead guitarist and a vocalist with the rock band the Grateful Dead, of which he was a founding member and which came to prominence during the counterculture of the 1960s. Although he disavowed the role, Garcia was viewed by many as the leader of the band.
As one of its founders, Garcia performed with the Grateful Dead for their entire 30-year career (1965–1995). Garcia also founded and participated in a variety of side projects, including the Saunders–Garcia Band (with longtime friend Merl Saunders), the Jerry Garcia Band, Old & In the Way, the Garcia/Grisman and Garcia/Kahn acoustic duos, Legion of Mary, and New Riders of the Purple Sage (which he co-founded with John Dawson and David Nelson). He also released several solo albums, and contributed to a number of albums by other artists over the years as a session musician. He was well known for his distinctive guitar playing, and was ranked 13th in Rolling Stones "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" cover story in 2003. In the 2015 version of the list he was ranked at #46.
Garcia was also renowned for his musical and technical ability, particularly his ability to play a variety of instruments and sustain long improvisations with the Grateful Dead. Garcia believed that improvisation took stress away from his playing and allowed him to make spur of the moment decisions that he would not have made intentionally. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Garcia noted that "my own preferences are for improvisation, for making it up as I go along. The idea of picking, of eliminating possibilities by deciding, that's difficult for me". Originating from the days of the "acid tests", these improvisations were a form of exploration rather than playing a song already written.
Later in life, Garcia struggled with diabetes and in 1986, went into a diabetic coma that nearly cost him his life. Although his overall health improved somewhat after that, he continued to struggle with obesity, smoking, and longstanding heroin and cocaine addictions. He was staying in a California drug rehabilitation facility when he died of a heart attack on August 9, 1995, at the age of 53.
Early life
Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (née Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting.
Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family—which had immigrated from Spain in 1919—would often sing during reunions.
In 1946, two-thirds of four-year-old Garcia's right middle finger was cut off by his brother in a wood splitting accident, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Garcia later confessed that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood.
Less than a year after this incident his father died in a fly fishing accident when the family was vacationing near Arcata in Northern California. He slipped after entering the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest, and drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw the incident, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, notes that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death did not mention Jerry being present when he died.
Excelsior District
Following his father's death, Garcia's mother Ruth took over her husband's bar, buying out his partner for full ownership. She began working full-time there, sending Jerry and his brother to live nearby with her parents, Tillie and William Clifford. During the five-year period in which he lived with his grandparents, Garcia enjoyed a large amount of autonomy and attended Monroe Elementary School. At the school, Garcia was greatly encouraged in his artistic abilities by his third grade teacher: through her, he discovered that "being a creative person was a viable possibility in life." According to Garcia, it was around this time that he was opened up to country and bluegrass music by his grandmother, whom he recalled enjoyed listening to the Grand Ole Opry. His elder brother, Clifford, however, staunchly believed the contrary, insisting that Garcia was "fantasizing all [that] ... she'd been to Opry, but she didn't listen to it on the radio." It was at this point that Garcia started playing the banjo, his first stringed instrument.
Menlo Park
In 1953, Garcia's mother married Wally Matusiewicz. Subsequently, Garcia and his brother moved back home with their mother and new stepfather. However, due to the roughneck reputation of their neighborhood at the time, Garcia's mother moved their family to Menlo Park. During their stay in Menlo Park, Garcia became acquainted with racism and antisemitism, things he disliked intensely. The same year, Garcia was also introduced to rock and roll and rhythm and blues by his brother, and enjoyed listening to Ray Charles, John Lee Hooker, B. B. King, Hank Ballard, and, later, Chuck Berry. Clifford often memorized the vocals for his favorite songs, and would then make Garcia learn the harmony parts, a move to which Garcia later attributed much of his early ear training.
In mid-1957, Garcia began smoking cigarettes and was introduced to marijuana. Garcia would later reminisce about the first time he smoked marijuana: "Me and a friend of mine went up into the hills with two joints, the San Francisco foothills, and smoked these joints and just got so high and laughed and roared and went skipping down the streets doing funny things and just having a helluva time". During this time, Garcia also studied at what is now the San Francisco Art Institute. The teacher there was Wally Hedrick, an artist who came to prominence during the 1960s. During the classes, he often encouraged Garcia in his drawing and painting skills. Hedrick also introduced Garcia to the fiction of Jack Kerouac, whom Garcia later cited as a major influence.
San Francisco
In June, Garcia graduated from the local Menlo Oaks school. He then moved with his family back to San Francisco, where they lived in an apartment above the family bar, a newly built replacement for the original, that had been torn down to make way for a freeway entrance. Two months later, on Garcia's fifteenth birthday, his mother bought an accordion for him, to his great disappointment. Garcia had long been captivated by many rhythm and blues artists, especially Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley, leaving him craving an electric guitar. After some pleading, his mother exchanged the accordion for a Danelectro with a small amplifier at a local pawnshop. Garcia's stepfather, who was somewhat proficient with instruments, helped tune his guitar to an unusual open tuning.
Cazadero
After a short stint at Denman Junior High School, Garcia attended tenth grade at Balboa High School in 1958, where he often got into trouble for skipping classes and fighting. Consequently, in 1959, Garcia's mother again moved the family to a safer environment, to Cazadero, a small town in Sonoma County, north of San Francisco. This turn of events did not sit well with Garcia, who had to travel by bus to Analy High School in Sebastopol, the nearest school. Garcia did, however, join a band at his school known as the Chords. After performing in and winning a contest, the band's reward was recording a song. They chose "Raunchy" by Bill Justis.
Recording career
Relocation and band beginnings
Garcia stole his mother's car in 1960, and was given the option of joining the United States Army in lieu of prison. He received basic training at Fort Ord. After training, he was transferred to Fort Winfield Scott in the Presidio of San Francisco. Garcia spent most of his time in the army at his leisure, missing roll call and accruing many counts of being AWOL. As a result, Garcia was given a general discharge on December 14, 1960.
In January 1961, Garcia drove down to East Palo Alto to see Laird Grant, an old friend from middle school. He had bought a 1950 Cadillac sedan from a cook in the army, which barely made it to Grant's residence before it broke down. Garcia spent the next few weeks sleeping where friends would allow, eventually using his car as a home. Through Grant, Garcia met Dave McQueen in February, who, after hearing Garcia perform some blues music, introduced him to local people and to the Chateau, a rooming house located near Stanford University which was then a popular hangout.
On February 20, 1961, Garcia got into a car with Paul Speegle, a sixteen-year-old artist and acquaintance of Garcia; Lee Adams, the house manager of the Chateau and driver of the car; and Alan Trist, a companion of theirs. After speeding past the Palo Alto Veterans Hospital, the driver encountered a curve and, speeding around , crashed into the guard rail, sending the car rolling turbulently. Garcia was hurled through the windshield of the car into a nearby field with such force he was literally thrown out of his shoes and would later be unable to recall the ejection. Lee Adams, the driver, and Alan Trist, who was seated in the back, were thrown from the car as well, suffering from abdominal injuries and a spine fracture, respectively. Garcia escaped with a broken collarbone, while Speegle, still in the car, was fatally injured.
Lee's reckless driving and crash served as an awakening for Garcia, who later commented: "That's where my life began. Before then I was always living at less than capacity. I was idling. That was the slingshot for the rest of my life. It was like a second chance. Then I got serious". It was at this time that Garcia began to realize that he needed to begin playing the guitar in earnest—a move which meant giving up his love of drawing and painting.
In April 1961, Garcia first met Robert Hunter, who would become a long-time friend of and lyricist for the Grateful Dead, collaborating principally with Garcia. The two involved themselves in the South Bay and San Francisco art and music scenes, sometimes playing at Menlo Park's Kepler's Books. Garcia performed his first concert with Hunter, each earning five dollars. Garcia and Hunter also played in bands (the Wildwood Boys and the Hart Valley Drifters) with David Nelson, who would later play with Garcia in the New Riders of the Purple Sage and contribute to several Grateful Dead album songs.
In 1962, Garcia met Phil Lesh, the eventual bassist of the Grateful Dead, during a party in Menlo Park's bohemian Perry Lane neighborhood (where author Ken Kesey lived). Lesh would later write in his autobiography that Garcia reminded him of pictures he had seen of the composer Claude Debussy, with his "dark, curly hair, goatee, Impressionist eyes". While attending another party in Palo Alto, Lesh approached Garcia to suggest they record Garcia on Lesh's tape recorder and produce a radio show for the progressive, community-supported Berkeley radio station KPFA. Using an old Wollensak tape recorder, they recorded "Matty Groves" and "The Long Black Veil", among several other tunes. The recordings became a central feature of a 90-minute KPFA special broadcast, "The Long Black Veil and Other Ballads: An Evening with Jerry Garcia". The link between KPFA and the Grateful Dead continues to this day, having included many fundraisers, interviews, live concert broadcasts, taped band performances and all-day or all-weekend "Dead-only" marathons.
Garcia soon began playing and teaching acoustic guitar and banjo. One of Garcia's students was Bob Matthews, who later engineered many of the Grateful Dead's albums. Matthews attended Menlo-Atherton High School and was friends with Bob Weir, and on New Year's Eve 1963, he introduced Weir and Garcia.
Between 1962 and 1964, Garcia sang and performed mainly bluegrass, old-time, and folk music. One of the bands Garcia performed with was the Sleepy Hollow Hog Stompers, a bluegrass act. The group consisted of Garcia on guitar, banjo, vocals, and harmonica, Marshall Leicester on banjo, guitar, and vocals, and Dick Arnold on fiddle and vocals. Soon after this, Garcia, Weir, Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, and several of their friends formed a jug band called Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions. Around this time, the psychedelic drug LSD was gaining popularity. Garcia first began using LSD in 1964; later, when asked how it changed his life, he remarked: "Well, it changed everything [...] the effect was that it freed me because I suddenly realized that my little attempt at having a straight life and doing that was really a fiction and just wasn't going to work out. Luckily I wasn't far enough into it for it to be shattering or anything; it was like a realization that just made me feel immensely relieved."
In 1965, Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions evolved into the Warlocks, with the addition of Phil Lesh on bass guitar and Bill Kreutzmann on percussion. However, the band discovered that another group (which would later become the Velvet Underground) had recently selected the same name. In response, Garcia came up with "Grateful Dead" by opening a Funk & Wagnalls dictionary to an entry for "Grateful dead". The definition for "Grateful dead" was "a dead person, or his angel, showing gratitude to someone who, as an act of charity, arranged their burial". The band's first reaction was disapproval. Garcia later explained the group's reaction: "I didn't like it really, I just found it to be really powerful. [Bob] Weir didn't like it, [Bill] Kreutzmann didn't like it and nobody really wanted to hear about it." Despite their dislike of the name, it quickly spread by word of mouth, and soon became their official title.
Career with the Grateful Dead
Garcia served as lead guitarist, as well as one of the principal vocalists and songwriters of the Grateful Dead for its entire career. Garcia composed such songs as "Dark Star", "Franklin's Tower", and "Scarlet Begonias", among many others. Robert Hunter, an ardent collaborator with the band, wrote the lyrics to all but a few of Garcia's songs.
Garcia was well-noted for his "soulful extended guitar improvisations", which would frequently feature interplay between him and his fellow band members. His fame, as well as the band's, arguably rested on their ability to never play a song the same way twice. Often, Garcia would take cues from rhythm guitarist Bob Weir, remarking that "there are some [...] kinds of ideas that would really throw me if I had to create a harmonic bridge between all the things going on rhythmically with two drums and Phil [Lesh's] innovative bass playing. Weir's ability to solve that sort of problem is extraordinary. [...] Harmonically, I take a lot of my solo cues from Bob."
When asked to describe his approach to soloing, Garcia commented: "It keeps on changing. I still basically revolve around the melody and the way it's broken up into phrases as I perceive them. With most solos, I tend to play something that phrases the way the melody does; my phrases may be more dense or have different value, but they'll occur in the same places in the song. [...]"
Garcia and the band toured almost constantly from their formation in 1965 until Garcia's death in 1995. Periodically, there were breaks due to exhaustion or health problems, often due to Garcia's drug use. During their three-decade span, the Grateful Dead played 2,314 shows.
Garcia's guitar-playing was eclectic. He melded elements from the various kinds of music that influenced him. Echoes of bluegrass playing (such as Arthur Smith and Doc Watson) could be heard. There was also early rock (like Lonnie Mack, James Burton, and Chuck Berry), contemporary blues (Freddie King and Lowell Fulsom), country and western (Roy Nichols and Don Rich), and jazz (Charlie Christian and Django Reinhardt) to be heard in Garcia's style. Don Rich was the sparkling country guitar player in Buck Owens's "the Buckaroos" band of the 1960s, but besides Rich's style, both Garcia's pedal steel guitar playing (on Grateful Dead records and others) and his standard electric guitar work, were influenced by another of Owens's Buckaroos of that time, pedal steel player Tom Brumley. And as an improvisational soloist, John Coltrane was one of his greatest personal and musical influences.
Garcia later described his playing style as having "descended from barroom rock and roll, country guitar. Just 'cause that's where all my stuff comes from. It's like that blues instrumental stuff that was happening in the late Fifties and early Sixties, like Freddie King." Garcia's style could vary with the song being played and the instrument he was using, but his playing had a number of so-called "signatures". Among these were lead lines based on rhythmic triplets (examples include the songs "Good Morning Little School Girl", "New Speedway Boogie", "Brokedown Palace", "Deal", "Loser", "Truckin'", "That's It for the Other One", "U.S. Blues", "Sugaree", and "Don't Ease Me In").
Side projects
In addition to the Grateful Dead, Garcia had numerous side projects, the most notable being the Jerry Garcia Band. He was also involved with various acoustic projects such as Old & In the Way and other bluegrass bands, including collaborations with noted bluegrass mandolinist David Grisman. The documentary film Grateful Dawg, co-produced by Gillian Grisman and former NBC producer Pamela Hamilton chronicles the deep, long-term friendship between Garcia and Grisman. When Garcia and Grisman released Not For Kids Only, Hamilton produced their interview and concert for NBC. After several years of producing stories on the Grateful Dead and band members' side projects, Hamilton interviewed Bob Weir for a feature on Garcia's death marking the end of an era.
Other groups of which Garcia was a member at one time or another include the Black Mountain Boys, Legion of Mary, Reconstruction, and the Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band. Garcia was also a fan of jazz artists and improvisation: he played with jazz keyboardists Merl Saunders and Howard Wales for many years in various groups and jam sessions, and he appeared on saxophonist Ornette Coleman's 1988 album, Virgin Beauty. His collaboration with Merl Saunders and Muruga Booker on the world music album Blues From the Rainforest launched the Rainforest Band.
Garcia also spent a lot of time in the recording studio helping out fellow musician friends in session work, often adding guitar, vocals, pedal steel, sometimes banjo and piano and even producing. He played on over 50 studio albums, the styles of which were eclectic and varied, including bluegrass, rock, folk, blues, country, jazz, electronic music, gospel, funk, and reggae. Artists who sought Garcia's help included the likes of Jefferson Airplane (most notably Surrealistic Pillow, Garcia being listed as their "spiritual advisor"). Garcia himself recalled in a mid-1967 interview that he'd played the high lead on "Today," played on "Plastic Fantastic Lover" and "Comin' Back to Me" on that album. Others include Tom Fogerty, David Bromberg, Robert Hunter (Liberty, on Relix Records), Paul Pena, Peter Rowan, Warren Zevon, Country Joe McDonald, Pete Sears, Ken Nordine, Ornette Coleman, Bruce Hornsby, Bob Dylan, It's a Beautiful Day, and many more. In 1995 Garcia played on three tracks for the CD Blue Incantation by guitarist Sanjay Mishra, making it his last studio collaboration.
Throughout the early 1970s, Garcia, Lesh, Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart, and David Crosby collaborated intermittently with MIT-educated composer and biologist Ned Lagin on several projects in the realm of early ambient music; these include the album Seastones (released by the Ned Lagin on the Round Records subsidiary) and L, an unfinished dance work composed by Ned Lagin. In 1970, Garcia participated in the soundtrack for the film Zabriskie Point.
Garcia also played pedal steel guitar for fellow-San Francisco musicians New Riders of the Purple Sage from their initial dates in 1969 to October 1971, when increased commitments with the Dead forced him to opt out of the group. He appears as a band member on their debut album New Riders of the Purple Sage, and produced Home, Home on the Road, a 1974 live album by the band. He also contributed pedal steel guitar to the enduring hit "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young. Garcia also played steel guitar licks on Brewer & Shipley's 1970 album Tarkio. Despite considering himself a novice on the pedal steel, Garcia routinely ranked high in player polls. After a long lapse from playing the pedal steel, he played it once more during several of the Dead's concerts with Bob Dylan in the summer of 1987.
In 1988, Garcia agreed to perform at several major benefits including the "Soviet American Peace Walk" concert at the Band Shell, in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, that drew 25,000 people. He was asked to play by longtime friend and fellow musician, Pete Sears, who played piano with all the bands that day, and also procured all the other musicians. Garcia, Mickey Hart and Steve Parish played the show, then were given a police escort to a Grateful Dead show across the bay later that night. Garcia also played with Nick Gravenites and Pete Sears at a benefit given for Vietnam Veteran and peace activist Brian Willson, who lost both legs below the knee when he attempted to block a train carrying weapons to military dictatorships in El Salvador.
Having previously studied at the San Francisco Art Institute as a teenager, Garcia embarked on a second career in the visual arts in the late 1980s. He created a number of drawings, etchings, and water colors. Garcia's artistic endeavors were represented by the Weir Gallery in Berkeley, California from 1989 to 1996. During this period, Roberta Weir (unrelated to Garcia's bandmate Bob Weir) provided Garcia with new art techniques to use, sponsored his first solo show in 1990, and prepared blank etching plates for him to draw on. These would then be processed and printed by gallery staff and brought back to Garcia for approval and signature, usually with a passing of stacks of paper backstage at a Dead show. His annual shows at the Weir Gallery garnered much attention, leading to further shows in New York and other cities. Garcia was an early adopter of digital art media; his artistic style was as varied as his musical output, and he carried small notebooks for pen and ink sketches wherever he toured. Roberta Weir continues to maintain an archive of the artwork of Jerry Garcia. Perhaps the most widely seen pieces of Jerry Garcia's art are the many editions of men's neckties produced by Stonehenge Ltd. and Mulberry Neckware. Some began as etchings, other designs came from his drawings, paintings, and digital art. Garcia's artwork has since expanded into everything from hotel rooms, wet suits, men's sport shirts, a women's wear line, boxer shorts, hair accessories, cummerbunds, silk scarves and wool rugs.
Personal life
Garcia met his first wife, Sara Ruppenthal, in 1963. She was working at the coffee house in the back of Kepler's Books, where Garcia, Hunter, and Nelson regularly performed. They married on April 23, 1963, and on December 8 of that year their daughter Heather was born.
Carolyn Adams, a Merry Prankster also known as "Mountain Girl" or "M.G.," had a daughter, Sunshine, with Ken Kesey. Mountain Girl married another Prankster, George Walker, but they soon separated. She and Sunshine then moved into 710 Ashbury with Garcia in late 1966 where they would ultimately live together until 1975. In 1994, Sara and Jerry officially divorced after a long separation. Adams gave birth to Garcia's second and third daughters, Annabelle Walker Garcia (February 2, 1970) and Theresa Adams "Trixie" Garcia (September 21, 1974).
In August 1970, Garcia's mother Ruth was involved in a car crash near Twin Peaks in San Francisco. Garcia, who was recording the album American Beauty at the time, often left the sessions to visit his mother with his brother Clifford. She died on September 28, 1970.
In the midst of a March 1973 Grateful Dead engagement at Long Island's Nassau Coliseum, Garcia met Deborah Koons, an aspiring filmmaker from a wealthy Cincinnati, Ohio-based family who would much later marry him and become his widow. After a brief correspondence, he began his relationship with her in mid-1974. This gradually strained his relationship with Adams and culminated in Garcia leaving Adams for Koons in late 1975. The end of his relationship with Koons in 1977 precipitated a brief reconciliation with Adams, including the reestablishment of their household. However, she did not agree with the guitarist's persistent use of narcotics and moved with the children to the Eugene, Oregon area, living near Kesey, in 1978.
Following Adams' departure, Garcia had an affair with Amy Moore. She was a Kentucky-born member of the extended "Grateful Dead family", and the mistress of Texas oil heir Roy Cullen. Their affair lasted circa 1980–1981, and inspired the Garcia-Hunter song "Run for the Roses."
Adams and Garcia were married on December 31, 1981, largely as a result of mutual tax exigencies. Despite the legal codification of their union, she remained in Oregon, while Garcia continued to live near the Grateful Dead's offices in San Rafael, California. Garcia lived with a variety of housemates, including longtime Grateful Dead employee and Jerry Garcia Band manager Rock Scully. Scully, who co-managed the Grateful Dead throughout the mid-to-late 1960s before serving as the band's "advance man" and publicist, was dismissed by the group in 1984 for enabling Garcia's addictions and for allegedly embezzling the Garcia Band's profits. Another housemate was Nora Sage, a Deadhead who became Garcia's housekeeper while studying at the Golden Gate University School of Law. The exact nature of their relationship remains unclear, although it is believed to have been platonic due to Garcia's addictions. She later became his art representative.
While they would briefly reunite following his diabetic coma, Garcia and Adams ultimately divorced in 1994. Phil Lesh has subsequently stated that he rarely saw Adams on any of the band tours. In a 1991 Rolling Stone interview, Garcia stated that "we haven't really lived together since the Seventies".
During the autumn of 1978, Garcia developed a friendship with Shimer College student Manasha Matheson, an artist and music enthusiast. They remained friends over the following nine years before initiating a romantic relationship in Hartford, Connecticut on the Grateful Dead's spring 1987 tour. Jerry and Manasha became parents with the birth of their daughter, Keelin Noel Garcia, on December 20, 1987. On August 17, 1990, Jerry and Manasha married at their San Anselmo, California home in a spiritual ceremony free of legal convention. In 1991, Garcia expressed his delight in finding the time to "actually be a father" to Keelin in contrast to his past relationships with his children. A year later, Garcia dedicated his first art book, Paintings, Drawings and Sketches, "For Manasha, with love, Jerry."
In January 1993, Barbara "Brigid" Meier, a former girlfriend from the early 1960s, reentered Garcia's life for a brief period. Meier claimed, Garcia had considered her to be the "love of his life" and proposed to her during a Hawaiian vacation shortly after their relationship recommenced. Garcia's "love of his life" sentiment was not reserved for one lover, as he expressed the same feelings to several other women in his life. At Garcia's 1995 funeral, Koons declared that she was "the love of his life" while paying her final respects, whereupon Meier and Ruppenthal, who were both in attendance, simultaneously exclaimed, "He said that to me!"
The affair with Meier marked the breakup of Jerry's family life with Manasha and Keelin. Garcia ended the affair with Meier forty-five days later while on tour in Chicago with the Grateful Dead after she confronted him about his drug use.
Shortly thereafter, Garcia renewed his acquaintance with Deborah Koons in the spring of 1993. They married on February 14, 1994, in Sausalito, California. Garcia and Koons were married at the time of his death.
Lifestyle and health
Because of their public profile, Garcia and his collaborators were occasionally singled out in the American government's war on drugs. On October 2, 1967, 710 Ashbury Street in San Francisco (where the Grateful Dead had taken up residence the year before) was raided after a police tip-off. Grateful Dead members Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan were apprehended on marijuana charges which were later dropped, although Garcia himself was not arrested. The following year, Garcia's picture was used in a defamatory context in a campaign commercial for Richard Nixon.
Most of the band were arrested again in January 1970, after they flew to New Orleans from Hawaii. After returning to their hotel from a performance, the band checked into their rooms, only to be quickly raided by police. Approximately fifteen people were arrested on the spot, including many of the road crew, management, and nearly all of the Grateful Dead except for Garcia, who arrived later, outgoing keyboardist Tom Constanten, who abstained from all drugs as a member of the Church of Scientology, and McKernan, who eschewed illegal drugs in favor of alcohol.
According to Bill Kreutzmann, the band's use of cocaine accelerated throughout the early 1970s. After using heroin in a brothel in 1974 (likely on the band's second European tour), Garcia was introduced to a smokeable form of the drug (initially advertised as refined opium) colloquially known as "Persian" or "Persian Base" during the group's 1975 hiatus. Influenced by the stresses of creating and releasing The Grateful Dead Movie and the acrimonious collapse of the band's independent record labels over the next two years, Garcia became increasingly dependent upon both substances. These factors, combined with the alcohol and drug abuse of several other members of the Grateful Dead, resulted in a turbulent atmosphere. By 1978, the band's chemistry began "cracking and crumbling", resulting in poor group cohesion. As a result, Keith and Donna Jean Godchaux left the band in February 1979.
With the addition of keyboardist/vocalist Brent Mydland that year amid the ongoing coalescence of the Deadhead subculture, the band reached new commercial heights as a touring group on the American arena circuit in the early 1980s, enabling them to forsake studio recording for several years. Nevertheless, this was offset by such factors as the band's atypically large payroll and Garcia's $700-a-day () drug addiction, resulting in the guitarist taking on a frenetic slate of solo touring outside of the Grateful Dead's rigorous schedule, including abbreviated acoustic duo concerts with Jerry Garcia Band bassist John Kahn that were widely rumored to be a funding conduit for their respective addictions.
Though things seemed to be getting better for the band, Garcia's health was declining. By 1983, Garcia's demeanor onstage had appeared to change. Despite still playing the guitar with great passion and intensity, there were times that he would appear disengaged; as such, shows were often inconsistent. Years of heavy tobacco smoking had affected his voice, and he gained considerable weight. By 1984, he would often rest his chin on the microphone during performances. The so-called "endless tour"—the result of years of financial risks, drug use, and poor business decisions—had taken its toll.
Garcia's decade-long heroin addiction culminated in the rest of the band holding an intervention in January 1985. Given the choice between the band or the drugs, Garcia agreed to check into a rehabilitation center in Oakland, California. A few days later in January, before the start of his program in Oakland, Garcia was arrested for drug possession in Golden Gate Park; he subsequently attended a drug diversion program. Throughout 1985, he tapered his drug use on tour and at home with the assistance of Nora Sage; by the spring of 1986, he was completely abstinent.
Precipitated by an unhealthy weight, dehydration, bad eating habits, and a recent relapse on the Grateful Dead's first stadium tour, Garcia collapsed into a diabetic coma in July 1986, waking up five days later. He later spoke about this period of unconsciousness as surreal: "Well, I had some very weird experiences. My main experience was one of furious activity and tremendous struggle in a sort of futuristic, space-ship vehicle with insectoid presences. After I came out of my coma, I had this image of myself as these little hunks of protoplasm that were stuck together kind of like stamps with perforations between them that you could snap off." Garcia's coma had a profound effect on him: it forced him to have to relearn how to play the guitar, as well as other, more basic skills. Within a handful of months, he had recovered, playing with the Jerry Garcia Band and the Grateful Dead again later that year.
After Garcia's recovery, the band released a comeback album In the Dark in 1987, which became their best-selling studio album. Inspired by Garcia's improved health, a successful album and the continuing emergence of Mydland as a third frontman, the band's energy and chemistry reached a new peak in the late 1980s.
Amid a litany of personal problems, Mydland died of a speedball overdose in July 1990. His death greatly affected Garcia, leading him to believe that the band's chemistry would never be the same. Before beginning the fall tour, the band acquired keyboardists Vince Welnick and Bruce Hornsby. The power of Hornsby's performances drove Garcia to new heights on stage. However, as the band continued through 1991, Garcia became concerned with the band's future. He was exhausted from five straight years of touring. He thought a break was necessary, mainly so that the band could come back with fresh material. The idea was put off by the pressures of management, and the touring continued. Garcia began using heroin again after several years of intermittent prescription opiate use. Though his relapse was brief, the band was quick to react. Soon after the last show of the tour in Denver, Garcia was confronted by the band with another intervention. After a disastrous meeting, Garcia invited Phil Lesh over to his home in San Rafael, California, where he explained that after the meeting he would start attending a methadone clinic. Garcia said that he wanted to clean up in his own way, and return to making music.
After returning from the band's 1992 summer tour, Garcia became sick, a throwback to his diabetic coma in 1986. Manasha Garcia nursed Jerry back to health and organized a team of health professionals which included acupuncturist Yen Wei Choong and Randy Baker, MD, a holistic family physician to treat him at home. Garcia recovered over the following days, despite the Grateful Dead having to cancel their fall tour to allow him time to recuperate. Garcia reduced his cigarette smoking and began losing weight. He also became a vegetarian.
Despite these improvements, Garcia's physical and mental condition continued to decline throughout 1993 and 1994. He began to use narcotics again to dull the pain.
In light of his second drug relapse and current condition, Garcia checked himself into the Betty Ford Center during July 1995. His stay was limited, lasting only two weeks. Motivated by the experience, he then checked into the Serenity Knolls treatment center in Forest Knolls, California, where he died.
Death
Garcia died in his room at the rehabilitation clinic on August 9, 1995. The cause of death was a heart attack. Garcia had long struggled with drug addiction, weight problems, sleep apnea, heavy smoking, and diabetes—all of which contributed to his physical decline. Lesh remarked that, upon hearing of Garcia's death, "I was struck numb. I had lost my oldest surviving friend, my brother." Garcia's funeral was held on August 12, at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Belvedere. It was attended by his family, the remaining Grateful Dead members, and their friends, including former pro basketball player Bill Walton and musician Bob Dylan. Deborah Koons barred two of Garcia's former wives from the ceremony.
On August 13, about 25,000 people attended a municipally sanctioned public memorial at the Polo Fields of San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. Crowds produced hundreds of flowers, gifts, images, and a bagpipe rendition of "Amazing Grace" in remembrance. In the Haight, a single white rose was reportedly tied to a tree near the Dead's former Haight-Ashbury house, where a group of followers gathered to mourn.
On the morning of April 4, 1996, after a total lunar eclipse earlier that day, Weir and Deborah Koons accompanied by Sanjay Mishra, spread half of Garcia's ashes into the Ganges at the holy city of Rishikesh, India, a site sacred to Hindus. The remaining ashes were poured into the San Francisco Bay. Koons did not allow former wife Carolyn Garcia to attend the spreading of the ashes.
Musical equipment
Garcia played many guitars during his career, which ranged from student and budget models to custom-made instruments. During his thirty-five year career as a professional musician, Garcia used about 25 guitars.
In 1965, when Garcia was playing with the Warlocks, he used a Guild Starfire, which he also used on the début album of the Grateful Dead. Beginning in late 1967 and ending in 1968, Garcia played black or gold mid-1950s Gibson Les Paul guitars with P-90 pickups. In 1969, he picked up the Gibson SG and used it for most of that year and 1970, except for a small period in between where he used a sunburst Fender Stratocaster.
During Garcia's "pedal steel flirtation period" (as Bob Weir referred to it in Anthem to Beauty), from approximately 1969 to 1972, he initially played a Fender instrument before upgrading to the ZB Custom D-10, especially in his earlier public performances. Although this was a double neck guitar, Garcia used the "E9 neck and the three pedals to raise the tone and two levers to lower it." He employed an Emmons D-10 at the Grateful Dead's and New Riders of the Purple Sage's final appearances at the Fillmore East in April 1971.
In 1969, Garcia played pedal steel on three notable outside recordings: the track "The Farm" on the Jefferson Airplane album Volunteers, the track "Oh Mommy" by Brewer and Shipley and the hit single "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young from their album Déjà Vu, released in 1970. Garcia played on the latter album in exchange for harmony lessons for the Grateful Dead, who were at the time recording Workingman's Dead.
In 1971, Garcia began playing a sunburst Les Paul. In March and April 1971 – the time period during which the Grateful Dead recorded its second live album, Grateful Dead – Garcia played the "Peanut," a guitar he had received from Rick Turner, who had custom built the guitar's body and incorporated the neck, pickups, and hardware from an early '60s Les Paul.
In May, Garcia began using a 1957 natural finish Stratocaster that had been given to him by Graham Nash. Garcia added an alligator sticker to the pickguard in the fall of that year. "Alligator" would remain Garcia's principal electric guitar until August 1973.
In the summer of 1971, Garcia also played a double-cutaway Les Paul TV Junior.
While Alligator was in the shop in the summer of 1972, he briefly reverted to the sunburst Stratocaster; this can be seen in Sunshine Daydream.
In late 1972, Garcia purchased the first guitar ("Eagle") made by Alembic luthier Doug Irwin for $850 (). Enamored of Irwin's talents, he immediately commissioned his own custom instrument. This guitar, nicknamed "Wolf" for a memorable sticker Garcia added below the tailpiece, was delivered in May 1973 and replaced Alligator on stage in September. It cost $1,500 (), an extremely high price for the era.
Wolf was made with an ebony fingerboard and featured numerous embellishments like alternating grain designs in the headstock, ivory inlays, and fret marker dots made of sterling silver. The body was composed of western maple wood which had a core of purpleheart. Garcia later had Irwin (who ultimately left Alembic to start his own business) replace the electronics inside the guitar, at which point he added his own logo to the headstock alongside the Alembic logo. The system included two interchangeable plates for configuring pickups: one was made for strictly single coils, while the other accommodated humbuckers. Shortly after receiving the modified instrument, Garcia commissioned another custom guitar from Irwin with one caveat: "Don't hold back."
During the Grateful Dead's 1974 European tour, Wolf was dropped on several occasions, one of which caused a minor crack in the headstock. Following filming of The Grateful Dead Movie (in which the guitar is prominently visible) a month later, Garcia returned it to Irwin for repairs. Throughout its absence, Garcia predominantly played several Travis Bean guitars, including the TB1000A (1975) and the TB500 (1976-1977). On September 28, 1977, Irwin delivered the refurbished Wolf back to Garcia. The wolf sticker which gave the guitar its name had now been inlaid into the instrument; it also featured an effects loop between the pick-ups and controls (so inline effects would "see" the same signal at all times) which was bypassable. Irwin also put a new face on the headstock with only his logo (he later claimed to have built the guitar himself, though pictures through time clearly show the progression of logos, from Alembic, to Alembic & Irwin, to only Irwin).
Nearly seven years after he commissioned it, Garcia received his second custom guitar ("Tiger") from Irwin in the summer of 1979.
He first employed the instrument in concert at a Grateful Dead performance at the Oakland Auditorium Arena on August 4, 1979. Its name was derived from the inlay on the preamp cover.
The body of Tiger was of rich quality: the top layer was cocobolo, with the preceding layers being maple stripe, vermilion, and flame maple, in that order. The neck was made of western maple with an ebony fingerboard. The pickups consisted of a single coil DiMarzio SDS-1 and two humbucker DiMarzio Super IIs which were easily removable due to Garcia's preference for replacing his pickups every year or two. The electronics were composed of an effects bypass loop, which allowed Garcia to control the sound of his effects through the tone and volume controls on the guitar, and a preamplifier/buffer which rested behind a plate in the back of the guitar. Fully outfitted, Tiger weighed . This was Garcia's principal guitar for the next eleven years, and most played.
In the late 1980s Garcia, Weir and CSN (along with many others) endorsed Alvarez Yairi acoustic guitars. There are many photographs circulating (mostly promotional) of Garcia playing a DY99 Virtuoso Custom with a Modulus Graphite neck. He opted to play with the less decorated model but the promotional photo from the Alvarez Yairi catalog has him holding the "tree of life" model. This hand-built guitar was notable for the collaboration between Japanese luthier Kazuo Yairi and Modulus Graphite of San Rafael. As with most things Garcia, with his passing, the DY99 model is highly valued among collectors.
In 1990, Irwin completed "Rosebud", Garcia's fourth custom guitar. It was similar to his previous guitar Tiger in many respects, but featured different inlays and electronics, tone and volume controls, and weight. Rosebud, unlike Tiger, was configured with three humbuckers; the neck and bridge pickups shared a tone control, while the middle had its own. Atop the guitar was a Roland GK-2 pickup which fed the controller set inside the guitar. The GK2 was used in junction with the Roland GR-50 rack mount synthesizer. The GR-50 synthesizer in turn drove a Korg M1R synthesizer producing the MIDI effects heard during live performances of this period as heard on the Grateful Dead recording Without a Net. Sections of the guitar were hollowed out to bring the weight down to . The inlay, a dancing skeleton holding a rose, covers a plate just below the bridge. The final cost of the instrument was $11,000 ().
In 1993, carpenter-turned-luthier Stephen Cripe tried his hand at making an instrument for Garcia. After researching Tiger through pictures and films, Cripe set out on what would soon become known as "Lightning Bolt", again named for its inlay.
The guitar used Brazilian rosewood for the fingerboard and East Indian rosewood for the body, which, with admitted irony from Cripe, had been taken from a 19th-century bed used by opium smokers. Built purely from guesswork, Lightning Bolt was a hit with Garcia, who began using the guitar exclusively. Soon after, Garcia requested that Cripe build a backup of the guitar. Cripe, who had not measured or photographed the original, was told simply to "wing it."
Cripe later delivered the backup, which was known by the name "Top Hat". Garcia bought it from him for $6,500, making it the first guitar that Cripe had ever sold. However, infatuated with Lightning Bolt, Garcia rarely used the backup.
After Garcia's death, the ownership of Wolf and Tiger came into question. According to Garcia's will, his guitars were bequeathed to Doug Irwin, who had constructed them.
The remaining Grateful Dead members disagreed – they considered his guitars to be property of the band, leading to a lawsuit between the two parties. In 2001, Irwin won the case. However, nearly having been left destitute from a traffic accident in 1998, he decided to place the guitars up for auction in hopes of being able to start another guitar workshop.
On May 8, 2002, Wolf and Tiger, among other memorabilia, were placed for auction at Studio 54 in New York City. Tiger was sold for $957,500, and Wolf for $789,500. Together, the pair sold for $1.74 million, setting a new world record. Wolf went into in the private collection of Daniel Pritzker who kept it in a secure climate controlled room in a private residence at Utica, N.Y. Tiger went to the private collection of Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay.
In May 2017, Wolf was again auctioned, but this time for charity. Pritzker decided to sell the guitar and donate all proceeds to the Montgomery, Alabama based Southern Poverty Law Center.
Brian Halligan placed the winning bid totaling $1.9M.
For the majority of 2019 Wolf and Tiger were included in the Play it Loud exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. On June 23, 2019 John Mayer played Wolf with Dead & Co. at Citi Field.
Legacy
Garcia was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Grateful Dead in 1994. He declined to attend the ceremony; the band jokingly brought a cardboard cutout of Garcia out on stage in his absence.
In 1987, Vermont ice cream maker Ben & Jerry's introduced their Cherry Garcia flavor dedicated to him. It was the first ice cream flavor dedicated to a musician.
In 2003, Rolling Stone ranked Jerry Garcia 13th in their list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".
According to fellow Bay Area guitar player Henry Kaiser, Garcia is "the most recorded guitarist in history. With more than 2,200 Grateful Dead concerts, and 1,000 Jerry Garcia Band concerts captured on tape – as well as numerous studio sessions – there are about 15,000 hours of his guitar work preserved for the ages."
On July 30, 2004, Melvin Seals was the first Jerry Garcia Band (JGB) member to headline an outdoor music and camping festival called "The Grateful Garcia Gathering". Jerry Garcia Band drummer David Kemper joined Melvin Seals and JGB in 2007. Other musicians and friends of Garcia include Donna Jean Godchaux, Mookie Siegel, Pete Sears, G.E. Smith, Chuck Hammer, Barry Sless, Jackie Greene, Brian Lesh, Sanjay Mishra, and Mark Karan.
On July 21, 2005, the San Francisco Recreation and Park Commission passed a resolution to name the amphitheater in McLaren Park "The Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." The amphitheater is located in the Excelsior District, where Garcia grew up. The first show to happen at the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater was Jerry Day 2005 on August 7, 2005. Jerry's brother, Tiff Garcia, was the first person to welcome everybody to the "Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." Jerry Day is an annual celebration of Garcia in his childhood neighborhood. The dedication ceremony (Jerry Day 2) on October 29, 2005, was officiated by mayor Gavin Newsom.
On September 24, 2005, the Comes a Time: A Celebration of the Music & Spirit of Jerry Garcia tribute concert was held at the Hearst Greek Theatre in Berkeley, California. The concert featured Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, Mickey Hart, Bruce Hornsby, Trey Anastasio, Warren Haynes, Jimmy Herring, Michael Kang, Jay Lane, Jeff Chimenti, Mark Karan, Robin Sylvester, Kenny Brooks, Melvin Seals, Merl Saunders, Marty Holland, Stu Allen, Gloria Jones, and Jackie LaBranch.
Georgia-based composer Lee Johnson released an orchestral tribute to the music of the Grateful Dead, recorded with the Russian National Orchestra, entitled "Dead Symphony: Lee Johnson Symphony No. 6." Johnson was interviewed on NPR on the July 26, 2008 broadcast of Weekend Edition, and gave much credit to the genius and craft of Garcia's songwriting. A live performance with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Johnson himself, was held Friday, August 1.
In 2010 the Santa Barbara Bowl in California opened Jerry Garcia Glen along the walk up to the venue. There is a statue of Garcia's right hand along the way.
Seattle rock band Soundgarden wrote and recorded the instrumental song "Jerry Garcia's Finger", dedicated to the singer, which was released as a b-side with their single "Pretty Noose".
Numerous music festivals across the United States and Uxbridge, Middlesex, UK hold annual events in memory of Jerry Garcia.
On May 14, 2015, an all-star lineup held a tribute concert for Garcia at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland. The event was called "Dear Jerry".
In 2015, Hunter and Garcia were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Hunter accepted the award along with Garcia's daughter, Trixie Garcia, who accepted on behalf of her father.
In 2015, Jerry Garcia's wife, Manasha Garcia and their daughter, Keelin Garcia launched The Jerry Garcia Foundation, a nonprofit charity that supports projects for artistic, environmental, and humanitarian causes. The Foundation's Board members are Bob Weir, Peter Shapiro, Glenn Fischer, Irwin Sternberg, Daniel Shiner, TRI Studios CEO, Christopher McCutcheon and Fender Music Foundation Executive Director,
Lynn Robison. Keelin Garcia said, "It is a tremendous honor to participate in nonprofit work that is in accordance with my father's values."
In 2018, Jerry Garcia family members, Keelin Garcia and Manasha Garcia launched the Jerry Garcia Music Arts independent music label.
On November 18, 2021, it was announced Jonah Hill would portray Garcia in a forthcoming Grateful Dead biopic written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski directed by Martin Scorsese for Apple TV+.
Discography
New Riders of the Purple Sage – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1971
Hooteroll? – Howard Wales and Jerry Garcia – 1971
Garcia – Jerry Garcia – 1972
Live at Keystone – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1973
Compliments – Jerry Garcia – 1974
Old & In the Way – Old & In the Way – 1975
Reflections – Jerry Garcia – 1976
Cats Under the Stars – Jerry Garcia Band – 1978
Run for the Roses – Jerry Garcia – 1982
Vintage NRPS – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1986
Keystone Encores – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1988
Almost Acoustic – Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band – 1988
Jerry Garcia / David Grisman – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1991
Jerry Garcia Band – Jerry Garcia Band – 1991
Not for Kids Only – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1993
Notes
References
Sources
External links
The official homepage of Jerry Garcia
Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics
Jerry Garcia on Fretbase
The Jerry Site
Official Grateful Dead website
Jerry Garcia discography at deaddisc.com
Jerry Garcia autopsy
Jerry Day: A Civic and Cultural Celebration of Jerry Garcia held in San Francisco
FBI Records: The Vault - Jerry Garcia at vault.fbi.gov
Jerry Garcia's Army personnel file at the National Archives
TEAM
Garcia's Guitars & Gear Directory
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American country rock musicians | true | [
"An ancestor is a progenitor from which individuals or groups are descended.\n\nAncestor, ancestors, or ancestry may also refer to:\n\nArt\nAncestor (sculpture), a 1965 public sculpture in Madison, Wisconsin\n\nBooks\nAncestor (novel), a 2006 novel by Scott Sigler\n\nFilm, TV, and games\nThe Ancestor, a 1936 Italian film\nAncestors (TV series), a public television mini-series on family history\nThe Ancestors (Stargate)\n Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey, a video game developed by Panache Digital Games\n\nMusic\nAncestor (band), Black Metal band originally from Cuba and based in the U.S\nAncestors (band), a metal band from Los Angeles, California\nAlbums\nAncestors (Renee Rosnes album), 1995\nAncestors (Mario Pavone album), 2008\nAncestors (Wadada Leo Smith album), 2012\nAncestors (EP), a 1997 EP by Edith FrostThe Ancestors'', an album by Tim Berne\n\nSee also\nAncestry.com, a genealogy website\n Descendant (disambiguation)\n Primitive (disambiguation)\n Progenitor",
"Ancient Murphy: Greatest Hits of the 20th Century Vol. 1 is a compilation album of tracks by The Ancestors both previously unreleased and from their released albums.\n\nTrack listing\n\"Already Broken\" – 5:56. From A Good Thief Tips His Hat (1999)\n\"End of the World\" – 3:57. From Brigadoon\n\"Helo\" – 4:06. From Brigadoon (1994)\n\"Turning\" – 4:08. Previously unreleased (1993)\n\"(Not Only) Human\" – 4:6. From Brigadoon\n\"Syd\" – 4:11. From Brigadoon (1994)\n\"Naniwan\" – 3:46. Freviously unreleased (1992)\n\"Black for the Gold\" – 4:44. From The Enemies Dance (1991)\n\"Just Like Me\" – 4:35. From The Ancestors (1988)\n\"Stand\" – 5:17. Previously unreleased (1995)\n\"Analog\" – 5:43. Previously unreleased (1994)\n\"Watching Cities Fall\" – 4:44. Previously unreleased (1993)\n\"Cathedral\" – 5:32. Previously unreleased (1993)\n\"Just Need Some\" – 6:22. From Brigadoon (1994)\n\"The Rain\" – 5:46. From The Enemies Dance (1991)\n\nReferences\n\n2007 albums\nThe Ancestors (band) albums"
] |
[
"Jerry Garcia",
"Childhood and early life",
"Where are his ancestors from",
"Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain.",
"Where else are his ancestors from",
"His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish."
] | C_a95583dc963548a79d885ace2c196575_1 | What was his fathers name | 3 | What was Jerry Garcia's father's name? | Jerry Garcia | Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (nee Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting. Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family--who had emigrated from Spain in 1919--would often sing during reunions. Garcia experienced several tragedies during his youth. At age four, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains, two-thirds of Garcia's right middle finger was accidentally cut off. Garcia and his brother Tiff were chopping wood. Jerry steadied a piece of wood with his finger, but Tiff miscalculated and the axe severed most of Jerry's middle finger. After his mother wrapped his hand in a towel, Garcia's father drove him over 30 miles to the nearest hospital. A few weeks later, Garcia -- who had not looked at his finger since the accident -- was surprised to discover most of it missing when the bandage he was wearing came off during a bath. Garcia later confided that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood. Less than a year after he lost most of his finger, his father died. Vacationing with his family near Arcata in Northern California in 1947, Garcia's father went fly fishing in the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest. Not long after entering the river, Garcia's father slipped on a rock, lost his balance and was swept away by the river's rapids. He drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw his father fall into the river, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, lends weight to McNally's claim. Jackson's evidence was that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death failed to mention Garcia was present when he died. CANNOTANSWER | Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia | Jerome John Garcia (August 1, 1942 – August 9, 1995) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known for being a principal songwriter, the lead guitarist and a vocalist with the rock band the Grateful Dead, of which he was a founding member and which came to prominence during the counterculture of the 1960s. Although he disavowed the role, Garcia was viewed by many as the leader of the band.
As one of its founders, Garcia performed with the Grateful Dead for their entire 30-year career (1965–1995). Garcia also founded and participated in a variety of side projects, including the Saunders–Garcia Band (with longtime friend Merl Saunders), the Jerry Garcia Band, Old & In the Way, the Garcia/Grisman and Garcia/Kahn acoustic duos, Legion of Mary, and New Riders of the Purple Sage (which he co-founded with John Dawson and David Nelson). He also released several solo albums, and contributed to a number of albums by other artists over the years as a session musician. He was well known for his distinctive guitar playing, and was ranked 13th in Rolling Stones "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" cover story in 2003. In the 2015 version of the list he was ranked at #46.
Garcia was also renowned for his musical and technical ability, particularly his ability to play a variety of instruments and sustain long improvisations with the Grateful Dead. Garcia believed that improvisation took stress away from his playing and allowed him to make spur of the moment decisions that he would not have made intentionally. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Garcia noted that "my own preferences are for improvisation, for making it up as I go along. The idea of picking, of eliminating possibilities by deciding, that's difficult for me". Originating from the days of the "acid tests", these improvisations were a form of exploration rather than playing a song already written.
Later in life, Garcia struggled with diabetes and in 1986, went into a diabetic coma that nearly cost him his life. Although his overall health improved somewhat after that, he continued to struggle with obesity, smoking, and longstanding heroin and cocaine addictions. He was staying in a California drug rehabilitation facility when he died of a heart attack on August 9, 1995, at the age of 53.
Early life
Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (née Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting.
Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family—which had immigrated from Spain in 1919—would often sing during reunions.
In 1946, two-thirds of four-year-old Garcia's right middle finger was cut off by his brother in a wood splitting accident, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Garcia later confessed that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood.
Less than a year after this incident his father died in a fly fishing accident when the family was vacationing near Arcata in Northern California. He slipped after entering the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest, and drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw the incident, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, notes that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death did not mention Jerry being present when he died.
Excelsior District
Following his father's death, Garcia's mother Ruth took over her husband's bar, buying out his partner for full ownership. She began working full-time there, sending Jerry and his brother to live nearby with her parents, Tillie and William Clifford. During the five-year period in which he lived with his grandparents, Garcia enjoyed a large amount of autonomy and attended Monroe Elementary School. At the school, Garcia was greatly encouraged in his artistic abilities by his third grade teacher: through her, he discovered that "being a creative person was a viable possibility in life." According to Garcia, it was around this time that he was opened up to country and bluegrass music by his grandmother, whom he recalled enjoyed listening to the Grand Ole Opry. His elder brother, Clifford, however, staunchly believed the contrary, insisting that Garcia was "fantasizing all [that] ... she'd been to Opry, but she didn't listen to it on the radio." It was at this point that Garcia started playing the banjo, his first stringed instrument.
Menlo Park
In 1953, Garcia's mother married Wally Matusiewicz. Subsequently, Garcia and his brother moved back home with their mother and new stepfather. However, due to the roughneck reputation of their neighborhood at the time, Garcia's mother moved their family to Menlo Park. During their stay in Menlo Park, Garcia became acquainted with racism and antisemitism, things he disliked intensely. The same year, Garcia was also introduced to rock and roll and rhythm and blues by his brother, and enjoyed listening to Ray Charles, John Lee Hooker, B. B. King, Hank Ballard, and, later, Chuck Berry. Clifford often memorized the vocals for his favorite songs, and would then make Garcia learn the harmony parts, a move to which Garcia later attributed much of his early ear training.
In mid-1957, Garcia began smoking cigarettes and was introduced to marijuana. Garcia would later reminisce about the first time he smoked marijuana: "Me and a friend of mine went up into the hills with two joints, the San Francisco foothills, and smoked these joints and just got so high and laughed and roared and went skipping down the streets doing funny things and just having a helluva time". During this time, Garcia also studied at what is now the San Francisco Art Institute. The teacher there was Wally Hedrick, an artist who came to prominence during the 1960s. During the classes, he often encouraged Garcia in his drawing and painting skills. Hedrick also introduced Garcia to the fiction of Jack Kerouac, whom Garcia later cited as a major influence.
San Francisco
In June, Garcia graduated from the local Menlo Oaks school. He then moved with his family back to San Francisco, where they lived in an apartment above the family bar, a newly built replacement for the original, that had been torn down to make way for a freeway entrance. Two months later, on Garcia's fifteenth birthday, his mother bought an accordion for him, to his great disappointment. Garcia had long been captivated by many rhythm and blues artists, especially Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley, leaving him craving an electric guitar. After some pleading, his mother exchanged the accordion for a Danelectro with a small amplifier at a local pawnshop. Garcia's stepfather, who was somewhat proficient with instruments, helped tune his guitar to an unusual open tuning.
Cazadero
After a short stint at Denman Junior High School, Garcia attended tenth grade at Balboa High School in 1958, where he often got into trouble for skipping classes and fighting. Consequently, in 1959, Garcia's mother again moved the family to a safer environment, to Cazadero, a small town in Sonoma County, north of San Francisco. This turn of events did not sit well with Garcia, who had to travel by bus to Analy High School in Sebastopol, the nearest school. Garcia did, however, join a band at his school known as the Chords. After performing in and winning a contest, the band's reward was recording a song. They chose "Raunchy" by Bill Justis.
Recording career
Relocation and band beginnings
Garcia stole his mother's car in 1960, and was given the option of joining the United States Army in lieu of prison. He received basic training at Fort Ord. After training, he was transferred to Fort Winfield Scott in the Presidio of San Francisco. Garcia spent most of his time in the army at his leisure, missing roll call and accruing many counts of being AWOL. As a result, Garcia was given a general discharge on December 14, 1960.
In January 1961, Garcia drove down to East Palo Alto to see Laird Grant, an old friend from middle school. He had bought a 1950 Cadillac sedan from a cook in the army, which barely made it to Grant's residence before it broke down. Garcia spent the next few weeks sleeping where friends would allow, eventually using his car as a home. Through Grant, Garcia met Dave McQueen in February, who, after hearing Garcia perform some blues music, introduced him to local people and to the Chateau, a rooming house located near Stanford University which was then a popular hangout.
On February 20, 1961, Garcia got into a car with Paul Speegle, a sixteen-year-old artist and acquaintance of Garcia; Lee Adams, the house manager of the Chateau and driver of the car; and Alan Trist, a companion of theirs. After speeding past the Palo Alto Veterans Hospital, the driver encountered a curve and, speeding around , crashed into the guard rail, sending the car rolling turbulently. Garcia was hurled through the windshield of the car into a nearby field with such force he was literally thrown out of his shoes and would later be unable to recall the ejection. Lee Adams, the driver, and Alan Trist, who was seated in the back, were thrown from the car as well, suffering from abdominal injuries and a spine fracture, respectively. Garcia escaped with a broken collarbone, while Speegle, still in the car, was fatally injured.
Lee's reckless driving and crash served as an awakening for Garcia, who later commented: "That's where my life began. Before then I was always living at less than capacity. I was idling. That was the slingshot for the rest of my life. It was like a second chance. Then I got serious". It was at this time that Garcia began to realize that he needed to begin playing the guitar in earnest—a move which meant giving up his love of drawing and painting.
In April 1961, Garcia first met Robert Hunter, who would become a long-time friend of and lyricist for the Grateful Dead, collaborating principally with Garcia. The two involved themselves in the South Bay and San Francisco art and music scenes, sometimes playing at Menlo Park's Kepler's Books. Garcia performed his first concert with Hunter, each earning five dollars. Garcia and Hunter also played in bands (the Wildwood Boys and the Hart Valley Drifters) with David Nelson, who would later play with Garcia in the New Riders of the Purple Sage and contribute to several Grateful Dead album songs.
In 1962, Garcia met Phil Lesh, the eventual bassist of the Grateful Dead, during a party in Menlo Park's bohemian Perry Lane neighborhood (where author Ken Kesey lived). Lesh would later write in his autobiography that Garcia reminded him of pictures he had seen of the composer Claude Debussy, with his "dark, curly hair, goatee, Impressionist eyes". While attending another party in Palo Alto, Lesh approached Garcia to suggest they record Garcia on Lesh's tape recorder and produce a radio show for the progressive, community-supported Berkeley radio station KPFA. Using an old Wollensak tape recorder, they recorded "Matty Groves" and "The Long Black Veil", among several other tunes. The recordings became a central feature of a 90-minute KPFA special broadcast, "The Long Black Veil and Other Ballads: An Evening with Jerry Garcia". The link between KPFA and the Grateful Dead continues to this day, having included many fundraisers, interviews, live concert broadcasts, taped band performances and all-day or all-weekend "Dead-only" marathons.
Garcia soon began playing and teaching acoustic guitar and banjo. One of Garcia's students was Bob Matthews, who later engineered many of the Grateful Dead's albums. Matthews attended Menlo-Atherton High School and was friends with Bob Weir, and on New Year's Eve 1963, he introduced Weir and Garcia.
Between 1962 and 1964, Garcia sang and performed mainly bluegrass, old-time, and folk music. One of the bands Garcia performed with was the Sleepy Hollow Hog Stompers, a bluegrass act. The group consisted of Garcia on guitar, banjo, vocals, and harmonica, Marshall Leicester on banjo, guitar, and vocals, and Dick Arnold on fiddle and vocals. Soon after this, Garcia, Weir, Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, and several of their friends formed a jug band called Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions. Around this time, the psychedelic drug LSD was gaining popularity. Garcia first began using LSD in 1964; later, when asked how it changed his life, he remarked: "Well, it changed everything [...] the effect was that it freed me because I suddenly realized that my little attempt at having a straight life and doing that was really a fiction and just wasn't going to work out. Luckily I wasn't far enough into it for it to be shattering or anything; it was like a realization that just made me feel immensely relieved."
In 1965, Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions evolved into the Warlocks, with the addition of Phil Lesh on bass guitar and Bill Kreutzmann on percussion. However, the band discovered that another group (which would later become the Velvet Underground) had recently selected the same name. In response, Garcia came up with "Grateful Dead" by opening a Funk & Wagnalls dictionary to an entry for "Grateful dead". The definition for "Grateful dead" was "a dead person, or his angel, showing gratitude to someone who, as an act of charity, arranged their burial". The band's first reaction was disapproval. Garcia later explained the group's reaction: "I didn't like it really, I just found it to be really powerful. [Bob] Weir didn't like it, [Bill] Kreutzmann didn't like it and nobody really wanted to hear about it." Despite their dislike of the name, it quickly spread by word of mouth, and soon became their official title.
Career with the Grateful Dead
Garcia served as lead guitarist, as well as one of the principal vocalists and songwriters of the Grateful Dead for its entire career. Garcia composed such songs as "Dark Star", "Franklin's Tower", and "Scarlet Begonias", among many others. Robert Hunter, an ardent collaborator with the band, wrote the lyrics to all but a few of Garcia's songs.
Garcia was well-noted for his "soulful extended guitar improvisations", which would frequently feature interplay between him and his fellow band members. His fame, as well as the band's, arguably rested on their ability to never play a song the same way twice. Often, Garcia would take cues from rhythm guitarist Bob Weir, remarking that "there are some [...] kinds of ideas that would really throw me if I had to create a harmonic bridge between all the things going on rhythmically with two drums and Phil [Lesh's] innovative bass playing. Weir's ability to solve that sort of problem is extraordinary. [...] Harmonically, I take a lot of my solo cues from Bob."
When asked to describe his approach to soloing, Garcia commented: "It keeps on changing. I still basically revolve around the melody and the way it's broken up into phrases as I perceive them. With most solos, I tend to play something that phrases the way the melody does; my phrases may be more dense or have different value, but they'll occur in the same places in the song. [...]"
Garcia and the band toured almost constantly from their formation in 1965 until Garcia's death in 1995. Periodically, there were breaks due to exhaustion or health problems, often due to Garcia's drug use. During their three-decade span, the Grateful Dead played 2,314 shows.
Garcia's guitar-playing was eclectic. He melded elements from the various kinds of music that influenced him. Echoes of bluegrass playing (such as Arthur Smith and Doc Watson) could be heard. There was also early rock (like Lonnie Mack, James Burton, and Chuck Berry), contemporary blues (Freddie King and Lowell Fulsom), country and western (Roy Nichols and Don Rich), and jazz (Charlie Christian and Django Reinhardt) to be heard in Garcia's style. Don Rich was the sparkling country guitar player in Buck Owens's "the Buckaroos" band of the 1960s, but besides Rich's style, both Garcia's pedal steel guitar playing (on Grateful Dead records and others) and his standard electric guitar work, were influenced by another of Owens's Buckaroos of that time, pedal steel player Tom Brumley. And as an improvisational soloist, John Coltrane was one of his greatest personal and musical influences.
Garcia later described his playing style as having "descended from barroom rock and roll, country guitar. Just 'cause that's where all my stuff comes from. It's like that blues instrumental stuff that was happening in the late Fifties and early Sixties, like Freddie King." Garcia's style could vary with the song being played and the instrument he was using, but his playing had a number of so-called "signatures". Among these were lead lines based on rhythmic triplets (examples include the songs "Good Morning Little School Girl", "New Speedway Boogie", "Brokedown Palace", "Deal", "Loser", "Truckin'", "That's It for the Other One", "U.S. Blues", "Sugaree", and "Don't Ease Me In").
Side projects
In addition to the Grateful Dead, Garcia had numerous side projects, the most notable being the Jerry Garcia Band. He was also involved with various acoustic projects such as Old & In the Way and other bluegrass bands, including collaborations with noted bluegrass mandolinist David Grisman. The documentary film Grateful Dawg, co-produced by Gillian Grisman and former NBC producer Pamela Hamilton chronicles the deep, long-term friendship between Garcia and Grisman. When Garcia and Grisman released Not For Kids Only, Hamilton produced their interview and concert for NBC. After several years of producing stories on the Grateful Dead and band members' side projects, Hamilton interviewed Bob Weir for a feature on Garcia's death marking the end of an era.
Other groups of which Garcia was a member at one time or another include the Black Mountain Boys, Legion of Mary, Reconstruction, and the Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band. Garcia was also a fan of jazz artists and improvisation: he played with jazz keyboardists Merl Saunders and Howard Wales for many years in various groups and jam sessions, and he appeared on saxophonist Ornette Coleman's 1988 album, Virgin Beauty. His collaboration with Merl Saunders and Muruga Booker on the world music album Blues From the Rainforest launched the Rainforest Band.
Garcia also spent a lot of time in the recording studio helping out fellow musician friends in session work, often adding guitar, vocals, pedal steel, sometimes banjo and piano and even producing. He played on over 50 studio albums, the styles of which were eclectic and varied, including bluegrass, rock, folk, blues, country, jazz, electronic music, gospel, funk, and reggae. Artists who sought Garcia's help included the likes of Jefferson Airplane (most notably Surrealistic Pillow, Garcia being listed as their "spiritual advisor"). Garcia himself recalled in a mid-1967 interview that he'd played the high lead on "Today," played on "Plastic Fantastic Lover" and "Comin' Back to Me" on that album. Others include Tom Fogerty, David Bromberg, Robert Hunter (Liberty, on Relix Records), Paul Pena, Peter Rowan, Warren Zevon, Country Joe McDonald, Pete Sears, Ken Nordine, Ornette Coleman, Bruce Hornsby, Bob Dylan, It's a Beautiful Day, and many more. In 1995 Garcia played on three tracks for the CD Blue Incantation by guitarist Sanjay Mishra, making it his last studio collaboration.
Throughout the early 1970s, Garcia, Lesh, Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart, and David Crosby collaborated intermittently with MIT-educated composer and biologist Ned Lagin on several projects in the realm of early ambient music; these include the album Seastones (released by the Ned Lagin on the Round Records subsidiary) and L, an unfinished dance work composed by Ned Lagin. In 1970, Garcia participated in the soundtrack for the film Zabriskie Point.
Garcia also played pedal steel guitar for fellow-San Francisco musicians New Riders of the Purple Sage from their initial dates in 1969 to October 1971, when increased commitments with the Dead forced him to opt out of the group. He appears as a band member on their debut album New Riders of the Purple Sage, and produced Home, Home on the Road, a 1974 live album by the band. He also contributed pedal steel guitar to the enduring hit "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young. Garcia also played steel guitar licks on Brewer & Shipley's 1970 album Tarkio. Despite considering himself a novice on the pedal steel, Garcia routinely ranked high in player polls. After a long lapse from playing the pedal steel, he played it once more during several of the Dead's concerts with Bob Dylan in the summer of 1987.
In 1988, Garcia agreed to perform at several major benefits including the "Soviet American Peace Walk" concert at the Band Shell, in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, that drew 25,000 people. He was asked to play by longtime friend and fellow musician, Pete Sears, who played piano with all the bands that day, and also procured all the other musicians. Garcia, Mickey Hart and Steve Parish played the show, then were given a police escort to a Grateful Dead show across the bay later that night. Garcia also played with Nick Gravenites and Pete Sears at a benefit given for Vietnam Veteran and peace activist Brian Willson, who lost both legs below the knee when he attempted to block a train carrying weapons to military dictatorships in El Salvador.
Having previously studied at the San Francisco Art Institute as a teenager, Garcia embarked on a second career in the visual arts in the late 1980s. He created a number of drawings, etchings, and water colors. Garcia's artistic endeavors were represented by the Weir Gallery in Berkeley, California from 1989 to 1996. During this period, Roberta Weir (unrelated to Garcia's bandmate Bob Weir) provided Garcia with new art techniques to use, sponsored his first solo show in 1990, and prepared blank etching plates for him to draw on. These would then be processed and printed by gallery staff and brought back to Garcia for approval and signature, usually with a passing of stacks of paper backstage at a Dead show. His annual shows at the Weir Gallery garnered much attention, leading to further shows in New York and other cities. Garcia was an early adopter of digital art media; his artistic style was as varied as his musical output, and he carried small notebooks for pen and ink sketches wherever he toured. Roberta Weir continues to maintain an archive of the artwork of Jerry Garcia. Perhaps the most widely seen pieces of Jerry Garcia's art are the many editions of men's neckties produced by Stonehenge Ltd. and Mulberry Neckware. Some began as etchings, other designs came from his drawings, paintings, and digital art. Garcia's artwork has since expanded into everything from hotel rooms, wet suits, men's sport shirts, a women's wear line, boxer shorts, hair accessories, cummerbunds, silk scarves and wool rugs.
Personal life
Garcia met his first wife, Sara Ruppenthal, in 1963. She was working at the coffee house in the back of Kepler's Books, where Garcia, Hunter, and Nelson regularly performed. They married on April 23, 1963, and on December 8 of that year their daughter Heather was born.
Carolyn Adams, a Merry Prankster also known as "Mountain Girl" or "M.G.," had a daughter, Sunshine, with Ken Kesey. Mountain Girl married another Prankster, George Walker, but they soon separated. She and Sunshine then moved into 710 Ashbury with Garcia in late 1966 where they would ultimately live together until 1975. In 1994, Sara and Jerry officially divorced after a long separation. Adams gave birth to Garcia's second and third daughters, Annabelle Walker Garcia (February 2, 1970) and Theresa Adams "Trixie" Garcia (September 21, 1974).
In August 1970, Garcia's mother Ruth was involved in a car crash near Twin Peaks in San Francisco. Garcia, who was recording the album American Beauty at the time, often left the sessions to visit his mother with his brother Clifford. She died on September 28, 1970.
In the midst of a March 1973 Grateful Dead engagement at Long Island's Nassau Coliseum, Garcia met Deborah Koons, an aspiring filmmaker from a wealthy Cincinnati, Ohio-based family who would much later marry him and become his widow. After a brief correspondence, he began his relationship with her in mid-1974. This gradually strained his relationship with Adams and culminated in Garcia leaving Adams for Koons in late 1975. The end of his relationship with Koons in 1977 precipitated a brief reconciliation with Adams, including the reestablishment of their household. However, she did not agree with the guitarist's persistent use of narcotics and moved with the children to the Eugene, Oregon area, living near Kesey, in 1978.
Following Adams' departure, Garcia had an affair with Amy Moore. She was a Kentucky-born member of the extended "Grateful Dead family", and the mistress of Texas oil heir Roy Cullen. Their affair lasted circa 1980–1981, and inspired the Garcia-Hunter song "Run for the Roses."
Adams and Garcia were married on December 31, 1981, largely as a result of mutual tax exigencies. Despite the legal codification of their union, she remained in Oregon, while Garcia continued to live near the Grateful Dead's offices in San Rafael, California. Garcia lived with a variety of housemates, including longtime Grateful Dead employee and Jerry Garcia Band manager Rock Scully. Scully, who co-managed the Grateful Dead throughout the mid-to-late 1960s before serving as the band's "advance man" and publicist, was dismissed by the group in 1984 for enabling Garcia's addictions and for allegedly embezzling the Garcia Band's profits. Another housemate was Nora Sage, a Deadhead who became Garcia's housekeeper while studying at the Golden Gate University School of Law. The exact nature of their relationship remains unclear, although it is believed to have been platonic due to Garcia's addictions. She later became his art representative.
While they would briefly reunite following his diabetic coma, Garcia and Adams ultimately divorced in 1994. Phil Lesh has subsequently stated that he rarely saw Adams on any of the band tours. In a 1991 Rolling Stone interview, Garcia stated that "we haven't really lived together since the Seventies".
During the autumn of 1978, Garcia developed a friendship with Shimer College student Manasha Matheson, an artist and music enthusiast. They remained friends over the following nine years before initiating a romantic relationship in Hartford, Connecticut on the Grateful Dead's spring 1987 tour. Jerry and Manasha became parents with the birth of their daughter, Keelin Noel Garcia, on December 20, 1987. On August 17, 1990, Jerry and Manasha married at their San Anselmo, California home in a spiritual ceremony free of legal convention. In 1991, Garcia expressed his delight in finding the time to "actually be a father" to Keelin in contrast to his past relationships with his children. A year later, Garcia dedicated his first art book, Paintings, Drawings and Sketches, "For Manasha, with love, Jerry."
In January 1993, Barbara "Brigid" Meier, a former girlfriend from the early 1960s, reentered Garcia's life for a brief period. Meier claimed, Garcia had considered her to be the "love of his life" and proposed to her during a Hawaiian vacation shortly after their relationship recommenced. Garcia's "love of his life" sentiment was not reserved for one lover, as he expressed the same feelings to several other women in his life. At Garcia's 1995 funeral, Koons declared that she was "the love of his life" while paying her final respects, whereupon Meier and Ruppenthal, who were both in attendance, simultaneously exclaimed, "He said that to me!"
The affair with Meier marked the breakup of Jerry's family life with Manasha and Keelin. Garcia ended the affair with Meier forty-five days later while on tour in Chicago with the Grateful Dead after she confronted him about his drug use.
Shortly thereafter, Garcia renewed his acquaintance with Deborah Koons in the spring of 1993. They married on February 14, 1994, in Sausalito, California. Garcia and Koons were married at the time of his death.
Lifestyle and health
Because of their public profile, Garcia and his collaborators were occasionally singled out in the American government's war on drugs. On October 2, 1967, 710 Ashbury Street in San Francisco (where the Grateful Dead had taken up residence the year before) was raided after a police tip-off. Grateful Dead members Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan were apprehended on marijuana charges which were later dropped, although Garcia himself was not arrested. The following year, Garcia's picture was used in a defamatory context in a campaign commercial for Richard Nixon.
Most of the band were arrested again in January 1970, after they flew to New Orleans from Hawaii. After returning to their hotel from a performance, the band checked into their rooms, only to be quickly raided by police. Approximately fifteen people were arrested on the spot, including many of the road crew, management, and nearly all of the Grateful Dead except for Garcia, who arrived later, outgoing keyboardist Tom Constanten, who abstained from all drugs as a member of the Church of Scientology, and McKernan, who eschewed illegal drugs in favor of alcohol.
According to Bill Kreutzmann, the band's use of cocaine accelerated throughout the early 1970s. After using heroin in a brothel in 1974 (likely on the band's second European tour), Garcia was introduced to a smokeable form of the drug (initially advertised as refined opium) colloquially known as "Persian" or "Persian Base" during the group's 1975 hiatus. Influenced by the stresses of creating and releasing The Grateful Dead Movie and the acrimonious collapse of the band's independent record labels over the next two years, Garcia became increasingly dependent upon both substances. These factors, combined with the alcohol and drug abuse of several other members of the Grateful Dead, resulted in a turbulent atmosphere. By 1978, the band's chemistry began "cracking and crumbling", resulting in poor group cohesion. As a result, Keith and Donna Jean Godchaux left the band in February 1979.
With the addition of keyboardist/vocalist Brent Mydland that year amid the ongoing coalescence of the Deadhead subculture, the band reached new commercial heights as a touring group on the American arena circuit in the early 1980s, enabling them to forsake studio recording for several years. Nevertheless, this was offset by such factors as the band's atypically large payroll and Garcia's $700-a-day () drug addiction, resulting in the guitarist taking on a frenetic slate of solo touring outside of the Grateful Dead's rigorous schedule, including abbreviated acoustic duo concerts with Jerry Garcia Band bassist John Kahn that were widely rumored to be a funding conduit for their respective addictions.
Though things seemed to be getting better for the band, Garcia's health was declining. By 1983, Garcia's demeanor onstage had appeared to change. Despite still playing the guitar with great passion and intensity, there were times that he would appear disengaged; as such, shows were often inconsistent. Years of heavy tobacco smoking had affected his voice, and he gained considerable weight. By 1984, he would often rest his chin on the microphone during performances. The so-called "endless tour"—the result of years of financial risks, drug use, and poor business decisions—had taken its toll.
Garcia's decade-long heroin addiction culminated in the rest of the band holding an intervention in January 1985. Given the choice between the band or the drugs, Garcia agreed to check into a rehabilitation center in Oakland, California. A few days later in January, before the start of his program in Oakland, Garcia was arrested for drug possession in Golden Gate Park; he subsequently attended a drug diversion program. Throughout 1985, he tapered his drug use on tour and at home with the assistance of Nora Sage; by the spring of 1986, he was completely abstinent.
Precipitated by an unhealthy weight, dehydration, bad eating habits, and a recent relapse on the Grateful Dead's first stadium tour, Garcia collapsed into a diabetic coma in July 1986, waking up five days later. He later spoke about this period of unconsciousness as surreal: "Well, I had some very weird experiences. My main experience was one of furious activity and tremendous struggle in a sort of futuristic, space-ship vehicle with insectoid presences. After I came out of my coma, I had this image of myself as these little hunks of protoplasm that were stuck together kind of like stamps with perforations between them that you could snap off." Garcia's coma had a profound effect on him: it forced him to have to relearn how to play the guitar, as well as other, more basic skills. Within a handful of months, he had recovered, playing with the Jerry Garcia Band and the Grateful Dead again later that year.
After Garcia's recovery, the band released a comeback album In the Dark in 1987, which became their best-selling studio album. Inspired by Garcia's improved health, a successful album and the continuing emergence of Mydland as a third frontman, the band's energy and chemistry reached a new peak in the late 1980s.
Amid a litany of personal problems, Mydland died of a speedball overdose in July 1990. His death greatly affected Garcia, leading him to believe that the band's chemistry would never be the same. Before beginning the fall tour, the band acquired keyboardists Vince Welnick and Bruce Hornsby. The power of Hornsby's performances drove Garcia to new heights on stage. However, as the band continued through 1991, Garcia became concerned with the band's future. He was exhausted from five straight years of touring. He thought a break was necessary, mainly so that the band could come back with fresh material. The idea was put off by the pressures of management, and the touring continued. Garcia began using heroin again after several years of intermittent prescription opiate use. Though his relapse was brief, the band was quick to react. Soon after the last show of the tour in Denver, Garcia was confronted by the band with another intervention. After a disastrous meeting, Garcia invited Phil Lesh over to his home in San Rafael, California, where he explained that after the meeting he would start attending a methadone clinic. Garcia said that he wanted to clean up in his own way, and return to making music.
After returning from the band's 1992 summer tour, Garcia became sick, a throwback to his diabetic coma in 1986. Manasha Garcia nursed Jerry back to health and organized a team of health professionals which included acupuncturist Yen Wei Choong and Randy Baker, MD, a holistic family physician to treat him at home. Garcia recovered over the following days, despite the Grateful Dead having to cancel their fall tour to allow him time to recuperate. Garcia reduced his cigarette smoking and began losing weight. He also became a vegetarian.
Despite these improvements, Garcia's physical and mental condition continued to decline throughout 1993 and 1994. He began to use narcotics again to dull the pain.
In light of his second drug relapse and current condition, Garcia checked himself into the Betty Ford Center during July 1995. His stay was limited, lasting only two weeks. Motivated by the experience, he then checked into the Serenity Knolls treatment center in Forest Knolls, California, where he died.
Death
Garcia died in his room at the rehabilitation clinic on August 9, 1995. The cause of death was a heart attack. Garcia had long struggled with drug addiction, weight problems, sleep apnea, heavy smoking, and diabetes—all of which contributed to his physical decline. Lesh remarked that, upon hearing of Garcia's death, "I was struck numb. I had lost my oldest surviving friend, my brother." Garcia's funeral was held on August 12, at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Belvedere. It was attended by his family, the remaining Grateful Dead members, and their friends, including former pro basketball player Bill Walton and musician Bob Dylan. Deborah Koons barred two of Garcia's former wives from the ceremony.
On August 13, about 25,000 people attended a municipally sanctioned public memorial at the Polo Fields of San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. Crowds produced hundreds of flowers, gifts, images, and a bagpipe rendition of "Amazing Grace" in remembrance. In the Haight, a single white rose was reportedly tied to a tree near the Dead's former Haight-Ashbury house, where a group of followers gathered to mourn.
On the morning of April 4, 1996, after a total lunar eclipse earlier that day, Weir and Deborah Koons accompanied by Sanjay Mishra, spread half of Garcia's ashes into the Ganges at the holy city of Rishikesh, India, a site sacred to Hindus. The remaining ashes were poured into the San Francisco Bay. Koons did not allow former wife Carolyn Garcia to attend the spreading of the ashes.
Musical equipment
Garcia played many guitars during his career, which ranged from student and budget models to custom-made instruments. During his thirty-five year career as a professional musician, Garcia used about 25 guitars.
In 1965, when Garcia was playing with the Warlocks, he used a Guild Starfire, which he also used on the début album of the Grateful Dead. Beginning in late 1967 and ending in 1968, Garcia played black or gold mid-1950s Gibson Les Paul guitars with P-90 pickups. In 1969, he picked up the Gibson SG and used it for most of that year and 1970, except for a small period in between where he used a sunburst Fender Stratocaster.
During Garcia's "pedal steel flirtation period" (as Bob Weir referred to it in Anthem to Beauty), from approximately 1969 to 1972, he initially played a Fender instrument before upgrading to the ZB Custom D-10, especially in his earlier public performances. Although this was a double neck guitar, Garcia used the "E9 neck and the three pedals to raise the tone and two levers to lower it." He employed an Emmons D-10 at the Grateful Dead's and New Riders of the Purple Sage's final appearances at the Fillmore East in April 1971.
In 1969, Garcia played pedal steel on three notable outside recordings: the track "The Farm" on the Jefferson Airplane album Volunteers, the track "Oh Mommy" by Brewer and Shipley and the hit single "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young from their album Déjà Vu, released in 1970. Garcia played on the latter album in exchange for harmony lessons for the Grateful Dead, who were at the time recording Workingman's Dead.
In 1971, Garcia began playing a sunburst Les Paul. In March and April 1971 – the time period during which the Grateful Dead recorded its second live album, Grateful Dead – Garcia played the "Peanut," a guitar he had received from Rick Turner, who had custom built the guitar's body and incorporated the neck, pickups, and hardware from an early '60s Les Paul.
In May, Garcia began using a 1957 natural finish Stratocaster that had been given to him by Graham Nash. Garcia added an alligator sticker to the pickguard in the fall of that year. "Alligator" would remain Garcia's principal electric guitar until August 1973.
In the summer of 1971, Garcia also played a double-cutaway Les Paul TV Junior.
While Alligator was in the shop in the summer of 1972, he briefly reverted to the sunburst Stratocaster; this can be seen in Sunshine Daydream.
In late 1972, Garcia purchased the first guitar ("Eagle") made by Alembic luthier Doug Irwin for $850 (). Enamored of Irwin's talents, he immediately commissioned his own custom instrument. This guitar, nicknamed "Wolf" for a memorable sticker Garcia added below the tailpiece, was delivered in May 1973 and replaced Alligator on stage in September. It cost $1,500 (), an extremely high price for the era.
Wolf was made with an ebony fingerboard and featured numerous embellishments like alternating grain designs in the headstock, ivory inlays, and fret marker dots made of sterling silver. The body was composed of western maple wood which had a core of purpleheart. Garcia later had Irwin (who ultimately left Alembic to start his own business) replace the electronics inside the guitar, at which point he added his own logo to the headstock alongside the Alembic logo. The system included two interchangeable plates for configuring pickups: one was made for strictly single coils, while the other accommodated humbuckers. Shortly after receiving the modified instrument, Garcia commissioned another custom guitar from Irwin with one caveat: "Don't hold back."
During the Grateful Dead's 1974 European tour, Wolf was dropped on several occasions, one of which caused a minor crack in the headstock. Following filming of The Grateful Dead Movie (in which the guitar is prominently visible) a month later, Garcia returned it to Irwin for repairs. Throughout its absence, Garcia predominantly played several Travis Bean guitars, including the TB1000A (1975) and the TB500 (1976-1977). On September 28, 1977, Irwin delivered the refurbished Wolf back to Garcia. The wolf sticker which gave the guitar its name had now been inlaid into the instrument; it also featured an effects loop between the pick-ups and controls (so inline effects would "see" the same signal at all times) which was bypassable. Irwin also put a new face on the headstock with only his logo (he later claimed to have built the guitar himself, though pictures through time clearly show the progression of logos, from Alembic, to Alembic & Irwin, to only Irwin).
Nearly seven years after he commissioned it, Garcia received his second custom guitar ("Tiger") from Irwin in the summer of 1979.
He first employed the instrument in concert at a Grateful Dead performance at the Oakland Auditorium Arena on August 4, 1979. Its name was derived from the inlay on the preamp cover.
The body of Tiger was of rich quality: the top layer was cocobolo, with the preceding layers being maple stripe, vermilion, and flame maple, in that order. The neck was made of western maple with an ebony fingerboard. The pickups consisted of a single coil DiMarzio SDS-1 and two humbucker DiMarzio Super IIs which were easily removable due to Garcia's preference for replacing his pickups every year or two. The electronics were composed of an effects bypass loop, which allowed Garcia to control the sound of his effects through the tone and volume controls on the guitar, and a preamplifier/buffer which rested behind a plate in the back of the guitar. Fully outfitted, Tiger weighed . This was Garcia's principal guitar for the next eleven years, and most played.
In the late 1980s Garcia, Weir and CSN (along with many others) endorsed Alvarez Yairi acoustic guitars. There are many photographs circulating (mostly promotional) of Garcia playing a DY99 Virtuoso Custom with a Modulus Graphite neck. He opted to play with the less decorated model but the promotional photo from the Alvarez Yairi catalog has him holding the "tree of life" model. This hand-built guitar was notable for the collaboration between Japanese luthier Kazuo Yairi and Modulus Graphite of San Rafael. As with most things Garcia, with his passing, the DY99 model is highly valued among collectors.
In 1990, Irwin completed "Rosebud", Garcia's fourth custom guitar. It was similar to his previous guitar Tiger in many respects, but featured different inlays and electronics, tone and volume controls, and weight. Rosebud, unlike Tiger, was configured with three humbuckers; the neck and bridge pickups shared a tone control, while the middle had its own. Atop the guitar was a Roland GK-2 pickup which fed the controller set inside the guitar. The GK2 was used in junction with the Roland GR-50 rack mount synthesizer. The GR-50 synthesizer in turn drove a Korg M1R synthesizer producing the MIDI effects heard during live performances of this period as heard on the Grateful Dead recording Without a Net. Sections of the guitar were hollowed out to bring the weight down to . The inlay, a dancing skeleton holding a rose, covers a plate just below the bridge. The final cost of the instrument was $11,000 ().
In 1993, carpenter-turned-luthier Stephen Cripe tried his hand at making an instrument for Garcia. After researching Tiger through pictures and films, Cripe set out on what would soon become known as "Lightning Bolt", again named for its inlay.
The guitar used Brazilian rosewood for the fingerboard and East Indian rosewood for the body, which, with admitted irony from Cripe, had been taken from a 19th-century bed used by opium smokers. Built purely from guesswork, Lightning Bolt was a hit with Garcia, who began using the guitar exclusively. Soon after, Garcia requested that Cripe build a backup of the guitar. Cripe, who had not measured or photographed the original, was told simply to "wing it."
Cripe later delivered the backup, which was known by the name "Top Hat". Garcia bought it from him for $6,500, making it the first guitar that Cripe had ever sold. However, infatuated with Lightning Bolt, Garcia rarely used the backup.
After Garcia's death, the ownership of Wolf and Tiger came into question. According to Garcia's will, his guitars were bequeathed to Doug Irwin, who had constructed them.
The remaining Grateful Dead members disagreed – they considered his guitars to be property of the band, leading to a lawsuit between the two parties. In 2001, Irwin won the case. However, nearly having been left destitute from a traffic accident in 1998, he decided to place the guitars up for auction in hopes of being able to start another guitar workshop.
On May 8, 2002, Wolf and Tiger, among other memorabilia, were placed for auction at Studio 54 in New York City. Tiger was sold for $957,500, and Wolf for $789,500. Together, the pair sold for $1.74 million, setting a new world record. Wolf went into in the private collection of Daniel Pritzker who kept it in a secure climate controlled room in a private residence at Utica, N.Y. Tiger went to the private collection of Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay.
In May 2017, Wolf was again auctioned, but this time for charity. Pritzker decided to sell the guitar and donate all proceeds to the Montgomery, Alabama based Southern Poverty Law Center.
Brian Halligan placed the winning bid totaling $1.9M.
For the majority of 2019 Wolf and Tiger were included in the Play it Loud exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. On June 23, 2019 John Mayer played Wolf with Dead & Co. at Citi Field.
Legacy
Garcia was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Grateful Dead in 1994. He declined to attend the ceremony; the band jokingly brought a cardboard cutout of Garcia out on stage in his absence.
In 1987, Vermont ice cream maker Ben & Jerry's introduced their Cherry Garcia flavor dedicated to him. It was the first ice cream flavor dedicated to a musician.
In 2003, Rolling Stone ranked Jerry Garcia 13th in their list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".
According to fellow Bay Area guitar player Henry Kaiser, Garcia is "the most recorded guitarist in history. With more than 2,200 Grateful Dead concerts, and 1,000 Jerry Garcia Band concerts captured on tape – as well as numerous studio sessions – there are about 15,000 hours of his guitar work preserved for the ages."
On July 30, 2004, Melvin Seals was the first Jerry Garcia Band (JGB) member to headline an outdoor music and camping festival called "The Grateful Garcia Gathering". Jerry Garcia Band drummer David Kemper joined Melvin Seals and JGB in 2007. Other musicians and friends of Garcia include Donna Jean Godchaux, Mookie Siegel, Pete Sears, G.E. Smith, Chuck Hammer, Barry Sless, Jackie Greene, Brian Lesh, Sanjay Mishra, and Mark Karan.
On July 21, 2005, the San Francisco Recreation and Park Commission passed a resolution to name the amphitheater in McLaren Park "The Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." The amphitheater is located in the Excelsior District, where Garcia grew up. The first show to happen at the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater was Jerry Day 2005 on August 7, 2005. Jerry's brother, Tiff Garcia, was the first person to welcome everybody to the "Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." Jerry Day is an annual celebration of Garcia in his childhood neighborhood. The dedication ceremony (Jerry Day 2) on October 29, 2005, was officiated by mayor Gavin Newsom.
On September 24, 2005, the Comes a Time: A Celebration of the Music & Spirit of Jerry Garcia tribute concert was held at the Hearst Greek Theatre in Berkeley, California. The concert featured Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, Mickey Hart, Bruce Hornsby, Trey Anastasio, Warren Haynes, Jimmy Herring, Michael Kang, Jay Lane, Jeff Chimenti, Mark Karan, Robin Sylvester, Kenny Brooks, Melvin Seals, Merl Saunders, Marty Holland, Stu Allen, Gloria Jones, and Jackie LaBranch.
Georgia-based composer Lee Johnson released an orchestral tribute to the music of the Grateful Dead, recorded with the Russian National Orchestra, entitled "Dead Symphony: Lee Johnson Symphony No. 6." Johnson was interviewed on NPR on the July 26, 2008 broadcast of Weekend Edition, and gave much credit to the genius and craft of Garcia's songwriting. A live performance with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Johnson himself, was held Friday, August 1.
In 2010 the Santa Barbara Bowl in California opened Jerry Garcia Glen along the walk up to the venue. There is a statue of Garcia's right hand along the way.
Seattle rock band Soundgarden wrote and recorded the instrumental song "Jerry Garcia's Finger", dedicated to the singer, which was released as a b-side with their single "Pretty Noose".
Numerous music festivals across the United States and Uxbridge, Middlesex, UK hold annual events in memory of Jerry Garcia.
On May 14, 2015, an all-star lineup held a tribute concert for Garcia at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland. The event was called "Dear Jerry".
In 2015, Hunter and Garcia were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Hunter accepted the award along with Garcia's daughter, Trixie Garcia, who accepted on behalf of her father.
In 2015, Jerry Garcia's wife, Manasha Garcia and their daughter, Keelin Garcia launched The Jerry Garcia Foundation, a nonprofit charity that supports projects for artistic, environmental, and humanitarian causes. The Foundation's Board members are Bob Weir, Peter Shapiro, Glenn Fischer, Irwin Sternberg, Daniel Shiner, TRI Studios CEO, Christopher McCutcheon and Fender Music Foundation Executive Director,
Lynn Robison. Keelin Garcia said, "It is a tremendous honor to participate in nonprofit work that is in accordance with my father's values."
In 2018, Jerry Garcia family members, Keelin Garcia and Manasha Garcia launched the Jerry Garcia Music Arts independent music label.
On November 18, 2021, it was announced Jonah Hill would portray Garcia in a forthcoming Grateful Dead biopic written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski directed by Martin Scorsese for Apple TV+.
Discography
New Riders of the Purple Sage – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1971
Hooteroll? – Howard Wales and Jerry Garcia – 1971
Garcia – Jerry Garcia – 1972
Live at Keystone – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1973
Compliments – Jerry Garcia – 1974
Old & In the Way – Old & In the Way – 1975
Reflections – Jerry Garcia – 1976
Cats Under the Stars – Jerry Garcia Band – 1978
Run for the Roses – Jerry Garcia – 1982
Vintage NRPS – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1986
Keystone Encores – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1988
Almost Acoustic – Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band – 1988
Jerry Garcia / David Grisman – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1991
Jerry Garcia Band – Jerry Garcia Band – 1991
Not for Kids Only – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1993
Notes
References
Sources
External links
The official homepage of Jerry Garcia
Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics
Jerry Garcia on Fretbase
The Jerry Site
Official Grateful Dead website
Jerry Garcia discography at deaddisc.com
Jerry Garcia autopsy
Jerry Day: A Civic and Cultural Celebration of Jerry Garcia held in San Francisco
FBI Records: The Vault - Jerry Garcia at vault.fbi.gov
Jerry Garcia's Army personnel file at the National Archives
TEAM
Garcia's Guitars & Gear Directory
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American country rock musicians | true | [
"Matt O’Connor (born February 1967) is a marketing consultant, political activist, and author. He is the founder and leader of the Fathers 4 Justice organisation.\n\nEarly life and business career\nHe was born in Manchester in February 1967, and grew up in Kent. His father was a headmaster of a Catholic school from Kerry, Ireland; his mother was an English teacher.\n\nFathers 4 Justice\nFathers 4 Justice was founded in 2001 in the UK by O'Connor.\nIn 2007 he published his first book Fathers4Justice: The Inside Story through the Orion Publishing Group and sold the film rights to his life story to Buena Vista pictures, part of the Walt Disney group.\n\nIce cream \nIn 2009 O'Connor launched an ice cream brand 'The Icecreamists' at Selfridges' London store, then opened a shopfront in Covent Garden. He sold \"extreme flavours\" such as absinthe, crushed popcorn, and horseradish. In 2011 his Baby Gaga breast milk ice cream was removed from sale by Westminister Council for testing, but later returned. Newspapers reported that singer Lady Gaga threatened legal action over the possible use of her name.\n\nHis second book The Icecreamists was published 2012 by Octopus Publishing.\n\nHe was also the Creative Director for the Gelato brand Antonio Federici Gelato Italiano campaign launched in 2009. Several of the advertisements were later banned by the Advertising Standards Authority.\n\nMayoral candidacy\nIn 2008 he was a candidate in the London mayoral election for the English Democrats, but he pulled out a week before polling date, citing a lack of both support from the Democrats, and publicity from the press.\n\nPublications\n\nFathers4Justice: The Inside Story (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2007) \nThe Icecreamists: Boutique ice creams and other guilty pleasures to make and enjoy at home (Mitchell Beazley, 2012)\n\nReferences\n\nLiving people\nEnglish Democrats politicians\nFathers' rights activists\nEnglish people of Irish descent\nDate of birth missing (living people)\n1967 births\nPeople from Manchester",
"Pope Theonas of Alexandria was the 16th Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria, reigning from 282 to 300.\n\nLife\n\nTheonas was a scholar who built a church in Alexandria, Egypt dedicated to the name of the Virgin St. Mary, the Theotokos.\n\nUntil his time, the faithful were praying and performing their services in homes and in caves for fear of the unbelievers. Pope Theonas dealt with them wisely and gently to achieve what he wanted to do. He converted many of them to believe in the Lord Christ and baptized them.\n\nHe baptized, in the first year of his papacy, St. Peter, who succeeded him on the apostolic throne of St. Mark and was the 17th Pope. It was said that he ordained Peter as a reader at the age of five, then he promoted him to be a deacon at the age of twelve, then as a priest at sixteen.\n\nAt the time of this patriarch, a man by the name of Sabellius appeared in Alexandria who was teaching that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are one person. Theonas excommunicated him and he invalidated his heresy by convincing proof.\n\nButler's account\n\nThe hagiographer Alban Butler (1710–1773) wrote in his Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, and Other Principal Saints under August 23,\n\nReferences\n St. Theonas, 16th Pope of Alexandria.\n Theonas in the Ante-Nicene Fathers\n\nSources\n\n \n\n3rd-century Popes and Patriarchs of Alexandria\n300 deaths"
] |
[
"Jerry Garcia",
"Childhood and early life",
"Where are his ancestors from",
"Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain.",
"Where else are his ancestors from",
"His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish.",
"What was his fathers name",
"Jose Ramon \"Joe\" Garcia"
] | C_a95583dc963548a79d885ace2c196575_1 | what was his mothers name | 4 | What was Jerry Garcia's mother's name? | Jerry Garcia | Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (nee Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting. Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family--who had emigrated from Spain in 1919--would often sing during reunions. Garcia experienced several tragedies during his youth. At age four, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains, two-thirds of Garcia's right middle finger was accidentally cut off. Garcia and his brother Tiff were chopping wood. Jerry steadied a piece of wood with his finger, but Tiff miscalculated and the axe severed most of Jerry's middle finger. After his mother wrapped his hand in a towel, Garcia's father drove him over 30 miles to the nearest hospital. A few weeks later, Garcia -- who had not looked at his finger since the accident -- was surprised to discover most of it missing when the bandage he was wearing came off during a bath. Garcia later confided that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood. Less than a year after he lost most of his finger, his father died. Vacationing with his family near Arcata in Northern California in 1947, Garcia's father went fly fishing in the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest. Not long after entering the river, Garcia's father slipped on a rock, lost his balance and was swept away by the river's rapids. He drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw his father fall into the river, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, lends weight to McNally's claim. Jackson's evidence was that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death failed to mention Garcia was present when he died. CANNOTANSWER | Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (nee Clifford) Garcia, | Jerome John Garcia (August 1, 1942 – August 9, 1995) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known for being a principal songwriter, the lead guitarist and a vocalist with the rock band the Grateful Dead, of which he was a founding member and which came to prominence during the counterculture of the 1960s. Although he disavowed the role, Garcia was viewed by many as the leader of the band.
As one of its founders, Garcia performed with the Grateful Dead for their entire 30-year career (1965–1995). Garcia also founded and participated in a variety of side projects, including the Saunders–Garcia Band (with longtime friend Merl Saunders), the Jerry Garcia Band, Old & In the Way, the Garcia/Grisman and Garcia/Kahn acoustic duos, Legion of Mary, and New Riders of the Purple Sage (which he co-founded with John Dawson and David Nelson). He also released several solo albums, and contributed to a number of albums by other artists over the years as a session musician. He was well known for his distinctive guitar playing, and was ranked 13th in Rolling Stones "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" cover story in 2003. In the 2015 version of the list he was ranked at #46.
Garcia was also renowned for his musical and technical ability, particularly his ability to play a variety of instruments and sustain long improvisations with the Grateful Dead. Garcia believed that improvisation took stress away from his playing and allowed him to make spur of the moment decisions that he would not have made intentionally. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Garcia noted that "my own preferences are for improvisation, for making it up as I go along. The idea of picking, of eliminating possibilities by deciding, that's difficult for me". Originating from the days of the "acid tests", these improvisations were a form of exploration rather than playing a song already written.
Later in life, Garcia struggled with diabetes and in 1986, went into a diabetic coma that nearly cost him his life. Although his overall health improved somewhat after that, he continued to struggle with obesity, smoking, and longstanding heroin and cocaine addictions. He was staying in a California drug rehabilitation facility when he died of a heart attack on August 9, 1995, at the age of 53.
Early life
Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (née Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting.
Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family—which had immigrated from Spain in 1919—would often sing during reunions.
In 1946, two-thirds of four-year-old Garcia's right middle finger was cut off by his brother in a wood splitting accident, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Garcia later confessed that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood.
Less than a year after this incident his father died in a fly fishing accident when the family was vacationing near Arcata in Northern California. He slipped after entering the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest, and drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw the incident, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, notes that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death did not mention Jerry being present when he died.
Excelsior District
Following his father's death, Garcia's mother Ruth took over her husband's bar, buying out his partner for full ownership. She began working full-time there, sending Jerry and his brother to live nearby with her parents, Tillie and William Clifford. During the five-year period in which he lived with his grandparents, Garcia enjoyed a large amount of autonomy and attended Monroe Elementary School. At the school, Garcia was greatly encouraged in his artistic abilities by his third grade teacher: through her, he discovered that "being a creative person was a viable possibility in life." According to Garcia, it was around this time that he was opened up to country and bluegrass music by his grandmother, whom he recalled enjoyed listening to the Grand Ole Opry. His elder brother, Clifford, however, staunchly believed the contrary, insisting that Garcia was "fantasizing all [that] ... she'd been to Opry, but she didn't listen to it on the radio." It was at this point that Garcia started playing the banjo, his first stringed instrument.
Menlo Park
In 1953, Garcia's mother married Wally Matusiewicz. Subsequently, Garcia and his brother moved back home with their mother and new stepfather. However, due to the roughneck reputation of their neighborhood at the time, Garcia's mother moved their family to Menlo Park. During their stay in Menlo Park, Garcia became acquainted with racism and antisemitism, things he disliked intensely. The same year, Garcia was also introduced to rock and roll and rhythm and blues by his brother, and enjoyed listening to Ray Charles, John Lee Hooker, B. B. King, Hank Ballard, and, later, Chuck Berry. Clifford often memorized the vocals for his favorite songs, and would then make Garcia learn the harmony parts, a move to which Garcia later attributed much of his early ear training.
In mid-1957, Garcia began smoking cigarettes and was introduced to marijuana. Garcia would later reminisce about the first time he smoked marijuana: "Me and a friend of mine went up into the hills with two joints, the San Francisco foothills, and smoked these joints and just got so high and laughed and roared and went skipping down the streets doing funny things and just having a helluva time". During this time, Garcia also studied at what is now the San Francisco Art Institute. The teacher there was Wally Hedrick, an artist who came to prominence during the 1960s. During the classes, he often encouraged Garcia in his drawing and painting skills. Hedrick also introduced Garcia to the fiction of Jack Kerouac, whom Garcia later cited as a major influence.
San Francisco
In June, Garcia graduated from the local Menlo Oaks school. He then moved with his family back to San Francisco, where they lived in an apartment above the family bar, a newly built replacement for the original, that had been torn down to make way for a freeway entrance. Two months later, on Garcia's fifteenth birthday, his mother bought an accordion for him, to his great disappointment. Garcia had long been captivated by many rhythm and blues artists, especially Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley, leaving him craving an electric guitar. After some pleading, his mother exchanged the accordion for a Danelectro with a small amplifier at a local pawnshop. Garcia's stepfather, who was somewhat proficient with instruments, helped tune his guitar to an unusual open tuning.
Cazadero
After a short stint at Denman Junior High School, Garcia attended tenth grade at Balboa High School in 1958, where he often got into trouble for skipping classes and fighting. Consequently, in 1959, Garcia's mother again moved the family to a safer environment, to Cazadero, a small town in Sonoma County, north of San Francisco. This turn of events did not sit well with Garcia, who had to travel by bus to Analy High School in Sebastopol, the nearest school. Garcia did, however, join a band at his school known as the Chords. After performing in and winning a contest, the band's reward was recording a song. They chose "Raunchy" by Bill Justis.
Recording career
Relocation and band beginnings
Garcia stole his mother's car in 1960, and was given the option of joining the United States Army in lieu of prison. He received basic training at Fort Ord. After training, he was transferred to Fort Winfield Scott in the Presidio of San Francisco. Garcia spent most of his time in the army at his leisure, missing roll call and accruing many counts of being AWOL. As a result, Garcia was given a general discharge on December 14, 1960.
In January 1961, Garcia drove down to East Palo Alto to see Laird Grant, an old friend from middle school. He had bought a 1950 Cadillac sedan from a cook in the army, which barely made it to Grant's residence before it broke down. Garcia spent the next few weeks sleeping where friends would allow, eventually using his car as a home. Through Grant, Garcia met Dave McQueen in February, who, after hearing Garcia perform some blues music, introduced him to local people and to the Chateau, a rooming house located near Stanford University which was then a popular hangout.
On February 20, 1961, Garcia got into a car with Paul Speegle, a sixteen-year-old artist and acquaintance of Garcia; Lee Adams, the house manager of the Chateau and driver of the car; and Alan Trist, a companion of theirs. After speeding past the Palo Alto Veterans Hospital, the driver encountered a curve and, speeding around , crashed into the guard rail, sending the car rolling turbulently. Garcia was hurled through the windshield of the car into a nearby field with such force he was literally thrown out of his shoes and would later be unable to recall the ejection. Lee Adams, the driver, and Alan Trist, who was seated in the back, were thrown from the car as well, suffering from abdominal injuries and a spine fracture, respectively. Garcia escaped with a broken collarbone, while Speegle, still in the car, was fatally injured.
Lee's reckless driving and crash served as an awakening for Garcia, who later commented: "That's where my life began. Before then I was always living at less than capacity. I was idling. That was the slingshot for the rest of my life. It was like a second chance. Then I got serious". It was at this time that Garcia began to realize that he needed to begin playing the guitar in earnest—a move which meant giving up his love of drawing and painting.
In April 1961, Garcia first met Robert Hunter, who would become a long-time friend of and lyricist for the Grateful Dead, collaborating principally with Garcia. The two involved themselves in the South Bay and San Francisco art and music scenes, sometimes playing at Menlo Park's Kepler's Books. Garcia performed his first concert with Hunter, each earning five dollars. Garcia and Hunter also played in bands (the Wildwood Boys and the Hart Valley Drifters) with David Nelson, who would later play with Garcia in the New Riders of the Purple Sage and contribute to several Grateful Dead album songs.
In 1962, Garcia met Phil Lesh, the eventual bassist of the Grateful Dead, during a party in Menlo Park's bohemian Perry Lane neighborhood (where author Ken Kesey lived). Lesh would later write in his autobiography that Garcia reminded him of pictures he had seen of the composer Claude Debussy, with his "dark, curly hair, goatee, Impressionist eyes". While attending another party in Palo Alto, Lesh approached Garcia to suggest they record Garcia on Lesh's tape recorder and produce a radio show for the progressive, community-supported Berkeley radio station KPFA. Using an old Wollensak tape recorder, they recorded "Matty Groves" and "The Long Black Veil", among several other tunes. The recordings became a central feature of a 90-minute KPFA special broadcast, "The Long Black Veil and Other Ballads: An Evening with Jerry Garcia". The link between KPFA and the Grateful Dead continues to this day, having included many fundraisers, interviews, live concert broadcasts, taped band performances and all-day or all-weekend "Dead-only" marathons.
Garcia soon began playing and teaching acoustic guitar and banjo. One of Garcia's students was Bob Matthews, who later engineered many of the Grateful Dead's albums. Matthews attended Menlo-Atherton High School and was friends with Bob Weir, and on New Year's Eve 1963, he introduced Weir and Garcia.
Between 1962 and 1964, Garcia sang and performed mainly bluegrass, old-time, and folk music. One of the bands Garcia performed with was the Sleepy Hollow Hog Stompers, a bluegrass act. The group consisted of Garcia on guitar, banjo, vocals, and harmonica, Marshall Leicester on banjo, guitar, and vocals, and Dick Arnold on fiddle and vocals. Soon after this, Garcia, Weir, Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, and several of their friends formed a jug band called Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions. Around this time, the psychedelic drug LSD was gaining popularity. Garcia first began using LSD in 1964; later, when asked how it changed his life, he remarked: "Well, it changed everything [...] the effect was that it freed me because I suddenly realized that my little attempt at having a straight life and doing that was really a fiction and just wasn't going to work out. Luckily I wasn't far enough into it for it to be shattering or anything; it was like a realization that just made me feel immensely relieved."
In 1965, Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions evolved into the Warlocks, with the addition of Phil Lesh on bass guitar and Bill Kreutzmann on percussion. However, the band discovered that another group (which would later become the Velvet Underground) had recently selected the same name. In response, Garcia came up with "Grateful Dead" by opening a Funk & Wagnalls dictionary to an entry for "Grateful dead". The definition for "Grateful dead" was "a dead person, or his angel, showing gratitude to someone who, as an act of charity, arranged their burial". The band's first reaction was disapproval. Garcia later explained the group's reaction: "I didn't like it really, I just found it to be really powerful. [Bob] Weir didn't like it, [Bill] Kreutzmann didn't like it and nobody really wanted to hear about it." Despite their dislike of the name, it quickly spread by word of mouth, and soon became their official title.
Career with the Grateful Dead
Garcia served as lead guitarist, as well as one of the principal vocalists and songwriters of the Grateful Dead for its entire career. Garcia composed such songs as "Dark Star", "Franklin's Tower", and "Scarlet Begonias", among many others. Robert Hunter, an ardent collaborator with the band, wrote the lyrics to all but a few of Garcia's songs.
Garcia was well-noted for his "soulful extended guitar improvisations", which would frequently feature interplay between him and his fellow band members. His fame, as well as the band's, arguably rested on their ability to never play a song the same way twice. Often, Garcia would take cues from rhythm guitarist Bob Weir, remarking that "there are some [...] kinds of ideas that would really throw me if I had to create a harmonic bridge between all the things going on rhythmically with two drums and Phil [Lesh's] innovative bass playing. Weir's ability to solve that sort of problem is extraordinary. [...] Harmonically, I take a lot of my solo cues from Bob."
When asked to describe his approach to soloing, Garcia commented: "It keeps on changing. I still basically revolve around the melody and the way it's broken up into phrases as I perceive them. With most solos, I tend to play something that phrases the way the melody does; my phrases may be more dense or have different value, but they'll occur in the same places in the song. [...]"
Garcia and the band toured almost constantly from their formation in 1965 until Garcia's death in 1995. Periodically, there were breaks due to exhaustion or health problems, often due to Garcia's drug use. During their three-decade span, the Grateful Dead played 2,314 shows.
Garcia's guitar-playing was eclectic. He melded elements from the various kinds of music that influenced him. Echoes of bluegrass playing (such as Arthur Smith and Doc Watson) could be heard. There was also early rock (like Lonnie Mack, James Burton, and Chuck Berry), contemporary blues (Freddie King and Lowell Fulsom), country and western (Roy Nichols and Don Rich), and jazz (Charlie Christian and Django Reinhardt) to be heard in Garcia's style. Don Rich was the sparkling country guitar player in Buck Owens's "the Buckaroos" band of the 1960s, but besides Rich's style, both Garcia's pedal steel guitar playing (on Grateful Dead records and others) and his standard electric guitar work, were influenced by another of Owens's Buckaroos of that time, pedal steel player Tom Brumley. And as an improvisational soloist, John Coltrane was one of his greatest personal and musical influences.
Garcia later described his playing style as having "descended from barroom rock and roll, country guitar. Just 'cause that's where all my stuff comes from. It's like that blues instrumental stuff that was happening in the late Fifties and early Sixties, like Freddie King." Garcia's style could vary with the song being played and the instrument he was using, but his playing had a number of so-called "signatures". Among these were lead lines based on rhythmic triplets (examples include the songs "Good Morning Little School Girl", "New Speedway Boogie", "Brokedown Palace", "Deal", "Loser", "Truckin'", "That's It for the Other One", "U.S. Blues", "Sugaree", and "Don't Ease Me In").
Side projects
In addition to the Grateful Dead, Garcia had numerous side projects, the most notable being the Jerry Garcia Band. He was also involved with various acoustic projects such as Old & In the Way and other bluegrass bands, including collaborations with noted bluegrass mandolinist David Grisman. The documentary film Grateful Dawg, co-produced by Gillian Grisman and former NBC producer Pamela Hamilton chronicles the deep, long-term friendship between Garcia and Grisman. When Garcia and Grisman released Not For Kids Only, Hamilton produced their interview and concert for NBC. After several years of producing stories on the Grateful Dead and band members' side projects, Hamilton interviewed Bob Weir for a feature on Garcia's death marking the end of an era.
Other groups of which Garcia was a member at one time or another include the Black Mountain Boys, Legion of Mary, Reconstruction, and the Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band. Garcia was also a fan of jazz artists and improvisation: he played with jazz keyboardists Merl Saunders and Howard Wales for many years in various groups and jam sessions, and he appeared on saxophonist Ornette Coleman's 1988 album, Virgin Beauty. His collaboration with Merl Saunders and Muruga Booker on the world music album Blues From the Rainforest launched the Rainforest Band.
Garcia also spent a lot of time in the recording studio helping out fellow musician friends in session work, often adding guitar, vocals, pedal steel, sometimes banjo and piano and even producing. He played on over 50 studio albums, the styles of which were eclectic and varied, including bluegrass, rock, folk, blues, country, jazz, electronic music, gospel, funk, and reggae. Artists who sought Garcia's help included the likes of Jefferson Airplane (most notably Surrealistic Pillow, Garcia being listed as their "spiritual advisor"). Garcia himself recalled in a mid-1967 interview that he'd played the high lead on "Today," played on "Plastic Fantastic Lover" and "Comin' Back to Me" on that album. Others include Tom Fogerty, David Bromberg, Robert Hunter (Liberty, on Relix Records), Paul Pena, Peter Rowan, Warren Zevon, Country Joe McDonald, Pete Sears, Ken Nordine, Ornette Coleman, Bruce Hornsby, Bob Dylan, It's a Beautiful Day, and many more. In 1995 Garcia played on three tracks for the CD Blue Incantation by guitarist Sanjay Mishra, making it his last studio collaboration.
Throughout the early 1970s, Garcia, Lesh, Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart, and David Crosby collaborated intermittently with MIT-educated composer and biologist Ned Lagin on several projects in the realm of early ambient music; these include the album Seastones (released by the Ned Lagin on the Round Records subsidiary) and L, an unfinished dance work composed by Ned Lagin. In 1970, Garcia participated in the soundtrack for the film Zabriskie Point.
Garcia also played pedal steel guitar for fellow-San Francisco musicians New Riders of the Purple Sage from their initial dates in 1969 to October 1971, when increased commitments with the Dead forced him to opt out of the group. He appears as a band member on their debut album New Riders of the Purple Sage, and produced Home, Home on the Road, a 1974 live album by the band. He also contributed pedal steel guitar to the enduring hit "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young. Garcia also played steel guitar licks on Brewer & Shipley's 1970 album Tarkio. Despite considering himself a novice on the pedal steel, Garcia routinely ranked high in player polls. After a long lapse from playing the pedal steel, he played it once more during several of the Dead's concerts with Bob Dylan in the summer of 1987.
In 1988, Garcia agreed to perform at several major benefits including the "Soviet American Peace Walk" concert at the Band Shell, in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, that drew 25,000 people. He was asked to play by longtime friend and fellow musician, Pete Sears, who played piano with all the bands that day, and also procured all the other musicians. Garcia, Mickey Hart and Steve Parish played the show, then were given a police escort to a Grateful Dead show across the bay later that night. Garcia also played with Nick Gravenites and Pete Sears at a benefit given for Vietnam Veteran and peace activist Brian Willson, who lost both legs below the knee when he attempted to block a train carrying weapons to military dictatorships in El Salvador.
Having previously studied at the San Francisco Art Institute as a teenager, Garcia embarked on a second career in the visual arts in the late 1980s. He created a number of drawings, etchings, and water colors. Garcia's artistic endeavors were represented by the Weir Gallery in Berkeley, California from 1989 to 1996. During this period, Roberta Weir (unrelated to Garcia's bandmate Bob Weir) provided Garcia with new art techniques to use, sponsored his first solo show in 1990, and prepared blank etching plates for him to draw on. These would then be processed and printed by gallery staff and brought back to Garcia for approval and signature, usually with a passing of stacks of paper backstage at a Dead show. His annual shows at the Weir Gallery garnered much attention, leading to further shows in New York and other cities. Garcia was an early adopter of digital art media; his artistic style was as varied as his musical output, and he carried small notebooks for pen and ink sketches wherever he toured. Roberta Weir continues to maintain an archive of the artwork of Jerry Garcia. Perhaps the most widely seen pieces of Jerry Garcia's art are the many editions of men's neckties produced by Stonehenge Ltd. and Mulberry Neckware. Some began as etchings, other designs came from his drawings, paintings, and digital art. Garcia's artwork has since expanded into everything from hotel rooms, wet suits, men's sport shirts, a women's wear line, boxer shorts, hair accessories, cummerbunds, silk scarves and wool rugs.
Personal life
Garcia met his first wife, Sara Ruppenthal, in 1963. She was working at the coffee house in the back of Kepler's Books, where Garcia, Hunter, and Nelson regularly performed. They married on April 23, 1963, and on December 8 of that year their daughter Heather was born.
Carolyn Adams, a Merry Prankster also known as "Mountain Girl" or "M.G.," had a daughter, Sunshine, with Ken Kesey. Mountain Girl married another Prankster, George Walker, but they soon separated. She and Sunshine then moved into 710 Ashbury with Garcia in late 1966 where they would ultimately live together until 1975. In 1994, Sara and Jerry officially divorced after a long separation. Adams gave birth to Garcia's second and third daughters, Annabelle Walker Garcia (February 2, 1970) and Theresa Adams "Trixie" Garcia (September 21, 1974).
In August 1970, Garcia's mother Ruth was involved in a car crash near Twin Peaks in San Francisco. Garcia, who was recording the album American Beauty at the time, often left the sessions to visit his mother with his brother Clifford. She died on September 28, 1970.
In the midst of a March 1973 Grateful Dead engagement at Long Island's Nassau Coliseum, Garcia met Deborah Koons, an aspiring filmmaker from a wealthy Cincinnati, Ohio-based family who would much later marry him and become his widow. After a brief correspondence, he began his relationship with her in mid-1974. This gradually strained his relationship with Adams and culminated in Garcia leaving Adams for Koons in late 1975. The end of his relationship with Koons in 1977 precipitated a brief reconciliation with Adams, including the reestablishment of their household. However, she did not agree with the guitarist's persistent use of narcotics and moved with the children to the Eugene, Oregon area, living near Kesey, in 1978.
Following Adams' departure, Garcia had an affair with Amy Moore. She was a Kentucky-born member of the extended "Grateful Dead family", and the mistress of Texas oil heir Roy Cullen. Their affair lasted circa 1980–1981, and inspired the Garcia-Hunter song "Run for the Roses."
Adams and Garcia were married on December 31, 1981, largely as a result of mutual tax exigencies. Despite the legal codification of their union, she remained in Oregon, while Garcia continued to live near the Grateful Dead's offices in San Rafael, California. Garcia lived with a variety of housemates, including longtime Grateful Dead employee and Jerry Garcia Band manager Rock Scully. Scully, who co-managed the Grateful Dead throughout the mid-to-late 1960s before serving as the band's "advance man" and publicist, was dismissed by the group in 1984 for enabling Garcia's addictions and for allegedly embezzling the Garcia Band's profits. Another housemate was Nora Sage, a Deadhead who became Garcia's housekeeper while studying at the Golden Gate University School of Law. The exact nature of their relationship remains unclear, although it is believed to have been platonic due to Garcia's addictions. She later became his art representative.
While they would briefly reunite following his diabetic coma, Garcia and Adams ultimately divorced in 1994. Phil Lesh has subsequently stated that he rarely saw Adams on any of the band tours. In a 1991 Rolling Stone interview, Garcia stated that "we haven't really lived together since the Seventies".
During the autumn of 1978, Garcia developed a friendship with Shimer College student Manasha Matheson, an artist and music enthusiast. They remained friends over the following nine years before initiating a romantic relationship in Hartford, Connecticut on the Grateful Dead's spring 1987 tour. Jerry and Manasha became parents with the birth of their daughter, Keelin Noel Garcia, on December 20, 1987. On August 17, 1990, Jerry and Manasha married at their San Anselmo, California home in a spiritual ceremony free of legal convention. In 1991, Garcia expressed his delight in finding the time to "actually be a father" to Keelin in contrast to his past relationships with his children. A year later, Garcia dedicated his first art book, Paintings, Drawings and Sketches, "For Manasha, with love, Jerry."
In January 1993, Barbara "Brigid" Meier, a former girlfriend from the early 1960s, reentered Garcia's life for a brief period. Meier claimed, Garcia had considered her to be the "love of his life" and proposed to her during a Hawaiian vacation shortly after their relationship recommenced. Garcia's "love of his life" sentiment was not reserved for one lover, as he expressed the same feelings to several other women in his life. At Garcia's 1995 funeral, Koons declared that she was "the love of his life" while paying her final respects, whereupon Meier and Ruppenthal, who were both in attendance, simultaneously exclaimed, "He said that to me!"
The affair with Meier marked the breakup of Jerry's family life with Manasha and Keelin. Garcia ended the affair with Meier forty-five days later while on tour in Chicago with the Grateful Dead after she confronted him about his drug use.
Shortly thereafter, Garcia renewed his acquaintance with Deborah Koons in the spring of 1993. They married on February 14, 1994, in Sausalito, California. Garcia and Koons were married at the time of his death.
Lifestyle and health
Because of their public profile, Garcia and his collaborators were occasionally singled out in the American government's war on drugs. On October 2, 1967, 710 Ashbury Street in San Francisco (where the Grateful Dead had taken up residence the year before) was raided after a police tip-off. Grateful Dead members Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan were apprehended on marijuana charges which were later dropped, although Garcia himself was not arrested. The following year, Garcia's picture was used in a defamatory context in a campaign commercial for Richard Nixon.
Most of the band were arrested again in January 1970, after they flew to New Orleans from Hawaii. After returning to their hotel from a performance, the band checked into their rooms, only to be quickly raided by police. Approximately fifteen people were arrested on the spot, including many of the road crew, management, and nearly all of the Grateful Dead except for Garcia, who arrived later, outgoing keyboardist Tom Constanten, who abstained from all drugs as a member of the Church of Scientology, and McKernan, who eschewed illegal drugs in favor of alcohol.
According to Bill Kreutzmann, the band's use of cocaine accelerated throughout the early 1970s. After using heroin in a brothel in 1974 (likely on the band's second European tour), Garcia was introduced to a smokeable form of the drug (initially advertised as refined opium) colloquially known as "Persian" or "Persian Base" during the group's 1975 hiatus. Influenced by the stresses of creating and releasing The Grateful Dead Movie and the acrimonious collapse of the band's independent record labels over the next two years, Garcia became increasingly dependent upon both substances. These factors, combined with the alcohol and drug abuse of several other members of the Grateful Dead, resulted in a turbulent atmosphere. By 1978, the band's chemistry began "cracking and crumbling", resulting in poor group cohesion. As a result, Keith and Donna Jean Godchaux left the band in February 1979.
With the addition of keyboardist/vocalist Brent Mydland that year amid the ongoing coalescence of the Deadhead subculture, the band reached new commercial heights as a touring group on the American arena circuit in the early 1980s, enabling them to forsake studio recording for several years. Nevertheless, this was offset by such factors as the band's atypically large payroll and Garcia's $700-a-day () drug addiction, resulting in the guitarist taking on a frenetic slate of solo touring outside of the Grateful Dead's rigorous schedule, including abbreviated acoustic duo concerts with Jerry Garcia Band bassist John Kahn that were widely rumored to be a funding conduit for their respective addictions.
Though things seemed to be getting better for the band, Garcia's health was declining. By 1983, Garcia's demeanor onstage had appeared to change. Despite still playing the guitar with great passion and intensity, there were times that he would appear disengaged; as such, shows were often inconsistent. Years of heavy tobacco smoking had affected his voice, and he gained considerable weight. By 1984, he would often rest his chin on the microphone during performances. The so-called "endless tour"—the result of years of financial risks, drug use, and poor business decisions—had taken its toll.
Garcia's decade-long heroin addiction culminated in the rest of the band holding an intervention in January 1985. Given the choice between the band or the drugs, Garcia agreed to check into a rehabilitation center in Oakland, California. A few days later in January, before the start of his program in Oakland, Garcia was arrested for drug possession in Golden Gate Park; he subsequently attended a drug diversion program. Throughout 1985, he tapered his drug use on tour and at home with the assistance of Nora Sage; by the spring of 1986, he was completely abstinent.
Precipitated by an unhealthy weight, dehydration, bad eating habits, and a recent relapse on the Grateful Dead's first stadium tour, Garcia collapsed into a diabetic coma in July 1986, waking up five days later. He later spoke about this period of unconsciousness as surreal: "Well, I had some very weird experiences. My main experience was one of furious activity and tremendous struggle in a sort of futuristic, space-ship vehicle with insectoid presences. After I came out of my coma, I had this image of myself as these little hunks of protoplasm that were stuck together kind of like stamps with perforations between them that you could snap off." Garcia's coma had a profound effect on him: it forced him to have to relearn how to play the guitar, as well as other, more basic skills. Within a handful of months, he had recovered, playing with the Jerry Garcia Band and the Grateful Dead again later that year.
After Garcia's recovery, the band released a comeback album In the Dark in 1987, which became their best-selling studio album. Inspired by Garcia's improved health, a successful album and the continuing emergence of Mydland as a third frontman, the band's energy and chemistry reached a new peak in the late 1980s.
Amid a litany of personal problems, Mydland died of a speedball overdose in July 1990. His death greatly affected Garcia, leading him to believe that the band's chemistry would never be the same. Before beginning the fall tour, the band acquired keyboardists Vince Welnick and Bruce Hornsby. The power of Hornsby's performances drove Garcia to new heights on stage. However, as the band continued through 1991, Garcia became concerned with the band's future. He was exhausted from five straight years of touring. He thought a break was necessary, mainly so that the band could come back with fresh material. The idea was put off by the pressures of management, and the touring continued. Garcia began using heroin again after several years of intermittent prescription opiate use. Though his relapse was brief, the band was quick to react. Soon after the last show of the tour in Denver, Garcia was confronted by the band with another intervention. After a disastrous meeting, Garcia invited Phil Lesh over to his home in San Rafael, California, where he explained that after the meeting he would start attending a methadone clinic. Garcia said that he wanted to clean up in his own way, and return to making music.
After returning from the band's 1992 summer tour, Garcia became sick, a throwback to his diabetic coma in 1986. Manasha Garcia nursed Jerry back to health and organized a team of health professionals which included acupuncturist Yen Wei Choong and Randy Baker, MD, a holistic family physician to treat him at home. Garcia recovered over the following days, despite the Grateful Dead having to cancel their fall tour to allow him time to recuperate. Garcia reduced his cigarette smoking and began losing weight. He also became a vegetarian.
Despite these improvements, Garcia's physical and mental condition continued to decline throughout 1993 and 1994. He began to use narcotics again to dull the pain.
In light of his second drug relapse and current condition, Garcia checked himself into the Betty Ford Center during July 1995. His stay was limited, lasting only two weeks. Motivated by the experience, he then checked into the Serenity Knolls treatment center in Forest Knolls, California, where he died.
Death
Garcia died in his room at the rehabilitation clinic on August 9, 1995. The cause of death was a heart attack. Garcia had long struggled with drug addiction, weight problems, sleep apnea, heavy smoking, and diabetes—all of which contributed to his physical decline. Lesh remarked that, upon hearing of Garcia's death, "I was struck numb. I had lost my oldest surviving friend, my brother." Garcia's funeral was held on August 12, at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Belvedere. It was attended by his family, the remaining Grateful Dead members, and their friends, including former pro basketball player Bill Walton and musician Bob Dylan. Deborah Koons barred two of Garcia's former wives from the ceremony.
On August 13, about 25,000 people attended a municipally sanctioned public memorial at the Polo Fields of San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. Crowds produced hundreds of flowers, gifts, images, and a bagpipe rendition of "Amazing Grace" in remembrance. In the Haight, a single white rose was reportedly tied to a tree near the Dead's former Haight-Ashbury house, where a group of followers gathered to mourn.
On the morning of April 4, 1996, after a total lunar eclipse earlier that day, Weir and Deborah Koons accompanied by Sanjay Mishra, spread half of Garcia's ashes into the Ganges at the holy city of Rishikesh, India, a site sacred to Hindus. The remaining ashes were poured into the San Francisco Bay. Koons did not allow former wife Carolyn Garcia to attend the spreading of the ashes.
Musical equipment
Garcia played many guitars during his career, which ranged from student and budget models to custom-made instruments. During his thirty-five year career as a professional musician, Garcia used about 25 guitars.
In 1965, when Garcia was playing with the Warlocks, he used a Guild Starfire, which he also used on the début album of the Grateful Dead. Beginning in late 1967 and ending in 1968, Garcia played black or gold mid-1950s Gibson Les Paul guitars with P-90 pickups. In 1969, he picked up the Gibson SG and used it for most of that year and 1970, except for a small period in between where he used a sunburst Fender Stratocaster.
During Garcia's "pedal steel flirtation period" (as Bob Weir referred to it in Anthem to Beauty), from approximately 1969 to 1972, he initially played a Fender instrument before upgrading to the ZB Custom D-10, especially in his earlier public performances. Although this was a double neck guitar, Garcia used the "E9 neck and the three pedals to raise the tone and two levers to lower it." He employed an Emmons D-10 at the Grateful Dead's and New Riders of the Purple Sage's final appearances at the Fillmore East in April 1971.
In 1969, Garcia played pedal steel on three notable outside recordings: the track "The Farm" on the Jefferson Airplane album Volunteers, the track "Oh Mommy" by Brewer and Shipley and the hit single "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young from their album Déjà Vu, released in 1970. Garcia played on the latter album in exchange for harmony lessons for the Grateful Dead, who were at the time recording Workingman's Dead.
In 1971, Garcia began playing a sunburst Les Paul. In March and April 1971 – the time period during which the Grateful Dead recorded its second live album, Grateful Dead – Garcia played the "Peanut," a guitar he had received from Rick Turner, who had custom built the guitar's body and incorporated the neck, pickups, and hardware from an early '60s Les Paul.
In May, Garcia began using a 1957 natural finish Stratocaster that had been given to him by Graham Nash. Garcia added an alligator sticker to the pickguard in the fall of that year. "Alligator" would remain Garcia's principal electric guitar until August 1973.
In the summer of 1971, Garcia also played a double-cutaway Les Paul TV Junior.
While Alligator was in the shop in the summer of 1972, he briefly reverted to the sunburst Stratocaster; this can be seen in Sunshine Daydream.
In late 1972, Garcia purchased the first guitar ("Eagle") made by Alembic luthier Doug Irwin for $850 (). Enamored of Irwin's talents, he immediately commissioned his own custom instrument. This guitar, nicknamed "Wolf" for a memorable sticker Garcia added below the tailpiece, was delivered in May 1973 and replaced Alligator on stage in September. It cost $1,500 (), an extremely high price for the era.
Wolf was made with an ebony fingerboard and featured numerous embellishments like alternating grain designs in the headstock, ivory inlays, and fret marker dots made of sterling silver. The body was composed of western maple wood which had a core of purpleheart. Garcia later had Irwin (who ultimately left Alembic to start his own business) replace the electronics inside the guitar, at which point he added his own logo to the headstock alongside the Alembic logo. The system included two interchangeable plates for configuring pickups: one was made for strictly single coils, while the other accommodated humbuckers. Shortly after receiving the modified instrument, Garcia commissioned another custom guitar from Irwin with one caveat: "Don't hold back."
During the Grateful Dead's 1974 European tour, Wolf was dropped on several occasions, one of which caused a minor crack in the headstock. Following filming of The Grateful Dead Movie (in which the guitar is prominently visible) a month later, Garcia returned it to Irwin for repairs. Throughout its absence, Garcia predominantly played several Travis Bean guitars, including the TB1000A (1975) and the TB500 (1976-1977). On September 28, 1977, Irwin delivered the refurbished Wolf back to Garcia. The wolf sticker which gave the guitar its name had now been inlaid into the instrument; it also featured an effects loop between the pick-ups and controls (so inline effects would "see" the same signal at all times) which was bypassable. Irwin also put a new face on the headstock with only his logo (he later claimed to have built the guitar himself, though pictures through time clearly show the progression of logos, from Alembic, to Alembic & Irwin, to only Irwin).
Nearly seven years after he commissioned it, Garcia received his second custom guitar ("Tiger") from Irwin in the summer of 1979.
He first employed the instrument in concert at a Grateful Dead performance at the Oakland Auditorium Arena on August 4, 1979. Its name was derived from the inlay on the preamp cover.
The body of Tiger was of rich quality: the top layer was cocobolo, with the preceding layers being maple stripe, vermilion, and flame maple, in that order. The neck was made of western maple with an ebony fingerboard. The pickups consisted of a single coil DiMarzio SDS-1 and two humbucker DiMarzio Super IIs which were easily removable due to Garcia's preference for replacing his pickups every year or two. The electronics were composed of an effects bypass loop, which allowed Garcia to control the sound of his effects through the tone and volume controls on the guitar, and a preamplifier/buffer which rested behind a plate in the back of the guitar. Fully outfitted, Tiger weighed . This was Garcia's principal guitar for the next eleven years, and most played.
In the late 1980s Garcia, Weir and CSN (along with many others) endorsed Alvarez Yairi acoustic guitars. There are many photographs circulating (mostly promotional) of Garcia playing a DY99 Virtuoso Custom with a Modulus Graphite neck. He opted to play with the less decorated model but the promotional photo from the Alvarez Yairi catalog has him holding the "tree of life" model. This hand-built guitar was notable for the collaboration between Japanese luthier Kazuo Yairi and Modulus Graphite of San Rafael. As with most things Garcia, with his passing, the DY99 model is highly valued among collectors.
In 1990, Irwin completed "Rosebud", Garcia's fourth custom guitar. It was similar to his previous guitar Tiger in many respects, but featured different inlays and electronics, tone and volume controls, and weight. Rosebud, unlike Tiger, was configured with three humbuckers; the neck and bridge pickups shared a tone control, while the middle had its own. Atop the guitar was a Roland GK-2 pickup which fed the controller set inside the guitar. The GK2 was used in junction with the Roland GR-50 rack mount synthesizer. The GR-50 synthesizer in turn drove a Korg M1R synthesizer producing the MIDI effects heard during live performances of this period as heard on the Grateful Dead recording Without a Net. Sections of the guitar were hollowed out to bring the weight down to . The inlay, a dancing skeleton holding a rose, covers a plate just below the bridge. The final cost of the instrument was $11,000 ().
In 1993, carpenter-turned-luthier Stephen Cripe tried his hand at making an instrument for Garcia. After researching Tiger through pictures and films, Cripe set out on what would soon become known as "Lightning Bolt", again named for its inlay.
The guitar used Brazilian rosewood for the fingerboard and East Indian rosewood for the body, which, with admitted irony from Cripe, had been taken from a 19th-century bed used by opium smokers. Built purely from guesswork, Lightning Bolt was a hit with Garcia, who began using the guitar exclusively. Soon after, Garcia requested that Cripe build a backup of the guitar. Cripe, who had not measured or photographed the original, was told simply to "wing it."
Cripe later delivered the backup, which was known by the name "Top Hat". Garcia bought it from him for $6,500, making it the first guitar that Cripe had ever sold. However, infatuated with Lightning Bolt, Garcia rarely used the backup.
After Garcia's death, the ownership of Wolf and Tiger came into question. According to Garcia's will, his guitars were bequeathed to Doug Irwin, who had constructed them.
The remaining Grateful Dead members disagreed – they considered his guitars to be property of the band, leading to a lawsuit between the two parties. In 2001, Irwin won the case. However, nearly having been left destitute from a traffic accident in 1998, he decided to place the guitars up for auction in hopes of being able to start another guitar workshop.
On May 8, 2002, Wolf and Tiger, among other memorabilia, were placed for auction at Studio 54 in New York City. Tiger was sold for $957,500, and Wolf for $789,500. Together, the pair sold for $1.74 million, setting a new world record. Wolf went into in the private collection of Daniel Pritzker who kept it in a secure climate controlled room in a private residence at Utica, N.Y. Tiger went to the private collection of Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay.
In May 2017, Wolf was again auctioned, but this time for charity. Pritzker decided to sell the guitar and donate all proceeds to the Montgomery, Alabama based Southern Poverty Law Center.
Brian Halligan placed the winning bid totaling $1.9M.
For the majority of 2019 Wolf and Tiger were included in the Play it Loud exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. On June 23, 2019 John Mayer played Wolf with Dead & Co. at Citi Field.
Legacy
Garcia was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Grateful Dead in 1994. He declined to attend the ceremony; the band jokingly brought a cardboard cutout of Garcia out on stage in his absence.
In 1987, Vermont ice cream maker Ben & Jerry's introduced their Cherry Garcia flavor dedicated to him. It was the first ice cream flavor dedicated to a musician.
In 2003, Rolling Stone ranked Jerry Garcia 13th in their list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".
According to fellow Bay Area guitar player Henry Kaiser, Garcia is "the most recorded guitarist in history. With more than 2,200 Grateful Dead concerts, and 1,000 Jerry Garcia Band concerts captured on tape – as well as numerous studio sessions – there are about 15,000 hours of his guitar work preserved for the ages."
On July 30, 2004, Melvin Seals was the first Jerry Garcia Band (JGB) member to headline an outdoor music and camping festival called "The Grateful Garcia Gathering". Jerry Garcia Band drummer David Kemper joined Melvin Seals and JGB in 2007. Other musicians and friends of Garcia include Donna Jean Godchaux, Mookie Siegel, Pete Sears, G.E. Smith, Chuck Hammer, Barry Sless, Jackie Greene, Brian Lesh, Sanjay Mishra, and Mark Karan.
On July 21, 2005, the San Francisco Recreation and Park Commission passed a resolution to name the amphitheater in McLaren Park "The Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." The amphitheater is located in the Excelsior District, where Garcia grew up. The first show to happen at the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater was Jerry Day 2005 on August 7, 2005. Jerry's brother, Tiff Garcia, was the first person to welcome everybody to the "Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." Jerry Day is an annual celebration of Garcia in his childhood neighborhood. The dedication ceremony (Jerry Day 2) on October 29, 2005, was officiated by mayor Gavin Newsom.
On September 24, 2005, the Comes a Time: A Celebration of the Music & Spirit of Jerry Garcia tribute concert was held at the Hearst Greek Theatre in Berkeley, California. The concert featured Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, Mickey Hart, Bruce Hornsby, Trey Anastasio, Warren Haynes, Jimmy Herring, Michael Kang, Jay Lane, Jeff Chimenti, Mark Karan, Robin Sylvester, Kenny Brooks, Melvin Seals, Merl Saunders, Marty Holland, Stu Allen, Gloria Jones, and Jackie LaBranch.
Georgia-based composer Lee Johnson released an orchestral tribute to the music of the Grateful Dead, recorded with the Russian National Orchestra, entitled "Dead Symphony: Lee Johnson Symphony No. 6." Johnson was interviewed on NPR on the July 26, 2008 broadcast of Weekend Edition, and gave much credit to the genius and craft of Garcia's songwriting. A live performance with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Johnson himself, was held Friday, August 1.
In 2010 the Santa Barbara Bowl in California opened Jerry Garcia Glen along the walk up to the venue. There is a statue of Garcia's right hand along the way.
Seattle rock band Soundgarden wrote and recorded the instrumental song "Jerry Garcia's Finger", dedicated to the singer, which was released as a b-side with their single "Pretty Noose".
Numerous music festivals across the United States and Uxbridge, Middlesex, UK hold annual events in memory of Jerry Garcia.
On May 14, 2015, an all-star lineup held a tribute concert for Garcia at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland. The event was called "Dear Jerry".
In 2015, Hunter and Garcia were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Hunter accepted the award along with Garcia's daughter, Trixie Garcia, who accepted on behalf of her father.
In 2015, Jerry Garcia's wife, Manasha Garcia and their daughter, Keelin Garcia launched The Jerry Garcia Foundation, a nonprofit charity that supports projects for artistic, environmental, and humanitarian causes. The Foundation's Board members are Bob Weir, Peter Shapiro, Glenn Fischer, Irwin Sternberg, Daniel Shiner, TRI Studios CEO, Christopher McCutcheon and Fender Music Foundation Executive Director,
Lynn Robison. Keelin Garcia said, "It is a tremendous honor to participate in nonprofit work that is in accordance with my father's values."
In 2018, Jerry Garcia family members, Keelin Garcia and Manasha Garcia launched the Jerry Garcia Music Arts independent music label.
On November 18, 2021, it was announced Jonah Hill would portray Garcia in a forthcoming Grateful Dead biopic written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski directed by Martin Scorsese for Apple TV+.
Discography
New Riders of the Purple Sage – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1971
Hooteroll? – Howard Wales and Jerry Garcia – 1971
Garcia – Jerry Garcia – 1972
Live at Keystone – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1973
Compliments – Jerry Garcia – 1974
Old & In the Way – Old & In the Way – 1975
Reflections – Jerry Garcia – 1976
Cats Under the Stars – Jerry Garcia Band – 1978
Run for the Roses – Jerry Garcia – 1982
Vintage NRPS – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1986
Keystone Encores – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1988
Almost Acoustic – Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band – 1988
Jerry Garcia / David Grisman – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1991
Jerry Garcia Band – Jerry Garcia Band – 1991
Not for Kids Only – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1993
Notes
References
Sources
External links
The official homepage of Jerry Garcia
Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics
Jerry Garcia on Fretbase
The Jerry Site
Official Grateful Dead website
Jerry Garcia discography at deaddisc.com
Jerry Garcia autopsy
Jerry Day: A Civic and Cultural Celebration of Jerry Garcia held in San Francisco
FBI Records: The Vault - Jerry Garcia at vault.fbi.gov
Jerry Garcia's Army personnel file at the National Archives
TEAM
Garcia's Guitars & Gear Directory
American banjoists
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American amputees
American bluegrass guitarists
American country guitarists
American folk guitarists
American rock singers
American blues guitarists
American male singer-songwriters
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20th century in San Francisco
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Pedal steel guitarists
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San Francisco Art Institute alumni
United States Army soldiers
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Singers from San Francisco
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Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band members
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Singer-songwriters from California
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"Strictly for Mothers was an Australian television series, which aired on Melbourne television station HSV-7. The weekly half-hour daytime series was short-lived, broadcast on Mondays from 27 July 1959 to 12 October 1959 at 2:45PM. It was a series aimed at mothers and expectant mothers. It was hosted by Jean Battersby. It was followed on HSV-7's schedule by Snakes and Ladders, a short-lived game show.\n\nJean Battersby's other hosting duties during the 1950s at HSV-7 included What's On, which aired during the same months as Strictly for Mothers, but on Wednesdays, and she also was the host of Movie Guide (Fridays, 29 August 1958 to 24 July 1959) and Personal Column (1958-1959). All of these were daytime series. \n\nThis was not the first time a personality at HSV-7 did several series in a row or at the same time. In 1956, Eric Pearce hosted novelty game show I've Got a Secret (1956-1958), co-hosted the very short-lived Eric and Mary, was a newsreader on HSV-7's newscast, and in early 1957 began hosting Be My Guest.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \n\nSeven Network original programming\n1959 Australian television series debuts\n1959 Australian television series endings\nBlack-and-white Australian television shows\nEnglish-language television shows\nAustralian non-fiction television series",
"\"The Return of the Son of Monster Magnet\" is a Frank Zappa composition, performed by The Mothers of Invention, released on the Mothers' debut album, Freak Out!. It is the longest song on the album, at 12:17, consisting of 2 parts: \"Ritual Dance Of The Child-Killer\", and \"Nullis Pretii (No Commercial Potential)\". The composition includes a musical quote from \"Louie Louie\" (Richard Berry). \n\nThe name of the song was probably inspired by a toy called \"Monster Magnet\" from the Wham-O company which was then being heavily advertised on American television.\n\nAccording to Zappa himself, the Freak Out! version of this song is merely a rhythm track and was never finished as intended. Apparently for budgetary reasons, Verve executives curtailed further recording of the track even after shelling out $500 for rented percussion. Indeed, the subtitle of the track is \"an Unfinished Ballet in two Tableaux\". Unlike many of his extended works, Zappa never augmented or completed this piece when he had the time, money and his own recording studio.\n\nDr. John (Mac Rebennack) appears on piano, and his voice can be heard sporadically throughout the track. Van Dyke Parks was also present at the recording session, but it is unclear what, if anything, played by him was used for the released version.\n\nAccording to Beatles author and Zappa biographer Barry Miles, the unreleased Beatles experimental track \"Carnival of Light\" which was recorded in January 1967 resembles \"The Return of The Son of Monster Magnet\", although it is believed that \"Carnival of Light\" is more fragmented and abstract than Zappa's effort the previous year.\n\nSuzy Creamcheese\n\nThe song begins with the following dialogue:\n\nMale voice: Suzy? \nFemale voice: Yes? \nMale voice: Suzy Creamcheese? \nFemale voice: Yes? \nMale voice: This is the voice of your conscience baby ... uh, I just want to check one thing out with you ... you don't mind, do ya? \nFemale voice: What? \nMale voice: Suzy Creamcheese, honey, what's got into ya?\n\nThis is the first mention of Suzy Creamcheese on any Mothers album,\nalthough a \"Suzie\" is mentioned on Side 3 of Freak Out! on the track, It Can't Happen Here.\n\nReferences \n\nFreak Out!, Mothers of Invention, Verve/MGM, 1966, liner notes\nThe Making Of Freak Out!: An FZ Audio Documentary, Zappa Records, 2006\n\nExperimental rock songs\nFrank Zappa songs\n1966 songs\nSongs written by Frank Zappa\nSong recordings produced by Tom Wilson (record producer)"
] |
[
"Jerry Garcia",
"Childhood and early life",
"Where are his ancestors from",
"Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain.",
"Where else are his ancestors from",
"His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish.",
"What was his fathers name",
"Jose Ramon \"Joe\" Garcia",
"what was his mothers name",
"Ruth Marie \"Bobbie\" (nee Clifford) Garcia,"
] | C_a95583dc963548a79d885ace2c196575_1 | Where was he born at | 5 | Where was Jerry Garcia born at? | Jerry Garcia | Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (nee Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting. Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family--who had emigrated from Spain in 1919--would often sing during reunions. Garcia experienced several tragedies during his youth. At age four, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains, two-thirds of Garcia's right middle finger was accidentally cut off. Garcia and his brother Tiff were chopping wood. Jerry steadied a piece of wood with his finger, but Tiff miscalculated and the axe severed most of Jerry's middle finger. After his mother wrapped his hand in a towel, Garcia's father drove him over 30 miles to the nearest hospital. A few weeks later, Garcia -- who had not looked at his finger since the accident -- was surprised to discover most of it missing when the bandage he was wearing came off during a bath. Garcia later confided that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood. Less than a year after he lost most of his finger, his father died. Vacationing with his family near Arcata in Northern California in 1947, Garcia's father went fly fishing in the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest. Not long after entering the river, Garcia's father slipped on a rock, lost his balance and was swept away by the river's rapids. He drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw his father fall into the river, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, lends weight to McNally's claim. Jackson's evidence was that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death failed to mention Garcia was present when he died. CANNOTANSWER | He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, | Jerome John Garcia (August 1, 1942 – August 9, 1995) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known for being a principal songwriter, the lead guitarist and a vocalist with the rock band the Grateful Dead, of which he was a founding member and which came to prominence during the counterculture of the 1960s. Although he disavowed the role, Garcia was viewed by many as the leader of the band.
As one of its founders, Garcia performed with the Grateful Dead for their entire 30-year career (1965–1995). Garcia also founded and participated in a variety of side projects, including the Saunders–Garcia Band (with longtime friend Merl Saunders), the Jerry Garcia Band, Old & In the Way, the Garcia/Grisman and Garcia/Kahn acoustic duos, Legion of Mary, and New Riders of the Purple Sage (which he co-founded with John Dawson and David Nelson). He also released several solo albums, and contributed to a number of albums by other artists over the years as a session musician. He was well known for his distinctive guitar playing, and was ranked 13th in Rolling Stones "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" cover story in 2003. In the 2015 version of the list he was ranked at #46.
Garcia was also renowned for his musical and technical ability, particularly his ability to play a variety of instruments and sustain long improvisations with the Grateful Dead. Garcia believed that improvisation took stress away from his playing and allowed him to make spur of the moment decisions that he would not have made intentionally. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Garcia noted that "my own preferences are for improvisation, for making it up as I go along. The idea of picking, of eliminating possibilities by deciding, that's difficult for me". Originating from the days of the "acid tests", these improvisations were a form of exploration rather than playing a song already written.
Later in life, Garcia struggled with diabetes and in 1986, went into a diabetic coma that nearly cost him his life. Although his overall health improved somewhat after that, he continued to struggle with obesity, smoking, and longstanding heroin and cocaine addictions. He was staying in a California drug rehabilitation facility when he died of a heart attack on August 9, 1995, at the age of 53.
Early life
Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (née Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting.
Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family—which had immigrated from Spain in 1919—would often sing during reunions.
In 1946, two-thirds of four-year-old Garcia's right middle finger was cut off by his brother in a wood splitting accident, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Garcia later confessed that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood.
Less than a year after this incident his father died in a fly fishing accident when the family was vacationing near Arcata in Northern California. He slipped after entering the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest, and drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw the incident, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, notes that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death did not mention Jerry being present when he died.
Excelsior District
Following his father's death, Garcia's mother Ruth took over her husband's bar, buying out his partner for full ownership. She began working full-time there, sending Jerry and his brother to live nearby with her parents, Tillie and William Clifford. During the five-year period in which he lived with his grandparents, Garcia enjoyed a large amount of autonomy and attended Monroe Elementary School. At the school, Garcia was greatly encouraged in his artistic abilities by his third grade teacher: through her, he discovered that "being a creative person was a viable possibility in life." According to Garcia, it was around this time that he was opened up to country and bluegrass music by his grandmother, whom he recalled enjoyed listening to the Grand Ole Opry. His elder brother, Clifford, however, staunchly believed the contrary, insisting that Garcia was "fantasizing all [that] ... she'd been to Opry, but she didn't listen to it on the radio." It was at this point that Garcia started playing the banjo, his first stringed instrument.
Menlo Park
In 1953, Garcia's mother married Wally Matusiewicz. Subsequently, Garcia and his brother moved back home with their mother and new stepfather. However, due to the roughneck reputation of their neighborhood at the time, Garcia's mother moved their family to Menlo Park. During their stay in Menlo Park, Garcia became acquainted with racism and antisemitism, things he disliked intensely. The same year, Garcia was also introduced to rock and roll and rhythm and blues by his brother, and enjoyed listening to Ray Charles, John Lee Hooker, B. B. King, Hank Ballard, and, later, Chuck Berry. Clifford often memorized the vocals for his favorite songs, and would then make Garcia learn the harmony parts, a move to which Garcia later attributed much of his early ear training.
In mid-1957, Garcia began smoking cigarettes and was introduced to marijuana. Garcia would later reminisce about the first time he smoked marijuana: "Me and a friend of mine went up into the hills with two joints, the San Francisco foothills, and smoked these joints and just got so high and laughed and roared and went skipping down the streets doing funny things and just having a helluva time". During this time, Garcia also studied at what is now the San Francisco Art Institute. The teacher there was Wally Hedrick, an artist who came to prominence during the 1960s. During the classes, he often encouraged Garcia in his drawing and painting skills. Hedrick also introduced Garcia to the fiction of Jack Kerouac, whom Garcia later cited as a major influence.
San Francisco
In June, Garcia graduated from the local Menlo Oaks school. He then moved with his family back to San Francisco, where they lived in an apartment above the family bar, a newly built replacement for the original, that had been torn down to make way for a freeway entrance. Two months later, on Garcia's fifteenth birthday, his mother bought an accordion for him, to his great disappointment. Garcia had long been captivated by many rhythm and blues artists, especially Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley, leaving him craving an electric guitar. After some pleading, his mother exchanged the accordion for a Danelectro with a small amplifier at a local pawnshop. Garcia's stepfather, who was somewhat proficient with instruments, helped tune his guitar to an unusual open tuning.
Cazadero
After a short stint at Denman Junior High School, Garcia attended tenth grade at Balboa High School in 1958, where he often got into trouble for skipping classes and fighting. Consequently, in 1959, Garcia's mother again moved the family to a safer environment, to Cazadero, a small town in Sonoma County, north of San Francisco. This turn of events did not sit well with Garcia, who had to travel by bus to Analy High School in Sebastopol, the nearest school. Garcia did, however, join a band at his school known as the Chords. After performing in and winning a contest, the band's reward was recording a song. They chose "Raunchy" by Bill Justis.
Recording career
Relocation and band beginnings
Garcia stole his mother's car in 1960, and was given the option of joining the United States Army in lieu of prison. He received basic training at Fort Ord. After training, he was transferred to Fort Winfield Scott in the Presidio of San Francisco. Garcia spent most of his time in the army at his leisure, missing roll call and accruing many counts of being AWOL. As a result, Garcia was given a general discharge on December 14, 1960.
In January 1961, Garcia drove down to East Palo Alto to see Laird Grant, an old friend from middle school. He had bought a 1950 Cadillac sedan from a cook in the army, which barely made it to Grant's residence before it broke down. Garcia spent the next few weeks sleeping where friends would allow, eventually using his car as a home. Through Grant, Garcia met Dave McQueen in February, who, after hearing Garcia perform some blues music, introduced him to local people and to the Chateau, a rooming house located near Stanford University which was then a popular hangout.
On February 20, 1961, Garcia got into a car with Paul Speegle, a sixteen-year-old artist and acquaintance of Garcia; Lee Adams, the house manager of the Chateau and driver of the car; and Alan Trist, a companion of theirs. After speeding past the Palo Alto Veterans Hospital, the driver encountered a curve and, speeding around , crashed into the guard rail, sending the car rolling turbulently. Garcia was hurled through the windshield of the car into a nearby field with such force he was literally thrown out of his shoes and would later be unable to recall the ejection. Lee Adams, the driver, and Alan Trist, who was seated in the back, were thrown from the car as well, suffering from abdominal injuries and a spine fracture, respectively. Garcia escaped with a broken collarbone, while Speegle, still in the car, was fatally injured.
Lee's reckless driving and crash served as an awakening for Garcia, who later commented: "That's where my life began. Before then I was always living at less than capacity. I was idling. That was the slingshot for the rest of my life. It was like a second chance. Then I got serious". It was at this time that Garcia began to realize that he needed to begin playing the guitar in earnest—a move which meant giving up his love of drawing and painting.
In April 1961, Garcia first met Robert Hunter, who would become a long-time friend of and lyricist for the Grateful Dead, collaborating principally with Garcia. The two involved themselves in the South Bay and San Francisco art and music scenes, sometimes playing at Menlo Park's Kepler's Books. Garcia performed his first concert with Hunter, each earning five dollars. Garcia and Hunter also played in bands (the Wildwood Boys and the Hart Valley Drifters) with David Nelson, who would later play with Garcia in the New Riders of the Purple Sage and contribute to several Grateful Dead album songs.
In 1962, Garcia met Phil Lesh, the eventual bassist of the Grateful Dead, during a party in Menlo Park's bohemian Perry Lane neighborhood (where author Ken Kesey lived). Lesh would later write in his autobiography that Garcia reminded him of pictures he had seen of the composer Claude Debussy, with his "dark, curly hair, goatee, Impressionist eyes". While attending another party in Palo Alto, Lesh approached Garcia to suggest they record Garcia on Lesh's tape recorder and produce a radio show for the progressive, community-supported Berkeley radio station KPFA. Using an old Wollensak tape recorder, they recorded "Matty Groves" and "The Long Black Veil", among several other tunes. The recordings became a central feature of a 90-minute KPFA special broadcast, "The Long Black Veil and Other Ballads: An Evening with Jerry Garcia". The link between KPFA and the Grateful Dead continues to this day, having included many fundraisers, interviews, live concert broadcasts, taped band performances and all-day or all-weekend "Dead-only" marathons.
Garcia soon began playing and teaching acoustic guitar and banjo. One of Garcia's students was Bob Matthews, who later engineered many of the Grateful Dead's albums. Matthews attended Menlo-Atherton High School and was friends with Bob Weir, and on New Year's Eve 1963, he introduced Weir and Garcia.
Between 1962 and 1964, Garcia sang and performed mainly bluegrass, old-time, and folk music. One of the bands Garcia performed with was the Sleepy Hollow Hog Stompers, a bluegrass act. The group consisted of Garcia on guitar, banjo, vocals, and harmonica, Marshall Leicester on banjo, guitar, and vocals, and Dick Arnold on fiddle and vocals. Soon after this, Garcia, Weir, Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, and several of their friends formed a jug band called Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions. Around this time, the psychedelic drug LSD was gaining popularity. Garcia first began using LSD in 1964; later, when asked how it changed his life, he remarked: "Well, it changed everything [...] the effect was that it freed me because I suddenly realized that my little attempt at having a straight life and doing that was really a fiction and just wasn't going to work out. Luckily I wasn't far enough into it for it to be shattering or anything; it was like a realization that just made me feel immensely relieved."
In 1965, Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions evolved into the Warlocks, with the addition of Phil Lesh on bass guitar and Bill Kreutzmann on percussion. However, the band discovered that another group (which would later become the Velvet Underground) had recently selected the same name. In response, Garcia came up with "Grateful Dead" by opening a Funk & Wagnalls dictionary to an entry for "Grateful dead". The definition for "Grateful dead" was "a dead person, or his angel, showing gratitude to someone who, as an act of charity, arranged their burial". The band's first reaction was disapproval. Garcia later explained the group's reaction: "I didn't like it really, I just found it to be really powerful. [Bob] Weir didn't like it, [Bill] Kreutzmann didn't like it and nobody really wanted to hear about it." Despite their dislike of the name, it quickly spread by word of mouth, and soon became their official title.
Career with the Grateful Dead
Garcia served as lead guitarist, as well as one of the principal vocalists and songwriters of the Grateful Dead for its entire career. Garcia composed such songs as "Dark Star", "Franklin's Tower", and "Scarlet Begonias", among many others. Robert Hunter, an ardent collaborator with the band, wrote the lyrics to all but a few of Garcia's songs.
Garcia was well-noted for his "soulful extended guitar improvisations", which would frequently feature interplay between him and his fellow band members. His fame, as well as the band's, arguably rested on their ability to never play a song the same way twice. Often, Garcia would take cues from rhythm guitarist Bob Weir, remarking that "there are some [...] kinds of ideas that would really throw me if I had to create a harmonic bridge between all the things going on rhythmically with two drums and Phil [Lesh's] innovative bass playing. Weir's ability to solve that sort of problem is extraordinary. [...] Harmonically, I take a lot of my solo cues from Bob."
When asked to describe his approach to soloing, Garcia commented: "It keeps on changing. I still basically revolve around the melody and the way it's broken up into phrases as I perceive them. With most solos, I tend to play something that phrases the way the melody does; my phrases may be more dense or have different value, but they'll occur in the same places in the song. [...]"
Garcia and the band toured almost constantly from their formation in 1965 until Garcia's death in 1995. Periodically, there were breaks due to exhaustion or health problems, often due to Garcia's drug use. During their three-decade span, the Grateful Dead played 2,314 shows.
Garcia's guitar-playing was eclectic. He melded elements from the various kinds of music that influenced him. Echoes of bluegrass playing (such as Arthur Smith and Doc Watson) could be heard. There was also early rock (like Lonnie Mack, James Burton, and Chuck Berry), contemporary blues (Freddie King and Lowell Fulsom), country and western (Roy Nichols and Don Rich), and jazz (Charlie Christian and Django Reinhardt) to be heard in Garcia's style. Don Rich was the sparkling country guitar player in Buck Owens's "the Buckaroos" band of the 1960s, but besides Rich's style, both Garcia's pedal steel guitar playing (on Grateful Dead records and others) and his standard electric guitar work, were influenced by another of Owens's Buckaroos of that time, pedal steel player Tom Brumley. And as an improvisational soloist, John Coltrane was one of his greatest personal and musical influences.
Garcia later described his playing style as having "descended from barroom rock and roll, country guitar. Just 'cause that's where all my stuff comes from. It's like that blues instrumental stuff that was happening in the late Fifties and early Sixties, like Freddie King." Garcia's style could vary with the song being played and the instrument he was using, but his playing had a number of so-called "signatures". Among these were lead lines based on rhythmic triplets (examples include the songs "Good Morning Little School Girl", "New Speedway Boogie", "Brokedown Palace", "Deal", "Loser", "Truckin'", "That's It for the Other One", "U.S. Blues", "Sugaree", and "Don't Ease Me In").
Side projects
In addition to the Grateful Dead, Garcia had numerous side projects, the most notable being the Jerry Garcia Band. He was also involved with various acoustic projects such as Old & In the Way and other bluegrass bands, including collaborations with noted bluegrass mandolinist David Grisman. The documentary film Grateful Dawg, co-produced by Gillian Grisman and former NBC producer Pamela Hamilton chronicles the deep, long-term friendship between Garcia and Grisman. When Garcia and Grisman released Not For Kids Only, Hamilton produced their interview and concert for NBC. After several years of producing stories on the Grateful Dead and band members' side projects, Hamilton interviewed Bob Weir for a feature on Garcia's death marking the end of an era.
Other groups of which Garcia was a member at one time or another include the Black Mountain Boys, Legion of Mary, Reconstruction, and the Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band. Garcia was also a fan of jazz artists and improvisation: he played with jazz keyboardists Merl Saunders and Howard Wales for many years in various groups and jam sessions, and he appeared on saxophonist Ornette Coleman's 1988 album, Virgin Beauty. His collaboration with Merl Saunders and Muruga Booker on the world music album Blues From the Rainforest launched the Rainforest Band.
Garcia also spent a lot of time in the recording studio helping out fellow musician friends in session work, often adding guitar, vocals, pedal steel, sometimes banjo and piano and even producing. He played on over 50 studio albums, the styles of which were eclectic and varied, including bluegrass, rock, folk, blues, country, jazz, electronic music, gospel, funk, and reggae. Artists who sought Garcia's help included the likes of Jefferson Airplane (most notably Surrealistic Pillow, Garcia being listed as their "spiritual advisor"). Garcia himself recalled in a mid-1967 interview that he'd played the high lead on "Today," played on "Plastic Fantastic Lover" and "Comin' Back to Me" on that album. Others include Tom Fogerty, David Bromberg, Robert Hunter (Liberty, on Relix Records), Paul Pena, Peter Rowan, Warren Zevon, Country Joe McDonald, Pete Sears, Ken Nordine, Ornette Coleman, Bruce Hornsby, Bob Dylan, It's a Beautiful Day, and many more. In 1995 Garcia played on three tracks for the CD Blue Incantation by guitarist Sanjay Mishra, making it his last studio collaboration.
Throughout the early 1970s, Garcia, Lesh, Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart, and David Crosby collaborated intermittently with MIT-educated composer and biologist Ned Lagin on several projects in the realm of early ambient music; these include the album Seastones (released by the Ned Lagin on the Round Records subsidiary) and L, an unfinished dance work composed by Ned Lagin. In 1970, Garcia participated in the soundtrack for the film Zabriskie Point.
Garcia also played pedal steel guitar for fellow-San Francisco musicians New Riders of the Purple Sage from their initial dates in 1969 to October 1971, when increased commitments with the Dead forced him to opt out of the group. He appears as a band member on their debut album New Riders of the Purple Sage, and produced Home, Home on the Road, a 1974 live album by the band. He also contributed pedal steel guitar to the enduring hit "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young. Garcia also played steel guitar licks on Brewer & Shipley's 1970 album Tarkio. Despite considering himself a novice on the pedal steel, Garcia routinely ranked high in player polls. After a long lapse from playing the pedal steel, he played it once more during several of the Dead's concerts with Bob Dylan in the summer of 1987.
In 1988, Garcia agreed to perform at several major benefits including the "Soviet American Peace Walk" concert at the Band Shell, in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, that drew 25,000 people. He was asked to play by longtime friend and fellow musician, Pete Sears, who played piano with all the bands that day, and also procured all the other musicians. Garcia, Mickey Hart and Steve Parish played the show, then were given a police escort to a Grateful Dead show across the bay later that night. Garcia also played with Nick Gravenites and Pete Sears at a benefit given for Vietnam Veteran and peace activist Brian Willson, who lost both legs below the knee when he attempted to block a train carrying weapons to military dictatorships in El Salvador.
Having previously studied at the San Francisco Art Institute as a teenager, Garcia embarked on a second career in the visual arts in the late 1980s. He created a number of drawings, etchings, and water colors. Garcia's artistic endeavors were represented by the Weir Gallery in Berkeley, California from 1989 to 1996. During this period, Roberta Weir (unrelated to Garcia's bandmate Bob Weir) provided Garcia with new art techniques to use, sponsored his first solo show in 1990, and prepared blank etching plates for him to draw on. These would then be processed and printed by gallery staff and brought back to Garcia for approval and signature, usually with a passing of stacks of paper backstage at a Dead show. His annual shows at the Weir Gallery garnered much attention, leading to further shows in New York and other cities. Garcia was an early adopter of digital art media; his artistic style was as varied as his musical output, and he carried small notebooks for pen and ink sketches wherever he toured. Roberta Weir continues to maintain an archive of the artwork of Jerry Garcia. Perhaps the most widely seen pieces of Jerry Garcia's art are the many editions of men's neckties produced by Stonehenge Ltd. and Mulberry Neckware. Some began as etchings, other designs came from his drawings, paintings, and digital art. Garcia's artwork has since expanded into everything from hotel rooms, wet suits, men's sport shirts, a women's wear line, boxer shorts, hair accessories, cummerbunds, silk scarves and wool rugs.
Personal life
Garcia met his first wife, Sara Ruppenthal, in 1963. She was working at the coffee house in the back of Kepler's Books, where Garcia, Hunter, and Nelson regularly performed. They married on April 23, 1963, and on December 8 of that year their daughter Heather was born.
Carolyn Adams, a Merry Prankster also known as "Mountain Girl" or "M.G.," had a daughter, Sunshine, with Ken Kesey. Mountain Girl married another Prankster, George Walker, but they soon separated. She and Sunshine then moved into 710 Ashbury with Garcia in late 1966 where they would ultimately live together until 1975. In 1994, Sara and Jerry officially divorced after a long separation. Adams gave birth to Garcia's second and third daughters, Annabelle Walker Garcia (February 2, 1970) and Theresa Adams "Trixie" Garcia (September 21, 1974).
In August 1970, Garcia's mother Ruth was involved in a car crash near Twin Peaks in San Francisco. Garcia, who was recording the album American Beauty at the time, often left the sessions to visit his mother with his brother Clifford. She died on September 28, 1970.
In the midst of a March 1973 Grateful Dead engagement at Long Island's Nassau Coliseum, Garcia met Deborah Koons, an aspiring filmmaker from a wealthy Cincinnati, Ohio-based family who would much later marry him and become his widow. After a brief correspondence, he began his relationship with her in mid-1974. This gradually strained his relationship with Adams and culminated in Garcia leaving Adams for Koons in late 1975. The end of his relationship with Koons in 1977 precipitated a brief reconciliation with Adams, including the reestablishment of their household. However, she did not agree with the guitarist's persistent use of narcotics and moved with the children to the Eugene, Oregon area, living near Kesey, in 1978.
Following Adams' departure, Garcia had an affair with Amy Moore. She was a Kentucky-born member of the extended "Grateful Dead family", and the mistress of Texas oil heir Roy Cullen. Their affair lasted circa 1980–1981, and inspired the Garcia-Hunter song "Run for the Roses."
Adams and Garcia were married on December 31, 1981, largely as a result of mutual tax exigencies. Despite the legal codification of their union, she remained in Oregon, while Garcia continued to live near the Grateful Dead's offices in San Rafael, California. Garcia lived with a variety of housemates, including longtime Grateful Dead employee and Jerry Garcia Band manager Rock Scully. Scully, who co-managed the Grateful Dead throughout the mid-to-late 1960s before serving as the band's "advance man" and publicist, was dismissed by the group in 1984 for enabling Garcia's addictions and for allegedly embezzling the Garcia Band's profits. Another housemate was Nora Sage, a Deadhead who became Garcia's housekeeper while studying at the Golden Gate University School of Law. The exact nature of their relationship remains unclear, although it is believed to have been platonic due to Garcia's addictions. She later became his art representative.
While they would briefly reunite following his diabetic coma, Garcia and Adams ultimately divorced in 1994. Phil Lesh has subsequently stated that he rarely saw Adams on any of the band tours. In a 1991 Rolling Stone interview, Garcia stated that "we haven't really lived together since the Seventies".
During the autumn of 1978, Garcia developed a friendship with Shimer College student Manasha Matheson, an artist and music enthusiast. They remained friends over the following nine years before initiating a romantic relationship in Hartford, Connecticut on the Grateful Dead's spring 1987 tour. Jerry and Manasha became parents with the birth of their daughter, Keelin Noel Garcia, on December 20, 1987. On August 17, 1990, Jerry and Manasha married at their San Anselmo, California home in a spiritual ceremony free of legal convention. In 1991, Garcia expressed his delight in finding the time to "actually be a father" to Keelin in contrast to his past relationships with his children. A year later, Garcia dedicated his first art book, Paintings, Drawings and Sketches, "For Manasha, with love, Jerry."
In January 1993, Barbara "Brigid" Meier, a former girlfriend from the early 1960s, reentered Garcia's life for a brief period. Meier claimed, Garcia had considered her to be the "love of his life" and proposed to her during a Hawaiian vacation shortly after their relationship recommenced. Garcia's "love of his life" sentiment was not reserved for one lover, as he expressed the same feelings to several other women in his life. At Garcia's 1995 funeral, Koons declared that she was "the love of his life" while paying her final respects, whereupon Meier and Ruppenthal, who were both in attendance, simultaneously exclaimed, "He said that to me!"
The affair with Meier marked the breakup of Jerry's family life with Manasha and Keelin. Garcia ended the affair with Meier forty-five days later while on tour in Chicago with the Grateful Dead after she confronted him about his drug use.
Shortly thereafter, Garcia renewed his acquaintance with Deborah Koons in the spring of 1993. They married on February 14, 1994, in Sausalito, California. Garcia and Koons were married at the time of his death.
Lifestyle and health
Because of their public profile, Garcia and his collaborators were occasionally singled out in the American government's war on drugs. On October 2, 1967, 710 Ashbury Street in San Francisco (where the Grateful Dead had taken up residence the year before) was raided after a police tip-off. Grateful Dead members Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan were apprehended on marijuana charges which were later dropped, although Garcia himself was not arrested. The following year, Garcia's picture was used in a defamatory context in a campaign commercial for Richard Nixon.
Most of the band were arrested again in January 1970, after they flew to New Orleans from Hawaii. After returning to their hotel from a performance, the band checked into their rooms, only to be quickly raided by police. Approximately fifteen people were arrested on the spot, including many of the road crew, management, and nearly all of the Grateful Dead except for Garcia, who arrived later, outgoing keyboardist Tom Constanten, who abstained from all drugs as a member of the Church of Scientology, and McKernan, who eschewed illegal drugs in favor of alcohol.
According to Bill Kreutzmann, the band's use of cocaine accelerated throughout the early 1970s. After using heroin in a brothel in 1974 (likely on the band's second European tour), Garcia was introduced to a smokeable form of the drug (initially advertised as refined opium) colloquially known as "Persian" or "Persian Base" during the group's 1975 hiatus. Influenced by the stresses of creating and releasing The Grateful Dead Movie and the acrimonious collapse of the band's independent record labels over the next two years, Garcia became increasingly dependent upon both substances. These factors, combined with the alcohol and drug abuse of several other members of the Grateful Dead, resulted in a turbulent atmosphere. By 1978, the band's chemistry began "cracking and crumbling", resulting in poor group cohesion. As a result, Keith and Donna Jean Godchaux left the band in February 1979.
With the addition of keyboardist/vocalist Brent Mydland that year amid the ongoing coalescence of the Deadhead subculture, the band reached new commercial heights as a touring group on the American arena circuit in the early 1980s, enabling them to forsake studio recording for several years. Nevertheless, this was offset by such factors as the band's atypically large payroll and Garcia's $700-a-day () drug addiction, resulting in the guitarist taking on a frenetic slate of solo touring outside of the Grateful Dead's rigorous schedule, including abbreviated acoustic duo concerts with Jerry Garcia Band bassist John Kahn that were widely rumored to be a funding conduit for their respective addictions.
Though things seemed to be getting better for the band, Garcia's health was declining. By 1983, Garcia's demeanor onstage had appeared to change. Despite still playing the guitar with great passion and intensity, there were times that he would appear disengaged; as such, shows were often inconsistent. Years of heavy tobacco smoking had affected his voice, and he gained considerable weight. By 1984, he would often rest his chin on the microphone during performances. The so-called "endless tour"—the result of years of financial risks, drug use, and poor business decisions—had taken its toll.
Garcia's decade-long heroin addiction culminated in the rest of the band holding an intervention in January 1985. Given the choice between the band or the drugs, Garcia agreed to check into a rehabilitation center in Oakland, California. A few days later in January, before the start of his program in Oakland, Garcia was arrested for drug possession in Golden Gate Park; he subsequently attended a drug diversion program. Throughout 1985, he tapered his drug use on tour and at home with the assistance of Nora Sage; by the spring of 1986, he was completely abstinent.
Precipitated by an unhealthy weight, dehydration, bad eating habits, and a recent relapse on the Grateful Dead's first stadium tour, Garcia collapsed into a diabetic coma in July 1986, waking up five days later. He later spoke about this period of unconsciousness as surreal: "Well, I had some very weird experiences. My main experience was one of furious activity and tremendous struggle in a sort of futuristic, space-ship vehicle with insectoid presences. After I came out of my coma, I had this image of myself as these little hunks of protoplasm that were stuck together kind of like stamps with perforations between them that you could snap off." Garcia's coma had a profound effect on him: it forced him to have to relearn how to play the guitar, as well as other, more basic skills. Within a handful of months, he had recovered, playing with the Jerry Garcia Band and the Grateful Dead again later that year.
After Garcia's recovery, the band released a comeback album In the Dark in 1987, which became their best-selling studio album. Inspired by Garcia's improved health, a successful album and the continuing emergence of Mydland as a third frontman, the band's energy and chemistry reached a new peak in the late 1980s.
Amid a litany of personal problems, Mydland died of a speedball overdose in July 1990. His death greatly affected Garcia, leading him to believe that the band's chemistry would never be the same. Before beginning the fall tour, the band acquired keyboardists Vince Welnick and Bruce Hornsby. The power of Hornsby's performances drove Garcia to new heights on stage. However, as the band continued through 1991, Garcia became concerned with the band's future. He was exhausted from five straight years of touring. He thought a break was necessary, mainly so that the band could come back with fresh material. The idea was put off by the pressures of management, and the touring continued. Garcia began using heroin again after several years of intermittent prescription opiate use. Though his relapse was brief, the band was quick to react. Soon after the last show of the tour in Denver, Garcia was confronted by the band with another intervention. After a disastrous meeting, Garcia invited Phil Lesh over to his home in San Rafael, California, where he explained that after the meeting he would start attending a methadone clinic. Garcia said that he wanted to clean up in his own way, and return to making music.
After returning from the band's 1992 summer tour, Garcia became sick, a throwback to his diabetic coma in 1986. Manasha Garcia nursed Jerry back to health and organized a team of health professionals which included acupuncturist Yen Wei Choong and Randy Baker, MD, a holistic family physician to treat him at home. Garcia recovered over the following days, despite the Grateful Dead having to cancel their fall tour to allow him time to recuperate. Garcia reduced his cigarette smoking and began losing weight. He also became a vegetarian.
Despite these improvements, Garcia's physical and mental condition continued to decline throughout 1993 and 1994. He began to use narcotics again to dull the pain.
In light of his second drug relapse and current condition, Garcia checked himself into the Betty Ford Center during July 1995. His stay was limited, lasting only two weeks. Motivated by the experience, he then checked into the Serenity Knolls treatment center in Forest Knolls, California, where he died.
Death
Garcia died in his room at the rehabilitation clinic on August 9, 1995. The cause of death was a heart attack. Garcia had long struggled with drug addiction, weight problems, sleep apnea, heavy smoking, and diabetes—all of which contributed to his physical decline. Lesh remarked that, upon hearing of Garcia's death, "I was struck numb. I had lost my oldest surviving friend, my brother." Garcia's funeral was held on August 12, at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Belvedere. It was attended by his family, the remaining Grateful Dead members, and their friends, including former pro basketball player Bill Walton and musician Bob Dylan. Deborah Koons barred two of Garcia's former wives from the ceremony.
On August 13, about 25,000 people attended a municipally sanctioned public memorial at the Polo Fields of San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. Crowds produced hundreds of flowers, gifts, images, and a bagpipe rendition of "Amazing Grace" in remembrance. In the Haight, a single white rose was reportedly tied to a tree near the Dead's former Haight-Ashbury house, where a group of followers gathered to mourn.
On the morning of April 4, 1996, after a total lunar eclipse earlier that day, Weir and Deborah Koons accompanied by Sanjay Mishra, spread half of Garcia's ashes into the Ganges at the holy city of Rishikesh, India, a site sacred to Hindus. The remaining ashes were poured into the San Francisco Bay. Koons did not allow former wife Carolyn Garcia to attend the spreading of the ashes.
Musical equipment
Garcia played many guitars during his career, which ranged from student and budget models to custom-made instruments. During his thirty-five year career as a professional musician, Garcia used about 25 guitars.
In 1965, when Garcia was playing with the Warlocks, he used a Guild Starfire, which he also used on the début album of the Grateful Dead. Beginning in late 1967 and ending in 1968, Garcia played black or gold mid-1950s Gibson Les Paul guitars with P-90 pickups. In 1969, he picked up the Gibson SG and used it for most of that year and 1970, except for a small period in between where he used a sunburst Fender Stratocaster.
During Garcia's "pedal steel flirtation period" (as Bob Weir referred to it in Anthem to Beauty), from approximately 1969 to 1972, he initially played a Fender instrument before upgrading to the ZB Custom D-10, especially in his earlier public performances. Although this was a double neck guitar, Garcia used the "E9 neck and the three pedals to raise the tone and two levers to lower it." He employed an Emmons D-10 at the Grateful Dead's and New Riders of the Purple Sage's final appearances at the Fillmore East in April 1971.
In 1969, Garcia played pedal steel on three notable outside recordings: the track "The Farm" on the Jefferson Airplane album Volunteers, the track "Oh Mommy" by Brewer and Shipley and the hit single "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young from their album Déjà Vu, released in 1970. Garcia played on the latter album in exchange for harmony lessons for the Grateful Dead, who were at the time recording Workingman's Dead.
In 1971, Garcia began playing a sunburst Les Paul. In March and April 1971 – the time period during which the Grateful Dead recorded its second live album, Grateful Dead – Garcia played the "Peanut," a guitar he had received from Rick Turner, who had custom built the guitar's body and incorporated the neck, pickups, and hardware from an early '60s Les Paul.
In May, Garcia began using a 1957 natural finish Stratocaster that had been given to him by Graham Nash. Garcia added an alligator sticker to the pickguard in the fall of that year. "Alligator" would remain Garcia's principal electric guitar until August 1973.
In the summer of 1971, Garcia also played a double-cutaway Les Paul TV Junior.
While Alligator was in the shop in the summer of 1972, he briefly reverted to the sunburst Stratocaster; this can be seen in Sunshine Daydream.
In late 1972, Garcia purchased the first guitar ("Eagle") made by Alembic luthier Doug Irwin for $850 (). Enamored of Irwin's talents, he immediately commissioned his own custom instrument. This guitar, nicknamed "Wolf" for a memorable sticker Garcia added below the tailpiece, was delivered in May 1973 and replaced Alligator on stage in September. It cost $1,500 (), an extremely high price for the era.
Wolf was made with an ebony fingerboard and featured numerous embellishments like alternating grain designs in the headstock, ivory inlays, and fret marker dots made of sterling silver. The body was composed of western maple wood which had a core of purpleheart. Garcia later had Irwin (who ultimately left Alembic to start his own business) replace the electronics inside the guitar, at which point he added his own logo to the headstock alongside the Alembic logo. The system included two interchangeable plates for configuring pickups: one was made for strictly single coils, while the other accommodated humbuckers. Shortly after receiving the modified instrument, Garcia commissioned another custom guitar from Irwin with one caveat: "Don't hold back."
During the Grateful Dead's 1974 European tour, Wolf was dropped on several occasions, one of which caused a minor crack in the headstock. Following filming of The Grateful Dead Movie (in which the guitar is prominently visible) a month later, Garcia returned it to Irwin for repairs. Throughout its absence, Garcia predominantly played several Travis Bean guitars, including the TB1000A (1975) and the TB500 (1976-1977). On September 28, 1977, Irwin delivered the refurbished Wolf back to Garcia. The wolf sticker which gave the guitar its name had now been inlaid into the instrument; it also featured an effects loop between the pick-ups and controls (so inline effects would "see" the same signal at all times) which was bypassable. Irwin also put a new face on the headstock with only his logo (he later claimed to have built the guitar himself, though pictures through time clearly show the progression of logos, from Alembic, to Alembic & Irwin, to only Irwin).
Nearly seven years after he commissioned it, Garcia received his second custom guitar ("Tiger") from Irwin in the summer of 1979.
He first employed the instrument in concert at a Grateful Dead performance at the Oakland Auditorium Arena on August 4, 1979. Its name was derived from the inlay on the preamp cover.
The body of Tiger was of rich quality: the top layer was cocobolo, with the preceding layers being maple stripe, vermilion, and flame maple, in that order. The neck was made of western maple with an ebony fingerboard. The pickups consisted of a single coil DiMarzio SDS-1 and two humbucker DiMarzio Super IIs which were easily removable due to Garcia's preference for replacing his pickups every year or two. The electronics were composed of an effects bypass loop, which allowed Garcia to control the sound of his effects through the tone and volume controls on the guitar, and a preamplifier/buffer which rested behind a plate in the back of the guitar. Fully outfitted, Tiger weighed . This was Garcia's principal guitar for the next eleven years, and most played.
In the late 1980s Garcia, Weir and CSN (along with many others) endorsed Alvarez Yairi acoustic guitars. There are many photographs circulating (mostly promotional) of Garcia playing a DY99 Virtuoso Custom with a Modulus Graphite neck. He opted to play with the less decorated model but the promotional photo from the Alvarez Yairi catalog has him holding the "tree of life" model. This hand-built guitar was notable for the collaboration between Japanese luthier Kazuo Yairi and Modulus Graphite of San Rafael. As with most things Garcia, with his passing, the DY99 model is highly valued among collectors.
In 1990, Irwin completed "Rosebud", Garcia's fourth custom guitar. It was similar to his previous guitar Tiger in many respects, but featured different inlays and electronics, tone and volume controls, and weight. Rosebud, unlike Tiger, was configured with three humbuckers; the neck and bridge pickups shared a tone control, while the middle had its own. Atop the guitar was a Roland GK-2 pickup which fed the controller set inside the guitar. The GK2 was used in junction with the Roland GR-50 rack mount synthesizer. The GR-50 synthesizer in turn drove a Korg M1R synthesizer producing the MIDI effects heard during live performances of this period as heard on the Grateful Dead recording Without a Net. Sections of the guitar were hollowed out to bring the weight down to . The inlay, a dancing skeleton holding a rose, covers a plate just below the bridge. The final cost of the instrument was $11,000 ().
In 1993, carpenter-turned-luthier Stephen Cripe tried his hand at making an instrument for Garcia. After researching Tiger through pictures and films, Cripe set out on what would soon become known as "Lightning Bolt", again named for its inlay.
The guitar used Brazilian rosewood for the fingerboard and East Indian rosewood for the body, which, with admitted irony from Cripe, had been taken from a 19th-century bed used by opium smokers. Built purely from guesswork, Lightning Bolt was a hit with Garcia, who began using the guitar exclusively. Soon after, Garcia requested that Cripe build a backup of the guitar. Cripe, who had not measured or photographed the original, was told simply to "wing it."
Cripe later delivered the backup, which was known by the name "Top Hat". Garcia bought it from him for $6,500, making it the first guitar that Cripe had ever sold. However, infatuated with Lightning Bolt, Garcia rarely used the backup.
After Garcia's death, the ownership of Wolf and Tiger came into question. According to Garcia's will, his guitars were bequeathed to Doug Irwin, who had constructed them.
The remaining Grateful Dead members disagreed – they considered his guitars to be property of the band, leading to a lawsuit between the two parties. In 2001, Irwin won the case. However, nearly having been left destitute from a traffic accident in 1998, he decided to place the guitars up for auction in hopes of being able to start another guitar workshop.
On May 8, 2002, Wolf and Tiger, among other memorabilia, were placed for auction at Studio 54 in New York City. Tiger was sold for $957,500, and Wolf for $789,500. Together, the pair sold for $1.74 million, setting a new world record. Wolf went into in the private collection of Daniel Pritzker who kept it in a secure climate controlled room in a private residence at Utica, N.Y. Tiger went to the private collection of Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay.
In May 2017, Wolf was again auctioned, but this time for charity. Pritzker decided to sell the guitar and donate all proceeds to the Montgomery, Alabama based Southern Poverty Law Center.
Brian Halligan placed the winning bid totaling $1.9M.
For the majority of 2019 Wolf and Tiger were included in the Play it Loud exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. On June 23, 2019 John Mayer played Wolf with Dead & Co. at Citi Field.
Legacy
Garcia was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Grateful Dead in 1994. He declined to attend the ceremony; the band jokingly brought a cardboard cutout of Garcia out on stage in his absence.
In 1987, Vermont ice cream maker Ben & Jerry's introduced their Cherry Garcia flavor dedicated to him. It was the first ice cream flavor dedicated to a musician.
In 2003, Rolling Stone ranked Jerry Garcia 13th in their list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".
According to fellow Bay Area guitar player Henry Kaiser, Garcia is "the most recorded guitarist in history. With more than 2,200 Grateful Dead concerts, and 1,000 Jerry Garcia Band concerts captured on tape – as well as numerous studio sessions – there are about 15,000 hours of his guitar work preserved for the ages."
On July 30, 2004, Melvin Seals was the first Jerry Garcia Band (JGB) member to headline an outdoor music and camping festival called "The Grateful Garcia Gathering". Jerry Garcia Band drummer David Kemper joined Melvin Seals and JGB in 2007. Other musicians and friends of Garcia include Donna Jean Godchaux, Mookie Siegel, Pete Sears, G.E. Smith, Chuck Hammer, Barry Sless, Jackie Greene, Brian Lesh, Sanjay Mishra, and Mark Karan.
On July 21, 2005, the San Francisco Recreation and Park Commission passed a resolution to name the amphitheater in McLaren Park "The Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." The amphitheater is located in the Excelsior District, where Garcia grew up. The first show to happen at the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater was Jerry Day 2005 on August 7, 2005. Jerry's brother, Tiff Garcia, was the first person to welcome everybody to the "Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." Jerry Day is an annual celebration of Garcia in his childhood neighborhood. The dedication ceremony (Jerry Day 2) on October 29, 2005, was officiated by mayor Gavin Newsom.
On September 24, 2005, the Comes a Time: A Celebration of the Music & Spirit of Jerry Garcia tribute concert was held at the Hearst Greek Theatre in Berkeley, California. The concert featured Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, Mickey Hart, Bruce Hornsby, Trey Anastasio, Warren Haynes, Jimmy Herring, Michael Kang, Jay Lane, Jeff Chimenti, Mark Karan, Robin Sylvester, Kenny Brooks, Melvin Seals, Merl Saunders, Marty Holland, Stu Allen, Gloria Jones, and Jackie LaBranch.
Georgia-based composer Lee Johnson released an orchestral tribute to the music of the Grateful Dead, recorded with the Russian National Orchestra, entitled "Dead Symphony: Lee Johnson Symphony No. 6." Johnson was interviewed on NPR on the July 26, 2008 broadcast of Weekend Edition, and gave much credit to the genius and craft of Garcia's songwriting. A live performance with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Johnson himself, was held Friday, August 1.
In 2010 the Santa Barbara Bowl in California opened Jerry Garcia Glen along the walk up to the venue. There is a statue of Garcia's right hand along the way.
Seattle rock band Soundgarden wrote and recorded the instrumental song "Jerry Garcia's Finger", dedicated to the singer, which was released as a b-side with their single "Pretty Noose".
Numerous music festivals across the United States and Uxbridge, Middlesex, UK hold annual events in memory of Jerry Garcia.
On May 14, 2015, an all-star lineup held a tribute concert for Garcia at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland. The event was called "Dear Jerry".
In 2015, Hunter and Garcia were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Hunter accepted the award along with Garcia's daughter, Trixie Garcia, who accepted on behalf of her father.
In 2015, Jerry Garcia's wife, Manasha Garcia and their daughter, Keelin Garcia launched The Jerry Garcia Foundation, a nonprofit charity that supports projects for artistic, environmental, and humanitarian causes. The Foundation's Board members are Bob Weir, Peter Shapiro, Glenn Fischer, Irwin Sternberg, Daniel Shiner, TRI Studios CEO, Christopher McCutcheon and Fender Music Foundation Executive Director,
Lynn Robison. Keelin Garcia said, "It is a tremendous honor to participate in nonprofit work that is in accordance with my father's values."
In 2018, Jerry Garcia family members, Keelin Garcia and Manasha Garcia launched the Jerry Garcia Music Arts independent music label.
On November 18, 2021, it was announced Jonah Hill would portray Garcia in a forthcoming Grateful Dead biopic written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski directed by Martin Scorsese for Apple TV+.
Discography
New Riders of the Purple Sage – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1971
Hooteroll? – Howard Wales and Jerry Garcia – 1971
Garcia – Jerry Garcia – 1972
Live at Keystone – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1973
Compliments – Jerry Garcia – 1974
Old & In the Way – Old & In the Way – 1975
Reflections – Jerry Garcia – 1976
Cats Under the Stars – Jerry Garcia Band – 1978
Run for the Roses – Jerry Garcia – 1982
Vintage NRPS – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1986
Keystone Encores – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1988
Almost Acoustic – Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band – 1988
Jerry Garcia / David Grisman – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1991
Jerry Garcia Band – Jerry Garcia Band – 1991
Not for Kids Only – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1993
Notes
References
Sources
External links
The official homepage of Jerry Garcia
Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics
Jerry Garcia on Fretbase
The Jerry Site
Official Grateful Dead website
Jerry Garcia discography at deaddisc.com
Jerry Garcia autopsy
Jerry Day: A Civic and Cultural Celebration of Jerry Garcia held in San Francisco
FBI Records: The Vault - Jerry Garcia at vault.fbi.gov
Jerry Garcia's Army personnel file at the National Archives
TEAM
Garcia's Guitars & Gear Directory
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American country rock musicians | true | [
"William Martin Alastair Land (born 24 September 1971) has been headmaster at Harrow School, since 2019, previously having been headmaster at Repton School. He has taught at Eton College and Winchester College, where he was Master in College, and was deputy headmaster at Harrow School before moving to Repton School.\n\nEarly life and education\nBorn in Manchester in 1971, the son of Martin and Elaine Land (formerly Lightfoot), Land was educated at Manchester Grammar School and Trinity College, Cambridge, where he graduated with first-class honours in the Natural Sciences Tripos in 1994, then gained a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE).\n\nIn a gap year between leaving school and arriving at Cambridge, Land taught Geography and Science at the Budhanilkantha School in Kathmandu, Nepal, where he developed a love of extreme sports and travel.\n\nCareer\nLand's first teaching job after qualifying was at Eton College, where he was a master from 1994 until 2003, teaching Biology, coaching rugby, directing plays, and becoming Commanding Officer of the school CCF. In September 2003 he moved on to Winchester, where he was Master in College and led natural history expeditions, as well as chairing the Adventurous Training Committee, refereeing football, and serving as running coach. Next, from 2012 to 2015 he was deputy head master at Harrow, before being appointed as head of Repton School in 2016.\n\nIn April 2019 he was appointed as Head Master at Harrow.\n\nReferences\n\n1971 births\nLiving people\nAlumni of Trinity College, Cambridge\nHead Masters of Harrow School\nHeadmasters of Repton School\nPeople educated at Manchester Grammar School\nSchoolteachers from Greater Manchester",
"Jerome D. Schein was Professor Emeritus of Sensory Rehabilitation at New York University, and Adjunct Professor of Education at the University of Alberta, Canada, and a consultant in Coconut Creek, Florida.\n\nPersonal life and ancestry\nJerome Daniel Schein was born on May 22, 1923, to Adolph and Jeanette Schein, who were both from Romania. Adolph was born in Galatz, Romania, and Jeanette was born in Focșani, Romania. He was the younger brother to Harold and Donald. Schein was born in Minneapolis where he stayed for the majority of his adult life. He attended North Community High School where he was a part of the science club. He was a member of the National Honor Society. At NHS, he met Amy Ann Butt, and she became pregnant with his child in March of 1942. His daughter, Carole Dianne Schein was born on December 7, 1942. He attended Northwestern University, and on June 27, 1942, he registered for World War II. His other daughter, Raleigh Helene Schein, was born on January 17, 1947.\n\nCareer\nSchein was a Professor Emeritus of Sensory Rehabilitation at New York University. He was also a professor at Gallaudet University, and an adjust professor at the University of Alberta. He published 25 books and more than 200 refereed papers on sensory disorders and has received numerous honors and awards. He was a member of the Journal of Rehabilitation Research and Development. He was the author of over 200 papers and a holder of the Powrie V. Doctor Chair at Gallaudet.\n\nReferences\n\n1923 births\n2010 deaths\nAmerican psychologists\nNew York University faculty\nNorth Community High School alumni\nNorthwestern University alumni\nAmerican expatriates in Canada"
] |
[
"Jerry Garcia",
"Childhood and early life",
"Where are his ancestors from",
"Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain.",
"Where else are his ancestors from",
"His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish.",
"What was his fathers name",
"Jose Ramon \"Joe\" Garcia",
"what was his mothers name",
"Ruth Marie \"Bobbie\" (nee Clifford) Garcia,",
"Where was he born at",
"He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California,"
] | C_a95583dc963548a79d885ace2c196575_1 | What date was he born on | 6 | What date was Jerry Garcia born on? | Jerry Garcia | Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (nee Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting. Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family--who had emigrated from Spain in 1919--would often sing during reunions. Garcia experienced several tragedies during his youth. At age four, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains, two-thirds of Garcia's right middle finger was accidentally cut off. Garcia and his brother Tiff were chopping wood. Jerry steadied a piece of wood with his finger, but Tiff miscalculated and the axe severed most of Jerry's middle finger. After his mother wrapped his hand in a towel, Garcia's father drove him over 30 miles to the nearest hospital. A few weeks later, Garcia -- who had not looked at his finger since the accident -- was surprised to discover most of it missing when the bandage he was wearing came off during a bath. Garcia later confided that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood. Less than a year after he lost most of his finger, his father died. Vacationing with his family near Arcata in Northern California in 1947, Garcia's father went fly fishing in the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest. Not long after entering the river, Garcia's father slipped on a rock, lost his balance and was swept away by the river's rapids. He drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw his father fall into the river, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, lends weight to McNally's claim. Jackson's evidence was that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death failed to mention Garcia was present when he died. CANNOTANSWER | August 1, 1942, | Jerome John Garcia (August 1, 1942 – August 9, 1995) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known for being a principal songwriter, the lead guitarist and a vocalist with the rock band the Grateful Dead, of which he was a founding member and which came to prominence during the counterculture of the 1960s. Although he disavowed the role, Garcia was viewed by many as the leader of the band.
As one of its founders, Garcia performed with the Grateful Dead for their entire 30-year career (1965–1995). Garcia also founded and participated in a variety of side projects, including the Saunders–Garcia Band (with longtime friend Merl Saunders), the Jerry Garcia Band, Old & In the Way, the Garcia/Grisman and Garcia/Kahn acoustic duos, Legion of Mary, and New Riders of the Purple Sage (which he co-founded with John Dawson and David Nelson). He also released several solo albums, and contributed to a number of albums by other artists over the years as a session musician. He was well known for his distinctive guitar playing, and was ranked 13th in Rolling Stones "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" cover story in 2003. In the 2015 version of the list he was ranked at #46.
Garcia was also renowned for his musical and technical ability, particularly his ability to play a variety of instruments and sustain long improvisations with the Grateful Dead. Garcia believed that improvisation took stress away from his playing and allowed him to make spur of the moment decisions that he would not have made intentionally. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Garcia noted that "my own preferences are for improvisation, for making it up as I go along. The idea of picking, of eliminating possibilities by deciding, that's difficult for me". Originating from the days of the "acid tests", these improvisations were a form of exploration rather than playing a song already written.
Later in life, Garcia struggled with diabetes and in 1986, went into a diabetic coma that nearly cost him his life. Although his overall health improved somewhat after that, he continued to struggle with obesity, smoking, and longstanding heroin and cocaine addictions. He was staying in a California drug rehabilitation facility when he died of a heart attack on August 9, 1995, at the age of 53.
Early life
Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (née Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting.
Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family—which had immigrated from Spain in 1919—would often sing during reunions.
In 1946, two-thirds of four-year-old Garcia's right middle finger was cut off by his brother in a wood splitting accident, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Garcia later confessed that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood.
Less than a year after this incident his father died in a fly fishing accident when the family was vacationing near Arcata in Northern California. He slipped after entering the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest, and drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw the incident, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, notes that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death did not mention Jerry being present when he died.
Excelsior District
Following his father's death, Garcia's mother Ruth took over her husband's bar, buying out his partner for full ownership. She began working full-time there, sending Jerry and his brother to live nearby with her parents, Tillie and William Clifford. During the five-year period in which he lived with his grandparents, Garcia enjoyed a large amount of autonomy and attended Monroe Elementary School. At the school, Garcia was greatly encouraged in his artistic abilities by his third grade teacher: through her, he discovered that "being a creative person was a viable possibility in life." According to Garcia, it was around this time that he was opened up to country and bluegrass music by his grandmother, whom he recalled enjoyed listening to the Grand Ole Opry. His elder brother, Clifford, however, staunchly believed the contrary, insisting that Garcia was "fantasizing all [that] ... she'd been to Opry, but she didn't listen to it on the radio." It was at this point that Garcia started playing the banjo, his first stringed instrument.
Menlo Park
In 1953, Garcia's mother married Wally Matusiewicz. Subsequently, Garcia and his brother moved back home with their mother and new stepfather. However, due to the roughneck reputation of their neighborhood at the time, Garcia's mother moved their family to Menlo Park. During their stay in Menlo Park, Garcia became acquainted with racism and antisemitism, things he disliked intensely. The same year, Garcia was also introduced to rock and roll and rhythm and blues by his brother, and enjoyed listening to Ray Charles, John Lee Hooker, B. B. King, Hank Ballard, and, later, Chuck Berry. Clifford often memorized the vocals for his favorite songs, and would then make Garcia learn the harmony parts, a move to which Garcia later attributed much of his early ear training.
In mid-1957, Garcia began smoking cigarettes and was introduced to marijuana. Garcia would later reminisce about the first time he smoked marijuana: "Me and a friend of mine went up into the hills with two joints, the San Francisco foothills, and smoked these joints and just got so high and laughed and roared and went skipping down the streets doing funny things and just having a helluva time". During this time, Garcia also studied at what is now the San Francisco Art Institute. The teacher there was Wally Hedrick, an artist who came to prominence during the 1960s. During the classes, he often encouraged Garcia in his drawing and painting skills. Hedrick also introduced Garcia to the fiction of Jack Kerouac, whom Garcia later cited as a major influence.
San Francisco
In June, Garcia graduated from the local Menlo Oaks school. He then moved with his family back to San Francisco, where they lived in an apartment above the family bar, a newly built replacement for the original, that had been torn down to make way for a freeway entrance. Two months later, on Garcia's fifteenth birthday, his mother bought an accordion for him, to his great disappointment. Garcia had long been captivated by many rhythm and blues artists, especially Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley, leaving him craving an electric guitar. After some pleading, his mother exchanged the accordion for a Danelectro with a small amplifier at a local pawnshop. Garcia's stepfather, who was somewhat proficient with instruments, helped tune his guitar to an unusual open tuning.
Cazadero
After a short stint at Denman Junior High School, Garcia attended tenth grade at Balboa High School in 1958, where he often got into trouble for skipping classes and fighting. Consequently, in 1959, Garcia's mother again moved the family to a safer environment, to Cazadero, a small town in Sonoma County, north of San Francisco. This turn of events did not sit well with Garcia, who had to travel by bus to Analy High School in Sebastopol, the nearest school. Garcia did, however, join a band at his school known as the Chords. After performing in and winning a contest, the band's reward was recording a song. They chose "Raunchy" by Bill Justis.
Recording career
Relocation and band beginnings
Garcia stole his mother's car in 1960, and was given the option of joining the United States Army in lieu of prison. He received basic training at Fort Ord. After training, he was transferred to Fort Winfield Scott in the Presidio of San Francisco. Garcia spent most of his time in the army at his leisure, missing roll call and accruing many counts of being AWOL. As a result, Garcia was given a general discharge on December 14, 1960.
In January 1961, Garcia drove down to East Palo Alto to see Laird Grant, an old friend from middle school. He had bought a 1950 Cadillac sedan from a cook in the army, which barely made it to Grant's residence before it broke down. Garcia spent the next few weeks sleeping where friends would allow, eventually using his car as a home. Through Grant, Garcia met Dave McQueen in February, who, after hearing Garcia perform some blues music, introduced him to local people and to the Chateau, a rooming house located near Stanford University which was then a popular hangout.
On February 20, 1961, Garcia got into a car with Paul Speegle, a sixteen-year-old artist and acquaintance of Garcia; Lee Adams, the house manager of the Chateau and driver of the car; and Alan Trist, a companion of theirs. After speeding past the Palo Alto Veterans Hospital, the driver encountered a curve and, speeding around , crashed into the guard rail, sending the car rolling turbulently. Garcia was hurled through the windshield of the car into a nearby field with such force he was literally thrown out of his shoes and would later be unable to recall the ejection. Lee Adams, the driver, and Alan Trist, who was seated in the back, were thrown from the car as well, suffering from abdominal injuries and a spine fracture, respectively. Garcia escaped with a broken collarbone, while Speegle, still in the car, was fatally injured.
Lee's reckless driving and crash served as an awakening for Garcia, who later commented: "That's where my life began. Before then I was always living at less than capacity. I was idling. That was the slingshot for the rest of my life. It was like a second chance. Then I got serious". It was at this time that Garcia began to realize that he needed to begin playing the guitar in earnest—a move which meant giving up his love of drawing and painting.
In April 1961, Garcia first met Robert Hunter, who would become a long-time friend of and lyricist for the Grateful Dead, collaborating principally with Garcia. The two involved themselves in the South Bay and San Francisco art and music scenes, sometimes playing at Menlo Park's Kepler's Books. Garcia performed his first concert with Hunter, each earning five dollars. Garcia and Hunter also played in bands (the Wildwood Boys and the Hart Valley Drifters) with David Nelson, who would later play with Garcia in the New Riders of the Purple Sage and contribute to several Grateful Dead album songs.
In 1962, Garcia met Phil Lesh, the eventual bassist of the Grateful Dead, during a party in Menlo Park's bohemian Perry Lane neighborhood (where author Ken Kesey lived). Lesh would later write in his autobiography that Garcia reminded him of pictures he had seen of the composer Claude Debussy, with his "dark, curly hair, goatee, Impressionist eyes". While attending another party in Palo Alto, Lesh approached Garcia to suggest they record Garcia on Lesh's tape recorder and produce a radio show for the progressive, community-supported Berkeley radio station KPFA. Using an old Wollensak tape recorder, they recorded "Matty Groves" and "The Long Black Veil", among several other tunes. The recordings became a central feature of a 90-minute KPFA special broadcast, "The Long Black Veil and Other Ballads: An Evening with Jerry Garcia". The link between KPFA and the Grateful Dead continues to this day, having included many fundraisers, interviews, live concert broadcasts, taped band performances and all-day or all-weekend "Dead-only" marathons.
Garcia soon began playing and teaching acoustic guitar and banjo. One of Garcia's students was Bob Matthews, who later engineered many of the Grateful Dead's albums. Matthews attended Menlo-Atherton High School and was friends with Bob Weir, and on New Year's Eve 1963, he introduced Weir and Garcia.
Between 1962 and 1964, Garcia sang and performed mainly bluegrass, old-time, and folk music. One of the bands Garcia performed with was the Sleepy Hollow Hog Stompers, a bluegrass act. The group consisted of Garcia on guitar, banjo, vocals, and harmonica, Marshall Leicester on banjo, guitar, and vocals, and Dick Arnold on fiddle and vocals. Soon after this, Garcia, Weir, Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, and several of their friends formed a jug band called Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions. Around this time, the psychedelic drug LSD was gaining popularity. Garcia first began using LSD in 1964; later, when asked how it changed his life, he remarked: "Well, it changed everything [...] the effect was that it freed me because I suddenly realized that my little attempt at having a straight life and doing that was really a fiction and just wasn't going to work out. Luckily I wasn't far enough into it for it to be shattering or anything; it was like a realization that just made me feel immensely relieved."
In 1965, Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions evolved into the Warlocks, with the addition of Phil Lesh on bass guitar and Bill Kreutzmann on percussion. However, the band discovered that another group (which would later become the Velvet Underground) had recently selected the same name. In response, Garcia came up with "Grateful Dead" by opening a Funk & Wagnalls dictionary to an entry for "Grateful dead". The definition for "Grateful dead" was "a dead person, or his angel, showing gratitude to someone who, as an act of charity, arranged their burial". The band's first reaction was disapproval. Garcia later explained the group's reaction: "I didn't like it really, I just found it to be really powerful. [Bob] Weir didn't like it, [Bill] Kreutzmann didn't like it and nobody really wanted to hear about it." Despite their dislike of the name, it quickly spread by word of mouth, and soon became their official title.
Career with the Grateful Dead
Garcia served as lead guitarist, as well as one of the principal vocalists and songwriters of the Grateful Dead for its entire career. Garcia composed such songs as "Dark Star", "Franklin's Tower", and "Scarlet Begonias", among many others. Robert Hunter, an ardent collaborator with the band, wrote the lyrics to all but a few of Garcia's songs.
Garcia was well-noted for his "soulful extended guitar improvisations", which would frequently feature interplay between him and his fellow band members. His fame, as well as the band's, arguably rested on their ability to never play a song the same way twice. Often, Garcia would take cues from rhythm guitarist Bob Weir, remarking that "there are some [...] kinds of ideas that would really throw me if I had to create a harmonic bridge between all the things going on rhythmically with two drums and Phil [Lesh's] innovative bass playing. Weir's ability to solve that sort of problem is extraordinary. [...] Harmonically, I take a lot of my solo cues from Bob."
When asked to describe his approach to soloing, Garcia commented: "It keeps on changing. I still basically revolve around the melody and the way it's broken up into phrases as I perceive them. With most solos, I tend to play something that phrases the way the melody does; my phrases may be more dense or have different value, but they'll occur in the same places in the song. [...]"
Garcia and the band toured almost constantly from their formation in 1965 until Garcia's death in 1995. Periodically, there were breaks due to exhaustion or health problems, often due to Garcia's drug use. During their three-decade span, the Grateful Dead played 2,314 shows.
Garcia's guitar-playing was eclectic. He melded elements from the various kinds of music that influenced him. Echoes of bluegrass playing (such as Arthur Smith and Doc Watson) could be heard. There was also early rock (like Lonnie Mack, James Burton, and Chuck Berry), contemporary blues (Freddie King and Lowell Fulsom), country and western (Roy Nichols and Don Rich), and jazz (Charlie Christian and Django Reinhardt) to be heard in Garcia's style. Don Rich was the sparkling country guitar player in Buck Owens's "the Buckaroos" band of the 1960s, but besides Rich's style, both Garcia's pedal steel guitar playing (on Grateful Dead records and others) and his standard electric guitar work, were influenced by another of Owens's Buckaroos of that time, pedal steel player Tom Brumley. And as an improvisational soloist, John Coltrane was one of his greatest personal and musical influences.
Garcia later described his playing style as having "descended from barroom rock and roll, country guitar. Just 'cause that's where all my stuff comes from. It's like that blues instrumental stuff that was happening in the late Fifties and early Sixties, like Freddie King." Garcia's style could vary with the song being played and the instrument he was using, but his playing had a number of so-called "signatures". Among these were lead lines based on rhythmic triplets (examples include the songs "Good Morning Little School Girl", "New Speedway Boogie", "Brokedown Palace", "Deal", "Loser", "Truckin'", "That's It for the Other One", "U.S. Blues", "Sugaree", and "Don't Ease Me In").
Side projects
In addition to the Grateful Dead, Garcia had numerous side projects, the most notable being the Jerry Garcia Band. He was also involved with various acoustic projects such as Old & In the Way and other bluegrass bands, including collaborations with noted bluegrass mandolinist David Grisman. The documentary film Grateful Dawg, co-produced by Gillian Grisman and former NBC producer Pamela Hamilton chronicles the deep, long-term friendship between Garcia and Grisman. When Garcia and Grisman released Not For Kids Only, Hamilton produced their interview and concert for NBC. After several years of producing stories on the Grateful Dead and band members' side projects, Hamilton interviewed Bob Weir for a feature on Garcia's death marking the end of an era.
Other groups of which Garcia was a member at one time or another include the Black Mountain Boys, Legion of Mary, Reconstruction, and the Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band. Garcia was also a fan of jazz artists and improvisation: he played with jazz keyboardists Merl Saunders and Howard Wales for many years in various groups and jam sessions, and he appeared on saxophonist Ornette Coleman's 1988 album, Virgin Beauty. His collaboration with Merl Saunders and Muruga Booker on the world music album Blues From the Rainforest launched the Rainforest Band.
Garcia also spent a lot of time in the recording studio helping out fellow musician friends in session work, often adding guitar, vocals, pedal steel, sometimes banjo and piano and even producing. He played on over 50 studio albums, the styles of which were eclectic and varied, including bluegrass, rock, folk, blues, country, jazz, electronic music, gospel, funk, and reggae. Artists who sought Garcia's help included the likes of Jefferson Airplane (most notably Surrealistic Pillow, Garcia being listed as their "spiritual advisor"). Garcia himself recalled in a mid-1967 interview that he'd played the high lead on "Today," played on "Plastic Fantastic Lover" and "Comin' Back to Me" on that album. Others include Tom Fogerty, David Bromberg, Robert Hunter (Liberty, on Relix Records), Paul Pena, Peter Rowan, Warren Zevon, Country Joe McDonald, Pete Sears, Ken Nordine, Ornette Coleman, Bruce Hornsby, Bob Dylan, It's a Beautiful Day, and many more. In 1995 Garcia played on three tracks for the CD Blue Incantation by guitarist Sanjay Mishra, making it his last studio collaboration.
Throughout the early 1970s, Garcia, Lesh, Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart, and David Crosby collaborated intermittently with MIT-educated composer and biologist Ned Lagin on several projects in the realm of early ambient music; these include the album Seastones (released by the Ned Lagin on the Round Records subsidiary) and L, an unfinished dance work composed by Ned Lagin. In 1970, Garcia participated in the soundtrack for the film Zabriskie Point.
Garcia also played pedal steel guitar for fellow-San Francisco musicians New Riders of the Purple Sage from their initial dates in 1969 to October 1971, when increased commitments with the Dead forced him to opt out of the group. He appears as a band member on their debut album New Riders of the Purple Sage, and produced Home, Home on the Road, a 1974 live album by the band. He also contributed pedal steel guitar to the enduring hit "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young. Garcia also played steel guitar licks on Brewer & Shipley's 1970 album Tarkio. Despite considering himself a novice on the pedal steel, Garcia routinely ranked high in player polls. After a long lapse from playing the pedal steel, he played it once more during several of the Dead's concerts with Bob Dylan in the summer of 1987.
In 1988, Garcia agreed to perform at several major benefits including the "Soviet American Peace Walk" concert at the Band Shell, in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, that drew 25,000 people. He was asked to play by longtime friend and fellow musician, Pete Sears, who played piano with all the bands that day, and also procured all the other musicians. Garcia, Mickey Hart and Steve Parish played the show, then were given a police escort to a Grateful Dead show across the bay later that night. Garcia also played with Nick Gravenites and Pete Sears at a benefit given for Vietnam Veteran and peace activist Brian Willson, who lost both legs below the knee when he attempted to block a train carrying weapons to military dictatorships in El Salvador.
Having previously studied at the San Francisco Art Institute as a teenager, Garcia embarked on a second career in the visual arts in the late 1980s. He created a number of drawings, etchings, and water colors. Garcia's artistic endeavors were represented by the Weir Gallery in Berkeley, California from 1989 to 1996. During this period, Roberta Weir (unrelated to Garcia's bandmate Bob Weir) provided Garcia with new art techniques to use, sponsored his first solo show in 1990, and prepared blank etching plates for him to draw on. These would then be processed and printed by gallery staff and brought back to Garcia for approval and signature, usually with a passing of stacks of paper backstage at a Dead show. His annual shows at the Weir Gallery garnered much attention, leading to further shows in New York and other cities. Garcia was an early adopter of digital art media; his artistic style was as varied as his musical output, and he carried small notebooks for pen and ink sketches wherever he toured. Roberta Weir continues to maintain an archive of the artwork of Jerry Garcia. Perhaps the most widely seen pieces of Jerry Garcia's art are the many editions of men's neckties produced by Stonehenge Ltd. and Mulberry Neckware. Some began as etchings, other designs came from his drawings, paintings, and digital art. Garcia's artwork has since expanded into everything from hotel rooms, wet suits, men's sport shirts, a women's wear line, boxer shorts, hair accessories, cummerbunds, silk scarves and wool rugs.
Personal life
Garcia met his first wife, Sara Ruppenthal, in 1963. She was working at the coffee house in the back of Kepler's Books, where Garcia, Hunter, and Nelson regularly performed. They married on April 23, 1963, and on December 8 of that year their daughter Heather was born.
Carolyn Adams, a Merry Prankster also known as "Mountain Girl" or "M.G.," had a daughter, Sunshine, with Ken Kesey. Mountain Girl married another Prankster, George Walker, but they soon separated. She and Sunshine then moved into 710 Ashbury with Garcia in late 1966 where they would ultimately live together until 1975. In 1994, Sara and Jerry officially divorced after a long separation. Adams gave birth to Garcia's second and third daughters, Annabelle Walker Garcia (February 2, 1970) and Theresa Adams "Trixie" Garcia (September 21, 1974).
In August 1970, Garcia's mother Ruth was involved in a car crash near Twin Peaks in San Francisco. Garcia, who was recording the album American Beauty at the time, often left the sessions to visit his mother with his brother Clifford. She died on September 28, 1970.
In the midst of a March 1973 Grateful Dead engagement at Long Island's Nassau Coliseum, Garcia met Deborah Koons, an aspiring filmmaker from a wealthy Cincinnati, Ohio-based family who would much later marry him and become his widow. After a brief correspondence, he began his relationship with her in mid-1974. This gradually strained his relationship with Adams and culminated in Garcia leaving Adams for Koons in late 1975. The end of his relationship with Koons in 1977 precipitated a brief reconciliation with Adams, including the reestablishment of their household. However, she did not agree with the guitarist's persistent use of narcotics and moved with the children to the Eugene, Oregon area, living near Kesey, in 1978.
Following Adams' departure, Garcia had an affair with Amy Moore. She was a Kentucky-born member of the extended "Grateful Dead family", and the mistress of Texas oil heir Roy Cullen. Their affair lasted circa 1980–1981, and inspired the Garcia-Hunter song "Run for the Roses."
Adams and Garcia were married on December 31, 1981, largely as a result of mutual tax exigencies. Despite the legal codification of their union, she remained in Oregon, while Garcia continued to live near the Grateful Dead's offices in San Rafael, California. Garcia lived with a variety of housemates, including longtime Grateful Dead employee and Jerry Garcia Band manager Rock Scully. Scully, who co-managed the Grateful Dead throughout the mid-to-late 1960s before serving as the band's "advance man" and publicist, was dismissed by the group in 1984 for enabling Garcia's addictions and for allegedly embezzling the Garcia Band's profits. Another housemate was Nora Sage, a Deadhead who became Garcia's housekeeper while studying at the Golden Gate University School of Law. The exact nature of their relationship remains unclear, although it is believed to have been platonic due to Garcia's addictions. She later became his art representative.
While they would briefly reunite following his diabetic coma, Garcia and Adams ultimately divorced in 1994. Phil Lesh has subsequently stated that he rarely saw Adams on any of the band tours. In a 1991 Rolling Stone interview, Garcia stated that "we haven't really lived together since the Seventies".
During the autumn of 1978, Garcia developed a friendship with Shimer College student Manasha Matheson, an artist and music enthusiast. They remained friends over the following nine years before initiating a romantic relationship in Hartford, Connecticut on the Grateful Dead's spring 1987 tour. Jerry and Manasha became parents with the birth of their daughter, Keelin Noel Garcia, on December 20, 1987. On August 17, 1990, Jerry and Manasha married at their San Anselmo, California home in a spiritual ceremony free of legal convention. In 1991, Garcia expressed his delight in finding the time to "actually be a father" to Keelin in contrast to his past relationships with his children. A year later, Garcia dedicated his first art book, Paintings, Drawings and Sketches, "For Manasha, with love, Jerry."
In January 1993, Barbara "Brigid" Meier, a former girlfriend from the early 1960s, reentered Garcia's life for a brief period. Meier claimed, Garcia had considered her to be the "love of his life" and proposed to her during a Hawaiian vacation shortly after their relationship recommenced. Garcia's "love of his life" sentiment was not reserved for one lover, as he expressed the same feelings to several other women in his life. At Garcia's 1995 funeral, Koons declared that she was "the love of his life" while paying her final respects, whereupon Meier and Ruppenthal, who were both in attendance, simultaneously exclaimed, "He said that to me!"
The affair with Meier marked the breakup of Jerry's family life with Manasha and Keelin. Garcia ended the affair with Meier forty-five days later while on tour in Chicago with the Grateful Dead after she confronted him about his drug use.
Shortly thereafter, Garcia renewed his acquaintance with Deborah Koons in the spring of 1993. They married on February 14, 1994, in Sausalito, California. Garcia and Koons were married at the time of his death.
Lifestyle and health
Because of their public profile, Garcia and his collaborators were occasionally singled out in the American government's war on drugs. On October 2, 1967, 710 Ashbury Street in San Francisco (where the Grateful Dead had taken up residence the year before) was raided after a police tip-off. Grateful Dead members Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan were apprehended on marijuana charges which were later dropped, although Garcia himself was not arrested. The following year, Garcia's picture was used in a defamatory context in a campaign commercial for Richard Nixon.
Most of the band were arrested again in January 1970, after they flew to New Orleans from Hawaii. After returning to their hotel from a performance, the band checked into their rooms, only to be quickly raided by police. Approximately fifteen people were arrested on the spot, including many of the road crew, management, and nearly all of the Grateful Dead except for Garcia, who arrived later, outgoing keyboardist Tom Constanten, who abstained from all drugs as a member of the Church of Scientology, and McKernan, who eschewed illegal drugs in favor of alcohol.
According to Bill Kreutzmann, the band's use of cocaine accelerated throughout the early 1970s. After using heroin in a brothel in 1974 (likely on the band's second European tour), Garcia was introduced to a smokeable form of the drug (initially advertised as refined opium) colloquially known as "Persian" or "Persian Base" during the group's 1975 hiatus. Influenced by the stresses of creating and releasing The Grateful Dead Movie and the acrimonious collapse of the band's independent record labels over the next two years, Garcia became increasingly dependent upon both substances. These factors, combined with the alcohol and drug abuse of several other members of the Grateful Dead, resulted in a turbulent atmosphere. By 1978, the band's chemistry began "cracking and crumbling", resulting in poor group cohesion. As a result, Keith and Donna Jean Godchaux left the band in February 1979.
With the addition of keyboardist/vocalist Brent Mydland that year amid the ongoing coalescence of the Deadhead subculture, the band reached new commercial heights as a touring group on the American arena circuit in the early 1980s, enabling them to forsake studio recording for several years. Nevertheless, this was offset by such factors as the band's atypically large payroll and Garcia's $700-a-day () drug addiction, resulting in the guitarist taking on a frenetic slate of solo touring outside of the Grateful Dead's rigorous schedule, including abbreviated acoustic duo concerts with Jerry Garcia Band bassist John Kahn that were widely rumored to be a funding conduit for their respective addictions.
Though things seemed to be getting better for the band, Garcia's health was declining. By 1983, Garcia's demeanor onstage had appeared to change. Despite still playing the guitar with great passion and intensity, there were times that he would appear disengaged; as such, shows were often inconsistent. Years of heavy tobacco smoking had affected his voice, and he gained considerable weight. By 1984, he would often rest his chin on the microphone during performances. The so-called "endless tour"—the result of years of financial risks, drug use, and poor business decisions—had taken its toll.
Garcia's decade-long heroin addiction culminated in the rest of the band holding an intervention in January 1985. Given the choice between the band or the drugs, Garcia agreed to check into a rehabilitation center in Oakland, California. A few days later in January, before the start of his program in Oakland, Garcia was arrested for drug possession in Golden Gate Park; he subsequently attended a drug diversion program. Throughout 1985, he tapered his drug use on tour and at home with the assistance of Nora Sage; by the spring of 1986, he was completely abstinent.
Precipitated by an unhealthy weight, dehydration, bad eating habits, and a recent relapse on the Grateful Dead's first stadium tour, Garcia collapsed into a diabetic coma in July 1986, waking up five days later. He later spoke about this period of unconsciousness as surreal: "Well, I had some very weird experiences. My main experience was one of furious activity and tremendous struggle in a sort of futuristic, space-ship vehicle with insectoid presences. After I came out of my coma, I had this image of myself as these little hunks of protoplasm that were stuck together kind of like stamps with perforations between them that you could snap off." Garcia's coma had a profound effect on him: it forced him to have to relearn how to play the guitar, as well as other, more basic skills. Within a handful of months, he had recovered, playing with the Jerry Garcia Band and the Grateful Dead again later that year.
After Garcia's recovery, the band released a comeback album In the Dark in 1987, which became their best-selling studio album. Inspired by Garcia's improved health, a successful album and the continuing emergence of Mydland as a third frontman, the band's energy and chemistry reached a new peak in the late 1980s.
Amid a litany of personal problems, Mydland died of a speedball overdose in July 1990. His death greatly affected Garcia, leading him to believe that the band's chemistry would never be the same. Before beginning the fall tour, the band acquired keyboardists Vince Welnick and Bruce Hornsby. The power of Hornsby's performances drove Garcia to new heights on stage. However, as the band continued through 1991, Garcia became concerned with the band's future. He was exhausted from five straight years of touring. He thought a break was necessary, mainly so that the band could come back with fresh material. The idea was put off by the pressures of management, and the touring continued. Garcia began using heroin again after several years of intermittent prescription opiate use. Though his relapse was brief, the band was quick to react. Soon after the last show of the tour in Denver, Garcia was confronted by the band with another intervention. After a disastrous meeting, Garcia invited Phil Lesh over to his home in San Rafael, California, where he explained that after the meeting he would start attending a methadone clinic. Garcia said that he wanted to clean up in his own way, and return to making music.
After returning from the band's 1992 summer tour, Garcia became sick, a throwback to his diabetic coma in 1986. Manasha Garcia nursed Jerry back to health and organized a team of health professionals which included acupuncturist Yen Wei Choong and Randy Baker, MD, a holistic family physician to treat him at home. Garcia recovered over the following days, despite the Grateful Dead having to cancel their fall tour to allow him time to recuperate. Garcia reduced his cigarette smoking and began losing weight. He also became a vegetarian.
Despite these improvements, Garcia's physical and mental condition continued to decline throughout 1993 and 1994. He began to use narcotics again to dull the pain.
In light of his second drug relapse and current condition, Garcia checked himself into the Betty Ford Center during July 1995. His stay was limited, lasting only two weeks. Motivated by the experience, he then checked into the Serenity Knolls treatment center in Forest Knolls, California, where he died.
Death
Garcia died in his room at the rehabilitation clinic on August 9, 1995. The cause of death was a heart attack. Garcia had long struggled with drug addiction, weight problems, sleep apnea, heavy smoking, and diabetes—all of which contributed to his physical decline. Lesh remarked that, upon hearing of Garcia's death, "I was struck numb. I had lost my oldest surviving friend, my brother." Garcia's funeral was held on August 12, at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Belvedere. It was attended by his family, the remaining Grateful Dead members, and their friends, including former pro basketball player Bill Walton and musician Bob Dylan. Deborah Koons barred two of Garcia's former wives from the ceremony.
On August 13, about 25,000 people attended a municipally sanctioned public memorial at the Polo Fields of San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. Crowds produced hundreds of flowers, gifts, images, and a bagpipe rendition of "Amazing Grace" in remembrance. In the Haight, a single white rose was reportedly tied to a tree near the Dead's former Haight-Ashbury house, where a group of followers gathered to mourn.
On the morning of April 4, 1996, after a total lunar eclipse earlier that day, Weir and Deborah Koons accompanied by Sanjay Mishra, spread half of Garcia's ashes into the Ganges at the holy city of Rishikesh, India, a site sacred to Hindus. The remaining ashes were poured into the San Francisco Bay. Koons did not allow former wife Carolyn Garcia to attend the spreading of the ashes.
Musical equipment
Garcia played many guitars during his career, which ranged from student and budget models to custom-made instruments. During his thirty-five year career as a professional musician, Garcia used about 25 guitars.
In 1965, when Garcia was playing with the Warlocks, he used a Guild Starfire, which he also used on the début album of the Grateful Dead. Beginning in late 1967 and ending in 1968, Garcia played black or gold mid-1950s Gibson Les Paul guitars with P-90 pickups. In 1969, he picked up the Gibson SG and used it for most of that year and 1970, except for a small period in between where he used a sunburst Fender Stratocaster.
During Garcia's "pedal steel flirtation period" (as Bob Weir referred to it in Anthem to Beauty), from approximately 1969 to 1972, he initially played a Fender instrument before upgrading to the ZB Custom D-10, especially in his earlier public performances. Although this was a double neck guitar, Garcia used the "E9 neck and the three pedals to raise the tone and two levers to lower it." He employed an Emmons D-10 at the Grateful Dead's and New Riders of the Purple Sage's final appearances at the Fillmore East in April 1971.
In 1969, Garcia played pedal steel on three notable outside recordings: the track "The Farm" on the Jefferson Airplane album Volunteers, the track "Oh Mommy" by Brewer and Shipley and the hit single "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young from their album Déjà Vu, released in 1970. Garcia played on the latter album in exchange for harmony lessons for the Grateful Dead, who were at the time recording Workingman's Dead.
In 1971, Garcia began playing a sunburst Les Paul. In March and April 1971 – the time period during which the Grateful Dead recorded its second live album, Grateful Dead – Garcia played the "Peanut," a guitar he had received from Rick Turner, who had custom built the guitar's body and incorporated the neck, pickups, and hardware from an early '60s Les Paul.
In May, Garcia began using a 1957 natural finish Stratocaster that had been given to him by Graham Nash. Garcia added an alligator sticker to the pickguard in the fall of that year. "Alligator" would remain Garcia's principal electric guitar until August 1973.
In the summer of 1971, Garcia also played a double-cutaway Les Paul TV Junior.
While Alligator was in the shop in the summer of 1972, he briefly reverted to the sunburst Stratocaster; this can be seen in Sunshine Daydream.
In late 1972, Garcia purchased the first guitar ("Eagle") made by Alembic luthier Doug Irwin for $850 (). Enamored of Irwin's talents, he immediately commissioned his own custom instrument. This guitar, nicknamed "Wolf" for a memorable sticker Garcia added below the tailpiece, was delivered in May 1973 and replaced Alligator on stage in September. It cost $1,500 (), an extremely high price for the era.
Wolf was made with an ebony fingerboard and featured numerous embellishments like alternating grain designs in the headstock, ivory inlays, and fret marker dots made of sterling silver. The body was composed of western maple wood which had a core of purpleheart. Garcia later had Irwin (who ultimately left Alembic to start his own business) replace the electronics inside the guitar, at which point he added his own logo to the headstock alongside the Alembic logo. The system included two interchangeable plates for configuring pickups: one was made for strictly single coils, while the other accommodated humbuckers. Shortly after receiving the modified instrument, Garcia commissioned another custom guitar from Irwin with one caveat: "Don't hold back."
During the Grateful Dead's 1974 European tour, Wolf was dropped on several occasions, one of which caused a minor crack in the headstock. Following filming of The Grateful Dead Movie (in which the guitar is prominently visible) a month later, Garcia returned it to Irwin for repairs. Throughout its absence, Garcia predominantly played several Travis Bean guitars, including the TB1000A (1975) and the TB500 (1976-1977). On September 28, 1977, Irwin delivered the refurbished Wolf back to Garcia. The wolf sticker which gave the guitar its name had now been inlaid into the instrument; it also featured an effects loop between the pick-ups and controls (so inline effects would "see" the same signal at all times) which was bypassable. Irwin also put a new face on the headstock with only his logo (he later claimed to have built the guitar himself, though pictures through time clearly show the progression of logos, from Alembic, to Alembic & Irwin, to only Irwin).
Nearly seven years after he commissioned it, Garcia received his second custom guitar ("Tiger") from Irwin in the summer of 1979.
He first employed the instrument in concert at a Grateful Dead performance at the Oakland Auditorium Arena on August 4, 1979. Its name was derived from the inlay on the preamp cover.
The body of Tiger was of rich quality: the top layer was cocobolo, with the preceding layers being maple stripe, vermilion, and flame maple, in that order. The neck was made of western maple with an ebony fingerboard. The pickups consisted of a single coil DiMarzio SDS-1 and two humbucker DiMarzio Super IIs which were easily removable due to Garcia's preference for replacing his pickups every year or two. The electronics were composed of an effects bypass loop, which allowed Garcia to control the sound of his effects through the tone and volume controls on the guitar, and a preamplifier/buffer which rested behind a plate in the back of the guitar. Fully outfitted, Tiger weighed . This was Garcia's principal guitar for the next eleven years, and most played.
In the late 1980s Garcia, Weir and CSN (along with many others) endorsed Alvarez Yairi acoustic guitars. There are many photographs circulating (mostly promotional) of Garcia playing a DY99 Virtuoso Custom with a Modulus Graphite neck. He opted to play with the less decorated model but the promotional photo from the Alvarez Yairi catalog has him holding the "tree of life" model. This hand-built guitar was notable for the collaboration between Japanese luthier Kazuo Yairi and Modulus Graphite of San Rafael. As with most things Garcia, with his passing, the DY99 model is highly valued among collectors.
In 1990, Irwin completed "Rosebud", Garcia's fourth custom guitar. It was similar to his previous guitar Tiger in many respects, but featured different inlays and electronics, tone and volume controls, and weight. Rosebud, unlike Tiger, was configured with three humbuckers; the neck and bridge pickups shared a tone control, while the middle had its own. Atop the guitar was a Roland GK-2 pickup which fed the controller set inside the guitar. The GK2 was used in junction with the Roland GR-50 rack mount synthesizer. The GR-50 synthesizer in turn drove a Korg M1R synthesizer producing the MIDI effects heard during live performances of this period as heard on the Grateful Dead recording Without a Net. Sections of the guitar were hollowed out to bring the weight down to . The inlay, a dancing skeleton holding a rose, covers a plate just below the bridge. The final cost of the instrument was $11,000 ().
In 1993, carpenter-turned-luthier Stephen Cripe tried his hand at making an instrument for Garcia. After researching Tiger through pictures and films, Cripe set out on what would soon become known as "Lightning Bolt", again named for its inlay.
The guitar used Brazilian rosewood for the fingerboard and East Indian rosewood for the body, which, with admitted irony from Cripe, had been taken from a 19th-century bed used by opium smokers. Built purely from guesswork, Lightning Bolt was a hit with Garcia, who began using the guitar exclusively. Soon after, Garcia requested that Cripe build a backup of the guitar. Cripe, who had not measured or photographed the original, was told simply to "wing it."
Cripe later delivered the backup, which was known by the name "Top Hat". Garcia bought it from him for $6,500, making it the first guitar that Cripe had ever sold. However, infatuated with Lightning Bolt, Garcia rarely used the backup.
After Garcia's death, the ownership of Wolf and Tiger came into question. According to Garcia's will, his guitars were bequeathed to Doug Irwin, who had constructed them.
The remaining Grateful Dead members disagreed – they considered his guitars to be property of the band, leading to a lawsuit between the two parties. In 2001, Irwin won the case. However, nearly having been left destitute from a traffic accident in 1998, he decided to place the guitars up for auction in hopes of being able to start another guitar workshop.
On May 8, 2002, Wolf and Tiger, among other memorabilia, were placed for auction at Studio 54 in New York City. Tiger was sold for $957,500, and Wolf for $789,500. Together, the pair sold for $1.74 million, setting a new world record. Wolf went into in the private collection of Daniel Pritzker who kept it in a secure climate controlled room in a private residence at Utica, N.Y. Tiger went to the private collection of Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay.
In May 2017, Wolf was again auctioned, but this time for charity. Pritzker decided to sell the guitar and donate all proceeds to the Montgomery, Alabama based Southern Poverty Law Center.
Brian Halligan placed the winning bid totaling $1.9M.
For the majority of 2019 Wolf and Tiger were included in the Play it Loud exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. On June 23, 2019 John Mayer played Wolf with Dead & Co. at Citi Field.
Legacy
Garcia was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Grateful Dead in 1994. He declined to attend the ceremony; the band jokingly brought a cardboard cutout of Garcia out on stage in his absence.
In 1987, Vermont ice cream maker Ben & Jerry's introduced their Cherry Garcia flavor dedicated to him. It was the first ice cream flavor dedicated to a musician.
In 2003, Rolling Stone ranked Jerry Garcia 13th in their list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".
According to fellow Bay Area guitar player Henry Kaiser, Garcia is "the most recorded guitarist in history. With more than 2,200 Grateful Dead concerts, and 1,000 Jerry Garcia Band concerts captured on tape – as well as numerous studio sessions – there are about 15,000 hours of his guitar work preserved for the ages."
On July 30, 2004, Melvin Seals was the first Jerry Garcia Band (JGB) member to headline an outdoor music and camping festival called "The Grateful Garcia Gathering". Jerry Garcia Band drummer David Kemper joined Melvin Seals and JGB in 2007. Other musicians and friends of Garcia include Donna Jean Godchaux, Mookie Siegel, Pete Sears, G.E. Smith, Chuck Hammer, Barry Sless, Jackie Greene, Brian Lesh, Sanjay Mishra, and Mark Karan.
On July 21, 2005, the San Francisco Recreation and Park Commission passed a resolution to name the amphitheater in McLaren Park "The Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." The amphitheater is located in the Excelsior District, where Garcia grew up. The first show to happen at the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater was Jerry Day 2005 on August 7, 2005. Jerry's brother, Tiff Garcia, was the first person to welcome everybody to the "Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." Jerry Day is an annual celebration of Garcia in his childhood neighborhood. The dedication ceremony (Jerry Day 2) on October 29, 2005, was officiated by mayor Gavin Newsom.
On September 24, 2005, the Comes a Time: A Celebration of the Music & Spirit of Jerry Garcia tribute concert was held at the Hearst Greek Theatre in Berkeley, California. The concert featured Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, Mickey Hart, Bruce Hornsby, Trey Anastasio, Warren Haynes, Jimmy Herring, Michael Kang, Jay Lane, Jeff Chimenti, Mark Karan, Robin Sylvester, Kenny Brooks, Melvin Seals, Merl Saunders, Marty Holland, Stu Allen, Gloria Jones, and Jackie LaBranch.
Georgia-based composer Lee Johnson released an orchestral tribute to the music of the Grateful Dead, recorded with the Russian National Orchestra, entitled "Dead Symphony: Lee Johnson Symphony No. 6." Johnson was interviewed on NPR on the July 26, 2008 broadcast of Weekend Edition, and gave much credit to the genius and craft of Garcia's songwriting. A live performance with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Johnson himself, was held Friday, August 1.
In 2010 the Santa Barbara Bowl in California opened Jerry Garcia Glen along the walk up to the venue. There is a statue of Garcia's right hand along the way.
Seattle rock band Soundgarden wrote and recorded the instrumental song "Jerry Garcia's Finger", dedicated to the singer, which was released as a b-side with their single "Pretty Noose".
Numerous music festivals across the United States and Uxbridge, Middlesex, UK hold annual events in memory of Jerry Garcia.
On May 14, 2015, an all-star lineup held a tribute concert for Garcia at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland. The event was called "Dear Jerry".
In 2015, Hunter and Garcia were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Hunter accepted the award along with Garcia's daughter, Trixie Garcia, who accepted on behalf of her father.
In 2015, Jerry Garcia's wife, Manasha Garcia and their daughter, Keelin Garcia launched The Jerry Garcia Foundation, a nonprofit charity that supports projects for artistic, environmental, and humanitarian causes. The Foundation's Board members are Bob Weir, Peter Shapiro, Glenn Fischer, Irwin Sternberg, Daniel Shiner, TRI Studios CEO, Christopher McCutcheon and Fender Music Foundation Executive Director,
Lynn Robison. Keelin Garcia said, "It is a tremendous honor to participate in nonprofit work that is in accordance with my father's values."
In 2018, Jerry Garcia family members, Keelin Garcia and Manasha Garcia launched the Jerry Garcia Music Arts independent music label.
On November 18, 2021, it was announced Jonah Hill would portray Garcia in a forthcoming Grateful Dead biopic written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski directed by Martin Scorsese for Apple TV+.
Discography
New Riders of the Purple Sage – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1971
Hooteroll? – Howard Wales and Jerry Garcia – 1971
Garcia – Jerry Garcia – 1972
Live at Keystone – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1973
Compliments – Jerry Garcia – 1974
Old & In the Way – Old & In the Way – 1975
Reflections – Jerry Garcia – 1976
Cats Under the Stars – Jerry Garcia Band – 1978
Run for the Roses – Jerry Garcia – 1982
Vintage NRPS – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1986
Keystone Encores – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1988
Almost Acoustic – Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band – 1988
Jerry Garcia / David Grisman – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1991
Jerry Garcia Band – Jerry Garcia Band – 1991
Not for Kids Only – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1993
Notes
References
Sources
External links
The official homepage of Jerry Garcia
Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics
Jerry Garcia on Fretbase
The Jerry Site
Official Grateful Dead website
Jerry Garcia discography at deaddisc.com
Jerry Garcia autopsy
Jerry Day: A Civic and Cultural Celebration of Jerry Garcia held in San Francisco
FBI Records: The Vault - Jerry Garcia at vault.fbi.gov
Jerry Garcia's Army personnel file at the National Archives
TEAM
Garcia's Guitars & Gear Directory
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American country rock musicians | true | [
"Bransby Lewis Key (1838 – 1901) was the 2nd Bishop of St John's in what was then known as Kaffraria and is now Mthatha, South Africa. Born into a medical family he was educated at Kensington Grammar School and St Augustine's College, Canterbury. Ordained deacon in 1864 and priest a year later his first post was as a missionary in the Transkei. After 19 years he was appointed Coadjutor bishop of the Diocese, and four years later (when Bishop Callaway retired) took full control of the see.\n\nBransby Lewis Key married Georgina Annie Waters (daughter of Rev. H. J. Waters) in October 1868 at St John's Mission Station. They had seven children:\nAnnie Katherine Key born on 29 August 1869, died 5 September 1869;\nAlice Mary Key born 15 April 1871, married William Allerton Goodwin on 3 July 1890, St John's Cathedral;\nHenry Aston Key born 8 July 1873, married Marguerite Isabel Hickman on 1 September 1904, St Peter's Cathedral;\nMina Julia Key born on 6 October 1875, married Caleb George Warner Atkinson on 19 June 1900, St Johns Cathedral;\nEdmund Bransby Key born on 11 May 1878;\nEvelyn Margaret Key - date of birth unknown;\nEllen Georgina Key - date of birth unknown.\n\nNotes\n\nFurther reading\nCallaway, Godfrey (1912) A Shepherd of the Veld: Bransby Lewis Key, bishop of St. John's Kaffraria. London: W. Gardner, Darton\n\n1838 births\nAnglican bishops of St John's\n19th-century Anglican bishops in Africa\n1901 deaths\nAlumni of St Augustine's College, Canterbury",
"John Fellenz was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly.\n\nBiography\nFellenz was born in what was then Bengel in the Rhineland in June 1833. Sources have differed on the exact date. He died on December 16, 1896 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.\n\nAssembly career\nFellenz was a Democratic member of the Assembly during the 1868, 1869, 1870, 1872 and 1883 sessions. In 1873, he was an unsuccessful candidate for the Assembly as a member of the Reform Party, losing to Frederick Vogel.\n\nReferences\n\nGerman emigrants to the United States\nPoliticians from Milwaukee\nMembers of the Wisconsin State Assembly\nWisconsin Democrats\nWisconsin Reformers (19th century)\n1833 births\n1896 deaths\n19th-century American politicians"
] |
[
"Jerry Garcia",
"Childhood and early life",
"Where are his ancestors from",
"Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain.",
"Where else are his ancestors from",
"His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish.",
"What was his fathers name",
"Jose Ramon \"Joe\" Garcia",
"what was his mothers name",
"Ruth Marie \"Bobbie\" (nee Clifford) Garcia,",
"Where was he born at",
"He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California,",
"What date was he born on",
"August 1, 1942,"
] | C_a95583dc963548a79d885ace2c196575_1 | Any siblings | 7 | Does Jerry Garcia have any siblings? | Jerry Garcia | Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (nee Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting. Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family--who had emigrated from Spain in 1919--would often sing during reunions. Garcia experienced several tragedies during his youth. At age four, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains, two-thirds of Garcia's right middle finger was accidentally cut off. Garcia and his brother Tiff were chopping wood. Jerry steadied a piece of wood with his finger, but Tiff miscalculated and the axe severed most of Jerry's middle finger. After his mother wrapped his hand in a towel, Garcia's father drove him over 30 miles to the nearest hospital. A few weeks later, Garcia -- who had not looked at his finger since the accident -- was surprised to discover most of it missing when the bandage he was wearing came off during a bath. Garcia later confided that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood. Less than a year after he lost most of his finger, his father died. Vacationing with his family near Arcata in Northern California in 1947, Garcia's father went fly fishing in the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest. Not long after entering the river, Garcia's father slipped on a rock, lost his balance and was swept away by the river's rapids. He drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw his father fall into the river, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, lends weight to McNally's claim. Jackson's evidence was that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death failed to mention Garcia was present when he died. CANNOTANSWER | second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", | Jerome John Garcia (August 1, 1942 – August 9, 1995) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known for being a principal songwriter, the lead guitarist and a vocalist with the rock band the Grateful Dead, of which he was a founding member and which came to prominence during the counterculture of the 1960s. Although he disavowed the role, Garcia was viewed by many as the leader of the band.
As one of its founders, Garcia performed with the Grateful Dead for their entire 30-year career (1965–1995). Garcia also founded and participated in a variety of side projects, including the Saunders–Garcia Band (with longtime friend Merl Saunders), the Jerry Garcia Band, Old & In the Way, the Garcia/Grisman and Garcia/Kahn acoustic duos, Legion of Mary, and New Riders of the Purple Sage (which he co-founded with John Dawson and David Nelson). He also released several solo albums, and contributed to a number of albums by other artists over the years as a session musician. He was well known for his distinctive guitar playing, and was ranked 13th in Rolling Stones "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" cover story in 2003. In the 2015 version of the list he was ranked at #46.
Garcia was also renowned for his musical and technical ability, particularly his ability to play a variety of instruments and sustain long improvisations with the Grateful Dead. Garcia believed that improvisation took stress away from his playing and allowed him to make spur of the moment decisions that he would not have made intentionally. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Garcia noted that "my own preferences are for improvisation, for making it up as I go along. The idea of picking, of eliminating possibilities by deciding, that's difficult for me". Originating from the days of the "acid tests", these improvisations were a form of exploration rather than playing a song already written.
Later in life, Garcia struggled with diabetes and in 1986, went into a diabetic coma that nearly cost him his life. Although his overall health improved somewhat after that, he continued to struggle with obesity, smoking, and longstanding heroin and cocaine addictions. He was staying in a California drug rehabilitation facility when he died of a heart attack on August 9, 1995, at the age of 53.
Early life
Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (née Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting.
Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family—which had immigrated from Spain in 1919—would often sing during reunions.
In 1946, two-thirds of four-year-old Garcia's right middle finger was cut off by his brother in a wood splitting accident, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Garcia later confessed that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood.
Less than a year after this incident his father died in a fly fishing accident when the family was vacationing near Arcata in Northern California. He slipped after entering the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest, and drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw the incident, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, notes that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death did not mention Jerry being present when he died.
Excelsior District
Following his father's death, Garcia's mother Ruth took over her husband's bar, buying out his partner for full ownership. She began working full-time there, sending Jerry and his brother to live nearby with her parents, Tillie and William Clifford. During the five-year period in which he lived with his grandparents, Garcia enjoyed a large amount of autonomy and attended Monroe Elementary School. At the school, Garcia was greatly encouraged in his artistic abilities by his third grade teacher: through her, he discovered that "being a creative person was a viable possibility in life." According to Garcia, it was around this time that he was opened up to country and bluegrass music by his grandmother, whom he recalled enjoyed listening to the Grand Ole Opry. His elder brother, Clifford, however, staunchly believed the contrary, insisting that Garcia was "fantasizing all [that] ... she'd been to Opry, but she didn't listen to it on the radio." It was at this point that Garcia started playing the banjo, his first stringed instrument.
Menlo Park
In 1953, Garcia's mother married Wally Matusiewicz. Subsequently, Garcia and his brother moved back home with their mother and new stepfather. However, due to the roughneck reputation of their neighborhood at the time, Garcia's mother moved their family to Menlo Park. During their stay in Menlo Park, Garcia became acquainted with racism and antisemitism, things he disliked intensely. The same year, Garcia was also introduced to rock and roll and rhythm and blues by his brother, and enjoyed listening to Ray Charles, John Lee Hooker, B. B. King, Hank Ballard, and, later, Chuck Berry. Clifford often memorized the vocals for his favorite songs, and would then make Garcia learn the harmony parts, a move to which Garcia later attributed much of his early ear training.
In mid-1957, Garcia began smoking cigarettes and was introduced to marijuana. Garcia would later reminisce about the first time he smoked marijuana: "Me and a friend of mine went up into the hills with two joints, the San Francisco foothills, and smoked these joints and just got so high and laughed and roared and went skipping down the streets doing funny things and just having a helluva time". During this time, Garcia also studied at what is now the San Francisco Art Institute. The teacher there was Wally Hedrick, an artist who came to prominence during the 1960s. During the classes, he often encouraged Garcia in his drawing and painting skills. Hedrick also introduced Garcia to the fiction of Jack Kerouac, whom Garcia later cited as a major influence.
San Francisco
In June, Garcia graduated from the local Menlo Oaks school. He then moved with his family back to San Francisco, where they lived in an apartment above the family bar, a newly built replacement for the original, that had been torn down to make way for a freeway entrance. Two months later, on Garcia's fifteenth birthday, his mother bought an accordion for him, to his great disappointment. Garcia had long been captivated by many rhythm and blues artists, especially Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley, leaving him craving an electric guitar. After some pleading, his mother exchanged the accordion for a Danelectro with a small amplifier at a local pawnshop. Garcia's stepfather, who was somewhat proficient with instruments, helped tune his guitar to an unusual open tuning.
Cazadero
After a short stint at Denman Junior High School, Garcia attended tenth grade at Balboa High School in 1958, where he often got into trouble for skipping classes and fighting. Consequently, in 1959, Garcia's mother again moved the family to a safer environment, to Cazadero, a small town in Sonoma County, north of San Francisco. This turn of events did not sit well with Garcia, who had to travel by bus to Analy High School in Sebastopol, the nearest school. Garcia did, however, join a band at his school known as the Chords. After performing in and winning a contest, the band's reward was recording a song. They chose "Raunchy" by Bill Justis.
Recording career
Relocation and band beginnings
Garcia stole his mother's car in 1960, and was given the option of joining the United States Army in lieu of prison. He received basic training at Fort Ord. After training, he was transferred to Fort Winfield Scott in the Presidio of San Francisco. Garcia spent most of his time in the army at his leisure, missing roll call and accruing many counts of being AWOL. As a result, Garcia was given a general discharge on December 14, 1960.
In January 1961, Garcia drove down to East Palo Alto to see Laird Grant, an old friend from middle school. He had bought a 1950 Cadillac sedan from a cook in the army, which barely made it to Grant's residence before it broke down. Garcia spent the next few weeks sleeping where friends would allow, eventually using his car as a home. Through Grant, Garcia met Dave McQueen in February, who, after hearing Garcia perform some blues music, introduced him to local people and to the Chateau, a rooming house located near Stanford University which was then a popular hangout.
On February 20, 1961, Garcia got into a car with Paul Speegle, a sixteen-year-old artist and acquaintance of Garcia; Lee Adams, the house manager of the Chateau and driver of the car; and Alan Trist, a companion of theirs. After speeding past the Palo Alto Veterans Hospital, the driver encountered a curve and, speeding around , crashed into the guard rail, sending the car rolling turbulently. Garcia was hurled through the windshield of the car into a nearby field with such force he was literally thrown out of his shoes and would later be unable to recall the ejection. Lee Adams, the driver, and Alan Trist, who was seated in the back, were thrown from the car as well, suffering from abdominal injuries and a spine fracture, respectively. Garcia escaped with a broken collarbone, while Speegle, still in the car, was fatally injured.
Lee's reckless driving and crash served as an awakening for Garcia, who later commented: "That's where my life began. Before then I was always living at less than capacity. I was idling. That was the slingshot for the rest of my life. It was like a second chance. Then I got serious". It was at this time that Garcia began to realize that he needed to begin playing the guitar in earnest—a move which meant giving up his love of drawing and painting.
In April 1961, Garcia first met Robert Hunter, who would become a long-time friend of and lyricist for the Grateful Dead, collaborating principally with Garcia. The two involved themselves in the South Bay and San Francisco art and music scenes, sometimes playing at Menlo Park's Kepler's Books. Garcia performed his first concert with Hunter, each earning five dollars. Garcia and Hunter also played in bands (the Wildwood Boys and the Hart Valley Drifters) with David Nelson, who would later play with Garcia in the New Riders of the Purple Sage and contribute to several Grateful Dead album songs.
In 1962, Garcia met Phil Lesh, the eventual bassist of the Grateful Dead, during a party in Menlo Park's bohemian Perry Lane neighborhood (where author Ken Kesey lived). Lesh would later write in his autobiography that Garcia reminded him of pictures he had seen of the composer Claude Debussy, with his "dark, curly hair, goatee, Impressionist eyes". While attending another party in Palo Alto, Lesh approached Garcia to suggest they record Garcia on Lesh's tape recorder and produce a radio show for the progressive, community-supported Berkeley radio station KPFA. Using an old Wollensak tape recorder, they recorded "Matty Groves" and "The Long Black Veil", among several other tunes. The recordings became a central feature of a 90-minute KPFA special broadcast, "The Long Black Veil and Other Ballads: An Evening with Jerry Garcia". The link between KPFA and the Grateful Dead continues to this day, having included many fundraisers, interviews, live concert broadcasts, taped band performances and all-day or all-weekend "Dead-only" marathons.
Garcia soon began playing and teaching acoustic guitar and banjo. One of Garcia's students was Bob Matthews, who later engineered many of the Grateful Dead's albums. Matthews attended Menlo-Atherton High School and was friends with Bob Weir, and on New Year's Eve 1963, he introduced Weir and Garcia.
Between 1962 and 1964, Garcia sang and performed mainly bluegrass, old-time, and folk music. One of the bands Garcia performed with was the Sleepy Hollow Hog Stompers, a bluegrass act. The group consisted of Garcia on guitar, banjo, vocals, and harmonica, Marshall Leicester on banjo, guitar, and vocals, and Dick Arnold on fiddle and vocals. Soon after this, Garcia, Weir, Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, and several of their friends formed a jug band called Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions. Around this time, the psychedelic drug LSD was gaining popularity. Garcia first began using LSD in 1964; later, when asked how it changed his life, he remarked: "Well, it changed everything [...] the effect was that it freed me because I suddenly realized that my little attempt at having a straight life and doing that was really a fiction and just wasn't going to work out. Luckily I wasn't far enough into it for it to be shattering or anything; it was like a realization that just made me feel immensely relieved."
In 1965, Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions evolved into the Warlocks, with the addition of Phil Lesh on bass guitar and Bill Kreutzmann on percussion. However, the band discovered that another group (which would later become the Velvet Underground) had recently selected the same name. In response, Garcia came up with "Grateful Dead" by opening a Funk & Wagnalls dictionary to an entry for "Grateful dead". The definition for "Grateful dead" was "a dead person, or his angel, showing gratitude to someone who, as an act of charity, arranged their burial". The band's first reaction was disapproval. Garcia later explained the group's reaction: "I didn't like it really, I just found it to be really powerful. [Bob] Weir didn't like it, [Bill] Kreutzmann didn't like it and nobody really wanted to hear about it." Despite their dislike of the name, it quickly spread by word of mouth, and soon became their official title.
Career with the Grateful Dead
Garcia served as lead guitarist, as well as one of the principal vocalists and songwriters of the Grateful Dead for its entire career. Garcia composed such songs as "Dark Star", "Franklin's Tower", and "Scarlet Begonias", among many others. Robert Hunter, an ardent collaborator with the band, wrote the lyrics to all but a few of Garcia's songs.
Garcia was well-noted for his "soulful extended guitar improvisations", which would frequently feature interplay between him and his fellow band members. His fame, as well as the band's, arguably rested on their ability to never play a song the same way twice. Often, Garcia would take cues from rhythm guitarist Bob Weir, remarking that "there are some [...] kinds of ideas that would really throw me if I had to create a harmonic bridge between all the things going on rhythmically with two drums and Phil [Lesh's] innovative bass playing. Weir's ability to solve that sort of problem is extraordinary. [...] Harmonically, I take a lot of my solo cues from Bob."
When asked to describe his approach to soloing, Garcia commented: "It keeps on changing. I still basically revolve around the melody and the way it's broken up into phrases as I perceive them. With most solos, I tend to play something that phrases the way the melody does; my phrases may be more dense or have different value, but they'll occur in the same places in the song. [...]"
Garcia and the band toured almost constantly from their formation in 1965 until Garcia's death in 1995. Periodically, there were breaks due to exhaustion or health problems, often due to Garcia's drug use. During their three-decade span, the Grateful Dead played 2,314 shows.
Garcia's guitar-playing was eclectic. He melded elements from the various kinds of music that influenced him. Echoes of bluegrass playing (such as Arthur Smith and Doc Watson) could be heard. There was also early rock (like Lonnie Mack, James Burton, and Chuck Berry), contemporary blues (Freddie King and Lowell Fulsom), country and western (Roy Nichols and Don Rich), and jazz (Charlie Christian and Django Reinhardt) to be heard in Garcia's style. Don Rich was the sparkling country guitar player in Buck Owens's "the Buckaroos" band of the 1960s, but besides Rich's style, both Garcia's pedal steel guitar playing (on Grateful Dead records and others) and his standard electric guitar work, were influenced by another of Owens's Buckaroos of that time, pedal steel player Tom Brumley. And as an improvisational soloist, John Coltrane was one of his greatest personal and musical influences.
Garcia later described his playing style as having "descended from barroom rock and roll, country guitar. Just 'cause that's where all my stuff comes from. It's like that blues instrumental stuff that was happening in the late Fifties and early Sixties, like Freddie King." Garcia's style could vary with the song being played and the instrument he was using, but his playing had a number of so-called "signatures". Among these were lead lines based on rhythmic triplets (examples include the songs "Good Morning Little School Girl", "New Speedway Boogie", "Brokedown Palace", "Deal", "Loser", "Truckin'", "That's It for the Other One", "U.S. Blues", "Sugaree", and "Don't Ease Me In").
Side projects
In addition to the Grateful Dead, Garcia had numerous side projects, the most notable being the Jerry Garcia Band. He was also involved with various acoustic projects such as Old & In the Way and other bluegrass bands, including collaborations with noted bluegrass mandolinist David Grisman. The documentary film Grateful Dawg, co-produced by Gillian Grisman and former NBC producer Pamela Hamilton chronicles the deep, long-term friendship between Garcia and Grisman. When Garcia and Grisman released Not For Kids Only, Hamilton produced their interview and concert for NBC. After several years of producing stories on the Grateful Dead and band members' side projects, Hamilton interviewed Bob Weir for a feature on Garcia's death marking the end of an era.
Other groups of which Garcia was a member at one time or another include the Black Mountain Boys, Legion of Mary, Reconstruction, and the Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band. Garcia was also a fan of jazz artists and improvisation: he played with jazz keyboardists Merl Saunders and Howard Wales for many years in various groups and jam sessions, and he appeared on saxophonist Ornette Coleman's 1988 album, Virgin Beauty. His collaboration with Merl Saunders and Muruga Booker on the world music album Blues From the Rainforest launched the Rainforest Band.
Garcia also spent a lot of time in the recording studio helping out fellow musician friends in session work, often adding guitar, vocals, pedal steel, sometimes banjo and piano and even producing. He played on over 50 studio albums, the styles of which were eclectic and varied, including bluegrass, rock, folk, blues, country, jazz, electronic music, gospel, funk, and reggae. Artists who sought Garcia's help included the likes of Jefferson Airplane (most notably Surrealistic Pillow, Garcia being listed as their "spiritual advisor"). Garcia himself recalled in a mid-1967 interview that he'd played the high lead on "Today," played on "Plastic Fantastic Lover" and "Comin' Back to Me" on that album. Others include Tom Fogerty, David Bromberg, Robert Hunter (Liberty, on Relix Records), Paul Pena, Peter Rowan, Warren Zevon, Country Joe McDonald, Pete Sears, Ken Nordine, Ornette Coleman, Bruce Hornsby, Bob Dylan, It's a Beautiful Day, and many more. In 1995 Garcia played on three tracks for the CD Blue Incantation by guitarist Sanjay Mishra, making it his last studio collaboration.
Throughout the early 1970s, Garcia, Lesh, Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart, and David Crosby collaborated intermittently with MIT-educated composer and biologist Ned Lagin on several projects in the realm of early ambient music; these include the album Seastones (released by the Ned Lagin on the Round Records subsidiary) and L, an unfinished dance work composed by Ned Lagin. In 1970, Garcia participated in the soundtrack for the film Zabriskie Point.
Garcia also played pedal steel guitar for fellow-San Francisco musicians New Riders of the Purple Sage from their initial dates in 1969 to October 1971, when increased commitments with the Dead forced him to opt out of the group. He appears as a band member on their debut album New Riders of the Purple Sage, and produced Home, Home on the Road, a 1974 live album by the band. He also contributed pedal steel guitar to the enduring hit "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young. Garcia also played steel guitar licks on Brewer & Shipley's 1970 album Tarkio. Despite considering himself a novice on the pedal steel, Garcia routinely ranked high in player polls. After a long lapse from playing the pedal steel, he played it once more during several of the Dead's concerts with Bob Dylan in the summer of 1987.
In 1988, Garcia agreed to perform at several major benefits including the "Soviet American Peace Walk" concert at the Band Shell, in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, that drew 25,000 people. He was asked to play by longtime friend and fellow musician, Pete Sears, who played piano with all the bands that day, and also procured all the other musicians. Garcia, Mickey Hart and Steve Parish played the show, then were given a police escort to a Grateful Dead show across the bay later that night. Garcia also played with Nick Gravenites and Pete Sears at a benefit given for Vietnam Veteran and peace activist Brian Willson, who lost both legs below the knee when he attempted to block a train carrying weapons to military dictatorships in El Salvador.
Having previously studied at the San Francisco Art Institute as a teenager, Garcia embarked on a second career in the visual arts in the late 1980s. He created a number of drawings, etchings, and water colors. Garcia's artistic endeavors were represented by the Weir Gallery in Berkeley, California from 1989 to 1996. During this period, Roberta Weir (unrelated to Garcia's bandmate Bob Weir) provided Garcia with new art techniques to use, sponsored his first solo show in 1990, and prepared blank etching plates for him to draw on. These would then be processed and printed by gallery staff and brought back to Garcia for approval and signature, usually with a passing of stacks of paper backstage at a Dead show. His annual shows at the Weir Gallery garnered much attention, leading to further shows in New York and other cities. Garcia was an early adopter of digital art media; his artistic style was as varied as his musical output, and he carried small notebooks for pen and ink sketches wherever he toured. Roberta Weir continues to maintain an archive of the artwork of Jerry Garcia. Perhaps the most widely seen pieces of Jerry Garcia's art are the many editions of men's neckties produced by Stonehenge Ltd. and Mulberry Neckware. Some began as etchings, other designs came from his drawings, paintings, and digital art. Garcia's artwork has since expanded into everything from hotel rooms, wet suits, men's sport shirts, a women's wear line, boxer shorts, hair accessories, cummerbunds, silk scarves and wool rugs.
Personal life
Garcia met his first wife, Sara Ruppenthal, in 1963. She was working at the coffee house in the back of Kepler's Books, where Garcia, Hunter, and Nelson regularly performed. They married on April 23, 1963, and on December 8 of that year their daughter Heather was born.
Carolyn Adams, a Merry Prankster also known as "Mountain Girl" or "M.G.," had a daughter, Sunshine, with Ken Kesey. Mountain Girl married another Prankster, George Walker, but they soon separated. She and Sunshine then moved into 710 Ashbury with Garcia in late 1966 where they would ultimately live together until 1975. In 1994, Sara and Jerry officially divorced after a long separation. Adams gave birth to Garcia's second and third daughters, Annabelle Walker Garcia (February 2, 1970) and Theresa Adams "Trixie" Garcia (September 21, 1974).
In August 1970, Garcia's mother Ruth was involved in a car crash near Twin Peaks in San Francisco. Garcia, who was recording the album American Beauty at the time, often left the sessions to visit his mother with his brother Clifford. She died on September 28, 1970.
In the midst of a March 1973 Grateful Dead engagement at Long Island's Nassau Coliseum, Garcia met Deborah Koons, an aspiring filmmaker from a wealthy Cincinnati, Ohio-based family who would much later marry him and become his widow. After a brief correspondence, he began his relationship with her in mid-1974. This gradually strained his relationship with Adams and culminated in Garcia leaving Adams for Koons in late 1975. The end of his relationship with Koons in 1977 precipitated a brief reconciliation with Adams, including the reestablishment of their household. However, she did not agree with the guitarist's persistent use of narcotics and moved with the children to the Eugene, Oregon area, living near Kesey, in 1978.
Following Adams' departure, Garcia had an affair with Amy Moore. She was a Kentucky-born member of the extended "Grateful Dead family", and the mistress of Texas oil heir Roy Cullen. Their affair lasted circa 1980–1981, and inspired the Garcia-Hunter song "Run for the Roses."
Adams and Garcia were married on December 31, 1981, largely as a result of mutual tax exigencies. Despite the legal codification of their union, she remained in Oregon, while Garcia continued to live near the Grateful Dead's offices in San Rafael, California. Garcia lived with a variety of housemates, including longtime Grateful Dead employee and Jerry Garcia Band manager Rock Scully. Scully, who co-managed the Grateful Dead throughout the mid-to-late 1960s before serving as the band's "advance man" and publicist, was dismissed by the group in 1984 for enabling Garcia's addictions and for allegedly embezzling the Garcia Band's profits. Another housemate was Nora Sage, a Deadhead who became Garcia's housekeeper while studying at the Golden Gate University School of Law. The exact nature of their relationship remains unclear, although it is believed to have been platonic due to Garcia's addictions. She later became his art representative.
While they would briefly reunite following his diabetic coma, Garcia and Adams ultimately divorced in 1994. Phil Lesh has subsequently stated that he rarely saw Adams on any of the band tours. In a 1991 Rolling Stone interview, Garcia stated that "we haven't really lived together since the Seventies".
During the autumn of 1978, Garcia developed a friendship with Shimer College student Manasha Matheson, an artist and music enthusiast. They remained friends over the following nine years before initiating a romantic relationship in Hartford, Connecticut on the Grateful Dead's spring 1987 tour. Jerry and Manasha became parents with the birth of their daughter, Keelin Noel Garcia, on December 20, 1987. On August 17, 1990, Jerry and Manasha married at their San Anselmo, California home in a spiritual ceremony free of legal convention. In 1991, Garcia expressed his delight in finding the time to "actually be a father" to Keelin in contrast to his past relationships with his children. A year later, Garcia dedicated his first art book, Paintings, Drawings and Sketches, "For Manasha, with love, Jerry."
In January 1993, Barbara "Brigid" Meier, a former girlfriend from the early 1960s, reentered Garcia's life for a brief period. Meier claimed, Garcia had considered her to be the "love of his life" and proposed to her during a Hawaiian vacation shortly after their relationship recommenced. Garcia's "love of his life" sentiment was not reserved for one lover, as he expressed the same feelings to several other women in his life. At Garcia's 1995 funeral, Koons declared that she was "the love of his life" while paying her final respects, whereupon Meier and Ruppenthal, who were both in attendance, simultaneously exclaimed, "He said that to me!"
The affair with Meier marked the breakup of Jerry's family life with Manasha and Keelin. Garcia ended the affair with Meier forty-five days later while on tour in Chicago with the Grateful Dead after she confronted him about his drug use.
Shortly thereafter, Garcia renewed his acquaintance with Deborah Koons in the spring of 1993. They married on February 14, 1994, in Sausalito, California. Garcia and Koons were married at the time of his death.
Lifestyle and health
Because of their public profile, Garcia and his collaborators were occasionally singled out in the American government's war on drugs. On October 2, 1967, 710 Ashbury Street in San Francisco (where the Grateful Dead had taken up residence the year before) was raided after a police tip-off. Grateful Dead members Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan were apprehended on marijuana charges which were later dropped, although Garcia himself was not arrested. The following year, Garcia's picture was used in a defamatory context in a campaign commercial for Richard Nixon.
Most of the band were arrested again in January 1970, after they flew to New Orleans from Hawaii. After returning to their hotel from a performance, the band checked into their rooms, only to be quickly raided by police. Approximately fifteen people were arrested on the spot, including many of the road crew, management, and nearly all of the Grateful Dead except for Garcia, who arrived later, outgoing keyboardist Tom Constanten, who abstained from all drugs as a member of the Church of Scientology, and McKernan, who eschewed illegal drugs in favor of alcohol.
According to Bill Kreutzmann, the band's use of cocaine accelerated throughout the early 1970s. After using heroin in a brothel in 1974 (likely on the band's second European tour), Garcia was introduced to a smokeable form of the drug (initially advertised as refined opium) colloquially known as "Persian" or "Persian Base" during the group's 1975 hiatus. Influenced by the stresses of creating and releasing The Grateful Dead Movie and the acrimonious collapse of the band's independent record labels over the next two years, Garcia became increasingly dependent upon both substances. These factors, combined with the alcohol and drug abuse of several other members of the Grateful Dead, resulted in a turbulent atmosphere. By 1978, the band's chemistry began "cracking and crumbling", resulting in poor group cohesion. As a result, Keith and Donna Jean Godchaux left the band in February 1979.
With the addition of keyboardist/vocalist Brent Mydland that year amid the ongoing coalescence of the Deadhead subculture, the band reached new commercial heights as a touring group on the American arena circuit in the early 1980s, enabling them to forsake studio recording for several years. Nevertheless, this was offset by such factors as the band's atypically large payroll and Garcia's $700-a-day () drug addiction, resulting in the guitarist taking on a frenetic slate of solo touring outside of the Grateful Dead's rigorous schedule, including abbreviated acoustic duo concerts with Jerry Garcia Band bassist John Kahn that were widely rumored to be a funding conduit for their respective addictions.
Though things seemed to be getting better for the band, Garcia's health was declining. By 1983, Garcia's demeanor onstage had appeared to change. Despite still playing the guitar with great passion and intensity, there were times that he would appear disengaged; as such, shows were often inconsistent. Years of heavy tobacco smoking had affected his voice, and he gained considerable weight. By 1984, he would often rest his chin on the microphone during performances. The so-called "endless tour"—the result of years of financial risks, drug use, and poor business decisions—had taken its toll.
Garcia's decade-long heroin addiction culminated in the rest of the band holding an intervention in January 1985. Given the choice between the band or the drugs, Garcia agreed to check into a rehabilitation center in Oakland, California. A few days later in January, before the start of his program in Oakland, Garcia was arrested for drug possession in Golden Gate Park; he subsequently attended a drug diversion program. Throughout 1985, he tapered his drug use on tour and at home with the assistance of Nora Sage; by the spring of 1986, he was completely abstinent.
Precipitated by an unhealthy weight, dehydration, bad eating habits, and a recent relapse on the Grateful Dead's first stadium tour, Garcia collapsed into a diabetic coma in July 1986, waking up five days later. He later spoke about this period of unconsciousness as surreal: "Well, I had some very weird experiences. My main experience was one of furious activity and tremendous struggle in a sort of futuristic, space-ship vehicle with insectoid presences. After I came out of my coma, I had this image of myself as these little hunks of protoplasm that were stuck together kind of like stamps with perforations between them that you could snap off." Garcia's coma had a profound effect on him: it forced him to have to relearn how to play the guitar, as well as other, more basic skills. Within a handful of months, he had recovered, playing with the Jerry Garcia Band and the Grateful Dead again later that year.
After Garcia's recovery, the band released a comeback album In the Dark in 1987, which became their best-selling studio album. Inspired by Garcia's improved health, a successful album and the continuing emergence of Mydland as a third frontman, the band's energy and chemistry reached a new peak in the late 1980s.
Amid a litany of personal problems, Mydland died of a speedball overdose in July 1990. His death greatly affected Garcia, leading him to believe that the band's chemistry would never be the same. Before beginning the fall tour, the band acquired keyboardists Vince Welnick and Bruce Hornsby. The power of Hornsby's performances drove Garcia to new heights on stage. However, as the band continued through 1991, Garcia became concerned with the band's future. He was exhausted from five straight years of touring. He thought a break was necessary, mainly so that the band could come back with fresh material. The idea was put off by the pressures of management, and the touring continued. Garcia began using heroin again after several years of intermittent prescription opiate use. Though his relapse was brief, the band was quick to react. Soon after the last show of the tour in Denver, Garcia was confronted by the band with another intervention. After a disastrous meeting, Garcia invited Phil Lesh over to his home in San Rafael, California, where he explained that after the meeting he would start attending a methadone clinic. Garcia said that he wanted to clean up in his own way, and return to making music.
After returning from the band's 1992 summer tour, Garcia became sick, a throwback to his diabetic coma in 1986. Manasha Garcia nursed Jerry back to health and organized a team of health professionals which included acupuncturist Yen Wei Choong and Randy Baker, MD, a holistic family physician to treat him at home. Garcia recovered over the following days, despite the Grateful Dead having to cancel their fall tour to allow him time to recuperate. Garcia reduced his cigarette smoking and began losing weight. He also became a vegetarian.
Despite these improvements, Garcia's physical and mental condition continued to decline throughout 1993 and 1994. He began to use narcotics again to dull the pain.
In light of his second drug relapse and current condition, Garcia checked himself into the Betty Ford Center during July 1995. His stay was limited, lasting only two weeks. Motivated by the experience, he then checked into the Serenity Knolls treatment center in Forest Knolls, California, where he died.
Death
Garcia died in his room at the rehabilitation clinic on August 9, 1995. The cause of death was a heart attack. Garcia had long struggled with drug addiction, weight problems, sleep apnea, heavy smoking, and diabetes—all of which contributed to his physical decline. Lesh remarked that, upon hearing of Garcia's death, "I was struck numb. I had lost my oldest surviving friend, my brother." Garcia's funeral was held on August 12, at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Belvedere. It was attended by his family, the remaining Grateful Dead members, and their friends, including former pro basketball player Bill Walton and musician Bob Dylan. Deborah Koons barred two of Garcia's former wives from the ceremony.
On August 13, about 25,000 people attended a municipally sanctioned public memorial at the Polo Fields of San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. Crowds produced hundreds of flowers, gifts, images, and a bagpipe rendition of "Amazing Grace" in remembrance. In the Haight, a single white rose was reportedly tied to a tree near the Dead's former Haight-Ashbury house, where a group of followers gathered to mourn.
On the morning of April 4, 1996, after a total lunar eclipse earlier that day, Weir and Deborah Koons accompanied by Sanjay Mishra, spread half of Garcia's ashes into the Ganges at the holy city of Rishikesh, India, a site sacred to Hindus. The remaining ashes were poured into the San Francisco Bay. Koons did not allow former wife Carolyn Garcia to attend the spreading of the ashes.
Musical equipment
Garcia played many guitars during his career, which ranged from student and budget models to custom-made instruments. During his thirty-five year career as a professional musician, Garcia used about 25 guitars.
In 1965, when Garcia was playing with the Warlocks, he used a Guild Starfire, which he also used on the début album of the Grateful Dead. Beginning in late 1967 and ending in 1968, Garcia played black or gold mid-1950s Gibson Les Paul guitars with P-90 pickups. In 1969, he picked up the Gibson SG and used it for most of that year and 1970, except for a small period in between where he used a sunburst Fender Stratocaster.
During Garcia's "pedal steel flirtation period" (as Bob Weir referred to it in Anthem to Beauty), from approximately 1969 to 1972, he initially played a Fender instrument before upgrading to the ZB Custom D-10, especially in his earlier public performances. Although this was a double neck guitar, Garcia used the "E9 neck and the three pedals to raise the tone and two levers to lower it." He employed an Emmons D-10 at the Grateful Dead's and New Riders of the Purple Sage's final appearances at the Fillmore East in April 1971.
In 1969, Garcia played pedal steel on three notable outside recordings: the track "The Farm" on the Jefferson Airplane album Volunteers, the track "Oh Mommy" by Brewer and Shipley and the hit single "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young from their album Déjà Vu, released in 1970. Garcia played on the latter album in exchange for harmony lessons for the Grateful Dead, who were at the time recording Workingman's Dead.
In 1971, Garcia began playing a sunburst Les Paul. In March and April 1971 – the time period during which the Grateful Dead recorded its second live album, Grateful Dead – Garcia played the "Peanut," a guitar he had received from Rick Turner, who had custom built the guitar's body and incorporated the neck, pickups, and hardware from an early '60s Les Paul.
In May, Garcia began using a 1957 natural finish Stratocaster that had been given to him by Graham Nash. Garcia added an alligator sticker to the pickguard in the fall of that year. "Alligator" would remain Garcia's principal electric guitar until August 1973.
In the summer of 1971, Garcia also played a double-cutaway Les Paul TV Junior.
While Alligator was in the shop in the summer of 1972, he briefly reverted to the sunburst Stratocaster; this can be seen in Sunshine Daydream.
In late 1972, Garcia purchased the first guitar ("Eagle") made by Alembic luthier Doug Irwin for $850 (). Enamored of Irwin's talents, he immediately commissioned his own custom instrument. This guitar, nicknamed "Wolf" for a memorable sticker Garcia added below the tailpiece, was delivered in May 1973 and replaced Alligator on stage in September. It cost $1,500 (), an extremely high price for the era.
Wolf was made with an ebony fingerboard and featured numerous embellishments like alternating grain designs in the headstock, ivory inlays, and fret marker dots made of sterling silver. The body was composed of western maple wood which had a core of purpleheart. Garcia later had Irwin (who ultimately left Alembic to start his own business) replace the electronics inside the guitar, at which point he added his own logo to the headstock alongside the Alembic logo. The system included two interchangeable plates for configuring pickups: one was made for strictly single coils, while the other accommodated humbuckers. Shortly after receiving the modified instrument, Garcia commissioned another custom guitar from Irwin with one caveat: "Don't hold back."
During the Grateful Dead's 1974 European tour, Wolf was dropped on several occasions, one of which caused a minor crack in the headstock. Following filming of The Grateful Dead Movie (in which the guitar is prominently visible) a month later, Garcia returned it to Irwin for repairs. Throughout its absence, Garcia predominantly played several Travis Bean guitars, including the TB1000A (1975) and the TB500 (1976-1977). On September 28, 1977, Irwin delivered the refurbished Wolf back to Garcia. The wolf sticker which gave the guitar its name had now been inlaid into the instrument; it also featured an effects loop between the pick-ups and controls (so inline effects would "see" the same signal at all times) which was bypassable. Irwin also put a new face on the headstock with only his logo (he later claimed to have built the guitar himself, though pictures through time clearly show the progression of logos, from Alembic, to Alembic & Irwin, to only Irwin).
Nearly seven years after he commissioned it, Garcia received his second custom guitar ("Tiger") from Irwin in the summer of 1979.
He first employed the instrument in concert at a Grateful Dead performance at the Oakland Auditorium Arena on August 4, 1979. Its name was derived from the inlay on the preamp cover.
The body of Tiger was of rich quality: the top layer was cocobolo, with the preceding layers being maple stripe, vermilion, and flame maple, in that order. The neck was made of western maple with an ebony fingerboard. The pickups consisted of a single coil DiMarzio SDS-1 and two humbucker DiMarzio Super IIs which were easily removable due to Garcia's preference for replacing his pickups every year or two. The electronics were composed of an effects bypass loop, which allowed Garcia to control the sound of his effects through the tone and volume controls on the guitar, and a preamplifier/buffer which rested behind a plate in the back of the guitar. Fully outfitted, Tiger weighed . This was Garcia's principal guitar for the next eleven years, and most played.
In the late 1980s Garcia, Weir and CSN (along with many others) endorsed Alvarez Yairi acoustic guitars. There are many photographs circulating (mostly promotional) of Garcia playing a DY99 Virtuoso Custom with a Modulus Graphite neck. He opted to play with the less decorated model but the promotional photo from the Alvarez Yairi catalog has him holding the "tree of life" model. This hand-built guitar was notable for the collaboration between Japanese luthier Kazuo Yairi and Modulus Graphite of San Rafael. As with most things Garcia, with his passing, the DY99 model is highly valued among collectors.
In 1990, Irwin completed "Rosebud", Garcia's fourth custom guitar. It was similar to his previous guitar Tiger in many respects, but featured different inlays and electronics, tone and volume controls, and weight. Rosebud, unlike Tiger, was configured with three humbuckers; the neck and bridge pickups shared a tone control, while the middle had its own. Atop the guitar was a Roland GK-2 pickup which fed the controller set inside the guitar. The GK2 was used in junction with the Roland GR-50 rack mount synthesizer. The GR-50 synthesizer in turn drove a Korg M1R synthesizer producing the MIDI effects heard during live performances of this period as heard on the Grateful Dead recording Without a Net. Sections of the guitar were hollowed out to bring the weight down to . The inlay, a dancing skeleton holding a rose, covers a plate just below the bridge. The final cost of the instrument was $11,000 ().
In 1993, carpenter-turned-luthier Stephen Cripe tried his hand at making an instrument for Garcia. After researching Tiger through pictures and films, Cripe set out on what would soon become known as "Lightning Bolt", again named for its inlay.
The guitar used Brazilian rosewood for the fingerboard and East Indian rosewood for the body, which, with admitted irony from Cripe, had been taken from a 19th-century bed used by opium smokers. Built purely from guesswork, Lightning Bolt was a hit with Garcia, who began using the guitar exclusively. Soon after, Garcia requested that Cripe build a backup of the guitar. Cripe, who had not measured or photographed the original, was told simply to "wing it."
Cripe later delivered the backup, which was known by the name "Top Hat". Garcia bought it from him for $6,500, making it the first guitar that Cripe had ever sold. However, infatuated with Lightning Bolt, Garcia rarely used the backup.
After Garcia's death, the ownership of Wolf and Tiger came into question. According to Garcia's will, his guitars were bequeathed to Doug Irwin, who had constructed them.
The remaining Grateful Dead members disagreed – they considered his guitars to be property of the band, leading to a lawsuit between the two parties. In 2001, Irwin won the case. However, nearly having been left destitute from a traffic accident in 1998, he decided to place the guitars up for auction in hopes of being able to start another guitar workshop.
On May 8, 2002, Wolf and Tiger, among other memorabilia, were placed for auction at Studio 54 in New York City. Tiger was sold for $957,500, and Wolf for $789,500. Together, the pair sold for $1.74 million, setting a new world record. Wolf went into in the private collection of Daniel Pritzker who kept it in a secure climate controlled room in a private residence at Utica, N.Y. Tiger went to the private collection of Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay.
In May 2017, Wolf was again auctioned, but this time for charity. Pritzker decided to sell the guitar and donate all proceeds to the Montgomery, Alabama based Southern Poverty Law Center.
Brian Halligan placed the winning bid totaling $1.9M.
For the majority of 2019 Wolf and Tiger were included in the Play it Loud exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. On June 23, 2019 John Mayer played Wolf with Dead & Co. at Citi Field.
Legacy
Garcia was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Grateful Dead in 1994. He declined to attend the ceremony; the band jokingly brought a cardboard cutout of Garcia out on stage in his absence.
In 1987, Vermont ice cream maker Ben & Jerry's introduced their Cherry Garcia flavor dedicated to him. It was the first ice cream flavor dedicated to a musician.
In 2003, Rolling Stone ranked Jerry Garcia 13th in their list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".
According to fellow Bay Area guitar player Henry Kaiser, Garcia is "the most recorded guitarist in history. With more than 2,200 Grateful Dead concerts, and 1,000 Jerry Garcia Band concerts captured on tape – as well as numerous studio sessions – there are about 15,000 hours of his guitar work preserved for the ages."
On July 30, 2004, Melvin Seals was the first Jerry Garcia Band (JGB) member to headline an outdoor music and camping festival called "The Grateful Garcia Gathering". Jerry Garcia Band drummer David Kemper joined Melvin Seals and JGB in 2007. Other musicians and friends of Garcia include Donna Jean Godchaux, Mookie Siegel, Pete Sears, G.E. Smith, Chuck Hammer, Barry Sless, Jackie Greene, Brian Lesh, Sanjay Mishra, and Mark Karan.
On July 21, 2005, the San Francisco Recreation and Park Commission passed a resolution to name the amphitheater in McLaren Park "The Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." The amphitheater is located in the Excelsior District, where Garcia grew up. The first show to happen at the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater was Jerry Day 2005 on August 7, 2005. Jerry's brother, Tiff Garcia, was the first person to welcome everybody to the "Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." Jerry Day is an annual celebration of Garcia in his childhood neighborhood. The dedication ceremony (Jerry Day 2) on October 29, 2005, was officiated by mayor Gavin Newsom.
On September 24, 2005, the Comes a Time: A Celebration of the Music & Spirit of Jerry Garcia tribute concert was held at the Hearst Greek Theatre in Berkeley, California. The concert featured Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, Mickey Hart, Bruce Hornsby, Trey Anastasio, Warren Haynes, Jimmy Herring, Michael Kang, Jay Lane, Jeff Chimenti, Mark Karan, Robin Sylvester, Kenny Brooks, Melvin Seals, Merl Saunders, Marty Holland, Stu Allen, Gloria Jones, and Jackie LaBranch.
Georgia-based composer Lee Johnson released an orchestral tribute to the music of the Grateful Dead, recorded with the Russian National Orchestra, entitled "Dead Symphony: Lee Johnson Symphony No. 6." Johnson was interviewed on NPR on the July 26, 2008 broadcast of Weekend Edition, and gave much credit to the genius and craft of Garcia's songwriting. A live performance with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Johnson himself, was held Friday, August 1.
In 2010 the Santa Barbara Bowl in California opened Jerry Garcia Glen along the walk up to the venue. There is a statue of Garcia's right hand along the way.
Seattle rock band Soundgarden wrote and recorded the instrumental song "Jerry Garcia's Finger", dedicated to the singer, which was released as a b-side with their single "Pretty Noose".
Numerous music festivals across the United States and Uxbridge, Middlesex, UK hold annual events in memory of Jerry Garcia.
On May 14, 2015, an all-star lineup held a tribute concert for Garcia at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland. The event was called "Dear Jerry".
In 2015, Hunter and Garcia were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Hunter accepted the award along with Garcia's daughter, Trixie Garcia, who accepted on behalf of her father.
In 2015, Jerry Garcia's wife, Manasha Garcia and their daughter, Keelin Garcia launched The Jerry Garcia Foundation, a nonprofit charity that supports projects for artistic, environmental, and humanitarian causes. The Foundation's Board members are Bob Weir, Peter Shapiro, Glenn Fischer, Irwin Sternberg, Daniel Shiner, TRI Studios CEO, Christopher McCutcheon and Fender Music Foundation Executive Director,
Lynn Robison. Keelin Garcia said, "It is a tremendous honor to participate in nonprofit work that is in accordance with my father's values."
In 2018, Jerry Garcia family members, Keelin Garcia and Manasha Garcia launched the Jerry Garcia Music Arts independent music label.
On November 18, 2021, it was announced Jonah Hill would portray Garcia in a forthcoming Grateful Dead biopic written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski directed by Martin Scorsese for Apple TV+.
Discography
New Riders of the Purple Sage – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1971
Hooteroll? – Howard Wales and Jerry Garcia – 1971
Garcia – Jerry Garcia – 1972
Live at Keystone – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1973
Compliments – Jerry Garcia – 1974
Old & In the Way – Old & In the Way – 1975
Reflections – Jerry Garcia – 1976
Cats Under the Stars – Jerry Garcia Band – 1978
Run for the Roses – Jerry Garcia – 1982
Vintage NRPS – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1986
Keystone Encores – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1988
Almost Acoustic – Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band – 1988
Jerry Garcia / David Grisman – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1991
Jerry Garcia Band – Jerry Garcia Band – 1991
Not for Kids Only – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1993
Notes
References
Sources
External links
The official homepage of Jerry Garcia
Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics
Jerry Garcia on Fretbase
The Jerry Site
Official Grateful Dead website
Jerry Garcia discography at deaddisc.com
Jerry Garcia autopsy
Jerry Day: A Civic and Cultural Celebration of Jerry Garcia held in San Francisco
FBI Records: The Vault - Jerry Garcia at vault.fbi.gov
Jerry Garcia's Army personnel file at the National Archives
TEAM
Garcia's Guitars & Gear Directory
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American country rock musicians | true | [
"Siblings Day is a holiday recognized annually in some parts of the United States and Canada on April 10, and as Brothers and Sisters Day on May 31 in Europe. Unlike Mother's Day and Father's Day, it is not federally recognized in the United States, though the Siblings Day Foundation is working to change this. Since 1998, the governors of 49 states have officially issued proclamations to recognize Siblings Day in their state. \n\nSiblings Days are celebrated also in India. The Hindu holiday of Raksha Bandhan, which is the oldest festival in this category, also celebrates the bond of brothers and sisters.\n\nHistory\n\nThe US holiday was conceived by Claudia Evart to honor the memory of her brother and sister, who died at early ages. The Siblings Day Foundation was incorporated in 1997 and achieved non-profit status in 1999. Carolyn Maloney, then the U.S. representative for , officially saluted the holiday and introduced it into the official Congressional Record of the United States Congress on April 10, 1997; and in subsequent years 2001, 2005 and 2008.\n\nIn Europe, the holiday was launched in 2014 by the European Large Families Confederation (ELFAC) to celebrate siblings bonds and relationships. The May 31 feast spread in different ways in the European countries where ELFAC is present. In Portugal, Dia dos Irmãos has become very popular and the President of Republic of Portugal has greeted it publicly, in 2016 and 2017.\n\nELFAC has associate members in several European countries: Austria, Cyprus, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Portugal, Romania, Serbia and Switzerland. But adherence to the date and spirit of May 31 is open to any other European or non-European country.\n\nCelebration\nIn the United States, approximately 80% of people have siblings. The holiday is intended to be a celebration of the relationship of brothers and sisters.\n\nExamples of commemoration during this observance include giving your sibling a gift (including a surprise gift), a giftcard, and taking one out for dinner. Nonmaterial examples of observances during this day includes giving hugs to your sibling(s), enjoying time with them, honoring their presence in your life, and greeting them on various social media platforms using childhood photos.\n\nSee also\n Children's Day\n Rakhri\n Raksha Bandhan: a popular, traditionally Hindu, annual Siblings Day\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Siblings Day Foundation\n Fox News Video on Siblings Day\n Brothers and Sisters Day\n\nApril observances\nCustoms involving siblings\nFamily member holidays\nMay observances\nSibling",
"An only child is a person who does not have any siblings, neither biological nor adopted.\n\nOnly Child may also refer to:\n\n Only Child (novel), a novel by Jack Ketchum\n Only Child, a 2020 album by Sasha Sloan"
] |
[
"Jerry Garcia",
"Childhood and early life",
"Where are his ancestors from",
"Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain.",
"Where else are his ancestors from",
"His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish.",
"What was his fathers name",
"Jose Ramon \"Joe\" Garcia",
"what was his mothers name",
"Ruth Marie \"Bobbie\" (nee Clifford) Garcia,",
"Where was he born at",
"He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California,",
"What date was he born on",
"August 1, 1942,",
"Any siblings",
"second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon \"Tiff\","
] | C_a95583dc963548a79d885ace2c196575_1 | What happened to him as a child | 8 | What happened to Jerry Garcia as a child? | Jerry Garcia | Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (nee Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting. Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family--who had emigrated from Spain in 1919--would often sing during reunions. Garcia experienced several tragedies during his youth. At age four, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains, two-thirds of Garcia's right middle finger was accidentally cut off. Garcia and his brother Tiff were chopping wood. Jerry steadied a piece of wood with his finger, but Tiff miscalculated and the axe severed most of Jerry's middle finger. After his mother wrapped his hand in a towel, Garcia's father drove him over 30 miles to the nearest hospital. A few weeks later, Garcia -- who had not looked at his finger since the accident -- was surprised to discover most of it missing when the bandage he was wearing came off during a bath. Garcia later confided that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood. Less than a year after he lost most of his finger, his father died. Vacationing with his family near Arcata in Northern California in 1947, Garcia's father went fly fishing in the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest. Not long after entering the river, Garcia's father slipped on a rock, lost his balance and was swept away by the river's rapids. He drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw his father fall into the river, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, lends weight to McNally's claim. Jackson's evidence was that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death failed to mention Garcia was present when he died. CANNOTANSWER | Santa Cruz Mountains, two-thirds of Garcia's right middle finger was accidentally cut off. | Jerome John Garcia (August 1, 1942 – August 9, 1995) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known for being a principal songwriter, the lead guitarist and a vocalist with the rock band the Grateful Dead, of which he was a founding member and which came to prominence during the counterculture of the 1960s. Although he disavowed the role, Garcia was viewed by many as the leader of the band.
As one of its founders, Garcia performed with the Grateful Dead for their entire 30-year career (1965–1995). Garcia also founded and participated in a variety of side projects, including the Saunders–Garcia Band (with longtime friend Merl Saunders), the Jerry Garcia Band, Old & In the Way, the Garcia/Grisman and Garcia/Kahn acoustic duos, Legion of Mary, and New Riders of the Purple Sage (which he co-founded with John Dawson and David Nelson). He also released several solo albums, and contributed to a number of albums by other artists over the years as a session musician. He was well known for his distinctive guitar playing, and was ranked 13th in Rolling Stones "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" cover story in 2003. In the 2015 version of the list he was ranked at #46.
Garcia was also renowned for his musical and technical ability, particularly his ability to play a variety of instruments and sustain long improvisations with the Grateful Dead. Garcia believed that improvisation took stress away from his playing and allowed him to make spur of the moment decisions that he would not have made intentionally. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Garcia noted that "my own preferences are for improvisation, for making it up as I go along. The idea of picking, of eliminating possibilities by deciding, that's difficult for me". Originating from the days of the "acid tests", these improvisations were a form of exploration rather than playing a song already written.
Later in life, Garcia struggled with diabetes and in 1986, went into a diabetic coma that nearly cost him his life. Although his overall health improved somewhat after that, he continued to struggle with obesity, smoking, and longstanding heroin and cocaine addictions. He was staying in a California drug rehabilitation facility when he died of a heart attack on August 9, 1995, at the age of 53.
Early life
Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (née Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting.
Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family—which had immigrated from Spain in 1919—would often sing during reunions.
In 1946, two-thirds of four-year-old Garcia's right middle finger was cut off by his brother in a wood splitting accident, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Garcia later confessed that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood.
Less than a year after this incident his father died in a fly fishing accident when the family was vacationing near Arcata in Northern California. He slipped after entering the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest, and drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw the incident, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, notes that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death did not mention Jerry being present when he died.
Excelsior District
Following his father's death, Garcia's mother Ruth took over her husband's bar, buying out his partner for full ownership. She began working full-time there, sending Jerry and his brother to live nearby with her parents, Tillie and William Clifford. During the five-year period in which he lived with his grandparents, Garcia enjoyed a large amount of autonomy and attended Monroe Elementary School. At the school, Garcia was greatly encouraged in his artistic abilities by his third grade teacher: through her, he discovered that "being a creative person was a viable possibility in life." According to Garcia, it was around this time that he was opened up to country and bluegrass music by his grandmother, whom he recalled enjoyed listening to the Grand Ole Opry. His elder brother, Clifford, however, staunchly believed the contrary, insisting that Garcia was "fantasizing all [that] ... she'd been to Opry, but she didn't listen to it on the radio." It was at this point that Garcia started playing the banjo, his first stringed instrument.
Menlo Park
In 1953, Garcia's mother married Wally Matusiewicz. Subsequently, Garcia and his brother moved back home with their mother and new stepfather. However, due to the roughneck reputation of their neighborhood at the time, Garcia's mother moved their family to Menlo Park. During their stay in Menlo Park, Garcia became acquainted with racism and antisemitism, things he disliked intensely. The same year, Garcia was also introduced to rock and roll and rhythm and blues by his brother, and enjoyed listening to Ray Charles, John Lee Hooker, B. B. King, Hank Ballard, and, later, Chuck Berry. Clifford often memorized the vocals for his favorite songs, and would then make Garcia learn the harmony parts, a move to which Garcia later attributed much of his early ear training.
In mid-1957, Garcia began smoking cigarettes and was introduced to marijuana. Garcia would later reminisce about the first time he smoked marijuana: "Me and a friend of mine went up into the hills with two joints, the San Francisco foothills, and smoked these joints and just got so high and laughed and roared and went skipping down the streets doing funny things and just having a helluva time". During this time, Garcia also studied at what is now the San Francisco Art Institute. The teacher there was Wally Hedrick, an artist who came to prominence during the 1960s. During the classes, he often encouraged Garcia in his drawing and painting skills. Hedrick also introduced Garcia to the fiction of Jack Kerouac, whom Garcia later cited as a major influence.
San Francisco
In June, Garcia graduated from the local Menlo Oaks school. He then moved with his family back to San Francisco, where they lived in an apartment above the family bar, a newly built replacement for the original, that had been torn down to make way for a freeway entrance. Two months later, on Garcia's fifteenth birthday, his mother bought an accordion for him, to his great disappointment. Garcia had long been captivated by many rhythm and blues artists, especially Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley, leaving him craving an electric guitar. After some pleading, his mother exchanged the accordion for a Danelectro with a small amplifier at a local pawnshop. Garcia's stepfather, who was somewhat proficient with instruments, helped tune his guitar to an unusual open tuning.
Cazadero
After a short stint at Denman Junior High School, Garcia attended tenth grade at Balboa High School in 1958, where he often got into trouble for skipping classes and fighting. Consequently, in 1959, Garcia's mother again moved the family to a safer environment, to Cazadero, a small town in Sonoma County, north of San Francisco. This turn of events did not sit well with Garcia, who had to travel by bus to Analy High School in Sebastopol, the nearest school. Garcia did, however, join a band at his school known as the Chords. After performing in and winning a contest, the band's reward was recording a song. They chose "Raunchy" by Bill Justis.
Recording career
Relocation and band beginnings
Garcia stole his mother's car in 1960, and was given the option of joining the United States Army in lieu of prison. He received basic training at Fort Ord. After training, he was transferred to Fort Winfield Scott in the Presidio of San Francisco. Garcia spent most of his time in the army at his leisure, missing roll call and accruing many counts of being AWOL. As a result, Garcia was given a general discharge on December 14, 1960.
In January 1961, Garcia drove down to East Palo Alto to see Laird Grant, an old friend from middle school. He had bought a 1950 Cadillac sedan from a cook in the army, which barely made it to Grant's residence before it broke down. Garcia spent the next few weeks sleeping where friends would allow, eventually using his car as a home. Through Grant, Garcia met Dave McQueen in February, who, after hearing Garcia perform some blues music, introduced him to local people and to the Chateau, a rooming house located near Stanford University which was then a popular hangout.
On February 20, 1961, Garcia got into a car with Paul Speegle, a sixteen-year-old artist and acquaintance of Garcia; Lee Adams, the house manager of the Chateau and driver of the car; and Alan Trist, a companion of theirs. After speeding past the Palo Alto Veterans Hospital, the driver encountered a curve and, speeding around , crashed into the guard rail, sending the car rolling turbulently. Garcia was hurled through the windshield of the car into a nearby field with such force he was literally thrown out of his shoes and would later be unable to recall the ejection. Lee Adams, the driver, and Alan Trist, who was seated in the back, were thrown from the car as well, suffering from abdominal injuries and a spine fracture, respectively. Garcia escaped with a broken collarbone, while Speegle, still in the car, was fatally injured.
Lee's reckless driving and crash served as an awakening for Garcia, who later commented: "That's where my life began. Before then I was always living at less than capacity. I was idling. That was the slingshot for the rest of my life. It was like a second chance. Then I got serious". It was at this time that Garcia began to realize that he needed to begin playing the guitar in earnest—a move which meant giving up his love of drawing and painting.
In April 1961, Garcia first met Robert Hunter, who would become a long-time friend of and lyricist for the Grateful Dead, collaborating principally with Garcia. The two involved themselves in the South Bay and San Francisco art and music scenes, sometimes playing at Menlo Park's Kepler's Books. Garcia performed his first concert with Hunter, each earning five dollars. Garcia and Hunter also played in bands (the Wildwood Boys and the Hart Valley Drifters) with David Nelson, who would later play with Garcia in the New Riders of the Purple Sage and contribute to several Grateful Dead album songs.
In 1962, Garcia met Phil Lesh, the eventual bassist of the Grateful Dead, during a party in Menlo Park's bohemian Perry Lane neighborhood (where author Ken Kesey lived). Lesh would later write in his autobiography that Garcia reminded him of pictures he had seen of the composer Claude Debussy, with his "dark, curly hair, goatee, Impressionist eyes". While attending another party in Palo Alto, Lesh approached Garcia to suggest they record Garcia on Lesh's tape recorder and produce a radio show for the progressive, community-supported Berkeley radio station KPFA. Using an old Wollensak tape recorder, they recorded "Matty Groves" and "The Long Black Veil", among several other tunes. The recordings became a central feature of a 90-minute KPFA special broadcast, "The Long Black Veil and Other Ballads: An Evening with Jerry Garcia". The link between KPFA and the Grateful Dead continues to this day, having included many fundraisers, interviews, live concert broadcasts, taped band performances and all-day or all-weekend "Dead-only" marathons.
Garcia soon began playing and teaching acoustic guitar and banjo. One of Garcia's students was Bob Matthews, who later engineered many of the Grateful Dead's albums. Matthews attended Menlo-Atherton High School and was friends with Bob Weir, and on New Year's Eve 1963, he introduced Weir and Garcia.
Between 1962 and 1964, Garcia sang and performed mainly bluegrass, old-time, and folk music. One of the bands Garcia performed with was the Sleepy Hollow Hog Stompers, a bluegrass act. The group consisted of Garcia on guitar, banjo, vocals, and harmonica, Marshall Leicester on banjo, guitar, and vocals, and Dick Arnold on fiddle and vocals. Soon after this, Garcia, Weir, Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, and several of their friends formed a jug band called Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions. Around this time, the psychedelic drug LSD was gaining popularity. Garcia first began using LSD in 1964; later, when asked how it changed his life, he remarked: "Well, it changed everything [...] the effect was that it freed me because I suddenly realized that my little attempt at having a straight life and doing that was really a fiction and just wasn't going to work out. Luckily I wasn't far enough into it for it to be shattering or anything; it was like a realization that just made me feel immensely relieved."
In 1965, Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions evolved into the Warlocks, with the addition of Phil Lesh on bass guitar and Bill Kreutzmann on percussion. However, the band discovered that another group (which would later become the Velvet Underground) had recently selected the same name. In response, Garcia came up with "Grateful Dead" by opening a Funk & Wagnalls dictionary to an entry for "Grateful dead". The definition for "Grateful dead" was "a dead person, or his angel, showing gratitude to someone who, as an act of charity, arranged their burial". The band's first reaction was disapproval. Garcia later explained the group's reaction: "I didn't like it really, I just found it to be really powerful. [Bob] Weir didn't like it, [Bill] Kreutzmann didn't like it and nobody really wanted to hear about it." Despite their dislike of the name, it quickly spread by word of mouth, and soon became their official title.
Career with the Grateful Dead
Garcia served as lead guitarist, as well as one of the principal vocalists and songwriters of the Grateful Dead for its entire career. Garcia composed such songs as "Dark Star", "Franklin's Tower", and "Scarlet Begonias", among many others. Robert Hunter, an ardent collaborator with the band, wrote the lyrics to all but a few of Garcia's songs.
Garcia was well-noted for his "soulful extended guitar improvisations", which would frequently feature interplay between him and his fellow band members. His fame, as well as the band's, arguably rested on their ability to never play a song the same way twice. Often, Garcia would take cues from rhythm guitarist Bob Weir, remarking that "there are some [...] kinds of ideas that would really throw me if I had to create a harmonic bridge between all the things going on rhythmically with two drums and Phil [Lesh's] innovative bass playing. Weir's ability to solve that sort of problem is extraordinary. [...] Harmonically, I take a lot of my solo cues from Bob."
When asked to describe his approach to soloing, Garcia commented: "It keeps on changing. I still basically revolve around the melody and the way it's broken up into phrases as I perceive them. With most solos, I tend to play something that phrases the way the melody does; my phrases may be more dense or have different value, but they'll occur in the same places in the song. [...]"
Garcia and the band toured almost constantly from their formation in 1965 until Garcia's death in 1995. Periodically, there were breaks due to exhaustion or health problems, often due to Garcia's drug use. During their three-decade span, the Grateful Dead played 2,314 shows.
Garcia's guitar-playing was eclectic. He melded elements from the various kinds of music that influenced him. Echoes of bluegrass playing (such as Arthur Smith and Doc Watson) could be heard. There was also early rock (like Lonnie Mack, James Burton, and Chuck Berry), contemporary blues (Freddie King and Lowell Fulsom), country and western (Roy Nichols and Don Rich), and jazz (Charlie Christian and Django Reinhardt) to be heard in Garcia's style. Don Rich was the sparkling country guitar player in Buck Owens's "the Buckaroos" band of the 1960s, but besides Rich's style, both Garcia's pedal steel guitar playing (on Grateful Dead records and others) and his standard electric guitar work, were influenced by another of Owens's Buckaroos of that time, pedal steel player Tom Brumley. And as an improvisational soloist, John Coltrane was one of his greatest personal and musical influences.
Garcia later described his playing style as having "descended from barroom rock and roll, country guitar. Just 'cause that's where all my stuff comes from. It's like that blues instrumental stuff that was happening in the late Fifties and early Sixties, like Freddie King." Garcia's style could vary with the song being played and the instrument he was using, but his playing had a number of so-called "signatures". Among these were lead lines based on rhythmic triplets (examples include the songs "Good Morning Little School Girl", "New Speedway Boogie", "Brokedown Palace", "Deal", "Loser", "Truckin'", "That's It for the Other One", "U.S. Blues", "Sugaree", and "Don't Ease Me In").
Side projects
In addition to the Grateful Dead, Garcia had numerous side projects, the most notable being the Jerry Garcia Band. He was also involved with various acoustic projects such as Old & In the Way and other bluegrass bands, including collaborations with noted bluegrass mandolinist David Grisman. The documentary film Grateful Dawg, co-produced by Gillian Grisman and former NBC producer Pamela Hamilton chronicles the deep, long-term friendship between Garcia and Grisman. When Garcia and Grisman released Not For Kids Only, Hamilton produced their interview and concert for NBC. After several years of producing stories on the Grateful Dead and band members' side projects, Hamilton interviewed Bob Weir for a feature on Garcia's death marking the end of an era.
Other groups of which Garcia was a member at one time or another include the Black Mountain Boys, Legion of Mary, Reconstruction, and the Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band. Garcia was also a fan of jazz artists and improvisation: he played with jazz keyboardists Merl Saunders and Howard Wales for many years in various groups and jam sessions, and he appeared on saxophonist Ornette Coleman's 1988 album, Virgin Beauty. His collaboration with Merl Saunders and Muruga Booker on the world music album Blues From the Rainforest launched the Rainforest Band.
Garcia also spent a lot of time in the recording studio helping out fellow musician friends in session work, often adding guitar, vocals, pedal steel, sometimes banjo and piano and even producing. He played on over 50 studio albums, the styles of which were eclectic and varied, including bluegrass, rock, folk, blues, country, jazz, electronic music, gospel, funk, and reggae. Artists who sought Garcia's help included the likes of Jefferson Airplane (most notably Surrealistic Pillow, Garcia being listed as their "spiritual advisor"). Garcia himself recalled in a mid-1967 interview that he'd played the high lead on "Today," played on "Plastic Fantastic Lover" and "Comin' Back to Me" on that album. Others include Tom Fogerty, David Bromberg, Robert Hunter (Liberty, on Relix Records), Paul Pena, Peter Rowan, Warren Zevon, Country Joe McDonald, Pete Sears, Ken Nordine, Ornette Coleman, Bruce Hornsby, Bob Dylan, It's a Beautiful Day, and many more. In 1995 Garcia played on three tracks for the CD Blue Incantation by guitarist Sanjay Mishra, making it his last studio collaboration.
Throughout the early 1970s, Garcia, Lesh, Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart, and David Crosby collaborated intermittently with MIT-educated composer and biologist Ned Lagin on several projects in the realm of early ambient music; these include the album Seastones (released by the Ned Lagin on the Round Records subsidiary) and L, an unfinished dance work composed by Ned Lagin. In 1970, Garcia participated in the soundtrack for the film Zabriskie Point.
Garcia also played pedal steel guitar for fellow-San Francisco musicians New Riders of the Purple Sage from their initial dates in 1969 to October 1971, when increased commitments with the Dead forced him to opt out of the group. He appears as a band member on their debut album New Riders of the Purple Sage, and produced Home, Home on the Road, a 1974 live album by the band. He also contributed pedal steel guitar to the enduring hit "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young. Garcia also played steel guitar licks on Brewer & Shipley's 1970 album Tarkio. Despite considering himself a novice on the pedal steel, Garcia routinely ranked high in player polls. After a long lapse from playing the pedal steel, he played it once more during several of the Dead's concerts with Bob Dylan in the summer of 1987.
In 1988, Garcia agreed to perform at several major benefits including the "Soviet American Peace Walk" concert at the Band Shell, in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, that drew 25,000 people. He was asked to play by longtime friend and fellow musician, Pete Sears, who played piano with all the bands that day, and also procured all the other musicians. Garcia, Mickey Hart and Steve Parish played the show, then were given a police escort to a Grateful Dead show across the bay later that night. Garcia also played with Nick Gravenites and Pete Sears at a benefit given for Vietnam Veteran and peace activist Brian Willson, who lost both legs below the knee when he attempted to block a train carrying weapons to military dictatorships in El Salvador.
Having previously studied at the San Francisco Art Institute as a teenager, Garcia embarked on a second career in the visual arts in the late 1980s. He created a number of drawings, etchings, and water colors. Garcia's artistic endeavors were represented by the Weir Gallery in Berkeley, California from 1989 to 1996. During this period, Roberta Weir (unrelated to Garcia's bandmate Bob Weir) provided Garcia with new art techniques to use, sponsored his first solo show in 1990, and prepared blank etching plates for him to draw on. These would then be processed and printed by gallery staff and brought back to Garcia for approval and signature, usually with a passing of stacks of paper backstage at a Dead show. His annual shows at the Weir Gallery garnered much attention, leading to further shows in New York and other cities. Garcia was an early adopter of digital art media; his artistic style was as varied as his musical output, and he carried small notebooks for pen and ink sketches wherever he toured. Roberta Weir continues to maintain an archive of the artwork of Jerry Garcia. Perhaps the most widely seen pieces of Jerry Garcia's art are the many editions of men's neckties produced by Stonehenge Ltd. and Mulberry Neckware. Some began as etchings, other designs came from his drawings, paintings, and digital art. Garcia's artwork has since expanded into everything from hotel rooms, wet suits, men's sport shirts, a women's wear line, boxer shorts, hair accessories, cummerbunds, silk scarves and wool rugs.
Personal life
Garcia met his first wife, Sara Ruppenthal, in 1963. She was working at the coffee house in the back of Kepler's Books, where Garcia, Hunter, and Nelson regularly performed. They married on April 23, 1963, and on December 8 of that year their daughter Heather was born.
Carolyn Adams, a Merry Prankster also known as "Mountain Girl" or "M.G.," had a daughter, Sunshine, with Ken Kesey. Mountain Girl married another Prankster, George Walker, but they soon separated. She and Sunshine then moved into 710 Ashbury with Garcia in late 1966 where they would ultimately live together until 1975. In 1994, Sara and Jerry officially divorced after a long separation. Adams gave birth to Garcia's second and third daughters, Annabelle Walker Garcia (February 2, 1970) and Theresa Adams "Trixie" Garcia (September 21, 1974).
In August 1970, Garcia's mother Ruth was involved in a car crash near Twin Peaks in San Francisco. Garcia, who was recording the album American Beauty at the time, often left the sessions to visit his mother with his brother Clifford. She died on September 28, 1970.
In the midst of a March 1973 Grateful Dead engagement at Long Island's Nassau Coliseum, Garcia met Deborah Koons, an aspiring filmmaker from a wealthy Cincinnati, Ohio-based family who would much later marry him and become his widow. After a brief correspondence, he began his relationship with her in mid-1974. This gradually strained his relationship with Adams and culminated in Garcia leaving Adams for Koons in late 1975. The end of his relationship with Koons in 1977 precipitated a brief reconciliation with Adams, including the reestablishment of their household. However, she did not agree with the guitarist's persistent use of narcotics and moved with the children to the Eugene, Oregon area, living near Kesey, in 1978.
Following Adams' departure, Garcia had an affair with Amy Moore. She was a Kentucky-born member of the extended "Grateful Dead family", and the mistress of Texas oil heir Roy Cullen. Their affair lasted circa 1980–1981, and inspired the Garcia-Hunter song "Run for the Roses."
Adams and Garcia were married on December 31, 1981, largely as a result of mutual tax exigencies. Despite the legal codification of their union, she remained in Oregon, while Garcia continued to live near the Grateful Dead's offices in San Rafael, California. Garcia lived with a variety of housemates, including longtime Grateful Dead employee and Jerry Garcia Band manager Rock Scully. Scully, who co-managed the Grateful Dead throughout the mid-to-late 1960s before serving as the band's "advance man" and publicist, was dismissed by the group in 1984 for enabling Garcia's addictions and for allegedly embezzling the Garcia Band's profits. Another housemate was Nora Sage, a Deadhead who became Garcia's housekeeper while studying at the Golden Gate University School of Law. The exact nature of their relationship remains unclear, although it is believed to have been platonic due to Garcia's addictions. She later became his art representative.
While they would briefly reunite following his diabetic coma, Garcia and Adams ultimately divorced in 1994. Phil Lesh has subsequently stated that he rarely saw Adams on any of the band tours. In a 1991 Rolling Stone interview, Garcia stated that "we haven't really lived together since the Seventies".
During the autumn of 1978, Garcia developed a friendship with Shimer College student Manasha Matheson, an artist and music enthusiast. They remained friends over the following nine years before initiating a romantic relationship in Hartford, Connecticut on the Grateful Dead's spring 1987 tour. Jerry and Manasha became parents with the birth of their daughter, Keelin Noel Garcia, on December 20, 1987. On August 17, 1990, Jerry and Manasha married at their San Anselmo, California home in a spiritual ceremony free of legal convention. In 1991, Garcia expressed his delight in finding the time to "actually be a father" to Keelin in contrast to his past relationships with his children. A year later, Garcia dedicated his first art book, Paintings, Drawings and Sketches, "For Manasha, with love, Jerry."
In January 1993, Barbara "Brigid" Meier, a former girlfriend from the early 1960s, reentered Garcia's life for a brief period. Meier claimed, Garcia had considered her to be the "love of his life" and proposed to her during a Hawaiian vacation shortly after their relationship recommenced. Garcia's "love of his life" sentiment was not reserved for one lover, as he expressed the same feelings to several other women in his life. At Garcia's 1995 funeral, Koons declared that she was "the love of his life" while paying her final respects, whereupon Meier and Ruppenthal, who were both in attendance, simultaneously exclaimed, "He said that to me!"
The affair with Meier marked the breakup of Jerry's family life with Manasha and Keelin. Garcia ended the affair with Meier forty-five days later while on tour in Chicago with the Grateful Dead after she confronted him about his drug use.
Shortly thereafter, Garcia renewed his acquaintance with Deborah Koons in the spring of 1993. They married on February 14, 1994, in Sausalito, California. Garcia and Koons were married at the time of his death.
Lifestyle and health
Because of their public profile, Garcia and his collaborators were occasionally singled out in the American government's war on drugs. On October 2, 1967, 710 Ashbury Street in San Francisco (where the Grateful Dead had taken up residence the year before) was raided after a police tip-off. Grateful Dead members Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan were apprehended on marijuana charges which were later dropped, although Garcia himself was not arrested. The following year, Garcia's picture was used in a defamatory context in a campaign commercial for Richard Nixon.
Most of the band were arrested again in January 1970, after they flew to New Orleans from Hawaii. After returning to their hotel from a performance, the band checked into their rooms, only to be quickly raided by police. Approximately fifteen people were arrested on the spot, including many of the road crew, management, and nearly all of the Grateful Dead except for Garcia, who arrived later, outgoing keyboardist Tom Constanten, who abstained from all drugs as a member of the Church of Scientology, and McKernan, who eschewed illegal drugs in favor of alcohol.
According to Bill Kreutzmann, the band's use of cocaine accelerated throughout the early 1970s. After using heroin in a brothel in 1974 (likely on the band's second European tour), Garcia was introduced to a smokeable form of the drug (initially advertised as refined opium) colloquially known as "Persian" or "Persian Base" during the group's 1975 hiatus. Influenced by the stresses of creating and releasing The Grateful Dead Movie and the acrimonious collapse of the band's independent record labels over the next two years, Garcia became increasingly dependent upon both substances. These factors, combined with the alcohol and drug abuse of several other members of the Grateful Dead, resulted in a turbulent atmosphere. By 1978, the band's chemistry began "cracking and crumbling", resulting in poor group cohesion. As a result, Keith and Donna Jean Godchaux left the band in February 1979.
With the addition of keyboardist/vocalist Brent Mydland that year amid the ongoing coalescence of the Deadhead subculture, the band reached new commercial heights as a touring group on the American arena circuit in the early 1980s, enabling them to forsake studio recording for several years. Nevertheless, this was offset by such factors as the band's atypically large payroll and Garcia's $700-a-day () drug addiction, resulting in the guitarist taking on a frenetic slate of solo touring outside of the Grateful Dead's rigorous schedule, including abbreviated acoustic duo concerts with Jerry Garcia Band bassist John Kahn that were widely rumored to be a funding conduit for their respective addictions.
Though things seemed to be getting better for the band, Garcia's health was declining. By 1983, Garcia's demeanor onstage had appeared to change. Despite still playing the guitar with great passion and intensity, there were times that he would appear disengaged; as such, shows were often inconsistent. Years of heavy tobacco smoking had affected his voice, and he gained considerable weight. By 1984, he would often rest his chin on the microphone during performances. The so-called "endless tour"—the result of years of financial risks, drug use, and poor business decisions—had taken its toll.
Garcia's decade-long heroin addiction culminated in the rest of the band holding an intervention in January 1985. Given the choice between the band or the drugs, Garcia agreed to check into a rehabilitation center in Oakland, California. A few days later in January, before the start of his program in Oakland, Garcia was arrested for drug possession in Golden Gate Park; he subsequently attended a drug diversion program. Throughout 1985, he tapered his drug use on tour and at home with the assistance of Nora Sage; by the spring of 1986, he was completely abstinent.
Precipitated by an unhealthy weight, dehydration, bad eating habits, and a recent relapse on the Grateful Dead's first stadium tour, Garcia collapsed into a diabetic coma in July 1986, waking up five days later. He later spoke about this period of unconsciousness as surreal: "Well, I had some very weird experiences. My main experience was one of furious activity and tremendous struggle in a sort of futuristic, space-ship vehicle with insectoid presences. After I came out of my coma, I had this image of myself as these little hunks of protoplasm that were stuck together kind of like stamps with perforations between them that you could snap off." Garcia's coma had a profound effect on him: it forced him to have to relearn how to play the guitar, as well as other, more basic skills. Within a handful of months, he had recovered, playing with the Jerry Garcia Band and the Grateful Dead again later that year.
After Garcia's recovery, the band released a comeback album In the Dark in 1987, which became their best-selling studio album. Inspired by Garcia's improved health, a successful album and the continuing emergence of Mydland as a third frontman, the band's energy and chemistry reached a new peak in the late 1980s.
Amid a litany of personal problems, Mydland died of a speedball overdose in July 1990. His death greatly affected Garcia, leading him to believe that the band's chemistry would never be the same. Before beginning the fall tour, the band acquired keyboardists Vince Welnick and Bruce Hornsby. The power of Hornsby's performances drove Garcia to new heights on stage. However, as the band continued through 1991, Garcia became concerned with the band's future. He was exhausted from five straight years of touring. He thought a break was necessary, mainly so that the band could come back with fresh material. The idea was put off by the pressures of management, and the touring continued. Garcia began using heroin again after several years of intermittent prescription opiate use. Though his relapse was brief, the band was quick to react. Soon after the last show of the tour in Denver, Garcia was confronted by the band with another intervention. After a disastrous meeting, Garcia invited Phil Lesh over to his home in San Rafael, California, where he explained that after the meeting he would start attending a methadone clinic. Garcia said that he wanted to clean up in his own way, and return to making music.
After returning from the band's 1992 summer tour, Garcia became sick, a throwback to his diabetic coma in 1986. Manasha Garcia nursed Jerry back to health and organized a team of health professionals which included acupuncturist Yen Wei Choong and Randy Baker, MD, a holistic family physician to treat him at home. Garcia recovered over the following days, despite the Grateful Dead having to cancel their fall tour to allow him time to recuperate. Garcia reduced his cigarette smoking and began losing weight. He also became a vegetarian.
Despite these improvements, Garcia's physical and mental condition continued to decline throughout 1993 and 1994. He began to use narcotics again to dull the pain.
In light of his second drug relapse and current condition, Garcia checked himself into the Betty Ford Center during July 1995. His stay was limited, lasting only two weeks. Motivated by the experience, he then checked into the Serenity Knolls treatment center in Forest Knolls, California, where he died.
Death
Garcia died in his room at the rehabilitation clinic on August 9, 1995. The cause of death was a heart attack. Garcia had long struggled with drug addiction, weight problems, sleep apnea, heavy smoking, and diabetes—all of which contributed to his physical decline. Lesh remarked that, upon hearing of Garcia's death, "I was struck numb. I had lost my oldest surviving friend, my brother." Garcia's funeral was held on August 12, at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Belvedere. It was attended by his family, the remaining Grateful Dead members, and their friends, including former pro basketball player Bill Walton and musician Bob Dylan. Deborah Koons barred two of Garcia's former wives from the ceremony.
On August 13, about 25,000 people attended a municipally sanctioned public memorial at the Polo Fields of San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. Crowds produced hundreds of flowers, gifts, images, and a bagpipe rendition of "Amazing Grace" in remembrance. In the Haight, a single white rose was reportedly tied to a tree near the Dead's former Haight-Ashbury house, where a group of followers gathered to mourn.
On the morning of April 4, 1996, after a total lunar eclipse earlier that day, Weir and Deborah Koons accompanied by Sanjay Mishra, spread half of Garcia's ashes into the Ganges at the holy city of Rishikesh, India, a site sacred to Hindus. The remaining ashes were poured into the San Francisco Bay. Koons did not allow former wife Carolyn Garcia to attend the spreading of the ashes.
Musical equipment
Garcia played many guitars during his career, which ranged from student and budget models to custom-made instruments. During his thirty-five year career as a professional musician, Garcia used about 25 guitars.
In 1965, when Garcia was playing with the Warlocks, he used a Guild Starfire, which he also used on the début album of the Grateful Dead. Beginning in late 1967 and ending in 1968, Garcia played black or gold mid-1950s Gibson Les Paul guitars with P-90 pickups. In 1969, he picked up the Gibson SG and used it for most of that year and 1970, except for a small period in between where he used a sunburst Fender Stratocaster.
During Garcia's "pedal steel flirtation period" (as Bob Weir referred to it in Anthem to Beauty), from approximately 1969 to 1972, he initially played a Fender instrument before upgrading to the ZB Custom D-10, especially in his earlier public performances. Although this was a double neck guitar, Garcia used the "E9 neck and the three pedals to raise the tone and two levers to lower it." He employed an Emmons D-10 at the Grateful Dead's and New Riders of the Purple Sage's final appearances at the Fillmore East in April 1971.
In 1969, Garcia played pedal steel on three notable outside recordings: the track "The Farm" on the Jefferson Airplane album Volunteers, the track "Oh Mommy" by Brewer and Shipley and the hit single "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young from their album Déjà Vu, released in 1970. Garcia played on the latter album in exchange for harmony lessons for the Grateful Dead, who were at the time recording Workingman's Dead.
In 1971, Garcia began playing a sunburst Les Paul. In March and April 1971 – the time period during which the Grateful Dead recorded its second live album, Grateful Dead – Garcia played the "Peanut," a guitar he had received from Rick Turner, who had custom built the guitar's body and incorporated the neck, pickups, and hardware from an early '60s Les Paul.
In May, Garcia began using a 1957 natural finish Stratocaster that had been given to him by Graham Nash. Garcia added an alligator sticker to the pickguard in the fall of that year. "Alligator" would remain Garcia's principal electric guitar until August 1973.
In the summer of 1971, Garcia also played a double-cutaway Les Paul TV Junior.
While Alligator was in the shop in the summer of 1972, he briefly reverted to the sunburst Stratocaster; this can be seen in Sunshine Daydream.
In late 1972, Garcia purchased the first guitar ("Eagle") made by Alembic luthier Doug Irwin for $850 (). Enamored of Irwin's talents, he immediately commissioned his own custom instrument. This guitar, nicknamed "Wolf" for a memorable sticker Garcia added below the tailpiece, was delivered in May 1973 and replaced Alligator on stage in September. It cost $1,500 (), an extremely high price for the era.
Wolf was made with an ebony fingerboard and featured numerous embellishments like alternating grain designs in the headstock, ivory inlays, and fret marker dots made of sterling silver. The body was composed of western maple wood which had a core of purpleheart. Garcia later had Irwin (who ultimately left Alembic to start his own business) replace the electronics inside the guitar, at which point he added his own logo to the headstock alongside the Alembic logo. The system included two interchangeable plates for configuring pickups: one was made for strictly single coils, while the other accommodated humbuckers. Shortly after receiving the modified instrument, Garcia commissioned another custom guitar from Irwin with one caveat: "Don't hold back."
During the Grateful Dead's 1974 European tour, Wolf was dropped on several occasions, one of which caused a minor crack in the headstock. Following filming of The Grateful Dead Movie (in which the guitar is prominently visible) a month later, Garcia returned it to Irwin for repairs. Throughout its absence, Garcia predominantly played several Travis Bean guitars, including the TB1000A (1975) and the TB500 (1976-1977). On September 28, 1977, Irwin delivered the refurbished Wolf back to Garcia. The wolf sticker which gave the guitar its name had now been inlaid into the instrument; it also featured an effects loop between the pick-ups and controls (so inline effects would "see" the same signal at all times) which was bypassable. Irwin also put a new face on the headstock with only his logo (he later claimed to have built the guitar himself, though pictures through time clearly show the progression of logos, from Alembic, to Alembic & Irwin, to only Irwin).
Nearly seven years after he commissioned it, Garcia received his second custom guitar ("Tiger") from Irwin in the summer of 1979.
He first employed the instrument in concert at a Grateful Dead performance at the Oakland Auditorium Arena on August 4, 1979. Its name was derived from the inlay on the preamp cover.
The body of Tiger was of rich quality: the top layer was cocobolo, with the preceding layers being maple stripe, vermilion, and flame maple, in that order. The neck was made of western maple with an ebony fingerboard. The pickups consisted of a single coil DiMarzio SDS-1 and two humbucker DiMarzio Super IIs which were easily removable due to Garcia's preference for replacing his pickups every year or two. The electronics were composed of an effects bypass loop, which allowed Garcia to control the sound of his effects through the tone and volume controls on the guitar, and a preamplifier/buffer which rested behind a plate in the back of the guitar. Fully outfitted, Tiger weighed . This was Garcia's principal guitar for the next eleven years, and most played.
In the late 1980s Garcia, Weir and CSN (along with many others) endorsed Alvarez Yairi acoustic guitars. There are many photographs circulating (mostly promotional) of Garcia playing a DY99 Virtuoso Custom with a Modulus Graphite neck. He opted to play with the less decorated model but the promotional photo from the Alvarez Yairi catalog has him holding the "tree of life" model. This hand-built guitar was notable for the collaboration between Japanese luthier Kazuo Yairi and Modulus Graphite of San Rafael. As with most things Garcia, with his passing, the DY99 model is highly valued among collectors.
In 1990, Irwin completed "Rosebud", Garcia's fourth custom guitar. It was similar to his previous guitar Tiger in many respects, but featured different inlays and electronics, tone and volume controls, and weight. Rosebud, unlike Tiger, was configured with three humbuckers; the neck and bridge pickups shared a tone control, while the middle had its own. Atop the guitar was a Roland GK-2 pickup which fed the controller set inside the guitar. The GK2 was used in junction with the Roland GR-50 rack mount synthesizer. The GR-50 synthesizer in turn drove a Korg M1R synthesizer producing the MIDI effects heard during live performances of this period as heard on the Grateful Dead recording Without a Net. Sections of the guitar were hollowed out to bring the weight down to . The inlay, a dancing skeleton holding a rose, covers a plate just below the bridge. The final cost of the instrument was $11,000 ().
In 1993, carpenter-turned-luthier Stephen Cripe tried his hand at making an instrument for Garcia. After researching Tiger through pictures and films, Cripe set out on what would soon become known as "Lightning Bolt", again named for its inlay.
The guitar used Brazilian rosewood for the fingerboard and East Indian rosewood for the body, which, with admitted irony from Cripe, had been taken from a 19th-century bed used by opium smokers. Built purely from guesswork, Lightning Bolt was a hit with Garcia, who began using the guitar exclusively. Soon after, Garcia requested that Cripe build a backup of the guitar. Cripe, who had not measured or photographed the original, was told simply to "wing it."
Cripe later delivered the backup, which was known by the name "Top Hat". Garcia bought it from him for $6,500, making it the first guitar that Cripe had ever sold. However, infatuated with Lightning Bolt, Garcia rarely used the backup.
After Garcia's death, the ownership of Wolf and Tiger came into question. According to Garcia's will, his guitars were bequeathed to Doug Irwin, who had constructed them.
The remaining Grateful Dead members disagreed – they considered his guitars to be property of the band, leading to a lawsuit between the two parties. In 2001, Irwin won the case. However, nearly having been left destitute from a traffic accident in 1998, he decided to place the guitars up for auction in hopes of being able to start another guitar workshop.
On May 8, 2002, Wolf and Tiger, among other memorabilia, were placed for auction at Studio 54 in New York City. Tiger was sold for $957,500, and Wolf for $789,500. Together, the pair sold for $1.74 million, setting a new world record. Wolf went into in the private collection of Daniel Pritzker who kept it in a secure climate controlled room in a private residence at Utica, N.Y. Tiger went to the private collection of Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay.
In May 2017, Wolf was again auctioned, but this time for charity. Pritzker decided to sell the guitar and donate all proceeds to the Montgomery, Alabama based Southern Poverty Law Center.
Brian Halligan placed the winning bid totaling $1.9M.
For the majority of 2019 Wolf and Tiger were included in the Play it Loud exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. On June 23, 2019 John Mayer played Wolf with Dead & Co. at Citi Field.
Legacy
Garcia was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Grateful Dead in 1994. He declined to attend the ceremony; the band jokingly brought a cardboard cutout of Garcia out on stage in his absence.
In 1987, Vermont ice cream maker Ben & Jerry's introduced their Cherry Garcia flavor dedicated to him. It was the first ice cream flavor dedicated to a musician.
In 2003, Rolling Stone ranked Jerry Garcia 13th in their list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".
According to fellow Bay Area guitar player Henry Kaiser, Garcia is "the most recorded guitarist in history. With more than 2,200 Grateful Dead concerts, and 1,000 Jerry Garcia Band concerts captured on tape – as well as numerous studio sessions – there are about 15,000 hours of his guitar work preserved for the ages."
On July 30, 2004, Melvin Seals was the first Jerry Garcia Band (JGB) member to headline an outdoor music and camping festival called "The Grateful Garcia Gathering". Jerry Garcia Band drummer David Kemper joined Melvin Seals and JGB in 2007. Other musicians and friends of Garcia include Donna Jean Godchaux, Mookie Siegel, Pete Sears, G.E. Smith, Chuck Hammer, Barry Sless, Jackie Greene, Brian Lesh, Sanjay Mishra, and Mark Karan.
On July 21, 2005, the San Francisco Recreation and Park Commission passed a resolution to name the amphitheater in McLaren Park "The Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." The amphitheater is located in the Excelsior District, where Garcia grew up. The first show to happen at the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater was Jerry Day 2005 on August 7, 2005. Jerry's brother, Tiff Garcia, was the first person to welcome everybody to the "Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." Jerry Day is an annual celebration of Garcia in his childhood neighborhood. The dedication ceremony (Jerry Day 2) on October 29, 2005, was officiated by mayor Gavin Newsom.
On September 24, 2005, the Comes a Time: A Celebration of the Music & Spirit of Jerry Garcia tribute concert was held at the Hearst Greek Theatre in Berkeley, California. The concert featured Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, Mickey Hart, Bruce Hornsby, Trey Anastasio, Warren Haynes, Jimmy Herring, Michael Kang, Jay Lane, Jeff Chimenti, Mark Karan, Robin Sylvester, Kenny Brooks, Melvin Seals, Merl Saunders, Marty Holland, Stu Allen, Gloria Jones, and Jackie LaBranch.
Georgia-based composer Lee Johnson released an orchestral tribute to the music of the Grateful Dead, recorded with the Russian National Orchestra, entitled "Dead Symphony: Lee Johnson Symphony No. 6." Johnson was interviewed on NPR on the July 26, 2008 broadcast of Weekend Edition, and gave much credit to the genius and craft of Garcia's songwriting. A live performance with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Johnson himself, was held Friday, August 1.
In 2010 the Santa Barbara Bowl in California opened Jerry Garcia Glen along the walk up to the venue. There is a statue of Garcia's right hand along the way.
Seattle rock band Soundgarden wrote and recorded the instrumental song "Jerry Garcia's Finger", dedicated to the singer, which was released as a b-side with their single "Pretty Noose".
Numerous music festivals across the United States and Uxbridge, Middlesex, UK hold annual events in memory of Jerry Garcia.
On May 14, 2015, an all-star lineup held a tribute concert for Garcia at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland. The event was called "Dear Jerry".
In 2015, Hunter and Garcia were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Hunter accepted the award along with Garcia's daughter, Trixie Garcia, who accepted on behalf of her father.
In 2015, Jerry Garcia's wife, Manasha Garcia and their daughter, Keelin Garcia launched The Jerry Garcia Foundation, a nonprofit charity that supports projects for artistic, environmental, and humanitarian causes. The Foundation's Board members are Bob Weir, Peter Shapiro, Glenn Fischer, Irwin Sternberg, Daniel Shiner, TRI Studios CEO, Christopher McCutcheon and Fender Music Foundation Executive Director,
Lynn Robison. Keelin Garcia said, "It is a tremendous honor to participate in nonprofit work that is in accordance with my father's values."
In 2018, Jerry Garcia family members, Keelin Garcia and Manasha Garcia launched the Jerry Garcia Music Arts independent music label.
On November 18, 2021, it was announced Jonah Hill would portray Garcia in a forthcoming Grateful Dead biopic written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski directed by Martin Scorsese for Apple TV+.
Discography
New Riders of the Purple Sage – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1971
Hooteroll? – Howard Wales and Jerry Garcia – 1971
Garcia – Jerry Garcia – 1972
Live at Keystone – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1973
Compliments – Jerry Garcia – 1974
Old & In the Way – Old & In the Way – 1975
Reflections – Jerry Garcia – 1976
Cats Under the Stars – Jerry Garcia Band – 1978
Run for the Roses – Jerry Garcia – 1982
Vintage NRPS – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1986
Keystone Encores – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1988
Almost Acoustic – Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band – 1988
Jerry Garcia / David Grisman – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1991
Jerry Garcia Band – Jerry Garcia Band – 1991
Not for Kids Only – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1993
Notes
References
Sources
External links
The official homepage of Jerry Garcia
Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics
Jerry Garcia on Fretbase
The Jerry Site
Official Grateful Dead website
Jerry Garcia discography at deaddisc.com
Jerry Garcia autopsy
Jerry Day: A Civic and Cultural Celebration of Jerry Garcia held in San Francisco
FBI Records: The Vault - Jerry Garcia at vault.fbi.gov
Jerry Garcia's Army personnel file at the National Archives
TEAM
Garcia's Guitars & Gear Directory
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20th century in San Francisco
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Singers from San Francisco
20th-century American singers
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"Don Juan Manuel's Tales of Count Lucanor, in Spanish Libro de los ejemplos del conde Lucanor y de Patronio (Book of the Examples of Count Lucanor and of Patronio), also commonly known as El Conde Lucanor, Libro de Patronio, or Libro de los ejemplos (original Old Castilian: Libro de los enxiemplos del Conde Lucanor et de Patronio), is one of the earliest works of prose in Castilian Spanish. It was first written in 1335.\n\nThe book is divided into four parts. The first and most well-known part is a series of 51 short stories (some no more than a page or two) drawn from various sources, such as Aesop and other classical writers, and Arabic folktales.\n\nTales of Count Lucanor was first printed in 1575 when it was published at Seville under the auspices of Argote de Molina. It was again printed at Madrid in 1642, after which it lay forgotten for nearly two centuries.\n\nPurpose and structure\n\nA didactic, moralistic purpose, which would color so much of the Spanish literature to follow (see Novela picaresca), is the mark of this book. Count Lucanor engages in conversation with his advisor Patronio, putting to him a problem (\"Some man has made me a proposition...\" or \"I fear that such and such person intends to...\") and asking for advice. Patronio responds always with the greatest humility, claiming not to wish to offer advice to so illustrious a person as the Count, but offering to tell him a story of which the Count's problem reminds him. (Thus, the stories are \"examples\" [ejemplos] of wise action.) At the end he advises the Count to do as the protagonist of his story did.\n\nEach chapter ends in more or less the same way, with slight variations on: \"And this pleased the Count greatly and he did just so, and found it well. And Don Johán (Juan) saw that this example was very good, and had it written in this book, and composed the following verses.\" A rhymed couplet closes, giving the moral of the story.\n\nOrigin of stories and influence on later literature\nMany of the stories written in the book are the first examples written in a modern European language of various stories, which many other writers would use in the proceeding centuries. Many of the stories he included were themselves derived from other stories, coming from western and Arab sources.\n\nShakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew has the basic elements of Tale 35, \"What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\".\n\nTale 32, \"What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth\" tells the story that Hans Christian Andersen made popular as The Emperor's New Clothes.\n\nStory 7, \"What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana\", a version of Aesop's The Milkmaid and Her Pail, was claimed by Max Müller to originate in the Hindu cycle Panchatantra.\n\nTale 2, \"What happened to a good Man and his Son, leading a beast to market,\" is the familiar fable The miller, his son and the donkey.\n\nIn 2016, Baroque Decay released a game under the name \"The Count Lucanor\". As well as some protagonists' names, certain events from the books inspired past events in the game.\n\nThe stories\n\nThe book opens with a prologue which introduces the characters of the Count and Patronio. The titles in the following list are those given in Keller and Keating's 1977 translation into English. James York's 1868 translation into English gives a significantly different ordering of the stories and omits the fifty-first.\n\n What Happened to a King and His Favorite \n What Happened to a Good Man and His Son \n How King Richard of England Leapt into the Sea against the Moors\n What a Genoese Said to His Soul When He Was about to Die \n What Happened to a Fox and a Crow Who Had a Piece of Cheese in His Beak\n How the Swallow Warned the Other Birds When She Saw Flax Being Sown \n What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana \n What Happened to a Man Whose Liver Had to Be Washed \n What Happened to Two Horses Which Were Thrown to the Lion \n What Happened to a Man Who on Account of Poverty and Lack of Other Food Was Eating Bitter Lentils \n What Happened to a Dean of Santiago de Compostela and Don Yllán, the Grand Master of Toledo\n What Happened to the Fox and the Rooster \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Hunting Partridges \n The Miracle of Saint Dominick When He Preached against the Usurer \n What Happened to Lorenzo Suárez at the Siege of Seville \n The Reply that count Fernán González Gave to His Relative Núño Laynes \n What Happened to a Very Hungry Man Who Was Half-heartedly Invited to Dinner \n What Happened to Pero Meléndez de Valdés When He Broke His Leg \n What Happened to the Crows and the Owls \n What Happened to a King for Whom a Man Promised to Perform Alchemy \n What Happened to a Young King and a Philosopher to Whom his Father Commended Him \n What Happened to the Lion and the Bull \n How the Ants Provide for Themselves \n What Happened to the King Who Wanted to Test His Three Sons \n What Happened to the Count of Provence and How He Was Freed from Prison by the Advice of Saladin\n What Happened to the Tree of Lies \n What Happened to an Emperor and to Don Alvarfáñez Minaya and Their Wives \n What Happened in Granada to Don Lorenzo Suárez Gallinato When He Beheaded the Renegade Chaplain \n What Happened to a Fox Who Lay down in the Street to Play Dead \n What Happened to King Abenabet of Seville and Ramayquía His Wife \n How a Cardinal Judged between the Canons of Paris and the Friars Minor \n What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth \n What Happened to Don Juan Manuel's Saker Falcon and an Eagle and a Heron \n What Happened to a Blind Man Who Was Leading Another \n What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\n What Happened to a Merchant When He Found His Son and His Wife Sleeping Together \n What Happened to Count Fernán González with His Men after He Had Won the Battle of Hacinas \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Loaded down with Precious Stones and Drowned in the River \n What Happened to a Man and a Swallow and a Sparrow \n Why the Seneschal of Carcassonne Lost His Soul \n What Happened to a King of Córdova Named Al-Haquem \n What Happened to a Woman of Sham Piety \n What Happened to Good and Evil and the Wise Man and the Madman \n What Happened to Don Pero Núñez the Loyal, to Don Ruy González de Zavallos, and to Don Gutier Roiz de Blaguiello with Don Rodrigo the Generous \n What Happened to a Man Who Became the Devil's Friend and Vassal \n What Happened to a Philosopher who by Accident Went down a Street Where Prostitutes Lived \n What Befell a Moor and His Sister Who Pretended That She Was Timid \n What Happened to a Man Who Tested His Friends \n What Happened to the Man Whom They Cast out Naked on an Island When They Took away from Him the Kingdom He Ruled \n What Happened to Saladin and a Lady, the Wife of a Knight Who Was His Vassal \n What Happened to a Christian King Who Was Very Powerful and Haughty\n\nReferences\n\nNotes\n\nBibliography\n\n Sturm, Harlan\n\n Wacks, David\n\nExternal links\n\nThe Internet Archive provides free access to the 1868 translation by James York.\nJSTOR has the to the 1977 translation by Keller and Keating.\nSelections in English and Spanish (pedagogical edition) with introduction, notes, and bibliography in Open Iberia/América (open access teaching anthology)\n\n14th-century books\nSpanish literature\n1335 books",
"Ajok, also known as Adyok and Naijok in certain variations, is the supreme deity in Lotuko mythology, who created humans as a mirror image of himself.\n\nLegend \nAjok is known as a benevolent god to humankind according to Lotuko mythology, as long as they continue to worship him through prayers and sacrificial offerings.\n\nOrigin of Death \nAjok plays a central role in the Lotuko myth of how death became a permanent state for living beings. It is said that the child of the first woman and the man of humans had passed away, and the first woman asked for Ajok’s help to revive the child. Ajok did so, but the husband of the woman found out about it. The woman did not consult her husband about her intentions beforehand, and he became angered by what happened. The revived child was later killed by the husband as retaliation for her wife’s actions. In one version of the myth, his wife was also killed at his hands. Ajok originally planned to make humans immortal, but after what transpired, he left Earth and declared that from that day on, those who died shall remain that way.\n\nThe Rainmaker \nAjok is also associated with the Lotuko myth of the rainmaker. The rainmaker is a being named Ibon and the personification of this role is bestowed to the leader of the Lotuko community. According to the myth, when the rain pours from the sky, the spirits of the dead are entreating Ajok on behalf of the living to make it happen.\n\nSee also \n\n List of African mythological figures\n\nReferences \n\nAfrican gods\nAfrican mythology"
] |
[
"Jerry Garcia",
"Childhood and early life",
"Where are his ancestors from",
"Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain.",
"Where else are his ancestors from",
"His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish.",
"What was his fathers name",
"Jose Ramon \"Joe\" Garcia",
"what was his mothers name",
"Ruth Marie \"Bobbie\" (nee Clifford) Garcia,",
"Where was he born at",
"He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California,",
"What date was he born on",
"August 1, 1942,",
"Any siblings",
"second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon \"Tiff\",",
"What happened to him as a child",
"Santa Cruz Mountains, two-thirds of Garcia's right middle finger was accidentally cut off."
] | C_a95583dc963548a79d885ace2c196575_1 | when was his brother born | 9 | When was Jerry Garcia's brother born? | Jerry Garcia | Jerry Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (nee Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting. Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family--who had emigrated from Spain in 1919--would often sing during reunions. Garcia experienced several tragedies during his youth. At age four, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains, two-thirds of Garcia's right middle finger was accidentally cut off. Garcia and his brother Tiff were chopping wood. Jerry steadied a piece of wood with his finger, but Tiff miscalculated and the axe severed most of Jerry's middle finger. After his mother wrapped his hand in a towel, Garcia's father drove him over 30 miles to the nearest hospital. A few weeks later, Garcia -- who had not looked at his finger since the accident -- was surprised to discover most of it missing when the bandage he was wearing came off during a bath. Garcia later confided that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood. Less than a year after he lost most of his finger, his father died. Vacationing with his family near Arcata in Northern California in 1947, Garcia's father went fly fishing in the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest. Not long after entering the river, Garcia's father slipped on a rock, lost his balance and was swept away by the river's rapids. He drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw his father fall into the river, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, lends weight to McNally's claim. Jackson's evidence was that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death failed to mention Garcia was present when he died. CANNOTANSWER | 1937. | Jerome John Garcia (August 1, 1942 – August 9, 1995) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known for being a principal songwriter, the lead guitarist and a vocalist with the rock band the Grateful Dead, of which he was a founding member and which came to prominence during the counterculture of the 1960s. Although he disavowed the role, Garcia was viewed by many as the leader of the band.
As one of its founders, Garcia performed with the Grateful Dead for their entire 30-year career (1965–1995). Garcia also founded and participated in a variety of side projects, including the Saunders–Garcia Band (with longtime friend Merl Saunders), the Jerry Garcia Band, Old & In the Way, the Garcia/Grisman and Garcia/Kahn acoustic duos, Legion of Mary, and New Riders of the Purple Sage (which he co-founded with John Dawson and David Nelson). He also released several solo albums, and contributed to a number of albums by other artists over the years as a session musician. He was well known for his distinctive guitar playing, and was ranked 13th in Rolling Stones "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" cover story in 2003. In the 2015 version of the list he was ranked at #46.
Garcia was also renowned for his musical and technical ability, particularly his ability to play a variety of instruments and sustain long improvisations with the Grateful Dead. Garcia believed that improvisation took stress away from his playing and allowed him to make spur of the moment decisions that he would not have made intentionally. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Garcia noted that "my own preferences are for improvisation, for making it up as I go along. The idea of picking, of eliminating possibilities by deciding, that's difficult for me". Originating from the days of the "acid tests", these improvisations were a form of exploration rather than playing a song already written.
Later in life, Garcia struggled with diabetes and in 1986, went into a diabetic coma that nearly cost him his life. Although his overall health improved somewhat after that, he continued to struggle with obesity, smoking, and longstanding heroin and cocaine addictions. He was staying in a California drug rehabilitation facility when he died of a heart attack on August 9, 1995, at the age of 53.
Early life
Garcia's ancestors on his father's side were from Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother's ancestors were Irish and Swedish. He was born in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, California, on August 1, 1942, to Jose Ramon "Joe" Garcia and Ruth Marie "Bobbie" (née Clifford) Garcia, who was herself born in San Francisco. His parents named him after composer Jerome Kern. Jerome John was their second child, preceded by Clifford Ramon "Tiff", who was born in 1937. Shortly before Clifford's birth, their father and a partner leased a building in downtown San Francisco and turned it into a bar, partly in response to Jose being blackballed from a musicians' union for moonlighting.
Garcia was influenced by music at an early age, taking piano lessons for much of his childhood. His father was a retired professional musician and his mother enjoyed playing the piano. His father's extended family—which had immigrated from Spain in 1919—would often sing during reunions.
In 1946, two-thirds of four-year-old Garcia's right middle finger was cut off by his brother in a wood splitting accident, while the family was vacationing in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Garcia later confessed that he often used it to his advantage in his youth, showing it off to other children in his neighborhood.
Less than a year after this incident his father died in a fly fishing accident when the family was vacationing near Arcata in Northern California. He slipped after entering the Trinity River, part of the Six Rivers National Forest, and drowned before other fishermen could reach him. Although Garcia claimed he saw the incident, Dennis McNally, author of the book A Long Strange Trip: The Inside Story of the Grateful Dead, argues Garcia formed the memory after hearing others repeat the story. Blair Jackson, who wrote Garcia: An American Life, notes that a local newspaper article describing Jose's death did not mention Jerry being present when he died.
Excelsior District
Following his father's death, Garcia's mother Ruth took over her husband's bar, buying out his partner for full ownership. She began working full-time there, sending Jerry and his brother to live nearby with her parents, Tillie and William Clifford. During the five-year period in which he lived with his grandparents, Garcia enjoyed a large amount of autonomy and attended Monroe Elementary School. At the school, Garcia was greatly encouraged in his artistic abilities by his third grade teacher: through her, he discovered that "being a creative person was a viable possibility in life." According to Garcia, it was around this time that he was opened up to country and bluegrass music by his grandmother, whom he recalled enjoyed listening to the Grand Ole Opry. His elder brother, Clifford, however, staunchly believed the contrary, insisting that Garcia was "fantasizing all [that] ... she'd been to Opry, but she didn't listen to it on the radio." It was at this point that Garcia started playing the banjo, his first stringed instrument.
Menlo Park
In 1953, Garcia's mother married Wally Matusiewicz. Subsequently, Garcia and his brother moved back home with their mother and new stepfather. However, due to the roughneck reputation of their neighborhood at the time, Garcia's mother moved their family to Menlo Park. During their stay in Menlo Park, Garcia became acquainted with racism and antisemitism, things he disliked intensely. The same year, Garcia was also introduced to rock and roll and rhythm and blues by his brother, and enjoyed listening to Ray Charles, John Lee Hooker, B. B. King, Hank Ballard, and, later, Chuck Berry. Clifford often memorized the vocals for his favorite songs, and would then make Garcia learn the harmony parts, a move to which Garcia later attributed much of his early ear training.
In mid-1957, Garcia began smoking cigarettes and was introduced to marijuana. Garcia would later reminisce about the first time he smoked marijuana: "Me and a friend of mine went up into the hills with two joints, the San Francisco foothills, and smoked these joints and just got so high and laughed and roared and went skipping down the streets doing funny things and just having a helluva time". During this time, Garcia also studied at what is now the San Francisco Art Institute. The teacher there was Wally Hedrick, an artist who came to prominence during the 1960s. During the classes, he often encouraged Garcia in his drawing and painting skills. Hedrick also introduced Garcia to the fiction of Jack Kerouac, whom Garcia later cited as a major influence.
San Francisco
In June, Garcia graduated from the local Menlo Oaks school. He then moved with his family back to San Francisco, where they lived in an apartment above the family bar, a newly built replacement for the original, that had been torn down to make way for a freeway entrance. Two months later, on Garcia's fifteenth birthday, his mother bought an accordion for him, to his great disappointment. Garcia had long been captivated by many rhythm and blues artists, especially Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley, leaving him craving an electric guitar. After some pleading, his mother exchanged the accordion for a Danelectro with a small amplifier at a local pawnshop. Garcia's stepfather, who was somewhat proficient with instruments, helped tune his guitar to an unusual open tuning.
Cazadero
After a short stint at Denman Junior High School, Garcia attended tenth grade at Balboa High School in 1958, where he often got into trouble for skipping classes and fighting. Consequently, in 1959, Garcia's mother again moved the family to a safer environment, to Cazadero, a small town in Sonoma County, north of San Francisco. This turn of events did not sit well with Garcia, who had to travel by bus to Analy High School in Sebastopol, the nearest school. Garcia did, however, join a band at his school known as the Chords. After performing in and winning a contest, the band's reward was recording a song. They chose "Raunchy" by Bill Justis.
Recording career
Relocation and band beginnings
Garcia stole his mother's car in 1960, and was given the option of joining the United States Army in lieu of prison. He received basic training at Fort Ord. After training, he was transferred to Fort Winfield Scott in the Presidio of San Francisco. Garcia spent most of his time in the army at his leisure, missing roll call and accruing many counts of being AWOL. As a result, Garcia was given a general discharge on December 14, 1960.
In January 1961, Garcia drove down to East Palo Alto to see Laird Grant, an old friend from middle school. He had bought a 1950 Cadillac sedan from a cook in the army, which barely made it to Grant's residence before it broke down. Garcia spent the next few weeks sleeping where friends would allow, eventually using his car as a home. Through Grant, Garcia met Dave McQueen in February, who, after hearing Garcia perform some blues music, introduced him to local people and to the Chateau, a rooming house located near Stanford University which was then a popular hangout.
On February 20, 1961, Garcia got into a car with Paul Speegle, a sixteen-year-old artist and acquaintance of Garcia; Lee Adams, the house manager of the Chateau and driver of the car; and Alan Trist, a companion of theirs. After speeding past the Palo Alto Veterans Hospital, the driver encountered a curve and, speeding around , crashed into the guard rail, sending the car rolling turbulently. Garcia was hurled through the windshield of the car into a nearby field with such force he was literally thrown out of his shoes and would later be unable to recall the ejection. Lee Adams, the driver, and Alan Trist, who was seated in the back, were thrown from the car as well, suffering from abdominal injuries and a spine fracture, respectively. Garcia escaped with a broken collarbone, while Speegle, still in the car, was fatally injured.
Lee's reckless driving and crash served as an awakening for Garcia, who later commented: "That's where my life began. Before then I was always living at less than capacity. I was idling. That was the slingshot for the rest of my life. It was like a second chance. Then I got serious". It was at this time that Garcia began to realize that he needed to begin playing the guitar in earnest—a move which meant giving up his love of drawing and painting.
In April 1961, Garcia first met Robert Hunter, who would become a long-time friend of and lyricist for the Grateful Dead, collaborating principally with Garcia. The two involved themselves in the South Bay and San Francisco art and music scenes, sometimes playing at Menlo Park's Kepler's Books. Garcia performed his first concert with Hunter, each earning five dollars. Garcia and Hunter also played in bands (the Wildwood Boys and the Hart Valley Drifters) with David Nelson, who would later play with Garcia in the New Riders of the Purple Sage and contribute to several Grateful Dead album songs.
In 1962, Garcia met Phil Lesh, the eventual bassist of the Grateful Dead, during a party in Menlo Park's bohemian Perry Lane neighborhood (where author Ken Kesey lived). Lesh would later write in his autobiography that Garcia reminded him of pictures he had seen of the composer Claude Debussy, with his "dark, curly hair, goatee, Impressionist eyes". While attending another party in Palo Alto, Lesh approached Garcia to suggest they record Garcia on Lesh's tape recorder and produce a radio show for the progressive, community-supported Berkeley radio station KPFA. Using an old Wollensak tape recorder, they recorded "Matty Groves" and "The Long Black Veil", among several other tunes. The recordings became a central feature of a 90-minute KPFA special broadcast, "The Long Black Veil and Other Ballads: An Evening with Jerry Garcia". The link between KPFA and the Grateful Dead continues to this day, having included many fundraisers, interviews, live concert broadcasts, taped band performances and all-day or all-weekend "Dead-only" marathons.
Garcia soon began playing and teaching acoustic guitar and banjo. One of Garcia's students was Bob Matthews, who later engineered many of the Grateful Dead's albums. Matthews attended Menlo-Atherton High School and was friends with Bob Weir, and on New Year's Eve 1963, he introduced Weir and Garcia.
Between 1962 and 1964, Garcia sang and performed mainly bluegrass, old-time, and folk music. One of the bands Garcia performed with was the Sleepy Hollow Hog Stompers, a bluegrass act. The group consisted of Garcia on guitar, banjo, vocals, and harmonica, Marshall Leicester on banjo, guitar, and vocals, and Dick Arnold on fiddle and vocals. Soon after this, Garcia, Weir, Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, and several of their friends formed a jug band called Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions. Around this time, the psychedelic drug LSD was gaining popularity. Garcia first began using LSD in 1964; later, when asked how it changed his life, he remarked: "Well, it changed everything [...] the effect was that it freed me because I suddenly realized that my little attempt at having a straight life and doing that was really a fiction and just wasn't going to work out. Luckily I wasn't far enough into it for it to be shattering or anything; it was like a realization that just made me feel immensely relieved."
In 1965, Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions evolved into the Warlocks, with the addition of Phil Lesh on bass guitar and Bill Kreutzmann on percussion. However, the band discovered that another group (which would later become the Velvet Underground) had recently selected the same name. In response, Garcia came up with "Grateful Dead" by opening a Funk & Wagnalls dictionary to an entry for "Grateful dead". The definition for "Grateful dead" was "a dead person, or his angel, showing gratitude to someone who, as an act of charity, arranged their burial". The band's first reaction was disapproval. Garcia later explained the group's reaction: "I didn't like it really, I just found it to be really powerful. [Bob] Weir didn't like it, [Bill] Kreutzmann didn't like it and nobody really wanted to hear about it." Despite their dislike of the name, it quickly spread by word of mouth, and soon became their official title.
Career with the Grateful Dead
Garcia served as lead guitarist, as well as one of the principal vocalists and songwriters of the Grateful Dead for its entire career. Garcia composed such songs as "Dark Star", "Franklin's Tower", and "Scarlet Begonias", among many others. Robert Hunter, an ardent collaborator with the band, wrote the lyrics to all but a few of Garcia's songs.
Garcia was well-noted for his "soulful extended guitar improvisations", which would frequently feature interplay between him and his fellow band members. His fame, as well as the band's, arguably rested on their ability to never play a song the same way twice. Often, Garcia would take cues from rhythm guitarist Bob Weir, remarking that "there are some [...] kinds of ideas that would really throw me if I had to create a harmonic bridge between all the things going on rhythmically with two drums and Phil [Lesh's] innovative bass playing. Weir's ability to solve that sort of problem is extraordinary. [...] Harmonically, I take a lot of my solo cues from Bob."
When asked to describe his approach to soloing, Garcia commented: "It keeps on changing. I still basically revolve around the melody and the way it's broken up into phrases as I perceive them. With most solos, I tend to play something that phrases the way the melody does; my phrases may be more dense or have different value, but they'll occur in the same places in the song. [...]"
Garcia and the band toured almost constantly from their formation in 1965 until Garcia's death in 1995. Periodically, there were breaks due to exhaustion or health problems, often due to Garcia's drug use. During their three-decade span, the Grateful Dead played 2,314 shows.
Garcia's guitar-playing was eclectic. He melded elements from the various kinds of music that influenced him. Echoes of bluegrass playing (such as Arthur Smith and Doc Watson) could be heard. There was also early rock (like Lonnie Mack, James Burton, and Chuck Berry), contemporary blues (Freddie King and Lowell Fulsom), country and western (Roy Nichols and Don Rich), and jazz (Charlie Christian and Django Reinhardt) to be heard in Garcia's style. Don Rich was the sparkling country guitar player in Buck Owens's "the Buckaroos" band of the 1960s, but besides Rich's style, both Garcia's pedal steel guitar playing (on Grateful Dead records and others) and his standard electric guitar work, were influenced by another of Owens's Buckaroos of that time, pedal steel player Tom Brumley. And as an improvisational soloist, John Coltrane was one of his greatest personal and musical influences.
Garcia later described his playing style as having "descended from barroom rock and roll, country guitar. Just 'cause that's where all my stuff comes from. It's like that blues instrumental stuff that was happening in the late Fifties and early Sixties, like Freddie King." Garcia's style could vary with the song being played and the instrument he was using, but his playing had a number of so-called "signatures". Among these were lead lines based on rhythmic triplets (examples include the songs "Good Morning Little School Girl", "New Speedway Boogie", "Brokedown Palace", "Deal", "Loser", "Truckin'", "That's It for the Other One", "U.S. Blues", "Sugaree", and "Don't Ease Me In").
Side projects
In addition to the Grateful Dead, Garcia had numerous side projects, the most notable being the Jerry Garcia Band. He was also involved with various acoustic projects such as Old & In the Way and other bluegrass bands, including collaborations with noted bluegrass mandolinist David Grisman. The documentary film Grateful Dawg, co-produced by Gillian Grisman and former NBC producer Pamela Hamilton chronicles the deep, long-term friendship between Garcia and Grisman. When Garcia and Grisman released Not For Kids Only, Hamilton produced their interview and concert for NBC. After several years of producing stories on the Grateful Dead and band members' side projects, Hamilton interviewed Bob Weir for a feature on Garcia's death marking the end of an era.
Other groups of which Garcia was a member at one time or another include the Black Mountain Boys, Legion of Mary, Reconstruction, and the Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band. Garcia was also a fan of jazz artists and improvisation: he played with jazz keyboardists Merl Saunders and Howard Wales for many years in various groups and jam sessions, and he appeared on saxophonist Ornette Coleman's 1988 album, Virgin Beauty. His collaboration with Merl Saunders and Muruga Booker on the world music album Blues From the Rainforest launched the Rainforest Band.
Garcia also spent a lot of time in the recording studio helping out fellow musician friends in session work, often adding guitar, vocals, pedal steel, sometimes banjo and piano and even producing. He played on over 50 studio albums, the styles of which were eclectic and varied, including bluegrass, rock, folk, blues, country, jazz, electronic music, gospel, funk, and reggae. Artists who sought Garcia's help included the likes of Jefferson Airplane (most notably Surrealistic Pillow, Garcia being listed as their "spiritual advisor"). Garcia himself recalled in a mid-1967 interview that he'd played the high lead on "Today," played on "Plastic Fantastic Lover" and "Comin' Back to Me" on that album. Others include Tom Fogerty, David Bromberg, Robert Hunter (Liberty, on Relix Records), Paul Pena, Peter Rowan, Warren Zevon, Country Joe McDonald, Pete Sears, Ken Nordine, Ornette Coleman, Bruce Hornsby, Bob Dylan, It's a Beautiful Day, and many more. In 1995 Garcia played on three tracks for the CD Blue Incantation by guitarist Sanjay Mishra, making it his last studio collaboration.
Throughout the early 1970s, Garcia, Lesh, Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart, and David Crosby collaborated intermittently with MIT-educated composer and biologist Ned Lagin on several projects in the realm of early ambient music; these include the album Seastones (released by the Ned Lagin on the Round Records subsidiary) and L, an unfinished dance work composed by Ned Lagin. In 1970, Garcia participated in the soundtrack for the film Zabriskie Point.
Garcia also played pedal steel guitar for fellow-San Francisco musicians New Riders of the Purple Sage from their initial dates in 1969 to October 1971, when increased commitments with the Dead forced him to opt out of the group. He appears as a band member on their debut album New Riders of the Purple Sage, and produced Home, Home on the Road, a 1974 live album by the band. He also contributed pedal steel guitar to the enduring hit "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young. Garcia also played steel guitar licks on Brewer & Shipley's 1970 album Tarkio. Despite considering himself a novice on the pedal steel, Garcia routinely ranked high in player polls. After a long lapse from playing the pedal steel, he played it once more during several of the Dead's concerts with Bob Dylan in the summer of 1987.
In 1988, Garcia agreed to perform at several major benefits including the "Soviet American Peace Walk" concert at the Band Shell, in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, that drew 25,000 people. He was asked to play by longtime friend and fellow musician, Pete Sears, who played piano with all the bands that day, and also procured all the other musicians. Garcia, Mickey Hart and Steve Parish played the show, then were given a police escort to a Grateful Dead show across the bay later that night. Garcia also played with Nick Gravenites and Pete Sears at a benefit given for Vietnam Veteran and peace activist Brian Willson, who lost both legs below the knee when he attempted to block a train carrying weapons to military dictatorships in El Salvador.
Having previously studied at the San Francisco Art Institute as a teenager, Garcia embarked on a second career in the visual arts in the late 1980s. He created a number of drawings, etchings, and water colors. Garcia's artistic endeavors were represented by the Weir Gallery in Berkeley, California from 1989 to 1996. During this period, Roberta Weir (unrelated to Garcia's bandmate Bob Weir) provided Garcia with new art techniques to use, sponsored his first solo show in 1990, and prepared blank etching plates for him to draw on. These would then be processed and printed by gallery staff and brought back to Garcia for approval and signature, usually with a passing of stacks of paper backstage at a Dead show. His annual shows at the Weir Gallery garnered much attention, leading to further shows in New York and other cities. Garcia was an early adopter of digital art media; his artistic style was as varied as his musical output, and he carried small notebooks for pen and ink sketches wherever he toured. Roberta Weir continues to maintain an archive of the artwork of Jerry Garcia. Perhaps the most widely seen pieces of Jerry Garcia's art are the many editions of men's neckties produced by Stonehenge Ltd. and Mulberry Neckware. Some began as etchings, other designs came from his drawings, paintings, and digital art. Garcia's artwork has since expanded into everything from hotel rooms, wet suits, men's sport shirts, a women's wear line, boxer shorts, hair accessories, cummerbunds, silk scarves and wool rugs.
Personal life
Garcia met his first wife, Sara Ruppenthal, in 1963. She was working at the coffee house in the back of Kepler's Books, where Garcia, Hunter, and Nelson regularly performed. They married on April 23, 1963, and on December 8 of that year their daughter Heather was born.
Carolyn Adams, a Merry Prankster also known as "Mountain Girl" or "M.G.," had a daughter, Sunshine, with Ken Kesey. Mountain Girl married another Prankster, George Walker, but they soon separated. She and Sunshine then moved into 710 Ashbury with Garcia in late 1966 where they would ultimately live together until 1975. In 1994, Sara and Jerry officially divorced after a long separation. Adams gave birth to Garcia's second and third daughters, Annabelle Walker Garcia (February 2, 1970) and Theresa Adams "Trixie" Garcia (September 21, 1974).
In August 1970, Garcia's mother Ruth was involved in a car crash near Twin Peaks in San Francisco. Garcia, who was recording the album American Beauty at the time, often left the sessions to visit his mother with his brother Clifford. She died on September 28, 1970.
In the midst of a March 1973 Grateful Dead engagement at Long Island's Nassau Coliseum, Garcia met Deborah Koons, an aspiring filmmaker from a wealthy Cincinnati, Ohio-based family who would much later marry him and become his widow. After a brief correspondence, he began his relationship with her in mid-1974. This gradually strained his relationship with Adams and culminated in Garcia leaving Adams for Koons in late 1975. The end of his relationship with Koons in 1977 precipitated a brief reconciliation with Adams, including the reestablishment of their household. However, she did not agree with the guitarist's persistent use of narcotics and moved with the children to the Eugene, Oregon area, living near Kesey, in 1978.
Following Adams' departure, Garcia had an affair with Amy Moore. She was a Kentucky-born member of the extended "Grateful Dead family", and the mistress of Texas oil heir Roy Cullen. Their affair lasted circa 1980–1981, and inspired the Garcia-Hunter song "Run for the Roses."
Adams and Garcia were married on December 31, 1981, largely as a result of mutual tax exigencies. Despite the legal codification of their union, she remained in Oregon, while Garcia continued to live near the Grateful Dead's offices in San Rafael, California. Garcia lived with a variety of housemates, including longtime Grateful Dead employee and Jerry Garcia Band manager Rock Scully. Scully, who co-managed the Grateful Dead throughout the mid-to-late 1960s before serving as the band's "advance man" and publicist, was dismissed by the group in 1984 for enabling Garcia's addictions and for allegedly embezzling the Garcia Band's profits. Another housemate was Nora Sage, a Deadhead who became Garcia's housekeeper while studying at the Golden Gate University School of Law. The exact nature of their relationship remains unclear, although it is believed to have been platonic due to Garcia's addictions. She later became his art representative.
While they would briefly reunite following his diabetic coma, Garcia and Adams ultimately divorced in 1994. Phil Lesh has subsequently stated that he rarely saw Adams on any of the band tours. In a 1991 Rolling Stone interview, Garcia stated that "we haven't really lived together since the Seventies".
During the autumn of 1978, Garcia developed a friendship with Shimer College student Manasha Matheson, an artist and music enthusiast. They remained friends over the following nine years before initiating a romantic relationship in Hartford, Connecticut on the Grateful Dead's spring 1987 tour. Jerry and Manasha became parents with the birth of their daughter, Keelin Noel Garcia, on December 20, 1987. On August 17, 1990, Jerry and Manasha married at their San Anselmo, California home in a spiritual ceremony free of legal convention. In 1991, Garcia expressed his delight in finding the time to "actually be a father" to Keelin in contrast to his past relationships with his children. A year later, Garcia dedicated his first art book, Paintings, Drawings and Sketches, "For Manasha, with love, Jerry."
In January 1993, Barbara "Brigid" Meier, a former girlfriend from the early 1960s, reentered Garcia's life for a brief period. Meier claimed, Garcia had considered her to be the "love of his life" and proposed to her during a Hawaiian vacation shortly after their relationship recommenced. Garcia's "love of his life" sentiment was not reserved for one lover, as he expressed the same feelings to several other women in his life. At Garcia's 1995 funeral, Koons declared that she was "the love of his life" while paying her final respects, whereupon Meier and Ruppenthal, who were both in attendance, simultaneously exclaimed, "He said that to me!"
The affair with Meier marked the breakup of Jerry's family life with Manasha and Keelin. Garcia ended the affair with Meier forty-five days later while on tour in Chicago with the Grateful Dead after she confronted him about his drug use.
Shortly thereafter, Garcia renewed his acquaintance with Deborah Koons in the spring of 1993. They married on February 14, 1994, in Sausalito, California. Garcia and Koons were married at the time of his death.
Lifestyle and health
Because of their public profile, Garcia and his collaborators were occasionally singled out in the American government's war on drugs. On October 2, 1967, 710 Ashbury Street in San Francisco (where the Grateful Dead had taken up residence the year before) was raided after a police tip-off. Grateful Dead members Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan were apprehended on marijuana charges which were later dropped, although Garcia himself was not arrested. The following year, Garcia's picture was used in a defamatory context in a campaign commercial for Richard Nixon.
Most of the band were arrested again in January 1970, after they flew to New Orleans from Hawaii. After returning to their hotel from a performance, the band checked into their rooms, only to be quickly raided by police. Approximately fifteen people were arrested on the spot, including many of the road crew, management, and nearly all of the Grateful Dead except for Garcia, who arrived later, outgoing keyboardist Tom Constanten, who abstained from all drugs as a member of the Church of Scientology, and McKernan, who eschewed illegal drugs in favor of alcohol.
According to Bill Kreutzmann, the band's use of cocaine accelerated throughout the early 1970s. After using heroin in a brothel in 1974 (likely on the band's second European tour), Garcia was introduced to a smokeable form of the drug (initially advertised as refined opium) colloquially known as "Persian" or "Persian Base" during the group's 1975 hiatus. Influenced by the stresses of creating and releasing The Grateful Dead Movie and the acrimonious collapse of the band's independent record labels over the next two years, Garcia became increasingly dependent upon both substances. These factors, combined with the alcohol and drug abuse of several other members of the Grateful Dead, resulted in a turbulent atmosphere. By 1978, the band's chemistry began "cracking and crumbling", resulting in poor group cohesion. As a result, Keith and Donna Jean Godchaux left the band in February 1979.
With the addition of keyboardist/vocalist Brent Mydland that year amid the ongoing coalescence of the Deadhead subculture, the band reached new commercial heights as a touring group on the American arena circuit in the early 1980s, enabling them to forsake studio recording for several years. Nevertheless, this was offset by such factors as the band's atypically large payroll and Garcia's $700-a-day () drug addiction, resulting in the guitarist taking on a frenetic slate of solo touring outside of the Grateful Dead's rigorous schedule, including abbreviated acoustic duo concerts with Jerry Garcia Band bassist John Kahn that were widely rumored to be a funding conduit for their respective addictions.
Though things seemed to be getting better for the band, Garcia's health was declining. By 1983, Garcia's demeanor onstage had appeared to change. Despite still playing the guitar with great passion and intensity, there were times that he would appear disengaged; as such, shows were often inconsistent. Years of heavy tobacco smoking had affected his voice, and he gained considerable weight. By 1984, he would often rest his chin on the microphone during performances. The so-called "endless tour"—the result of years of financial risks, drug use, and poor business decisions—had taken its toll.
Garcia's decade-long heroin addiction culminated in the rest of the band holding an intervention in January 1985. Given the choice between the band or the drugs, Garcia agreed to check into a rehabilitation center in Oakland, California. A few days later in January, before the start of his program in Oakland, Garcia was arrested for drug possession in Golden Gate Park; he subsequently attended a drug diversion program. Throughout 1985, he tapered his drug use on tour and at home with the assistance of Nora Sage; by the spring of 1986, he was completely abstinent.
Precipitated by an unhealthy weight, dehydration, bad eating habits, and a recent relapse on the Grateful Dead's first stadium tour, Garcia collapsed into a diabetic coma in July 1986, waking up five days later. He later spoke about this period of unconsciousness as surreal: "Well, I had some very weird experiences. My main experience was one of furious activity and tremendous struggle in a sort of futuristic, space-ship vehicle with insectoid presences. After I came out of my coma, I had this image of myself as these little hunks of protoplasm that were stuck together kind of like stamps with perforations between them that you could snap off." Garcia's coma had a profound effect on him: it forced him to have to relearn how to play the guitar, as well as other, more basic skills. Within a handful of months, he had recovered, playing with the Jerry Garcia Band and the Grateful Dead again later that year.
After Garcia's recovery, the band released a comeback album In the Dark in 1987, which became their best-selling studio album. Inspired by Garcia's improved health, a successful album and the continuing emergence of Mydland as a third frontman, the band's energy and chemistry reached a new peak in the late 1980s.
Amid a litany of personal problems, Mydland died of a speedball overdose in July 1990. His death greatly affected Garcia, leading him to believe that the band's chemistry would never be the same. Before beginning the fall tour, the band acquired keyboardists Vince Welnick and Bruce Hornsby. The power of Hornsby's performances drove Garcia to new heights on stage. However, as the band continued through 1991, Garcia became concerned with the band's future. He was exhausted from five straight years of touring. He thought a break was necessary, mainly so that the band could come back with fresh material. The idea was put off by the pressures of management, and the touring continued. Garcia began using heroin again after several years of intermittent prescription opiate use. Though his relapse was brief, the band was quick to react. Soon after the last show of the tour in Denver, Garcia was confronted by the band with another intervention. After a disastrous meeting, Garcia invited Phil Lesh over to his home in San Rafael, California, where he explained that after the meeting he would start attending a methadone clinic. Garcia said that he wanted to clean up in his own way, and return to making music.
After returning from the band's 1992 summer tour, Garcia became sick, a throwback to his diabetic coma in 1986. Manasha Garcia nursed Jerry back to health and organized a team of health professionals which included acupuncturist Yen Wei Choong and Randy Baker, MD, a holistic family physician to treat him at home. Garcia recovered over the following days, despite the Grateful Dead having to cancel their fall tour to allow him time to recuperate. Garcia reduced his cigarette smoking and began losing weight. He also became a vegetarian.
Despite these improvements, Garcia's physical and mental condition continued to decline throughout 1993 and 1994. He began to use narcotics again to dull the pain.
In light of his second drug relapse and current condition, Garcia checked himself into the Betty Ford Center during July 1995. His stay was limited, lasting only two weeks. Motivated by the experience, he then checked into the Serenity Knolls treatment center in Forest Knolls, California, where he died.
Death
Garcia died in his room at the rehabilitation clinic on August 9, 1995. The cause of death was a heart attack. Garcia had long struggled with drug addiction, weight problems, sleep apnea, heavy smoking, and diabetes—all of which contributed to his physical decline. Lesh remarked that, upon hearing of Garcia's death, "I was struck numb. I had lost my oldest surviving friend, my brother." Garcia's funeral was held on August 12, at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Belvedere. It was attended by his family, the remaining Grateful Dead members, and their friends, including former pro basketball player Bill Walton and musician Bob Dylan. Deborah Koons barred two of Garcia's former wives from the ceremony.
On August 13, about 25,000 people attended a municipally sanctioned public memorial at the Polo Fields of San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. Crowds produced hundreds of flowers, gifts, images, and a bagpipe rendition of "Amazing Grace" in remembrance. In the Haight, a single white rose was reportedly tied to a tree near the Dead's former Haight-Ashbury house, where a group of followers gathered to mourn.
On the morning of April 4, 1996, after a total lunar eclipse earlier that day, Weir and Deborah Koons accompanied by Sanjay Mishra, spread half of Garcia's ashes into the Ganges at the holy city of Rishikesh, India, a site sacred to Hindus. The remaining ashes were poured into the San Francisco Bay. Koons did not allow former wife Carolyn Garcia to attend the spreading of the ashes.
Musical equipment
Garcia played many guitars during his career, which ranged from student and budget models to custom-made instruments. During his thirty-five year career as a professional musician, Garcia used about 25 guitars.
In 1965, when Garcia was playing with the Warlocks, he used a Guild Starfire, which he also used on the début album of the Grateful Dead. Beginning in late 1967 and ending in 1968, Garcia played black or gold mid-1950s Gibson Les Paul guitars with P-90 pickups. In 1969, he picked up the Gibson SG and used it for most of that year and 1970, except for a small period in between where he used a sunburst Fender Stratocaster.
During Garcia's "pedal steel flirtation period" (as Bob Weir referred to it in Anthem to Beauty), from approximately 1969 to 1972, he initially played a Fender instrument before upgrading to the ZB Custom D-10, especially in his earlier public performances. Although this was a double neck guitar, Garcia used the "E9 neck and the three pedals to raise the tone and two levers to lower it." He employed an Emmons D-10 at the Grateful Dead's and New Riders of the Purple Sage's final appearances at the Fillmore East in April 1971.
In 1969, Garcia played pedal steel on three notable outside recordings: the track "The Farm" on the Jefferson Airplane album Volunteers, the track "Oh Mommy" by Brewer and Shipley and the hit single "Teach Your Children" by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young from their album Déjà Vu, released in 1970. Garcia played on the latter album in exchange for harmony lessons for the Grateful Dead, who were at the time recording Workingman's Dead.
In 1971, Garcia began playing a sunburst Les Paul. In March and April 1971 – the time period during which the Grateful Dead recorded its second live album, Grateful Dead – Garcia played the "Peanut," a guitar he had received from Rick Turner, who had custom built the guitar's body and incorporated the neck, pickups, and hardware from an early '60s Les Paul.
In May, Garcia began using a 1957 natural finish Stratocaster that had been given to him by Graham Nash. Garcia added an alligator sticker to the pickguard in the fall of that year. "Alligator" would remain Garcia's principal electric guitar until August 1973.
In the summer of 1971, Garcia also played a double-cutaway Les Paul TV Junior.
While Alligator was in the shop in the summer of 1972, he briefly reverted to the sunburst Stratocaster; this can be seen in Sunshine Daydream.
In late 1972, Garcia purchased the first guitar ("Eagle") made by Alembic luthier Doug Irwin for $850 (). Enamored of Irwin's talents, he immediately commissioned his own custom instrument. This guitar, nicknamed "Wolf" for a memorable sticker Garcia added below the tailpiece, was delivered in May 1973 and replaced Alligator on stage in September. It cost $1,500 (), an extremely high price for the era.
Wolf was made with an ebony fingerboard and featured numerous embellishments like alternating grain designs in the headstock, ivory inlays, and fret marker dots made of sterling silver. The body was composed of western maple wood which had a core of purpleheart. Garcia later had Irwin (who ultimately left Alembic to start his own business) replace the electronics inside the guitar, at which point he added his own logo to the headstock alongside the Alembic logo. The system included two interchangeable plates for configuring pickups: one was made for strictly single coils, while the other accommodated humbuckers. Shortly after receiving the modified instrument, Garcia commissioned another custom guitar from Irwin with one caveat: "Don't hold back."
During the Grateful Dead's 1974 European tour, Wolf was dropped on several occasions, one of which caused a minor crack in the headstock. Following filming of The Grateful Dead Movie (in which the guitar is prominently visible) a month later, Garcia returned it to Irwin for repairs. Throughout its absence, Garcia predominantly played several Travis Bean guitars, including the TB1000A (1975) and the TB500 (1976-1977). On September 28, 1977, Irwin delivered the refurbished Wolf back to Garcia. The wolf sticker which gave the guitar its name had now been inlaid into the instrument; it also featured an effects loop between the pick-ups and controls (so inline effects would "see" the same signal at all times) which was bypassable. Irwin also put a new face on the headstock with only his logo (he later claimed to have built the guitar himself, though pictures through time clearly show the progression of logos, from Alembic, to Alembic & Irwin, to only Irwin).
Nearly seven years after he commissioned it, Garcia received his second custom guitar ("Tiger") from Irwin in the summer of 1979.
He first employed the instrument in concert at a Grateful Dead performance at the Oakland Auditorium Arena on August 4, 1979. Its name was derived from the inlay on the preamp cover.
The body of Tiger was of rich quality: the top layer was cocobolo, with the preceding layers being maple stripe, vermilion, and flame maple, in that order. The neck was made of western maple with an ebony fingerboard. The pickups consisted of a single coil DiMarzio SDS-1 and two humbucker DiMarzio Super IIs which were easily removable due to Garcia's preference for replacing his pickups every year or two. The electronics were composed of an effects bypass loop, which allowed Garcia to control the sound of his effects through the tone and volume controls on the guitar, and a preamplifier/buffer which rested behind a plate in the back of the guitar. Fully outfitted, Tiger weighed . This was Garcia's principal guitar for the next eleven years, and most played.
In the late 1980s Garcia, Weir and CSN (along with many others) endorsed Alvarez Yairi acoustic guitars. There are many photographs circulating (mostly promotional) of Garcia playing a DY99 Virtuoso Custom with a Modulus Graphite neck. He opted to play with the less decorated model but the promotional photo from the Alvarez Yairi catalog has him holding the "tree of life" model. This hand-built guitar was notable for the collaboration between Japanese luthier Kazuo Yairi and Modulus Graphite of San Rafael. As with most things Garcia, with his passing, the DY99 model is highly valued among collectors.
In 1990, Irwin completed "Rosebud", Garcia's fourth custom guitar. It was similar to his previous guitar Tiger in many respects, but featured different inlays and electronics, tone and volume controls, and weight. Rosebud, unlike Tiger, was configured with three humbuckers; the neck and bridge pickups shared a tone control, while the middle had its own. Atop the guitar was a Roland GK-2 pickup which fed the controller set inside the guitar. The GK2 was used in junction with the Roland GR-50 rack mount synthesizer. The GR-50 synthesizer in turn drove a Korg M1R synthesizer producing the MIDI effects heard during live performances of this period as heard on the Grateful Dead recording Without a Net. Sections of the guitar were hollowed out to bring the weight down to . The inlay, a dancing skeleton holding a rose, covers a plate just below the bridge. The final cost of the instrument was $11,000 ().
In 1993, carpenter-turned-luthier Stephen Cripe tried his hand at making an instrument for Garcia. After researching Tiger through pictures and films, Cripe set out on what would soon become known as "Lightning Bolt", again named for its inlay.
The guitar used Brazilian rosewood for the fingerboard and East Indian rosewood for the body, which, with admitted irony from Cripe, had been taken from a 19th-century bed used by opium smokers. Built purely from guesswork, Lightning Bolt was a hit with Garcia, who began using the guitar exclusively. Soon after, Garcia requested that Cripe build a backup of the guitar. Cripe, who had not measured or photographed the original, was told simply to "wing it."
Cripe later delivered the backup, which was known by the name "Top Hat". Garcia bought it from him for $6,500, making it the first guitar that Cripe had ever sold. However, infatuated with Lightning Bolt, Garcia rarely used the backup.
After Garcia's death, the ownership of Wolf and Tiger came into question. According to Garcia's will, his guitars were bequeathed to Doug Irwin, who had constructed them.
The remaining Grateful Dead members disagreed – they considered his guitars to be property of the band, leading to a lawsuit between the two parties. In 2001, Irwin won the case. However, nearly having been left destitute from a traffic accident in 1998, he decided to place the guitars up for auction in hopes of being able to start another guitar workshop.
On May 8, 2002, Wolf and Tiger, among other memorabilia, were placed for auction at Studio 54 in New York City. Tiger was sold for $957,500, and Wolf for $789,500. Together, the pair sold for $1.74 million, setting a new world record. Wolf went into in the private collection of Daniel Pritzker who kept it in a secure climate controlled room in a private residence at Utica, N.Y. Tiger went to the private collection of Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay.
In May 2017, Wolf was again auctioned, but this time for charity. Pritzker decided to sell the guitar and donate all proceeds to the Montgomery, Alabama based Southern Poverty Law Center.
Brian Halligan placed the winning bid totaling $1.9M.
For the majority of 2019 Wolf and Tiger were included in the Play it Loud exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. On June 23, 2019 John Mayer played Wolf with Dead & Co. at Citi Field.
Legacy
Garcia was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Grateful Dead in 1994. He declined to attend the ceremony; the band jokingly brought a cardboard cutout of Garcia out on stage in his absence.
In 1987, Vermont ice cream maker Ben & Jerry's introduced their Cherry Garcia flavor dedicated to him. It was the first ice cream flavor dedicated to a musician.
In 2003, Rolling Stone ranked Jerry Garcia 13th in their list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".
According to fellow Bay Area guitar player Henry Kaiser, Garcia is "the most recorded guitarist in history. With more than 2,200 Grateful Dead concerts, and 1,000 Jerry Garcia Band concerts captured on tape – as well as numerous studio sessions – there are about 15,000 hours of his guitar work preserved for the ages."
On July 30, 2004, Melvin Seals was the first Jerry Garcia Band (JGB) member to headline an outdoor music and camping festival called "The Grateful Garcia Gathering". Jerry Garcia Band drummer David Kemper joined Melvin Seals and JGB in 2007. Other musicians and friends of Garcia include Donna Jean Godchaux, Mookie Siegel, Pete Sears, G.E. Smith, Chuck Hammer, Barry Sless, Jackie Greene, Brian Lesh, Sanjay Mishra, and Mark Karan.
On July 21, 2005, the San Francisco Recreation and Park Commission passed a resolution to name the amphitheater in McLaren Park "The Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." The amphitheater is located in the Excelsior District, where Garcia grew up. The first show to happen at the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater was Jerry Day 2005 on August 7, 2005. Jerry's brother, Tiff Garcia, was the first person to welcome everybody to the "Jerry Garcia Amphitheater." Jerry Day is an annual celebration of Garcia in his childhood neighborhood. The dedication ceremony (Jerry Day 2) on October 29, 2005, was officiated by mayor Gavin Newsom.
On September 24, 2005, the Comes a Time: A Celebration of the Music & Spirit of Jerry Garcia tribute concert was held at the Hearst Greek Theatre in Berkeley, California. The concert featured Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, Mickey Hart, Bruce Hornsby, Trey Anastasio, Warren Haynes, Jimmy Herring, Michael Kang, Jay Lane, Jeff Chimenti, Mark Karan, Robin Sylvester, Kenny Brooks, Melvin Seals, Merl Saunders, Marty Holland, Stu Allen, Gloria Jones, and Jackie LaBranch.
Georgia-based composer Lee Johnson released an orchestral tribute to the music of the Grateful Dead, recorded with the Russian National Orchestra, entitled "Dead Symphony: Lee Johnson Symphony No. 6." Johnson was interviewed on NPR on the July 26, 2008 broadcast of Weekend Edition, and gave much credit to the genius and craft of Garcia's songwriting. A live performance with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Johnson himself, was held Friday, August 1.
In 2010 the Santa Barbara Bowl in California opened Jerry Garcia Glen along the walk up to the venue. There is a statue of Garcia's right hand along the way.
Seattle rock band Soundgarden wrote and recorded the instrumental song "Jerry Garcia's Finger", dedicated to the singer, which was released as a b-side with their single "Pretty Noose".
Numerous music festivals across the United States and Uxbridge, Middlesex, UK hold annual events in memory of Jerry Garcia.
On May 14, 2015, an all-star lineup held a tribute concert for Garcia at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland. The event was called "Dear Jerry".
In 2015, Hunter and Garcia were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Hunter accepted the award along with Garcia's daughter, Trixie Garcia, who accepted on behalf of her father.
In 2015, Jerry Garcia's wife, Manasha Garcia and their daughter, Keelin Garcia launched The Jerry Garcia Foundation, a nonprofit charity that supports projects for artistic, environmental, and humanitarian causes. The Foundation's Board members are Bob Weir, Peter Shapiro, Glenn Fischer, Irwin Sternberg, Daniel Shiner, TRI Studios CEO, Christopher McCutcheon and Fender Music Foundation Executive Director,
Lynn Robison. Keelin Garcia said, "It is a tremendous honor to participate in nonprofit work that is in accordance with my father's values."
In 2018, Jerry Garcia family members, Keelin Garcia and Manasha Garcia launched the Jerry Garcia Music Arts independent music label.
On November 18, 2021, it was announced Jonah Hill would portray Garcia in a forthcoming Grateful Dead biopic written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski directed by Martin Scorsese for Apple TV+.
Discography
New Riders of the Purple Sage – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1971
Hooteroll? – Howard Wales and Jerry Garcia – 1971
Garcia – Jerry Garcia – 1972
Live at Keystone – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1973
Compliments – Jerry Garcia – 1974
Old & In the Way – Old & In the Way – 1975
Reflections – Jerry Garcia – 1976
Cats Under the Stars – Jerry Garcia Band – 1978
Run for the Roses – Jerry Garcia – 1982
Vintage NRPS – New Riders of the Purple Sage – 1986
Keystone Encores – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1988
Almost Acoustic – Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band – 1988
Jerry Garcia / David Grisman – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1991
Jerry Garcia Band – Jerry Garcia Band – 1991
Not for Kids Only – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman – 1993
Notes
References
Sources
External links
The official homepage of Jerry Garcia
Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics
Jerry Garcia on Fretbase
The Jerry Site
Official Grateful Dead website
Jerry Garcia discography at deaddisc.com
Jerry Garcia autopsy
Jerry Day: A Civic and Cultural Celebration of Jerry Garcia held in San Francisco
FBI Records: The Vault - Jerry Garcia at vault.fbi.gov
Jerry Garcia's Army personnel file at the National Archives
TEAM
Garcia's Guitars & Gear Directory
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American country rock musicians | true | [
"Joseph d'Abbadie de Saint-Castin (fl. 1720–1746) was a French and Acadian military officer serving in Acadia. He was also an Abenaki chief. \n\nHis father was Jean-Vincent d'Abbadie de Saint-Castin and Joseph's brother was Bernard-Anselme d'Abbadie de Saint-Castin. Joseph was the younger brother of Bernard-Anselme, who was born in 1689. This suggests he was born in either 1690 or 1691. Joseph took tribal councils as a Sachem, along with his brother. When his brother went to France and never returned, Joseph remained with his Tarratine brethren, who were part of the Micmac Tribe that lived on the Penobscot. Differing from the Abenaki which would later become the Penobscot Indians.\n\nBaron Joseph was the Grandson of the great Mi'kmaq Sachem Madockawando, he was Chief of the Tarratines on the Penobscot River.\n\nCurrently the Penebscot Tribal Nation claims Chief Joseph was a grandson of Baron St. Castin, which is easily proven wrong if one takes into account the age of Chief Joseph when he died at being 111 years old.\n\nReferences \n \n\n1746 deaths\nFrench soldiers\nPeople from Hancock County, Maine\nAcadian history\nYear of birth missing",
"Yuri Vasilievich (Юрий Васильевич; 30 October 1532 – 24 June 1563) was the only brother of Ivan the Terrible. He was born deaf, and was thus never considered to be a candidate as heir to the Russian throne. He ruled the appanage principality of Uglich on the Volga.\n\nYuri was the second son of Vasily III of Russia and Elena Glinskaya. He was a year and a half old when his father died of a leg abscess, and six when his mother was apparently poisoned. According to letters written by his older brother Ivan, the two children customarily felt neglected and offended by the mighty boyars from the Shuisky and Belsky families. Unlike his brother who spent his spare time in learning theology, Yuri was apparently only interested in food and games including ice-skating. Yuri accompanied his brother during the latter's coronation as Tsar, and was later given a private residence with servants. On 16 June 1552, during the Russo-Kazan war, Yuri was given full charge of state affairs while his brother accompanied the army to Kazan. Yuri was married on 3 November 1547 to Princess Ulyana of Palekh (Paletskaya) and had a son, Vasili, in 1559. The child died 11 months later.\n\nYuri died three years later from natural causes. His wife was sent to the Novodevichy Convent. Yuri's property was inherited by his elder brother.\n\nReferences\n Troyat, Henri Ivan le Terrible. Flammarion, Paris, 1982\n de Madariaga, Isabel Ivan the Terrible. Giulio Einaudi editore, 2005\n\n1532 births\n1563 deaths\nRurik dynasty\nRurikids\nPeople from Uglich\nDeaf royalty and nobility\n16th-century Russian people\nPeople of Byzantine descent\nDeaf people from Russia"
] |
[
"Take That",
"2014-2015: Robbie Williams's second departure, Jason Orange's departure and III"
] | C_6e6a60800d1643268f8b7ee3189196de_0 | Why did Robbie Williams depart? | 1 | Why did Robbie Williams depart from Take Taht? | Take That | In May 2013, Owen announced that Take That were to begin recording their seventh studio album in 2014 and On 14 January 2014, Donald and Barlow both tweeted that Take That had entered the studio to begin recording the album, although it was not initially clear if Williams was present at these recording sessions. On 28 April 2014, Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a dad for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour. Barlow later confirmed that Williams had left the band for a second time, although the departure was amicable and that Williams was welcome to rejoin the band in the future. Williams has since collaborated with Barlow on several projects and duet performances and indicated his interest in reuniting with the band for potential 25th anniversary commemorative events. On 24 September 2014, it was announced that Jason Orange had left the band. He said: 'At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. 'At the end of The Progress Tour I began to question whether it might be the right time for me to not continue on with Take That,' he continued. 'There have been no fallings out, only a decision on my part that I no longer wish to do this,' he added. Barlow, Donald and Owen issued a joint statement about Orange's decision which said: "This is a sad day for us. Jason leaving is a huge loss both professionally and even more so personally ... Jason's energy and belief in what this band could achieve has made it what it is today, and we'll forever be grateful for his enthusiasm, dedication and inspiration over the years." On 10 October 2014, Take That unveiled the lead single from the album. Titled "These Days", it was released on 23 November 2014 and went to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, knocking Band Aid 30 off the top spot and becoming their 12th number one single. The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album. It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live. On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single "Hey Boy", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III. The 2015 edition of the album was released on 20 November. In December 2015, British media buzzed about the group embarking on a stint in Las Vegas, starting 2017. Reports indicated the group impressed U.S. promoters and would headline their own residency show. Many venues circulated, including The AXIS at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, The Foundry at SLS Las Vegas and the Linq Theater at The LINQ Hotel & Casino. Local newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun writes that everything is still unconfirmed, despite Barlow confirming the rumour on Twitter. CANNOTANSWER | Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a dad for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour. | Take That are an English pop group formed in Manchester in 1990. The group currently consists of Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen. The original line-up also featured Jason Orange and Robbie Williams. Barlow is the group's lead singer and primary songwriter, with Owen and Williams initially providing backing vocals and Donald and Orange serving primarily as dancers.
The group have had 28 top 40 singles and 17 top 5 singles on the UK Singles Chart, 12 of which have reached number one, including "Back for Good", "Never Forget", "Patience" and "Greatest Day". They have also had eight number one albums on the UK Albums Chart. Internationally, the band have had 56 number one singles and 39 number one albums. They have received eight Brit Awards—winning for Best British Group and Best British Live Act. In 2012 they received an Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music. According to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), Take That has been certified for 14 million albums and 11.4 million singles in the UK.
Williams left the band in 1995 while the four remaining members completed their world tour and released a final single before splitting up in 1996. After filming a 2005 Take That: For the Record about the group and releasing a new greatest hits album, a four-piece Take That without Williams officially announced a 2006 reunion tour around the UK, entitled The Ultimate Tour. On 9 May 2006, it was announced that the group were set to record new material together once again; their fourth studio album, Beautiful World, was released in 2006 and was followed up with The Circus, in 2008. The group achieved new success as a four-piece, scoring a string of chart hits across the UK and Europe while selling over 45 million records worldwide. Williams rejoined Take That in 2010 for the band's sixth studio album, Progress. Released on 15 November of that year, it was the first album of new material to feature Take That's original line-up since their 1995 album, Nobody Else. It became the fastest-selling album of the 21st century and the second fastest-selling album in British history.
In 2014, the band recorded a seventh studio album, this time as a trio without Williams and Orange. The album, titled III, was released in November 2014 and became the band's seventh number one. It was preceded by the single "These Days", which became the band's 12th number one single in the UK.
In 2011, Take That set the new record for the fastest-selling tour of all time in the UK with Progress Live, beating the previous record set by their Circus Live Tour in 2009. At the 2011 Brit Awards they won Best British Group. In 2012, Forbes named them the fifth highest-earning music stars in the world. The group performed at the London 2012 Olympic Games closing ceremony, playing "Rule the World" while the Olympic Flame was extinguished. In the same year, the Official Charts Company revealed the biggest-selling singles artists in British music chart history with Take That currently placed at 15th overall, making them the most successful boy band in UK chart history. Four of their albums are listed in the best-selling albums of the millennium, with three of them among the 60 best-selling albums in UK chart history.
History
1989–1990: Formation
In 1989, Manchester-based Nigel Martin-Smith sought to create a British male vocal singing group modelled on New Kids on the Block. Martin-Smith's vision, however, was a teen-orientated group that would appeal to more than one demographic segment of the music industry. Martin-Smith was then introduced to young singer-songwriter Gary Barlow, who had been performing in clubs since the age of 15. Impressed with Barlow's catalogue of self-written material, Martin-Smith decided to build his new-look boy band around Barlow's musical abilities. A campaign to audition young men with abilities in dancing and singing followed and took place in Manchester and other surrounding cities in 1990. At 22, Howard Donald was one of the oldest to audition, but he was chosen after he got time off work as a vehicle painter to continue the process. Prior to auditioning, Jason Orange had appeared as a breakdancer on the popular television programme The Hit Man and Her. Martin-Smith also selected 18-year-old bank employee Mark Owen and finally 16-year-old Robbie Williams to round out the group, which initially went by the name Kick It.
1990–1992: Take That & Party
Take That's first TV appearance was on The Hit Man and Her in 1990, where they performed Barlow's self-written, unreleased song, "My Kind of Girl". They later appeared a second time to perform "Waiting Around", which would become the B-side for the first single, "Do What U Like". "Promises" and "Once You've Tasted Love" were also released as singles but were minor hits in the UK. Take That initially worked the same territory as their American counterparts, singing new jack R&B, urban soul, and mainstream pop. However, they worked their way toward Hi-NRG dance music, while also pursuing an adult contemporary ballad direction. As they aimed to break into the mainstream music industry, they worked a number of small clubs, schools, and events across the country building up a fanbase as they travelled to gigs constantly for months.
Take That's breakthrough single was a cover of the 1975 Tavares hit "It Only Takes a Minute", which peaked at number seven on the UK Singles Chart in June 1992. This success was followed by "I Found Heaven", then by the first Barlow ballad "A Million Love Songs", which also reached number seven in October. Their cover of the Barry Manilow hit "Could It Be Magic" gave them their first big success, peaking at number three in the UK in the first chart of 1993. Their first album, Take That & Party, was released in 1992, and included all the hit singles to date.
1993–1995: Everything Changes, Nobody Else and superstardom
1993 saw the release of Everything Changes, based on Barlow's original material. It peaked at number one in the UK and spawned six singles, with four being consecutive UK number one singles – their first number one "Pray", "Relight My Fire", "Babe" and the title track "Everything Changes". The lead single "Why Can't I Wake Up with You" had narrowly missed the top spot in the UK peaking at number two and the sixth and final single "Love Ain't Here Anymore" taken from the album reached number three on the UK charts. Everything Changes saw the band gain international success with the album being nominated for the 1994 Mercury Prize, but it failed to crack the U.S. market, where an exclusive remix of "Love Ain't Here Anymore" (U.S. version) gained little success.
By 1994, Take That had become radio and television stars across Europe and Asia, but it was not until 1995 that they did their first World Tour. It was during the years 1993–95 that the band fronted scores of magazine covers ranging from Smash Hits to GQ, becoming mass merchandised on all sorts of paraphernalia ranging from picture books, to posters, stickers, their own dolls, jewellery, caps, T-shirts, toothbrushes and even had their own annuals released. The band had also developed a large female teenage fanbase at the time. During this time, they performed at numerous music awards shows and chart shows such as the BRIT Awards and Top of the Pops, also winning the Best Live Act award in 1995 at the MTV Europe Music Awards, having been renowned for their breakdance routines, high energy and creative tour productions.
In 1995, Take That released their third studio album Nobody Else, again based on Barlow's own material which reached number 1 in the UK and across Europe, capturing new audiences along the way, with Take That also able to make inroads in the adult audience in Britain through Barlow's melodic, sensitive ballads. For nearly five years, Take That's popularity was unsurpassed in Britain. The release of the first single from the album, "Sure", achieved yet another number one in the UK charts. It was not until their second release from that album, however, that they would experience what would become their biggest hit single, "Back for Good", which reached number one in many countries including the UK, Germany, Australia, and Norway. It was also their only US hit, where it reached number seven.
The song was initially unveiled for the first time via live performance while at the 1995 BRIT Awards, and based on the reception of that performance, the record pre-sold more records than expected and forced the record label to bring the release date forward by an unprecedented six weeks. The album was also noted for its cover, which was a parody of the famed cover of The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band cover sleeve.
1995–1996: Break-up and Greatest Hits
Robbie Williams's drug abuse had escalated to a near drug overdose the night before the group was scheduled to perform at the MTV Europe Music Awards in 1994.
In June 1995, Williams was photographed by the press partying with Oasis at the Glastonbury Festival. The following month, the band offered him an ultimatum; he was to adhere to the band's responsibilities or leave before their scheduled world tour. Williams chose the latter. Williams claimed he was bored with Barlow's leadership and jealous of Barlow. Despite the loss of Williams, Take That continued to promote Nobody Else as a four-piece, scoring a further hit single with "Never Forget" with Donald on lead vocal. They subsequently went to America and completed the Nobody Else Tour in October 1995. Following the tour, the band began to plan for their next album; however, when they spent Christmas together, they mutually agreed it was time to part ways.
On 13 February 1996, Take That formally announced that they were disbanding. This was followed by the Greatest Hits compilation in 1996, which contained a new recording, a cover of the Bee Gees' "How Deep Is Your Love". The single went on to become what was to be the band's final UK number one until their 2006 comeback a decade later. Take That gave what was thought to be their final performance in April 1996 at Amsterdam. Following the band's announcement, millions of their fans were distraught around the world and in the UK alone, teenage girls threatened suicide and were seen lining streets in tears, to the point that telephone hotlines were set up by the government to deal with counselling them. After the band broke up, highly respected music figures such as Elton John noted that Take That were different from other boy bands before and after them, in that they wrote their own material through Gary Barlow. Barlow is one of only a small number of people who have won an Ivor Novello award during their time in a boy band, with George Michael whilst in Wham! and Tony Mortimer whilst in East 17 being two others who have achieved this feat. Take That had also left a legacy of being immaculate performers with a very high work ethic, causing them to be voted in as the greatest boy band of all time.
2005–2006: Reunion as a quartet and Never Forget – The Ultimate Collection
On 14 November 2005, Never Forget – The Ultimate Collection, a new compilation of their hit singles including a new previously unreleased song, also achieved great success and peaked at number 2 on UK charts, selling over 2.1 million copies in the UK alone. The new song "Today I've Lost You" (recorded in September 2005) was originally written by Barlow as the follow up to "Back for Good" but was never recorded. On 16 November 2005, the group got back together for the ITV documentary Take That: For the Record, in which they aired their views over their fame, success, the split and what the post-Williams line-up had done since. On 25 November 2005, there was an official press conference by the band announcing that the post-Robbie Williams line-up was going to tour in 2006. The tour, entitled The Ultimate Tour, ran from April to June 2006. The tour featured a guest appearance by British soul singer Beverley Knight, who replaced Lulu's vocals on the song "Relight My Fire"; although Lulu did appear during the stadium shows on "Relight My Fire" and "Never Forget". The American female ensemble Pussycat Dolls supported the group at their Dublin concert, and the Sugababes supported the group on the final five dates of the stadium leg. In a seven-year study analysing over one billion online searches via Google conducted by AccuraCast, a leading digital search agency, their comeback was ranked at number one in the UK.
2006–2007: Beautiful World
On 9 May 2006, Take That returned to the recorded music scene after more than ten years of absence, signing with Polydor Records. The band's comeback album, Beautiful World, entered the UK Albums Chart at no. 1 and, as of June 2009, had sold over 2.8 million copies in the UK. It is the 35th best selling album in UK music history.
On Beautiful World, all four members of the band had the opportunity to sing lead vocals and contribute in the songwriting. Unlike the band's earlier works, where the majority of their material was written by Barlow who received sole credit, all four band members are credited as co-writers, along with John Shanks. The comeback single, "Patience", was released on 20 November 2006, with a special event launching it on 5 November.
On 26 November "Patience" hit number 1 in the UK in its second week of chart entry, making it the group's ninth No. 1, and staying there for 4 weeks. Take That also accompanied eventual winner Leona Lewis on a live version of "A Million Love Songs" during the final of The X Factor on 16 December 2006.
The week after Beautiful World was released, it was announced that Take That had become the first artists ever to top the UK official single and album charts along with the download single, download album and DVD charts in the same week, as well as topping the radio charts.
The video for the number 1 hit single "Shine", the follow-up to "Patience", premiered on 25 January 2007 on Channel 4, ahead of its release on 26 February 2007. The band's success continued on 14 February 2007 when Take That performed live at the BRIT Awards ceremony at Earl's Court. Their single "Patience" won the Best British Single category. The third single chosen from Beautiful World was "I'd Wait For Life", released on 18 June 2007 in the UK. The single reached 17 in the UK Singles Chart. This may have been due to lack of promotion, as the band decided to take a pre-tour break rather than do any promotion for the single. The single "Rule the World", included on the deluxe version of Beautiful World, was recorded for the soundtrack of the film Stardust (2007). It reached number two in the UK and went on to become the group's second best selling single, shifting over 1.2 million units in the UK. Beautiful World was the fourth biggest-selling album of 2007. It was announced at the start of 2007 that Take That signed a record deal with American label Interscope, and would also release their album in Canada. Starting on 11 October 2007, Take That began their Beautiful World Tour 2007 in Belfast. The tour included 49 shows throughout Europe and the UK and ended in Manchester on 23 December 2007. The band received four nominations at the 2008 BRIT Awards. Nominated for Best British Group, Best British Single ("Shine"), Best British Album (Beautiful World) and Best Live Act, they took home the Best Live Act and the Best British Single awards. According to a 2007 MSN UK internet poll, Take That were voted as the "comeback kings" of the year.
2008–2009: The Circus
"Greatest Day", the first single from the album The Circus, made its radio premiere on 13 October 2008 and it was released on 24 November. It debuted at number 1 on the UK Singles Chart on 30 November 2008. An album launch party for The Circus was held in Paris on 2 December. On its first day of release The Circus sold 133,000 copies, and after four days on sale it sold 306,000 copies (going platinum) making The Circus the fastest selling album of the year. The album reached number 1 on the UK Albums Chart on 7 December 2008 with total first-week sales of 432,490, the third highest opening sales week in UK history.
On 28 October 2008, on the Radio 1 Chris Moyles show, it was announced that Take That would be touring again in June/July 2009, covering the UK and Ireland. Tickets for the Take That Present: The Circus Live tour went on sale on 31 October. The promoters, SJM, have said that the band's tour is "the fastest selling in UK history".
On 22 May 2008, Barlow and Donald attended the 2008 Ivor Novello Awards where Take That won the award for Most Performed Work with their single "Shine". Take That won the Sony Ericsson Tour of the Year award at the Vodafone music awards on 18 September 2008. They were unable to attend as they were in LA finishing off The Circus. They did send a video link message, which was shown at the awards. On 22 November 2008, Take That appeared on week 7 of the talent show The X Factor where the finalists performed some of their greatest hits and Owen and Barlow made a guest appearance to personally coach the contestants. The band also performed on Children in Need 2008, singing their new single, "Greatest Day", before donating £250,000 to the charity from their Marks and Spencer fee. The band were also voted the Greatest Boy Band of All Time, reflecting their ongoing marketability and success in the pop arena, even after two decades.
At the 2009 Brit Awards they were nominated for Best British Group and they performed "Greatest Day" at the ceremony. "Up All Night", the second single from The Circus, was released on 2 March 2009, and peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart, despite heavy airplay. In Germany and Australia, "The Garden" was released as the second single instead. On 7 May 2009, Take That's official website confirmed that the third single from The Circus would be "Said It All" which was released on 15 June 2009, peaking at number 9 on the UK Singles chart. The video premiered on GMTV on 8 May 2009. It features all four band members dressed up as vintage circus clowns, which tied in with their forthcoming Take That Present: The Circus Live tour. Take That started their Circus Live tour at the Stadium of Light on 5 June 2009 in Sunderland and ended at the Wembley Stadium in London on 5 July 2009, which over 80,000 people attended. This tour quickly became the fastest-selling of all time, breaking all records by selling all of their 650,000 tickets in less than four and a half hours.
In November 2009 Take That released the official DVD of their Circus tour, which became the fastest-selling music DVD of all time in the UK on its first day of release and stayed in the top 10 of the videos chart for over a year. This overtook the previous record sales holder, which was Take That's Beautiful World Live tour and stayed at the number 1 spot for 8 weeks. The following week Take That released their first live album, The Greatest Day – Take That Present: The Circus Live, which sold 98,000 copies on its first day of release and was certified Platinum in July 2013. "Hold up a Light" was released as the fifth and final single from The Circus to radio stations and as a digital download to promote the release of the live album. The live album also featured a stripped down session recorded live at the famous Abbey Road Studios in London. It featured the members singing the setlist from the preceding tour, albeit in a studio setting.
2010–2011: Williams' return and Progress
On 7 June 2010, the news broke of a single called "Shame", which had been written by Barlow and Williams and would feature the vocals of both artists. This was the first time the pair had worked together since 1995 and would appear on the second greatest hits collection of Williams. "Heart and I", another track from the same album, was also co-written by Williams and Barlow. The single "Shame" peaked at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart while also achieving success throughout Europe, charting in over 19 countries.
After working with the band on new material in Los Angeles, on 15 July 2010 Robbie Williams announced he was returning to Take That. After months of working together, assembling new songs for a new album and even debating a band-name change to "The English", a joint statement between Williams and the group read, "The rumours are true ... Take That: the original lineup, have written and recorded a new album for release later this year." The statement went on to say, "Following months of speculation Gary Barlow, Howard Donald, Jason Orange, Mark Owen, and Robbie Williams confirmed they have been recording a new studio album as a five-piece, which they will release in November." The lead single from Take That's album Progress was announced as "The Flood" and was released 7 November as a digital download, and on 8 November as a physical copy, with the album released a week later on 15 November. The single peaked at number 2 in the UK Singles Charts and to date has sold over 500,000 copies in the UK alone. The single also achieved success across Europe, charting inside the top 10 in ten countries while also charting in another nine countries whilst also being nominated for an Ivor Novello Award for best work.
On 26 October the band announced that they would be embarking on a huge UK stadium tour entitled Progress Live, starting in Sunderland on 27 May, and finishing with a record-breaking 8 nights at London's Wembley Stadium in July 2011. It was also announced that Williams would perform hit singles from his solo career during the tour. The band then played at some of the biggest venues across Europe for the second leg of the tour. The phenomenal demand for tickets across the country led to the web sites of all the major UK ticket suppliers either crashing or considerably slowing for hours on end. The demand and sheer volume of fans also created problems for the UK telephone network. Take That's Progress Live also broke all records for ticket sales selling over 1.1 million tickets in one day, smashing the previous box office record set by Take That's Circus tour in 2008.
On the first day of release Progress became the fastest selling album of the century, with 235,000 copies sold in just one day. The album reached number 1 in the UK, selling around 520,000 copies in its first week, becoming the second fastest-selling album in history. After the release of Progress it was announced that Take That have become Amazon UK's top-selling music artist of all time.
The album retained the number one spot for six consecutive weeks in the UK since its release, selling 2.8 million copies in the UK alone and becoming the best selling album of 2010
Progress also achieved success across Europe where it debuted at number one in Ireland, Greece, Germany and Denmark. and the European Top 100 Albums chart. It also debuted inside the top 10 of the charts in Austria, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland.
"Kidz" was announced as the second single from Progress, it was released 21 February 2011 and charted well across Europe. The band performed the song live at the 2011 Brit Awards hosted at The O2 Arena, where they won a Brit for Best British Group and were nominated for Best British Album. Their performance of "Kidz", praised by critics, involved a highly choreographed routine featuring dancers dressed in police-styled riot gear bearing the Take That symbol on the uniform and shields. On 19 May 2011, Take That announced a new EP entitled Progressed, which contained eight tracks written by the band since they had reunited as a five-piece. It was packaged alongside the album Progress and returned the band to number 1 in the UK Album Chart the week after it was released on 13 June 2011.
Take That announced that the Progress Live tour would be released worldwide as their second live album to date and would also be released on home media formats across the UK and Europe on 21 November 2011. The DVD debuted at number 1 on the UK Music Video top 40 in its first week on release and sold over 200,000 copies in two weeks of release in the UK alone. Take That's efforts were recognised further when they were awarded Virgin Media's Best Live Act of 2012.
On 4 October, it was reported that Take That were to take a break after the completion of the Progress tour, with Barlow continuing his role as a judge on The X Factor and Williams recording new solo material. Take That were presented with an Ivor Novello Award for their Outstanding Contribution to British Music in May 2012.
In August 2012, Take That performed at the closing ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics, despite Barlow announcing that his daughter had been stillborn the previous week. The performance earned him praise for appearing live so soon after the tragedy. Williams was due to perform with the band but dropped out due to his wife giving birth at around the same time and thus the group performed as a four-piece. In November 2012, Take That reunited as a five-piece for the last time to perform "Never Forget" at the Music Industry Trust Awards. In 2013, Donald became a judge on the German version of the television dancing show Got to Dance.
2014–2015: Line-up change and III
In May 2013, Owen announced that Take That was to begin recording their seventh studio album in 2014, and on 14 January 2014, Donald and Barlow both tweeted that Take That had entered the studio to begin recording the album, although it was not initially clear if Williams was present at these recording sessions. On 28 April 2014, Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a father for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour. Although welcome to return to the band at any time, Williams chose not to return for group's seventh and eighth studio albums and their accompanying tours, focusing instead on his solo commitments. He continued to write music with his colleagues and has performed with the group on several occasions since 2011's Progress tour and plans on returning at some point in the future.
On 24 September 2014, it was announced that Jason Orange had left the band. He said: 'At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. 'At the end of The Progress Tour I began to question whether it might be the right time for me to not continue on with Take That,' he continued. 'There have been no fallings out, only a decision on my part that I no longer wish to do this,' he added. Barlow, Donald, and Owen issued a joint statement about Orange's decision which said: "This is a sad day for us. Jason leaving is a huge loss both professionally and even more so personally ... Jason's energy and belief in what this band could achieve has made it what it is today, and we'll forever be grateful for his enthusiasm, dedication and inspiration over the years." A day after the announcement, Robbie Williams took to Twitter to show support of Orange's decision. "Mr Orange. Until we ride again. Much love, Bro.", Williams tweeted.
On 10 October 2014, Take That unveiled their first song as a three-piece and lead single from their upcoming album. Titled "These Days", it was released on 23 November 2014 and went to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, knocking Band Aid 30 off the top spot and becoming their 12th number one single. The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album. It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live. On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single "Hey Boy", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III. The 2015 edition of the album was released on 20 November.
In December 2015, British media buzzed about the group embarking on a stint in Las Vegas, starting 2017. Reports indicated the group impressed U.S. promoters and would headline their own residency show. Many venues circulated, including The AXIS at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, The Foundry at SLS Las Vegas and the Linq Theater at The LINQ Hotel & Casino. Local newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun writes that everything is still unconfirmed, despite Barlow confirming the rumour on Twitter.
2016–2017: Wonderland
On 2 February 2016, in an interview with The Sun, Barlow revealed that Take That would release their eighth studio album later in the year. On 4 May 2016, English drum and bass duo Sigma announced their newest single would feature Take That. "Cry" received its first radio play on 20 May 2016 and was released on that date. On 21 October 2016, the band posted a teaser on their social media pages and website depicting the logo of the band flickering with the hashtag "#WONDERLAND". The following day, it was announced that their new album, titled Wonderland, was scheduled to be released on 24 March 2017. It was then followed by a UK and Ireland arena tour entitled Wonderland Live, that commenced on 5 May 2017 at the Genting Arena in Birmingham. On 17 February 2017, the lead single of Wonderland was released. Titled "Giants", it debuted at 13 in the UK charts, which became the band's 24th UK top 20 single.
On 8 April 2017, ITV aired a specially commissioned hour-length television special titled An Evening with Take That, where the band performed some songs from the album, along with some old classics including "Never Forget", "Back for Good" and "Rule the World". The band also took part in a Q&A session with the audience members. On 27 April, it was announced on Twitter that "New Day" would be released as the next single from the album Wonderland. The band were seen recording the music video in a field in Luton the days leading up the opening night of the Wonderland Live tour. Due to the Manchester Arena bombing just days before they were due to perform at the venue, their Manchester and Liverpool dates were rescheduled or relocated. The band returned a month later to perform at the One Love Manchester benefit concert.
On 16 September 2017, Barlow, Owen and Donald were set to perform a special one-off show in Jersey after a fan bid more than £1.2 million to win a performance from the band. This then turned in to a ticketed charity event where the money from tickets sold would go towards benefiting Children in Need. The auction was held on BBC Radio 2. On 11 November 2017, Take That began their foreign tour in Perth, Australia, the first time they have performed in the country in over twenty years. They also played in New Zealand, United Arab Emirates and Israel for the first time. Unlike the other tours, a DVD for Wonderland Live was not released. Instead, it was broadcast on Sky 1 on 23 December and in cinemas.
2018–2020: The 30th Anniversary, and Odyssey
On 16 July 2018, while performing at first ever Hits Radio Live at the Manchester Arena, Barlow, Donald and Owen confirmed that they would be touring in 2019. The tour was a Greatest Hits tour and celebrated the 30th anniversary of the band. There was also a Greatest Hits album, Odyssey, which was released on 23 November 2018. The Greatest Hits album features existing songs from their back catalogue that have been re-imagined and 3 brand new songs. It also includes collaborations with Boyz II Men, Lulu, Sigma and Barry Gibb. Odyssey reached number one in the UK album chart and was certified as a platinum selling record. The following year, Odyssey Live, the recording of their tour, reached number 5, becoming the band's 13th top 5 album, with the DVD becoming the biggest live music sale of 2019.
In May 2020, Barlow, Donald, and Owen reunited with Williams for a virtual performance from their respective homes, hosted by price comparison website comparethemarket.com, to raise money for the music charity Nordoff Robbins and Crew Nation.
In other media
In April 2006, EMI licensed the band's songs to be used in the musical Never Forget, a musical based on songs of the band from the 1990s. Take That posted and then later removed a statement on their website distancing themselves from it.
Take That wrote and recorded the theme song "Rule the World" for the film Stardust directed by Matthew Vaughn, which was released in cinemas across the globe in October 2007. In 2007, their song "Back for Good" was used as part of the soundtrack for popular Korean drama The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince.
Take That presented their own TV show Take That Come to Town, a variety show in which they performed some of their biggest hits. The show also featured comedy sketches with one of Peter Kay's alter egos Geraldine McQueen. It aired on 7 December 2008 on ITV1. Sony launched their first Take That video game, SingStar Take That in 2009 for the PlayStation 3.
In November 2010, ITV aired Take That: Look Back, Don't Stare, a black-and-white documentary which focused on the band working together for the first time in 15 years. Through a series of interviews, the band look back at their achievements while also looking forward to what the future holds for them. On 18 November 2010, Williams and Barlow appeared together live on television for the first time on the Popstars program in Germany singing their hit "Shame".
In 2011, Take That's song "Love Love" was used in the credits of the 2011 film X-Men: First Class and later, "When We Were Young" was chosen as the main theme for The Three Musketeers movie. In 2015, the song "Get Ready for It" from their album III, was chosen as the theme song for the film Kingsman: The Secret Service.
In 2017, Take That launched The Band, a musical written by Tim Firth featuring the five winners of Let It Shine and some of Take That's biggest hits. Take That, including Robbie Williams, were billed as executive producers.
The group's music is regularly featured in the Channel 4 show Derry Girls, notably in the third episode of the second series, when the lead characters sneak off to attend the 1993 Take That concert in Belfast; the episode features the music video for "Pray" and ends on footage of the band performing "Everything Changes".
Artistry
Early in their career, Take That were known for party anthems such as "Do What U Like" and more mature ballads such as "A Million Love Songs" and "Back for Good". Since reuniting in 2006, they have become more experimental: their post-2006 albums Beautiful World and The Circus have featured "stadium-filling pop-rock" while Progress largely leaned towards electropop. Having been dubbed the "comeback kings" by the media for their highly successful reunion, the group has won widespread praise for their seamless transformation from teen idols to "man band" without overly relying on nostalgia, instead showcasing a more mature image and sound and reinventing themselves while maintaining their artistic integrity. Jude Rogers of The Guardian commented on Take That's post-reunion success, in light of a string of reunions by the group's disbanded counterparts from the 1990s: "Only Take That are penetrating pop's wider consciousness by becoming a man-band rather than a boy-band, singing mature, proper pop songs that cross the generations."
Take That have garnered critical acclaim and popularity as consummate live performers and for their musical output. Their domestic concert tours have been described as "some of the most flamboyant, imaginative and extravagant pop tours around". Aside from covers, all of their material is composed by the members themselves; Barlow was initially the principal songwriter who received sole credit but the other members have since taken a more active role in the composition and production process, including playing instruments for the backing track.
Band members
Current members
Gary Barlow (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Howard Donald (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Mark Owen (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Former members
Robbie Williams (1990–1995, 2010–2012)
Jason Orange (1990–1996, 2005–2014)
Timeline
Awards and nominations
|-
| 2016
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award for Best Live Act
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2015
| "These Days"
| UK Music Video Awards for Best Art Direction
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|2012
| "Pray"
|The Guardian Music Award for Best Number 1 Single
|
|-
| Take That
|Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music
|
|-
| "Back for Good"
|The Official Charts Company UK Recognition award for United Kingdom's Favourite Number One Single
|
|-
| "The Flood"
|Ivor Novello Award for PRS Most Performed Work
|
|-
| Take That
|Virgin Media Music Awards for Best Live Act
|
|-
| "Kidz"
|Virgin Media Music Awards for Best Music Video
|
|-
| rowspan="10" style="text-align:center;"|2011
|-
| Progress Live
|Audio Pro International Awards for Best Live Sound Event
|
|-
| Progress Live
|Audio Pro International Awards Grand Prix Award
|
|-
| Take That
|Phonographic Performance Limited Award for most played UK artist
|
|-
| "Kidz"
|Spex German Entertainment for Best Music Video
|
|-
| The Circus Live Tour
| Greatest Event ever at Wembley Stadium
|
|-
| Take That
|ECHO Award for Best International Group
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| Progress
| BRIT Award for MasterCard Album of the Year
|
|-
| Take That
|Virgin Media for Best Group
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|2010
|-
| "Up All Night"
| UK Music Video Awards for Best Art Direction
|
|-
| "The Flood"
|iTunes Award for Best Single
|
|-
| Progress
| iTunes Award for Best Album
|
|-
| Take That
|Q Award Hall of Fame
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best Live Performance of the past 30 Years
|
|-
| rowspan="5" style="text-align:center;"|2009
| Take That
|GQ Men of the Year Awards for Best Band
|
|-
| Take That
|Q Award for Best Live Act
|
|-
| "Greatest Day"
|Q Award for Best Single
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award
|
|-
| rowspan="7" style="text-align:center;"|2008
| "Shine"
|Ivor Novello Award for PRS Most Performed Work
|
|-
| "Rule the World"
|Virgin for Best Single
|
|-
| Take That
|Sony Ericsson Tour of the Year Award for Take That Arena Tour
|
|-
| "Shine"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Live Act
|
|-
| Beautiful World
|BRIT Award for Best British Album
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2007
| "Patience"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2006
| Take That
|Q Idol Award
|
|-
| rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|1996
| "Back for Good"
|Billboard International Hit of the Year
|
|-
| "Never Forget"
|Ivor Novello Award for Most Performed Song
|
|-
| "Back for Good"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|1995
| "Back for Good"
|Ivor Novello Award for the Song of the Year
|
|-
| Take That
|MTV Europe Music Awards for Best Live Act
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|1994
| "Babe"
|MTV Video Music Award for International Viewer's Choice Award for MTV Europe
|
|-
| Everything Changes
|Mercury Prize for Best Album
|
|-
| "Pray"
|Ivor Novello Award for Best Contemporary Song
|
|-
| "Pray"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "Pray"
|BRIT Award for Best British Video
|
|-
| Take That
|MTV Europe Music Awards for Best Group
|
|-
| rowspan="4" style="text-align:center;"|1993
| "Could It Be Magic"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "A Million Love Songs"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "It Only Takes a Minute"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award for Best Newcomer
|
|}
Discography
Take That & Party (1992)
Everything Changes (1993)
Nobody Else (1995)
Beautiful World (2006)
The Circus (2008)
Progress (2010)
III (2014)
Wonderland (2017)
Tours
Party Tour (1992–93)
Everything Changes Tour (1993–94)
Pops Tour (1994–95)
Nobody Else Tour (1995)
The Ultimate Tour (2006)
Beautiful World Tour 2007 (2007)
Take That Present: The Circus Live (2009)
Progress Live (2011)
Take That Live (2015)
Wonderland Live (2017)
Greatest Hits Live (2019)
See also
List of best-selling boy bands
References
External links
Chinese Fansite
1990 establishments in England
1996 disestablishments in England
2005 establishments in England
Brit Award winners
Dance-pop groups
Echo (music award) winners
English boy bands
English dance music groups
Interscope Records artists
Ivor Novello Award winners
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Musical groups disestablished in 1996
Musical groups established in 1990
Musical groups from Cheshire
Musical groups from Manchester
Musical groups reestablished in 2005
Polydor Records artists
Teen pop groups
Universal Music Group artists
Vocal quartets
Vocal quintets
Vocal trios | false | [
"Live at Knebworth, also known as Live Summer 2003 with different cover text, is a live album by English pop singer Robbie Williams, recorded and released in 2003. The album is his first live album, and is a compilation of songs performed during three consecutive shows at Knebworth, England on 1–3 August 2003.\n\nThe three shows attracted a total of 375,000 fans, becoming the \"biggest music event in British history\". It is the second fastest and biggest selling live album ever in the United Kingdom behind Williams' former band Take That's live album The Greatest Day – Take That Present: The Circus Live. It has been certified 2x Platinum by the IFPI for sales over 2 million copies.\n\nThe DVD released of that Summer's three performances at Knebworth Park was entitled What We Did Last Summer, a reference to the film I Know What You Did Last Summer. It went on to sell 350,000 in the United Kingdom. In Australia, the DVD went on to sell 165,000 copies, 25,000 more than the actual album.\n\nWilliams' former Take That bandmate Mark Owen was invited to perform \"Back for Good\" on stage with him at Knebworth. This was the first time the two had performed together since the band split in 1996. After performing with Williams, Owen returned to the spotlight, signing a deal with Island/Universal Records.\n\nTrack listing\n\"Let Me Entertain You\" – 5:54\n\"Let Love Be Your Energy\" – 4:46\n\"We Will Rock You\" – 1:18\n\"Monsoon\" – 5:11\n\"Come Undone\" – 5:34\n\"Me and My Monkey\" – 7:20\n\"Hot Fudge\" – 5:44\n\"Mr. Bojangles\" – 5:26\n\"She's the One\" – 5:43\n\"Kids\" – 7:22\n\"Better Man\" – 2:12\n\"Nan's Song\" – 4:50\n\"Feel\" – 5:16\n\"Angels\" – 5:56\n\nPregaps\nBetween-song banter and various mini-songs can be found between some of the songs on the album in pregaps:\nRobbie Williams talking to the audience (0:41, between tracks 4 and 5)\nRobbie Williams talking to the audience (0:37, between tracks 5 and 6)\nRobbie Williams introducing \"Hot Fudge\" (0:06, between tracks 6 and 7)\nRobbie Williams introducing Max Beesley whilst singing a little song about him (1:35, between tracks 7 and 8)\nRobbie Williams talking to Max Beesley whilst Beesley plays a song on piano (1:21, between tracks 8 & 9)\nRobbie Williams talking to the audience (1:20, between tracks 9 and 10)\nRobbie Williams singing a song about Knebworth and his mother (1:10, between tracks 10 and 11)\nRobbie Williams introducing \"Nan's Song\" (0:18, between tracks 11 and 12)\nRobbie Williams introducing \"Feel\" (1:31, between tracks 12 and 13)\nRobbie Williams introducing \"Angels\" (0:44, between tracks 13 and 14)\n\nSingles\nIn Mexico and Argentina, EMI Music sent a promotional CD to radio stations featuring \"Feel\" and \"Angels\" live from the show.\n\nPersonnel\n Max Beesley: percussion, piano\n Dave Bishop: flute, saxophone\n Yolanda Charles: bass guitar\n Melvin Duffy: slide guitar\n Simon Gardner: trumpet\n Katie Kissoon: background vocals\n Tessa Niles: background vocals\n Gary Nuttall: guitar\n Mark Plati: guitar, keyboards\n Chris Sharrock: drums\n J. Neil Sidwell: trombone\n Steve Sidwell: trumpet\n Paul Spong: trumpet\n Neil Taylor: guitar\n Chris White: flute, saxophone\n Robbie Williams: vocals\n Claire Worrall: guitar, keyboards\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nCertifications\n\nDVD release\n\nConcert track listing\nThe album was recorded in three evenings in Knebworth and then cut. The set lists for the three performances were:\n\nSet lists\n\nReferences\n\nRobbie Williams albums\n2003 live albums\nKnebworth",
"\"Shine My Shoes\" is a song by British singer-songwriter Robbie Williams and the third and final single from his tenth studio album Swings Both Ways (2013). The single was released on 24 March 2014. The song was written by Robbie Williams, Guy Chambers and Chris Heath. A vinyl version of the single was released two months prior to the official single release, through robbiewilliams.com.\n\nBackground\nAccording to Robbie; \n<blockquote>\"Guy Chambers and I started writing together again after a break of about ten years, and 'Shine My Shoes' came out of the first batch. It's in the spirit of a Sammy Davis Jr. song. In the biopic The Rat Pack there's a dream sequence where Sammy Davis Jr. is dancing against the racists. I'm singing against the haters and the naysayers, giving them my time in the form of a swing song detailing exactly why they should hate me. The smugness will infuriate the haters, and the people who kind of like me will just think that it's sweet.\"</blockquote>\n\nThe song also contains \"lyrical flourishes from Williams's biographer Chris Heath\" and Williams dismissing his critics (\"The way you don't love me/Kinda makes you look ugly\").\n\nMusic video\nAn official lyric video of \"Shine My Shoes\" was uploaded to YouTube on 26 September 2013.\n\nCritical reception\nHelen Brown of The Telegraph, in a review for Swings Both Ways'', called it \"an original, though instantly recognisable and fairly forgettable Williams/Chambers collaboration\".\n\nTrack listing\n\nChart performance\n\nReferences\n\n2013 songs\nRobbie Williams songs\nSongs written by Robbie Williams\n2014 singles\nSongs written by Guy Chambers\nIsland Records singles\nSong recordings produced by Guy Chambers\nSongs written by Chris Heath"
] |
[
"Take That",
"2014-2015: Robbie Williams's second departure, Jason Orange's departure and III",
"Why did Robbie Williams depart?",
"Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a dad for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour."
] | C_6e6a60800d1643268f8b7ee3189196de_0 | Why did Jason Orange leave the band? | 2 | Why did Jason Orange leave the band Take That in 2014-15? | Take That | In May 2013, Owen announced that Take That were to begin recording their seventh studio album in 2014 and On 14 January 2014, Donald and Barlow both tweeted that Take That had entered the studio to begin recording the album, although it was not initially clear if Williams was present at these recording sessions. On 28 April 2014, Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a dad for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour. Barlow later confirmed that Williams had left the band for a second time, although the departure was amicable and that Williams was welcome to rejoin the band in the future. Williams has since collaborated with Barlow on several projects and duet performances and indicated his interest in reuniting with the band for potential 25th anniversary commemorative events. On 24 September 2014, it was announced that Jason Orange had left the band. He said: 'At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. 'At the end of The Progress Tour I began to question whether it might be the right time for me to not continue on with Take That,' he continued. 'There have been no fallings out, only a decision on my part that I no longer wish to do this,' he added. Barlow, Donald and Owen issued a joint statement about Orange's decision which said: "This is a sad day for us. Jason leaving is a huge loss both professionally and even more so personally ... Jason's energy and belief in what this band could achieve has made it what it is today, and we'll forever be grateful for his enthusiasm, dedication and inspiration over the years." On 10 October 2014, Take That unveiled the lead single from the album. Titled "These Days", it was released on 23 November 2014 and went to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, knocking Band Aid 30 off the top spot and becoming their 12th number one single. The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album. It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live. On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single "Hey Boy", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III. The 2015 edition of the album was released on 20 November. In December 2015, British media buzzed about the group embarking on a stint in Las Vegas, starting 2017. Reports indicated the group impressed U.S. promoters and would headline their own residency show. Many venues circulated, including The AXIS at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, The Foundry at SLS Las Vegas and the Linq Theater at The LINQ Hotel & Casino. Local newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun writes that everything is still unconfirmed, despite Barlow confirming the rumour on Twitter. CANNOTANSWER | At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. | Take That are an English pop group formed in Manchester in 1990. The group currently consists of Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen. The original line-up also featured Jason Orange and Robbie Williams. Barlow is the group's lead singer and primary songwriter, with Owen and Williams initially providing backing vocals and Donald and Orange serving primarily as dancers.
The group have had 28 top 40 singles and 17 top 5 singles on the UK Singles Chart, 12 of which have reached number one, including "Back for Good", "Never Forget", "Patience" and "Greatest Day". They have also had eight number one albums on the UK Albums Chart. Internationally, the band have had 56 number one singles and 39 number one albums. They have received eight Brit Awards—winning for Best British Group and Best British Live Act. In 2012 they received an Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music. According to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), Take That has been certified for 14 million albums and 11.4 million singles in the UK.
Williams left the band in 1995 while the four remaining members completed their world tour and released a final single before splitting up in 1996. After filming a 2005 Take That: For the Record about the group and releasing a new greatest hits album, a four-piece Take That without Williams officially announced a 2006 reunion tour around the UK, entitled The Ultimate Tour. On 9 May 2006, it was announced that the group were set to record new material together once again; their fourth studio album, Beautiful World, was released in 2006 and was followed up with The Circus, in 2008. The group achieved new success as a four-piece, scoring a string of chart hits across the UK and Europe while selling over 45 million records worldwide. Williams rejoined Take That in 2010 for the band's sixth studio album, Progress. Released on 15 November of that year, it was the first album of new material to feature Take That's original line-up since their 1995 album, Nobody Else. It became the fastest-selling album of the 21st century and the second fastest-selling album in British history.
In 2014, the band recorded a seventh studio album, this time as a trio without Williams and Orange. The album, titled III, was released in November 2014 and became the band's seventh number one. It was preceded by the single "These Days", which became the band's 12th number one single in the UK.
In 2011, Take That set the new record for the fastest-selling tour of all time in the UK with Progress Live, beating the previous record set by their Circus Live Tour in 2009. At the 2011 Brit Awards they won Best British Group. In 2012, Forbes named them the fifth highest-earning music stars in the world. The group performed at the London 2012 Olympic Games closing ceremony, playing "Rule the World" while the Olympic Flame was extinguished. In the same year, the Official Charts Company revealed the biggest-selling singles artists in British music chart history with Take That currently placed at 15th overall, making them the most successful boy band in UK chart history. Four of their albums are listed in the best-selling albums of the millennium, with three of them among the 60 best-selling albums in UK chart history.
History
1989–1990: Formation
In 1989, Manchester-based Nigel Martin-Smith sought to create a British male vocal singing group modelled on New Kids on the Block. Martin-Smith's vision, however, was a teen-orientated group that would appeal to more than one demographic segment of the music industry. Martin-Smith was then introduced to young singer-songwriter Gary Barlow, who had been performing in clubs since the age of 15. Impressed with Barlow's catalogue of self-written material, Martin-Smith decided to build his new-look boy band around Barlow's musical abilities. A campaign to audition young men with abilities in dancing and singing followed and took place in Manchester and other surrounding cities in 1990. At 22, Howard Donald was one of the oldest to audition, but he was chosen after he got time off work as a vehicle painter to continue the process. Prior to auditioning, Jason Orange had appeared as a breakdancer on the popular television programme The Hit Man and Her. Martin-Smith also selected 18-year-old bank employee Mark Owen and finally 16-year-old Robbie Williams to round out the group, which initially went by the name Kick It.
1990–1992: Take That & Party
Take That's first TV appearance was on The Hit Man and Her in 1990, where they performed Barlow's self-written, unreleased song, "My Kind of Girl". They later appeared a second time to perform "Waiting Around", which would become the B-side for the first single, "Do What U Like". "Promises" and "Once You've Tasted Love" were also released as singles but were minor hits in the UK. Take That initially worked the same territory as their American counterparts, singing new jack R&B, urban soul, and mainstream pop. However, they worked their way toward Hi-NRG dance music, while also pursuing an adult contemporary ballad direction. As they aimed to break into the mainstream music industry, they worked a number of small clubs, schools, and events across the country building up a fanbase as they travelled to gigs constantly for months.
Take That's breakthrough single was a cover of the 1975 Tavares hit "It Only Takes a Minute", which peaked at number seven on the UK Singles Chart in June 1992. This success was followed by "I Found Heaven", then by the first Barlow ballad "A Million Love Songs", which also reached number seven in October. Their cover of the Barry Manilow hit "Could It Be Magic" gave them their first big success, peaking at number three in the UK in the first chart of 1993. Their first album, Take That & Party, was released in 1992, and included all the hit singles to date.
1993–1995: Everything Changes, Nobody Else and superstardom
1993 saw the release of Everything Changes, based on Barlow's original material. It peaked at number one in the UK and spawned six singles, with four being consecutive UK number one singles – their first number one "Pray", "Relight My Fire", "Babe" and the title track "Everything Changes". The lead single "Why Can't I Wake Up with You" had narrowly missed the top spot in the UK peaking at number two and the sixth and final single "Love Ain't Here Anymore" taken from the album reached number three on the UK charts. Everything Changes saw the band gain international success with the album being nominated for the 1994 Mercury Prize, but it failed to crack the U.S. market, where an exclusive remix of "Love Ain't Here Anymore" (U.S. version) gained little success.
By 1994, Take That had become radio and television stars across Europe and Asia, but it was not until 1995 that they did their first World Tour. It was during the years 1993–95 that the band fronted scores of magazine covers ranging from Smash Hits to GQ, becoming mass merchandised on all sorts of paraphernalia ranging from picture books, to posters, stickers, their own dolls, jewellery, caps, T-shirts, toothbrushes and even had their own annuals released. The band had also developed a large female teenage fanbase at the time. During this time, they performed at numerous music awards shows and chart shows such as the BRIT Awards and Top of the Pops, also winning the Best Live Act award in 1995 at the MTV Europe Music Awards, having been renowned for their breakdance routines, high energy and creative tour productions.
In 1995, Take That released their third studio album Nobody Else, again based on Barlow's own material which reached number 1 in the UK and across Europe, capturing new audiences along the way, with Take That also able to make inroads in the adult audience in Britain through Barlow's melodic, sensitive ballads. For nearly five years, Take That's popularity was unsurpassed in Britain. The release of the first single from the album, "Sure", achieved yet another number one in the UK charts. It was not until their second release from that album, however, that they would experience what would become their biggest hit single, "Back for Good", which reached number one in many countries including the UK, Germany, Australia, and Norway. It was also their only US hit, where it reached number seven.
The song was initially unveiled for the first time via live performance while at the 1995 BRIT Awards, and based on the reception of that performance, the record pre-sold more records than expected and forced the record label to bring the release date forward by an unprecedented six weeks. The album was also noted for its cover, which was a parody of the famed cover of The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band cover sleeve.
1995–1996: Break-up and Greatest Hits
Robbie Williams's drug abuse had escalated to a near drug overdose the night before the group was scheduled to perform at the MTV Europe Music Awards in 1994.
In June 1995, Williams was photographed by the press partying with Oasis at the Glastonbury Festival. The following month, the band offered him an ultimatum; he was to adhere to the band's responsibilities or leave before their scheduled world tour. Williams chose the latter. Williams claimed he was bored with Barlow's leadership and jealous of Barlow. Despite the loss of Williams, Take That continued to promote Nobody Else as a four-piece, scoring a further hit single with "Never Forget" with Donald on lead vocal. They subsequently went to America and completed the Nobody Else Tour in October 1995. Following the tour, the band began to plan for their next album; however, when they spent Christmas together, they mutually agreed it was time to part ways.
On 13 February 1996, Take That formally announced that they were disbanding. This was followed by the Greatest Hits compilation in 1996, which contained a new recording, a cover of the Bee Gees' "How Deep Is Your Love". The single went on to become what was to be the band's final UK number one until their 2006 comeback a decade later. Take That gave what was thought to be their final performance in April 1996 at Amsterdam. Following the band's announcement, millions of their fans were distraught around the world and in the UK alone, teenage girls threatened suicide and were seen lining streets in tears, to the point that telephone hotlines were set up by the government to deal with counselling them. After the band broke up, highly respected music figures such as Elton John noted that Take That were different from other boy bands before and after them, in that they wrote their own material through Gary Barlow. Barlow is one of only a small number of people who have won an Ivor Novello award during their time in a boy band, with George Michael whilst in Wham! and Tony Mortimer whilst in East 17 being two others who have achieved this feat. Take That had also left a legacy of being immaculate performers with a very high work ethic, causing them to be voted in as the greatest boy band of all time.
2005–2006: Reunion as a quartet and Never Forget – The Ultimate Collection
On 14 November 2005, Never Forget – The Ultimate Collection, a new compilation of their hit singles including a new previously unreleased song, also achieved great success and peaked at number 2 on UK charts, selling over 2.1 million copies in the UK alone. The new song "Today I've Lost You" (recorded in September 2005) was originally written by Barlow as the follow up to "Back for Good" but was never recorded. On 16 November 2005, the group got back together for the ITV documentary Take That: For the Record, in which they aired their views over their fame, success, the split and what the post-Williams line-up had done since. On 25 November 2005, there was an official press conference by the band announcing that the post-Robbie Williams line-up was going to tour in 2006. The tour, entitled The Ultimate Tour, ran from April to June 2006. The tour featured a guest appearance by British soul singer Beverley Knight, who replaced Lulu's vocals on the song "Relight My Fire"; although Lulu did appear during the stadium shows on "Relight My Fire" and "Never Forget". The American female ensemble Pussycat Dolls supported the group at their Dublin concert, and the Sugababes supported the group on the final five dates of the stadium leg. In a seven-year study analysing over one billion online searches via Google conducted by AccuraCast, a leading digital search agency, their comeback was ranked at number one in the UK.
2006–2007: Beautiful World
On 9 May 2006, Take That returned to the recorded music scene after more than ten years of absence, signing with Polydor Records. The band's comeback album, Beautiful World, entered the UK Albums Chart at no. 1 and, as of June 2009, had sold over 2.8 million copies in the UK. It is the 35th best selling album in UK music history.
On Beautiful World, all four members of the band had the opportunity to sing lead vocals and contribute in the songwriting. Unlike the band's earlier works, where the majority of their material was written by Barlow who received sole credit, all four band members are credited as co-writers, along with John Shanks. The comeback single, "Patience", was released on 20 November 2006, with a special event launching it on 5 November.
On 26 November "Patience" hit number 1 in the UK in its second week of chart entry, making it the group's ninth No. 1, and staying there for 4 weeks. Take That also accompanied eventual winner Leona Lewis on a live version of "A Million Love Songs" during the final of The X Factor on 16 December 2006.
The week after Beautiful World was released, it was announced that Take That had become the first artists ever to top the UK official single and album charts along with the download single, download album and DVD charts in the same week, as well as topping the radio charts.
The video for the number 1 hit single "Shine", the follow-up to "Patience", premiered on 25 January 2007 on Channel 4, ahead of its release on 26 February 2007. The band's success continued on 14 February 2007 when Take That performed live at the BRIT Awards ceremony at Earl's Court. Their single "Patience" won the Best British Single category. The third single chosen from Beautiful World was "I'd Wait For Life", released on 18 June 2007 in the UK. The single reached 17 in the UK Singles Chart. This may have been due to lack of promotion, as the band decided to take a pre-tour break rather than do any promotion for the single. The single "Rule the World", included on the deluxe version of Beautiful World, was recorded for the soundtrack of the film Stardust (2007). It reached number two in the UK and went on to become the group's second best selling single, shifting over 1.2 million units in the UK. Beautiful World was the fourth biggest-selling album of 2007. It was announced at the start of 2007 that Take That signed a record deal with American label Interscope, and would also release their album in Canada. Starting on 11 October 2007, Take That began their Beautiful World Tour 2007 in Belfast. The tour included 49 shows throughout Europe and the UK and ended in Manchester on 23 December 2007. The band received four nominations at the 2008 BRIT Awards. Nominated for Best British Group, Best British Single ("Shine"), Best British Album (Beautiful World) and Best Live Act, they took home the Best Live Act and the Best British Single awards. According to a 2007 MSN UK internet poll, Take That were voted as the "comeback kings" of the year.
2008–2009: The Circus
"Greatest Day", the first single from the album The Circus, made its radio premiere on 13 October 2008 and it was released on 24 November. It debuted at number 1 on the UK Singles Chart on 30 November 2008. An album launch party for The Circus was held in Paris on 2 December. On its first day of release The Circus sold 133,000 copies, and after four days on sale it sold 306,000 copies (going platinum) making The Circus the fastest selling album of the year. The album reached number 1 on the UK Albums Chart on 7 December 2008 with total first-week sales of 432,490, the third highest opening sales week in UK history.
On 28 October 2008, on the Radio 1 Chris Moyles show, it was announced that Take That would be touring again in June/July 2009, covering the UK and Ireland. Tickets for the Take That Present: The Circus Live tour went on sale on 31 October. The promoters, SJM, have said that the band's tour is "the fastest selling in UK history".
On 22 May 2008, Barlow and Donald attended the 2008 Ivor Novello Awards where Take That won the award for Most Performed Work with their single "Shine". Take That won the Sony Ericsson Tour of the Year award at the Vodafone music awards on 18 September 2008. They were unable to attend as they were in LA finishing off The Circus. They did send a video link message, which was shown at the awards. On 22 November 2008, Take That appeared on week 7 of the talent show The X Factor where the finalists performed some of their greatest hits and Owen and Barlow made a guest appearance to personally coach the contestants. The band also performed on Children in Need 2008, singing their new single, "Greatest Day", before donating £250,000 to the charity from their Marks and Spencer fee. The band were also voted the Greatest Boy Band of All Time, reflecting their ongoing marketability and success in the pop arena, even after two decades.
At the 2009 Brit Awards they were nominated for Best British Group and they performed "Greatest Day" at the ceremony. "Up All Night", the second single from The Circus, was released on 2 March 2009, and peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart, despite heavy airplay. In Germany and Australia, "The Garden" was released as the second single instead. On 7 May 2009, Take That's official website confirmed that the third single from The Circus would be "Said It All" which was released on 15 June 2009, peaking at number 9 on the UK Singles chart. The video premiered on GMTV on 8 May 2009. It features all four band members dressed up as vintage circus clowns, which tied in with their forthcoming Take That Present: The Circus Live tour. Take That started their Circus Live tour at the Stadium of Light on 5 June 2009 in Sunderland and ended at the Wembley Stadium in London on 5 July 2009, which over 80,000 people attended. This tour quickly became the fastest-selling of all time, breaking all records by selling all of their 650,000 tickets in less than four and a half hours.
In November 2009 Take That released the official DVD of their Circus tour, which became the fastest-selling music DVD of all time in the UK on its first day of release and stayed in the top 10 of the videos chart for over a year. This overtook the previous record sales holder, which was Take That's Beautiful World Live tour and stayed at the number 1 spot for 8 weeks. The following week Take That released their first live album, The Greatest Day – Take That Present: The Circus Live, which sold 98,000 copies on its first day of release and was certified Platinum in July 2013. "Hold up a Light" was released as the fifth and final single from The Circus to radio stations and as a digital download to promote the release of the live album. The live album also featured a stripped down session recorded live at the famous Abbey Road Studios in London. It featured the members singing the setlist from the preceding tour, albeit in a studio setting.
2010–2011: Williams' return and Progress
On 7 June 2010, the news broke of a single called "Shame", which had been written by Barlow and Williams and would feature the vocals of both artists. This was the first time the pair had worked together since 1995 and would appear on the second greatest hits collection of Williams. "Heart and I", another track from the same album, was also co-written by Williams and Barlow. The single "Shame" peaked at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart while also achieving success throughout Europe, charting in over 19 countries.
After working with the band on new material in Los Angeles, on 15 July 2010 Robbie Williams announced he was returning to Take That. After months of working together, assembling new songs for a new album and even debating a band-name change to "The English", a joint statement between Williams and the group read, "The rumours are true ... Take That: the original lineup, have written and recorded a new album for release later this year." The statement went on to say, "Following months of speculation Gary Barlow, Howard Donald, Jason Orange, Mark Owen, and Robbie Williams confirmed they have been recording a new studio album as a five-piece, which they will release in November." The lead single from Take That's album Progress was announced as "The Flood" and was released 7 November as a digital download, and on 8 November as a physical copy, with the album released a week later on 15 November. The single peaked at number 2 in the UK Singles Charts and to date has sold over 500,000 copies in the UK alone. The single also achieved success across Europe, charting inside the top 10 in ten countries while also charting in another nine countries whilst also being nominated for an Ivor Novello Award for best work.
On 26 October the band announced that they would be embarking on a huge UK stadium tour entitled Progress Live, starting in Sunderland on 27 May, and finishing with a record-breaking 8 nights at London's Wembley Stadium in July 2011. It was also announced that Williams would perform hit singles from his solo career during the tour. The band then played at some of the biggest venues across Europe for the second leg of the tour. The phenomenal demand for tickets across the country led to the web sites of all the major UK ticket suppliers either crashing or considerably slowing for hours on end. The demand and sheer volume of fans also created problems for the UK telephone network. Take That's Progress Live also broke all records for ticket sales selling over 1.1 million tickets in one day, smashing the previous box office record set by Take That's Circus tour in 2008.
On the first day of release Progress became the fastest selling album of the century, with 235,000 copies sold in just one day. The album reached number 1 in the UK, selling around 520,000 copies in its first week, becoming the second fastest-selling album in history. After the release of Progress it was announced that Take That have become Amazon UK's top-selling music artist of all time.
The album retained the number one spot for six consecutive weeks in the UK since its release, selling 2.8 million copies in the UK alone and becoming the best selling album of 2010
Progress also achieved success across Europe where it debuted at number one in Ireland, Greece, Germany and Denmark. and the European Top 100 Albums chart. It also debuted inside the top 10 of the charts in Austria, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland.
"Kidz" was announced as the second single from Progress, it was released 21 February 2011 and charted well across Europe. The band performed the song live at the 2011 Brit Awards hosted at The O2 Arena, where they won a Brit for Best British Group and were nominated for Best British Album. Their performance of "Kidz", praised by critics, involved a highly choreographed routine featuring dancers dressed in police-styled riot gear bearing the Take That symbol on the uniform and shields. On 19 May 2011, Take That announced a new EP entitled Progressed, which contained eight tracks written by the band since they had reunited as a five-piece. It was packaged alongside the album Progress and returned the band to number 1 in the UK Album Chart the week after it was released on 13 June 2011.
Take That announced that the Progress Live tour would be released worldwide as their second live album to date and would also be released on home media formats across the UK and Europe on 21 November 2011. The DVD debuted at number 1 on the UK Music Video top 40 in its first week on release and sold over 200,000 copies in two weeks of release in the UK alone. Take That's efforts were recognised further when they were awarded Virgin Media's Best Live Act of 2012.
On 4 October, it was reported that Take That were to take a break after the completion of the Progress tour, with Barlow continuing his role as a judge on The X Factor and Williams recording new solo material. Take That were presented with an Ivor Novello Award for their Outstanding Contribution to British Music in May 2012.
In August 2012, Take That performed at the closing ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics, despite Barlow announcing that his daughter had been stillborn the previous week. The performance earned him praise for appearing live so soon after the tragedy. Williams was due to perform with the band but dropped out due to his wife giving birth at around the same time and thus the group performed as a four-piece. In November 2012, Take That reunited as a five-piece for the last time to perform "Never Forget" at the Music Industry Trust Awards. In 2013, Donald became a judge on the German version of the television dancing show Got to Dance.
2014–2015: Line-up change and III
In May 2013, Owen announced that Take That was to begin recording their seventh studio album in 2014, and on 14 January 2014, Donald and Barlow both tweeted that Take That had entered the studio to begin recording the album, although it was not initially clear if Williams was present at these recording sessions. On 28 April 2014, Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a father for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour. Although welcome to return to the band at any time, Williams chose not to return for group's seventh and eighth studio albums and their accompanying tours, focusing instead on his solo commitments. He continued to write music with his colleagues and has performed with the group on several occasions since 2011's Progress tour and plans on returning at some point in the future.
On 24 September 2014, it was announced that Jason Orange had left the band. He said: 'At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. 'At the end of The Progress Tour I began to question whether it might be the right time for me to not continue on with Take That,' he continued. 'There have been no fallings out, only a decision on my part that I no longer wish to do this,' he added. Barlow, Donald, and Owen issued a joint statement about Orange's decision which said: "This is a sad day for us. Jason leaving is a huge loss both professionally and even more so personally ... Jason's energy and belief in what this band could achieve has made it what it is today, and we'll forever be grateful for his enthusiasm, dedication and inspiration over the years." A day after the announcement, Robbie Williams took to Twitter to show support of Orange's decision. "Mr Orange. Until we ride again. Much love, Bro.", Williams tweeted.
On 10 October 2014, Take That unveiled their first song as a three-piece and lead single from their upcoming album. Titled "These Days", it was released on 23 November 2014 and went to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, knocking Band Aid 30 off the top spot and becoming their 12th number one single. The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album. It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live. On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single "Hey Boy", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III. The 2015 edition of the album was released on 20 November.
In December 2015, British media buzzed about the group embarking on a stint in Las Vegas, starting 2017. Reports indicated the group impressed U.S. promoters and would headline their own residency show. Many venues circulated, including The AXIS at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, The Foundry at SLS Las Vegas and the Linq Theater at The LINQ Hotel & Casino. Local newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun writes that everything is still unconfirmed, despite Barlow confirming the rumour on Twitter.
2016–2017: Wonderland
On 2 February 2016, in an interview with The Sun, Barlow revealed that Take That would release their eighth studio album later in the year. On 4 May 2016, English drum and bass duo Sigma announced their newest single would feature Take That. "Cry" received its first radio play on 20 May 2016 and was released on that date. On 21 October 2016, the band posted a teaser on their social media pages and website depicting the logo of the band flickering with the hashtag "#WONDERLAND". The following day, it was announced that their new album, titled Wonderland, was scheduled to be released on 24 March 2017. It was then followed by a UK and Ireland arena tour entitled Wonderland Live, that commenced on 5 May 2017 at the Genting Arena in Birmingham. On 17 February 2017, the lead single of Wonderland was released. Titled "Giants", it debuted at 13 in the UK charts, which became the band's 24th UK top 20 single.
On 8 April 2017, ITV aired a specially commissioned hour-length television special titled An Evening with Take That, where the band performed some songs from the album, along with some old classics including "Never Forget", "Back for Good" and "Rule the World". The band also took part in a Q&A session with the audience members. On 27 April, it was announced on Twitter that "New Day" would be released as the next single from the album Wonderland. The band were seen recording the music video in a field in Luton the days leading up the opening night of the Wonderland Live tour. Due to the Manchester Arena bombing just days before they were due to perform at the venue, their Manchester and Liverpool dates were rescheduled or relocated. The band returned a month later to perform at the One Love Manchester benefit concert.
On 16 September 2017, Barlow, Owen and Donald were set to perform a special one-off show in Jersey after a fan bid more than £1.2 million to win a performance from the band. This then turned in to a ticketed charity event where the money from tickets sold would go towards benefiting Children in Need. The auction was held on BBC Radio 2. On 11 November 2017, Take That began their foreign tour in Perth, Australia, the first time they have performed in the country in over twenty years. They also played in New Zealand, United Arab Emirates and Israel for the first time. Unlike the other tours, a DVD for Wonderland Live was not released. Instead, it was broadcast on Sky 1 on 23 December and in cinemas.
2018–2020: The 30th Anniversary, and Odyssey
On 16 July 2018, while performing at first ever Hits Radio Live at the Manchester Arena, Barlow, Donald and Owen confirmed that they would be touring in 2019. The tour was a Greatest Hits tour and celebrated the 30th anniversary of the band. There was also a Greatest Hits album, Odyssey, which was released on 23 November 2018. The Greatest Hits album features existing songs from their back catalogue that have been re-imagined and 3 brand new songs. It also includes collaborations with Boyz II Men, Lulu, Sigma and Barry Gibb. Odyssey reached number one in the UK album chart and was certified as a platinum selling record. The following year, Odyssey Live, the recording of their tour, reached number 5, becoming the band's 13th top 5 album, with the DVD becoming the biggest live music sale of 2019.
In May 2020, Barlow, Donald, and Owen reunited with Williams for a virtual performance from their respective homes, hosted by price comparison website comparethemarket.com, to raise money for the music charity Nordoff Robbins and Crew Nation.
In other media
In April 2006, EMI licensed the band's songs to be used in the musical Never Forget, a musical based on songs of the band from the 1990s. Take That posted and then later removed a statement on their website distancing themselves from it.
Take That wrote and recorded the theme song "Rule the World" for the film Stardust directed by Matthew Vaughn, which was released in cinemas across the globe in October 2007. In 2007, their song "Back for Good" was used as part of the soundtrack for popular Korean drama The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince.
Take That presented their own TV show Take That Come to Town, a variety show in which they performed some of their biggest hits. The show also featured comedy sketches with one of Peter Kay's alter egos Geraldine McQueen. It aired on 7 December 2008 on ITV1. Sony launched their first Take That video game, SingStar Take That in 2009 for the PlayStation 3.
In November 2010, ITV aired Take That: Look Back, Don't Stare, a black-and-white documentary which focused on the band working together for the first time in 15 years. Through a series of interviews, the band look back at their achievements while also looking forward to what the future holds for them. On 18 November 2010, Williams and Barlow appeared together live on television for the first time on the Popstars program in Germany singing their hit "Shame".
In 2011, Take That's song "Love Love" was used in the credits of the 2011 film X-Men: First Class and later, "When We Were Young" was chosen as the main theme for The Three Musketeers movie. In 2015, the song "Get Ready for It" from their album III, was chosen as the theme song for the film Kingsman: The Secret Service.
In 2017, Take That launched The Band, a musical written by Tim Firth featuring the five winners of Let It Shine and some of Take That's biggest hits. Take That, including Robbie Williams, were billed as executive producers.
The group's music is regularly featured in the Channel 4 show Derry Girls, notably in the third episode of the second series, when the lead characters sneak off to attend the 1993 Take That concert in Belfast; the episode features the music video for "Pray" and ends on footage of the band performing "Everything Changes".
Artistry
Early in their career, Take That were known for party anthems such as "Do What U Like" and more mature ballads such as "A Million Love Songs" and "Back for Good". Since reuniting in 2006, they have become more experimental: their post-2006 albums Beautiful World and The Circus have featured "stadium-filling pop-rock" while Progress largely leaned towards electropop. Having been dubbed the "comeback kings" by the media for their highly successful reunion, the group has won widespread praise for their seamless transformation from teen idols to "man band" without overly relying on nostalgia, instead showcasing a more mature image and sound and reinventing themselves while maintaining their artistic integrity. Jude Rogers of The Guardian commented on Take That's post-reunion success, in light of a string of reunions by the group's disbanded counterparts from the 1990s: "Only Take That are penetrating pop's wider consciousness by becoming a man-band rather than a boy-band, singing mature, proper pop songs that cross the generations."
Take That have garnered critical acclaim and popularity as consummate live performers and for their musical output. Their domestic concert tours have been described as "some of the most flamboyant, imaginative and extravagant pop tours around". Aside from covers, all of their material is composed by the members themselves; Barlow was initially the principal songwriter who received sole credit but the other members have since taken a more active role in the composition and production process, including playing instruments for the backing track.
Band members
Current members
Gary Barlow (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Howard Donald (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Mark Owen (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Former members
Robbie Williams (1990–1995, 2010–2012)
Jason Orange (1990–1996, 2005–2014)
Timeline
Awards and nominations
|-
| 2016
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award for Best Live Act
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2015
| "These Days"
| UK Music Video Awards for Best Art Direction
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|2012
| "Pray"
|The Guardian Music Award for Best Number 1 Single
|
|-
| Take That
|Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music
|
|-
| "Back for Good"
|The Official Charts Company UK Recognition award for United Kingdom's Favourite Number One Single
|
|-
| "The Flood"
|Ivor Novello Award for PRS Most Performed Work
|
|-
| Take That
|Virgin Media Music Awards for Best Live Act
|
|-
| "Kidz"
|Virgin Media Music Awards for Best Music Video
|
|-
| rowspan="10" style="text-align:center;"|2011
|-
| Progress Live
|Audio Pro International Awards for Best Live Sound Event
|
|-
| Progress Live
|Audio Pro International Awards Grand Prix Award
|
|-
| Take That
|Phonographic Performance Limited Award for most played UK artist
|
|-
| "Kidz"
|Spex German Entertainment for Best Music Video
|
|-
| The Circus Live Tour
| Greatest Event ever at Wembley Stadium
|
|-
| Take That
|ECHO Award for Best International Group
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| Progress
| BRIT Award for MasterCard Album of the Year
|
|-
| Take That
|Virgin Media for Best Group
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|2010
|-
| "Up All Night"
| UK Music Video Awards for Best Art Direction
|
|-
| "The Flood"
|iTunes Award for Best Single
|
|-
| Progress
| iTunes Award for Best Album
|
|-
| Take That
|Q Award Hall of Fame
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best Live Performance of the past 30 Years
|
|-
| rowspan="5" style="text-align:center;"|2009
| Take That
|GQ Men of the Year Awards for Best Band
|
|-
| Take That
|Q Award for Best Live Act
|
|-
| "Greatest Day"
|Q Award for Best Single
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award
|
|-
| rowspan="7" style="text-align:center;"|2008
| "Shine"
|Ivor Novello Award for PRS Most Performed Work
|
|-
| "Rule the World"
|Virgin for Best Single
|
|-
| Take That
|Sony Ericsson Tour of the Year Award for Take That Arena Tour
|
|-
| "Shine"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Live Act
|
|-
| Beautiful World
|BRIT Award for Best British Album
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2007
| "Patience"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2006
| Take That
|Q Idol Award
|
|-
| rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|1996
| "Back for Good"
|Billboard International Hit of the Year
|
|-
| "Never Forget"
|Ivor Novello Award for Most Performed Song
|
|-
| "Back for Good"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|1995
| "Back for Good"
|Ivor Novello Award for the Song of the Year
|
|-
| Take That
|MTV Europe Music Awards for Best Live Act
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|1994
| "Babe"
|MTV Video Music Award for International Viewer's Choice Award for MTV Europe
|
|-
| Everything Changes
|Mercury Prize for Best Album
|
|-
| "Pray"
|Ivor Novello Award for Best Contemporary Song
|
|-
| "Pray"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "Pray"
|BRIT Award for Best British Video
|
|-
| Take That
|MTV Europe Music Awards for Best Group
|
|-
| rowspan="4" style="text-align:center;"|1993
| "Could It Be Magic"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "A Million Love Songs"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "It Only Takes a Minute"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award for Best Newcomer
|
|}
Discography
Take That & Party (1992)
Everything Changes (1993)
Nobody Else (1995)
Beautiful World (2006)
The Circus (2008)
Progress (2010)
III (2014)
Wonderland (2017)
Tours
Party Tour (1992–93)
Everything Changes Tour (1993–94)
Pops Tour (1994–95)
Nobody Else Tour (1995)
The Ultimate Tour (2006)
Beautiful World Tour 2007 (2007)
Take That Present: The Circus Live (2009)
Progress Live (2011)
Take That Live (2015)
Wonderland Live (2017)
Greatest Hits Live (2019)
See also
List of best-selling boy bands
References
External links
Chinese Fansite
1990 establishments in England
1996 disestablishments in England
2005 establishments in England
Brit Award winners
Dance-pop groups
Echo (music award) winners
English boy bands
English dance music groups
Interscope Records artists
Ivor Novello Award winners
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Musical groups disestablished in 1996
Musical groups established in 1990
Musical groups from Cheshire
Musical groups from Manchester
Musical groups reestablished in 2005
Polydor Records artists
Teen pop groups
Universal Music Group artists
Vocal quartets
Vocal quintets
Vocal trios | true | [
"Jason Thomas Orange (born 10 July 1970) is an English retired singer, dancer and actor. He was a member of Take That during their original run from 1990 to 1996 and again following their reunion in 2005. He officially left the band in September 2014, but was not an active part of Take That after the group had performed at The Music Industry Trust Awards in November 2012. His last public appearance was acting in an episode of Channel 4 comedy Shameless, which aired in April 2013. Jason also comes from a large family and has 5 brothers (Simon, Justin, Dominic, Samuel and Oliver) 2 Half Sisters (Emma and Amy) a step Sister (Sarah) and a step brother (Simon).\n\nEarly life\nJason Thomas Orange was born on 10 July 1970 in Manchester, Lancashire to Tony and Jenny Orange a few minutes before his twin brother Justin. He attended South Trafford College for two years beginning in 2001 and studied A-level English, and an access course including psychology, biology and history though he did not progress onto higher education.\n\nHe was part of the Manchester-based breakdance crew Street Machine in the mid 1980s. They won the Manchester round of the UK Breakdancing Championship in 1985. He also appeared in the show The Hit Man and Her as one of the featured dancers on the show (and in a duo called Look Twice) in the late 1980s.\n\nTake That\nOrange joined the boy band Take That in September 1989 and stayed with the band until their split in February 1996.\n\nIn 2005, Take That reformed as a four-piece and released a new greatest hits album, followed in 2006 by their first studio album since 1995, Beautiful World. Orange contributed both songwriting and lead vocals on the album. In 2008, they released another studio album, The Circus. In 2010, the album Progress was released by the band as a five-piece.\n\nOn 24 September 2014, it was announced that Orange had left the band, stating that he did not wish to continue recording music and touring.\n\nStudio albums with Take That\nTake That & Party (1992)\nEverything Changes (1993)\nNobody Else (1995)\nBeautiful World (2006)\nThe Circus (2008)\nProgress (2010)\nProgressed (2011)\n\nOrange is credited on Odyssey (2018), as it contains re-recordings of songs he contributed to during his time in Take That. However, he did not participate in the making of the album.\n\nTours With Take That\nParty Tour (1992–93)\nEverything Changes Tour (1993–94)\nPops Tour (1994–95)\nNobody Else Tour (1995)\nThe Ultimate Tour (2006)\nBeautiful World Tour 2007 (2007)\nTake That Present: The Circus Live (2009)\nProgress Live (2011)\n\nLead vocal (Take That)\n \"Wooden Boat\" (from Beautiful World, 2006)\n \"84\" (B-side for the 2008 track \"The Garden\")\n \"How Did It Come to This\" (from The Circus, 2008)\n \"Flowerbed\" (from Progress, 2010)\n\nActing\nOrange appeared in the 1998 Lynda La Plante television crime drama Killer Net in 1998, for which his appearance was a major selling point. The following year he was in the London stage production of Gob in 1999. He was the lead actor together with Tom Hayes in the play, which was written by Jim Kenworth, and directed by James Martin Charlton.\n\nOrange appeared in a cameo role in the Channel 4 comedy Shameless'', which aired in April 2013.\n\nReferences\n\n1970 births\nLiving people\nEnglish male singers\nEnglish songwriters\nMusicians from Manchester\nTake That members\nTwin people from England",
"The End Of A Beautiful Career is the first mini-album from the band Angelica, released on Fantastic Plastic Records. It includes the singles \"Bring Back Her Head\" and \"Why Did You Let My Kitten Die?\" and reached #4 in the Indie Charts. It was released on CD and limited edition 10\" lollipop orange coloured vinyl with an extra track.\n\nTrack listing\n \"All I Can See\" – 3:47 (Colton)\n \"Bring Back Her Head\" – 4:08 (Ross)\n \"Concubine Blues\" – 3:35 (Colton)\n \"Sea Shanty\" – 3:38 (Ross)\n \"You Fake It/You Make It\" – 3:03 (Ross)\n \"Why Did You Let My Kitten Die?\" – 2:35 (Ross)\n \"Fireflies\" – 4:26 (Colton)\n \"A.N.G.E.L.I.C.A.\" - 2:00 (Angelica) (Only available on Vinyl version)\n\nReferences\n\n2000 albums\nAngelica (band) albums"
] |
[
"Take That",
"2014-2015: Robbie Williams's second departure, Jason Orange's departure and III",
"Why did Robbie Williams depart?",
"Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a dad for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour.",
"Why did Jason Orange leave the band?",
"At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album."
] | C_6e6a60800d1643268f8b7ee3189196de_0 | Was is III? | 3 | What is III? | Take That | In May 2013, Owen announced that Take That were to begin recording their seventh studio album in 2014 and On 14 January 2014, Donald and Barlow both tweeted that Take That had entered the studio to begin recording the album, although it was not initially clear if Williams was present at these recording sessions. On 28 April 2014, Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a dad for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour. Barlow later confirmed that Williams had left the band for a second time, although the departure was amicable and that Williams was welcome to rejoin the band in the future. Williams has since collaborated with Barlow on several projects and duet performances and indicated his interest in reuniting with the band for potential 25th anniversary commemorative events. On 24 September 2014, it was announced that Jason Orange had left the band. He said: 'At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. 'At the end of The Progress Tour I began to question whether it might be the right time for me to not continue on with Take That,' he continued. 'There have been no fallings out, only a decision on my part that I no longer wish to do this,' he added. Barlow, Donald and Owen issued a joint statement about Orange's decision which said: "This is a sad day for us. Jason leaving is a huge loss both professionally and even more so personally ... Jason's energy and belief in what this band could achieve has made it what it is today, and we'll forever be grateful for his enthusiasm, dedication and inspiration over the years." On 10 October 2014, Take That unveiled the lead single from the album. Titled "These Days", it was released on 23 November 2014 and went to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, knocking Band Aid 30 off the top spot and becoming their 12th number one single. The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album. It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live. On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single "Hey Boy", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III. The 2015 edition of the album was released on 20 November. In December 2015, British media buzzed about the group embarking on a stint in Las Vegas, starting 2017. Reports indicated the group impressed U.S. promoters and would headline their own residency show. Many venues circulated, including The AXIS at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, The Foundry at SLS Las Vegas and the Linq Theater at The LINQ Hotel & Casino. Local newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun writes that everything is still unconfirmed, despite Barlow confirming the rumour on Twitter. CANNOTANSWER | The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album. | Take That are an English pop group formed in Manchester in 1990. The group currently consists of Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen. The original line-up also featured Jason Orange and Robbie Williams. Barlow is the group's lead singer and primary songwriter, with Owen and Williams initially providing backing vocals and Donald and Orange serving primarily as dancers.
The group have had 28 top 40 singles and 17 top 5 singles on the UK Singles Chart, 12 of which have reached number one, including "Back for Good", "Never Forget", "Patience" and "Greatest Day". They have also had eight number one albums on the UK Albums Chart. Internationally, the band have had 56 number one singles and 39 number one albums. They have received eight Brit Awards—winning for Best British Group and Best British Live Act. In 2012 they received an Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music. According to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), Take That has been certified for 14 million albums and 11.4 million singles in the UK.
Williams left the band in 1995 while the four remaining members completed their world tour and released a final single before splitting up in 1996. After filming a 2005 Take That: For the Record about the group and releasing a new greatest hits album, a four-piece Take That without Williams officially announced a 2006 reunion tour around the UK, entitled The Ultimate Tour. On 9 May 2006, it was announced that the group were set to record new material together once again; their fourth studio album, Beautiful World, was released in 2006 and was followed up with The Circus, in 2008. The group achieved new success as a four-piece, scoring a string of chart hits across the UK and Europe while selling over 45 million records worldwide. Williams rejoined Take That in 2010 for the band's sixth studio album, Progress. Released on 15 November of that year, it was the first album of new material to feature Take That's original line-up since their 1995 album, Nobody Else. It became the fastest-selling album of the 21st century and the second fastest-selling album in British history.
In 2014, the band recorded a seventh studio album, this time as a trio without Williams and Orange. The album, titled III, was released in November 2014 and became the band's seventh number one. It was preceded by the single "These Days", which became the band's 12th number one single in the UK.
In 2011, Take That set the new record for the fastest-selling tour of all time in the UK with Progress Live, beating the previous record set by their Circus Live Tour in 2009. At the 2011 Brit Awards they won Best British Group. In 2012, Forbes named them the fifth highest-earning music stars in the world. The group performed at the London 2012 Olympic Games closing ceremony, playing "Rule the World" while the Olympic Flame was extinguished. In the same year, the Official Charts Company revealed the biggest-selling singles artists in British music chart history with Take That currently placed at 15th overall, making them the most successful boy band in UK chart history. Four of their albums are listed in the best-selling albums of the millennium, with three of them among the 60 best-selling albums in UK chart history.
History
1989–1990: Formation
In 1989, Manchester-based Nigel Martin-Smith sought to create a British male vocal singing group modelled on New Kids on the Block. Martin-Smith's vision, however, was a teen-orientated group that would appeal to more than one demographic segment of the music industry. Martin-Smith was then introduced to young singer-songwriter Gary Barlow, who had been performing in clubs since the age of 15. Impressed with Barlow's catalogue of self-written material, Martin-Smith decided to build his new-look boy band around Barlow's musical abilities. A campaign to audition young men with abilities in dancing and singing followed and took place in Manchester and other surrounding cities in 1990. At 22, Howard Donald was one of the oldest to audition, but he was chosen after he got time off work as a vehicle painter to continue the process. Prior to auditioning, Jason Orange had appeared as a breakdancer on the popular television programme The Hit Man and Her. Martin-Smith also selected 18-year-old bank employee Mark Owen and finally 16-year-old Robbie Williams to round out the group, which initially went by the name Kick It.
1990–1992: Take That & Party
Take That's first TV appearance was on The Hit Man and Her in 1990, where they performed Barlow's self-written, unreleased song, "My Kind of Girl". They later appeared a second time to perform "Waiting Around", which would become the B-side for the first single, "Do What U Like". "Promises" and "Once You've Tasted Love" were also released as singles but were minor hits in the UK. Take That initially worked the same territory as their American counterparts, singing new jack R&B, urban soul, and mainstream pop. However, they worked their way toward Hi-NRG dance music, while also pursuing an adult contemporary ballad direction. As they aimed to break into the mainstream music industry, they worked a number of small clubs, schools, and events across the country building up a fanbase as they travelled to gigs constantly for months.
Take That's breakthrough single was a cover of the 1975 Tavares hit "It Only Takes a Minute", which peaked at number seven on the UK Singles Chart in June 1992. This success was followed by "I Found Heaven", then by the first Barlow ballad "A Million Love Songs", which also reached number seven in October. Their cover of the Barry Manilow hit "Could It Be Magic" gave them their first big success, peaking at number three in the UK in the first chart of 1993. Their first album, Take That & Party, was released in 1992, and included all the hit singles to date.
1993–1995: Everything Changes, Nobody Else and superstardom
1993 saw the release of Everything Changes, based on Barlow's original material. It peaked at number one in the UK and spawned six singles, with four being consecutive UK number one singles – their first number one "Pray", "Relight My Fire", "Babe" and the title track "Everything Changes". The lead single "Why Can't I Wake Up with You" had narrowly missed the top spot in the UK peaking at number two and the sixth and final single "Love Ain't Here Anymore" taken from the album reached number three on the UK charts. Everything Changes saw the band gain international success with the album being nominated for the 1994 Mercury Prize, but it failed to crack the U.S. market, where an exclusive remix of "Love Ain't Here Anymore" (U.S. version) gained little success.
By 1994, Take That had become radio and television stars across Europe and Asia, but it was not until 1995 that they did their first World Tour. It was during the years 1993–95 that the band fronted scores of magazine covers ranging from Smash Hits to GQ, becoming mass merchandised on all sorts of paraphernalia ranging from picture books, to posters, stickers, their own dolls, jewellery, caps, T-shirts, toothbrushes and even had their own annuals released. The band had also developed a large female teenage fanbase at the time. During this time, they performed at numerous music awards shows and chart shows such as the BRIT Awards and Top of the Pops, also winning the Best Live Act award in 1995 at the MTV Europe Music Awards, having been renowned for their breakdance routines, high energy and creative tour productions.
In 1995, Take That released their third studio album Nobody Else, again based on Barlow's own material which reached number 1 in the UK and across Europe, capturing new audiences along the way, with Take That also able to make inroads in the adult audience in Britain through Barlow's melodic, sensitive ballads. For nearly five years, Take That's popularity was unsurpassed in Britain. The release of the first single from the album, "Sure", achieved yet another number one in the UK charts. It was not until their second release from that album, however, that they would experience what would become their biggest hit single, "Back for Good", which reached number one in many countries including the UK, Germany, Australia, and Norway. It was also their only US hit, where it reached number seven.
The song was initially unveiled for the first time via live performance while at the 1995 BRIT Awards, and based on the reception of that performance, the record pre-sold more records than expected and forced the record label to bring the release date forward by an unprecedented six weeks. The album was also noted for its cover, which was a parody of the famed cover of The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band cover sleeve.
1995–1996: Break-up and Greatest Hits
Robbie Williams's drug abuse had escalated to a near drug overdose the night before the group was scheduled to perform at the MTV Europe Music Awards in 1994.
In June 1995, Williams was photographed by the press partying with Oasis at the Glastonbury Festival. The following month, the band offered him an ultimatum; he was to adhere to the band's responsibilities or leave before their scheduled world tour. Williams chose the latter. Williams claimed he was bored with Barlow's leadership and jealous of Barlow. Despite the loss of Williams, Take That continued to promote Nobody Else as a four-piece, scoring a further hit single with "Never Forget" with Donald on lead vocal. They subsequently went to America and completed the Nobody Else Tour in October 1995. Following the tour, the band began to plan for their next album; however, when they spent Christmas together, they mutually agreed it was time to part ways.
On 13 February 1996, Take That formally announced that they were disbanding. This was followed by the Greatest Hits compilation in 1996, which contained a new recording, a cover of the Bee Gees' "How Deep Is Your Love". The single went on to become what was to be the band's final UK number one until their 2006 comeback a decade later. Take That gave what was thought to be their final performance in April 1996 at Amsterdam. Following the band's announcement, millions of their fans were distraught around the world and in the UK alone, teenage girls threatened suicide and were seen lining streets in tears, to the point that telephone hotlines were set up by the government to deal with counselling them. After the band broke up, highly respected music figures such as Elton John noted that Take That were different from other boy bands before and after them, in that they wrote their own material through Gary Barlow. Barlow is one of only a small number of people who have won an Ivor Novello award during their time in a boy band, with George Michael whilst in Wham! and Tony Mortimer whilst in East 17 being two others who have achieved this feat. Take That had also left a legacy of being immaculate performers with a very high work ethic, causing them to be voted in as the greatest boy band of all time.
2005–2006: Reunion as a quartet and Never Forget – The Ultimate Collection
On 14 November 2005, Never Forget – The Ultimate Collection, a new compilation of their hit singles including a new previously unreleased song, also achieved great success and peaked at number 2 on UK charts, selling over 2.1 million copies in the UK alone. The new song "Today I've Lost You" (recorded in September 2005) was originally written by Barlow as the follow up to "Back for Good" but was never recorded. On 16 November 2005, the group got back together for the ITV documentary Take That: For the Record, in which they aired their views over their fame, success, the split and what the post-Williams line-up had done since. On 25 November 2005, there was an official press conference by the band announcing that the post-Robbie Williams line-up was going to tour in 2006. The tour, entitled The Ultimate Tour, ran from April to June 2006. The tour featured a guest appearance by British soul singer Beverley Knight, who replaced Lulu's vocals on the song "Relight My Fire"; although Lulu did appear during the stadium shows on "Relight My Fire" and "Never Forget". The American female ensemble Pussycat Dolls supported the group at their Dublin concert, and the Sugababes supported the group on the final five dates of the stadium leg. In a seven-year study analysing over one billion online searches via Google conducted by AccuraCast, a leading digital search agency, their comeback was ranked at number one in the UK.
2006–2007: Beautiful World
On 9 May 2006, Take That returned to the recorded music scene after more than ten years of absence, signing with Polydor Records. The band's comeback album, Beautiful World, entered the UK Albums Chart at no. 1 and, as of June 2009, had sold over 2.8 million copies in the UK. It is the 35th best selling album in UK music history.
On Beautiful World, all four members of the band had the opportunity to sing lead vocals and contribute in the songwriting. Unlike the band's earlier works, where the majority of their material was written by Barlow who received sole credit, all four band members are credited as co-writers, along with John Shanks. The comeback single, "Patience", was released on 20 November 2006, with a special event launching it on 5 November.
On 26 November "Patience" hit number 1 in the UK in its second week of chart entry, making it the group's ninth No. 1, and staying there for 4 weeks. Take That also accompanied eventual winner Leona Lewis on a live version of "A Million Love Songs" during the final of The X Factor on 16 December 2006.
The week after Beautiful World was released, it was announced that Take That had become the first artists ever to top the UK official single and album charts along with the download single, download album and DVD charts in the same week, as well as topping the radio charts.
The video for the number 1 hit single "Shine", the follow-up to "Patience", premiered on 25 January 2007 on Channel 4, ahead of its release on 26 February 2007. The band's success continued on 14 February 2007 when Take That performed live at the BRIT Awards ceremony at Earl's Court. Their single "Patience" won the Best British Single category. The third single chosen from Beautiful World was "I'd Wait For Life", released on 18 June 2007 in the UK. The single reached 17 in the UK Singles Chart. This may have been due to lack of promotion, as the band decided to take a pre-tour break rather than do any promotion for the single. The single "Rule the World", included on the deluxe version of Beautiful World, was recorded for the soundtrack of the film Stardust (2007). It reached number two in the UK and went on to become the group's second best selling single, shifting over 1.2 million units in the UK. Beautiful World was the fourth biggest-selling album of 2007. It was announced at the start of 2007 that Take That signed a record deal with American label Interscope, and would also release their album in Canada. Starting on 11 October 2007, Take That began their Beautiful World Tour 2007 in Belfast. The tour included 49 shows throughout Europe and the UK and ended in Manchester on 23 December 2007. The band received four nominations at the 2008 BRIT Awards. Nominated for Best British Group, Best British Single ("Shine"), Best British Album (Beautiful World) and Best Live Act, they took home the Best Live Act and the Best British Single awards. According to a 2007 MSN UK internet poll, Take That were voted as the "comeback kings" of the year.
2008–2009: The Circus
"Greatest Day", the first single from the album The Circus, made its radio premiere on 13 October 2008 and it was released on 24 November. It debuted at number 1 on the UK Singles Chart on 30 November 2008. An album launch party for The Circus was held in Paris on 2 December. On its first day of release The Circus sold 133,000 copies, and after four days on sale it sold 306,000 copies (going platinum) making The Circus the fastest selling album of the year. The album reached number 1 on the UK Albums Chart on 7 December 2008 with total first-week sales of 432,490, the third highest opening sales week in UK history.
On 28 October 2008, on the Radio 1 Chris Moyles show, it was announced that Take That would be touring again in June/July 2009, covering the UK and Ireland. Tickets for the Take That Present: The Circus Live tour went on sale on 31 October. The promoters, SJM, have said that the band's tour is "the fastest selling in UK history".
On 22 May 2008, Barlow and Donald attended the 2008 Ivor Novello Awards where Take That won the award for Most Performed Work with their single "Shine". Take That won the Sony Ericsson Tour of the Year award at the Vodafone music awards on 18 September 2008. They were unable to attend as they were in LA finishing off The Circus. They did send a video link message, which was shown at the awards. On 22 November 2008, Take That appeared on week 7 of the talent show The X Factor where the finalists performed some of their greatest hits and Owen and Barlow made a guest appearance to personally coach the contestants. The band also performed on Children in Need 2008, singing their new single, "Greatest Day", before donating £250,000 to the charity from their Marks and Spencer fee. The band were also voted the Greatest Boy Band of All Time, reflecting their ongoing marketability and success in the pop arena, even after two decades.
At the 2009 Brit Awards they were nominated for Best British Group and they performed "Greatest Day" at the ceremony. "Up All Night", the second single from The Circus, was released on 2 March 2009, and peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart, despite heavy airplay. In Germany and Australia, "The Garden" was released as the second single instead. On 7 May 2009, Take That's official website confirmed that the third single from The Circus would be "Said It All" which was released on 15 June 2009, peaking at number 9 on the UK Singles chart. The video premiered on GMTV on 8 May 2009. It features all four band members dressed up as vintage circus clowns, which tied in with their forthcoming Take That Present: The Circus Live tour. Take That started their Circus Live tour at the Stadium of Light on 5 June 2009 in Sunderland and ended at the Wembley Stadium in London on 5 July 2009, which over 80,000 people attended. This tour quickly became the fastest-selling of all time, breaking all records by selling all of their 650,000 tickets in less than four and a half hours.
In November 2009 Take That released the official DVD of their Circus tour, which became the fastest-selling music DVD of all time in the UK on its first day of release and stayed in the top 10 of the videos chart for over a year. This overtook the previous record sales holder, which was Take That's Beautiful World Live tour and stayed at the number 1 spot for 8 weeks. The following week Take That released their first live album, The Greatest Day – Take That Present: The Circus Live, which sold 98,000 copies on its first day of release and was certified Platinum in July 2013. "Hold up a Light" was released as the fifth and final single from The Circus to radio stations and as a digital download to promote the release of the live album. The live album also featured a stripped down session recorded live at the famous Abbey Road Studios in London. It featured the members singing the setlist from the preceding tour, albeit in a studio setting.
2010–2011: Williams' return and Progress
On 7 June 2010, the news broke of a single called "Shame", which had been written by Barlow and Williams and would feature the vocals of both artists. This was the first time the pair had worked together since 1995 and would appear on the second greatest hits collection of Williams. "Heart and I", another track from the same album, was also co-written by Williams and Barlow. The single "Shame" peaked at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart while also achieving success throughout Europe, charting in over 19 countries.
After working with the band on new material in Los Angeles, on 15 July 2010 Robbie Williams announced he was returning to Take That. After months of working together, assembling new songs for a new album and even debating a band-name change to "The English", a joint statement between Williams and the group read, "The rumours are true ... Take That: the original lineup, have written and recorded a new album for release later this year." The statement went on to say, "Following months of speculation Gary Barlow, Howard Donald, Jason Orange, Mark Owen, and Robbie Williams confirmed they have been recording a new studio album as a five-piece, which they will release in November." The lead single from Take That's album Progress was announced as "The Flood" and was released 7 November as a digital download, and on 8 November as a physical copy, with the album released a week later on 15 November. The single peaked at number 2 in the UK Singles Charts and to date has sold over 500,000 copies in the UK alone. The single also achieved success across Europe, charting inside the top 10 in ten countries while also charting in another nine countries whilst also being nominated for an Ivor Novello Award for best work.
On 26 October the band announced that they would be embarking on a huge UK stadium tour entitled Progress Live, starting in Sunderland on 27 May, and finishing with a record-breaking 8 nights at London's Wembley Stadium in July 2011. It was also announced that Williams would perform hit singles from his solo career during the tour. The band then played at some of the biggest venues across Europe for the second leg of the tour. The phenomenal demand for tickets across the country led to the web sites of all the major UK ticket suppliers either crashing or considerably slowing for hours on end. The demand and sheer volume of fans also created problems for the UK telephone network. Take That's Progress Live also broke all records for ticket sales selling over 1.1 million tickets in one day, smashing the previous box office record set by Take That's Circus tour in 2008.
On the first day of release Progress became the fastest selling album of the century, with 235,000 copies sold in just one day. The album reached number 1 in the UK, selling around 520,000 copies in its first week, becoming the second fastest-selling album in history. After the release of Progress it was announced that Take That have become Amazon UK's top-selling music artist of all time.
The album retained the number one spot for six consecutive weeks in the UK since its release, selling 2.8 million copies in the UK alone and becoming the best selling album of 2010
Progress also achieved success across Europe where it debuted at number one in Ireland, Greece, Germany and Denmark. and the European Top 100 Albums chart. It also debuted inside the top 10 of the charts in Austria, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland.
"Kidz" was announced as the second single from Progress, it was released 21 February 2011 and charted well across Europe. The band performed the song live at the 2011 Brit Awards hosted at The O2 Arena, where they won a Brit for Best British Group and were nominated for Best British Album. Their performance of "Kidz", praised by critics, involved a highly choreographed routine featuring dancers dressed in police-styled riot gear bearing the Take That symbol on the uniform and shields. On 19 May 2011, Take That announced a new EP entitled Progressed, which contained eight tracks written by the band since they had reunited as a five-piece. It was packaged alongside the album Progress and returned the band to number 1 in the UK Album Chart the week after it was released on 13 June 2011.
Take That announced that the Progress Live tour would be released worldwide as their second live album to date and would also be released on home media formats across the UK and Europe on 21 November 2011. The DVD debuted at number 1 on the UK Music Video top 40 in its first week on release and sold over 200,000 copies in two weeks of release in the UK alone. Take That's efforts were recognised further when they were awarded Virgin Media's Best Live Act of 2012.
On 4 October, it was reported that Take That were to take a break after the completion of the Progress tour, with Barlow continuing his role as a judge on The X Factor and Williams recording new solo material. Take That were presented with an Ivor Novello Award for their Outstanding Contribution to British Music in May 2012.
In August 2012, Take That performed at the closing ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics, despite Barlow announcing that his daughter had been stillborn the previous week. The performance earned him praise for appearing live so soon after the tragedy. Williams was due to perform with the band but dropped out due to his wife giving birth at around the same time and thus the group performed as a four-piece. In November 2012, Take That reunited as a five-piece for the last time to perform "Never Forget" at the Music Industry Trust Awards. In 2013, Donald became a judge on the German version of the television dancing show Got to Dance.
2014–2015: Line-up change and III
In May 2013, Owen announced that Take That was to begin recording their seventh studio album in 2014, and on 14 January 2014, Donald and Barlow both tweeted that Take That had entered the studio to begin recording the album, although it was not initially clear if Williams was present at these recording sessions. On 28 April 2014, Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a father for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour. Although welcome to return to the band at any time, Williams chose not to return for group's seventh and eighth studio albums and their accompanying tours, focusing instead on his solo commitments. He continued to write music with his colleagues and has performed with the group on several occasions since 2011's Progress tour and plans on returning at some point in the future.
On 24 September 2014, it was announced that Jason Orange had left the band. He said: 'At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. 'At the end of The Progress Tour I began to question whether it might be the right time for me to not continue on with Take That,' he continued. 'There have been no fallings out, only a decision on my part that I no longer wish to do this,' he added. Barlow, Donald, and Owen issued a joint statement about Orange's decision which said: "This is a sad day for us. Jason leaving is a huge loss both professionally and even more so personally ... Jason's energy and belief in what this band could achieve has made it what it is today, and we'll forever be grateful for his enthusiasm, dedication and inspiration over the years." A day after the announcement, Robbie Williams took to Twitter to show support of Orange's decision. "Mr Orange. Until we ride again. Much love, Bro.", Williams tweeted.
On 10 October 2014, Take That unveiled their first song as a three-piece and lead single from their upcoming album. Titled "These Days", it was released on 23 November 2014 and went to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, knocking Band Aid 30 off the top spot and becoming their 12th number one single. The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album. It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live. On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single "Hey Boy", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III. The 2015 edition of the album was released on 20 November.
In December 2015, British media buzzed about the group embarking on a stint in Las Vegas, starting 2017. Reports indicated the group impressed U.S. promoters and would headline their own residency show. Many venues circulated, including The AXIS at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, The Foundry at SLS Las Vegas and the Linq Theater at The LINQ Hotel & Casino. Local newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun writes that everything is still unconfirmed, despite Barlow confirming the rumour on Twitter.
2016–2017: Wonderland
On 2 February 2016, in an interview with The Sun, Barlow revealed that Take That would release their eighth studio album later in the year. On 4 May 2016, English drum and bass duo Sigma announced their newest single would feature Take That. "Cry" received its first radio play on 20 May 2016 and was released on that date. On 21 October 2016, the band posted a teaser on their social media pages and website depicting the logo of the band flickering with the hashtag "#WONDERLAND". The following day, it was announced that their new album, titled Wonderland, was scheduled to be released on 24 March 2017. It was then followed by a UK and Ireland arena tour entitled Wonderland Live, that commenced on 5 May 2017 at the Genting Arena in Birmingham. On 17 February 2017, the lead single of Wonderland was released. Titled "Giants", it debuted at 13 in the UK charts, which became the band's 24th UK top 20 single.
On 8 April 2017, ITV aired a specially commissioned hour-length television special titled An Evening with Take That, where the band performed some songs from the album, along with some old classics including "Never Forget", "Back for Good" and "Rule the World". The band also took part in a Q&A session with the audience members. On 27 April, it was announced on Twitter that "New Day" would be released as the next single from the album Wonderland. The band were seen recording the music video in a field in Luton the days leading up the opening night of the Wonderland Live tour. Due to the Manchester Arena bombing just days before they were due to perform at the venue, their Manchester and Liverpool dates were rescheduled or relocated. The band returned a month later to perform at the One Love Manchester benefit concert.
On 16 September 2017, Barlow, Owen and Donald were set to perform a special one-off show in Jersey after a fan bid more than £1.2 million to win a performance from the band. This then turned in to a ticketed charity event where the money from tickets sold would go towards benefiting Children in Need. The auction was held on BBC Radio 2. On 11 November 2017, Take That began their foreign tour in Perth, Australia, the first time they have performed in the country in over twenty years. They also played in New Zealand, United Arab Emirates and Israel for the first time. Unlike the other tours, a DVD for Wonderland Live was not released. Instead, it was broadcast on Sky 1 on 23 December and in cinemas.
2018–2020: The 30th Anniversary, and Odyssey
On 16 July 2018, while performing at first ever Hits Radio Live at the Manchester Arena, Barlow, Donald and Owen confirmed that they would be touring in 2019. The tour was a Greatest Hits tour and celebrated the 30th anniversary of the band. There was also a Greatest Hits album, Odyssey, which was released on 23 November 2018. The Greatest Hits album features existing songs from their back catalogue that have been re-imagined and 3 brand new songs. It also includes collaborations with Boyz II Men, Lulu, Sigma and Barry Gibb. Odyssey reached number one in the UK album chart and was certified as a platinum selling record. The following year, Odyssey Live, the recording of their tour, reached number 5, becoming the band's 13th top 5 album, with the DVD becoming the biggest live music sale of 2019.
In May 2020, Barlow, Donald, and Owen reunited with Williams for a virtual performance from their respective homes, hosted by price comparison website comparethemarket.com, to raise money for the music charity Nordoff Robbins and Crew Nation.
In other media
In April 2006, EMI licensed the band's songs to be used in the musical Never Forget, a musical based on songs of the band from the 1990s. Take That posted and then later removed a statement on their website distancing themselves from it.
Take That wrote and recorded the theme song "Rule the World" for the film Stardust directed by Matthew Vaughn, which was released in cinemas across the globe in October 2007. In 2007, their song "Back for Good" was used as part of the soundtrack for popular Korean drama The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince.
Take That presented their own TV show Take That Come to Town, a variety show in which they performed some of their biggest hits. The show also featured comedy sketches with one of Peter Kay's alter egos Geraldine McQueen. It aired on 7 December 2008 on ITV1. Sony launched their first Take That video game, SingStar Take That in 2009 for the PlayStation 3.
In November 2010, ITV aired Take That: Look Back, Don't Stare, a black-and-white documentary which focused on the band working together for the first time in 15 years. Through a series of interviews, the band look back at their achievements while also looking forward to what the future holds for them. On 18 November 2010, Williams and Barlow appeared together live on television for the first time on the Popstars program in Germany singing their hit "Shame".
In 2011, Take That's song "Love Love" was used in the credits of the 2011 film X-Men: First Class and later, "When We Were Young" was chosen as the main theme for The Three Musketeers movie. In 2015, the song "Get Ready for It" from their album III, was chosen as the theme song for the film Kingsman: The Secret Service.
In 2017, Take That launched The Band, a musical written by Tim Firth featuring the five winners of Let It Shine and some of Take That's biggest hits. Take That, including Robbie Williams, were billed as executive producers.
The group's music is regularly featured in the Channel 4 show Derry Girls, notably in the third episode of the second series, when the lead characters sneak off to attend the 1993 Take That concert in Belfast; the episode features the music video for "Pray" and ends on footage of the band performing "Everything Changes".
Artistry
Early in their career, Take That were known for party anthems such as "Do What U Like" and more mature ballads such as "A Million Love Songs" and "Back for Good". Since reuniting in 2006, they have become more experimental: their post-2006 albums Beautiful World and The Circus have featured "stadium-filling pop-rock" while Progress largely leaned towards electropop. Having been dubbed the "comeback kings" by the media for their highly successful reunion, the group has won widespread praise for their seamless transformation from teen idols to "man band" without overly relying on nostalgia, instead showcasing a more mature image and sound and reinventing themselves while maintaining their artistic integrity. Jude Rogers of The Guardian commented on Take That's post-reunion success, in light of a string of reunions by the group's disbanded counterparts from the 1990s: "Only Take That are penetrating pop's wider consciousness by becoming a man-band rather than a boy-band, singing mature, proper pop songs that cross the generations."
Take That have garnered critical acclaim and popularity as consummate live performers and for their musical output. Their domestic concert tours have been described as "some of the most flamboyant, imaginative and extravagant pop tours around". Aside from covers, all of their material is composed by the members themselves; Barlow was initially the principal songwriter who received sole credit but the other members have since taken a more active role in the composition and production process, including playing instruments for the backing track.
Band members
Current members
Gary Barlow (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Howard Donald (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Mark Owen (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Former members
Robbie Williams (1990–1995, 2010–2012)
Jason Orange (1990–1996, 2005–2014)
Timeline
Awards and nominations
|-
| 2016
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award for Best Live Act
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2015
| "These Days"
| UK Music Video Awards for Best Art Direction
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|2012
| "Pray"
|The Guardian Music Award for Best Number 1 Single
|
|-
| Take That
|Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music
|
|-
| "Back for Good"
|The Official Charts Company UK Recognition award for United Kingdom's Favourite Number One Single
|
|-
| "The Flood"
|Ivor Novello Award for PRS Most Performed Work
|
|-
| Take That
|Virgin Media Music Awards for Best Live Act
|
|-
| "Kidz"
|Virgin Media Music Awards for Best Music Video
|
|-
| rowspan="10" style="text-align:center;"|2011
|-
| Progress Live
|Audio Pro International Awards for Best Live Sound Event
|
|-
| Progress Live
|Audio Pro International Awards Grand Prix Award
|
|-
| Take That
|Phonographic Performance Limited Award for most played UK artist
|
|-
| "Kidz"
|Spex German Entertainment for Best Music Video
|
|-
| The Circus Live Tour
| Greatest Event ever at Wembley Stadium
|
|-
| Take That
|ECHO Award for Best International Group
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| Progress
| BRIT Award for MasterCard Album of the Year
|
|-
| Take That
|Virgin Media for Best Group
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|2010
|-
| "Up All Night"
| UK Music Video Awards for Best Art Direction
|
|-
| "The Flood"
|iTunes Award for Best Single
|
|-
| Progress
| iTunes Award for Best Album
|
|-
| Take That
|Q Award Hall of Fame
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best Live Performance of the past 30 Years
|
|-
| rowspan="5" style="text-align:center;"|2009
| Take That
|GQ Men of the Year Awards for Best Band
|
|-
| Take That
|Q Award for Best Live Act
|
|-
| "Greatest Day"
|Q Award for Best Single
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award
|
|-
| rowspan="7" style="text-align:center;"|2008
| "Shine"
|Ivor Novello Award for PRS Most Performed Work
|
|-
| "Rule the World"
|Virgin for Best Single
|
|-
| Take That
|Sony Ericsson Tour of the Year Award for Take That Arena Tour
|
|-
| "Shine"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Live Act
|
|-
| Beautiful World
|BRIT Award for Best British Album
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2007
| "Patience"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2006
| Take That
|Q Idol Award
|
|-
| rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|1996
| "Back for Good"
|Billboard International Hit of the Year
|
|-
| "Never Forget"
|Ivor Novello Award for Most Performed Song
|
|-
| "Back for Good"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|1995
| "Back for Good"
|Ivor Novello Award for the Song of the Year
|
|-
| Take That
|MTV Europe Music Awards for Best Live Act
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|1994
| "Babe"
|MTV Video Music Award for International Viewer's Choice Award for MTV Europe
|
|-
| Everything Changes
|Mercury Prize for Best Album
|
|-
| "Pray"
|Ivor Novello Award for Best Contemporary Song
|
|-
| "Pray"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "Pray"
|BRIT Award for Best British Video
|
|-
| Take That
|MTV Europe Music Awards for Best Group
|
|-
| rowspan="4" style="text-align:center;"|1993
| "Could It Be Magic"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "A Million Love Songs"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "It Only Takes a Minute"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award for Best Newcomer
|
|}
Discography
Take That & Party (1992)
Everything Changes (1993)
Nobody Else (1995)
Beautiful World (2006)
The Circus (2008)
Progress (2010)
III (2014)
Wonderland (2017)
Tours
Party Tour (1992–93)
Everything Changes Tour (1993–94)
Pops Tour (1994–95)
Nobody Else Tour (1995)
The Ultimate Tour (2006)
Beautiful World Tour 2007 (2007)
Take That Present: The Circus Live (2009)
Progress Live (2011)
Take That Live (2015)
Wonderland Live (2017)
Greatest Hits Live (2019)
See also
List of best-selling boy bands
References
External links
Chinese Fansite
1990 establishments in England
1996 disestablishments in England
2005 establishments in England
Brit Award winners
Dance-pop groups
Echo (music award) winners
English boy bands
English dance music groups
Interscope Records artists
Ivor Novello Award winners
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Musical groups disestablished in 1996
Musical groups established in 1990
Musical groups from Cheshire
Musical groups from Manchester
Musical groups reestablished in 2005
Polydor Records artists
Teen pop groups
Universal Music Group artists
Vocal quartets
Vocal quintets
Vocal trios | true | [
"Hammurabi III (reigned - Middle chronology) was the king of Yamhad (Halab) succeeding Yarim-Lim III.\n\nIdentity\nHammurabi III is probably a son of Yarim-Lim III, however there is two confusions regarding his identity.\n\nConfusion with Hammurabi II\nHammurabi III was thought to be the same king Hammurabi mentioned in Alalakh tablets AlT 21,22 but it is known that Yarim-Lim III was the king of Yamhad during the destruction of Alalakh and the Hittite annals (dating after the destruction of Alalakah) mention king Hammurabi, son of Yarim-Lim III, therefore the Hammurabi in tablets AlT 21,22 can not be the same king as Hammurabi the son of Yarim-Lim III, which led to the distinction between the two monarchs. The Hammurabi mentioned in AlT 21,22 is Hammurabi II, a predecessor to Yarim-Lim III while the Hammurabi mentioned in the Hittite annals is Hammurabi III, son of Yarim-Lim III.\n\nThe tablets of Alalakh (the main source for the life of Aleppan Kings) ended with Hattusili I's destruction of Alalakh. This led to the information about Aleppo being scarce.\n\nConfusion with Hammurabi Son of Ammitakum\nHammurabi III is mentioned in the annals of Hattusili I. Another confusion about his identity arose due to the fact that Ammitakum, king of Alalakh's son and heir was also named Hammurabi. Ammitakum appointed his son as his successor in the presence of Yarim-Lim III, the Hittite texts in connection to the Aleppan wars mentions Yarim-Lim III as the king of Aleppo, also they mentions Hammurabi of Aleppo, son of a king whose name is destroyed. Which caused Michael B. Rowton to give two possibilities about the identity of this Hammurabi, the first is that Hammurabi III was the son of Ammitaqum, the second is that Hammurabi III was the son of Yarim-Lim III, Benno Landsberger believes that Hammurabi of Alalakh is identical with Hammurabi III of Yamhad.\n\nWar with the Hittites\nHattusili I conducted a series of destructive campaigns against Aleppo and its vassals during the reign of Yarim-Lim III. He continued his campaigns against Hammurabi, and finally attacked Aleppo the capital but was repelled, wounded and ultimately died of his wounds in ca. 1620 BC.\n\nBefore his death, Hattusili proclaimed his young grandchild Mursili as his heir. The Hittite attacks stopped temporarily until Mursili reached manhood. The new Hittite king's attack was characterized with personal need for revenge against Hammurabi and Aleppo, he wanted to avenge Hattusili's blood as it is written in a Hittite text. Mursili's onslaught was decisive: he destroyed Aleppo and moved the captives and booty to Hattusa, ending the kingdom of Yamhad as a power in the Near East around ca. 1600 BC.\n\nFate and Succession\nThe Hittite texts mentions that the king of Aleppo was captured and made atonement to Mursili. How Hammurabi made this atonement is unknown, as is his ultimate fate. Aleppo was rebuilt, after the assassination of Mursili, by Sarra-El a prince of Aleppo (probably a son of Yarim-Lim III) who regained the throne. But Yamhad never regained its former status.\n\nReferences\n\nCitations\n\n17th-century BC rulers\nKings of Yamhad\nPeople from Aleppo\nAmorite kings\nYamhad dynasty\n17th-century BC Semitic people",
"The Moswey III is a Swiss mid-wing, single-seat, gull winged glider that was designed by Georg Mueller and produced by Moswey Segelflugzeug-Werke.\n\nDesign and development\nThe Moswey series of gliders was developed prior to the Second World War in 1938. The third model was the first one to achieve full production status.\n\nThe aircraft is built from wood. The fuselage is a monocoque design, while the wings and tail surfaces are a wooden frame covered in doped aircraft fabric covering. The fuselage is of a hexagonal section forward and a diamond section aft. The fuselage is built upon a main keel beam that also contains the control runs. The span wing is a gulled design, employing a Goettingen 535 airfoil, with air brakes for glidepath control. The structure is stressed for aerobatics at +/-12g.\n\nThe Moswey III was constructed by building the fuselage around a large tube, which was then removed after construction.\n\nThe cockpit is noted for its small dimensions, with the wing roots providing the pilot's shoulder and elbow room.\n\nThe Moswey III was not type certified and at least 30 were built.\n\nOperational history\nOne Moswey III was imported into the United States and remains on the Federal Aviation Administration aircraft registry in the Experimental - Racing/Exhibition category.\n\nSpecifications (Moswey III)\n\nSee also\n\nReferences\n\n1930s Swiss sailplanes"
] |
[
"Take That",
"2014-2015: Robbie Williams's second departure, Jason Orange's departure and III",
"Why did Robbie Williams depart?",
"Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a dad for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour.",
"Why did Jason Orange leave the band?",
"At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album.",
"Was is III?",
"The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album."
] | C_6e6a60800d1643268f8b7ee3189196de_0 | Did they tour to promote the album? | 4 | Did the band Take Taht tour to promote the album III? | Take That | In May 2013, Owen announced that Take That were to begin recording their seventh studio album in 2014 and On 14 January 2014, Donald and Barlow both tweeted that Take That had entered the studio to begin recording the album, although it was not initially clear if Williams was present at these recording sessions. On 28 April 2014, Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a dad for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour. Barlow later confirmed that Williams had left the band for a second time, although the departure was amicable and that Williams was welcome to rejoin the band in the future. Williams has since collaborated with Barlow on several projects and duet performances and indicated his interest in reuniting with the band for potential 25th anniversary commemorative events. On 24 September 2014, it was announced that Jason Orange had left the band. He said: 'At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. 'At the end of The Progress Tour I began to question whether it might be the right time for me to not continue on with Take That,' he continued. 'There have been no fallings out, only a decision on my part that I no longer wish to do this,' he added. Barlow, Donald and Owen issued a joint statement about Orange's decision which said: "This is a sad day for us. Jason leaving is a huge loss both professionally and even more so personally ... Jason's energy and belief in what this band could achieve has made it what it is today, and we'll forever be grateful for his enthusiasm, dedication and inspiration over the years." On 10 October 2014, Take That unveiled the lead single from the album. Titled "These Days", it was released on 23 November 2014 and went to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, knocking Band Aid 30 off the top spot and becoming their 12th number one single. The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album. It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live. On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single "Hey Boy", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III. The 2015 edition of the album was released on 20 November. In December 2015, British media buzzed about the group embarking on a stint in Las Vegas, starting 2017. Reports indicated the group impressed U.S. promoters and would headline their own residency show. Many venues circulated, including The AXIS at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, The Foundry at SLS Las Vegas and the Linq Theater at The LINQ Hotel & Casino. Local newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun writes that everything is still unconfirmed, despite Barlow confirming the rumour on Twitter. CANNOTANSWER | It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live. | Take That are an English pop group formed in Manchester in 1990. The group currently consists of Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen. The original line-up also featured Jason Orange and Robbie Williams. Barlow is the group's lead singer and primary songwriter, with Owen and Williams initially providing backing vocals and Donald and Orange serving primarily as dancers.
The group have had 28 top 40 singles and 17 top 5 singles on the UK Singles Chart, 12 of which have reached number one, including "Back for Good", "Never Forget", "Patience" and "Greatest Day". They have also had eight number one albums on the UK Albums Chart. Internationally, the band have had 56 number one singles and 39 number one albums. They have received eight Brit Awards—winning for Best British Group and Best British Live Act. In 2012 they received an Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music. According to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), Take That has been certified for 14 million albums and 11.4 million singles in the UK.
Williams left the band in 1995 while the four remaining members completed their world tour and released a final single before splitting up in 1996. After filming a 2005 Take That: For the Record about the group and releasing a new greatest hits album, a four-piece Take That without Williams officially announced a 2006 reunion tour around the UK, entitled The Ultimate Tour. On 9 May 2006, it was announced that the group were set to record new material together once again; their fourth studio album, Beautiful World, was released in 2006 and was followed up with The Circus, in 2008. The group achieved new success as a four-piece, scoring a string of chart hits across the UK and Europe while selling over 45 million records worldwide. Williams rejoined Take That in 2010 for the band's sixth studio album, Progress. Released on 15 November of that year, it was the first album of new material to feature Take That's original line-up since their 1995 album, Nobody Else. It became the fastest-selling album of the 21st century and the second fastest-selling album in British history.
In 2014, the band recorded a seventh studio album, this time as a trio without Williams and Orange. The album, titled III, was released in November 2014 and became the band's seventh number one. It was preceded by the single "These Days", which became the band's 12th number one single in the UK.
In 2011, Take That set the new record for the fastest-selling tour of all time in the UK with Progress Live, beating the previous record set by their Circus Live Tour in 2009. At the 2011 Brit Awards they won Best British Group. In 2012, Forbes named them the fifth highest-earning music stars in the world. The group performed at the London 2012 Olympic Games closing ceremony, playing "Rule the World" while the Olympic Flame was extinguished. In the same year, the Official Charts Company revealed the biggest-selling singles artists in British music chart history with Take That currently placed at 15th overall, making them the most successful boy band in UK chart history. Four of their albums are listed in the best-selling albums of the millennium, with three of them among the 60 best-selling albums in UK chart history.
History
1989–1990: Formation
In 1989, Manchester-based Nigel Martin-Smith sought to create a British male vocal singing group modelled on New Kids on the Block. Martin-Smith's vision, however, was a teen-orientated group that would appeal to more than one demographic segment of the music industry. Martin-Smith was then introduced to young singer-songwriter Gary Barlow, who had been performing in clubs since the age of 15. Impressed with Barlow's catalogue of self-written material, Martin-Smith decided to build his new-look boy band around Barlow's musical abilities. A campaign to audition young men with abilities in dancing and singing followed and took place in Manchester and other surrounding cities in 1990. At 22, Howard Donald was one of the oldest to audition, but he was chosen after he got time off work as a vehicle painter to continue the process. Prior to auditioning, Jason Orange had appeared as a breakdancer on the popular television programme The Hit Man and Her. Martin-Smith also selected 18-year-old bank employee Mark Owen and finally 16-year-old Robbie Williams to round out the group, which initially went by the name Kick It.
1990–1992: Take That & Party
Take That's first TV appearance was on The Hit Man and Her in 1990, where they performed Barlow's self-written, unreleased song, "My Kind of Girl". They later appeared a second time to perform "Waiting Around", which would become the B-side for the first single, "Do What U Like". "Promises" and "Once You've Tasted Love" were also released as singles but were minor hits in the UK. Take That initially worked the same territory as their American counterparts, singing new jack R&B, urban soul, and mainstream pop. However, they worked their way toward Hi-NRG dance music, while also pursuing an adult contemporary ballad direction. As they aimed to break into the mainstream music industry, they worked a number of small clubs, schools, and events across the country building up a fanbase as they travelled to gigs constantly for months.
Take That's breakthrough single was a cover of the 1975 Tavares hit "It Only Takes a Minute", which peaked at number seven on the UK Singles Chart in June 1992. This success was followed by "I Found Heaven", then by the first Barlow ballad "A Million Love Songs", which also reached number seven in October. Their cover of the Barry Manilow hit "Could It Be Magic" gave them their first big success, peaking at number three in the UK in the first chart of 1993. Their first album, Take That & Party, was released in 1992, and included all the hit singles to date.
1993–1995: Everything Changes, Nobody Else and superstardom
1993 saw the release of Everything Changes, based on Barlow's original material. It peaked at number one in the UK and spawned six singles, with four being consecutive UK number one singles – their first number one "Pray", "Relight My Fire", "Babe" and the title track "Everything Changes". The lead single "Why Can't I Wake Up with You" had narrowly missed the top spot in the UK peaking at number two and the sixth and final single "Love Ain't Here Anymore" taken from the album reached number three on the UK charts. Everything Changes saw the band gain international success with the album being nominated for the 1994 Mercury Prize, but it failed to crack the U.S. market, where an exclusive remix of "Love Ain't Here Anymore" (U.S. version) gained little success.
By 1994, Take That had become radio and television stars across Europe and Asia, but it was not until 1995 that they did their first World Tour. It was during the years 1993–95 that the band fronted scores of magazine covers ranging from Smash Hits to GQ, becoming mass merchandised on all sorts of paraphernalia ranging from picture books, to posters, stickers, their own dolls, jewellery, caps, T-shirts, toothbrushes and even had their own annuals released. The band had also developed a large female teenage fanbase at the time. During this time, they performed at numerous music awards shows and chart shows such as the BRIT Awards and Top of the Pops, also winning the Best Live Act award in 1995 at the MTV Europe Music Awards, having been renowned for their breakdance routines, high energy and creative tour productions.
In 1995, Take That released their third studio album Nobody Else, again based on Barlow's own material which reached number 1 in the UK and across Europe, capturing new audiences along the way, with Take That also able to make inroads in the adult audience in Britain through Barlow's melodic, sensitive ballads. For nearly five years, Take That's popularity was unsurpassed in Britain. The release of the first single from the album, "Sure", achieved yet another number one in the UK charts. It was not until their second release from that album, however, that they would experience what would become their biggest hit single, "Back for Good", which reached number one in many countries including the UK, Germany, Australia, and Norway. It was also their only US hit, where it reached number seven.
The song was initially unveiled for the first time via live performance while at the 1995 BRIT Awards, and based on the reception of that performance, the record pre-sold more records than expected and forced the record label to bring the release date forward by an unprecedented six weeks. The album was also noted for its cover, which was a parody of the famed cover of The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band cover sleeve.
1995–1996: Break-up and Greatest Hits
Robbie Williams's drug abuse had escalated to a near drug overdose the night before the group was scheduled to perform at the MTV Europe Music Awards in 1994.
In June 1995, Williams was photographed by the press partying with Oasis at the Glastonbury Festival. The following month, the band offered him an ultimatum; he was to adhere to the band's responsibilities or leave before their scheduled world tour. Williams chose the latter. Williams claimed he was bored with Barlow's leadership and jealous of Barlow. Despite the loss of Williams, Take That continued to promote Nobody Else as a four-piece, scoring a further hit single with "Never Forget" with Donald on lead vocal. They subsequently went to America and completed the Nobody Else Tour in October 1995. Following the tour, the band began to plan for their next album; however, when they spent Christmas together, they mutually agreed it was time to part ways.
On 13 February 1996, Take That formally announced that they were disbanding. This was followed by the Greatest Hits compilation in 1996, which contained a new recording, a cover of the Bee Gees' "How Deep Is Your Love". The single went on to become what was to be the band's final UK number one until their 2006 comeback a decade later. Take That gave what was thought to be their final performance in April 1996 at Amsterdam. Following the band's announcement, millions of their fans were distraught around the world and in the UK alone, teenage girls threatened suicide and were seen lining streets in tears, to the point that telephone hotlines were set up by the government to deal with counselling them. After the band broke up, highly respected music figures such as Elton John noted that Take That were different from other boy bands before and after them, in that they wrote their own material through Gary Barlow. Barlow is one of only a small number of people who have won an Ivor Novello award during their time in a boy band, with George Michael whilst in Wham! and Tony Mortimer whilst in East 17 being two others who have achieved this feat. Take That had also left a legacy of being immaculate performers with a very high work ethic, causing them to be voted in as the greatest boy band of all time.
2005–2006: Reunion as a quartet and Never Forget – The Ultimate Collection
On 14 November 2005, Never Forget – The Ultimate Collection, a new compilation of their hit singles including a new previously unreleased song, also achieved great success and peaked at number 2 on UK charts, selling over 2.1 million copies in the UK alone. The new song "Today I've Lost You" (recorded in September 2005) was originally written by Barlow as the follow up to "Back for Good" but was never recorded. On 16 November 2005, the group got back together for the ITV documentary Take That: For the Record, in which they aired their views over their fame, success, the split and what the post-Williams line-up had done since. On 25 November 2005, there was an official press conference by the band announcing that the post-Robbie Williams line-up was going to tour in 2006. The tour, entitled The Ultimate Tour, ran from April to June 2006. The tour featured a guest appearance by British soul singer Beverley Knight, who replaced Lulu's vocals on the song "Relight My Fire"; although Lulu did appear during the stadium shows on "Relight My Fire" and "Never Forget". The American female ensemble Pussycat Dolls supported the group at their Dublin concert, and the Sugababes supported the group on the final five dates of the stadium leg. In a seven-year study analysing over one billion online searches via Google conducted by AccuraCast, a leading digital search agency, their comeback was ranked at number one in the UK.
2006–2007: Beautiful World
On 9 May 2006, Take That returned to the recorded music scene after more than ten years of absence, signing with Polydor Records. The band's comeback album, Beautiful World, entered the UK Albums Chart at no. 1 and, as of June 2009, had sold over 2.8 million copies in the UK. It is the 35th best selling album in UK music history.
On Beautiful World, all four members of the band had the opportunity to sing lead vocals and contribute in the songwriting. Unlike the band's earlier works, where the majority of their material was written by Barlow who received sole credit, all four band members are credited as co-writers, along with John Shanks. The comeback single, "Patience", was released on 20 November 2006, with a special event launching it on 5 November.
On 26 November "Patience" hit number 1 in the UK in its second week of chart entry, making it the group's ninth No. 1, and staying there for 4 weeks. Take That also accompanied eventual winner Leona Lewis on a live version of "A Million Love Songs" during the final of The X Factor on 16 December 2006.
The week after Beautiful World was released, it was announced that Take That had become the first artists ever to top the UK official single and album charts along with the download single, download album and DVD charts in the same week, as well as topping the radio charts.
The video for the number 1 hit single "Shine", the follow-up to "Patience", premiered on 25 January 2007 on Channel 4, ahead of its release on 26 February 2007. The band's success continued on 14 February 2007 when Take That performed live at the BRIT Awards ceremony at Earl's Court. Their single "Patience" won the Best British Single category. The third single chosen from Beautiful World was "I'd Wait For Life", released on 18 June 2007 in the UK. The single reached 17 in the UK Singles Chart. This may have been due to lack of promotion, as the band decided to take a pre-tour break rather than do any promotion for the single. The single "Rule the World", included on the deluxe version of Beautiful World, was recorded for the soundtrack of the film Stardust (2007). It reached number two in the UK and went on to become the group's second best selling single, shifting over 1.2 million units in the UK. Beautiful World was the fourth biggest-selling album of 2007. It was announced at the start of 2007 that Take That signed a record deal with American label Interscope, and would also release their album in Canada. Starting on 11 October 2007, Take That began their Beautiful World Tour 2007 in Belfast. The tour included 49 shows throughout Europe and the UK and ended in Manchester on 23 December 2007. The band received four nominations at the 2008 BRIT Awards. Nominated for Best British Group, Best British Single ("Shine"), Best British Album (Beautiful World) and Best Live Act, they took home the Best Live Act and the Best British Single awards. According to a 2007 MSN UK internet poll, Take That were voted as the "comeback kings" of the year.
2008–2009: The Circus
"Greatest Day", the first single from the album The Circus, made its radio premiere on 13 October 2008 and it was released on 24 November. It debuted at number 1 on the UK Singles Chart on 30 November 2008. An album launch party for The Circus was held in Paris on 2 December. On its first day of release The Circus sold 133,000 copies, and after four days on sale it sold 306,000 copies (going platinum) making The Circus the fastest selling album of the year. The album reached number 1 on the UK Albums Chart on 7 December 2008 with total first-week sales of 432,490, the third highest opening sales week in UK history.
On 28 October 2008, on the Radio 1 Chris Moyles show, it was announced that Take That would be touring again in June/July 2009, covering the UK and Ireland. Tickets for the Take That Present: The Circus Live tour went on sale on 31 October. The promoters, SJM, have said that the band's tour is "the fastest selling in UK history".
On 22 May 2008, Barlow and Donald attended the 2008 Ivor Novello Awards where Take That won the award for Most Performed Work with their single "Shine". Take That won the Sony Ericsson Tour of the Year award at the Vodafone music awards on 18 September 2008. They were unable to attend as they were in LA finishing off The Circus. They did send a video link message, which was shown at the awards. On 22 November 2008, Take That appeared on week 7 of the talent show The X Factor where the finalists performed some of their greatest hits and Owen and Barlow made a guest appearance to personally coach the contestants. The band also performed on Children in Need 2008, singing their new single, "Greatest Day", before donating £250,000 to the charity from their Marks and Spencer fee. The band were also voted the Greatest Boy Band of All Time, reflecting their ongoing marketability and success in the pop arena, even after two decades.
At the 2009 Brit Awards they were nominated for Best British Group and they performed "Greatest Day" at the ceremony. "Up All Night", the second single from The Circus, was released on 2 March 2009, and peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart, despite heavy airplay. In Germany and Australia, "The Garden" was released as the second single instead. On 7 May 2009, Take That's official website confirmed that the third single from The Circus would be "Said It All" which was released on 15 June 2009, peaking at number 9 on the UK Singles chart. The video premiered on GMTV on 8 May 2009. It features all four band members dressed up as vintage circus clowns, which tied in with their forthcoming Take That Present: The Circus Live tour. Take That started their Circus Live tour at the Stadium of Light on 5 June 2009 in Sunderland and ended at the Wembley Stadium in London on 5 July 2009, which over 80,000 people attended. This tour quickly became the fastest-selling of all time, breaking all records by selling all of their 650,000 tickets in less than four and a half hours.
In November 2009 Take That released the official DVD of their Circus tour, which became the fastest-selling music DVD of all time in the UK on its first day of release and stayed in the top 10 of the videos chart for over a year. This overtook the previous record sales holder, which was Take That's Beautiful World Live tour and stayed at the number 1 spot for 8 weeks. The following week Take That released their first live album, The Greatest Day – Take That Present: The Circus Live, which sold 98,000 copies on its first day of release and was certified Platinum in July 2013. "Hold up a Light" was released as the fifth and final single from The Circus to radio stations and as a digital download to promote the release of the live album. The live album also featured a stripped down session recorded live at the famous Abbey Road Studios in London. It featured the members singing the setlist from the preceding tour, albeit in a studio setting.
2010–2011: Williams' return and Progress
On 7 June 2010, the news broke of a single called "Shame", which had been written by Barlow and Williams and would feature the vocals of both artists. This was the first time the pair had worked together since 1995 and would appear on the second greatest hits collection of Williams. "Heart and I", another track from the same album, was also co-written by Williams and Barlow. The single "Shame" peaked at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart while also achieving success throughout Europe, charting in over 19 countries.
After working with the band on new material in Los Angeles, on 15 July 2010 Robbie Williams announced he was returning to Take That. After months of working together, assembling new songs for a new album and even debating a band-name change to "The English", a joint statement between Williams and the group read, "The rumours are true ... Take That: the original lineup, have written and recorded a new album for release later this year." The statement went on to say, "Following months of speculation Gary Barlow, Howard Donald, Jason Orange, Mark Owen, and Robbie Williams confirmed they have been recording a new studio album as a five-piece, which they will release in November." The lead single from Take That's album Progress was announced as "The Flood" and was released 7 November as a digital download, and on 8 November as a physical copy, with the album released a week later on 15 November. The single peaked at number 2 in the UK Singles Charts and to date has sold over 500,000 copies in the UK alone. The single also achieved success across Europe, charting inside the top 10 in ten countries while also charting in another nine countries whilst also being nominated for an Ivor Novello Award for best work.
On 26 October the band announced that they would be embarking on a huge UK stadium tour entitled Progress Live, starting in Sunderland on 27 May, and finishing with a record-breaking 8 nights at London's Wembley Stadium in July 2011. It was also announced that Williams would perform hit singles from his solo career during the tour. The band then played at some of the biggest venues across Europe for the second leg of the tour. The phenomenal demand for tickets across the country led to the web sites of all the major UK ticket suppliers either crashing or considerably slowing for hours on end. The demand and sheer volume of fans also created problems for the UK telephone network. Take That's Progress Live also broke all records for ticket sales selling over 1.1 million tickets in one day, smashing the previous box office record set by Take That's Circus tour in 2008.
On the first day of release Progress became the fastest selling album of the century, with 235,000 copies sold in just one day. The album reached number 1 in the UK, selling around 520,000 copies in its first week, becoming the second fastest-selling album in history. After the release of Progress it was announced that Take That have become Amazon UK's top-selling music artist of all time.
The album retained the number one spot for six consecutive weeks in the UK since its release, selling 2.8 million copies in the UK alone and becoming the best selling album of 2010
Progress also achieved success across Europe where it debuted at number one in Ireland, Greece, Germany and Denmark. and the European Top 100 Albums chart. It also debuted inside the top 10 of the charts in Austria, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland.
"Kidz" was announced as the second single from Progress, it was released 21 February 2011 and charted well across Europe. The band performed the song live at the 2011 Brit Awards hosted at The O2 Arena, where they won a Brit for Best British Group and were nominated for Best British Album. Their performance of "Kidz", praised by critics, involved a highly choreographed routine featuring dancers dressed in police-styled riot gear bearing the Take That symbol on the uniform and shields. On 19 May 2011, Take That announced a new EP entitled Progressed, which contained eight tracks written by the band since they had reunited as a five-piece. It was packaged alongside the album Progress and returned the band to number 1 in the UK Album Chart the week after it was released on 13 June 2011.
Take That announced that the Progress Live tour would be released worldwide as their second live album to date and would also be released on home media formats across the UK and Europe on 21 November 2011. The DVD debuted at number 1 on the UK Music Video top 40 in its first week on release and sold over 200,000 copies in two weeks of release in the UK alone. Take That's efforts were recognised further when they were awarded Virgin Media's Best Live Act of 2012.
On 4 October, it was reported that Take That were to take a break after the completion of the Progress tour, with Barlow continuing his role as a judge on The X Factor and Williams recording new solo material. Take That were presented with an Ivor Novello Award for their Outstanding Contribution to British Music in May 2012.
In August 2012, Take That performed at the closing ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics, despite Barlow announcing that his daughter had been stillborn the previous week. The performance earned him praise for appearing live so soon after the tragedy. Williams was due to perform with the band but dropped out due to his wife giving birth at around the same time and thus the group performed as a four-piece. In November 2012, Take That reunited as a five-piece for the last time to perform "Never Forget" at the Music Industry Trust Awards. In 2013, Donald became a judge on the German version of the television dancing show Got to Dance.
2014–2015: Line-up change and III
In May 2013, Owen announced that Take That was to begin recording their seventh studio album in 2014, and on 14 January 2014, Donald and Barlow both tweeted that Take That had entered the studio to begin recording the album, although it was not initially clear if Williams was present at these recording sessions. On 28 April 2014, Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a father for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour. Although welcome to return to the band at any time, Williams chose not to return for group's seventh and eighth studio albums and their accompanying tours, focusing instead on his solo commitments. He continued to write music with his colleagues and has performed with the group on several occasions since 2011's Progress tour and plans on returning at some point in the future.
On 24 September 2014, it was announced that Jason Orange had left the band. He said: 'At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. 'At the end of The Progress Tour I began to question whether it might be the right time for me to not continue on with Take That,' he continued. 'There have been no fallings out, only a decision on my part that I no longer wish to do this,' he added. Barlow, Donald, and Owen issued a joint statement about Orange's decision which said: "This is a sad day for us. Jason leaving is a huge loss both professionally and even more so personally ... Jason's energy and belief in what this band could achieve has made it what it is today, and we'll forever be grateful for his enthusiasm, dedication and inspiration over the years." A day after the announcement, Robbie Williams took to Twitter to show support of Orange's decision. "Mr Orange. Until we ride again. Much love, Bro.", Williams tweeted.
On 10 October 2014, Take That unveiled their first song as a three-piece and lead single from their upcoming album. Titled "These Days", it was released on 23 November 2014 and went to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, knocking Band Aid 30 off the top spot and becoming their 12th number one single. The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album. It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live. On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single "Hey Boy", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III. The 2015 edition of the album was released on 20 November.
In December 2015, British media buzzed about the group embarking on a stint in Las Vegas, starting 2017. Reports indicated the group impressed U.S. promoters and would headline their own residency show. Many venues circulated, including The AXIS at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, The Foundry at SLS Las Vegas and the Linq Theater at The LINQ Hotel & Casino. Local newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun writes that everything is still unconfirmed, despite Barlow confirming the rumour on Twitter.
2016–2017: Wonderland
On 2 February 2016, in an interview with The Sun, Barlow revealed that Take That would release their eighth studio album later in the year. On 4 May 2016, English drum and bass duo Sigma announced their newest single would feature Take That. "Cry" received its first radio play on 20 May 2016 and was released on that date. On 21 October 2016, the band posted a teaser on their social media pages and website depicting the logo of the band flickering with the hashtag "#WONDERLAND". The following day, it was announced that their new album, titled Wonderland, was scheduled to be released on 24 March 2017. It was then followed by a UK and Ireland arena tour entitled Wonderland Live, that commenced on 5 May 2017 at the Genting Arena in Birmingham. On 17 February 2017, the lead single of Wonderland was released. Titled "Giants", it debuted at 13 in the UK charts, which became the band's 24th UK top 20 single.
On 8 April 2017, ITV aired a specially commissioned hour-length television special titled An Evening with Take That, where the band performed some songs from the album, along with some old classics including "Never Forget", "Back for Good" and "Rule the World". The band also took part in a Q&A session with the audience members. On 27 April, it was announced on Twitter that "New Day" would be released as the next single from the album Wonderland. The band were seen recording the music video in a field in Luton the days leading up the opening night of the Wonderland Live tour. Due to the Manchester Arena bombing just days before they were due to perform at the venue, their Manchester and Liverpool dates were rescheduled or relocated. The band returned a month later to perform at the One Love Manchester benefit concert.
On 16 September 2017, Barlow, Owen and Donald were set to perform a special one-off show in Jersey after a fan bid more than £1.2 million to win a performance from the band. This then turned in to a ticketed charity event where the money from tickets sold would go towards benefiting Children in Need. The auction was held on BBC Radio 2. On 11 November 2017, Take That began their foreign tour in Perth, Australia, the first time they have performed in the country in over twenty years. They also played in New Zealand, United Arab Emirates and Israel for the first time. Unlike the other tours, a DVD for Wonderland Live was not released. Instead, it was broadcast on Sky 1 on 23 December and in cinemas.
2018–2020: The 30th Anniversary, and Odyssey
On 16 July 2018, while performing at first ever Hits Radio Live at the Manchester Arena, Barlow, Donald and Owen confirmed that they would be touring in 2019. The tour was a Greatest Hits tour and celebrated the 30th anniversary of the band. There was also a Greatest Hits album, Odyssey, which was released on 23 November 2018. The Greatest Hits album features existing songs from their back catalogue that have been re-imagined and 3 brand new songs. It also includes collaborations with Boyz II Men, Lulu, Sigma and Barry Gibb. Odyssey reached number one in the UK album chart and was certified as a platinum selling record. The following year, Odyssey Live, the recording of their tour, reached number 5, becoming the band's 13th top 5 album, with the DVD becoming the biggest live music sale of 2019.
In May 2020, Barlow, Donald, and Owen reunited with Williams for a virtual performance from their respective homes, hosted by price comparison website comparethemarket.com, to raise money for the music charity Nordoff Robbins and Crew Nation.
In other media
In April 2006, EMI licensed the band's songs to be used in the musical Never Forget, a musical based on songs of the band from the 1990s. Take That posted and then later removed a statement on their website distancing themselves from it.
Take That wrote and recorded the theme song "Rule the World" for the film Stardust directed by Matthew Vaughn, which was released in cinemas across the globe in October 2007. In 2007, their song "Back for Good" was used as part of the soundtrack for popular Korean drama The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince.
Take That presented their own TV show Take That Come to Town, a variety show in which they performed some of their biggest hits. The show also featured comedy sketches with one of Peter Kay's alter egos Geraldine McQueen. It aired on 7 December 2008 on ITV1. Sony launched their first Take That video game, SingStar Take That in 2009 for the PlayStation 3.
In November 2010, ITV aired Take That: Look Back, Don't Stare, a black-and-white documentary which focused on the band working together for the first time in 15 years. Through a series of interviews, the band look back at their achievements while also looking forward to what the future holds for them. On 18 November 2010, Williams and Barlow appeared together live on television for the first time on the Popstars program in Germany singing their hit "Shame".
In 2011, Take That's song "Love Love" was used in the credits of the 2011 film X-Men: First Class and later, "When We Were Young" was chosen as the main theme for The Three Musketeers movie. In 2015, the song "Get Ready for It" from their album III, was chosen as the theme song for the film Kingsman: The Secret Service.
In 2017, Take That launched The Band, a musical written by Tim Firth featuring the five winners of Let It Shine and some of Take That's biggest hits. Take That, including Robbie Williams, were billed as executive producers.
The group's music is regularly featured in the Channel 4 show Derry Girls, notably in the third episode of the second series, when the lead characters sneak off to attend the 1993 Take That concert in Belfast; the episode features the music video for "Pray" and ends on footage of the band performing "Everything Changes".
Artistry
Early in their career, Take That were known for party anthems such as "Do What U Like" and more mature ballads such as "A Million Love Songs" and "Back for Good". Since reuniting in 2006, they have become more experimental: their post-2006 albums Beautiful World and The Circus have featured "stadium-filling pop-rock" while Progress largely leaned towards electropop. Having been dubbed the "comeback kings" by the media for their highly successful reunion, the group has won widespread praise for their seamless transformation from teen idols to "man band" without overly relying on nostalgia, instead showcasing a more mature image and sound and reinventing themselves while maintaining their artistic integrity. Jude Rogers of The Guardian commented on Take That's post-reunion success, in light of a string of reunions by the group's disbanded counterparts from the 1990s: "Only Take That are penetrating pop's wider consciousness by becoming a man-band rather than a boy-band, singing mature, proper pop songs that cross the generations."
Take That have garnered critical acclaim and popularity as consummate live performers and for their musical output. Their domestic concert tours have been described as "some of the most flamboyant, imaginative and extravagant pop tours around". Aside from covers, all of their material is composed by the members themselves; Barlow was initially the principal songwriter who received sole credit but the other members have since taken a more active role in the composition and production process, including playing instruments for the backing track.
Band members
Current members
Gary Barlow (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Howard Donald (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Mark Owen (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Former members
Robbie Williams (1990–1995, 2010–2012)
Jason Orange (1990–1996, 2005–2014)
Timeline
Awards and nominations
|-
| 2016
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award for Best Live Act
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2015
| "These Days"
| UK Music Video Awards for Best Art Direction
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|2012
| "Pray"
|The Guardian Music Award for Best Number 1 Single
|
|-
| Take That
|Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music
|
|-
| "Back for Good"
|The Official Charts Company UK Recognition award for United Kingdom's Favourite Number One Single
|
|-
| "The Flood"
|Ivor Novello Award for PRS Most Performed Work
|
|-
| Take That
|Virgin Media Music Awards for Best Live Act
|
|-
| "Kidz"
|Virgin Media Music Awards for Best Music Video
|
|-
| rowspan="10" style="text-align:center;"|2011
|-
| Progress Live
|Audio Pro International Awards for Best Live Sound Event
|
|-
| Progress Live
|Audio Pro International Awards Grand Prix Award
|
|-
| Take That
|Phonographic Performance Limited Award for most played UK artist
|
|-
| "Kidz"
|Spex German Entertainment for Best Music Video
|
|-
| The Circus Live Tour
| Greatest Event ever at Wembley Stadium
|
|-
| Take That
|ECHO Award for Best International Group
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| Progress
| BRIT Award for MasterCard Album of the Year
|
|-
| Take That
|Virgin Media for Best Group
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|2010
|-
| "Up All Night"
| UK Music Video Awards for Best Art Direction
|
|-
| "The Flood"
|iTunes Award for Best Single
|
|-
| Progress
| iTunes Award for Best Album
|
|-
| Take That
|Q Award Hall of Fame
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best Live Performance of the past 30 Years
|
|-
| rowspan="5" style="text-align:center;"|2009
| Take That
|GQ Men of the Year Awards for Best Band
|
|-
| Take That
|Q Award for Best Live Act
|
|-
| "Greatest Day"
|Q Award for Best Single
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award
|
|-
| rowspan="7" style="text-align:center;"|2008
| "Shine"
|Ivor Novello Award for PRS Most Performed Work
|
|-
| "Rule the World"
|Virgin for Best Single
|
|-
| Take That
|Sony Ericsson Tour of the Year Award for Take That Arena Tour
|
|-
| "Shine"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Live Act
|
|-
| Beautiful World
|BRIT Award for Best British Album
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2007
| "Patience"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2006
| Take That
|Q Idol Award
|
|-
| rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|1996
| "Back for Good"
|Billboard International Hit of the Year
|
|-
| "Never Forget"
|Ivor Novello Award for Most Performed Song
|
|-
| "Back for Good"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|1995
| "Back for Good"
|Ivor Novello Award for the Song of the Year
|
|-
| Take That
|MTV Europe Music Awards for Best Live Act
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|1994
| "Babe"
|MTV Video Music Award for International Viewer's Choice Award for MTV Europe
|
|-
| Everything Changes
|Mercury Prize for Best Album
|
|-
| "Pray"
|Ivor Novello Award for Best Contemporary Song
|
|-
| "Pray"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "Pray"
|BRIT Award for Best British Video
|
|-
| Take That
|MTV Europe Music Awards for Best Group
|
|-
| rowspan="4" style="text-align:center;"|1993
| "Could It Be Magic"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "A Million Love Songs"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "It Only Takes a Minute"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award for Best Newcomer
|
|}
Discography
Take That & Party (1992)
Everything Changes (1993)
Nobody Else (1995)
Beautiful World (2006)
The Circus (2008)
Progress (2010)
III (2014)
Wonderland (2017)
Tours
Party Tour (1992–93)
Everything Changes Tour (1993–94)
Pops Tour (1994–95)
Nobody Else Tour (1995)
The Ultimate Tour (2006)
Beautiful World Tour 2007 (2007)
Take That Present: The Circus Live (2009)
Progress Live (2011)
Take That Live (2015)
Wonderland Live (2017)
Greatest Hits Live (2019)
See also
List of best-selling boy bands
References
External links
Chinese Fansite
1990 establishments in England
1996 disestablishments in England
2005 establishments in England
Brit Award winners
Dance-pop groups
Echo (music award) winners
English boy bands
English dance music groups
Interscope Records artists
Ivor Novello Award winners
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Musical groups disestablished in 1996
Musical groups established in 1990
Musical groups from Cheshire
Musical groups from Manchester
Musical groups reestablished in 2005
Polydor Records artists
Teen pop groups
Universal Music Group artists
Vocal quartets
Vocal quintets
Vocal trios | true | [
"MDNA may refer to:\n\n Mitochondrial DNA (mDNA or mtDNA), the DNA located in organelles called mitochondria\n MDNA (album), a 2012 album by Madonna\n The MDNA Tour, the 2012 concert tour by Madonna to promote the album\n MDNA World Tour (album), the live album/BD of the tour\n\nSee also\n MDMA\n mRNA",
"The Halos & Horns Tour in 2002 was Dolly Parton's first major concert tour in 10 years and was to promote the release of her album Halos & Horns (2002). The tour started in the United States, moved to Ireland and England, before returning to the U.S. to finish.\n\nBackground\nIn the early 1990s Parton had stopped the grueling tour schedule that she had worked for most of her career; she was tired of it and did not see fit to keep a band on payroll. She continued to do casino shows in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and Las Vegas, and she also performed (usually annually) themed concerts at her Dollywood theme park.\n\nWith the resurgence of sorts of her career with the release of the album The Grass Is Blue (1999), Parton toyed with the idea of mounting a tour to promote the album. Scheduling conflicts with the many talented, and booked, musicians who played on the album prohibited the tour and the subsequent one which would have promoted the album Little Sparrow (2001). Parton did do some promotional concerts for the albums. She also appeared at the MerleFest at Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro, North Carolina, on April 28, 2001, and performed a set list that comprised songs from the two albums as well as her greatest hits.\n\nDuring Dollywood's opening weekend in April 2002, it was announced that Parton would release a new album, Halos & Horns, and would launch her first tour in a decade. The tour was promoted and produced by House of Blues. The venues were mainly club settings and seated somewhere between 1,000 and 2,500. Subsequently, every date on the tour sold out. Most reviews praised Parton and her recent bluegrass/folk releases.\n\nParton stated in interviews to promote the album and tour that the shows she would be performing would be very simple. There was no glitz or lights or video monitors that she had employed with her earlier tours in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Most of the songs that made up the set list were in the country/bluegrass/folk vein, although Parton did include her biggest pop hits in an a cappella medley. \"9 to 5\" was treated to a very stripped down, bluegrass treatment.\n\nSet list\nThe following set list is representative of the December 12 and 13 shows at the Celebrity Theatre at Dollywood. It is not representative of all concerts for the duration of the tour.\n\n\"Orange Blossom Special\"\n\"Train Train\"\n\"The Grass Is Blue\"\n\"Mountain Angel\"\n\"Shine\"\n\"Little Sparrow\"\n\"Rocky Top\"\n\"My Tennessee Mountain Home\"\n\"Coat of Many Colors\"\n\"Smoky Mountain Memories\"\n\"Applejack\"\n\"Marry Me\"\n\"Halos and Horns\"\n\"I'm Gone\"\n\"Dagger Through the Heart\"\n\"If\"\n\"After the Gold Rush\"\n\"9 to 5\"\n\"Jolene\"\nAcapella Medley: \"Islands in the Stream\" / \"Here You Come Again\" / \"Why'd You Come in Here Lookin' Like That\" / \"Two Doors Down\"\n\"We Irish\"\nStairway to Heaven\"\n\"I Will Always Love You\"\n\nNotes\n\"Color Me America\", \"Calm on the Water\", \"Try\", \"Down from Dover\", \"I Don't Wanna Throw Rice\", \"He's a Go Getter\", and \"I'll Oilwells Love You\" were performed on select dates.\n\nTour dates\n\nExternal links\nParton's Official Website\n\nReferences\n\n Dollymania page on tour press release\n Village Voice review\n\nDolly Parton concert tours\n2002 concert tours"
] |
[
"Take That",
"2014-2015: Robbie Williams's second departure, Jason Orange's departure and III",
"Why did Robbie Williams depart?",
"Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a dad for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour.",
"Why did Jason Orange leave the band?",
"At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album.",
"Was is III?",
"The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album.",
"Did they tour to promote the album?",
"It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live."
] | C_6e6a60800d1643268f8b7ee3189196de_0 | Were there any singles from the album? | 5 | Were there any singles from the album III? | Take That | In May 2013, Owen announced that Take That were to begin recording their seventh studio album in 2014 and On 14 January 2014, Donald and Barlow both tweeted that Take That had entered the studio to begin recording the album, although it was not initially clear if Williams was present at these recording sessions. On 28 April 2014, Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a dad for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour. Barlow later confirmed that Williams had left the band for a second time, although the departure was amicable and that Williams was welcome to rejoin the band in the future. Williams has since collaborated with Barlow on several projects and duet performances and indicated his interest in reuniting with the band for potential 25th anniversary commemorative events. On 24 September 2014, it was announced that Jason Orange had left the band. He said: 'At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. 'At the end of The Progress Tour I began to question whether it might be the right time for me to not continue on with Take That,' he continued. 'There have been no fallings out, only a decision on my part that I no longer wish to do this,' he added. Barlow, Donald and Owen issued a joint statement about Orange's decision which said: "This is a sad day for us. Jason leaving is a huge loss both professionally and even more so personally ... Jason's energy and belief in what this band could achieve has made it what it is today, and we'll forever be grateful for his enthusiasm, dedication and inspiration over the years." On 10 October 2014, Take That unveiled the lead single from the album. Titled "These Days", it was released on 23 November 2014 and went to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, knocking Band Aid 30 off the top spot and becoming their 12th number one single. The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album. It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live. On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single "Hey Boy", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III. The 2015 edition of the album was released on 20 November. In December 2015, British media buzzed about the group embarking on a stint in Las Vegas, starting 2017. Reports indicated the group impressed U.S. promoters and would headline their own residency show. Many venues circulated, including The AXIS at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, The Foundry at SLS Las Vegas and the Linq Theater at The LINQ Hotel & Casino. Local newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun writes that everything is still unconfirmed, despite Barlow confirming the rumour on Twitter. CANNOTANSWER | On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single "Hey Boy", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III. | Take That are an English pop group formed in Manchester in 1990. The group currently consists of Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen. The original line-up also featured Jason Orange and Robbie Williams. Barlow is the group's lead singer and primary songwriter, with Owen and Williams initially providing backing vocals and Donald and Orange serving primarily as dancers.
The group have had 28 top 40 singles and 17 top 5 singles on the UK Singles Chart, 12 of which have reached number one, including "Back for Good", "Never Forget", "Patience" and "Greatest Day". They have also had eight number one albums on the UK Albums Chart. Internationally, the band have had 56 number one singles and 39 number one albums. They have received eight Brit Awards—winning for Best British Group and Best British Live Act. In 2012 they received an Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music. According to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), Take That has been certified for 14 million albums and 11.4 million singles in the UK.
Williams left the band in 1995 while the four remaining members completed their world tour and released a final single before splitting up in 1996. After filming a 2005 Take That: For the Record about the group and releasing a new greatest hits album, a four-piece Take That without Williams officially announced a 2006 reunion tour around the UK, entitled The Ultimate Tour. On 9 May 2006, it was announced that the group were set to record new material together once again; their fourth studio album, Beautiful World, was released in 2006 and was followed up with The Circus, in 2008. The group achieved new success as a four-piece, scoring a string of chart hits across the UK and Europe while selling over 45 million records worldwide. Williams rejoined Take That in 2010 for the band's sixth studio album, Progress. Released on 15 November of that year, it was the first album of new material to feature Take That's original line-up since their 1995 album, Nobody Else. It became the fastest-selling album of the 21st century and the second fastest-selling album in British history.
In 2014, the band recorded a seventh studio album, this time as a trio without Williams and Orange. The album, titled III, was released in November 2014 and became the band's seventh number one. It was preceded by the single "These Days", which became the band's 12th number one single in the UK.
In 2011, Take That set the new record for the fastest-selling tour of all time in the UK with Progress Live, beating the previous record set by their Circus Live Tour in 2009. At the 2011 Brit Awards they won Best British Group. In 2012, Forbes named them the fifth highest-earning music stars in the world. The group performed at the London 2012 Olympic Games closing ceremony, playing "Rule the World" while the Olympic Flame was extinguished. In the same year, the Official Charts Company revealed the biggest-selling singles artists in British music chart history with Take That currently placed at 15th overall, making them the most successful boy band in UK chart history. Four of their albums are listed in the best-selling albums of the millennium, with three of them among the 60 best-selling albums in UK chart history.
History
1989–1990: Formation
In 1989, Manchester-based Nigel Martin-Smith sought to create a British male vocal singing group modelled on New Kids on the Block. Martin-Smith's vision, however, was a teen-orientated group that would appeal to more than one demographic segment of the music industry. Martin-Smith was then introduced to young singer-songwriter Gary Barlow, who had been performing in clubs since the age of 15. Impressed with Barlow's catalogue of self-written material, Martin-Smith decided to build his new-look boy band around Barlow's musical abilities. A campaign to audition young men with abilities in dancing and singing followed and took place in Manchester and other surrounding cities in 1990. At 22, Howard Donald was one of the oldest to audition, but he was chosen after he got time off work as a vehicle painter to continue the process. Prior to auditioning, Jason Orange had appeared as a breakdancer on the popular television programme The Hit Man and Her. Martin-Smith also selected 18-year-old bank employee Mark Owen and finally 16-year-old Robbie Williams to round out the group, which initially went by the name Kick It.
1990–1992: Take That & Party
Take That's first TV appearance was on The Hit Man and Her in 1990, where they performed Barlow's self-written, unreleased song, "My Kind of Girl". They later appeared a second time to perform "Waiting Around", which would become the B-side for the first single, "Do What U Like". "Promises" and "Once You've Tasted Love" were also released as singles but were minor hits in the UK. Take That initially worked the same territory as their American counterparts, singing new jack R&B, urban soul, and mainstream pop. However, they worked their way toward Hi-NRG dance music, while also pursuing an adult contemporary ballad direction. As they aimed to break into the mainstream music industry, they worked a number of small clubs, schools, and events across the country building up a fanbase as they travelled to gigs constantly for months.
Take That's breakthrough single was a cover of the 1975 Tavares hit "It Only Takes a Minute", which peaked at number seven on the UK Singles Chart in June 1992. This success was followed by "I Found Heaven", then by the first Barlow ballad "A Million Love Songs", which also reached number seven in October. Their cover of the Barry Manilow hit "Could It Be Magic" gave them their first big success, peaking at number three in the UK in the first chart of 1993. Their first album, Take That & Party, was released in 1992, and included all the hit singles to date.
1993–1995: Everything Changes, Nobody Else and superstardom
1993 saw the release of Everything Changes, based on Barlow's original material. It peaked at number one in the UK and spawned six singles, with four being consecutive UK number one singles – their first number one "Pray", "Relight My Fire", "Babe" and the title track "Everything Changes". The lead single "Why Can't I Wake Up with You" had narrowly missed the top spot in the UK peaking at number two and the sixth and final single "Love Ain't Here Anymore" taken from the album reached number three on the UK charts. Everything Changes saw the band gain international success with the album being nominated for the 1994 Mercury Prize, but it failed to crack the U.S. market, where an exclusive remix of "Love Ain't Here Anymore" (U.S. version) gained little success.
By 1994, Take That had become radio and television stars across Europe and Asia, but it was not until 1995 that they did their first World Tour. It was during the years 1993–95 that the band fronted scores of magazine covers ranging from Smash Hits to GQ, becoming mass merchandised on all sorts of paraphernalia ranging from picture books, to posters, stickers, their own dolls, jewellery, caps, T-shirts, toothbrushes and even had their own annuals released. The band had also developed a large female teenage fanbase at the time. During this time, they performed at numerous music awards shows and chart shows such as the BRIT Awards and Top of the Pops, also winning the Best Live Act award in 1995 at the MTV Europe Music Awards, having been renowned for their breakdance routines, high energy and creative tour productions.
In 1995, Take That released their third studio album Nobody Else, again based on Barlow's own material which reached number 1 in the UK and across Europe, capturing new audiences along the way, with Take That also able to make inroads in the adult audience in Britain through Barlow's melodic, sensitive ballads. For nearly five years, Take That's popularity was unsurpassed in Britain. The release of the first single from the album, "Sure", achieved yet another number one in the UK charts. It was not until their second release from that album, however, that they would experience what would become their biggest hit single, "Back for Good", which reached number one in many countries including the UK, Germany, Australia, and Norway. It was also their only US hit, where it reached number seven.
The song was initially unveiled for the first time via live performance while at the 1995 BRIT Awards, and based on the reception of that performance, the record pre-sold more records than expected and forced the record label to bring the release date forward by an unprecedented six weeks. The album was also noted for its cover, which was a parody of the famed cover of The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band cover sleeve.
1995–1996: Break-up and Greatest Hits
Robbie Williams's drug abuse had escalated to a near drug overdose the night before the group was scheduled to perform at the MTV Europe Music Awards in 1994.
In June 1995, Williams was photographed by the press partying with Oasis at the Glastonbury Festival. The following month, the band offered him an ultimatum; he was to adhere to the band's responsibilities or leave before their scheduled world tour. Williams chose the latter. Williams claimed he was bored with Barlow's leadership and jealous of Barlow. Despite the loss of Williams, Take That continued to promote Nobody Else as a four-piece, scoring a further hit single with "Never Forget" with Donald on lead vocal. They subsequently went to America and completed the Nobody Else Tour in October 1995. Following the tour, the band began to plan for their next album; however, when they spent Christmas together, they mutually agreed it was time to part ways.
On 13 February 1996, Take That formally announced that they were disbanding. This was followed by the Greatest Hits compilation in 1996, which contained a new recording, a cover of the Bee Gees' "How Deep Is Your Love". The single went on to become what was to be the band's final UK number one until their 2006 comeback a decade later. Take That gave what was thought to be their final performance in April 1996 at Amsterdam. Following the band's announcement, millions of their fans were distraught around the world and in the UK alone, teenage girls threatened suicide and were seen lining streets in tears, to the point that telephone hotlines were set up by the government to deal with counselling them. After the band broke up, highly respected music figures such as Elton John noted that Take That were different from other boy bands before and after them, in that they wrote their own material through Gary Barlow. Barlow is one of only a small number of people who have won an Ivor Novello award during their time in a boy band, with George Michael whilst in Wham! and Tony Mortimer whilst in East 17 being two others who have achieved this feat. Take That had also left a legacy of being immaculate performers with a very high work ethic, causing them to be voted in as the greatest boy band of all time.
2005–2006: Reunion as a quartet and Never Forget – The Ultimate Collection
On 14 November 2005, Never Forget – The Ultimate Collection, a new compilation of their hit singles including a new previously unreleased song, also achieved great success and peaked at number 2 on UK charts, selling over 2.1 million copies in the UK alone. The new song "Today I've Lost You" (recorded in September 2005) was originally written by Barlow as the follow up to "Back for Good" but was never recorded. On 16 November 2005, the group got back together for the ITV documentary Take That: For the Record, in which they aired their views over their fame, success, the split and what the post-Williams line-up had done since. On 25 November 2005, there was an official press conference by the band announcing that the post-Robbie Williams line-up was going to tour in 2006. The tour, entitled The Ultimate Tour, ran from April to June 2006. The tour featured a guest appearance by British soul singer Beverley Knight, who replaced Lulu's vocals on the song "Relight My Fire"; although Lulu did appear during the stadium shows on "Relight My Fire" and "Never Forget". The American female ensemble Pussycat Dolls supported the group at their Dublin concert, and the Sugababes supported the group on the final five dates of the stadium leg. In a seven-year study analysing over one billion online searches via Google conducted by AccuraCast, a leading digital search agency, their comeback was ranked at number one in the UK.
2006–2007: Beautiful World
On 9 May 2006, Take That returned to the recorded music scene after more than ten years of absence, signing with Polydor Records. The band's comeback album, Beautiful World, entered the UK Albums Chart at no. 1 and, as of June 2009, had sold over 2.8 million copies in the UK. It is the 35th best selling album in UK music history.
On Beautiful World, all four members of the band had the opportunity to sing lead vocals and contribute in the songwriting. Unlike the band's earlier works, where the majority of their material was written by Barlow who received sole credit, all four band members are credited as co-writers, along with John Shanks. The comeback single, "Patience", was released on 20 November 2006, with a special event launching it on 5 November.
On 26 November "Patience" hit number 1 in the UK in its second week of chart entry, making it the group's ninth No. 1, and staying there for 4 weeks. Take That also accompanied eventual winner Leona Lewis on a live version of "A Million Love Songs" during the final of The X Factor on 16 December 2006.
The week after Beautiful World was released, it was announced that Take That had become the first artists ever to top the UK official single and album charts along with the download single, download album and DVD charts in the same week, as well as topping the radio charts.
The video for the number 1 hit single "Shine", the follow-up to "Patience", premiered on 25 January 2007 on Channel 4, ahead of its release on 26 February 2007. The band's success continued on 14 February 2007 when Take That performed live at the BRIT Awards ceremony at Earl's Court. Their single "Patience" won the Best British Single category. The third single chosen from Beautiful World was "I'd Wait For Life", released on 18 June 2007 in the UK. The single reached 17 in the UK Singles Chart. This may have been due to lack of promotion, as the band decided to take a pre-tour break rather than do any promotion for the single. The single "Rule the World", included on the deluxe version of Beautiful World, was recorded for the soundtrack of the film Stardust (2007). It reached number two in the UK and went on to become the group's second best selling single, shifting over 1.2 million units in the UK. Beautiful World was the fourth biggest-selling album of 2007. It was announced at the start of 2007 that Take That signed a record deal with American label Interscope, and would also release their album in Canada. Starting on 11 October 2007, Take That began their Beautiful World Tour 2007 in Belfast. The tour included 49 shows throughout Europe and the UK and ended in Manchester on 23 December 2007. The band received four nominations at the 2008 BRIT Awards. Nominated for Best British Group, Best British Single ("Shine"), Best British Album (Beautiful World) and Best Live Act, they took home the Best Live Act and the Best British Single awards. According to a 2007 MSN UK internet poll, Take That were voted as the "comeback kings" of the year.
2008–2009: The Circus
"Greatest Day", the first single from the album The Circus, made its radio premiere on 13 October 2008 and it was released on 24 November. It debuted at number 1 on the UK Singles Chart on 30 November 2008. An album launch party for The Circus was held in Paris on 2 December. On its first day of release The Circus sold 133,000 copies, and after four days on sale it sold 306,000 copies (going platinum) making The Circus the fastest selling album of the year. The album reached number 1 on the UK Albums Chart on 7 December 2008 with total first-week sales of 432,490, the third highest opening sales week in UK history.
On 28 October 2008, on the Radio 1 Chris Moyles show, it was announced that Take That would be touring again in June/July 2009, covering the UK and Ireland. Tickets for the Take That Present: The Circus Live tour went on sale on 31 October. The promoters, SJM, have said that the band's tour is "the fastest selling in UK history".
On 22 May 2008, Barlow and Donald attended the 2008 Ivor Novello Awards where Take That won the award for Most Performed Work with their single "Shine". Take That won the Sony Ericsson Tour of the Year award at the Vodafone music awards on 18 September 2008. They were unable to attend as they were in LA finishing off The Circus. They did send a video link message, which was shown at the awards. On 22 November 2008, Take That appeared on week 7 of the talent show The X Factor where the finalists performed some of their greatest hits and Owen and Barlow made a guest appearance to personally coach the contestants. The band also performed on Children in Need 2008, singing their new single, "Greatest Day", before donating £250,000 to the charity from their Marks and Spencer fee. The band were also voted the Greatest Boy Band of All Time, reflecting their ongoing marketability and success in the pop arena, even after two decades.
At the 2009 Brit Awards they were nominated for Best British Group and they performed "Greatest Day" at the ceremony. "Up All Night", the second single from The Circus, was released on 2 March 2009, and peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart, despite heavy airplay. In Germany and Australia, "The Garden" was released as the second single instead. On 7 May 2009, Take That's official website confirmed that the third single from The Circus would be "Said It All" which was released on 15 June 2009, peaking at number 9 on the UK Singles chart. The video premiered on GMTV on 8 May 2009. It features all four band members dressed up as vintage circus clowns, which tied in with their forthcoming Take That Present: The Circus Live tour. Take That started their Circus Live tour at the Stadium of Light on 5 June 2009 in Sunderland and ended at the Wembley Stadium in London on 5 July 2009, which over 80,000 people attended. This tour quickly became the fastest-selling of all time, breaking all records by selling all of their 650,000 tickets in less than four and a half hours.
In November 2009 Take That released the official DVD of their Circus tour, which became the fastest-selling music DVD of all time in the UK on its first day of release and stayed in the top 10 of the videos chart for over a year. This overtook the previous record sales holder, which was Take That's Beautiful World Live tour and stayed at the number 1 spot for 8 weeks. The following week Take That released their first live album, The Greatest Day – Take That Present: The Circus Live, which sold 98,000 copies on its first day of release and was certified Platinum in July 2013. "Hold up a Light" was released as the fifth and final single from The Circus to radio stations and as a digital download to promote the release of the live album. The live album also featured a stripped down session recorded live at the famous Abbey Road Studios in London. It featured the members singing the setlist from the preceding tour, albeit in a studio setting.
2010–2011: Williams' return and Progress
On 7 June 2010, the news broke of a single called "Shame", which had been written by Barlow and Williams and would feature the vocals of both artists. This was the first time the pair had worked together since 1995 and would appear on the second greatest hits collection of Williams. "Heart and I", another track from the same album, was also co-written by Williams and Barlow. The single "Shame" peaked at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart while also achieving success throughout Europe, charting in over 19 countries.
After working with the band on new material in Los Angeles, on 15 July 2010 Robbie Williams announced he was returning to Take That. After months of working together, assembling new songs for a new album and even debating a band-name change to "The English", a joint statement between Williams and the group read, "The rumours are true ... Take That: the original lineup, have written and recorded a new album for release later this year." The statement went on to say, "Following months of speculation Gary Barlow, Howard Donald, Jason Orange, Mark Owen, and Robbie Williams confirmed they have been recording a new studio album as a five-piece, which they will release in November." The lead single from Take That's album Progress was announced as "The Flood" and was released 7 November as a digital download, and on 8 November as a physical copy, with the album released a week later on 15 November. The single peaked at number 2 in the UK Singles Charts and to date has sold over 500,000 copies in the UK alone. The single also achieved success across Europe, charting inside the top 10 in ten countries while also charting in another nine countries whilst also being nominated for an Ivor Novello Award for best work.
On 26 October the band announced that they would be embarking on a huge UK stadium tour entitled Progress Live, starting in Sunderland on 27 May, and finishing with a record-breaking 8 nights at London's Wembley Stadium in July 2011. It was also announced that Williams would perform hit singles from his solo career during the tour. The band then played at some of the biggest venues across Europe for the second leg of the tour. The phenomenal demand for tickets across the country led to the web sites of all the major UK ticket suppliers either crashing or considerably slowing for hours on end. The demand and sheer volume of fans also created problems for the UK telephone network. Take That's Progress Live also broke all records for ticket sales selling over 1.1 million tickets in one day, smashing the previous box office record set by Take That's Circus tour in 2008.
On the first day of release Progress became the fastest selling album of the century, with 235,000 copies sold in just one day. The album reached number 1 in the UK, selling around 520,000 copies in its first week, becoming the second fastest-selling album in history. After the release of Progress it was announced that Take That have become Amazon UK's top-selling music artist of all time.
The album retained the number one spot for six consecutive weeks in the UK since its release, selling 2.8 million copies in the UK alone and becoming the best selling album of 2010
Progress also achieved success across Europe where it debuted at number one in Ireland, Greece, Germany and Denmark. and the European Top 100 Albums chart. It also debuted inside the top 10 of the charts in Austria, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland.
"Kidz" was announced as the second single from Progress, it was released 21 February 2011 and charted well across Europe. The band performed the song live at the 2011 Brit Awards hosted at The O2 Arena, where they won a Brit for Best British Group and were nominated for Best British Album. Their performance of "Kidz", praised by critics, involved a highly choreographed routine featuring dancers dressed in police-styled riot gear bearing the Take That symbol on the uniform and shields. On 19 May 2011, Take That announced a new EP entitled Progressed, which contained eight tracks written by the band since they had reunited as a five-piece. It was packaged alongside the album Progress and returned the band to number 1 in the UK Album Chart the week after it was released on 13 June 2011.
Take That announced that the Progress Live tour would be released worldwide as their second live album to date and would also be released on home media formats across the UK and Europe on 21 November 2011. The DVD debuted at number 1 on the UK Music Video top 40 in its first week on release and sold over 200,000 copies in two weeks of release in the UK alone. Take That's efforts were recognised further when they were awarded Virgin Media's Best Live Act of 2012.
On 4 October, it was reported that Take That were to take a break after the completion of the Progress tour, with Barlow continuing his role as a judge on The X Factor and Williams recording new solo material. Take That were presented with an Ivor Novello Award for their Outstanding Contribution to British Music in May 2012.
In August 2012, Take That performed at the closing ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics, despite Barlow announcing that his daughter had been stillborn the previous week. The performance earned him praise for appearing live so soon after the tragedy. Williams was due to perform with the band but dropped out due to his wife giving birth at around the same time and thus the group performed as a four-piece. In November 2012, Take That reunited as a five-piece for the last time to perform "Never Forget" at the Music Industry Trust Awards. In 2013, Donald became a judge on the German version of the television dancing show Got to Dance.
2014–2015: Line-up change and III
In May 2013, Owen announced that Take That was to begin recording their seventh studio album in 2014, and on 14 January 2014, Donald and Barlow both tweeted that Take That had entered the studio to begin recording the album, although it was not initially clear if Williams was present at these recording sessions. On 28 April 2014, Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a father for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour. Although welcome to return to the band at any time, Williams chose not to return for group's seventh and eighth studio albums and their accompanying tours, focusing instead on his solo commitments. He continued to write music with his colleagues and has performed with the group on several occasions since 2011's Progress tour and plans on returning at some point in the future.
On 24 September 2014, it was announced that Jason Orange had left the band. He said: 'At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. 'At the end of The Progress Tour I began to question whether it might be the right time for me to not continue on with Take That,' he continued. 'There have been no fallings out, only a decision on my part that I no longer wish to do this,' he added. Barlow, Donald, and Owen issued a joint statement about Orange's decision which said: "This is a sad day for us. Jason leaving is a huge loss both professionally and even more so personally ... Jason's energy and belief in what this band could achieve has made it what it is today, and we'll forever be grateful for his enthusiasm, dedication and inspiration over the years." A day after the announcement, Robbie Williams took to Twitter to show support of Orange's decision. "Mr Orange. Until we ride again. Much love, Bro.", Williams tweeted.
On 10 October 2014, Take That unveiled their first song as a three-piece and lead single from their upcoming album. Titled "These Days", it was released on 23 November 2014 and went to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, knocking Band Aid 30 off the top spot and becoming their 12th number one single. The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album. It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live. On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single "Hey Boy", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III. The 2015 edition of the album was released on 20 November.
In December 2015, British media buzzed about the group embarking on a stint in Las Vegas, starting 2017. Reports indicated the group impressed U.S. promoters and would headline their own residency show. Many venues circulated, including The AXIS at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, The Foundry at SLS Las Vegas and the Linq Theater at The LINQ Hotel & Casino. Local newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun writes that everything is still unconfirmed, despite Barlow confirming the rumour on Twitter.
2016–2017: Wonderland
On 2 February 2016, in an interview with The Sun, Barlow revealed that Take That would release their eighth studio album later in the year. On 4 May 2016, English drum and bass duo Sigma announced their newest single would feature Take That. "Cry" received its first radio play on 20 May 2016 and was released on that date. On 21 October 2016, the band posted a teaser on their social media pages and website depicting the logo of the band flickering with the hashtag "#WONDERLAND". The following day, it was announced that their new album, titled Wonderland, was scheduled to be released on 24 March 2017. It was then followed by a UK and Ireland arena tour entitled Wonderland Live, that commenced on 5 May 2017 at the Genting Arena in Birmingham. On 17 February 2017, the lead single of Wonderland was released. Titled "Giants", it debuted at 13 in the UK charts, which became the band's 24th UK top 20 single.
On 8 April 2017, ITV aired a specially commissioned hour-length television special titled An Evening with Take That, where the band performed some songs from the album, along with some old classics including "Never Forget", "Back for Good" and "Rule the World". The band also took part in a Q&A session with the audience members. On 27 April, it was announced on Twitter that "New Day" would be released as the next single from the album Wonderland. The band were seen recording the music video in a field in Luton the days leading up the opening night of the Wonderland Live tour. Due to the Manchester Arena bombing just days before they were due to perform at the venue, their Manchester and Liverpool dates were rescheduled or relocated. The band returned a month later to perform at the One Love Manchester benefit concert.
On 16 September 2017, Barlow, Owen and Donald were set to perform a special one-off show in Jersey after a fan bid more than £1.2 million to win a performance from the band. This then turned in to a ticketed charity event where the money from tickets sold would go towards benefiting Children in Need. The auction was held on BBC Radio 2. On 11 November 2017, Take That began their foreign tour in Perth, Australia, the first time they have performed in the country in over twenty years. They also played in New Zealand, United Arab Emirates and Israel for the first time. Unlike the other tours, a DVD for Wonderland Live was not released. Instead, it was broadcast on Sky 1 on 23 December and in cinemas.
2018–2020: The 30th Anniversary, and Odyssey
On 16 July 2018, while performing at first ever Hits Radio Live at the Manchester Arena, Barlow, Donald and Owen confirmed that they would be touring in 2019. The tour was a Greatest Hits tour and celebrated the 30th anniversary of the band. There was also a Greatest Hits album, Odyssey, which was released on 23 November 2018. The Greatest Hits album features existing songs from their back catalogue that have been re-imagined and 3 brand new songs. It also includes collaborations with Boyz II Men, Lulu, Sigma and Barry Gibb. Odyssey reached number one in the UK album chart and was certified as a platinum selling record. The following year, Odyssey Live, the recording of their tour, reached number 5, becoming the band's 13th top 5 album, with the DVD becoming the biggest live music sale of 2019.
In May 2020, Barlow, Donald, and Owen reunited with Williams for a virtual performance from their respective homes, hosted by price comparison website comparethemarket.com, to raise money for the music charity Nordoff Robbins and Crew Nation.
In other media
In April 2006, EMI licensed the band's songs to be used in the musical Never Forget, a musical based on songs of the band from the 1990s. Take That posted and then later removed a statement on their website distancing themselves from it.
Take That wrote and recorded the theme song "Rule the World" for the film Stardust directed by Matthew Vaughn, which was released in cinemas across the globe in October 2007. In 2007, their song "Back for Good" was used as part of the soundtrack for popular Korean drama The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince.
Take That presented their own TV show Take That Come to Town, a variety show in which they performed some of their biggest hits. The show also featured comedy sketches with one of Peter Kay's alter egos Geraldine McQueen. It aired on 7 December 2008 on ITV1. Sony launched their first Take That video game, SingStar Take That in 2009 for the PlayStation 3.
In November 2010, ITV aired Take That: Look Back, Don't Stare, a black-and-white documentary which focused on the band working together for the first time in 15 years. Through a series of interviews, the band look back at their achievements while also looking forward to what the future holds for them. On 18 November 2010, Williams and Barlow appeared together live on television for the first time on the Popstars program in Germany singing their hit "Shame".
In 2011, Take That's song "Love Love" was used in the credits of the 2011 film X-Men: First Class and later, "When We Were Young" was chosen as the main theme for The Three Musketeers movie. In 2015, the song "Get Ready for It" from their album III, was chosen as the theme song for the film Kingsman: The Secret Service.
In 2017, Take That launched The Band, a musical written by Tim Firth featuring the five winners of Let It Shine and some of Take That's biggest hits. Take That, including Robbie Williams, were billed as executive producers.
The group's music is regularly featured in the Channel 4 show Derry Girls, notably in the third episode of the second series, when the lead characters sneak off to attend the 1993 Take That concert in Belfast; the episode features the music video for "Pray" and ends on footage of the band performing "Everything Changes".
Artistry
Early in their career, Take That were known for party anthems such as "Do What U Like" and more mature ballads such as "A Million Love Songs" and "Back for Good". Since reuniting in 2006, they have become more experimental: their post-2006 albums Beautiful World and The Circus have featured "stadium-filling pop-rock" while Progress largely leaned towards electropop. Having been dubbed the "comeback kings" by the media for their highly successful reunion, the group has won widespread praise for their seamless transformation from teen idols to "man band" without overly relying on nostalgia, instead showcasing a more mature image and sound and reinventing themselves while maintaining their artistic integrity. Jude Rogers of The Guardian commented on Take That's post-reunion success, in light of a string of reunions by the group's disbanded counterparts from the 1990s: "Only Take That are penetrating pop's wider consciousness by becoming a man-band rather than a boy-band, singing mature, proper pop songs that cross the generations."
Take That have garnered critical acclaim and popularity as consummate live performers and for their musical output. Their domestic concert tours have been described as "some of the most flamboyant, imaginative and extravagant pop tours around". Aside from covers, all of their material is composed by the members themselves; Barlow was initially the principal songwriter who received sole credit but the other members have since taken a more active role in the composition and production process, including playing instruments for the backing track.
Band members
Current members
Gary Barlow (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Howard Donald (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Mark Owen (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Former members
Robbie Williams (1990–1995, 2010–2012)
Jason Orange (1990–1996, 2005–2014)
Timeline
Awards and nominations
|-
| 2016
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award for Best Live Act
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2015
| "These Days"
| UK Music Video Awards for Best Art Direction
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|2012
| "Pray"
|The Guardian Music Award for Best Number 1 Single
|
|-
| Take That
|Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music
|
|-
| "Back for Good"
|The Official Charts Company UK Recognition award for United Kingdom's Favourite Number One Single
|
|-
| "The Flood"
|Ivor Novello Award for PRS Most Performed Work
|
|-
| Take That
|Virgin Media Music Awards for Best Live Act
|
|-
| "Kidz"
|Virgin Media Music Awards for Best Music Video
|
|-
| rowspan="10" style="text-align:center;"|2011
|-
| Progress Live
|Audio Pro International Awards for Best Live Sound Event
|
|-
| Progress Live
|Audio Pro International Awards Grand Prix Award
|
|-
| Take That
|Phonographic Performance Limited Award for most played UK artist
|
|-
| "Kidz"
|Spex German Entertainment for Best Music Video
|
|-
| The Circus Live Tour
| Greatest Event ever at Wembley Stadium
|
|-
| Take That
|ECHO Award for Best International Group
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| Progress
| BRIT Award for MasterCard Album of the Year
|
|-
| Take That
|Virgin Media for Best Group
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|2010
|-
| "Up All Night"
| UK Music Video Awards for Best Art Direction
|
|-
| "The Flood"
|iTunes Award for Best Single
|
|-
| Progress
| iTunes Award for Best Album
|
|-
| Take That
|Q Award Hall of Fame
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best Live Performance of the past 30 Years
|
|-
| rowspan="5" style="text-align:center;"|2009
| Take That
|GQ Men of the Year Awards for Best Band
|
|-
| Take That
|Q Award for Best Live Act
|
|-
| "Greatest Day"
|Q Award for Best Single
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award
|
|-
| rowspan="7" style="text-align:center;"|2008
| "Shine"
|Ivor Novello Award for PRS Most Performed Work
|
|-
| "Rule the World"
|Virgin for Best Single
|
|-
| Take That
|Sony Ericsson Tour of the Year Award for Take That Arena Tour
|
|-
| "Shine"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Live Act
|
|-
| Beautiful World
|BRIT Award for Best British Album
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2007
| "Patience"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2006
| Take That
|Q Idol Award
|
|-
| rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|1996
| "Back for Good"
|Billboard International Hit of the Year
|
|-
| "Never Forget"
|Ivor Novello Award for Most Performed Song
|
|-
| "Back for Good"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|1995
| "Back for Good"
|Ivor Novello Award for the Song of the Year
|
|-
| Take That
|MTV Europe Music Awards for Best Live Act
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|1994
| "Babe"
|MTV Video Music Award for International Viewer's Choice Award for MTV Europe
|
|-
| Everything Changes
|Mercury Prize for Best Album
|
|-
| "Pray"
|Ivor Novello Award for Best Contemporary Song
|
|-
| "Pray"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "Pray"
|BRIT Award for Best British Video
|
|-
| Take That
|MTV Europe Music Awards for Best Group
|
|-
| rowspan="4" style="text-align:center;"|1993
| "Could It Be Magic"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "A Million Love Songs"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "It Only Takes a Minute"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award for Best Newcomer
|
|}
Discography
Take That & Party (1992)
Everything Changes (1993)
Nobody Else (1995)
Beautiful World (2006)
The Circus (2008)
Progress (2010)
III (2014)
Wonderland (2017)
Tours
Party Tour (1992–93)
Everything Changes Tour (1993–94)
Pops Tour (1994–95)
Nobody Else Tour (1995)
The Ultimate Tour (2006)
Beautiful World Tour 2007 (2007)
Take That Present: The Circus Live (2009)
Progress Live (2011)
Take That Live (2015)
Wonderland Live (2017)
Greatest Hits Live (2019)
See also
List of best-selling boy bands
References
External links
Chinese Fansite
1990 establishments in England
1996 disestablishments in England
2005 establishments in England
Brit Award winners
Dance-pop groups
Echo (music award) winners
English boy bands
English dance music groups
Interscope Records artists
Ivor Novello Award winners
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Musical groups disestablished in 1996
Musical groups established in 1990
Musical groups from Cheshire
Musical groups from Manchester
Musical groups reestablished in 2005
Polydor Records artists
Teen pop groups
Universal Music Group artists
Vocal quartets
Vocal quintets
Vocal trios | true | [
"Pure Soul was an American R&B girl group who were signed to Interscope Records in the mid 1990s. They are perhaps best known for their hit single We Must Be in Love, the debut single from their self-titled debut album. The \"Pure Soul\" album (the group's only album) scored three top forty hits on the US Billboard R&B chart. Their music videos were some of the most frequently played videos on BET, VH-1 and The Box at the time of their release. After the singles ran their course and faded from regular rotation, the group mysteriously disappeared from the music scene without any explanation.\n\nDiscography\n\nAlbums\n Pure Soul (1995)\nSingles\n\nExternal links\n[] Album and singles info, chart info and music video links.\n\nReferences\n\nAmerican girl groups\nAfrican-American girl groups",
"Foo Files is a series of EPs released by Foo Fighters starting in 2019. Available through streaming media services, the EPs consist of the B-sides released by the band through its trajectory, along with selected live performances. All the titles list the years of the song's releases plus \"25\" to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Foo Fighters in 2020.\n\nTrack listings\n\n00950025\n\n00111125 - Live in London\nThe tracks were taken from the band's performance at the Roundhouse for the 2011 iTunes Festival.\n\n00070725 Live at Studio 606\nThe tracks were taken from a 2007 performance at the band's own Studio 606, in Northridge, California, for the online show Walmart Soundcheck.\n\n00050525 Live In Roswell\nReleased in the same day the Storm Area 51 event would happen, it is a 2005 performance at the Walker Air Force Base in Roswell, New Mexico.\n\n01070725\nThis EP contains B-sides for the singles from the 2007 album Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace.\n\n00020225\nThis EP contains B-sides for the singles from the 2002 album One by One.\n\n01050525\n\nThis EP contains B-sides for the singles from the 2005 album In Your Honor and contains most songs from Five Songs and a Cover.\n\n00999925\n\nThis EP contains B-sides for the singles from the 1999 album There Is Nothing Left to Lose, and is also available as 01999925, with only the first five tracks.\n\n00979725\nThis EP contains B-sides for the singles from the 1997 album The Colour and the Shape.\n\n00959525\nThis EP contains B-sides for the singles from the 1995 album Foo Fighters''.\n\nReferences\n\nFoo Fighters EPs\nB-side compilation albums\n2019_compilation_albums\n2019 live albums\n2020_compilation_albums\nRCA Records compilation albums\nRCA Records EPs\nFoo Fighters compilation albums"
] |
[
"Take That",
"2014-2015: Robbie Williams's second departure, Jason Orange's departure and III",
"Why did Robbie Williams depart?",
"Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a dad for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour.",
"Why did Jason Orange leave the band?",
"At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album.",
"Was is III?",
"The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album.",
"Did they tour to promote the album?",
"It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live.",
"Were there any singles from the album?",
"On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single \"Hey Boy\", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III."
] | C_6e6a60800d1643268f8b7ee3189196de_0 | How did that single perform? | 6 | How did the single Hey Boy perform? | Take That | In May 2013, Owen announced that Take That were to begin recording their seventh studio album in 2014 and On 14 January 2014, Donald and Barlow both tweeted that Take That had entered the studio to begin recording the album, although it was not initially clear if Williams was present at these recording sessions. On 28 April 2014, Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a dad for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour. Barlow later confirmed that Williams had left the band for a second time, although the departure was amicable and that Williams was welcome to rejoin the band in the future. Williams has since collaborated with Barlow on several projects and duet performances and indicated his interest in reuniting with the band for potential 25th anniversary commemorative events. On 24 September 2014, it was announced that Jason Orange had left the band. He said: 'At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. 'At the end of The Progress Tour I began to question whether it might be the right time for me to not continue on with Take That,' he continued. 'There have been no fallings out, only a decision on my part that I no longer wish to do this,' he added. Barlow, Donald and Owen issued a joint statement about Orange's decision which said: "This is a sad day for us. Jason leaving is a huge loss both professionally and even more so personally ... Jason's energy and belief in what this band could achieve has made it what it is today, and we'll forever be grateful for his enthusiasm, dedication and inspiration over the years." On 10 October 2014, Take That unveiled the lead single from the album. Titled "These Days", it was released on 23 November 2014 and went to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, knocking Band Aid 30 off the top spot and becoming their 12th number one single. The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album. It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live. On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single "Hey Boy", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III. The 2015 edition of the album was released on 20 November. In December 2015, British media buzzed about the group embarking on a stint in Las Vegas, starting 2017. Reports indicated the group impressed U.S. promoters and would headline their own residency show. Many venues circulated, including The AXIS at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, The Foundry at SLS Las Vegas and the Linq Theater at The LINQ Hotel & Casino. Local newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun writes that everything is still unconfirmed, despite Barlow confirming the rumour on Twitter. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Take That are an English pop group formed in Manchester in 1990. The group currently consists of Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen. The original line-up also featured Jason Orange and Robbie Williams. Barlow is the group's lead singer and primary songwriter, with Owen and Williams initially providing backing vocals and Donald and Orange serving primarily as dancers.
The group have had 28 top 40 singles and 17 top 5 singles on the UK Singles Chart, 12 of which have reached number one, including "Back for Good", "Never Forget", "Patience" and "Greatest Day". They have also had eight number one albums on the UK Albums Chart. Internationally, the band have had 56 number one singles and 39 number one albums. They have received eight Brit Awards—winning for Best British Group and Best British Live Act. In 2012 they received an Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music. According to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), Take That has been certified for 14 million albums and 11.4 million singles in the UK.
Williams left the band in 1995 while the four remaining members completed their world tour and released a final single before splitting up in 1996. After filming a 2005 Take That: For the Record about the group and releasing a new greatest hits album, a four-piece Take That without Williams officially announced a 2006 reunion tour around the UK, entitled The Ultimate Tour. On 9 May 2006, it was announced that the group were set to record new material together once again; their fourth studio album, Beautiful World, was released in 2006 and was followed up with The Circus, in 2008. The group achieved new success as a four-piece, scoring a string of chart hits across the UK and Europe while selling over 45 million records worldwide. Williams rejoined Take That in 2010 for the band's sixth studio album, Progress. Released on 15 November of that year, it was the first album of new material to feature Take That's original line-up since their 1995 album, Nobody Else. It became the fastest-selling album of the 21st century and the second fastest-selling album in British history.
In 2014, the band recorded a seventh studio album, this time as a trio without Williams and Orange. The album, titled III, was released in November 2014 and became the band's seventh number one. It was preceded by the single "These Days", which became the band's 12th number one single in the UK.
In 2011, Take That set the new record for the fastest-selling tour of all time in the UK with Progress Live, beating the previous record set by their Circus Live Tour in 2009. At the 2011 Brit Awards they won Best British Group. In 2012, Forbes named them the fifth highest-earning music stars in the world. The group performed at the London 2012 Olympic Games closing ceremony, playing "Rule the World" while the Olympic Flame was extinguished. In the same year, the Official Charts Company revealed the biggest-selling singles artists in British music chart history with Take That currently placed at 15th overall, making them the most successful boy band in UK chart history. Four of their albums are listed in the best-selling albums of the millennium, with three of them among the 60 best-selling albums in UK chart history.
History
1989–1990: Formation
In 1989, Manchester-based Nigel Martin-Smith sought to create a British male vocal singing group modelled on New Kids on the Block. Martin-Smith's vision, however, was a teen-orientated group that would appeal to more than one demographic segment of the music industry. Martin-Smith was then introduced to young singer-songwriter Gary Barlow, who had been performing in clubs since the age of 15. Impressed with Barlow's catalogue of self-written material, Martin-Smith decided to build his new-look boy band around Barlow's musical abilities. A campaign to audition young men with abilities in dancing and singing followed and took place in Manchester and other surrounding cities in 1990. At 22, Howard Donald was one of the oldest to audition, but he was chosen after he got time off work as a vehicle painter to continue the process. Prior to auditioning, Jason Orange had appeared as a breakdancer on the popular television programme The Hit Man and Her. Martin-Smith also selected 18-year-old bank employee Mark Owen and finally 16-year-old Robbie Williams to round out the group, which initially went by the name Kick It.
1990–1992: Take That & Party
Take That's first TV appearance was on The Hit Man and Her in 1990, where they performed Barlow's self-written, unreleased song, "My Kind of Girl". They later appeared a second time to perform "Waiting Around", which would become the B-side for the first single, "Do What U Like". "Promises" and "Once You've Tasted Love" were also released as singles but were minor hits in the UK. Take That initially worked the same territory as their American counterparts, singing new jack R&B, urban soul, and mainstream pop. However, they worked their way toward Hi-NRG dance music, while also pursuing an adult contemporary ballad direction. As they aimed to break into the mainstream music industry, they worked a number of small clubs, schools, and events across the country building up a fanbase as they travelled to gigs constantly for months.
Take That's breakthrough single was a cover of the 1975 Tavares hit "It Only Takes a Minute", which peaked at number seven on the UK Singles Chart in June 1992. This success was followed by "I Found Heaven", then by the first Barlow ballad "A Million Love Songs", which also reached number seven in October. Their cover of the Barry Manilow hit "Could It Be Magic" gave them their first big success, peaking at number three in the UK in the first chart of 1993. Their first album, Take That & Party, was released in 1992, and included all the hit singles to date.
1993–1995: Everything Changes, Nobody Else and superstardom
1993 saw the release of Everything Changes, based on Barlow's original material. It peaked at number one in the UK and spawned six singles, with four being consecutive UK number one singles – their first number one "Pray", "Relight My Fire", "Babe" and the title track "Everything Changes". The lead single "Why Can't I Wake Up with You" had narrowly missed the top spot in the UK peaking at number two and the sixth and final single "Love Ain't Here Anymore" taken from the album reached number three on the UK charts. Everything Changes saw the band gain international success with the album being nominated for the 1994 Mercury Prize, but it failed to crack the U.S. market, where an exclusive remix of "Love Ain't Here Anymore" (U.S. version) gained little success.
By 1994, Take That had become radio and television stars across Europe and Asia, but it was not until 1995 that they did their first World Tour. It was during the years 1993–95 that the band fronted scores of magazine covers ranging from Smash Hits to GQ, becoming mass merchandised on all sorts of paraphernalia ranging from picture books, to posters, stickers, their own dolls, jewellery, caps, T-shirts, toothbrushes and even had their own annuals released. The band had also developed a large female teenage fanbase at the time. During this time, they performed at numerous music awards shows and chart shows such as the BRIT Awards and Top of the Pops, also winning the Best Live Act award in 1995 at the MTV Europe Music Awards, having been renowned for their breakdance routines, high energy and creative tour productions.
In 1995, Take That released their third studio album Nobody Else, again based on Barlow's own material which reached number 1 in the UK and across Europe, capturing new audiences along the way, with Take That also able to make inroads in the adult audience in Britain through Barlow's melodic, sensitive ballads. For nearly five years, Take That's popularity was unsurpassed in Britain. The release of the first single from the album, "Sure", achieved yet another number one in the UK charts. It was not until their second release from that album, however, that they would experience what would become their biggest hit single, "Back for Good", which reached number one in many countries including the UK, Germany, Australia, and Norway. It was also their only US hit, where it reached number seven.
The song was initially unveiled for the first time via live performance while at the 1995 BRIT Awards, and based on the reception of that performance, the record pre-sold more records than expected and forced the record label to bring the release date forward by an unprecedented six weeks. The album was also noted for its cover, which was a parody of the famed cover of The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band cover sleeve.
1995–1996: Break-up and Greatest Hits
Robbie Williams's drug abuse had escalated to a near drug overdose the night before the group was scheduled to perform at the MTV Europe Music Awards in 1994.
In June 1995, Williams was photographed by the press partying with Oasis at the Glastonbury Festival. The following month, the band offered him an ultimatum; he was to adhere to the band's responsibilities or leave before their scheduled world tour. Williams chose the latter. Williams claimed he was bored with Barlow's leadership and jealous of Barlow. Despite the loss of Williams, Take That continued to promote Nobody Else as a four-piece, scoring a further hit single with "Never Forget" with Donald on lead vocal. They subsequently went to America and completed the Nobody Else Tour in October 1995. Following the tour, the band began to plan for their next album; however, when they spent Christmas together, they mutually agreed it was time to part ways.
On 13 February 1996, Take That formally announced that they were disbanding. This was followed by the Greatest Hits compilation in 1996, which contained a new recording, a cover of the Bee Gees' "How Deep Is Your Love". The single went on to become what was to be the band's final UK number one until their 2006 comeback a decade later. Take That gave what was thought to be their final performance in April 1996 at Amsterdam. Following the band's announcement, millions of their fans were distraught around the world and in the UK alone, teenage girls threatened suicide and were seen lining streets in tears, to the point that telephone hotlines were set up by the government to deal with counselling them. After the band broke up, highly respected music figures such as Elton John noted that Take That were different from other boy bands before and after them, in that they wrote their own material through Gary Barlow. Barlow is one of only a small number of people who have won an Ivor Novello award during their time in a boy band, with George Michael whilst in Wham! and Tony Mortimer whilst in East 17 being two others who have achieved this feat. Take That had also left a legacy of being immaculate performers with a very high work ethic, causing them to be voted in as the greatest boy band of all time.
2005–2006: Reunion as a quartet and Never Forget – The Ultimate Collection
On 14 November 2005, Never Forget – The Ultimate Collection, a new compilation of their hit singles including a new previously unreleased song, also achieved great success and peaked at number 2 on UK charts, selling over 2.1 million copies in the UK alone. The new song "Today I've Lost You" (recorded in September 2005) was originally written by Barlow as the follow up to "Back for Good" but was never recorded. On 16 November 2005, the group got back together for the ITV documentary Take That: For the Record, in which they aired their views over their fame, success, the split and what the post-Williams line-up had done since. On 25 November 2005, there was an official press conference by the band announcing that the post-Robbie Williams line-up was going to tour in 2006. The tour, entitled The Ultimate Tour, ran from April to June 2006. The tour featured a guest appearance by British soul singer Beverley Knight, who replaced Lulu's vocals on the song "Relight My Fire"; although Lulu did appear during the stadium shows on "Relight My Fire" and "Never Forget". The American female ensemble Pussycat Dolls supported the group at their Dublin concert, and the Sugababes supported the group on the final five dates of the stadium leg. In a seven-year study analysing over one billion online searches via Google conducted by AccuraCast, a leading digital search agency, their comeback was ranked at number one in the UK.
2006–2007: Beautiful World
On 9 May 2006, Take That returned to the recorded music scene after more than ten years of absence, signing with Polydor Records. The band's comeback album, Beautiful World, entered the UK Albums Chart at no. 1 and, as of June 2009, had sold over 2.8 million copies in the UK. It is the 35th best selling album in UK music history.
On Beautiful World, all four members of the band had the opportunity to sing lead vocals and contribute in the songwriting. Unlike the band's earlier works, where the majority of their material was written by Barlow who received sole credit, all four band members are credited as co-writers, along with John Shanks. The comeback single, "Patience", was released on 20 November 2006, with a special event launching it on 5 November.
On 26 November "Patience" hit number 1 in the UK in its second week of chart entry, making it the group's ninth No. 1, and staying there for 4 weeks. Take That also accompanied eventual winner Leona Lewis on a live version of "A Million Love Songs" during the final of The X Factor on 16 December 2006.
The week after Beautiful World was released, it was announced that Take That had become the first artists ever to top the UK official single and album charts along with the download single, download album and DVD charts in the same week, as well as topping the radio charts.
The video for the number 1 hit single "Shine", the follow-up to "Patience", premiered on 25 January 2007 on Channel 4, ahead of its release on 26 February 2007. The band's success continued on 14 February 2007 when Take That performed live at the BRIT Awards ceremony at Earl's Court. Their single "Patience" won the Best British Single category. The third single chosen from Beautiful World was "I'd Wait For Life", released on 18 June 2007 in the UK. The single reached 17 in the UK Singles Chart. This may have been due to lack of promotion, as the band decided to take a pre-tour break rather than do any promotion for the single. The single "Rule the World", included on the deluxe version of Beautiful World, was recorded for the soundtrack of the film Stardust (2007). It reached number two in the UK and went on to become the group's second best selling single, shifting over 1.2 million units in the UK. Beautiful World was the fourth biggest-selling album of 2007. It was announced at the start of 2007 that Take That signed a record deal with American label Interscope, and would also release their album in Canada. Starting on 11 October 2007, Take That began their Beautiful World Tour 2007 in Belfast. The tour included 49 shows throughout Europe and the UK and ended in Manchester on 23 December 2007. The band received four nominations at the 2008 BRIT Awards. Nominated for Best British Group, Best British Single ("Shine"), Best British Album (Beautiful World) and Best Live Act, they took home the Best Live Act and the Best British Single awards. According to a 2007 MSN UK internet poll, Take That were voted as the "comeback kings" of the year.
2008–2009: The Circus
"Greatest Day", the first single from the album The Circus, made its radio premiere on 13 October 2008 and it was released on 24 November. It debuted at number 1 on the UK Singles Chart on 30 November 2008. An album launch party for The Circus was held in Paris on 2 December. On its first day of release The Circus sold 133,000 copies, and after four days on sale it sold 306,000 copies (going platinum) making The Circus the fastest selling album of the year. The album reached number 1 on the UK Albums Chart on 7 December 2008 with total first-week sales of 432,490, the third highest opening sales week in UK history.
On 28 October 2008, on the Radio 1 Chris Moyles show, it was announced that Take That would be touring again in June/July 2009, covering the UK and Ireland. Tickets for the Take That Present: The Circus Live tour went on sale on 31 October. The promoters, SJM, have said that the band's tour is "the fastest selling in UK history".
On 22 May 2008, Barlow and Donald attended the 2008 Ivor Novello Awards where Take That won the award for Most Performed Work with their single "Shine". Take That won the Sony Ericsson Tour of the Year award at the Vodafone music awards on 18 September 2008. They were unable to attend as they were in LA finishing off The Circus. They did send a video link message, which was shown at the awards. On 22 November 2008, Take That appeared on week 7 of the talent show The X Factor where the finalists performed some of their greatest hits and Owen and Barlow made a guest appearance to personally coach the contestants. The band also performed on Children in Need 2008, singing their new single, "Greatest Day", before donating £250,000 to the charity from their Marks and Spencer fee. The band were also voted the Greatest Boy Band of All Time, reflecting their ongoing marketability and success in the pop arena, even after two decades.
At the 2009 Brit Awards they were nominated for Best British Group and they performed "Greatest Day" at the ceremony. "Up All Night", the second single from The Circus, was released on 2 March 2009, and peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart, despite heavy airplay. In Germany and Australia, "The Garden" was released as the second single instead. On 7 May 2009, Take That's official website confirmed that the third single from The Circus would be "Said It All" which was released on 15 June 2009, peaking at number 9 on the UK Singles chart. The video premiered on GMTV on 8 May 2009. It features all four band members dressed up as vintage circus clowns, which tied in with their forthcoming Take That Present: The Circus Live tour. Take That started their Circus Live tour at the Stadium of Light on 5 June 2009 in Sunderland and ended at the Wembley Stadium in London on 5 July 2009, which over 80,000 people attended. This tour quickly became the fastest-selling of all time, breaking all records by selling all of their 650,000 tickets in less than four and a half hours.
In November 2009 Take That released the official DVD of their Circus tour, which became the fastest-selling music DVD of all time in the UK on its first day of release and stayed in the top 10 of the videos chart for over a year. This overtook the previous record sales holder, which was Take That's Beautiful World Live tour and stayed at the number 1 spot for 8 weeks. The following week Take That released their first live album, The Greatest Day – Take That Present: The Circus Live, which sold 98,000 copies on its first day of release and was certified Platinum in July 2013. "Hold up a Light" was released as the fifth and final single from The Circus to radio stations and as a digital download to promote the release of the live album. The live album also featured a stripped down session recorded live at the famous Abbey Road Studios in London. It featured the members singing the setlist from the preceding tour, albeit in a studio setting.
2010–2011: Williams' return and Progress
On 7 June 2010, the news broke of a single called "Shame", which had been written by Barlow and Williams and would feature the vocals of both artists. This was the first time the pair had worked together since 1995 and would appear on the second greatest hits collection of Williams. "Heart and I", another track from the same album, was also co-written by Williams and Barlow. The single "Shame" peaked at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart while also achieving success throughout Europe, charting in over 19 countries.
After working with the band on new material in Los Angeles, on 15 July 2010 Robbie Williams announced he was returning to Take That. After months of working together, assembling new songs for a new album and even debating a band-name change to "The English", a joint statement between Williams and the group read, "The rumours are true ... Take That: the original lineup, have written and recorded a new album for release later this year." The statement went on to say, "Following months of speculation Gary Barlow, Howard Donald, Jason Orange, Mark Owen, and Robbie Williams confirmed they have been recording a new studio album as a five-piece, which they will release in November." The lead single from Take That's album Progress was announced as "The Flood" and was released 7 November as a digital download, and on 8 November as a physical copy, with the album released a week later on 15 November. The single peaked at number 2 in the UK Singles Charts and to date has sold over 500,000 copies in the UK alone. The single also achieved success across Europe, charting inside the top 10 in ten countries while also charting in another nine countries whilst also being nominated for an Ivor Novello Award for best work.
On 26 October the band announced that they would be embarking on a huge UK stadium tour entitled Progress Live, starting in Sunderland on 27 May, and finishing with a record-breaking 8 nights at London's Wembley Stadium in July 2011. It was also announced that Williams would perform hit singles from his solo career during the tour. The band then played at some of the biggest venues across Europe for the second leg of the tour. The phenomenal demand for tickets across the country led to the web sites of all the major UK ticket suppliers either crashing or considerably slowing for hours on end. The demand and sheer volume of fans also created problems for the UK telephone network. Take That's Progress Live also broke all records for ticket sales selling over 1.1 million tickets in one day, smashing the previous box office record set by Take That's Circus tour in 2008.
On the first day of release Progress became the fastest selling album of the century, with 235,000 copies sold in just one day. The album reached number 1 in the UK, selling around 520,000 copies in its first week, becoming the second fastest-selling album in history. After the release of Progress it was announced that Take That have become Amazon UK's top-selling music artist of all time.
The album retained the number one spot for six consecutive weeks in the UK since its release, selling 2.8 million copies in the UK alone and becoming the best selling album of 2010
Progress also achieved success across Europe where it debuted at number one in Ireland, Greece, Germany and Denmark. and the European Top 100 Albums chart. It also debuted inside the top 10 of the charts in Austria, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland.
"Kidz" was announced as the second single from Progress, it was released 21 February 2011 and charted well across Europe. The band performed the song live at the 2011 Brit Awards hosted at The O2 Arena, where they won a Brit for Best British Group and were nominated for Best British Album. Their performance of "Kidz", praised by critics, involved a highly choreographed routine featuring dancers dressed in police-styled riot gear bearing the Take That symbol on the uniform and shields. On 19 May 2011, Take That announced a new EP entitled Progressed, which contained eight tracks written by the band since they had reunited as a five-piece. It was packaged alongside the album Progress and returned the band to number 1 in the UK Album Chart the week after it was released on 13 June 2011.
Take That announced that the Progress Live tour would be released worldwide as their second live album to date and would also be released on home media formats across the UK and Europe on 21 November 2011. The DVD debuted at number 1 on the UK Music Video top 40 in its first week on release and sold over 200,000 copies in two weeks of release in the UK alone. Take That's efforts were recognised further when they were awarded Virgin Media's Best Live Act of 2012.
On 4 October, it was reported that Take That were to take a break after the completion of the Progress tour, with Barlow continuing his role as a judge on The X Factor and Williams recording new solo material. Take That were presented with an Ivor Novello Award for their Outstanding Contribution to British Music in May 2012.
In August 2012, Take That performed at the closing ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics, despite Barlow announcing that his daughter had been stillborn the previous week. The performance earned him praise for appearing live so soon after the tragedy. Williams was due to perform with the band but dropped out due to his wife giving birth at around the same time and thus the group performed as a four-piece. In November 2012, Take That reunited as a five-piece for the last time to perform "Never Forget" at the Music Industry Trust Awards. In 2013, Donald became a judge on the German version of the television dancing show Got to Dance.
2014–2015: Line-up change and III
In May 2013, Owen announced that Take That was to begin recording their seventh studio album in 2014, and on 14 January 2014, Donald and Barlow both tweeted that Take That had entered the studio to begin recording the album, although it was not initially clear if Williams was present at these recording sessions. On 28 April 2014, Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a father for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour. Although welcome to return to the band at any time, Williams chose not to return for group's seventh and eighth studio albums and their accompanying tours, focusing instead on his solo commitments. He continued to write music with his colleagues and has performed with the group on several occasions since 2011's Progress tour and plans on returning at some point in the future.
On 24 September 2014, it was announced that Jason Orange had left the band. He said: 'At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. 'At the end of The Progress Tour I began to question whether it might be the right time for me to not continue on with Take That,' he continued. 'There have been no fallings out, only a decision on my part that I no longer wish to do this,' he added. Barlow, Donald, and Owen issued a joint statement about Orange's decision which said: "This is a sad day for us. Jason leaving is a huge loss both professionally and even more so personally ... Jason's energy and belief in what this band could achieve has made it what it is today, and we'll forever be grateful for his enthusiasm, dedication and inspiration over the years." A day after the announcement, Robbie Williams took to Twitter to show support of Orange's decision. "Mr Orange. Until we ride again. Much love, Bro.", Williams tweeted.
On 10 October 2014, Take That unveiled their first song as a three-piece and lead single from their upcoming album. Titled "These Days", it was released on 23 November 2014 and went to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, knocking Band Aid 30 off the top spot and becoming their 12th number one single. The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album. It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live. On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single "Hey Boy", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III. The 2015 edition of the album was released on 20 November.
In December 2015, British media buzzed about the group embarking on a stint in Las Vegas, starting 2017. Reports indicated the group impressed U.S. promoters and would headline their own residency show. Many venues circulated, including The AXIS at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, The Foundry at SLS Las Vegas and the Linq Theater at The LINQ Hotel & Casino. Local newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun writes that everything is still unconfirmed, despite Barlow confirming the rumour on Twitter.
2016–2017: Wonderland
On 2 February 2016, in an interview with The Sun, Barlow revealed that Take That would release their eighth studio album later in the year. On 4 May 2016, English drum and bass duo Sigma announced their newest single would feature Take That. "Cry" received its first radio play on 20 May 2016 and was released on that date. On 21 October 2016, the band posted a teaser on their social media pages and website depicting the logo of the band flickering with the hashtag "#WONDERLAND". The following day, it was announced that their new album, titled Wonderland, was scheduled to be released on 24 March 2017. It was then followed by a UK and Ireland arena tour entitled Wonderland Live, that commenced on 5 May 2017 at the Genting Arena in Birmingham. On 17 February 2017, the lead single of Wonderland was released. Titled "Giants", it debuted at 13 in the UK charts, which became the band's 24th UK top 20 single.
On 8 April 2017, ITV aired a specially commissioned hour-length television special titled An Evening with Take That, where the band performed some songs from the album, along with some old classics including "Never Forget", "Back for Good" and "Rule the World". The band also took part in a Q&A session with the audience members. On 27 April, it was announced on Twitter that "New Day" would be released as the next single from the album Wonderland. The band were seen recording the music video in a field in Luton the days leading up the opening night of the Wonderland Live tour. Due to the Manchester Arena bombing just days before they were due to perform at the venue, their Manchester and Liverpool dates were rescheduled or relocated. The band returned a month later to perform at the One Love Manchester benefit concert.
On 16 September 2017, Barlow, Owen and Donald were set to perform a special one-off show in Jersey after a fan bid more than £1.2 million to win a performance from the band. This then turned in to a ticketed charity event where the money from tickets sold would go towards benefiting Children in Need. The auction was held on BBC Radio 2. On 11 November 2017, Take That began their foreign tour in Perth, Australia, the first time they have performed in the country in over twenty years. They also played in New Zealand, United Arab Emirates and Israel for the first time. Unlike the other tours, a DVD for Wonderland Live was not released. Instead, it was broadcast on Sky 1 on 23 December and in cinemas.
2018–2020: The 30th Anniversary, and Odyssey
On 16 July 2018, while performing at first ever Hits Radio Live at the Manchester Arena, Barlow, Donald and Owen confirmed that they would be touring in 2019. The tour was a Greatest Hits tour and celebrated the 30th anniversary of the band. There was also a Greatest Hits album, Odyssey, which was released on 23 November 2018. The Greatest Hits album features existing songs from their back catalogue that have been re-imagined and 3 brand new songs. It also includes collaborations with Boyz II Men, Lulu, Sigma and Barry Gibb. Odyssey reached number one in the UK album chart and was certified as a platinum selling record. The following year, Odyssey Live, the recording of their tour, reached number 5, becoming the band's 13th top 5 album, with the DVD becoming the biggest live music sale of 2019.
In May 2020, Barlow, Donald, and Owen reunited with Williams for a virtual performance from their respective homes, hosted by price comparison website comparethemarket.com, to raise money for the music charity Nordoff Robbins and Crew Nation.
In other media
In April 2006, EMI licensed the band's songs to be used in the musical Never Forget, a musical based on songs of the band from the 1990s. Take That posted and then later removed a statement on their website distancing themselves from it.
Take That wrote and recorded the theme song "Rule the World" for the film Stardust directed by Matthew Vaughn, which was released in cinemas across the globe in October 2007. In 2007, their song "Back for Good" was used as part of the soundtrack for popular Korean drama The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince.
Take That presented their own TV show Take That Come to Town, a variety show in which they performed some of their biggest hits. The show also featured comedy sketches with one of Peter Kay's alter egos Geraldine McQueen. It aired on 7 December 2008 on ITV1. Sony launched their first Take That video game, SingStar Take That in 2009 for the PlayStation 3.
In November 2010, ITV aired Take That: Look Back, Don't Stare, a black-and-white documentary which focused on the band working together for the first time in 15 years. Through a series of interviews, the band look back at their achievements while also looking forward to what the future holds for them. On 18 November 2010, Williams and Barlow appeared together live on television for the first time on the Popstars program in Germany singing their hit "Shame".
In 2011, Take That's song "Love Love" was used in the credits of the 2011 film X-Men: First Class and later, "When We Were Young" was chosen as the main theme for The Three Musketeers movie. In 2015, the song "Get Ready for It" from their album III, was chosen as the theme song for the film Kingsman: The Secret Service.
In 2017, Take That launched The Band, a musical written by Tim Firth featuring the five winners of Let It Shine and some of Take That's biggest hits. Take That, including Robbie Williams, were billed as executive producers.
The group's music is regularly featured in the Channel 4 show Derry Girls, notably in the third episode of the second series, when the lead characters sneak off to attend the 1993 Take That concert in Belfast; the episode features the music video for "Pray" and ends on footage of the band performing "Everything Changes".
Artistry
Early in their career, Take That were known for party anthems such as "Do What U Like" and more mature ballads such as "A Million Love Songs" and "Back for Good". Since reuniting in 2006, they have become more experimental: their post-2006 albums Beautiful World and The Circus have featured "stadium-filling pop-rock" while Progress largely leaned towards electropop. Having been dubbed the "comeback kings" by the media for their highly successful reunion, the group has won widespread praise for their seamless transformation from teen idols to "man band" without overly relying on nostalgia, instead showcasing a more mature image and sound and reinventing themselves while maintaining their artistic integrity. Jude Rogers of The Guardian commented on Take That's post-reunion success, in light of a string of reunions by the group's disbanded counterparts from the 1990s: "Only Take That are penetrating pop's wider consciousness by becoming a man-band rather than a boy-band, singing mature, proper pop songs that cross the generations."
Take That have garnered critical acclaim and popularity as consummate live performers and for their musical output. Their domestic concert tours have been described as "some of the most flamboyant, imaginative and extravagant pop tours around". Aside from covers, all of their material is composed by the members themselves; Barlow was initially the principal songwriter who received sole credit but the other members have since taken a more active role in the composition and production process, including playing instruments for the backing track.
Band members
Current members
Gary Barlow (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Howard Donald (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Mark Owen (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Former members
Robbie Williams (1990–1995, 2010–2012)
Jason Orange (1990–1996, 2005–2014)
Timeline
Awards and nominations
|-
| 2016
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award for Best Live Act
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|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2015
| "These Days"
| UK Music Video Awards for Best Art Direction
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|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|2012
| "Pray"
|The Guardian Music Award for Best Number 1 Single
|
|-
| Take That
|Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music
|
|-
| "Back for Good"
|The Official Charts Company UK Recognition award for United Kingdom's Favourite Number One Single
|
|-
| "The Flood"
|Ivor Novello Award for PRS Most Performed Work
|
|-
| Take That
|Virgin Media Music Awards for Best Live Act
|
|-
| "Kidz"
|Virgin Media Music Awards for Best Music Video
|
|-
| rowspan="10" style="text-align:center;"|2011
|-
| Progress Live
|Audio Pro International Awards for Best Live Sound Event
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|-
| Progress Live
|Audio Pro International Awards Grand Prix Award
|
|-
| Take That
|Phonographic Performance Limited Award for most played UK artist
|
|-
| "Kidz"
|Spex German Entertainment for Best Music Video
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|-
| The Circus Live Tour
| Greatest Event ever at Wembley Stadium
|
|-
| Take That
|ECHO Award for Best International Group
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| Progress
| BRIT Award for MasterCard Album of the Year
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|-
| Take That
|Virgin Media for Best Group
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|2010
|-
| "Up All Night"
| UK Music Video Awards for Best Art Direction
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|-
| "The Flood"
|iTunes Award for Best Single
|
|-
| Progress
| iTunes Award for Best Album
|
|-
| Take That
|Q Award Hall of Fame
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best Live Performance of the past 30 Years
|
|-
| rowspan="5" style="text-align:center;"|2009
| Take That
|GQ Men of the Year Awards for Best Band
|
|-
| Take That
|Q Award for Best Live Act
|
|-
| "Greatest Day"
|Q Award for Best Single
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award
|
|-
| rowspan="7" style="text-align:center;"|2008
| "Shine"
|Ivor Novello Award for PRS Most Performed Work
|
|-
| "Rule the World"
|Virgin for Best Single
|
|-
| Take That
|Sony Ericsson Tour of the Year Award for Take That Arena Tour
|
|-
| "Shine"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Live Act
|
|-
| Beautiful World
|BRIT Award for Best British Album
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2007
| "Patience"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2006
| Take That
|Q Idol Award
|
|-
| rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|1996
| "Back for Good"
|Billboard International Hit of the Year
|
|-
| "Never Forget"
|Ivor Novello Award for Most Performed Song
|
|-
| "Back for Good"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|1995
| "Back for Good"
|Ivor Novello Award for the Song of the Year
|
|-
| Take That
|MTV Europe Music Awards for Best Live Act
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|1994
| "Babe"
|MTV Video Music Award for International Viewer's Choice Award for MTV Europe
|
|-
| Everything Changes
|Mercury Prize for Best Album
|
|-
| "Pray"
|Ivor Novello Award for Best Contemporary Song
|
|-
| "Pray"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "Pray"
|BRIT Award for Best British Video
|
|-
| Take That
|MTV Europe Music Awards for Best Group
|
|-
| rowspan="4" style="text-align:center;"|1993
| "Could It Be Magic"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "A Million Love Songs"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "It Only Takes a Minute"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award for Best Newcomer
|
|}
Discography
Take That & Party (1992)
Everything Changes (1993)
Nobody Else (1995)
Beautiful World (2006)
The Circus (2008)
Progress (2010)
III (2014)
Wonderland (2017)
Tours
Party Tour (1992–93)
Everything Changes Tour (1993–94)
Pops Tour (1994–95)
Nobody Else Tour (1995)
The Ultimate Tour (2006)
Beautiful World Tour 2007 (2007)
Take That Present: The Circus Live (2009)
Progress Live (2011)
Take That Live (2015)
Wonderland Live (2017)
Greatest Hits Live (2019)
See also
List of best-selling boy bands
References
External links
Chinese Fansite
1990 establishments in England
1996 disestablishments in England
2005 establishments in England
Brit Award winners
Dance-pop groups
Echo (music award) winners
English boy bands
English dance music groups
Interscope Records artists
Ivor Novello Award winners
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Musical groups disestablished in 1996
Musical groups established in 1990
Musical groups from Cheshire
Musical groups from Manchester
Musical groups reestablished in 2005
Polydor Records artists
Teen pop groups
Universal Music Group artists
Vocal quartets
Vocal quintets
Vocal trios | false | [
"\"The Wonders You Perform\" is a song written by Jerry Chesnut, and recorded by American country music artist Tammy Wynette. It was released in November 1970 as the first single from her compilation album Tammy's Greatest Hits, Volume Two.\n\nBackground and reception\n\"The Wonders You Perform\" was first recorded on February 26, 1970 at the Columbia Recording Studio in Nashville, Tennessee. Three additional tracks were recorded during a session produced by Billy Sherrill. Sherrill was Wynette's long-time producer.\n\nThe song was written by Jerry Chesnut, who was Wynette's brother-in-law at the time. Chesnut originally wrote it as a gospel song about the \"miracles of Jesus\" and how he helps heal through challenging times.\n\nThe song reached number 5 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart in early 1970. It did not chart within the Billboard Hot 100, but instead reached a charting position on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 list. The song was issued on Wynette's second compilation album with Epic Records entitled Tammy's Greatest Hits, Volume Two.\n\n\"The Wonders You Perform\" was also notably recorded by Jean Shepard in 1971 and by Connie Smith in 1974. but, most of all, was a biggest hit in Italy in 1971, sung by Ornella Vanoni with the title Domani è un altro giorno (Tomorrow is another day). Italian lyrics were written by Giorgio Calabrese.\n\nTrack listings\n7\" vinyl single\n \"The Wonders You Perform\" – 3:25\n \"Gentle Shepherd\" – 2:40\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nReferences \n\n1970 songs\n1970 singles\nEpic Records singles\nTammy Wynette songs\nJean Shepard songs\nConnie Smith songs\nSong recordings produced by Billy Sherrill\nSongs written by Jerry Chesnut",
"Peter van den Bosch (born 2 October 1971), better known as Tony Scott, is a Dutch rapper and musician of Surinamese descent. He became internationally known for his hip house music.\n\nBiography \nTony Scott is a Kalina Amerindian who was born in Suriname. He immigrated with his parents to Amsterdam, Netherlands at a young age. As a thirteen-year-old, he became a member of an electric boogie crew, followed by joining the beatboxing group 2-Tuff E-nuff. After he had rapped in a jingle for the radio station where his brother was working, the 16-year-old Scott was offered a contract by the owner of the Dutch record label Rhythm. His first single that was released was \"Pick Up the Pieces\", a remake cover of the Average White Band song. Even though the single did not become a commercial success, it ensured that he could perform a lot.\n\nIn 1989, he released his next single, a double A-side with the songs \"That's How I'm Living\" and \"The Chief\". The latter song was written as an ode to his indigenous Kalina heritage. The single was a success in the Netherlands, but also received attention in the United Kingdom and the United States. In the same year, he released his first album The Chief, with his regular producer Fabian Lenssen. The album was released as That's How I'm Living in the United States, because he was better known for that song with the same name. It contained twelve hip house/hardcore rap tracks.\n\nIn 1990, Scott released the single \"Get Into It\", which became his most successful song. He was invited to perform at the New Music Seminar in New York. Even before his trip to this music fair, the rapper had another hit, \"Gangster Boogie\". In the same year, he released the single \"Move to the Big Band\" with Ben Liebrand.\n\nAfterwards, Scott released several singles and changed his sound numerous times, but none of his products equaled the success of the first few singles. In 1991, he released his second album Expressions from the Soul and his third album Chameleon was released in 1993. In 1994, Scott and Fabian Lenssen wrote the single \"Gangsterdam\" for the Dutch children's choir Kinderen voor Kinderen. In 1996, he released a theme song for the American football team Amsterdam Admirals.\n\nIn 2000, Scott became a music teacher in Amsterdam. In 2015, he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.\n\nDiscography \nAlbums\nThe Chief (1990)\nExpressions from the Soul (1991)\nChameleon (1993)\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n\n \nTony Scott discography at Spotify\n\n1971 births\nLiving people\nDutch rappers\nSurinamese rappers\nSurinamese emigrants to the Netherlands\nSurinamese people of indigenous peoples descent\nHip house musicians"
] |
[
"Take That",
"2014-2015: Robbie Williams's second departure, Jason Orange's departure and III",
"Why did Robbie Williams depart?",
"Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a dad for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour.",
"Why did Jason Orange leave the band?",
"At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album.",
"Was is III?",
"The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album.",
"Did they tour to promote the album?",
"It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live.",
"Were there any singles from the album?",
"On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single \"Hey Boy\", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III.",
"How did that single perform?",
"I don't know."
] | C_6e6a60800d1643268f8b7ee3189196de_0 | What was the critics response to III? | 7 | What was the critics response to III? | Take That | In May 2013, Owen announced that Take That were to begin recording their seventh studio album in 2014 and On 14 January 2014, Donald and Barlow both tweeted that Take That had entered the studio to begin recording the album, although it was not initially clear if Williams was present at these recording sessions. On 28 April 2014, Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a dad for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour. Barlow later confirmed that Williams had left the band for a second time, although the departure was amicable and that Williams was welcome to rejoin the band in the future. Williams has since collaborated with Barlow on several projects and duet performances and indicated his interest in reuniting with the band for potential 25th anniversary commemorative events. On 24 September 2014, it was announced that Jason Orange had left the band. He said: 'At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. 'At the end of The Progress Tour I began to question whether it might be the right time for me to not continue on with Take That,' he continued. 'There have been no fallings out, only a decision on my part that I no longer wish to do this,' he added. Barlow, Donald and Owen issued a joint statement about Orange's decision which said: "This is a sad day for us. Jason leaving is a huge loss both professionally and even more so personally ... Jason's energy and belief in what this band could achieve has made it what it is today, and we'll forever be grateful for his enthusiasm, dedication and inspiration over the years." On 10 October 2014, Take That unveiled the lead single from the album. Titled "These Days", it was released on 23 November 2014 and went to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, knocking Band Aid 30 off the top spot and becoming their 12th number one single. The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album. It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live. On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single "Hey Boy", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III. The 2015 edition of the album was released on 20 November. In December 2015, British media buzzed about the group embarking on a stint in Las Vegas, starting 2017. Reports indicated the group impressed U.S. promoters and would headline their own residency show. Many venues circulated, including The AXIS at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, The Foundry at SLS Las Vegas and the Linq Theater at The LINQ Hotel & Casino. Local newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun writes that everything is still unconfirmed, despite Barlow confirming the rumour on Twitter. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Take That are an English pop group formed in Manchester in 1990. The group currently consists of Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen. The original line-up also featured Jason Orange and Robbie Williams. Barlow is the group's lead singer and primary songwriter, with Owen and Williams initially providing backing vocals and Donald and Orange serving primarily as dancers.
The group have had 28 top 40 singles and 17 top 5 singles on the UK Singles Chart, 12 of which have reached number one, including "Back for Good", "Never Forget", "Patience" and "Greatest Day". They have also had eight number one albums on the UK Albums Chart. Internationally, the band have had 56 number one singles and 39 number one albums. They have received eight Brit Awards—winning for Best British Group and Best British Live Act. In 2012 they received an Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music. According to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), Take That has been certified for 14 million albums and 11.4 million singles in the UK.
Williams left the band in 1995 while the four remaining members completed their world tour and released a final single before splitting up in 1996. After filming a 2005 Take That: For the Record about the group and releasing a new greatest hits album, a four-piece Take That without Williams officially announced a 2006 reunion tour around the UK, entitled The Ultimate Tour. On 9 May 2006, it was announced that the group were set to record new material together once again; their fourth studio album, Beautiful World, was released in 2006 and was followed up with The Circus, in 2008. The group achieved new success as a four-piece, scoring a string of chart hits across the UK and Europe while selling over 45 million records worldwide. Williams rejoined Take That in 2010 for the band's sixth studio album, Progress. Released on 15 November of that year, it was the first album of new material to feature Take That's original line-up since their 1995 album, Nobody Else. It became the fastest-selling album of the 21st century and the second fastest-selling album in British history.
In 2014, the band recorded a seventh studio album, this time as a trio without Williams and Orange. The album, titled III, was released in November 2014 and became the band's seventh number one. It was preceded by the single "These Days", which became the band's 12th number one single in the UK.
In 2011, Take That set the new record for the fastest-selling tour of all time in the UK with Progress Live, beating the previous record set by their Circus Live Tour in 2009. At the 2011 Brit Awards they won Best British Group. In 2012, Forbes named them the fifth highest-earning music stars in the world. The group performed at the London 2012 Olympic Games closing ceremony, playing "Rule the World" while the Olympic Flame was extinguished. In the same year, the Official Charts Company revealed the biggest-selling singles artists in British music chart history with Take That currently placed at 15th overall, making them the most successful boy band in UK chart history. Four of their albums are listed in the best-selling albums of the millennium, with three of them among the 60 best-selling albums in UK chart history.
History
1989–1990: Formation
In 1989, Manchester-based Nigel Martin-Smith sought to create a British male vocal singing group modelled on New Kids on the Block. Martin-Smith's vision, however, was a teen-orientated group that would appeal to more than one demographic segment of the music industry. Martin-Smith was then introduced to young singer-songwriter Gary Barlow, who had been performing in clubs since the age of 15. Impressed with Barlow's catalogue of self-written material, Martin-Smith decided to build his new-look boy band around Barlow's musical abilities. A campaign to audition young men with abilities in dancing and singing followed and took place in Manchester and other surrounding cities in 1990. At 22, Howard Donald was one of the oldest to audition, but he was chosen after he got time off work as a vehicle painter to continue the process. Prior to auditioning, Jason Orange had appeared as a breakdancer on the popular television programme The Hit Man and Her. Martin-Smith also selected 18-year-old bank employee Mark Owen and finally 16-year-old Robbie Williams to round out the group, which initially went by the name Kick It.
1990–1992: Take That & Party
Take That's first TV appearance was on The Hit Man and Her in 1990, where they performed Barlow's self-written, unreleased song, "My Kind of Girl". They later appeared a second time to perform "Waiting Around", which would become the B-side for the first single, "Do What U Like". "Promises" and "Once You've Tasted Love" were also released as singles but were minor hits in the UK. Take That initially worked the same territory as their American counterparts, singing new jack R&B, urban soul, and mainstream pop. However, they worked their way toward Hi-NRG dance music, while also pursuing an adult contemporary ballad direction. As they aimed to break into the mainstream music industry, they worked a number of small clubs, schools, and events across the country building up a fanbase as they travelled to gigs constantly for months.
Take That's breakthrough single was a cover of the 1975 Tavares hit "It Only Takes a Minute", which peaked at number seven on the UK Singles Chart in June 1992. This success was followed by "I Found Heaven", then by the first Barlow ballad "A Million Love Songs", which also reached number seven in October. Their cover of the Barry Manilow hit "Could It Be Magic" gave them their first big success, peaking at number three in the UK in the first chart of 1993. Their first album, Take That & Party, was released in 1992, and included all the hit singles to date.
1993–1995: Everything Changes, Nobody Else and superstardom
1993 saw the release of Everything Changes, based on Barlow's original material. It peaked at number one in the UK and spawned six singles, with four being consecutive UK number one singles – their first number one "Pray", "Relight My Fire", "Babe" and the title track "Everything Changes". The lead single "Why Can't I Wake Up with You" had narrowly missed the top spot in the UK peaking at number two and the sixth and final single "Love Ain't Here Anymore" taken from the album reached number three on the UK charts. Everything Changes saw the band gain international success with the album being nominated for the 1994 Mercury Prize, but it failed to crack the U.S. market, where an exclusive remix of "Love Ain't Here Anymore" (U.S. version) gained little success.
By 1994, Take That had become radio and television stars across Europe and Asia, but it was not until 1995 that they did their first World Tour. It was during the years 1993–95 that the band fronted scores of magazine covers ranging from Smash Hits to GQ, becoming mass merchandised on all sorts of paraphernalia ranging from picture books, to posters, stickers, their own dolls, jewellery, caps, T-shirts, toothbrushes and even had their own annuals released. The band had also developed a large female teenage fanbase at the time. During this time, they performed at numerous music awards shows and chart shows such as the BRIT Awards and Top of the Pops, also winning the Best Live Act award in 1995 at the MTV Europe Music Awards, having been renowned for their breakdance routines, high energy and creative tour productions.
In 1995, Take That released their third studio album Nobody Else, again based on Barlow's own material which reached number 1 in the UK and across Europe, capturing new audiences along the way, with Take That also able to make inroads in the adult audience in Britain through Barlow's melodic, sensitive ballads. For nearly five years, Take That's popularity was unsurpassed in Britain. The release of the first single from the album, "Sure", achieved yet another number one in the UK charts. It was not until their second release from that album, however, that they would experience what would become their biggest hit single, "Back for Good", which reached number one in many countries including the UK, Germany, Australia, and Norway. It was also their only US hit, where it reached number seven.
The song was initially unveiled for the first time via live performance while at the 1995 BRIT Awards, and based on the reception of that performance, the record pre-sold more records than expected and forced the record label to bring the release date forward by an unprecedented six weeks. The album was also noted for its cover, which was a parody of the famed cover of The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band cover sleeve.
1995–1996: Break-up and Greatest Hits
Robbie Williams's drug abuse had escalated to a near drug overdose the night before the group was scheduled to perform at the MTV Europe Music Awards in 1994.
In June 1995, Williams was photographed by the press partying with Oasis at the Glastonbury Festival. The following month, the band offered him an ultimatum; he was to adhere to the band's responsibilities or leave before their scheduled world tour. Williams chose the latter. Williams claimed he was bored with Barlow's leadership and jealous of Barlow. Despite the loss of Williams, Take That continued to promote Nobody Else as a four-piece, scoring a further hit single with "Never Forget" with Donald on lead vocal. They subsequently went to America and completed the Nobody Else Tour in October 1995. Following the tour, the band began to plan for their next album; however, when they spent Christmas together, they mutually agreed it was time to part ways.
On 13 February 1996, Take That formally announced that they were disbanding. This was followed by the Greatest Hits compilation in 1996, which contained a new recording, a cover of the Bee Gees' "How Deep Is Your Love". The single went on to become what was to be the band's final UK number one until their 2006 comeback a decade later. Take That gave what was thought to be their final performance in April 1996 at Amsterdam. Following the band's announcement, millions of their fans were distraught around the world and in the UK alone, teenage girls threatened suicide and were seen lining streets in tears, to the point that telephone hotlines were set up by the government to deal with counselling them. After the band broke up, highly respected music figures such as Elton John noted that Take That were different from other boy bands before and after them, in that they wrote their own material through Gary Barlow. Barlow is one of only a small number of people who have won an Ivor Novello award during their time in a boy band, with George Michael whilst in Wham! and Tony Mortimer whilst in East 17 being two others who have achieved this feat. Take That had also left a legacy of being immaculate performers with a very high work ethic, causing them to be voted in as the greatest boy band of all time.
2005–2006: Reunion as a quartet and Never Forget – The Ultimate Collection
On 14 November 2005, Never Forget – The Ultimate Collection, a new compilation of their hit singles including a new previously unreleased song, also achieved great success and peaked at number 2 on UK charts, selling over 2.1 million copies in the UK alone. The new song "Today I've Lost You" (recorded in September 2005) was originally written by Barlow as the follow up to "Back for Good" but was never recorded. On 16 November 2005, the group got back together for the ITV documentary Take That: For the Record, in which they aired their views over their fame, success, the split and what the post-Williams line-up had done since. On 25 November 2005, there was an official press conference by the band announcing that the post-Robbie Williams line-up was going to tour in 2006. The tour, entitled The Ultimate Tour, ran from April to June 2006. The tour featured a guest appearance by British soul singer Beverley Knight, who replaced Lulu's vocals on the song "Relight My Fire"; although Lulu did appear during the stadium shows on "Relight My Fire" and "Never Forget". The American female ensemble Pussycat Dolls supported the group at their Dublin concert, and the Sugababes supported the group on the final five dates of the stadium leg. In a seven-year study analysing over one billion online searches via Google conducted by AccuraCast, a leading digital search agency, their comeback was ranked at number one in the UK.
2006–2007: Beautiful World
On 9 May 2006, Take That returned to the recorded music scene after more than ten years of absence, signing with Polydor Records. The band's comeback album, Beautiful World, entered the UK Albums Chart at no. 1 and, as of June 2009, had sold over 2.8 million copies in the UK. It is the 35th best selling album in UK music history.
On Beautiful World, all four members of the band had the opportunity to sing lead vocals and contribute in the songwriting. Unlike the band's earlier works, where the majority of their material was written by Barlow who received sole credit, all four band members are credited as co-writers, along with John Shanks. The comeback single, "Patience", was released on 20 November 2006, with a special event launching it on 5 November.
On 26 November "Patience" hit number 1 in the UK in its second week of chart entry, making it the group's ninth No. 1, and staying there for 4 weeks. Take That also accompanied eventual winner Leona Lewis on a live version of "A Million Love Songs" during the final of The X Factor on 16 December 2006.
The week after Beautiful World was released, it was announced that Take That had become the first artists ever to top the UK official single and album charts along with the download single, download album and DVD charts in the same week, as well as topping the radio charts.
The video for the number 1 hit single "Shine", the follow-up to "Patience", premiered on 25 January 2007 on Channel 4, ahead of its release on 26 February 2007. The band's success continued on 14 February 2007 when Take That performed live at the BRIT Awards ceremony at Earl's Court. Their single "Patience" won the Best British Single category. The third single chosen from Beautiful World was "I'd Wait For Life", released on 18 June 2007 in the UK. The single reached 17 in the UK Singles Chart. This may have been due to lack of promotion, as the band decided to take a pre-tour break rather than do any promotion for the single. The single "Rule the World", included on the deluxe version of Beautiful World, was recorded for the soundtrack of the film Stardust (2007). It reached number two in the UK and went on to become the group's second best selling single, shifting over 1.2 million units in the UK. Beautiful World was the fourth biggest-selling album of 2007. It was announced at the start of 2007 that Take That signed a record deal with American label Interscope, and would also release their album in Canada. Starting on 11 October 2007, Take That began their Beautiful World Tour 2007 in Belfast. The tour included 49 shows throughout Europe and the UK and ended in Manchester on 23 December 2007. The band received four nominations at the 2008 BRIT Awards. Nominated for Best British Group, Best British Single ("Shine"), Best British Album (Beautiful World) and Best Live Act, they took home the Best Live Act and the Best British Single awards. According to a 2007 MSN UK internet poll, Take That were voted as the "comeback kings" of the year.
2008–2009: The Circus
"Greatest Day", the first single from the album The Circus, made its radio premiere on 13 October 2008 and it was released on 24 November. It debuted at number 1 on the UK Singles Chart on 30 November 2008. An album launch party for The Circus was held in Paris on 2 December. On its first day of release The Circus sold 133,000 copies, and after four days on sale it sold 306,000 copies (going platinum) making The Circus the fastest selling album of the year. The album reached number 1 on the UK Albums Chart on 7 December 2008 with total first-week sales of 432,490, the third highest opening sales week in UK history.
On 28 October 2008, on the Radio 1 Chris Moyles show, it was announced that Take That would be touring again in June/July 2009, covering the UK and Ireland. Tickets for the Take That Present: The Circus Live tour went on sale on 31 October. The promoters, SJM, have said that the band's tour is "the fastest selling in UK history".
On 22 May 2008, Barlow and Donald attended the 2008 Ivor Novello Awards where Take That won the award for Most Performed Work with their single "Shine". Take That won the Sony Ericsson Tour of the Year award at the Vodafone music awards on 18 September 2008. They were unable to attend as they were in LA finishing off The Circus. They did send a video link message, which was shown at the awards. On 22 November 2008, Take That appeared on week 7 of the talent show The X Factor where the finalists performed some of their greatest hits and Owen and Barlow made a guest appearance to personally coach the contestants. The band also performed on Children in Need 2008, singing their new single, "Greatest Day", before donating £250,000 to the charity from their Marks and Spencer fee. The band were also voted the Greatest Boy Band of All Time, reflecting their ongoing marketability and success in the pop arena, even after two decades.
At the 2009 Brit Awards they were nominated for Best British Group and they performed "Greatest Day" at the ceremony. "Up All Night", the second single from The Circus, was released on 2 March 2009, and peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart, despite heavy airplay. In Germany and Australia, "The Garden" was released as the second single instead. On 7 May 2009, Take That's official website confirmed that the third single from The Circus would be "Said It All" which was released on 15 June 2009, peaking at number 9 on the UK Singles chart. The video premiered on GMTV on 8 May 2009. It features all four band members dressed up as vintage circus clowns, which tied in with their forthcoming Take That Present: The Circus Live tour. Take That started their Circus Live tour at the Stadium of Light on 5 June 2009 in Sunderland and ended at the Wembley Stadium in London on 5 July 2009, which over 80,000 people attended. This tour quickly became the fastest-selling of all time, breaking all records by selling all of their 650,000 tickets in less than four and a half hours.
In November 2009 Take That released the official DVD of their Circus tour, which became the fastest-selling music DVD of all time in the UK on its first day of release and stayed in the top 10 of the videos chart for over a year. This overtook the previous record sales holder, which was Take That's Beautiful World Live tour and stayed at the number 1 spot for 8 weeks. The following week Take That released their first live album, The Greatest Day – Take That Present: The Circus Live, which sold 98,000 copies on its first day of release and was certified Platinum in July 2013. "Hold up a Light" was released as the fifth and final single from The Circus to radio stations and as a digital download to promote the release of the live album. The live album also featured a stripped down session recorded live at the famous Abbey Road Studios in London. It featured the members singing the setlist from the preceding tour, albeit in a studio setting.
2010–2011: Williams' return and Progress
On 7 June 2010, the news broke of a single called "Shame", which had been written by Barlow and Williams and would feature the vocals of both artists. This was the first time the pair had worked together since 1995 and would appear on the second greatest hits collection of Williams. "Heart and I", another track from the same album, was also co-written by Williams and Barlow. The single "Shame" peaked at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart while also achieving success throughout Europe, charting in over 19 countries.
After working with the band on new material in Los Angeles, on 15 July 2010 Robbie Williams announced he was returning to Take That. After months of working together, assembling new songs for a new album and even debating a band-name change to "The English", a joint statement between Williams and the group read, "The rumours are true ... Take That: the original lineup, have written and recorded a new album for release later this year." The statement went on to say, "Following months of speculation Gary Barlow, Howard Donald, Jason Orange, Mark Owen, and Robbie Williams confirmed they have been recording a new studio album as a five-piece, which they will release in November." The lead single from Take That's album Progress was announced as "The Flood" and was released 7 November as a digital download, and on 8 November as a physical copy, with the album released a week later on 15 November. The single peaked at number 2 in the UK Singles Charts and to date has sold over 500,000 copies in the UK alone. The single also achieved success across Europe, charting inside the top 10 in ten countries while also charting in another nine countries whilst also being nominated for an Ivor Novello Award for best work.
On 26 October the band announced that they would be embarking on a huge UK stadium tour entitled Progress Live, starting in Sunderland on 27 May, and finishing with a record-breaking 8 nights at London's Wembley Stadium in July 2011. It was also announced that Williams would perform hit singles from his solo career during the tour. The band then played at some of the biggest venues across Europe for the second leg of the tour. The phenomenal demand for tickets across the country led to the web sites of all the major UK ticket suppliers either crashing or considerably slowing for hours on end. The demand and sheer volume of fans also created problems for the UK telephone network. Take That's Progress Live also broke all records for ticket sales selling over 1.1 million tickets in one day, smashing the previous box office record set by Take That's Circus tour in 2008.
On the first day of release Progress became the fastest selling album of the century, with 235,000 copies sold in just one day. The album reached number 1 in the UK, selling around 520,000 copies in its first week, becoming the second fastest-selling album in history. After the release of Progress it was announced that Take That have become Amazon UK's top-selling music artist of all time.
The album retained the number one spot for six consecutive weeks in the UK since its release, selling 2.8 million copies in the UK alone and becoming the best selling album of 2010
Progress also achieved success across Europe where it debuted at number one in Ireland, Greece, Germany and Denmark. and the European Top 100 Albums chart. It also debuted inside the top 10 of the charts in Austria, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland.
"Kidz" was announced as the second single from Progress, it was released 21 February 2011 and charted well across Europe. The band performed the song live at the 2011 Brit Awards hosted at The O2 Arena, where they won a Brit for Best British Group and were nominated for Best British Album. Their performance of "Kidz", praised by critics, involved a highly choreographed routine featuring dancers dressed in police-styled riot gear bearing the Take That symbol on the uniform and shields. On 19 May 2011, Take That announced a new EP entitled Progressed, which contained eight tracks written by the band since they had reunited as a five-piece. It was packaged alongside the album Progress and returned the band to number 1 in the UK Album Chart the week after it was released on 13 June 2011.
Take That announced that the Progress Live tour would be released worldwide as their second live album to date and would also be released on home media formats across the UK and Europe on 21 November 2011. The DVD debuted at number 1 on the UK Music Video top 40 in its first week on release and sold over 200,000 copies in two weeks of release in the UK alone. Take That's efforts were recognised further when they were awarded Virgin Media's Best Live Act of 2012.
On 4 October, it was reported that Take That were to take a break after the completion of the Progress tour, with Barlow continuing his role as a judge on The X Factor and Williams recording new solo material. Take That were presented with an Ivor Novello Award for their Outstanding Contribution to British Music in May 2012.
In August 2012, Take That performed at the closing ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics, despite Barlow announcing that his daughter had been stillborn the previous week. The performance earned him praise for appearing live so soon after the tragedy. Williams was due to perform with the band but dropped out due to his wife giving birth at around the same time and thus the group performed as a four-piece. In November 2012, Take That reunited as a five-piece for the last time to perform "Never Forget" at the Music Industry Trust Awards. In 2013, Donald became a judge on the German version of the television dancing show Got to Dance.
2014–2015: Line-up change and III
In May 2013, Owen announced that Take That was to begin recording their seventh studio album in 2014, and on 14 January 2014, Donald and Barlow both tweeted that Take That had entered the studio to begin recording the album, although it was not initially clear if Williams was present at these recording sessions. On 28 April 2014, Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a father for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour. Although welcome to return to the band at any time, Williams chose not to return for group's seventh and eighth studio albums and their accompanying tours, focusing instead on his solo commitments. He continued to write music with his colleagues and has performed with the group on several occasions since 2011's Progress tour and plans on returning at some point in the future.
On 24 September 2014, it was announced that Jason Orange had left the band. He said: 'At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. 'At the end of The Progress Tour I began to question whether it might be the right time for me to not continue on with Take That,' he continued. 'There have been no fallings out, only a decision on my part that I no longer wish to do this,' he added. Barlow, Donald, and Owen issued a joint statement about Orange's decision which said: "This is a sad day for us. Jason leaving is a huge loss both professionally and even more so personally ... Jason's energy and belief in what this band could achieve has made it what it is today, and we'll forever be grateful for his enthusiasm, dedication and inspiration over the years." A day after the announcement, Robbie Williams took to Twitter to show support of Orange's decision. "Mr Orange. Until we ride again. Much love, Bro.", Williams tweeted.
On 10 October 2014, Take That unveiled their first song as a three-piece and lead single from their upcoming album. Titled "These Days", it was released on 23 November 2014 and went to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, knocking Band Aid 30 off the top spot and becoming their 12th number one single. The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album. It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live. On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single "Hey Boy", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III. The 2015 edition of the album was released on 20 November.
In December 2015, British media buzzed about the group embarking on a stint in Las Vegas, starting 2017. Reports indicated the group impressed U.S. promoters and would headline their own residency show. Many venues circulated, including The AXIS at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, The Foundry at SLS Las Vegas and the Linq Theater at The LINQ Hotel & Casino. Local newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun writes that everything is still unconfirmed, despite Barlow confirming the rumour on Twitter.
2016–2017: Wonderland
On 2 February 2016, in an interview with The Sun, Barlow revealed that Take That would release their eighth studio album later in the year. On 4 May 2016, English drum and bass duo Sigma announced their newest single would feature Take That. "Cry" received its first radio play on 20 May 2016 and was released on that date. On 21 October 2016, the band posted a teaser on their social media pages and website depicting the logo of the band flickering with the hashtag "#WONDERLAND". The following day, it was announced that their new album, titled Wonderland, was scheduled to be released on 24 March 2017. It was then followed by a UK and Ireland arena tour entitled Wonderland Live, that commenced on 5 May 2017 at the Genting Arena in Birmingham. On 17 February 2017, the lead single of Wonderland was released. Titled "Giants", it debuted at 13 in the UK charts, which became the band's 24th UK top 20 single.
On 8 April 2017, ITV aired a specially commissioned hour-length television special titled An Evening with Take That, where the band performed some songs from the album, along with some old classics including "Never Forget", "Back for Good" and "Rule the World". The band also took part in a Q&A session with the audience members. On 27 April, it was announced on Twitter that "New Day" would be released as the next single from the album Wonderland. The band were seen recording the music video in a field in Luton the days leading up the opening night of the Wonderland Live tour. Due to the Manchester Arena bombing just days before they were due to perform at the venue, their Manchester and Liverpool dates were rescheduled or relocated. The band returned a month later to perform at the One Love Manchester benefit concert.
On 16 September 2017, Barlow, Owen and Donald were set to perform a special one-off show in Jersey after a fan bid more than £1.2 million to win a performance from the band. This then turned in to a ticketed charity event where the money from tickets sold would go towards benefiting Children in Need. The auction was held on BBC Radio 2. On 11 November 2017, Take That began their foreign tour in Perth, Australia, the first time they have performed in the country in over twenty years. They also played in New Zealand, United Arab Emirates and Israel for the first time. Unlike the other tours, a DVD for Wonderland Live was not released. Instead, it was broadcast on Sky 1 on 23 December and in cinemas.
2018–2020: The 30th Anniversary, and Odyssey
On 16 July 2018, while performing at first ever Hits Radio Live at the Manchester Arena, Barlow, Donald and Owen confirmed that they would be touring in 2019. The tour was a Greatest Hits tour and celebrated the 30th anniversary of the band. There was also a Greatest Hits album, Odyssey, which was released on 23 November 2018. The Greatest Hits album features existing songs from their back catalogue that have been re-imagined and 3 brand new songs. It also includes collaborations with Boyz II Men, Lulu, Sigma and Barry Gibb. Odyssey reached number one in the UK album chart and was certified as a platinum selling record. The following year, Odyssey Live, the recording of their tour, reached number 5, becoming the band's 13th top 5 album, with the DVD becoming the biggest live music sale of 2019.
In May 2020, Barlow, Donald, and Owen reunited with Williams for a virtual performance from their respective homes, hosted by price comparison website comparethemarket.com, to raise money for the music charity Nordoff Robbins and Crew Nation.
In other media
In April 2006, EMI licensed the band's songs to be used in the musical Never Forget, a musical based on songs of the band from the 1990s. Take That posted and then later removed a statement on their website distancing themselves from it.
Take That wrote and recorded the theme song "Rule the World" for the film Stardust directed by Matthew Vaughn, which was released in cinemas across the globe in October 2007. In 2007, their song "Back for Good" was used as part of the soundtrack for popular Korean drama The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince.
Take That presented their own TV show Take That Come to Town, a variety show in which they performed some of their biggest hits. The show also featured comedy sketches with one of Peter Kay's alter egos Geraldine McQueen. It aired on 7 December 2008 on ITV1. Sony launched their first Take That video game, SingStar Take That in 2009 for the PlayStation 3.
In November 2010, ITV aired Take That: Look Back, Don't Stare, a black-and-white documentary which focused on the band working together for the first time in 15 years. Through a series of interviews, the band look back at their achievements while also looking forward to what the future holds for them. On 18 November 2010, Williams and Barlow appeared together live on television for the first time on the Popstars program in Germany singing their hit "Shame".
In 2011, Take That's song "Love Love" was used in the credits of the 2011 film X-Men: First Class and later, "When We Were Young" was chosen as the main theme for The Three Musketeers movie. In 2015, the song "Get Ready for It" from their album III, was chosen as the theme song for the film Kingsman: The Secret Service.
In 2017, Take That launched The Band, a musical written by Tim Firth featuring the five winners of Let It Shine and some of Take That's biggest hits. Take That, including Robbie Williams, were billed as executive producers.
The group's music is regularly featured in the Channel 4 show Derry Girls, notably in the third episode of the second series, when the lead characters sneak off to attend the 1993 Take That concert in Belfast; the episode features the music video for "Pray" and ends on footage of the band performing "Everything Changes".
Artistry
Early in their career, Take That were known for party anthems such as "Do What U Like" and more mature ballads such as "A Million Love Songs" and "Back for Good". Since reuniting in 2006, they have become more experimental: their post-2006 albums Beautiful World and The Circus have featured "stadium-filling pop-rock" while Progress largely leaned towards electropop. Having been dubbed the "comeback kings" by the media for their highly successful reunion, the group has won widespread praise for their seamless transformation from teen idols to "man band" without overly relying on nostalgia, instead showcasing a more mature image and sound and reinventing themselves while maintaining their artistic integrity. Jude Rogers of The Guardian commented on Take That's post-reunion success, in light of a string of reunions by the group's disbanded counterparts from the 1990s: "Only Take That are penetrating pop's wider consciousness by becoming a man-band rather than a boy-band, singing mature, proper pop songs that cross the generations."
Take That have garnered critical acclaim and popularity as consummate live performers and for their musical output. Their domestic concert tours have been described as "some of the most flamboyant, imaginative and extravagant pop tours around". Aside from covers, all of their material is composed by the members themselves; Barlow was initially the principal songwriter who received sole credit but the other members have since taken a more active role in the composition and production process, including playing instruments for the backing track.
Band members
Current members
Gary Barlow (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Howard Donald (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Mark Owen (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Former members
Robbie Williams (1990–1995, 2010–2012)
Jason Orange (1990–1996, 2005–2014)
Timeline
Awards and nominations
|-
| 2016
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award for Best Live Act
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2015
| "These Days"
| UK Music Video Awards for Best Art Direction
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|2012
| "Pray"
|The Guardian Music Award for Best Number 1 Single
|
|-
| Take That
|Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music
|
|-
| "Back for Good"
|The Official Charts Company UK Recognition award for United Kingdom's Favourite Number One Single
|
|-
| "The Flood"
|Ivor Novello Award for PRS Most Performed Work
|
|-
| Take That
|Virgin Media Music Awards for Best Live Act
|
|-
| "Kidz"
|Virgin Media Music Awards for Best Music Video
|
|-
| rowspan="10" style="text-align:center;"|2011
|-
| Progress Live
|Audio Pro International Awards for Best Live Sound Event
|
|-
| Progress Live
|Audio Pro International Awards Grand Prix Award
|
|-
| Take That
|Phonographic Performance Limited Award for most played UK artist
|
|-
| "Kidz"
|Spex German Entertainment for Best Music Video
|
|-
| The Circus Live Tour
| Greatest Event ever at Wembley Stadium
|
|-
| Take That
|ECHO Award for Best International Group
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| Progress
| BRIT Award for MasterCard Album of the Year
|
|-
| Take That
|Virgin Media for Best Group
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|2010
|-
| "Up All Night"
| UK Music Video Awards for Best Art Direction
|
|-
| "The Flood"
|iTunes Award for Best Single
|
|-
| Progress
| iTunes Award for Best Album
|
|-
| Take That
|Q Award Hall of Fame
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best Live Performance of the past 30 Years
|
|-
| rowspan="5" style="text-align:center;"|2009
| Take That
|GQ Men of the Year Awards for Best Band
|
|-
| Take That
|Q Award for Best Live Act
|
|-
| "Greatest Day"
|Q Award for Best Single
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award
|
|-
| rowspan="7" style="text-align:center;"|2008
| "Shine"
|Ivor Novello Award for PRS Most Performed Work
|
|-
| "Rule the World"
|Virgin for Best Single
|
|-
| Take That
|Sony Ericsson Tour of the Year Award for Take That Arena Tour
|
|-
| "Shine"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Live Act
|
|-
| Beautiful World
|BRIT Award for Best British Album
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2007
| "Patience"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2006
| Take That
|Q Idol Award
|
|-
| rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|1996
| "Back for Good"
|Billboard International Hit of the Year
|
|-
| "Never Forget"
|Ivor Novello Award for Most Performed Song
|
|-
| "Back for Good"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|1995
| "Back for Good"
|Ivor Novello Award for the Song of the Year
|
|-
| Take That
|MTV Europe Music Awards for Best Live Act
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|1994
| "Babe"
|MTV Video Music Award for International Viewer's Choice Award for MTV Europe
|
|-
| Everything Changes
|Mercury Prize for Best Album
|
|-
| "Pray"
|Ivor Novello Award for Best Contemporary Song
|
|-
| "Pray"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "Pray"
|BRIT Award for Best British Video
|
|-
| Take That
|MTV Europe Music Awards for Best Group
|
|-
| rowspan="4" style="text-align:center;"|1993
| "Could It Be Magic"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "A Million Love Songs"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "It Only Takes a Minute"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award for Best Newcomer
|
|}
Discography
Take That & Party (1992)
Everything Changes (1993)
Nobody Else (1995)
Beautiful World (2006)
The Circus (2008)
Progress (2010)
III (2014)
Wonderland (2017)
Tours
Party Tour (1992–93)
Everything Changes Tour (1993–94)
Pops Tour (1994–95)
Nobody Else Tour (1995)
The Ultimate Tour (2006)
Beautiful World Tour 2007 (2007)
Take That Present: The Circus Live (2009)
Progress Live (2011)
Take That Live (2015)
Wonderland Live (2017)
Greatest Hits Live (2019)
See also
List of best-selling boy bands
References
External links
Chinese Fansite
1990 establishments in England
1996 disestablishments in England
2005 establishments in England
Brit Award winners
Dance-pop groups
Echo (music award) winners
English boy bands
English dance music groups
Interscope Records artists
Ivor Novello Award winners
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Musical groups disestablished in 1996
Musical groups established in 1990
Musical groups from Cheshire
Musical groups from Manchester
Musical groups reestablished in 2005
Polydor Records artists
Teen pop groups
Universal Music Group artists
Vocal quartets
Vocal quintets
Vocal trios | false | [
"Be Careful What You Wish For is the debut collaborative studio album by South African recording artists AKA and Anatii. It was released on July 28, 2017 by Beam Group and YAL Entertainment, under exclusive licence to Universal Music South Africa.\n\nSingles\n\"10 Fingers\" was released as the lead single on January 8, 2017. The track was produced by Anatii.\n\n\"Don't Forget to Pray\" and \"Holy Mountain\" were released as the third and second singles respectively. Both songs received positive response from critics.\n\nCritical reception\nThe album received positive response from critics. At Yo Mzansi, it received a positive rating of 9/10.\n\nTrack listing\nAdapted from Apple Music.\n\nRelease history\n\nReferences\n\n2017 albums\nAnatii albums\nAKA (rapper) albums",
"From Bauhaus to Our House is a 1981 narrative of Modern architecture, written by Tom Wolfe.\n\nBackground \nIn 1975 Wolfe made his first foray into art criticism with The Painted Word, in which he argued that art theory had become too pervasive because the art world was controlled by a small elitist network of wealthy collectors, dealers and critics. Art critics were, in turn, highly critical of Wolfe's book, arguing that he was a philistine who knew nothing of what he wrote.\n\nAfter The Painted Word, Wolfe published a collection of his essays, Mauve Gloves & Madmen, Clutter & Vine (1976), and his history of the earliest years of the space program, The Right Stuff (1979). Undeterred by the hostile critical response to The Painted Word, and perhaps even encouraged by the stir the book made, Wolfe set about writing a critique of modern architecture. From Bauhaus to Our House was published in full in two issues of Harper's Magazine, then issued in book form by Wolfe's long-time publisher Farrar, Straus & Giroux in 1981.\n\nThemes \n\nWolfe bluntly lays out his thesis in the introduction to From Bauhaus to Our House with a riff on the patriotic song \"America the Beautiful\"\nO beautiful, for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain, has there ever been another place on earth where so many people of wealth and power have paid for and put up with so much architecture they detested as within thy blessed borders today?\n\nWolfe criticizes the tendencies of modern architecture to avoid any external ornamentation. Wolfe praised architects like Louis Sullivan who, from the late 19th century to his death in 1924, built a number of ornate buildings. Wolfe turned his criticism on the International Style and Modern Architecture exemplified by architects such as Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Le Corbusier and Walter Gropius (the founder of the Bauhaus school in Germany, whose ideas influenced Modern Architecture, and from which the title of the book derives). Wolfe believed that the buildings of the International Style and Modern Architecture could barely be appreciated by those who had to work in them.\n\nWolfe's critique, however, was not purely aesthetic. As in The Painted Word Wolfe was critical of what he saw as too much adherence to theory. Wolfe characterized the architecture as based on a political philosophy that was inapplicable to America, arguing, for example, that it was silly to model American schools on \"worker's flats\" for the proletariat. The architecture world—like an art world dominated by critics, and a literature world dominated by creative writing programs—was producing buildings that nobody liked. Many architects, in Wolfe's opinion, had no particular goal but to be the most avant-garde.\n\nCritical response \nAs Wolfe's arguments mirrored those he made in The Painted Word so was mirrored the critical response. The response to Wolfe's book from the architecture world was highly negative. Critics argued that, once again, Wolfe was writing on a topic he knew nothing about and had little insight to contribute to the conversation. Time critic Robert Hughes wrote that Wolfe had added nothing to the discussion of modern architecture except \"a kind of supercilious rancor and a free-floating hostility toward the intelligentsia\". The architectural and urban critic Michael Sorkin noted, \"What Tom Wolfe doesn't know about modern architecture could fill a book. And so indeed it has, albeit a slim one.\"\n\nHilton Kramer writing in the Saturday Review found Wolfe's writing hyperbolic and refuted some of Wolfe's points. Wolfe had claimed, for example, that a Modern Architecture exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art had played a large role in subverting native culture; Kramer rebutted that the museum had displayed the art of Charles Burchfield and Edward Hopper before Picasso and Matisse and that the exhibition occurred in 1932 while the architecture itself remained uncommon for another 20 years.\n\nSome critics conceded that Wolfe was right that many people did not appreciate the buildings. Blake Morrison, writing in the Times Literary Supplement observed that perhaps some people felt such hostility to architecture because it is \"a gallery we can't walk out of, a book we can't close, and art we can't even turn our backs on because it is there facing us on the other side of the street\".\n\nOthers noted that, regardless of whether Wolfe was right or wrong, architecture was already moving away from Modern architecture to Postmodern architecture. Many of the complaints that Wolfe lodged against Modern architecture, particularly the austere boxiness of the buildings, were no longer a facet of postmodern architecture.\n\nCritics observed that the book was well written. Paul Goldberger, the architecture critic for The New York Times wrote, \"Mr. Wolfe's agility continues to dazzle, more than fourteen years after his essays first began to appear in print. But dazzle is not history, or architectural criticism, or even social criticism, and it is certainly not an inquiry into the nature of the relationship between architecture and society.\"\n\nReferences \n\nGeneral\n \n \nSpecific\n\nExternal links \n From Bauhaus to Our House excerpt in Harper's Magazine.\n From Bauhaus to Our House at tomwolfe.com.\n\n1975 books\nBooks by Tom Wolfe\nFarrar, Straus and Giroux books\nArchitecture books"
] |
[
"Take That",
"2014-2015: Robbie Williams's second departure, Jason Orange's departure and III",
"Why did Robbie Williams depart?",
"Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a dad for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour.",
"Why did Jason Orange leave the band?",
"At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album.",
"Was is III?",
"The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album.",
"Did they tour to promote the album?",
"It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live.",
"Were there any singles from the album?",
"On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single \"Hey Boy\", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III.",
"How did that single perform?",
"I don't know.",
"What was the critics response to III?",
"I don't know."
] | C_6e6a60800d1643268f8b7ee3189196de_0 | Did the album win any awards? | 8 | Did the album III win any awards? | Take That | In May 2013, Owen announced that Take That were to begin recording their seventh studio album in 2014 and On 14 January 2014, Donald and Barlow both tweeted that Take That had entered the studio to begin recording the album, although it was not initially clear if Williams was present at these recording sessions. On 28 April 2014, Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a dad for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour. Barlow later confirmed that Williams had left the band for a second time, although the departure was amicable and that Williams was welcome to rejoin the band in the future. Williams has since collaborated with Barlow on several projects and duet performances and indicated his interest in reuniting with the band for potential 25th anniversary commemorative events. On 24 September 2014, it was announced that Jason Orange had left the band. He said: 'At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. 'At the end of The Progress Tour I began to question whether it might be the right time for me to not continue on with Take That,' he continued. 'There have been no fallings out, only a decision on my part that I no longer wish to do this,' he added. Barlow, Donald and Owen issued a joint statement about Orange's decision which said: "This is a sad day for us. Jason leaving is a huge loss both professionally and even more so personally ... Jason's energy and belief in what this band could achieve has made it what it is today, and we'll forever be grateful for his enthusiasm, dedication and inspiration over the years." On 10 October 2014, Take That unveiled the lead single from the album. Titled "These Days", it was released on 23 November 2014 and went to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, knocking Band Aid 30 off the top spot and becoming their 12th number one single. The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album. It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live. On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single "Hey Boy", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III. The 2015 edition of the album was released on 20 November. In December 2015, British media buzzed about the group embarking on a stint in Las Vegas, starting 2017. Reports indicated the group impressed U.S. promoters and would headline their own residency show. Many venues circulated, including The AXIS at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, The Foundry at SLS Las Vegas and the Linq Theater at The LINQ Hotel & Casino. Local newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun writes that everything is still unconfirmed, despite Barlow confirming the rumour on Twitter. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Take That are an English pop group formed in Manchester in 1990. The group currently consists of Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen. The original line-up also featured Jason Orange and Robbie Williams. Barlow is the group's lead singer and primary songwriter, with Owen and Williams initially providing backing vocals and Donald and Orange serving primarily as dancers.
The group have had 28 top 40 singles and 17 top 5 singles on the UK Singles Chart, 12 of which have reached number one, including "Back for Good", "Never Forget", "Patience" and "Greatest Day". They have also had eight number one albums on the UK Albums Chart. Internationally, the band have had 56 number one singles and 39 number one albums. They have received eight Brit Awards—winning for Best British Group and Best British Live Act. In 2012 they received an Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music. According to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), Take That has been certified for 14 million albums and 11.4 million singles in the UK.
Williams left the band in 1995 while the four remaining members completed their world tour and released a final single before splitting up in 1996. After filming a 2005 Take That: For the Record about the group and releasing a new greatest hits album, a four-piece Take That without Williams officially announced a 2006 reunion tour around the UK, entitled The Ultimate Tour. On 9 May 2006, it was announced that the group were set to record new material together once again; their fourth studio album, Beautiful World, was released in 2006 and was followed up with The Circus, in 2008. The group achieved new success as a four-piece, scoring a string of chart hits across the UK and Europe while selling over 45 million records worldwide. Williams rejoined Take That in 2010 for the band's sixth studio album, Progress. Released on 15 November of that year, it was the first album of new material to feature Take That's original line-up since their 1995 album, Nobody Else. It became the fastest-selling album of the 21st century and the second fastest-selling album in British history.
In 2014, the band recorded a seventh studio album, this time as a trio without Williams and Orange. The album, titled III, was released in November 2014 and became the band's seventh number one. It was preceded by the single "These Days", which became the band's 12th number one single in the UK.
In 2011, Take That set the new record for the fastest-selling tour of all time in the UK with Progress Live, beating the previous record set by their Circus Live Tour in 2009. At the 2011 Brit Awards they won Best British Group. In 2012, Forbes named them the fifth highest-earning music stars in the world. The group performed at the London 2012 Olympic Games closing ceremony, playing "Rule the World" while the Olympic Flame was extinguished. In the same year, the Official Charts Company revealed the biggest-selling singles artists in British music chart history with Take That currently placed at 15th overall, making them the most successful boy band in UK chart history. Four of their albums are listed in the best-selling albums of the millennium, with three of them among the 60 best-selling albums in UK chart history.
History
1989–1990: Formation
In 1989, Manchester-based Nigel Martin-Smith sought to create a British male vocal singing group modelled on New Kids on the Block. Martin-Smith's vision, however, was a teen-orientated group that would appeal to more than one demographic segment of the music industry. Martin-Smith was then introduced to young singer-songwriter Gary Barlow, who had been performing in clubs since the age of 15. Impressed with Barlow's catalogue of self-written material, Martin-Smith decided to build his new-look boy band around Barlow's musical abilities. A campaign to audition young men with abilities in dancing and singing followed and took place in Manchester and other surrounding cities in 1990. At 22, Howard Donald was one of the oldest to audition, but he was chosen after he got time off work as a vehicle painter to continue the process. Prior to auditioning, Jason Orange had appeared as a breakdancer on the popular television programme The Hit Man and Her. Martin-Smith also selected 18-year-old bank employee Mark Owen and finally 16-year-old Robbie Williams to round out the group, which initially went by the name Kick It.
1990–1992: Take That & Party
Take That's first TV appearance was on The Hit Man and Her in 1990, where they performed Barlow's self-written, unreleased song, "My Kind of Girl". They later appeared a second time to perform "Waiting Around", which would become the B-side for the first single, "Do What U Like". "Promises" and "Once You've Tasted Love" were also released as singles but were minor hits in the UK. Take That initially worked the same territory as their American counterparts, singing new jack R&B, urban soul, and mainstream pop. However, they worked their way toward Hi-NRG dance music, while also pursuing an adult contemporary ballad direction. As they aimed to break into the mainstream music industry, they worked a number of small clubs, schools, and events across the country building up a fanbase as they travelled to gigs constantly for months.
Take That's breakthrough single was a cover of the 1975 Tavares hit "It Only Takes a Minute", which peaked at number seven on the UK Singles Chart in June 1992. This success was followed by "I Found Heaven", then by the first Barlow ballad "A Million Love Songs", which also reached number seven in October. Their cover of the Barry Manilow hit "Could It Be Magic" gave them their first big success, peaking at number three in the UK in the first chart of 1993. Their first album, Take That & Party, was released in 1992, and included all the hit singles to date.
1993–1995: Everything Changes, Nobody Else and superstardom
1993 saw the release of Everything Changes, based on Barlow's original material. It peaked at number one in the UK and spawned six singles, with four being consecutive UK number one singles – their first number one "Pray", "Relight My Fire", "Babe" and the title track "Everything Changes". The lead single "Why Can't I Wake Up with You" had narrowly missed the top spot in the UK peaking at number two and the sixth and final single "Love Ain't Here Anymore" taken from the album reached number three on the UK charts. Everything Changes saw the band gain international success with the album being nominated for the 1994 Mercury Prize, but it failed to crack the U.S. market, where an exclusive remix of "Love Ain't Here Anymore" (U.S. version) gained little success.
By 1994, Take That had become radio and television stars across Europe and Asia, but it was not until 1995 that they did their first World Tour. It was during the years 1993–95 that the band fronted scores of magazine covers ranging from Smash Hits to GQ, becoming mass merchandised on all sorts of paraphernalia ranging from picture books, to posters, stickers, their own dolls, jewellery, caps, T-shirts, toothbrushes and even had their own annuals released. The band had also developed a large female teenage fanbase at the time. During this time, they performed at numerous music awards shows and chart shows such as the BRIT Awards and Top of the Pops, also winning the Best Live Act award in 1995 at the MTV Europe Music Awards, having been renowned for their breakdance routines, high energy and creative tour productions.
In 1995, Take That released their third studio album Nobody Else, again based on Barlow's own material which reached number 1 in the UK and across Europe, capturing new audiences along the way, with Take That also able to make inroads in the adult audience in Britain through Barlow's melodic, sensitive ballads. For nearly five years, Take That's popularity was unsurpassed in Britain. The release of the first single from the album, "Sure", achieved yet another number one in the UK charts. It was not until their second release from that album, however, that they would experience what would become their biggest hit single, "Back for Good", which reached number one in many countries including the UK, Germany, Australia, and Norway. It was also their only US hit, where it reached number seven.
The song was initially unveiled for the first time via live performance while at the 1995 BRIT Awards, and based on the reception of that performance, the record pre-sold more records than expected and forced the record label to bring the release date forward by an unprecedented six weeks. The album was also noted for its cover, which was a parody of the famed cover of The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band cover sleeve.
1995–1996: Break-up and Greatest Hits
Robbie Williams's drug abuse had escalated to a near drug overdose the night before the group was scheduled to perform at the MTV Europe Music Awards in 1994.
In June 1995, Williams was photographed by the press partying with Oasis at the Glastonbury Festival. The following month, the band offered him an ultimatum; he was to adhere to the band's responsibilities or leave before their scheduled world tour. Williams chose the latter. Williams claimed he was bored with Barlow's leadership and jealous of Barlow. Despite the loss of Williams, Take That continued to promote Nobody Else as a four-piece, scoring a further hit single with "Never Forget" with Donald on lead vocal. They subsequently went to America and completed the Nobody Else Tour in October 1995. Following the tour, the band began to plan for their next album; however, when they spent Christmas together, they mutually agreed it was time to part ways.
On 13 February 1996, Take That formally announced that they were disbanding. This was followed by the Greatest Hits compilation in 1996, which contained a new recording, a cover of the Bee Gees' "How Deep Is Your Love". The single went on to become what was to be the band's final UK number one until their 2006 comeback a decade later. Take That gave what was thought to be their final performance in April 1996 at Amsterdam. Following the band's announcement, millions of their fans were distraught around the world and in the UK alone, teenage girls threatened suicide and were seen lining streets in tears, to the point that telephone hotlines were set up by the government to deal with counselling them. After the band broke up, highly respected music figures such as Elton John noted that Take That were different from other boy bands before and after them, in that they wrote their own material through Gary Barlow. Barlow is one of only a small number of people who have won an Ivor Novello award during their time in a boy band, with George Michael whilst in Wham! and Tony Mortimer whilst in East 17 being two others who have achieved this feat. Take That had also left a legacy of being immaculate performers with a very high work ethic, causing them to be voted in as the greatest boy band of all time.
2005–2006: Reunion as a quartet and Never Forget – The Ultimate Collection
On 14 November 2005, Never Forget – The Ultimate Collection, a new compilation of their hit singles including a new previously unreleased song, also achieved great success and peaked at number 2 on UK charts, selling over 2.1 million copies in the UK alone. The new song "Today I've Lost You" (recorded in September 2005) was originally written by Barlow as the follow up to "Back for Good" but was never recorded. On 16 November 2005, the group got back together for the ITV documentary Take That: For the Record, in which they aired their views over their fame, success, the split and what the post-Williams line-up had done since. On 25 November 2005, there was an official press conference by the band announcing that the post-Robbie Williams line-up was going to tour in 2006. The tour, entitled The Ultimate Tour, ran from April to June 2006. The tour featured a guest appearance by British soul singer Beverley Knight, who replaced Lulu's vocals on the song "Relight My Fire"; although Lulu did appear during the stadium shows on "Relight My Fire" and "Never Forget". The American female ensemble Pussycat Dolls supported the group at their Dublin concert, and the Sugababes supported the group on the final five dates of the stadium leg. In a seven-year study analysing over one billion online searches via Google conducted by AccuraCast, a leading digital search agency, their comeback was ranked at number one in the UK.
2006–2007: Beautiful World
On 9 May 2006, Take That returned to the recorded music scene after more than ten years of absence, signing with Polydor Records. The band's comeback album, Beautiful World, entered the UK Albums Chart at no. 1 and, as of June 2009, had sold over 2.8 million copies in the UK. It is the 35th best selling album in UK music history.
On Beautiful World, all four members of the band had the opportunity to sing lead vocals and contribute in the songwriting. Unlike the band's earlier works, where the majority of their material was written by Barlow who received sole credit, all four band members are credited as co-writers, along with John Shanks. The comeback single, "Patience", was released on 20 November 2006, with a special event launching it on 5 November.
On 26 November "Patience" hit number 1 in the UK in its second week of chart entry, making it the group's ninth No. 1, and staying there for 4 weeks. Take That also accompanied eventual winner Leona Lewis on a live version of "A Million Love Songs" during the final of The X Factor on 16 December 2006.
The week after Beautiful World was released, it was announced that Take That had become the first artists ever to top the UK official single and album charts along with the download single, download album and DVD charts in the same week, as well as topping the radio charts.
The video for the number 1 hit single "Shine", the follow-up to "Patience", premiered on 25 January 2007 on Channel 4, ahead of its release on 26 February 2007. The band's success continued on 14 February 2007 when Take That performed live at the BRIT Awards ceremony at Earl's Court. Their single "Patience" won the Best British Single category. The third single chosen from Beautiful World was "I'd Wait For Life", released on 18 June 2007 in the UK. The single reached 17 in the UK Singles Chart. This may have been due to lack of promotion, as the band decided to take a pre-tour break rather than do any promotion for the single. The single "Rule the World", included on the deluxe version of Beautiful World, was recorded for the soundtrack of the film Stardust (2007). It reached number two in the UK and went on to become the group's second best selling single, shifting over 1.2 million units in the UK. Beautiful World was the fourth biggest-selling album of 2007. It was announced at the start of 2007 that Take That signed a record deal with American label Interscope, and would also release their album in Canada. Starting on 11 October 2007, Take That began their Beautiful World Tour 2007 in Belfast. The tour included 49 shows throughout Europe and the UK and ended in Manchester on 23 December 2007. The band received four nominations at the 2008 BRIT Awards. Nominated for Best British Group, Best British Single ("Shine"), Best British Album (Beautiful World) and Best Live Act, they took home the Best Live Act and the Best British Single awards. According to a 2007 MSN UK internet poll, Take That were voted as the "comeback kings" of the year.
2008–2009: The Circus
"Greatest Day", the first single from the album The Circus, made its radio premiere on 13 October 2008 and it was released on 24 November. It debuted at number 1 on the UK Singles Chart on 30 November 2008. An album launch party for The Circus was held in Paris on 2 December. On its first day of release The Circus sold 133,000 copies, and after four days on sale it sold 306,000 copies (going platinum) making The Circus the fastest selling album of the year. The album reached number 1 on the UK Albums Chart on 7 December 2008 with total first-week sales of 432,490, the third highest opening sales week in UK history.
On 28 October 2008, on the Radio 1 Chris Moyles show, it was announced that Take That would be touring again in June/July 2009, covering the UK and Ireland. Tickets for the Take That Present: The Circus Live tour went on sale on 31 October. The promoters, SJM, have said that the band's tour is "the fastest selling in UK history".
On 22 May 2008, Barlow and Donald attended the 2008 Ivor Novello Awards where Take That won the award for Most Performed Work with their single "Shine". Take That won the Sony Ericsson Tour of the Year award at the Vodafone music awards on 18 September 2008. They were unable to attend as they were in LA finishing off The Circus. They did send a video link message, which was shown at the awards. On 22 November 2008, Take That appeared on week 7 of the talent show The X Factor where the finalists performed some of their greatest hits and Owen and Barlow made a guest appearance to personally coach the contestants. The band also performed on Children in Need 2008, singing their new single, "Greatest Day", before donating £250,000 to the charity from their Marks and Spencer fee. The band were also voted the Greatest Boy Band of All Time, reflecting their ongoing marketability and success in the pop arena, even after two decades.
At the 2009 Brit Awards they were nominated for Best British Group and they performed "Greatest Day" at the ceremony. "Up All Night", the second single from The Circus, was released on 2 March 2009, and peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart, despite heavy airplay. In Germany and Australia, "The Garden" was released as the second single instead. On 7 May 2009, Take That's official website confirmed that the third single from The Circus would be "Said It All" which was released on 15 June 2009, peaking at number 9 on the UK Singles chart. The video premiered on GMTV on 8 May 2009. It features all four band members dressed up as vintage circus clowns, which tied in with their forthcoming Take That Present: The Circus Live tour. Take That started their Circus Live tour at the Stadium of Light on 5 June 2009 in Sunderland and ended at the Wembley Stadium in London on 5 July 2009, which over 80,000 people attended. This tour quickly became the fastest-selling of all time, breaking all records by selling all of their 650,000 tickets in less than four and a half hours.
In November 2009 Take That released the official DVD of their Circus tour, which became the fastest-selling music DVD of all time in the UK on its first day of release and stayed in the top 10 of the videos chart for over a year. This overtook the previous record sales holder, which was Take That's Beautiful World Live tour and stayed at the number 1 spot for 8 weeks. The following week Take That released their first live album, The Greatest Day – Take That Present: The Circus Live, which sold 98,000 copies on its first day of release and was certified Platinum in July 2013. "Hold up a Light" was released as the fifth and final single from The Circus to radio stations and as a digital download to promote the release of the live album. The live album also featured a stripped down session recorded live at the famous Abbey Road Studios in London. It featured the members singing the setlist from the preceding tour, albeit in a studio setting.
2010–2011: Williams' return and Progress
On 7 June 2010, the news broke of a single called "Shame", which had been written by Barlow and Williams and would feature the vocals of both artists. This was the first time the pair had worked together since 1995 and would appear on the second greatest hits collection of Williams. "Heart and I", another track from the same album, was also co-written by Williams and Barlow. The single "Shame" peaked at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart while also achieving success throughout Europe, charting in over 19 countries.
After working with the band on new material in Los Angeles, on 15 July 2010 Robbie Williams announced he was returning to Take That. After months of working together, assembling new songs for a new album and even debating a band-name change to "The English", a joint statement between Williams and the group read, "The rumours are true ... Take That: the original lineup, have written and recorded a new album for release later this year." The statement went on to say, "Following months of speculation Gary Barlow, Howard Donald, Jason Orange, Mark Owen, and Robbie Williams confirmed they have been recording a new studio album as a five-piece, which they will release in November." The lead single from Take That's album Progress was announced as "The Flood" and was released 7 November as a digital download, and on 8 November as a physical copy, with the album released a week later on 15 November. The single peaked at number 2 in the UK Singles Charts and to date has sold over 500,000 copies in the UK alone. The single also achieved success across Europe, charting inside the top 10 in ten countries while also charting in another nine countries whilst also being nominated for an Ivor Novello Award for best work.
On 26 October the band announced that they would be embarking on a huge UK stadium tour entitled Progress Live, starting in Sunderland on 27 May, and finishing with a record-breaking 8 nights at London's Wembley Stadium in July 2011. It was also announced that Williams would perform hit singles from his solo career during the tour. The band then played at some of the biggest venues across Europe for the second leg of the tour. The phenomenal demand for tickets across the country led to the web sites of all the major UK ticket suppliers either crashing or considerably slowing for hours on end. The demand and sheer volume of fans also created problems for the UK telephone network. Take That's Progress Live also broke all records for ticket sales selling over 1.1 million tickets in one day, smashing the previous box office record set by Take That's Circus tour in 2008.
On the first day of release Progress became the fastest selling album of the century, with 235,000 copies sold in just one day. The album reached number 1 in the UK, selling around 520,000 copies in its first week, becoming the second fastest-selling album in history. After the release of Progress it was announced that Take That have become Amazon UK's top-selling music artist of all time.
The album retained the number one spot for six consecutive weeks in the UK since its release, selling 2.8 million copies in the UK alone and becoming the best selling album of 2010
Progress also achieved success across Europe where it debuted at number one in Ireland, Greece, Germany and Denmark. and the European Top 100 Albums chart. It also debuted inside the top 10 of the charts in Austria, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland.
"Kidz" was announced as the second single from Progress, it was released 21 February 2011 and charted well across Europe. The band performed the song live at the 2011 Brit Awards hosted at The O2 Arena, where they won a Brit for Best British Group and were nominated for Best British Album. Their performance of "Kidz", praised by critics, involved a highly choreographed routine featuring dancers dressed in police-styled riot gear bearing the Take That symbol on the uniform and shields. On 19 May 2011, Take That announced a new EP entitled Progressed, which contained eight tracks written by the band since they had reunited as a five-piece. It was packaged alongside the album Progress and returned the band to number 1 in the UK Album Chart the week after it was released on 13 June 2011.
Take That announced that the Progress Live tour would be released worldwide as their second live album to date and would also be released on home media formats across the UK and Europe on 21 November 2011. The DVD debuted at number 1 on the UK Music Video top 40 in its first week on release and sold over 200,000 copies in two weeks of release in the UK alone. Take That's efforts were recognised further when they were awarded Virgin Media's Best Live Act of 2012.
On 4 October, it was reported that Take That were to take a break after the completion of the Progress tour, with Barlow continuing his role as a judge on The X Factor and Williams recording new solo material. Take That were presented with an Ivor Novello Award for their Outstanding Contribution to British Music in May 2012.
In August 2012, Take That performed at the closing ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics, despite Barlow announcing that his daughter had been stillborn the previous week. The performance earned him praise for appearing live so soon after the tragedy. Williams was due to perform with the band but dropped out due to his wife giving birth at around the same time and thus the group performed as a four-piece. In November 2012, Take That reunited as a five-piece for the last time to perform "Never Forget" at the Music Industry Trust Awards. In 2013, Donald became a judge on the German version of the television dancing show Got to Dance.
2014–2015: Line-up change and III
In May 2013, Owen announced that Take That was to begin recording their seventh studio album in 2014, and on 14 January 2014, Donald and Barlow both tweeted that Take That had entered the studio to begin recording the album, although it was not initially clear if Williams was present at these recording sessions. On 28 April 2014, Williams announced on Twitter he was to become a father for a second time, and consequently suggested he would be unable to join Take That on their album and tour. Although welcome to return to the band at any time, Williams chose not to return for group's seventh and eighth studio albums and their accompanying tours, focusing instead on his solo commitments. He continued to write music with his colleagues and has performed with the group on several occasions since 2011's Progress tour and plans on returning at some point in the future.
On 24 September 2014, it was announced that Jason Orange had left the band. He said: 'At a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. 'At the end of The Progress Tour I began to question whether it might be the right time for me to not continue on with Take That,' he continued. 'There have been no fallings out, only a decision on my part that I no longer wish to do this,' he added. Barlow, Donald, and Owen issued a joint statement about Orange's decision which said: "This is a sad day for us. Jason leaving is a huge loss both professionally and even more so personally ... Jason's energy and belief in what this band could achieve has made it what it is today, and we'll forever be grateful for his enthusiasm, dedication and inspiration over the years." A day after the announcement, Robbie Williams took to Twitter to show support of Orange's decision. "Mr Orange. Until we ride again. Much love, Bro.", Williams tweeted.
On 10 October 2014, Take That unveiled their first song as a three-piece and lead single from their upcoming album. Titled "These Days", it was released on 23 November 2014 and went to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, knocking Band Aid 30 off the top spot and becoming their 12th number one single. The album itself, called III, was released on 28 November 2014 and became the band's seventh No. 1 album. It was then followed by a sell-out arena tour entitled Take That Live. On 14 October 2015, the band announced their new single "Hey Boy", released on 16 October, which is the first single from the 2015 re-release of III. The 2015 edition of the album was released on 20 November.
In December 2015, British media buzzed about the group embarking on a stint in Las Vegas, starting 2017. Reports indicated the group impressed U.S. promoters and would headline their own residency show. Many venues circulated, including The AXIS at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, The Foundry at SLS Las Vegas and the Linq Theater at The LINQ Hotel & Casino. Local newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun writes that everything is still unconfirmed, despite Barlow confirming the rumour on Twitter.
2016–2017: Wonderland
On 2 February 2016, in an interview with The Sun, Barlow revealed that Take That would release their eighth studio album later in the year. On 4 May 2016, English drum and bass duo Sigma announced their newest single would feature Take That. "Cry" received its first radio play on 20 May 2016 and was released on that date. On 21 October 2016, the band posted a teaser on their social media pages and website depicting the logo of the band flickering with the hashtag "#WONDERLAND". The following day, it was announced that their new album, titled Wonderland, was scheduled to be released on 24 March 2017. It was then followed by a UK and Ireland arena tour entitled Wonderland Live, that commenced on 5 May 2017 at the Genting Arena in Birmingham. On 17 February 2017, the lead single of Wonderland was released. Titled "Giants", it debuted at 13 in the UK charts, which became the band's 24th UK top 20 single.
On 8 April 2017, ITV aired a specially commissioned hour-length television special titled An Evening with Take That, where the band performed some songs from the album, along with some old classics including "Never Forget", "Back for Good" and "Rule the World". The band also took part in a Q&A session with the audience members. On 27 April, it was announced on Twitter that "New Day" would be released as the next single from the album Wonderland. The band were seen recording the music video in a field in Luton the days leading up the opening night of the Wonderland Live tour. Due to the Manchester Arena bombing just days before they were due to perform at the venue, their Manchester and Liverpool dates were rescheduled or relocated. The band returned a month later to perform at the One Love Manchester benefit concert.
On 16 September 2017, Barlow, Owen and Donald were set to perform a special one-off show in Jersey after a fan bid more than £1.2 million to win a performance from the band. This then turned in to a ticketed charity event where the money from tickets sold would go towards benefiting Children in Need. The auction was held on BBC Radio 2. On 11 November 2017, Take That began their foreign tour in Perth, Australia, the first time they have performed in the country in over twenty years. They also played in New Zealand, United Arab Emirates and Israel for the first time. Unlike the other tours, a DVD for Wonderland Live was not released. Instead, it was broadcast on Sky 1 on 23 December and in cinemas.
2018–2020: The 30th Anniversary, and Odyssey
On 16 July 2018, while performing at first ever Hits Radio Live at the Manchester Arena, Barlow, Donald and Owen confirmed that they would be touring in 2019. The tour was a Greatest Hits tour and celebrated the 30th anniversary of the band. There was also a Greatest Hits album, Odyssey, which was released on 23 November 2018. The Greatest Hits album features existing songs from their back catalogue that have been re-imagined and 3 brand new songs. It also includes collaborations with Boyz II Men, Lulu, Sigma and Barry Gibb. Odyssey reached number one in the UK album chart and was certified as a platinum selling record. The following year, Odyssey Live, the recording of their tour, reached number 5, becoming the band's 13th top 5 album, with the DVD becoming the biggest live music sale of 2019.
In May 2020, Barlow, Donald, and Owen reunited with Williams for a virtual performance from their respective homes, hosted by price comparison website comparethemarket.com, to raise money for the music charity Nordoff Robbins and Crew Nation.
In other media
In April 2006, EMI licensed the band's songs to be used in the musical Never Forget, a musical based on songs of the band from the 1990s. Take That posted and then later removed a statement on their website distancing themselves from it.
Take That wrote and recorded the theme song "Rule the World" for the film Stardust directed by Matthew Vaughn, which was released in cinemas across the globe in October 2007. In 2007, their song "Back for Good" was used as part of the soundtrack for popular Korean drama The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince.
Take That presented their own TV show Take That Come to Town, a variety show in which they performed some of their biggest hits. The show also featured comedy sketches with one of Peter Kay's alter egos Geraldine McQueen. It aired on 7 December 2008 on ITV1. Sony launched their first Take That video game, SingStar Take That in 2009 for the PlayStation 3.
In November 2010, ITV aired Take That: Look Back, Don't Stare, a black-and-white documentary which focused on the band working together for the first time in 15 years. Through a series of interviews, the band look back at their achievements while also looking forward to what the future holds for them. On 18 November 2010, Williams and Barlow appeared together live on television for the first time on the Popstars program in Germany singing their hit "Shame".
In 2011, Take That's song "Love Love" was used in the credits of the 2011 film X-Men: First Class and later, "When We Were Young" was chosen as the main theme for The Three Musketeers movie. In 2015, the song "Get Ready for It" from their album III, was chosen as the theme song for the film Kingsman: The Secret Service.
In 2017, Take That launched The Band, a musical written by Tim Firth featuring the five winners of Let It Shine and some of Take That's biggest hits. Take That, including Robbie Williams, were billed as executive producers.
The group's music is regularly featured in the Channel 4 show Derry Girls, notably in the third episode of the second series, when the lead characters sneak off to attend the 1993 Take That concert in Belfast; the episode features the music video for "Pray" and ends on footage of the band performing "Everything Changes".
Artistry
Early in their career, Take That were known for party anthems such as "Do What U Like" and more mature ballads such as "A Million Love Songs" and "Back for Good". Since reuniting in 2006, they have become more experimental: their post-2006 albums Beautiful World and The Circus have featured "stadium-filling pop-rock" while Progress largely leaned towards electropop. Having been dubbed the "comeback kings" by the media for their highly successful reunion, the group has won widespread praise for their seamless transformation from teen idols to "man band" without overly relying on nostalgia, instead showcasing a more mature image and sound and reinventing themselves while maintaining their artistic integrity. Jude Rogers of The Guardian commented on Take That's post-reunion success, in light of a string of reunions by the group's disbanded counterparts from the 1990s: "Only Take That are penetrating pop's wider consciousness by becoming a man-band rather than a boy-band, singing mature, proper pop songs that cross the generations."
Take That have garnered critical acclaim and popularity as consummate live performers and for their musical output. Their domestic concert tours have been described as "some of the most flamboyant, imaginative and extravagant pop tours around". Aside from covers, all of their material is composed by the members themselves; Barlow was initially the principal songwriter who received sole credit but the other members have since taken a more active role in the composition and production process, including playing instruments for the backing track.
Band members
Current members
Gary Barlow (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Howard Donald (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Mark Owen (1990–1996, 2005–present)
Former members
Robbie Williams (1990–1995, 2010–2012)
Jason Orange (1990–1996, 2005–2014)
Timeline
Awards and nominations
|-
| 2016
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award for Best Live Act
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2015
| "These Days"
| UK Music Video Awards for Best Art Direction
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|2012
| "Pray"
|The Guardian Music Award for Best Number 1 Single
|
|-
| Take That
|Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music
|
|-
| "Back for Good"
|The Official Charts Company UK Recognition award for United Kingdom's Favourite Number One Single
|
|-
| "The Flood"
|Ivor Novello Award for PRS Most Performed Work
|
|-
| Take That
|Virgin Media Music Awards for Best Live Act
|
|-
| "Kidz"
|Virgin Media Music Awards for Best Music Video
|
|-
| rowspan="10" style="text-align:center;"|2011
|-
| Progress Live
|Audio Pro International Awards for Best Live Sound Event
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|-
| Progress Live
|Audio Pro International Awards Grand Prix Award
|
|-
| Take That
|Phonographic Performance Limited Award for most played UK artist
|
|-
| "Kidz"
|Spex German Entertainment for Best Music Video
|
|-
| The Circus Live Tour
| Greatest Event ever at Wembley Stadium
|
|-
| Take That
|ECHO Award for Best International Group
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| Progress
| BRIT Award for MasterCard Album of the Year
|
|-
| Take That
|Virgin Media for Best Group
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|2010
|-
| "Up All Night"
| UK Music Video Awards for Best Art Direction
|
|-
| "The Flood"
|iTunes Award for Best Single
|
|-
| Progress
| iTunes Award for Best Album
|
|-
| Take That
|Q Award Hall of Fame
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best Live Performance of the past 30 Years
|
|-
| rowspan="5" style="text-align:center;"|2009
| Take That
|GQ Men of the Year Awards for Best Band
|
|-
| Take That
|Q Award for Best Live Act
|
|-
| "Greatest Day"
|Q Award for Best Single
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award
|
|-
| rowspan="7" style="text-align:center;"|2008
| "Shine"
|Ivor Novello Award for PRS Most Performed Work
|
|-
| "Rule the World"
|Virgin for Best Single
|
|-
| Take That
|Sony Ericsson Tour of the Year Award for Take That Arena Tour
|
|-
| "Shine"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Live Act
|
|-
| Beautiful World
|BRIT Award for Best British Album
|
|-
| Take That
|BRIT Award for Best British Group
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2007
| "Patience"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|2006
| Take That
|Q Idol Award
|
|-
| rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|1996
| "Back for Good"
|Billboard International Hit of the Year
|
|-
| "Never Forget"
|Ivor Novello Award for Most Performed Song
|
|-
| "Back for Good"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|1995
| "Back for Good"
|Ivor Novello Award for the Song of the Year
|
|-
| Take That
|MTV Europe Music Awards for Best Live Act
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award
|
|-
| rowspan="6" style="text-align:center;"|1994
| "Babe"
|MTV Video Music Award for International Viewer's Choice Award for MTV Europe
|
|-
| Everything Changes
|Mercury Prize for Best Album
|
|-
| "Pray"
|Ivor Novello Award for Best Contemporary Song
|
|-
| "Pray"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "Pray"
|BRIT Award for Best British Video
|
|-
| Take That
|MTV Europe Music Awards for Best Group
|
|-
| rowspan="4" style="text-align:center;"|1993
| "Could It Be Magic"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "A Million Love Songs"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| "It Only Takes a Minute"
|BRIT Award for Best British Single
|
|-
| Take That
| Silver Clef Award for Best Newcomer
|
|}
Discography
Take That & Party (1992)
Everything Changes (1993)
Nobody Else (1995)
Beautiful World (2006)
The Circus (2008)
Progress (2010)
III (2014)
Wonderland (2017)
Tours
Party Tour (1992–93)
Everything Changes Tour (1993–94)
Pops Tour (1994–95)
Nobody Else Tour (1995)
The Ultimate Tour (2006)
Beautiful World Tour 2007 (2007)
Take That Present: The Circus Live (2009)
Progress Live (2011)
Take That Live (2015)
Wonderland Live (2017)
Greatest Hits Live (2019)
See also
List of best-selling boy bands
References
External links
Chinese Fansite
1990 establishments in England
1996 disestablishments in England
2005 establishments in England
Brit Award winners
Dance-pop groups
Echo (music award) winners
English boy bands
English dance music groups
Interscope Records artists
Ivor Novello Award winners
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Musical groups disestablished in 1996
Musical groups established in 1990
Musical groups from Cheshire
Musical groups from Manchester
Musical groups reestablished in 2005
Polydor Records artists
Teen pop groups
Universal Music Group artists
Vocal quartets
Vocal quintets
Vocal trios | false | [
"Iz*One was a twelve-member South Korean and Japanese girl group formed in 2018 through Produce 48, a music competition reality show. The group achieved significant commercial success with its debut extended play Color*Iz (2018), released under Off the Record Entertainment, and won several new artist awards, including Best New Artist at the 20th Mnet Asian Music Awards, Rookie of the Year at the 33rd Golden Disc Awards, and the New Artist Award at the 28th Seoul Music Awards. The group's second EP, Heart*Iz (2019), was released to greater commercial success than its predecessor, and received Disc Bonsang nominations at the 34th Golden Disc Awards and the 29th Seoul Music Awards respectively. The EP's lead single, \"Violeta\", received a nomination for Song of the Year at the 21st Mnet Asian Music Awards.\n\nThe group earned its first ever daesang award nominations for its first studio album Bloom*Iz, released in February 2020. The album was nominated for Album of the Year at both the 12th Melon Music Awards and the 10th Gaon Chart Music Awards, while its lead single \"Fiesta\" was also nominated at both ceremonies for Best Dance – Female and Song of the Year – February respectively. Iz*One did not win any of the nominations but the group received its second Artist of the Year bonsang at the Melon Music Awards. Bloom*Iz garnered an additional Bonsang Award nomination at the 30th Seoul Music Awards. The group's follow-up EP, Oneiric Diary, released in June 2020, was also nominated alongside its predecessor at the Gaon Awards, for Album of the Year – 3rd Quarter. The group won its third Artist of the Year bonsang at the 3rd Fact Music Awards in December 2020.\n\nAwards and nominations\n\nNotes\n\nReferences \n\nIz*One\nAwards",
"The 54th Academy of Country Music Awards was held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on April 7, 2019. Nominations were announced on February 20, 2019 by Reba McEntire during CBS This Morning, with Chris Stapleton and Dan + Shay leading with six nominations each. McEntire returned to host the awards for the sixteenth time.\n\nJason Aldean was presented with the ACM's rare honor \"Artist of the Decade\" by previous holder George Strait.\n\nWinners and Nominees \nThe winners are shown in bold.\n\nPerformances\n\nPresenters\n\nReception \nIn its review of the event, Rolling Stone Country praised that the ACMs took the opportunity to bring seasoned musicians Amanda Shires and Charlie Worsham \"into the fold\" by having them appear alongside Luke Combs and Keith Urban respectively but criticised that the ACMs did not introduce either of them or even feature them on screen. Worsham, who the reviewer believed should have been nominated for his own awards, performed \"mostly in the shadows\" and Shires, who \"helped transform [Combs' performance] with her lyrical playing\" was barely seen. Rolling Stone also praised Reba McEntire's hosting and the performances by Dierks Bentley and Brandi Carlile, Little Big Town, Miranda Lambert and Ashley McBryde but stated that it was \"baffling\" that Kacey Musgraves, who had five nominations and won the CMA Award for Album of the Year and four Grammy Awards including Best Country Album and the all-genre Album of the Year for Golden Hour, did not perform. Musgraves' win made her only the third artist (after Taylor Swift and the artists that appeared on Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?) to win the ACM, CMA and Grammy Awards for Best Country Album as well as the all-genre Grammy for Album of the Year.\n\nSee also\nAcademy of Country Music Awards\n\nReferences\n\nAcademy of Country Music Awards\nAcademy of Country Music Awards\nAcademy of Country Music Awards\nAcademy of Country Music Awards\nAcademy of Country Music Awards\nAcademy of Country Music Awards\nAcademy of Country Music Awards"
] |
[
"Shinee",
"2009-2010: Rising popularity and Lucifer"
] | C_49801ec35b494288bfa0169cde8bd97f_0 | What is Rising popularity about? | 1 | What is Shinee's rising popularity about? | Shinee | In early February 2009, Shinee won the "Best Newcomer" award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards. Shinee's second extended play, Romeo, was released on May 25. Its lead single, "Juliette", was released earlier on May 18. The song is an instrumental remake of Corbin Bleu's "Deal with It". Shinee had their first stage performance for the song on KBS's Music Bank in June, 2009, where the group also received the award for the first place. Shinee released the digital version of their third extended play, 2009, Year of Us on October 19, 2009, with a physical release on October 22. The lead single, "Ring Ding Dong", was released digitally on October 14 and charted atop of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. In early December 2009, the group was also awarded with the "Popularity" award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards. On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full length studio album, Lucifer, which topped various physical and digital sales charts in South Korea. The songs on the album "were more carefully selected than ever," and the album is said to "[give] listeners a great chance to experience the diverse musical characters and more mature vocal skills of the members." The group made their comeback on July 23, 2010 at KBS Music Bank. For its outstanding choreography, "Lucifer", was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards. Lucifer became the 6th best-selling album of 2010 in South Korea, selling over 120,000 copies. In October, 2010, the album was re-released under the title Hello. Amidst their promotional activities for the second studio album, the group also participated in the SMTown Live '10 World Tour on August 21, 2010. On December 26, 2010, Shinee commenced their first concert tour, Shinee World, at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo. The event was attended by approximately 24,000 people. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Shinee ( ; ; ; stylized as SHINee) is a South Korean boy band formed by SM Entertainment in 2008. The group's musical impact in their native country has earned them numerous accolades and the title "Princes of K-pop". The group is composed of four members: Onew, Key, Minho, and Taemin. Originally a five-piece group, vocalist Jonghyun died in December 2017.
Shinee debuted in May 2008 with their first EP, Replay, on SBS' Inkigayo with their single "Replay". The group gained attention for starting a fashion trend amongst students, which the media dubbed the "Shinee Trend". In August 2008, the group released their first Korean studio album, The Shinee World, which won Newcomer Album of the Year at the 23rd Golden Disc Awards. Shinee further consolidated their popularity on the South Korean music scene with follow-up singles "Ring Ding Dong" and "Lucifer". "Ring Ding Dong" charted on top of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. "Lucifer" was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2010 for its outstanding choreography. In 2012 the group released Sherlock, which became the fifth most sold album of the year with over 180,000 copies sold. The group has also been included in the Forbes list of Korea Power Celebrity multiple times, once in 2014 and again in 2016.
In mid-2011, Shinee signed with EMI Records Japan to venture into the Japanese music scene. Their Japanese version of their single "Replay" sold over 100,000 copies, the highest number of sales for a Japanese debut single recorded by Oricon for a South Korean group at the time. It was followed by their first Japanese studio album, The First, on December 7, 2011 – both were certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. In 2011, the group also held their Japan Debut Premium Reception at Abbey Road Studios in London, making them the first Asian artists to perform there. Two years later they released their second Japanese album Boys Meet U (2013), followed by I'm Your Boy (2014), D×D×D (2016), and Five (2017).
Shinee is considered to be one of the best live vocal groups in K-pop and is known for their highly synchronized and complex dance routines, having been awarded the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards three times in a row for their dance performances to "Sherlock (Clue + Note)", "Dream Girl" and "View". Shinee's signature musical style is contemporary R&B, but the group is known for their experimental sound, incorporating various genres including funk rock, hip hop, and EDM.
History
2008: Debut and The Shinee World
Prior to the group's debut, the label company, SM Entertainment, introduced an upcoming contemporary R&B boy group with its goal to be trendsetters in all areas of music, fashion and dance. The group's Korean name, Shinee, is a new coined word and is explained as a combination of shine, meaning light, and the suffix ee, therefore meaning "one who receives the light". On May 22, 2008, the group's first EP, Replay, was released, which debuted at number ten on the South Korean music charts and peaked at number eight, selling 17,957 copies in the first half of 2008. On May 25, 2008, Shinee had their first stage performance on SBS' Inkigayo with their single "Replay".
In June 2008, the group won their first award, Rookie of the Month, at the Cyworld Digital Music Awards, and were also awarded with the Hot New Star award at the Mnet 20's Choice Awards in August 2008. In the same month, Shinee subsequently released their first full-length album, The Shinee World, which debuted at number three, selling 30,000 copies. Its title track "Love Like Oxygen" is a cover of "Show the World" by Martin Hoberg Hedegaard, originally written by the Danish songwriting and production team of Thomas Troelsen, Remee, and Lucas Secon. On September 18, 2008, the song won first place on M Countdown, making it the group's first win on a South Korean music show since debut.
Shinee participated in the 5th Asia Song Festival, where they received the Best New Artist award along with Japanese girl group Berryz Kobo. The group attended the Style Icon Awards on October 30, 2008, where they received the Best Style Icon Award. On the same day, a repackaged version of The Shinee World, titled Amigo, was released, which includes three new songs: "Forever or Never", a remix of "Love Should Go On", and the title track "Amigo". "Amigo" is a shortened version of the Korean phrase "areumdaun minyeoreul joahamyeon gosaenghanda", which can be translated to "The heart aches when you fall in love with a beauty".
In November 2008, Shinee won the Best New Male Group award at the 2008 Mnet Km Music Festival, beating fellow newcomers U-KISS, 2PM, 2AM and Mighty Mouth. In addition, the group also won the award for Newcomer Album of the Year at the 23rd Golden Disk Awards.
2009–2010: Rising popularity and Lucifer
In early February 2009, Shinee won the Best Newcomer award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards. Shinee's second extended play, Romeo, was released on May 25. Its lead single, "Juliette", was released earlier on May 18. The song is an instrumental remake of Corbin Bleu's "Deal with It". Shinee had their first stage performance for the song on KBS' Music Bank in June 2009, where the group also received the award for the first place.
Shinee released the digital version of their third extended play, 2009, Year of Us, on October 19, 2009, with a physical release on October 22. The lead single, "Ring Ding Dong", was released digitally on October 14 and charted atop of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. In early December 2009, the group won the Popularity Award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards.
On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full-length studio album, Lucifer, which topped various physical and digital sales charts in South Korea. The songs on the album "were more carefully selected than ever", and the album is said to "[give] listeners a great chance to experience the diverse musical characters and more mature vocal skills of the members." The group made their comeback on July 23, 2010, at KBS' Music Bank. For its outstanding choreography, "Lucifer" was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards. Lucifer became the sixth best-selling album of 2010 in South Korea, selling over 120,000 copies. In October 2010, the album was re-released under the title Hello. Amidst their promotional activities for the second studio album, the group also participated in the SM Town Live '10 World Tour on August 21, 2010. On December 26, 2010, Shinee commenced their first concert tour, Shinee World, at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo. The event was attended by approximately 24,000 people.
2011–2012: Japanese debut, The First and Sherlock
On January 1, 2011, Shinee performed at Olympic Gymnastics Arena in Seoul as a part of their tour, Shinee World, followed by various cities in Japan throughout 2011. On January 25 and 26, 2011, the group participated in the Japan leg of the SM Town Live '10 World Tour in Tokyo, which continued on to two concerts in Paris at Zénith Paris, three concerts in Tokyo at Tokyo Dome, and at Madison Square Garden in New York City. On June 22, 2011, the group made their debut in Japan with the Japanese version of "Replay", which sold more than 91,000 copies in the first week. It was subsequently certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. It was the highest sales recorded by Oricon for a South Korean group debut at the time.
On June 19, Shinee made history by becoming the first Asian artists to perform at Abbey Road Studios in London, holding their Japan Debut Premium Reception there. On July 22, 2011, Shinee started their Japan Debut Premium Reception Tour and held several concerts in various cities across Japan. On August 28 and October 12, 2011, two Japanese remakes, "Juliette" and "Lucifer", were released, respectively. On August 9, 2011, Shinee took part in an effort to help African children. The groups were joined by the United Nations' Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, in the "Help African Children" project co-organized by the Korean Red Cross Society and the Korean UNICEF committee.
In November 2011, Shinee were invited to be the opening act of the 6th London Korean Film Festival, which took place at the Odeon West End Theater. The group held an hour-long gala concert to open the festival with tickets selling out within minutes. This marked the first time that any Korean artist(s) had held an independent concert in London.
The group's first Japanese studio album, The First, was released in December 2011. It featured five new songs in addition to Japanese remakes of seven previously released Korean songs. The regular version of the album also featured the theme song of the drama Strangers 6, entitled "Stranger", as a bonus. The album was certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. On December 8, Taemin, Onew, and Key debuted as writers and released a travelogue, Children of the Sun, containing stories from their trip to Barcelona, Spain. The members shot the photos and wrote the commentaries themselves. Shinee also participated in the album 2011 Winter SM Town – The Warmest Gift with a cover of the song "Last Christmas". The compilation album by SM artists was released on December 13, 2011.
Shinee held a commemorative concert in honor of the successful release of their first Japanese album, The First, at the Tokyo International Forum Hall A on December 24, 2011. The live concert took place three times in order to accommodate the 15,000 fans that won a lottery to attend. They performed a total of six songs including their Japanese debut singles, "Replay (Kimi wa Boku no Everything)" and "Lucifer", and "To Your Heart". On December 28, 2011, Tower Records Japan announced that Shinee had won the Artist of the Year award at the 2011 K-Pop Lovers! Awards. Shinee's fourth Korean mini album, Sherlock, was released digitally on March 19 and physically on March 21. Sherlock became the fifth best-selling album of the year in South Korea with over 180,000 copies sold. On March 26, 2012, Shinee, alongside their labelmates, became stockholders of SM Entertainment. They received 340 shares each (value of around $13,600 for each member).
The Japanese remake of "Sherlock" was released in Japan on May 16. The group started their first Japan nationwide concert tour, Shinee World 2012, on April 25, 2012. The tour had a total of 20 concerts in Fukuoka, Sapporo, Nagoya, Osaka, Kobe, Tokyo and Hiroshima. Their tour set a record for the most people in attendance for a Korean act's first Japan tour with a total of 200,000 people. On May 20, 2012, Shinee participated in the SM Town Live World Tour III alongside their label-mates at Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Shinee held their second solo concert, Shinee World II, beginning in Seoul on July 21 and 22 at Olympic Gymnastics Arena.
Shinee released an original Japanese single, "Dazzling Girl", on October 10, 2012. The single sold 97,111 copies in its first week and was chosen to be the theme song for the Japanese TV series Sukkiri. On November 19, 2012, along with actor Kim Soo-hyun, Shinee won the Ministry of Culture Award at South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Korea Creative Content Agency's (KOCCA) annual award show, the Korean Popular Culture and Arts Awards, at Seoul Olympic Hall. Shinee attended the 2012 Mnet Asian Music Awards in November 2012, which was held in Hong Kong, winning Best Dance Performance – Male Group for their latest Korean single, "Sherlock (Clue + Note)". Shinee released their first Japanese ballad single (sixth overall), "1000-nen, Zutto Soba ni Ite...", and the concert video album for their Shinee World 2012 arena tour on December 12, 2012.
2013–2014: Dream Girl, Why So Serious?, Boys Meet U, Everybody and I'm Your Boy
On January 15, 2013, Shinee attended the 27th Golden Disk Awards, which was held in Kuala Lumpur at Sepang International Circuit, and received the Popularity Award for the third time after winning the same title in 2009 and 2010. They also received the Disk Bonsang for Sherlock, their second after winning for Lucifer in 2010. On February 3, MBC announced that Shinee would be starring in their own Lunar New Year special entitled Shinee's Wonderful Day (also known as Shinee's One Fine Day), which began airing on February 10. The special featured the Shinee members visiting various countries of their choice without the assistance of their management staff and with the production crew instructed to not interfere. For the special, Onew visited Thailand, Jonghyun visited Japan, Key and Minho visited England, and Taemin visited Switzerland.
Shinee's third Korean album consisted of two versions: the first part, Dream Girl – The Misconceptions of You, being released on February 19 and the second part, Why So Serious? – The Misconceptions of Me, being released on April 29. The title track of part one, "Dream Girl", is an acid electro funk track and was produced by Shin Hyuk and Joombas Music Factory, while the title track of part two, "Why So Serious?", is a funk rock dance track written and produced by Kenzie. A compilation album was subsequently released, The Misconceptions of Us, with two new songs: "Selene 6.23" and "Better Off".
On March 13, Shinee released the Japanese single "Fire". On June 26, the group released their second Japanese album, Boys Meet U, and on August 21, a single with the same name was released, including the Japanese version of "Dream Girl". On June 28, 2013, Shinee started their second Japan nationwide concert tour, Shinee World 2013, in Saitama.
In November 2013, Shinee won Artist of the Year at the Melon Music Awards, one of the biggest award ceremonies in the country, which awards prizes based on digital sales and online votes. It was the first time the group won the prize. On September 29, SM Entertainment announced that Shinee's fifth EP, Everybody, would be released on October 14. On November 6, 2013, SM Entertainment announced its week-long music festival called SM Town Week. Shinee's concert, titled The Wizard, opened the event on December 21 at the Kintex in Ilsan.
On January 29, 2014, it was announced that Shinee would hold their third Korean solo concert, Shinee World III, in March, with shows added in Latin America. On February 24, the mayor of Gangnam District, Shin Yeon-hee, announced that Shinee had been appointed honorary ambassadors of the district. On April 2, Shinee released a live concert album from their second solo concert.
On June 25, Universal Music Japan released Shinee's tenth Japanese single, "Lucky Star", as their first release under EMI Records. On September 24, Universal Music Japan released the group's third Japanese album, I'm Your Boy, preceded by the singles "Boys Meet U", "3 2 1", and "Lucky Star". From September till December 2014 Shinee embarked on their third Japan tour. It started off at Chiba on September 28, with 30 scheduled performances around the country.
On December 11, 2014, the group released their third live concert album, from Shinee World III, held in Olympic Gymnastics Arena on March 8 and 9 the same year. It contained two CDs with a total of 33 tracks. SM Entertainment stated on December 15 that Shinee sold out the World Memorial Hall in Kobe, Japan, with 16,000 fans attending between December 13 and 14. With that, Shinee successfully completed their 20-city, 30-concert tour, gathering 200,000 audience members overall. Furthermore, Shinee held a solo concert in Tokyo Dome, the first time since their Japanese debut, on March 14 and 15, 2015. The Tokyo Dome concert was the finale and encore for their Japanese tour. Forbes listed Shinee among Korea Power Celebrity in 2014.
2015–2016: Odd, DxDxD and 1 of 1
On February 17, Shinee were invited as the only Korean artist(s) to China's Lunar New Year Program, Chun Jie Wan Hui, which is hosted by Liaoning TV and has been the highest viewed show in its timeslot for 12 years. The same month, the group became ambassadors of the Ministry of Personnel Management to promote Korean music, dance and fashion. Their tasks as ambassadors included performing at events around the world to encourage cultural exchanges between the nations.
Shinee held a three-day long concert, Shinee World IV, at Seoul's Olympic Park Gymnastics Gymnasium between May 15 and 17, where the group premiered the new songs off their upcoming album. Their fourth studio album, Odd, was released on May 18, and the following day the music video to the title song, "View", was released. The track was written and produced by LDN Noise and Jonghyun. The music video for "View" was the most watched K-pop music video in the world for the month of May. Odd debuted at number nine on Billboards Heatseekers Albums chart as well as number one on Billboards World Albums chart and sold over 2,000 copies in the US. The repackaged album, Married to the Music, was released on August 3, 2015, with four additional songs. Gaon Music Chart released year-end sales for 2015 which revealed that Shinee was one of only five male groups to make it onto the digital chart, at 41st place, and one of only four male groups to make it into the top 100 of the download and streaming charts, at 78th and 65th place, respectively.
They released their eleventh and twelfth Japanese singles, "Sing Your Song" and "D×D×D", on October 25, 2015, and December 13, 2015, respectively, the latter being the lead single for their fourth Japanese album of the same name. On January 1, 2016, Shinee released their fourth full-length Japanese album, D×D×D, which included the group's previously released singles and the Japanese version of "View". The album topped the Oricon charts. To promote the album, they launched their fourth nationwide Japanese stadium tour, Shinee World 2016, starting in Fukuoka's Marine Messe on January 30, 2016, and ending at the Tokyo Dome on May 19, 2016, with a total of 20 concerts in nine cities. Their agency estimated that the concert could have gathered up to 350,000 people, which would bring the cumulative total of visitors to all of Shinee's Japanese tours to 1.12 million. The tour marked their second time headlining Tokyo Dome, which they did on May 18 and 19, and first time headlining Kyocera Dome, on May 14 and 15. They released their 13th Japanese single, "Kimi no Sei de", on May 18, which sold over 69,000 copies in Japan.
In February 2016, Forbes released their top forty of Forbes Korea Power Celebrity, Shinee being included once again. In March, Shinee won the Asia's Best Group Award at the 23rd DongFang Music Awards in Shanghai, one of the biggest annual award ceremonies in China. The group was the only K-pop act invited to attend and perform at the ceremony.
On September 4, 2016, Shinee held their fifth solo concert, titled Shinee World V, in Seoul. Four of the 34 songs performed were songs from the group's new album, which was released on October 5, 2016, under the title 1 of 1. The album "spins a hyper-modernized twist on the retro genre", inspired by the 1980–1990 period. The repackaged version, titled 1 and 1, was released on November 15, 2016, with five new songs. On December 21, 2016, Shinee released their fourteenth Japanese single, "Winter Wonderland", which debuted at number two on the Oricon Charts and sold over 80,000 copies in one week. Shinee also had the sixth biggest audience numbers for their concerts in Japan in 2016, with an estimated 510,000 people across 28 concerts. Shinee were one of two non-Japanese artists, along with Big Bang, to make it into the top ten of the list.
2017–2019: Five, Jonghyun's death, The Story of Light, and military service
On February 22, Shinee released their fifth full-length Japanese album, Five. To promote the album, they launched their fifth Japan tour, Shinee World 2017, starting on January 28, 2017, and ending in Tokyo on April 30, 2017, with a total of 25 concerts in 10 cities. Later on, the group added four additional performances for the tour at Tokyo Dome and Kyocera Dome starting September. Shinee ranked eighth in Japan for their concert audience numbers in 2017, with approximately 539,000 attendees.
On December 18, 2017, Jonghyun died from suicide. His funeral was held on December 21 with the rest of Shinee and numerous artists in attendance, including Girls' Generation, IU, Super Junior, and more. Shinee was slated to have a series of concerts in Japan in February 2018, and after entering into discussions on whether to postpone them, they decided to continue promoting as a four-member group and proceed with their Japanese tour as scheduled. On March 26, Shinee released their Japanese single, "From Now On", posthumously featuring Jonghyun, and shortly after, the group released their first Japanese compilation, Shinee The Best From Now On.
On May 15, 2018, SM Entertainment revealed teasers for a three-part Korean album, titled The Story of Light. The first part of the album was released on May 28 with the single "Good Evening", and the second part of the trilogy was released on June 11 with the single "I Want You". According to the group, the second part of the album represents the group's view of themselves, while the first part reflected what others think of them. The third and last part of the album is fronted by the single "Our Page" and was released on June 25. On August 1, 2018, the Japanese versions of "Good Evening" and "I Want You" were released on Shinee's 15th Japanese single "Sunny Side", alongside the track of the same name, which was written by the group members. On September 10, 2018, Shinee released their sixth album repackage, The Story of Light Epilogue, consisting of all tracks from the previous three albums, and one new song, titled "Countless".
Onew applied and enlisted for his mandatory military service in December 2018. It was announced in early 2019 that both Key and Minho would be enlisting in the first half of the year. Key applied for military band service and enlisted on March 4, 2019. Minho enlisted in the Marines on April 15, 2019.
2020–present: Don't Call Me and Superstar
Onew was discharged from the military on July 8, 2020, followed by Key and Minho on September 24 and November 15, respectively. On January 6, 2021, SM Entertainment announced Shinee would return with a new album after two and a half years. The group's seventh Korean studio album Don't Call Me, featuring the album's title track as the lead single alongside its music video, was released on February 22, 2021. The album was commercially successful, debuting at number one on the Gaon Album Chart and receiving a Platinum certification from KMCA for over 250,000 copies sold. Using the Beyond Live platform, they held an online concert titled Shinee World on April 4, 2021, which recorded 130,000 viewers across 120 countries. A repackaged version of their seventh album, Atlantis, was released on April 12, 2021, featuring three new songs including the title track of the same name.
On May 23, 2021, Shinee held an online fan meeting titled Bistro de Shinee to celebrate the tenth anniversary of their debut in Japan. They premiered their new Japanese single "Superstar" at the event, which was released on digital music platforms the following day. Taemin enlisted as part of the military band on May 31, becoming the final member of the group to enlist. On June 28, 2021, Shinee released the digital version of their new Japanese extended play Superstar, featuring five songs, their first Japanese release since 2018. The physical version was released on July 28, 2021. The EP became Shinee's fourth release to top the Oricon Albums Chart and was certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies.
Members
On December 18, 2017, Jonghyun died from suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning at the age of 27. Following Jonghyun's death, Shinee continued as a four-member group, and the remaining members completed their military service. Onew enlisted in the military in December 2018 and was discharged on July 8, 2020. Key enlisted on March 4, 2019 and was discharged on September 24, 2020. Minho enlisted on April 15, 2019 and was discharged on November 15, 2020. Taemin is the last member in military, enlisting on May 31, 2021.
Current (active)
Onew (온유)
Key (키)
Minho (민호)
Current (inactive)
Taemin (태민) (inactive due to military service)
Former
Jonghyun (종현)
Timeline
Note: Jonghyun still appears posthumously in The Story of Light despite his death on December 18, 2017.
Artistry
Public image
Shinee is known for their fashion style, initially created by designer Ha Sang-beg, which features high-top sneakers, skinny jeans, and colorful sweaters. Their style has created a fashion trend amongst students which the media dubbed the "Shinee Trend". The group's "boyish charm" was an important factor in Shinee gaining fans. With the release of 2009, Year of Us, Shinee's style became more mature, though still maintaining Shinee's unique image. Furthermore, instead of working with famous artists and photographers, SM Entertainment's Visual and Art Directing department usually works with up-and-coming talents with new ideas for Shinee's concepts. When Shinee debuted in 2008 with "Replay", it was not only their music which gained attention but also their colorful style—but even four years later, in 2012, Shinee maintained their colorful concept for Sherlock. Ha stated in an interview with The Korea Times: "Much has evolved over the years, since I change their styles to reflect their music. The feel from their debut single still exists, mixing the overground with the underground, haute couture with street fashion ... but it is very modern, like Shinee."
Vocals and choreography
Shinee are acknowledged for their "innovative approach to music and peerless choreography" and are considered some of the best live vocalists and dancers in Korean pop. They are known for their good vocal performances and complex choreographies, as well as a unique style of music that sets them apart from other K-pop artists. At SM Entertainment's showcase in New York in October 2011, Jon Caramanica of The New York Times summarized them as "the most ambitious" of the evening and also complimented the group's strong vocal performance. Furthermore, he stated: "Their music, especially "Replay", "Ring Ding Dong" and "Juliette", felt the riskiest, even if it only slightly tweaked that polyglot K-pop formula". Kim Joo-hyun of Beff Report considers Shinee's greatest strength the dismantling of the boundaries between the role of main vocal and subvocal. He positively emphasised the harmony between the two main vocals, Onew and Jonghyun, saying they sing with an aesthetic of "contrast", meaning they can't be separated from each other; on the contrary, they actually suit each other when brought together. He also praised the vocal development of Taemin, the youngest member in the group. Jakob Dorof of the monthly British style magazine Dazed described Shinee as possessing "technicolor visuals", "choreography as coordinated as ballet", and "wildly adventurous hit songs", stating they are a group that embodies the harmony of these qualities better than anyone else. Tamar Herman of Paste described Shinee as one of K-pop's most popular dance groups, "with cutting edge dance moves that are just as technically creative as the songs they've performed".
Shinee have worked with top choreographers such as Rino Nakasone, who choreographed Shinee's early songs like "Replay" and "Love Like Oxygen" in 2008, "Juliette" in 2009, and the group's hit single "Lucifer" in 2010, which was nominated for the Best Dance Performance at the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2010. Misha Gabriel choreographed the songs "Amigo" (2008) and "Ring Ding Dong" (2009). Tony Testa worked on Shinee's later hit songs like "Sherlock (Clue + Note)" (2012) and "Dream Girl" (2013), which are characterized by a unique and distinctive style, while Ian Eastwood worked on "View" (2015) – breaking away from the group's usual powerful and precise choreography and working instead with a groove style that showcases the teamwork of the group. All three songs were awarded with the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards: in 2012, 2013, and 2015.
Musical style and themes
The predominant musical genre of the group is contemporary R&B. The group's early singles like "Replay" and "Lucifer" were influenced by R&B and dance pop, while tracks such as "Get Down" and "JoJo" explored other musical styles such as hip-hop and dance. Shinee's third album is significantly influenced by funk rock, electronic music and rock. Billboard columnist Jeff Benjamin compared Shinee's songs like "Punch Drunk Love" and "Aside" to the sounds of Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, while tracks like "Beautiful" and "Runaway" combine "unique electronic production elements over sugary boy band harmonies to create year-round pop music".
Shinee as a group is known for their experimental sound and ability to execute a wide range of genres. An example of this is the group's fifth extended play, Everybody, whose title song is classified under the complextro genre. Jakob Dorof of Tiny Mix Tapes stated that "Everybody is proof positive that, even in a culture industry designed to minimize the role of real musicianship, talent will find its way to the top." He also remarked that "Close the Door" highlights the experimental and versatile nature of Shinee's music which frequently charts into unfamiliar territories.
With the release of their fourth Korean album, Odd, Shinee returned to their old sound while experimenting with new genres like deep house. According to Key, Odd marked the first time the group had direct involvement in the album production process, including the decision over picking the lead single as well as the album's concept. The costumes were based on Key's ideas — a vintage, old-school [aesthetic], during a time when other groups mostly wore uniforms. The album spanned a variety of styles including the two singles — the deep house "View" and Rocky Horror-inspired funk track "Married to the Music". Alexis Hodoyan-Gastelum of MTV praised the title song, "View", describing it as a "great, laid back summer jam" even though "the song fools us into thinking it's an uptempo ballad before reaching its techno peak at the chorus." Jeff Benjamin, on the other hand, praised "Odd Eye", which is written and composed by member Jonghyun. Benjamin states the group's "return to the R&B side of Shinee with feathery vocals, tight harmonies and member Onew's falsetto howls acting a centerpiece to this grooving opener" but he also adds, "despite initially debuting with a R&B sound, Shinee is arguably most exciting when experimenting".
Endorsements
Early in their career, Shinee were endorsers for several brands, such as the cosmetic brand Nana's B and the sports brand Reebok. Later, they endorsed the clothing brand Maypole as well as the popular Korean cosmetic brands Etude House and The Saem. In 2012, Etude House's Lash Pump 3-Step Volume-Cara, a PC-based and mobile micro-site featuring "doll eyelashes" main model Sandara Park and Shinee—appearing as puppets—was awarded first place in the Mobile Marketing and Product Promotions categories at the 9th Web Awards Korea. The group was also part of the popular Korean comic The Blade of the Phantom Master and webtoon series ENT. Furthermore, the group endorsed the sports brand Skechers and collaborated with Naver and Skechers for T-shirts and caps designed by the group members. Companies whose products are promoted by the Shinee label often see increased revenue; for example, "Shinee's Sparking Water", a carbonated bottled water sold by E-mart, boasted a combined sales of 67 million won over a one-month period.
Discography
Korean albums
The Shinee World (2008)
Lucifer (2010)
The Misconceptions of Us (2013)
Odd (2015)
1 of 1 (2016)
The Story of Light (2018)
Don't Call Me (2021)
Japanese albums
The First (2011)
Boys Meet U (2013)
I'm Your Boy (2014)
D×D×D (2016)
Five (2017)
Tours
Headlining
Asia tours
Shinee World (2010–2011)
Shinee World II (2012)
Shinee World IV (2015)
World tours
Shinee World III (2014)
Shinee World V (2016–2017)
Japan tours
Shinee World 2012 (2012)
Shinee World 2013 ~Boys Meet U~ (2013)
Shinee World 2014 ~I'm Your Boy~ (2014)
Shinee World 2016 ~DxDxD~ (2016)
Shinee World 2017 ~Five~ (2017)
Shinee World The Best 2018 ~From Now On~ (2018)
Fanmeetings
Shinee World J Presents ~Shinee Special Fan Event~ (2018)
Online concerts
Beyond Live – Shinee: Shinee World (2021)
Online fanmeetings
Shinee World J Presents ~Bistro de Shinee~ (2021)
Concert participation
SM Town Live '08 (2008–2009)
SM Town Live '10 World Tour (2010–2011)
SM Town Live World Tour III (2012–2013)
SM Town Week – "The Wizard" (2013)
SM Town Live World Tour IV (2014–2015)
KCON: Paris, France and Los Angeles, United States (2016)
SM Town Live World Tour V in Japan (2016)
SM Town Live World Tour VI in Korea and Japan (2017)
Supporting act
TVXQ! Asia Tour "Mirotic" (2009)
Girls' Generation Asia Tour "Into the New World" (2009–2010)
Filmography
Film
Television drama
Reality shows
Awards and nominations
Publications
Children of the Sun: Onew, Key, Taemin of Shinee in Barcelona, Woongjin Think Big Co., Ltd (September 12, 2011)
Shinee Surprise Vacation - Travel Note, SM Entertainment (May 27, 2013),
References
External links
(2020 archive)
Japanese-language singers of South Korea
K-pop music groups
SM Entertainment artists
South Korean dance music groups
Musical groups established in 2008
Musical groups from Seoul
SM Town
South Korean boy bands
Universal Music Japan artists
Virgin Records artists
Mnet Asian Music Award winners
Musical quintets
Melon Music Award winners | false | [
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"Fallen Stars and Rising Scars is the first album by progressive metal band Wastefall.\n\nTrack listing\n Killing of Wolves (04:52)\t\n Like Father Like None\t(06:06)\t\n For What is to be Lost (01:33)\t\n Fall of Eva (05:33)\t\n Annabel Lee (06:55)\n Confession (02:15)\t\n Subroutine (04:32)\t\n April's Ruin (05:42)\t\n That was all About (07:14)\n One with the Fall (06:44)\n\nExternal links\nAlbum info on Metal Storm\n\nWastefall albums\n2003 albums"
] |
[
"Shinee",
"2009-2010: Rising popularity and Lucifer",
"What is Rising popularity about?",
"I don't know."
] | C_49801ec35b494288bfa0169cde8bd97f_0 | What interesting fact about the article can you tell me about? | 2 | What interesting fact about the article "Shinee, 2009-2010: Rising popularity and Lucifer" can you tell me about? | Shinee | In early February 2009, Shinee won the "Best Newcomer" award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards. Shinee's second extended play, Romeo, was released on May 25. Its lead single, "Juliette", was released earlier on May 18. The song is an instrumental remake of Corbin Bleu's "Deal with It". Shinee had their first stage performance for the song on KBS's Music Bank in June, 2009, where the group also received the award for the first place. Shinee released the digital version of their third extended play, 2009, Year of Us on October 19, 2009, with a physical release on October 22. The lead single, "Ring Ding Dong", was released digitally on October 14 and charted atop of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. In early December 2009, the group was also awarded with the "Popularity" award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards. On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full length studio album, Lucifer, which topped various physical and digital sales charts in South Korea. The songs on the album "were more carefully selected than ever," and the album is said to "[give] listeners a great chance to experience the diverse musical characters and more mature vocal skills of the members." The group made their comeback on July 23, 2010 at KBS Music Bank. For its outstanding choreography, "Lucifer", was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards. Lucifer became the 6th best-selling album of 2010 in South Korea, selling over 120,000 copies. In October, 2010, the album was re-released under the title Hello. Amidst their promotional activities for the second studio album, the group also participated in the SMTown Live '10 World Tour on August 21, 2010. On December 26, 2010, Shinee commenced their first concert tour, Shinee World, at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo. The event was attended by approximately 24,000 people. CANNOTANSWER | In early February 2009, Shinee won the "Best Newcomer" award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards. | Shinee ( ; ; ; stylized as SHINee) is a South Korean boy band formed by SM Entertainment in 2008. The group's musical impact in their native country has earned them numerous accolades and the title "Princes of K-pop". The group is composed of four members: Onew, Key, Minho, and Taemin. Originally a five-piece group, vocalist Jonghyun died in December 2017.
Shinee debuted in May 2008 with their first EP, Replay, on SBS' Inkigayo with their single "Replay". The group gained attention for starting a fashion trend amongst students, which the media dubbed the "Shinee Trend". In August 2008, the group released their first Korean studio album, The Shinee World, which won Newcomer Album of the Year at the 23rd Golden Disc Awards. Shinee further consolidated their popularity on the South Korean music scene with follow-up singles "Ring Ding Dong" and "Lucifer". "Ring Ding Dong" charted on top of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. "Lucifer" was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2010 for its outstanding choreography. In 2012 the group released Sherlock, which became the fifth most sold album of the year with over 180,000 copies sold. The group has also been included in the Forbes list of Korea Power Celebrity multiple times, once in 2014 and again in 2016.
In mid-2011, Shinee signed with EMI Records Japan to venture into the Japanese music scene. Their Japanese version of their single "Replay" sold over 100,000 copies, the highest number of sales for a Japanese debut single recorded by Oricon for a South Korean group at the time. It was followed by their first Japanese studio album, The First, on December 7, 2011 – both were certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. In 2011, the group also held their Japan Debut Premium Reception at Abbey Road Studios in London, making them the first Asian artists to perform there. Two years later they released their second Japanese album Boys Meet U (2013), followed by I'm Your Boy (2014), D×D×D (2016), and Five (2017).
Shinee is considered to be one of the best live vocal groups in K-pop and is known for their highly synchronized and complex dance routines, having been awarded the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards three times in a row for their dance performances to "Sherlock (Clue + Note)", "Dream Girl" and "View". Shinee's signature musical style is contemporary R&B, but the group is known for their experimental sound, incorporating various genres including funk rock, hip hop, and EDM.
History
2008: Debut and The Shinee World
Prior to the group's debut, the label company, SM Entertainment, introduced an upcoming contemporary R&B boy group with its goal to be trendsetters in all areas of music, fashion and dance. The group's Korean name, Shinee, is a new coined word and is explained as a combination of shine, meaning light, and the suffix ee, therefore meaning "one who receives the light". On May 22, 2008, the group's first EP, Replay, was released, which debuted at number ten on the South Korean music charts and peaked at number eight, selling 17,957 copies in the first half of 2008. On May 25, 2008, Shinee had their first stage performance on SBS' Inkigayo with their single "Replay".
In June 2008, the group won their first award, Rookie of the Month, at the Cyworld Digital Music Awards, and were also awarded with the Hot New Star award at the Mnet 20's Choice Awards in August 2008. In the same month, Shinee subsequently released their first full-length album, The Shinee World, which debuted at number three, selling 30,000 copies. Its title track "Love Like Oxygen" is a cover of "Show the World" by Martin Hoberg Hedegaard, originally written by the Danish songwriting and production team of Thomas Troelsen, Remee, and Lucas Secon. On September 18, 2008, the song won first place on M Countdown, making it the group's first win on a South Korean music show since debut.
Shinee participated in the 5th Asia Song Festival, where they received the Best New Artist award along with Japanese girl group Berryz Kobo. The group attended the Style Icon Awards on October 30, 2008, where they received the Best Style Icon Award. On the same day, a repackaged version of The Shinee World, titled Amigo, was released, which includes three new songs: "Forever or Never", a remix of "Love Should Go On", and the title track "Amigo". "Amigo" is a shortened version of the Korean phrase "areumdaun minyeoreul joahamyeon gosaenghanda", which can be translated to "The heart aches when you fall in love with a beauty".
In November 2008, Shinee won the Best New Male Group award at the 2008 Mnet Km Music Festival, beating fellow newcomers U-KISS, 2PM, 2AM and Mighty Mouth. In addition, the group also won the award for Newcomer Album of the Year at the 23rd Golden Disk Awards.
2009–2010: Rising popularity and Lucifer
In early February 2009, Shinee won the Best Newcomer award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards. Shinee's second extended play, Romeo, was released on May 25. Its lead single, "Juliette", was released earlier on May 18. The song is an instrumental remake of Corbin Bleu's "Deal with It". Shinee had their first stage performance for the song on KBS' Music Bank in June 2009, where the group also received the award for the first place.
Shinee released the digital version of their third extended play, 2009, Year of Us, on October 19, 2009, with a physical release on October 22. The lead single, "Ring Ding Dong", was released digitally on October 14 and charted atop of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. In early December 2009, the group won the Popularity Award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards.
On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full-length studio album, Lucifer, which topped various physical and digital sales charts in South Korea. The songs on the album "were more carefully selected than ever", and the album is said to "[give] listeners a great chance to experience the diverse musical characters and more mature vocal skills of the members." The group made their comeback on July 23, 2010, at KBS' Music Bank. For its outstanding choreography, "Lucifer" was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards. Lucifer became the sixth best-selling album of 2010 in South Korea, selling over 120,000 copies. In October 2010, the album was re-released under the title Hello. Amidst their promotional activities for the second studio album, the group also participated in the SM Town Live '10 World Tour on August 21, 2010. On December 26, 2010, Shinee commenced their first concert tour, Shinee World, at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo. The event was attended by approximately 24,000 people.
2011–2012: Japanese debut, The First and Sherlock
On January 1, 2011, Shinee performed at Olympic Gymnastics Arena in Seoul as a part of their tour, Shinee World, followed by various cities in Japan throughout 2011. On January 25 and 26, 2011, the group participated in the Japan leg of the SM Town Live '10 World Tour in Tokyo, which continued on to two concerts in Paris at Zénith Paris, three concerts in Tokyo at Tokyo Dome, and at Madison Square Garden in New York City. On June 22, 2011, the group made their debut in Japan with the Japanese version of "Replay", which sold more than 91,000 copies in the first week. It was subsequently certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. It was the highest sales recorded by Oricon for a South Korean group debut at the time.
On June 19, Shinee made history by becoming the first Asian artists to perform at Abbey Road Studios in London, holding their Japan Debut Premium Reception there. On July 22, 2011, Shinee started their Japan Debut Premium Reception Tour and held several concerts in various cities across Japan. On August 28 and October 12, 2011, two Japanese remakes, "Juliette" and "Lucifer", were released, respectively. On August 9, 2011, Shinee took part in an effort to help African children. The groups were joined by the United Nations' Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, in the "Help African Children" project co-organized by the Korean Red Cross Society and the Korean UNICEF committee.
In November 2011, Shinee were invited to be the opening act of the 6th London Korean Film Festival, which took place at the Odeon West End Theater. The group held an hour-long gala concert to open the festival with tickets selling out within minutes. This marked the first time that any Korean artist(s) had held an independent concert in London.
The group's first Japanese studio album, The First, was released in December 2011. It featured five new songs in addition to Japanese remakes of seven previously released Korean songs. The regular version of the album also featured the theme song of the drama Strangers 6, entitled "Stranger", as a bonus. The album was certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. On December 8, Taemin, Onew, and Key debuted as writers and released a travelogue, Children of the Sun, containing stories from their trip to Barcelona, Spain. The members shot the photos and wrote the commentaries themselves. Shinee also participated in the album 2011 Winter SM Town – The Warmest Gift with a cover of the song "Last Christmas". The compilation album by SM artists was released on December 13, 2011.
Shinee held a commemorative concert in honor of the successful release of their first Japanese album, The First, at the Tokyo International Forum Hall A on December 24, 2011. The live concert took place three times in order to accommodate the 15,000 fans that won a lottery to attend. They performed a total of six songs including their Japanese debut singles, "Replay (Kimi wa Boku no Everything)" and "Lucifer", and "To Your Heart". On December 28, 2011, Tower Records Japan announced that Shinee had won the Artist of the Year award at the 2011 K-Pop Lovers! Awards. Shinee's fourth Korean mini album, Sherlock, was released digitally on March 19 and physically on March 21. Sherlock became the fifth best-selling album of the year in South Korea with over 180,000 copies sold. On March 26, 2012, Shinee, alongside their labelmates, became stockholders of SM Entertainment. They received 340 shares each (value of around $13,600 for each member).
The Japanese remake of "Sherlock" was released in Japan on May 16. The group started their first Japan nationwide concert tour, Shinee World 2012, on April 25, 2012. The tour had a total of 20 concerts in Fukuoka, Sapporo, Nagoya, Osaka, Kobe, Tokyo and Hiroshima. Their tour set a record for the most people in attendance for a Korean act's first Japan tour with a total of 200,000 people. On May 20, 2012, Shinee participated in the SM Town Live World Tour III alongside their label-mates at Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Shinee held their second solo concert, Shinee World II, beginning in Seoul on July 21 and 22 at Olympic Gymnastics Arena.
Shinee released an original Japanese single, "Dazzling Girl", on October 10, 2012. The single sold 97,111 copies in its first week and was chosen to be the theme song for the Japanese TV series Sukkiri. On November 19, 2012, along with actor Kim Soo-hyun, Shinee won the Ministry of Culture Award at South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Korea Creative Content Agency's (KOCCA) annual award show, the Korean Popular Culture and Arts Awards, at Seoul Olympic Hall. Shinee attended the 2012 Mnet Asian Music Awards in November 2012, which was held in Hong Kong, winning Best Dance Performance – Male Group for their latest Korean single, "Sherlock (Clue + Note)". Shinee released their first Japanese ballad single (sixth overall), "1000-nen, Zutto Soba ni Ite...", and the concert video album for their Shinee World 2012 arena tour on December 12, 2012.
2013–2014: Dream Girl, Why So Serious?, Boys Meet U, Everybody and I'm Your Boy
On January 15, 2013, Shinee attended the 27th Golden Disk Awards, which was held in Kuala Lumpur at Sepang International Circuit, and received the Popularity Award for the third time after winning the same title in 2009 and 2010. They also received the Disk Bonsang for Sherlock, their second after winning for Lucifer in 2010. On February 3, MBC announced that Shinee would be starring in their own Lunar New Year special entitled Shinee's Wonderful Day (also known as Shinee's One Fine Day), which began airing on February 10. The special featured the Shinee members visiting various countries of their choice without the assistance of their management staff and with the production crew instructed to not interfere. For the special, Onew visited Thailand, Jonghyun visited Japan, Key and Minho visited England, and Taemin visited Switzerland.
Shinee's third Korean album consisted of two versions: the first part, Dream Girl – The Misconceptions of You, being released on February 19 and the second part, Why So Serious? – The Misconceptions of Me, being released on April 29. The title track of part one, "Dream Girl", is an acid electro funk track and was produced by Shin Hyuk and Joombas Music Factory, while the title track of part two, "Why So Serious?", is a funk rock dance track written and produced by Kenzie. A compilation album was subsequently released, The Misconceptions of Us, with two new songs: "Selene 6.23" and "Better Off".
On March 13, Shinee released the Japanese single "Fire". On June 26, the group released their second Japanese album, Boys Meet U, and on August 21, a single with the same name was released, including the Japanese version of "Dream Girl". On June 28, 2013, Shinee started their second Japan nationwide concert tour, Shinee World 2013, in Saitama.
In November 2013, Shinee won Artist of the Year at the Melon Music Awards, one of the biggest award ceremonies in the country, which awards prizes based on digital sales and online votes. It was the first time the group won the prize. On September 29, SM Entertainment announced that Shinee's fifth EP, Everybody, would be released on October 14. On November 6, 2013, SM Entertainment announced its week-long music festival called SM Town Week. Shinee's concert, titled The Wizard, opened the event on December 21 at the Kintex in Ilsan.
On January 29, 2014, it was announced that Shinee would hold their third Korean solo concert, Shinee World III, in March, with shows added in Latin America. On February 24, the mayor of Gangnam District, Shin Yeon-hee, announced that Shinee had been appointed honorary ambassadors of the district. On April 2, Shinee released a live concert album from their second solo concert.
On June 25, Universal Music Japan released Shinee's tenth Japanese single, "Lucky Star", as their first release under EMI Records. On September 24, Universal Music Japan released the group's third Japanese album, I'm Your Boy, preceded by the singles "Boys Meet U", "3 2 1", and "Lucky Star". From September till December 2014 Shinee embarked on their third Japan tour. It started off at Chiba on September 28, with 30 scheduled performances around the country.
On December 11, 2014, the group released their third live concert album, from Shinee World III, held in Olympic Gymnastics Arena on March 8 and 9 the same year. It contained two CDs with a total of 33 tracks. SM Entertainment stated on December 15 that Shinee sold out the World Memorial Hall in Kobe, Japan, with 16,000 fans attending between December 13 and 14. With that, Shinee successfully completed their 20-city, 30-concert tour, gathering 200,000 audience members overall. Furthermore, Shinee held a solo concert in Tokyo Dome, the first time since their Japanese debut, on March 14 and 15, 2015. The Tokyo Dome concert was the finale and encore for their Japanese tour. Forbes listed Shinee among Korea Power Celebrity in 2014.
2015–2016: Odd, DxDxD and 1 of 1
On February 17, Shinee were invited as the only Korean artist(s) to China's Lunar New Year Program, Chun Jie Wan Hui, which is hosted by Liaoning TV and has been the highest viewed show in its timeslot for 12 years. The same month, the group became ambassadors of the Ministry of Personnel Management to promote Korean music, dance and fashion. Their tasks as ambassadors included performing at events around the world to encourage cultural exchanges between the nations.
Shinee held a three-day long concert, Shinee World IV, at Seoul's Olympic Park Gymnastics Gymnasium between May 15 and 17, where the group premiered the new songs off their upcoming album. Their fourth studio album, Odd, was released on May 18, and the following day the music video to the title song, "View", was released. The track was written and produced by LDN Noise and Jonghyun. The music video for "View" was the most watched K-pop music video in the world for the month of May. Odd debuted at number nine on Billboards Heatseekers Albums chart as well as number one on Billboards World Albums chart and sold over 2,000 copies in the US. The repackaged album, Married to the Music, was released on August 3, 2015, with four additional songs. Gaon Music Chart released year-end sales for 2015 which revealed that Shinee was one of only five male groups to make it onto the digital chart, at 41st place, and one of only four male groups to make it into the top 100 of the download and streaming charts, at 78th and 65th place, respectively.
They released their eleventh and twelfth Japanese singles, "Sing Your Song" and "D×D×D", on October 25, 2015, and December 13, 2015, respectively, the latter being the lead single for their fourth Japanese album of the same name. On January 1, 2016, Shinee released their fourth full-length Japanese album, D×D×D, which included the group's previously released singles and the Japanese version of "View". The album topped the Oricon charts. To promote the album, they launched their fourth nationwide Japanese stadium tour, Shinee World 2016, starting in Fukuoka's Marine Messe on January 30, 2016, and ending at the Tokyo Dome on May 19, 2016, with a total of 20 concerts in nine cities. Their agency estimated that the concert could have gathered up to 350,000 people, which would bring the cumulative total of visitors to all of Shinee's Japanese tours to 1.12 million. The tour marked their second time headlining Tokyo Dome, which they did on May 18 and 19, and first time headlining Kyocera Dome, on May 14 and 15. They released their 13th Japanese single, "Kimi no Sei de", on May 18, which sold over 69,000 copies in Japan.
In February 2016, Forbes released their top forty of Forbes Korea Power Celebrity, Shinee being included once again. In March, Shinee won the Asia's Best Group Award at the 23rd DongFang Music Awards in Shanghai, one of the biggest annual award ceremonies in China. The group was the only K-pop act invited to attend and perform at the ceremony.
On September 4, 2016, Shinee held their fifth solo concert, titled Shinee World V, in Seoul. Four of the 34 songs performed were songs from the group's new album, which was released on October 5, 2016, under the title 1 of 1. The album "spins a hyper-modernized twist on the retro genre", inspired by the 1980–1990 period. The repackaged version, titled 1 and 1, was released on November 15, 2016, with five new songs. On December 21, 2016, Shinee released their fourteenth Japanese single, "Winter Wonderland", which debuted at number two on the Oricon Charts and sold over 80,000 copies in one week. Shinee also had the sixth biggest audience numbers for their concerts in Japan in 2016, with an estimated 510,000 people across 28 concerts. Shinee were one of two non-Japanese artists, along with Big Bang, to make it into the top ten of the list.
2017–2019: Five, Jonghyun's death, The Story of Light, and military service
On February 22, Shinee released their fifth full-length Japanese album, Five. To promote the album, they launched their fifth Japan tour, Shinee World 2017, starting on January 28, 2017, and ending in Tokyo on April 30, 2017, with a total of 25 concerts in 10 cities. Later on, the group added four additional performances for the tour at Tokyo Dome and Kyocera Dome starting September. Shinee ranked eighth in Japan for their concert audience numbers in 2017, with approximately 539,000 attendees.
On December 18, 2017, Jonghyun died from suicide. His funeral was held on December 21 with the rest of Shinee and numerous artists in attendance, including Girls' Generation, IU, Super Junior, and more. Shinee was slated to have a series of concerts in Japan in February 2018, and after entering into discussions on whether to postpone them, they decided to continue promoting as a four-member group and proceed with their Japanese tour as scheduled. On March 26, Shinee released their Japanese single, "From Now On", posthumously featuring Jonghyun, and shortly after, the group released their first Japanese compilation, Shinee The Best From Now On.
On May 15, 2018, SM Entertainment revealed teasers for a three-part Korean album, titled The Story of Light. The first part of the album was released on May 28 with the single "Good Evening", and the second part of the trilogy was released on June 11 with the single "I Want You". According to the group, the second part of the album represents the group's view of themselves, while the first part reflected what others think of them. The third and last part of the album is fronted by the single "Our Page" and was released on June 25. On August 1, 2018, the Japanese versions of "Good Evening" and "I Want You" were released on Shinee's 15th Japanese single "Sunny Side", alongside the track of the same name, which was written by the group members. On September 10, 2018, Shinee released their sixth album repackage, The Story of Light Epilogue, consisting of all tracks from the previous three albums, and one new song, titled "Countless".
Onew applied and enlisted for his mandatory military service in December 2018. It was announced in early 2019 that both Key and Minho would be enlisting in the first half of the year. Key applied for military band service and enlisted on March 4, 2019. Minho enlisted in the Marines on April 15, 2019.
2020–present: Don't Call Me and Superstar
Onew was discharged from the military on July 8, 2020, followed by Key and Minho on September 24 and November 15, respectively. On January 6, 2021, SM Entertainment announced Shinee would return with a new album after two and a half years. The group's seventh Korean studio album Don't Call Me, featuring the album's title track as the lead single alongside its music video, was released on February 22, 2021. The album was commercially successful, debuting at number one on the Gaon Album Chart and receiving a Platinum certification from KMCA for over 250,000 copies sold. Using the Beyond Live platform, they held an online concert titled Shinee World on April 4, 2021, which recorded 130,000 viewers across 120 countries. A repackaged version of their seventh album, Atlantis, was released on April 12, 2021, featuring three new songs including the title track of the same name.
On May 23, 2021, Shinee held an online fan meeting titled Bistro de Shinee to celebrate the tenth anniversary of their debut in Japan. They premiered their new Japanese single "Superstar" at the event, which was released on digital music platforms the following day. Taemin enlisted as part of the military band on May 31, becoming the final member of the group to enlist. On June 28, 2021, Shinee released the digital version of their new Japanese extended play Superstar, featuring five songs, their first Japanese release since 2018. The physical version was released on July 28, 2021. The EP became Shinee's fourth release to top the Oricon Albums Chart and was certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies.
Members
On December 18, 2017, Jonghyun died from suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning at the age of 27. Following Jonghyun's death, Shinee continued as a four-member group, and the remaining members completed their military service. Onew enlisted in the military in December 2018 and was discharged on July 8, 2020. Key enlisted on March 4, 2019 and was discharged on September 24, 2020. Minho enlisted on April 15, 2019 and was discharged on November 15, 2020. Taemin is the last member in military, enlisting on May 31, 2021.
Current (active)
Onew (온유)
Key (키)
Minho (민호)
Current (inactive)
Taemin (태민) (inactive due to military service)
Former
Jonghyun (종현)
Timeline
Note: Jonghyun still appears posthumously in The Story of Light despite his death on December 18, 2017.
Artistry
Public image
Shinee is known for their fashion style, initially created by designer Ha Sang-beg, which features high-top sneakers, skinny jeans, and colorful sweaters. Their style has created a fashion trend amongst students which the media dubbed the "Shinee Trend". The group's "boyish charm" was an important factor in Shinee gaining fans. With the release of 2009, Year of Us, Shinee's style became more mature, though still maintaining Shinee's unique image. Furthermore, instead of working with famous artists and photographers, SM Entertainment's Visual and Art Directing department usually works with up-and-coming talents with new ideas for Shinee's concepts. When Shinee debuted in 2008 with "Replay", it was not only their music which gained attention but also their colorful style—but even four years later, in 2012, Shinee maintained their colorful concept for Sherlock. Ha stated in an interview with The Korea Times: "Much has evolved over the years, since I change their styles to reflect their music. The feel from their debut single still exists, mixing the overground with the underground, haute couture with street fashion ... but it is very modern, like Shinee."
Vocals and choreography
Shinee are acknowledged for their "innovative approach to music and peerless choreography" and are considered some of the best live vocalists and dancers in Korean pop. They are known for their good vocal performances and complex choreographies, as well as a unique style of music that sets them apart from other K-pop artists. At SM Entertainment's showcase in New York in October 2011, Jon Caramanica of The New York Times summarized them as "the most ambitious" of the evening and also complimented the group's strong vocal performance. Furthermore, he stated: "Their music, especially "Replay", "Ring Ding Dong" and "Juliette", felt the riskiest, even if it only slightly tweaked that polyglot K-pop formula". Kim Joo-hyun of Beff Report considers Shinee's greatest strength the dismantling of the boundaries between the role of main vocal and subvocal. He positively emphasised the harmony between the two main vocals, Onew and Jonghyun, saying they sing with an aesthetic of "contrast", meaning they can't be separated from each other; on the contrary, they actually suit each other when brought together. He also praised the vocal development of Taemin, the youngest member in the group. Jakob Dorof of the monthly British style magazine Dazed described Shinee as possessing "technicolor visuals", "choreography as coordinated as ballet", and "wildly adventurous hit songs", stating they are a group that embodies the harmony of these qualities better than anyone else. Tamar Herman of Paste described Shinee as one of K-pop's most popular dance groups, "with cutting edge dance moves that are just as technically creative as the songs they've performed".
Shinee have worked with top choreographers such as Rino Nakasone, who choreographed Shinee's early songs like "Replay" and "Love Like Oxygen" in 2008, "Juliette" in 2009, and the group's hit single "Lucifer" in 2010, which was nominated for the Best Dance Performance at the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2010. Misha Gabriel choreographed the songs "Amigo" (2008) and "Ring Ding Dong" (2009). Tony Testa worked on Shinee's later hit songs like "Sherlock (Clue + Note)" (2012) and "Dream Girl" (2013), which are characterized by a unique and distinctive style, while Ian Eastwood worked on "View" (2015) – breaking away from the group's usual powerful and precise choreography and working instead with a groove style that showcases the teamwork of the group. All three songs were awarded with the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards: in 2012, 2013, and 2015.
Musical style and themes
The predominant musical genre of the group is contemporary R&B. The group's early singles like "Replay" and "Lucifer" were influenced by R&B and dance pop, while tracks such as "Get Down" and "JoJo" explored other musical styles such as hip-hop and dance. Shinee's third album is significantly influenced by funk rock, electronic music and rock. Billboard columnist Jeff Benjamin compared Shinee's songs like "Punch Drunk Love" and "Aside" to the sounds of Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, while tracks like "Beautiful" and "Runaway" combine "unique electronic production elements over sugary boy band harmonies to create year-round pop music".
Shinee as a group is known for their experimental sound and ability to execute a wide range of genres. An example of this is the group's fifth extended play, Everybody, whose title song is classified under the complextro genre. Jakob Dorof of Tiny Mix Tapes stated that "Everybody is proof positive that, even in a culture industry designed to minimize the role of real musicianship, talent will find its way to the top." He also remarked that "Close the Door" highlights the experimental and versatile nature of Shinee's music which frequently charts into unfamiliar territories.
With the release of their fourth Korean album, Odd, Shinee returned to their old sound while experimenting with new genres like deep house. According to Key, Odd marked the first time the group had direct involvement in the album production process, including the decision over picking the lead single as well as the album's concept. The costumes were based on Key's ideas — a vintage, old-school [aesthetic], during a time when other groups mostly wore uniforms. The album spanned a variety of styles including the two singles — the deep house "View" and Rocky Horror-inspired funk track "Married to the Music". Alexis Hodoyan-Gastelum of MTV praised the title song, "View", describing it as a "great, laid back summer jam" even though "the song fools us into thinking it's an uptempo ballad before reaching its techno peak at the chorus." Jeff Benjamin, on the other hand, praised "Odd Eye", which is written and composed by member Jonghyun. Benjamin states the group's "return to the R&B side of Shinee with feathery vocals, tight harmonies and member Onew's falsetto howls acting a centerpiece to this grooving opener" but he also adds, "despite initially debuting with a R&B sound, Shinee is arguably most exciting when experimenting".
Endorsements
Early in their career, Shinee were endorsers for several brands, such as the cosmetic brand Nana's B and the sports brand Reebok. Later, they endorsed the clothing brand Maypole as well as the popular Korean cosmetic brands Etude House and The Saem. In 2012, Etude House's Lash Pump 3-Step Volume-Cara, a PC-based and mobile micro-site featuring "doll eyelashes" main model Sandara Park and Shinee—appearing as puppets—was awarded first place in the Mobile Marketing and Product Promotions categories at the 9th Web Awards Korea. The group was also part of the popular Korean comic The Blade of the Phantom Master and webtoon series ENT. Furthermore, the group endorsed the sports brand Skechers and collaborated with Naver and Skechers for T-shirts and caps designed by the group members. Companies whose products are promoted by the Shinee label often see increased revenue; for example, "Shinee's Sparking Water", a carbonated bottled water sold by E-mart, boasted a combined sales of 67 million won over a one-month period.
Discography
Korean albums
The Shinee World (2008)
Lucifer (2010)
The Misconceptions of Us (2013)
Odd (2015)
1 of 1 (2016)
The Story of Light (2018)
Don't Call Me (2021)
Japanese albums
The First (2011)
Boys Meet U (2013)
I'm Your Boy (2014)
D×D×D (2016)
Five (2017)
Tours
Headlining
Asia tours
Shinee World (2010–2011)
Shinee World II (2012)
Shinee World IV (2015)
World tours
Shinee World III (2014)
Shinee World V (2016–2017)
Japan tours
Shinee World 2012 (2012)
Shinee World 2013 ~Boys Meet U~ (2013)
Shinee World 2014 ~I'm Your Boy~ (2014)
Shinee World 2016 ~DxDxD~ (2016)
Shinee World 2017 ~Five~ (2017)
Shinee World The Best 2018 ~From Now On~ (2018)
Fanmeetings
Shinee World J Presents ~Shinee Special Fan Event~ (2018)
Online concerts
Beyond Live – Shinee: Shinee World (2021)
Online fanmeetings
Shinee World J Presents ~Bistro de Shinee~ (2021)
Concert participation
SM Town Live '08 (2008–2009)
SM Town Live '10 World Tour (2010–2011)
SM Town Live World Tour III (2012–2013)
SM Town Week – "The Wizard" (2013)
SM Town Live World Tour IV (2014–2015)
KCON: Paris, France and Los Angeles, United States (2016)
SM Town Live World Tour V in Japan (2016)
SM Town Live World Tour VI in Korea and Japan (2017)
Supporting act
TVXQ! Asia Tour "Mirotic" (2009)
Girls' Generation Asia Tour "Into the New World" (2009–2010)
Filmography
Film
Television drama
Reality shows
Awards and nominations
Publications
Children of the Sun: Onew, Key, Taemin of Shinee in Barcelona, Woongjin Think Big Co., Ltd (September 12, 2011)
Shinee Surprise Vacation - Travel Note, SM Entertainment (May 27, 2013),
References
External links
(2020 archive)
Japanese-language singers of South Korea
K-pop music groups
SM Entertainment artists
South Korean dance music groups
Musical groups established in 2008
Musical groups from Seoul
SM Town
South Korean boy bands
Universal Music Japan artists
Virgin Records artists
Mnet Asian Music Award winners
Musical quintets
Melon Music Award winners | false | [
"Follow Me! is a series of television programmes produced by Bayerischer Rundfunk and the BBC in the late 1970s to provide a crash course in the English language. It became popular in many overseas countries as a first introduction to English; in 1983, one hundred million people watched the show in China alone, featuring Kathy Flower.\n\nThe British actor Francis Matthews hosted and narrated the series.\n\nThe course consists of sixty lessons. Each lesson lasts from 12 to 15 minutes and covers a specific lexis. The lessons follow a consistent group of actors, with the relationships between their characters developing during the course.\n\nFollow Me! actors\n Francis Matthews\n Raymond Mason\n David Savile\n Ian Bamforth\n Keith Alexander\n Diane Mercer\n Jane Argyle\n Diana King\n Veronica Leigh\n Elaine Wells\n Danielle Cohn\n Lashawnda Bell\n\nEpisodes \n \"What's your name\"\n \"How are you\"\n \"Can you help me\"\n \"Left, right, straight ahead\"\n \"Where are they\"\n \"What's the time\"\n \"What's this What's that\"\n \"I like it very much\"\n \"Have you got any wine\"\n \"What are they doing\"\n \"Can I have your name, please\"\n \"What does she look like\"\n \"No smoking\"\n \"It's on the first floor\"\n \"Where's he gone\"\n \"Going away\"\n \"Buying things\"\n \"Why do you like it\"\n \"What do you need\"\n \"I sometimes work late\"\n \"Welcome to Britain\"\n \"Who's that\"\n \"What would you like to do\"\n \"How can I get there?\"\n \"Where is it\"\n \"What's the date\"\n \"Whose is it\"\n \"I enjoy it\"\n \"How many and how much\"\n \"What have you done\"\n \"Haven't we met before\"\n \"What did you say\"\n \"Please stop\"\n \"How can I get to Brightly\"\n \"Where can I get it\"\n \"There's a concert on Wednesday\"\n \"What's it like\"\n \"What do you think of him\"\n \"I need someone\"\n \"What were you doing\"\n \"What do you do\"\n \"What do you know about him\"\n \"You shouldn't do that\"\n \"I hope you enjoy your holiday\"\n \"Where can I see a football match\"\n \"When will it be ready\"\n \"Where did you go\"\n \"I think it's awful\"\n \"A room with a view\"\n \"You'll be ill\"\n \"I don't believe in strikes\"\n \"They look tired\"\n \"Would you like to\"\n \"Holiday plans\"\n \"The second shelf on the left\"\n \"When you are ready\"\n \"Tell them about Britain\"\n \"I liked everything\"\n \"Classical or modern\"\n \"Finale\"\n\nReferences \n\n BBC article about the series in China\n\nExternal links \n Follow Me – Beginner level \n Follow Me – Elementary level\n Follow Me – Intermediate level\n Follow Me – Advanced level\n\nAdult education television series\nEnglish-language education television programming",
"\"Tell Me What You Want\" is the fourth single by English R&B band Loose Ends from their first studio album, A Little Spice, and was released in February 1984 by Virgin Records. The single reached number 74 in the UK Singles Chart.\n\nTrack listing\n7” Single: VS658\n \"Tell Me What You Want) 3.35\n \"Tell Me What You Want (Dub Mix)\" 3.34\n\n12” Single: VS658-12\n \"Tell Me What You Want (Extended Version)\" 6.11\n \"Tell Me What You Want (Extended Dub Mix)\" 5.41\n\nU.S. only release - 12” Single: MCA23596 (released 1985)\n \"Tell Me What You Want (U.S. Extended Remix)\" 6.08 *\n \"Tell Me What You Want (U.S. Dub Version)\" 5.18\n\n* The U.S. Extended Remix version was released on CD on the U.S. Version of the 'A Little Spice' album (MCAD27141).\n\nThe Extended Version also featured on Side D of the limited gatefold sleeve version of 'Magic Touch'\n\nChart performance\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Tell Me What You Want at Discogs.\n\n1984 singles\nLoose Ends (band) songs\nSong recordings produced by Nick Martinelli\nSongs written by Carl McIntosh (musician)\nSongs written by Steve Nichol\n1984 songs\nVirgin Records singles"
] |
[
"Shinee",
"2009-2010: Rising popularity and Lucifer",
"What is Rising popularity about?",
"I don't know.",
"What interesting fact about the article can you tell me about?",
"In early February 2009, Shinee won the \"Best Newcomer\" award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards."
] | C_49801ec35b494288bfa0169cde8bd97f_0 | did they win any other awards? | 3 | Other than Best Newcomer, did Shinee win any other awards? | Shinee | In early February 2009, Shinee won the "Best Newcomer" award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards. Shinee's second extended play, Romeo, was released on May 25. Its lead single, "Juliette", was released earlier on May 18. The song is an instrumental remake of Corbin Bleu's "Deal with It". Shinee had their first stage performance for the song on KBS's Music Bank in June, 2009, where the group also received the award for the first place. Shinee released the digital version of their third extended play, 2009, Year of Us on October 19, 2009, with a physical release on October 22. The lead single, "Ring Ding Dong", was released digitally on October 14 and charted atop of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. In early December 2009, the group was also awarded with the "Popularity" award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards. On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full length studio album, Lucifer, which topped various physical and digital sales charts in South Korea. The songs on the album "were more carefully selected than ever," and the album is said to "[give] listeners a great chance to experience the diverse musical characters and more mature vocal skills of the members." The group made their comeback on July 23, 2010 at KBS Music Bank. For its outstanding choreography, "Lucifer", was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards. Lucifer became the 6th best-selling album of 2010 in South Korea, selling over 120,000 copies. In October, 2010, the album was re-released under the title Hello. Amidst their promotional activities for the second studio album, the group also participated in the SMTown Live '10 World Tour on August 21, 2010. On December 26, 2010, Shinee commenced their first concert tour, Shinee World, at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo. The event was attended by approximately 24,000 people. CANNOTANSWER | awarded with the "Popularity" award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards. | Shinee ( ; ; ; stylized as SHINee) is a South Korean boy band formed by SM Entertainment in 2008. The group's musical impact in their native country has earned them numerous accolades and the title "Princes of K-pop". The group is composed of four members: Onew, Key, Minho, and Taemin. Originally a five-piece group, vocalist Jonghyun died in December 2017.
Shinee debuted in May 2008 with their first EP, Replay, on SBS' Inkigayo with their single "Replay". The group gained attention for starting a fashion trend amongst students, which the media dubbed the "Shinee Trend". In August 2008, the group released their first Korean studio album, The Shinee World, which won Newcomer Album of the Year at the 23rd Golden Disc Awards. Shinee further consolidated their popularity on the South Korean music scene with follow-up singles "Ring Ding Dong" and "Lucifer". "Ring Ding Dong" charted on top of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. "Lucifer" was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2010 for its outstanding choreography. In 2012 the group released Sherlock, which became the fifth most sold album of the year with over 180,000 copies sold. The group has also been included in the Forbes list of Korea Power Celebrity multiple times, once in 2014 and again in 2016.
In mid-2011, Shinee signed with EMI Records Japan to venture into the Japanese music scene. Their Japanese version of their single "Replay" sold over 100,000 copies, the highest number of sales for a Japanese debut single recorded by Oricon for a South Korean group at the time. It was followed by their first Japanese studio album, The First, on December 7, 2011 – both were certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. In 2011, the group also held their Japan Debut Premium Reception at Abbey Road Studios in London, making them the first Asian artists to perform there. Two years later they released their second Japanese album Boys Meet U (2013), followed by I'm Your Boy (2014), D×D×D (2016), and Five (2017).
Shinee is considered to be one of the best live vocal groups in K-pop and is known for their highly synchronized and complex dance routines, having been awarded the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards three times in a row for their dance performances to "Sherlock (Clue + Note)", "Dream Girl" and "View". Shinee's signature musical style is contemporary R&B, but the group is known for their experimental sound, incorporating various genres including funk rock, hip hop, and EDM.
History
2008: Debut and The Shinee World
Prior to the group's debut, the label company, SM Entertainment, introduced an upcoming contemporary R&B boy group with its goal to be trendsetters in all areas of music, fashion and dance. The group's Korean name, Shinee, is a new coined word and is explained as a combination of shine, meaning light, and the suffix ee, therefore meaning "one who receives the light". On May 22, 2008, the group's first EP, Replay, was released, which debuted at number ten on the South Korean music charts and peaked at number eight, selling 17,957 copies in the first half of 2008. On May 25, 2008, Shinee had their first stage performance on SBS' Inkigayo with their single "Replay".
In June 2008, the group won their first award, Rookie of the Month, at the Cyworld Digital Music Awards, and were also awarded with the Hot New Star award at the Mnet 20's Choice Awards in August 2008. In the same month, Shinee subsequently released their first full-length album, The Shinee World, which debuted at number three, selling 30,000 copies. Its title track "Love Like Oxygen" is a cover of "Show the World" by Martin Hoberg Hedegaard, originally written by the Danish songwriting and production team of Thomas Troelsen, Remee, and Lucas Secon. On September 18, 2008, the song won first place on M Countdown, making it the group's first win on a South Korean music show since debut.
Shinee participated in the 5th Asia Song Festival, where they received the Best New Artist award along with Japanese girl group Berryz Kobo. The group attended the Style Icon Awards on October 30, 2008, where they received the Best Style Icon Award. On the same day, a repackaged version of The Shinee World, titled Amigo, was released, which includes three new songs: "Forever or Never", a remix of "Love Should Go On", and the title track "Amigo". "Amigo" is a shortened version of the Korean phrase "areumdaun minyeoreul joahamyeon gosaenghanda", which can be translated to "The heart aches when you fall in love with a beauty".
In November 2008, Shinee won the Best New Male Group award at the 2008 Mnet Km Music Festival, beating fellow newcomers U-KISS, 2PM, 2AM and Mighty Mouth. In addition, the group also won the award for Newcomer Album of the Year at the 23rd Golden Disk Awards.
2009–2010: Rising popularity and Lucifer
In early February 2009, Shinee won the Best Newcomer award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards. Shinee's second extended play, Romeo, was released on May 25. Its lead single, "Juliette", was released earlier on May 18. The song is an instrumental remake of Corbin Bleu's "Deal with It". Shinee had their first stage performance for the song on KBS' Music Bank in June 2009, where the group also received the award for the first place.
Shinee released the digital version of their third extended play, 2009, Year of Us, on October 19, 2009, with a physical release on October 22. The lead single, "Ring Ding Dong", was released digitally on October 14 and charted atop of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. In early December 2009, the group won the Popularity Award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards.
On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full-length studio album, Lucifer, which topped various physical and digital sales charts in South Korea. The songs on the album "were more carefully selected than ever", and the album is said to "[give] listeners a great chance to experience the diverse musical characters and more mature vocal skills of the members." The group made their comeback on July 23, 2010, at KBS' Music Bank. For its outstanding choreography, "Lucifer" was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards. Lucifer became the sixth best-selling album of 2010 in South Korea, selling over 120,000 copies. In October 2010, the album was re-released under the title Hello. Amidst their promotional activities for the second studio album, the group also participated in the SM Town Live '10 World Tour on August 21, 2010. On December 26, 2010, Shinee commenced their first concert tour, Shinee World, at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo. The event was attended by approximately 24,000 people.
2011–2012: Japanese debut, The First and Sherlock
On January 1, 2011, Shinee performed at Olympic Gymnastics Arena in Seoul as a part of their tour, Shinee World, followed by various cities in Japan throughout 2011. On January 25 and 26, 2011, the group participated in the Japan leg of the SM Town Live '10 World Tour in Tokyo, which continued on to two concerts in Paris at Zénith Paris, three concerts in Tokyo at Tokyo Dome, and at Madison Square Garden in New York City. On June 22, 2011, the group made their debut in Japan with the Japanese version of "Replay", which sold more than 91,000 copies in the first week. It was subsequently certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. It was the highest sales recorded by Oricon for a South Korean group debut at the time.
On June 19, Shinee made history by becoming the first Asian artists to perform at Abbey Road Studios in London, holding their Japan Debut Premium Reception there. On July 22, 2011, Shinee started their Japan Debut Premium Reception Tour and held several concerts in various cities across Japan. On August 28 and October 12, 2011, two Japanese remakes, "Juliette" and "Lucifer", were released, respectively. On August 9, 2011, Shinee took part in an effort to help African children. The groups were joined by the United Nations' Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, in the "Help African Children" project co-organized by the Korean Red Cross Society and the Korean UNICEF committee.
In November 2011, Shinee were invited to be the opening act of the 6th London Korean Film Festival, which took place at the Odeon West End Theater. The group held an hour-long gala concert to open the festival with tickets selling out within minutes. This marked the first time that any Korean artist(s) had held an independent concert in London.
The group's first Japanese studio album, The First, was released in December 2011. It featured five new songs in addition to Japanese remakes of seven previously released Korean songs. The regular version of the album also featured the theme song of the drama Strangers 6, entitled "Stranger", as a bonus. The album was certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. On December 8, Taemin, Onew, and Key debuted as writers and released a travelogue, Children of the Sun, containing stories from their trip to Barcelona, Spain. The members shot the photos and wrote the commentaries themselves. Shinee also participated in the album 2011 Winter SM Town – The Warmest Gift with a cover of the song "Last Christmas". The compilation album by SM artists was released on December 13, 2011.
Shinee held a commemorative concert in honor of the successful release of their first Japanese album, The First, at the Tokyo International Forum Hall A on December 24, 2011. The live concert took place three times in order to accommodate the 15,000 fans that won a lottery to attend. They performed a total of six songs including their Japanese debut singles, "Replay (Kimi wa Boku no Everything)" and "Lucifer", and "To Your Heart". On December 28, 2011, Tower Records Japan announced that Shinee had won the Artist of the Year award at the 2011 K-Pop Lovers! Awards. Shinee's fourth Korean mini album, Sherlock, was released digitally on March 19 and physically on March 21. Sherlock became the fifth best-selling album of the year in South Korea with over 180,000 copies sold. On March 26, 2012, Shinee, alongside their labelmates, became stockholders of SM Entertainment. They received 340 shares each (value of around $13,600 for each member).
The Japanese remake of "Sherlock" was released in Japan on May 16. The group started their first Japan nationwide concert tour, Shinee World 2012, on April 25, 2012. The tour had a total of 20 concerts in Fukuoka, Sapporo, Nagoya, Osaka, Kobe, Tokyo and Hiroshima. Their tour set a record for the most people in attendance for a Korean act's first Japan tour with a total of 200,000 people. On May 20, 2012, Shinee participated in the SM Town Live World Tour III alongside their label-mates at Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Shinee held their second solo concert, Shinee World II, beginning in Seoul on July 21 and 22 at Olympic Gymnastics Arena.
Shinee released an original Japanese single, "Dazzling Girl", on October 10, 2012. The single sold 97,111 copies in its first week and was chosen to be the theme song for the Japanese TV series Sukkiri. On November 19, 2012, along with actor Kim Soo-hyun, Shinee won the Ministry of Culture Award at South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Korea Creative Content Agency's (KOCCA) annual award show, the Korean Popular Culture and Arts Awards, at Seoul Olympic Hall. Shinee attended the 2012 Mnet Asian Music Awards in November 2012, which was held in Hong Kong, winning Best Dance Performance – Male Group for their latest Korean single, "Sherlock (Clue + Note)". Shinee released their first Japanese ballad single (sixth overall), "1000-nen, Zutto Soba ni Ite...", and the concert video album for their Shinee World 2012 arena tour on December 12, 2012.
2013–2014: Dream Girl, Why So Serious?, Boys Meet U, Everybody and I'm Your Boy
On January 15, 2013, Shinee attended the 27th Golden Disk Awards, which was held in Kuala Lumpur at Sepang International Circuit, and received the Popularity Award for the third time after winning the same title in 2009 and 2010. They also received the Disk Bonsang for Sherlock, their second after winning for Lucifer in 2010. On February 3, MBC announced that Shinee would be starring in their own Lunar New Year special entitled Shinee's Wonderful Day (also known as Shinee's One Fine Day), which began airing on February 10. The special featured the Shinee members visiting various countries of their choice without the assistance of their management staff and with the production crew instructed to not interfere. For the special, Onew visited Thailand, Jonghyun visited Japan, Key and Minho visited England, and Taemin visited Switzerland.
Shinee's third Korean album consisted of two versions: the first part, Dream Girl – The Misconceptions of You, being released on February 19 and the second part, Why So Serious? – The Misconceptions of Me, being released on April 29. The title track of part one, "Dream Girl", is an acid electro funk track and was produced by Shin Hyuk and Joombas Music Factory, while the title track of part two, "Why So Serious?", is a funk rock dance track written and produced by Kenzie. A compilation album was subsequently released, The Misconceptions of Us, with two new songs: "Selene 6.23" and "Better Off".
On March 13, Shinee released the Japanese single "Fire". On June 26, the group released their second Japanese album, Boys Meet U, and on August 21, a single with the same name was released, including the Japanese version of "Dream Girl". On June 28, 2013, Shinee started their second Japan nationwide concert tour, Shinee World 2013, in Saitama.
In November 2013, Shinee won Artist of the Year at the Melon Music Awards, one of the biggest award ceremonies in the country, which awards prizes based on digital sales and online votes. It was the first time the group won the prize. On September 29, SM Entertainment announced that Shinee's fifth EP, Everybody, would be released on October 14. On November 6, 2013, SM Entertainment announced its week-long music festival called SM Town Week. Shinee's concert, titled The Wizard, opened the event on December 21 at the Kintex in Ilsan.
On January 29, 2014, it was announced that Shinee would hold their third Korean solo concert, Shinee World III, in March, with shows added in Latin America. On February 24, the mayor of Gangnam District, Shin Yeon-hee, announced that Shinee had been appointed honorary ambassadors of the district. On April 2, Shinee released a live concert album from their second solo concert.
On June 25, Universal Music Japan released Shinee's tenth Japanese single, "Lucky Star", as their first release under EMI Records. On September 24, Universal Music Japan released the group's third Japanese album, I'm Your Boy, preceded by the singles "Boys Meet U", "3 2 1", and "Lucky Star". From September till December 2014 Shinee embarked on their third Japan tour. It started off at Chiba on September 28, with 30 scheduled performances around the country.
On December 11, 2014, the group released their third live concert album, from Shinee World III, held in Olympic Gymnastics Arena on March 8 and 9 the same year. It contained two CDs with a total of 33 tracks. SM Entertainment stated on December 15 that Shinee sold out the World Memorial Hall in Kobe, Japan, with 16,000 fans attending between December 13 and 14. With that, Shinee successfully completed their 20-city, 30-concert tour, gathering 200,000 audience members overall. Furthermore, Shinee held a solo concert in Tokyo Dome, the first time since their Japanese debut, on March 14 and 15, 2015. The Tokyo Dome concert was the finale and encore for their Japanese tour. Forbes listed Shinee among Korea Power Celebrity in 2014.
2015–2016: Odd, DxDxD and 1 of 1
On February 17, Shinee were invited as the only Korean artist(s) to China's Lunar New Year Program, Chun Jie Wan Hui, which is hosted by Liaoning TV and has been the highest viewed show in its timeslot for 12 years. The same month, the group became ambassadors of the Ministry of Personnel Management to promote Korean music, dance and fashion. Their tasks as ambassadors included performing at events around the world to encourage cultural exchanges between the nations.
Shinee held a three-day long concert, Shinee World IV, at Seoul's Olympic Park Gymnastics Gymnasium between May 15 and 17, where the group premiered the new songs off their upcoming album. Their fourth studio album, Odd, was released on May 18, and the following day the music video to the title song, "View", was released. The track was written and produced by LDN Noise and Jonghyun. The music video for "View" was the most watched K-pop music video in the world for the month of May. Odd debuted at number nine on Billboards Heatseekers Albums chart as well as number one on Billboards World Albums chart and sold over 2,000 copies in the US. The repackaged album, Married to the Music, was released on August 3, 2015, with four additional songs. Gaon Music Chart released year-end sales for 2015 which revealed that Shinee was one of only five male groups to make it onto the digital chart, at 41st place, and one of only four male groups to make it into the top 100 of the download and streaming charts, at 78th and 65th place, respectively.
They released their eleventh and twelfth Japanese singles, "Sing Your Song" and "D×D×D", on October 25, 2015, and December 13, 2015, respectively, the latter being the lead single for their fourth Japanese album of the same name. On January 1, 2016, Shinee released their fourth full-length Japanese album, D×D×D, which included the group's previously released singles and the Japanese version of "View". The album topped the Oricon charts. To promote the album, they launched their fourth nationwide Japanese stadium tour, Shinee World 2016, starting in Fukuoka's Marine Messe on January 30, 2016, and ending at the Tokyo Dome on May 19, 2016, with a total of 20 concerts in nine cities. Their agency estimated that the concert could have gathered up to 350,000 people, which would bring the cumulative total of visitors to all of Shinee's Japanese tours to 1.12 million. The tour marked their second time headlining Tokyo Dome, which they did on May 18 and 19, and first time headlining Kyocera Dome, on May 14 and 15. They released their 13th Japanese single, "Kimi no Sei de", on May 18, which sold over 69,000 copies in Japan.
In February 2016, Forbes released their top forty of Forbes Korea Power Celebrity, Shinee being included once again. In March, Shinee won the Asia's Best Group Award at the 23rd DongFang Music Awards in Shanghai, one of the biggest annual award ceremonies in China. The group was the only K-pop act invited to attend and perform at the ceremony.
On September 4, 2016, Shinee held their fifth solo concert, titled Shinee World V, in Seoul. Four of the 34 songs performed were songs from the group's new album, which was released on October 5, 2016, under the title 1 of 1. The album "spins a hyper-modernized twist on the retro genre", inspired by the 1980–1990 period. The repackaged version, titled 1 and 1, was released on November 15, 2016, with five new songs. On December 21, 2016, Shinee released their fourteenth Japanese single, "Winter Wonderland", which debuted at number two on the Oricon Charts and sold over 80,000 copies in one week. Shinee also had the sixth biggest audience numbers for their concerts in Japan in 2016, with an estimated 510,000 people across 28 concerts. Shinee were one of two non-Japanese artists, along with Big Bang, to make it into the top ten of the list.
2017–2019: Five, Jonghyun's death, The Story of Light, and military service
On February 22, Shinee released their fifth full-length Japanese album, Five. To promote the album, they launched their fifth Japan tour, Shinee World 2017, starting on January 28, 2017, and ending in Tokyo on April 30, 2017, with a total of 25 concerts in 10 cities. Later on, the group added four additional performances for the tour at Tokyo Dome and Kyocera Dome starting September. Shinee ranked eighth in Japan for their concert audience numbers in 2017, with approximately 539,000 attendees.
On December 18, 2017, Jonghyun died from suicide. His funeral was held on December 21 with the rest of Shinee and numerous artists in attendance, including Girls' Generation, IU, Super Junior, and more. Shinee was slated to have a series of concerts in Japan in February 2018, and after entering into discussions on whether to postpone them, they decided to continue promoting as a four-member group and proceed with their Japanese tour as scheduled. On March 26, Shinee released their Japanese single, "From Now On", posthumously featuring Jonghyun, and shortly after, the group released their first Japanese compilation, Shinee The Best From Now On.
On May 15, 2018, SM Entertainment revealed teasers for a three-part Korean album, titled The Story of Light. The first part of the album was released on May 28 with the single "Good Evening", and the second part of the trilogy was released on June 11 with the single "I Want You". According to the group, the second part of the album represents the group's view of themselves, while the first part reflected what others think of them. The third and last part of the album is fronted by the single "Our Page" and was released on June 25. On August 1, 2018, the Japanese versions of "Good Evening" and "I Want You" were released on Shinee's 15th Japanese single "Sunny Side", alongside the track of the same name, which was written by the group members. On September 10, 2018, Shinee released their sixth album repackage, The Story of Light Epilogue, consisting of all tracks from the previous three albums, and one new song, titled "Countless".
Onew applied and enlisted for his mandatory military service in December 2018. It was announced in early 2019 that both Key and Minho would be enlisting in the first half of the year. Key applied for military band service and enlisted on March 4, 2019. Minho enlisted in the Marines on April 15, 2019.
2020–present: Don't Call Me and Superstar
Onew was discharged from the military on July 8, 2020, followed by Key and Minho on September 24 and November 15, respectively. On January 6, 2021, SM Entertainment announced Shinee would return with a new album after two and a half years. The group's seventh Korean studio album Don't Call Me, featuring the album's title track as the lead single alongside its music video, was released on February 22, 2021. The album was commercially successful, debuting at number one on the Gaon Album Chart and receiving a Platinum certification from KMCA for over 250,000 copies sold. Using the Beyond Live platform, they held an online concert titled Shinee World on April 4, 2021, which recorded 130,000 viewers across 120 countries. A repackaged version of their seventh album, Atlantis, was released on April 12, 2021, featuring three new songs including the title track of the same name.
On May 23, 2021, Shinee held an online fan meeting titled Bistro de Shinee to celebrate the tenth anniversary of their debut in Japan. They premiered their new Japanese single "Superstar" at the event, which was released on digital music platforms the following day. Taemin enlisted as part of the military band on May 31, becoming the final member of the group to enlist. On June 28, 2021, Shinee released the digital version of their new Japanese extended play Superstar, featuring five songs, their first Japanese release since 2018. The physical version was released on July 28, 2021. The EP became Shinee's fourth release to top the Oricon Albums Chart and was certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies.
Members
On December 18, 2017, Jonghyun died from suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning at the age of 27. Following Jonghyun's death, Shinee continued as a four-member group, and the remaining members completed their military service. Onew enlisted in the military in December 2018 and was discharged on July 8, 2020. Key enlisted on March 4, 2019 and was discharged on September 24, 2020. Minho enlisted on April 15, 2019 and was discharged on November 15, 2020. Taemin is the last member in military, enlisting on May 31, 2021.
Current (active)
Onew (온유)
Key (키)
Minho (민호)
Current (inactive)
Taemin (태민) (inactive due to military service)
Former
Jonghyun (종현)
Timeline
Note: Jonghyun still appears posthumously in The Story of Light despite his death on December 18, 2017.
Artistry
Public image
Shinee is known for their fashion style, initially created by designer Ha Sang-beg, which features high-top sneakers, skinny jeans, and colorful sweaters. Their style has created a fashion trend amongst students which the media dubbed the "Shinee Trend". The group's "boyish charm" was an important factor in Shinee gaining fans. With the release of 2009, Year of Us, Shinee's style became more mature, though still maintaining Shinee's unique image. Furthermore, instead of working with famous artists and photographers, SM Entertainment's Visual and Art Directing department usually works with up-and-coming talents with new ideas for Shinee's concepts. When Shinee debuted in 2008 with "Replay", it was not only their music which gained attention but also their colorful style—but even four years later, in 2012, Shinee maintained their colorful concept for Sherlock. Ha stated in an interview with The Korea Times: "Much has evolved over the years, since I change their styles to reflect their music. The feel from their debut single still exists, mixing the overground with the underground, haute couture with street fashion ... but it is very modern, like Shinee."
Vocals and choreography
Shinee are acknowledged for their "innovative approach to music and peerless choreography" and are considered some of the best live vocalists and dancers in Korean pop. They are known for their good vocal performances and complex choreographies, as well as a unique style of music that sets them apart from other K-pop artists. At SM Entertainment's showcase in New York in October 2011, Jon Caramanica of The New York Times summarized them as "the most ambitious" of the evening and also complimented the group's strong vocal performance. Furthermore, he stated: "Their music, especially "Replay", "Ring Ding Dong" and "Juliette", felt the riskiest, even if it only slightly tweaked that polyglot K-pop formula". Kim Joo-hyun of Beff Report considers Shinee's greatest strength the dismantling of the boundaries between the role of main vocal and subvocal. He positively emphasised the harmony between the two main vocals, Onew and Jonghyun, saying they sing with an aesthetic of "contrast", meaning they can't be separated from each other; on the contrary, they actually suit each other when brought together. He also praised the vocal development of Taemin, the youngest member in the group. Jakob Dorof of the monthly British style magazine Dazed described Shinee as possessing "technicolor visuals", "choreography as coordinated as ballet", and "wildly adventurous hit songs", stating they are a group that embodies the harmony of these qualities better than anyone else. Tamar Herman of Paste described Shinee as one of K-pop's most popular dance groups, "with cutting edge dance moves that are just as technically creative as the songs they've performed".
Shinee have worked with top choreographers such as Rino Nakasone, who choreographed Shinee's early songs like "Replay" and "Love Like Oxygen" in 2008, "Juliette" in 2009, and the group's hit single "Lucifer" in 2010, which was nominated for the Best Dance Performance at the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2010. Misha Gabriel choreographed the songs "Amigo" (2008) and "Ring Ding Dong" (2009). Tony Testa worked on Shinee's later hit songs like "Sherlock (Clue + Note)" (2012) and "Dream Girl" (2013), which are characterized by a unique and distinctive style, while Ian Eastwood worked on "View" (2015) – breaking away from the group's usual powerful and precise choreography and working instead with a groove style that showcases the teamwork of the group. All three songs were awarded with the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards: in 2012, 2013, and 2015.
Musical style and themes
The predominant musical genre of the group is contemporary R&B. The group's early singles like "Replay" and "Lucifer" were influenced by R&B and dance pop, while tracks such as "Get Down" and "JoJo" explored other musical styles such as hip-hop and dance. Shinee's third album is significantly influenced by funk rock, electronic music and rock. Billboard columnist Jeff Benjamin compared Shinee's songs like "Punch Drunk Love" and "Aside" to the sounds of Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, while tracks like "Beautiful" and "Runaway" combine "unique electronic production elements over sugary boy band harmonies to create year-round pop music".
Shinee as a group is known for their experimental sound and ability to execute a wide range of genres. An example of this is the group's fifth extended play, Everybody, whose title song is classified under the complextro genre. Jakob Dorof of Tiny Mix Tapes stated that "Everybody is proof positive that, even in a culture industry designed to minimize the role of real musicianship, talent will find its way to the top." He also remarked that "Close the Door" highlights the experimental and versatile nature of Shinee's music which frequently charts into unfamiliar territories.
With the release of their fourth Korean album, Odd, Shinee returned to their old sound while experimenting with new genres like deep house. According to Key, Odd marked the first time the group had direct involvement in the album production process, including the decision over picking the lead single as well as the album's concept. The costumes were based on Key's ideas — a vintage, old-school [aesthetic], during a time when other groups mostly wore uniforms. The album spanned a variety of styles including the two singles — the deep house "View" and Rocky Horror-inspired funk track "Married to the Music". Alexis Hodoyan-Gastelum of MTV praised the title song, "View", describing it as a "great, laid back summer jam" even though "the song fools us into thinking it's an uptempo ballad before reaching its techno peak at the chorus." Jeff Benjamin, on the other hand, praised "Odd Eye", which is written and composed by member Jonghyun. Benjamin states the group's "return to the R&B side of Shinee with feathery vocals, tight harmonies and member Onew's falsetto howls acting a centerpiece to this grooving opener" but he also adds, "despite initially debuting with a R&B sound, Shinee is arguably most exciting when experimenting".
Endorsements
Early in their career, Shinee were endorsers for several brands, such as the cosmetic brand Nana's B and the sports brand Reebok. Later, they endorsed the clothing brand Maypole as well as the popular Korean cosmetic brands Etude House and The Saem. In 2012, Etude House's Lash Pump 3-Step Volume-Cara, a PC-based and mobile micro-site featuring "doll eyelashes" main model Sandara Park and Shinee—appearing as puppets—was awarded first place in the Mobile Marketing and Product Promotions categories at the 9th Web Awards Korea. The group was also part of the popular Korean comic The Blade of the Phantom Master and webtoon series ENT. Furthermore, the group endorsed the sports brand Skechers and collaborated with Naver and Skechers for T-shirts and caps designed by the group members. Companies whose products are promoted by the Shinee label often see increased revenue; for example, "Shinee's Sparking Water", a carbonated bottled water sold by E-mart, boasted a combined sales of 67 million won over a one-month period.
Discography
Korean albums
The Shinee World (2008)
Lucifer (2010)
The Misconceptions of Us (2013)
Odd (2015)
1 of 1 (2016)
The Story of Light (2018)
Don't Call Me (2021)
Japanese albums
The First (2011)
Boys Meet U (2013)
I'm Your Boy (2014)
D×D×D (2016)
Five (2017)
Tours
Headlining
Asia tours
Shinee World (2010–2011)
Shinee World II (2012)
Shinee World IV (2015)
World tours
Shinee World III (2014)
Shinee World V (2016–2017)
Japan tours
Shinee World 2012 (2012)
Shinee World 2013 ~Boys Meet U~ (2013)
Shinee World 2014 ~I'm Your Boy~ (2014)
Shinee World 2016 ~DxDxD~ (2016)
Shinee World 2017 ~Five~ (2017)
Shinee World The Best 2018 ~From Now On~ (2018)
Fanmeetings
Shinee World J Presents ~Shinee Special Fan Event~ (2018)
Online concerts
Beyond Live – Shinee: Shinee World (2021)
Online fanmeetings
Shinee World J Presents ~Bistro de Shinee~ (2021)
Concert participation
SM Town Live '08 (2008–2009)
SM Town Live '10 World Tour (2010–2011)
SM Town Live World Tour III (2012–2013)
SM Town Week – "The Wizard" (2013)
SM Town Live World Tour IV (2014–2015)
KCON: Paris, France and Los Angeles, United States (2016)
SM Town Live World Tour V in Japan (2016)
SM Town Live World Tour VI in Korea and Japan (2017)
Supporting act
TVXQ! Asia Tour "Mirotic" (2009)
Girls' Generation Asia Tour "Into the New World" (2009–2010)
Filmography
Film
Television drama
Reality shows
Awards and nominations
Publications
Children of the Sun: Onew, Key, Taemin of Shinee in Barcelona, Woongjin Think Big Co., Ltd (September 12, 2011)
Shinee Surprise Vacation - Travel Note, SM Entertainment (May 27, 2013),
References
External links
(2020 archive)
Japanese-language singers of South Korea
K-pop music groups
SM Entertainment artists
South Korean dance music groups
Musical groups established in 2008
Musical groups from Seoul
SM Town
South Korean boy bands
Universal Music Japan artists
Virgin Records artists
Mnet Asian Music Award winners
Musical quintets
Melon Music Award winners | false | [
"Le Cousin is a 1997 French film directed by Alain Corneau.\n\nPlot \nThe film deals with the relationship of the police and an informant in the drug scene.\n\nAwards and nominations\nLe Cousin was nominated for 5 César Awards but did not win in any category.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n1997 films\n1997 crime films\nFilms about drugs\nFilms directed by Alain Corneau\nFrench crime films\nFrench films\nFrench-language films",
"The 1952–53 Boston Bruins season was the Bruins' 29th season in the National Hockey League (NHL).\n\nOffseason\n\nRegular season\n\nFinal standings\n\nRecord vs. opponents\n\nSchedule and results\n\nPlayoffs\n\nPlayer statistics\n\nRegular season\nScoring\n\nGoaltending\n\nPlayoffs\nScoring\n\nGoaltending\n\nAwards and records\n\nAwards\n\nThe Boston Bruins did not win any NHL awards for the 1952-53 NHL season.\n\nAll-Star teams\n\nTransactions\n\nThe following is a list of all transactions that have occurred for the Boston Bruins during the 1952–53 NHL season. It lists which team each player has been traded to and for which player(s) or other consideration(s), if applicable.\n\nSee also\n1952–53 NHL season\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nBoston Bruins season, 1952-53\nBoston Bruins season, 1952-53\nBoston Bruins seasons\nBoston\nBoston\n1950s in Boston"
] |
[
"Shinee",
"2009-2010: Rising popularity and Lucifer",
"What is Rising popularity about?",
"I don't know.",
"What interesting fact about the article can you tell me about?",
"In early February 2009, Shinee won the \"Best Newcomer\" award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards.",
"did they win any other awards?",
"awarded with the \"Popularity\" award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards."
] | C_49801ec35b494288bfa0169cde8bd97f_0 | What can you tell me about Lucifer? | 4 | What can you tell me about Shinee's Lucifer? | Shinee | In early February 2009, Shinee won the "Best Newcomer" award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards. Shinee's second extended play, Romeo, was released on May 25. Its lead single, "Juliette", was released earlier on May 18. The song is an instrumental remake of Corbin Bleu's "Deal with It". Shinee had their first stage performance for the song on KBS's Music Bank in June, 2009, where the group also received the award for the first place. Shinee released the digital version of their third extended play, 2009, Year of Us on October 19, 2009, with a physical release on October 22. The lead single, "Ring Ding Dong", was released digitally on October 14 and charted atop of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. In early December 2009, the group was also awarded with the "Popularity" award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards. On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full length studio album, Lucifer, which topped various physical and digital sales charts in South Korea. The songs on the album "were more carefully selected than ever," and the album is said to "[give] listeners a great chance to experience the diverse musical characters and more mature vocal skills of the members." The group made their comeback on July 23, 2010 at KBS Music Bank. For its outstanding choreography, "Lucifer", was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards. Lucifer became the 6th best-selling album of 2010 in South Korea, selling over 120,000 copies. In October, 2010, the album was re-released under the title Hello. Amidst their promotional activities for the second studio album, the group also participated in the SMTown Live '10 World Tour on August 21, 2010. On December 26, 2010, Shinee commenced their first concert tour, Shinee World, at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo. The event was attended by approximately 24,000 people. CANNOTANSWER | On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full length studio album, Lucifer, | Shinee ( ; ; ; stylized as SHINee) is a South Korean boy band formed by SM Entertainment in 2008. The group's musical impact in their native country has earned them numerous accolades and the title "Princes of K-pop". The group is composed of four members: Onew, Key, Minho, and Taemin. Originally a five-piece group, vocalist Jonghyun died in December 2017.
Shinee debuted in May 2008 with their first EP, Replay, on SBS' Inkigayo with their single "Replay". The group gained attention for starting a fashion trend amongst students, which the media dubbed the "Shinee Trend". In August 2008, the group released their first Korean studio album, The Shinee World, which won Newcomer Album of the Year at the 23rd Golden Disc Awards. Shinee further consolidated their popularity on the South Korean music scene with follow-up singles "Ring Ding Dong" and "Lucifer". "Ring Ding Dong" charted on top of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. "Lucifer" was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2010 for its outstanding choreography. In 2012 the group released Sherlock, which became the fifth most sold album of the year with over 180,000 copies sold. The group has also been included in the Forbes list of Korea Power Celebrity multiple times, once in 2014 and again in 2016.
In mid-2011, Shinee signed with EMI Records Japan to venture into the Japanese music scene. Their Japanese version of their single "Replay" sold over 100,000 copies, the highest number of sales for a Japanese debut single recorded by Oricon for a South Korean group at the time. It was followed by their first Japanese studio album, The First, on December 7, 2011 – both were certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. In 2011, the group also held their Japan Debut Premium Reception at Abbey Road Studios in London, making them the first Asian artists to perform there. Two years later they released their second Japanese album Boys Meet U (2013), followed by I'm Your Boy (2014), D×D×D (2016), and Five (2017).
Shinee is considered to be one of the best live vocal groups in K-pop and is known for their highly synchronized and complex dance routines, having been awarded the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards three times in a row for their dance performances to "Sherlock (Clue + Note)", "Dream Girl" and "View". Shinee's signature musical style is contemporary R&B, but the group is known for their experimental sound, incorporating various genres including funk rock, hip hop, and EDM.
History
2008: Debut and The Shinee World
Prior to the group's debut, the label company, SM Entertainment, introduced an upcoming contemporary R&B boy group with its goal to be trendsetters in all areas of music, fashion and dance. The group's Korean name, Shinee, is a new coined word and is explained as a combination of shine, meaning light, and the suffix ee, therefore meaning "one who receives the light". On May 22, 2008, the group's first EP, Replay, was released, which debuted at number ten on the South Korean music charts and peaked at number eight, selling 17,957 copies in the first half of 2008. On May 25, 2008, Shinee had their first stage performance on SBS' Inkigayo with their single "Replay".
In June 2008, the group won their first award, Rookie of the Month, at the Cyworld Digital Music Awards, and were also awarded with the Hot New Star award at the Mnet 20's Choice Awards in August 2008. In the same month, Shinee subsequently released their first full-length album, The Shinee World, which debuted at number three, selling 30,000 copies. Its title track "Love Like Oxygen" is a cover of "Show the World" by Martin Hoberg Hedegaard, originally written by the Danish songwriting and production team of Thomas Troelsen, Remee, and Lucas Secon. On September 18, 2008, the song won first place on M Countdown, making it the group's first win on a South Korean music show since debut.
Shinee participated in the 5th Asia Song Festival, where they received the Best New Artist award along with Japanese girl group Berryz Kobo. The group attended the Style Icon Awards on October 30, 2008, where they received the Best Style Icon Award. On the same day, a repackaged version of The Shinee World, titled Amigo, was released, which includes three new songs: "Forever or Never", a remix of "Love Should Go On", and the title track "Amigo". "Amigo" is a shortened version of the Korean phrase "areumdaun minyeoreul joahamyeon gosaenghanda", which can be translated to "The heart aches when you fall in love with a beauty".
In November 2008, Shinee won the Best New Male Group award at the 2008 Mnet Km Music Festival, beating fellow newcomers U-KISS, 2PM, 2AM and Mighty Mouth. In addition, the group also won the award for Newcomer Album of the Year at the 23rd Golden Disk Awards.
2009–2010: Rising popularity and Lucifer
In early February 2009, Shinee won the Best Newcomer award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards. Shinee's second extended play, Romeo, was released on May 25. Its lead single, "Juliette", was released earlier on May 18. The song is an instrumental remake of Corbin Bleu's "Deal with It". Shinee had their first stage performance for the song on KBS' Music Bank in June 2009, where the group also received the award for the first place.
Shinee released the digital version of their third extended play, 2009, Year of Us, on October 19, 2009, with a physical release on October 22. The lead single, "Ring Ding Dong", was released digitally on October 14 and charted atop of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. In early December 2009, the group won the Popularity Award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards.
On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full-length studio album, Lucifer, which topped various physical and digital sales charts in South Korea. The songs on the album "were more carefully selected than ever", and the album is said to "[give] listeners a great chance to experience the diverse musical characters and more mature vocal skills of the members." The group made their comeback on July 23, 2010, at KBS' Music Bank. For its outstanding choreography, "Lucifer" was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards. Lucifer became the sixth best-selling album of 2010 in South Korea, selling over 120,000 copies. In October 2010, the album was re-released under the title Hello. Amidst their promotional activities for the second studio album, the group also participated in the SM Town Live '10 World Tour on August 21, 2010. On December 26, 2010, Shinee commenced their first concert tour, Shinee World, at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo. The event was attended by approximately 24,000 people.
2011–2012: Japanese debut, The First and Sherlock
On January 1, 2011, Shinee performed at Olympic Gymnastics Arena in Seoul as a part of their tour, Shinee World, followed by various cities in Japan throughout 2011. On January 25 and 26, 2011, the group participated in the Japan leg of the SM Town Live '10 World Tour in Tokyo, which continued on to two concerts in Paris at Zénith Paris, three concerts in Tokyo at Tokyo Dome, and at Madison Square Garden in New York City. On June 22, 2011, the group made their debut in Japan with the Japanese version of "Replay", which sold more than 91,000 copies in the first week. It was subsequently certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. It was the highest sales recorded by Oricon for a South Korean group debut at the time.
On June 19, Shinee made history by becoming the first Asian artists to perform at Abbey Road Studios in London, holding their Japan Debut Premium Reception there. On July 22, 2011, Shinee started their Japan Debut Premium Reception Tour and held several concerts in various cities across Japan. On August 28 and October 12, 2011, two Japanese remakes, "Juliette" and "Lucifer", were released, respectively. On August 9, 2011, Shinee took part in an effort to help African children. The groups were joined by the United Nations' Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, in the "Help African Children" project co-organized by the Korean Red Cross Society and the Korean UNICEF committee.
In November 2011, Shinee were invited to be the opening act of the 6th London Korean Film Festival, which took place at the Odeon West End Theater. The group held an hour-long gala concert to open the festival with tickets selling out within minutes. This marked the first time that any Korean artist(s) had held an independent concert in London.
The group's first Japanese studio album, The First, was released in December 2011. It featured five new songs in addition to Japanese remakes of seven previously released Korean songs. The regular version of the album also featured the theme song of the drama Strangers 6, entitled "Stranger", as a bonus. The album was certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. On December 8, Taemin, Onew, and Key debuted as writers and released a travelogue, Children of the Sun, containing stories from their trip to Barcelona, Spain. The members shot the photos and wrote the commentaries themselves. Shinee also participated in the album 2011 Winter SM Town – The Warmest Gift with a cover of the song "Last Christmas". The compilation album by SM artists was released on December 13, 2011.
Shinee held a commemorative concert in honor of the successful release of their first Japanese album, The First, at the Tokyo International Forum Hall A on December 24, 2011. The live concert took place three times in order to accommodate the 15,000 fans that won a lottery to attend. They performed a total of six songs including their Japanese debut singles, "Replay (Kimi wa Boku no Everything)" and "Lucifer", and "To Your Heart". On December 28, 2011, Tower Records Japan announced that Shinee had won the Artist of the Year award at the 2011 K-Pop Lovers! Awards. Shinee's fourth Korean mini album, Sherlock, was released digitally on March 19 and physically on March 21. Sherlock became the fifth best-selling album of the year in South Korea with over 180,000 copies sold. On March 26, 2012, Shinee, alongside their labelmates, became stockholders of SM Entertainment. They received 340 shares each (value of around $13,600 for each member).
The Japanese remake of "Sherlock" was released in Japan on May 16. The group started their first Japan nationwide concert tour, Shinee World 2012, on April 25, 2012. The tour had a total of 20 concerts in Fukuoka, Sapporo, Nagoya, Osaka, Kobe, Tokyo and Hiroshima. Their tour set a record for the most people in attendance for a Korean act's first Japan tour with a total of 200,000 people. On May 20, 2012, Shinee participated in the SM Town Live World Tour III alongside their label-mates at Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Shinee held their second solo concert, Shinee World II, beginning in Seoul on July 21 and 22 at Olympic Gymnastics Arena.
Shinee released an original Japanese single, "Dazzling Girl", on October 10, 2012. The single sold 97,111 copies in its first week and was chosen to be the theme song for the Japanese TV series Sukkiri. On November 19, 2012, along with actor Kim Soo-hyun, Shinee won the Ministry of Culture Award at South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Korea Creative Content Agency's (KOCCA) annual award show, the Korean Popular Culture and Arts Awards, at Seoul Olympic Hall. Shinee attended the 2012 Mnet Asian Music Awards in November 2012, which was held in Hong Kong, winning Best Dance Performance – Male Group for their latest Korean single, "Sherlock (Clue + Note)". Shinee released their first Japanese ballad single (sixth overall), "1000-nen, Zutto Soba ni Ite...", and the concert video album for their Shinee World 2012 arena tour on December 12, 2012.
2013–2014: Dream Girl, Why So Serious?, Boys Meet U, Everybody and I'm Your Boy
On January 15, 2013, Shinee attended the 27th Golden Disk Awards, which was held in Kuala Lumpur at Sepang International Circuit, and received the Popularity Award for the third time after winning the same title in 2009 and 2010. They also received the Disk Bonsang for Sherlock, their second after winning for Lucifer in 2010. On February 3, MBC announced that Shinee would be starring in their own Lunar New Year special entitled Shinee's Wonderful Day (also known as Shinee's One Fine Day), which began airing on February 10. The special featured the Shinee members visiting various countries of their choice without the assistance of their management staff and with the production crew instructed to not interfere. For the special, Onew visited Thailand, Jonghyun visited Japan, Key and Minho visited England, and Taemin visited Switzerland.
Shinee's third Korean album consisted of two versions: the first part, Dream Girl – The Misconceptions of You, being released on February 19 and the second part, Why So Serious? – The Misconceptions of Me, being released on April 29. The title track of part one, "Dream Girl", is an acid electro funk track and was produced by Shin Hyuk and Joombas Music Factory, while the title track of part two, "Why So Serious?", is a funk rock dance track written and produced by Kenzie. A compilation album was subsequently released, The Misconceptions of Us, with two new songs: "Selene 6.23" and "Better Off".
On March 13, Shinee released the Japanese single "Fire". On June 26, the group released their second Japanese album, Boys Meet U, and on August 21, a single with the same name was released, including the Japanese version of "Dream Girl". On June 28, 2013, Shinee started their second Japan nationwide concert tour, Shinee World 2013, in Saitama.
In November 2013, Shinee won Artist of the Year at the Melon Music Awards, one of the biggest award ceremonies in the country, which awards prizes based on digital sales and online votes. It was the first time the group won the prize. On September 29, SM Entertainment announced that Shinee's fifth EP, Everybody, would be released on October 14. On November 6, 2013, SM Entertainment announced its week-long music festival called SM Town Week. Shinee's concert, titled The Wizard, opened the event on December 21 at the Kintex in Ilsan.
On January 29, 2014, it was announced that Shinee would hold their third Korean solo concert, Shinee World III, in March, with shows added in Latin America. On February 24, the mayor of Gangnam District, Shin Yeon-hee, announced that Shinee had been appointed honorary ambassadors of the district. On April 2, Shinee released a live concert album from their second solo concert.
On June 25, Universal Music Japan released Shinee's tenth Japanese single, "Lucky Star", as their first release under EMI Records. On September 24, Universal Music Japan released the group's third Japanese album, I'm Your Boy, preceded by the singles "Boys Meet U", "3 2 1", and "Lucky Star". From September till December 2014 Shinee embarked on their third Japan tour. It started off at Chiba on September 28, with 30 scheduled performances around the country.
On December 11, 2014, the group released their third live concert album, from Shinee World III, held in Olympic Gymnastics Arena on March 8 and 9 the same year. It contained two CDs with a total of 33 tracks. SM Entertainment stated on December 15 that Shinee sold out the World Memorial Hall in Kobe, Japan, with 16,000 fans attending between December 13 and 14. With that, Shinee successfully completed their 20-city, 30-concert tour, gathering 200,000 audience members overall. Furthermore, Shinee held a solo concert in Tokyo Dome, the first time since their Japanese debut, on March 14 and 15, 2015. The Tokyo Dome concert was the finale and encore for their Japanese tour. Forbes listed Shinee among Korea Power Celebrity in 2014.
2015–2016: Odd, DxDxD and 1 of 1
On February 17, Shinee were invited as the only Korean artist(s) to China's Lunar New Year Program, Chun Jie Wan Hui, which is hosted by Liaoning TV and has been the highest viewed show in its timeslot for 12 years. The same month, the group became ambassadors of the Ministry of Personnel Management to promote Korean music, dance and fashion. Their tasks as ambassadors included performing at events around the world to encourage cultural exchanges between the nations.
Shinee held a three-day long concert, Shinee World IV, at Seoul's Olympic Park Gymnastics Gymnasium between May 15 and 17, where the group premiered the new songs off their upcoming album. Their fourth studio album, Odd, was released on May 18, and the following day the music video to the title song, "View", was released. The track was written and produced by LDN Noise and Jonghyun. The music video for "View" was the most watched K-pop music video in the world for the month of May. Odd debuted at number nine on Billboards Heatseekers Albums chart as well as number one on Billboards World Albums chart and sold over 2,000 copies in the US. The repackaged album, Married to the Music, was released on August 3, 2015, with four additional songs. Gaon Music Chart released year-end sales for 2015 which revealed that Shinee was one of only five male groups to make it onto the digital chart, at 41st place, and one of only four male groups to make it into the top 100 of the download and streaming charts, at 78th and 65th place, respectively.
They released their eleventh and twelfth Japanese singles, "Sing Your Song" and "D×D×D", on October 25, 2015, and December 13, 2015, respectively, the latter being the lead single for their fourth Japanese album of the same name. On January 1, 2016, Shinee released their fourth full-length Japanese album, D×D×D, which included the group's previously released singles and the Japanese version of "View". The album topped the Oricon charts. To promote the album, they launched their fourth nationwide Japanese stadium tour, Shinee World 2016, starting in Fukuoka's Marine Messe on January 30, 2016, and ending at the Tokyo Dome on May 19, 2016, with a total of 20 concerts in nine cities. Their agency estimated that the concert could have gathered up to 350,000 people, which would bring the cumulative total of visitors to all of Shinee's Japanese tours to 1.12 million. The tour marked their second time headlining Tokyo Dome, which they did on May 18 and 19, and first time headlining Kyocera Dome, on May 14 and 15. They released their 13th Japanese single, "Kimi no Sei de", on May 18, which sold over 69,000 copies in Japan.
In February 2016, Forbes released their top forty of Forbes Korea Power Celebrity, Shinee being included once again. In March, Shinee won the Asia's Best Group Award at the 23rd DongFang Music Awards in Shanghai, one of the biggest annual award ceremonies in China. The group was the only K-pop act invited to attend and perform at the ceremony.
On September 4, 2016, Shinee held their fifth solo concert, titled Shinee World V, in Seoul. Four of the 34 songs performed were songs from the group's new album, which was released on October 5, 2016, under the title 1 of 1. The album "spins a hyper-modernized twist on the retro genre", inspired by the 1980–1990 period. The repackaged version, titled 1 and 1, was released on November 15, 2016, with five new songs. On December 21, 2016, Shinee released their fourteenth Japanese single, "Winter Wonderland", which debuted at number two on the Oricon Charts and sold over 80,000 copies in one week. Shinee also had the sixth biggest audience numbers for their concerts in Japan in 2016, with an estimated 510,000 people across 28 concerts. Shinee were one of two non-Japanese artists, along with Big Bang, to make it into the top ten of the list.
2017–2019: Five, Jonghyun's death, The Story of Light, and military service
On February 22, Shinee released their fifth full-length Japanese album, Five. To promote the album, they launched their fifth Japan tour, Shinee World 2017, starting on January 28, 2017, and ending in Tokyo on April 30, 2017, with a total of 25 concerts in 10 cities. Later on, the group added four additional performances for the tour at Tokyo Dome and Kyocera Dome starting September. Shinee ranked eighth in Japan for their concert audience numbers in 2017, with approximately 539,000 attendees.
On December 18, 2017, Jonghyun died from suicide. His funeral was held on December 21 with the rest of Shinee and numerous artists in attendance, including Girls' Generation, IU, Super Junior, and more. Shinee was slated to have a series of concerts in Japan in February 2018, and after entering into discussions on whether to postpone them, they decided to continue promoting as a four-member group and proceed with their Japanese tour as scheduled. On March 26, Shinee released their Japanese single, "From Now On", posthumously featuring Jonghyun, and shortly after, the group released their first Japanese compilation, Shinee The Best From Now On.
On May 15, 2018, SM Entertainment revealed teasers for a three-part Korean album, titled The Story of Light. The first part of the album was released on May 28 with the single "Good Evening", and the second part of the trilogy was released on June 11 with the single "I Want You". According to the group, the second part of the album represents the group's view of themselves, while the first part reflected what others think of them. The third and last part of the album is fronted by the single "Our Page" and was released on June 25. On August 1, 2018, the Japanese versions of "Good Evening" and "I Want You" were released on Shinee's 15th Japanese single "Sunny Side", alongside the track of the same name, which was written by the group members. On September 10, 2018, Shinee released their sixth album repackage, The Story of Light Epilogue, consisting of all tracks from the previous three albums, and one new song, titled "Countless".
Onew applied and enlisted for his mandatory military service in December 2018. It was announced in early 2019 that both Key and Minho would be enlisting in the first half of the year. Key applied for military band service and enlisted on March 4, 2019. Minho enlisted in the Marines on April 15, 2019.
2020–present: Don't Call Me and Superstar
Onew was discharged from the military on July 8, 2020, followed by Key and Minho on September 24 and November 15, respectively. On January 6, 2021, SM Entertainment announced Shinee would return with a new album after two and a half years. The group's seventh Korean studio album Don't Call Me, featuring the album's title track as the lead single alongside its music video, was released on February 22, 2021. The album was commercially successful, debuting at number one on the Gaon Album Chart and receiving a Platinum certification from KMCA for over 250,000 copies sold. Using the Beyond Live platform, they held an online concert titled Shinee World on April 4, 2021, which recorded 130,000 viewers across 120 countries. A repackaged version of their seventh album, Atlantis, was released on April 12, 2021, featuring three new songs including the title track of the same name.
On May 23, 2021, Shinee held an online fan meeting titled Bistro de Shinee to celebrate the tenth anniversary of their debut in Japan. They premiered their new Japanese single "Superstar" at the event, which was released on digital music platforms the following day. Taemin enlisted as part of the military band on May 31, becoming the final member of the group to enlist. On June 28, 2021, Shinee released the digital version of their new Japanese extended play Superstar, featuring five songs, their first Japanese release since 2018. The physical version was released on July 28, 2021. The EP became Shinee's fourth release to top the Oricon Albums Chart and was certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies.
Members
On December 18, 2017, Jonghyun died from suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning at the age of 27. Following Jonghyun's death, Shinee continued as a four-member group, and the remaining members completed their military service. Onew enlisted in the military in December 2018 and was discharged on July 8, 2020. Key enlisted on March 4, 2019 and was discharged on September 24, 2020. Minho enlisted on April 15, 2019 and was discharged on November 15, 2020. Taemin is the last member in military, enlisting on May 31, 2021.
Current (active)
Onew (온유)
Key (키)
Minho (민호)
Current (inactive)
Taemin (태민) (inactive due to military service)
Former
Jonghyun (종현)
Timeline
Note: Jonghyun still appears posthumously in The Story of Light despite his death on December 18, 2017.
Artistry
Public image
Shinee is known for their fashion style, initially created by designer Ha Sang-beg, which features high-top sneakers, skinny jeans, and colorful sweaters. Their style has created a fashion trend amongst students which the media dubbed the "Shinee Trend". The group's "boyish charm" was an important factor in Shinee gaining fans. With the release of 2009, Year of Us, Shinee's style became more mature, though still maintaining Shinee's unique image. Furthermore, instead of working with famous artists and photographers, SM Entertainment's Visual and Art Directing department usually works with up-and-coming talents with new ideas for Shinee's concepts. When Shinee debuted in 2008 with "Replay", it was not only their music which gained attention but also their colorful style—but even four years later, in 2012, Shinee maintained their colorful concept for Sherlock. Ha stated in an interview with The Korea Times: "Much has evolved over the years, since I change their styles to reflect their music. The feel from their debut single still exists, mixing the overground with the underground, haute couture with street fashion ... but it is very modern, like Shinee."
Vocals and choreography
Shinee are acknowledged for their "innovative approach to music and peerless choreography" and are considered some of the best live vocalists and dancers in Korean pop. They are known for their good vocal performances and complex choreographies, as well as a unique style of music that sets them apart from other K-pop artists. At SM Entertainment's showcase in New York in October 2011, Jon Caramanica of The New York Times summarized them as "the most ambitious" of the evening and also complimented the group's strong vocal performance. Furthermore, he stated: "Their music, especially "Replay", "Ring Ding Dong" and "Juliette", felt the riskiest, even if it only slightly tweaked that polyglot K-pop formula". Kim Joo-hyun of Beff Report considers Shinee's greatest strength the dismantling of the boundaries between the role of main vocal and subvocal. He positively emphasised the harmony between the two main vocals, Onew and Jonghyun, saying they sing with an aesthetic of "contrast", meaning they can't be separated from each other; on the contrary, they actually suit each other when brought together. He also praised the vocal development of Taemin, the youngest member in the group. Jakob Dorof of the monthly British style magazine Dazed described Shinee as possessing "technicolor visuals", "choreography as coordinated as ballet", and "wildly adventurous hit songs", stating they are a group that embodies the harmony of these qualities better than anyone else. Tamar Herman of Paste described Shinee as one of K-pop's most popular dance groups, "with cutting edge dance moves that are just as technically creative as the songs they've performed".
Shinee have worked with top choreographers such as Rino Nakasone, who choreographed Shinee's early songs like "Replay" and "Love Like Oxygen" in 2008, "Juliette" in 2009, and the group's hit single "Lucifer" in 2010, which was nominated for the Best Dance Performance at the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2010. Misha Gabriel choreographed the songs "Amigo" (2008) and "Ring Ding Dong" (2009). Tony Testa worked on Shinee's later hit songs like "Sherlock (Clue + Note)" (2012) and "Dream Girl" (2013), which are characterized by a unique and distinctive style, while Ian Eastwood worked on "View" (2015) – breaking away from the group's usual powerful and precise choreography and working instead with a groove style that showcases the teamwork of the group. All three songs were awarded with the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards: in 2012, 2013, and 2015.
Musical style and themes
The predominant musical genre of the group is contemporary R&B. The group's early singles like "Replay" and "Lucifer" were influenced by R&B and dance pop, while tracks such as "Get Down" and "JoJo" explored other musical styles such as hip-hop and dance. Shinee's third album is significantly influenced by funk rock, electronic music and rock. Billboard columnist Jeff Benjamin compared Shinee's songs like "Punch Drunk Love" and "Aside" to the sounds of Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, while tracks like "Beautiful" and "Runaway" combine "unique electronic production elements over sugary boy band harmonies to create year-round pop music".
Shinee as a group is known for their experimental sound and ability to execute a wide range of genres. An example of this is the group's fifth extended play, Everybody, whose title song is classified under the complextro genre. Jakob Dorof of Tiny Mix Tapes stated that "Everybody is proof positive that, even in a culture industry designed to minimize the role of real musicianship, talent will find its way to the top." He also remarked that "Close the Door" highlights the experimental and versatile nature of Shinee's music which frequently charts into unfamiliar territories.
With the release of their fourth Korean album, Odd, Shinee returned to their old sound while experimenting with new genres like deep house. According to Key, Odd marked the first time the group had direct involvement in the album production process, including the decision over picking the lead single as well as the album's concept. The costumes were based on Key's ideas — a vintage, old-school [aesthetic], during a time when other groups mostly wore uniforms. The album spanned a variety of styles including the two singles — the deep house "View" and Rocky Horror-inspired funk track "Married to the Music". Alexis Hodoyan-Gastelum of MTV praised the title song, "View", describing it as a "great, laid back summer jam" even though "the song fools us into thinking it's an uptempo ballad before reaching its techno peak at the chorus." Jeff Benjamin, on the other hand, praised "Odd Eye", which is written and composed by member Jonghyun. Benjamin states the group's "return to the R&B side of Shinee with feathery vocals, tight harmonies and member Onew's falsetto howls acting a centerpiece to this grooving opener" but he also adds, "despite initially debuting with a R&B sound, Shinee is arguably most exciting when experimenting".
Endorsements
Early in their career, Shinee were endorsers for several brands, such as the cosmetic brand Nana's B and the sports brand Reebok. Later, they endorsed the clothing brand Maypole as well as the popular Korean cosmetic brands Etude House and The Saem. In 2012, Etude House's Lash Pump 3-Step Volume-Cara, a PC-based and mobile micro-site featuring "doll eyelashes" main model Sandara Park and Shinee—appearing as puppets—was awarded first place in the Mobile Marketing and Product Promotions categories at the 9th Web Awards Korea. The group was also part of the popular Korean comic The Blade of the Phantom Master and webtoon series ENT. Furthermore, the group endorsed the sports brand Skechers and collaborated with Naver and Skechers for T-shirts and caps designed by the group members. Companies whose products are promoted by the Shinee label often see increased revenue; for example, "Shinee's Sparking Water", a carbonated bottled water sold by E-mart, boasted a combined sales of 67 million won over a one-month period.
Discography
Korean albums
The Shinee World (2008)
Lucifer (2010)
The Misconceptions of Us (2013)
Odd (2015)
1 of 1 (2016)
The Story of Light (2018)
Don't Call Me (2021)
Japanese albums
The First (2011)
Boys Meet U (2013)
I'm Your Boy (2014)
D×D×D (2016)
Five (2017)
Tours
Headlining
Asia tours
Shinee World (2010–2011)
Shinee World II (2012)
Shinee World IV (2015)
World tours
Shinee World III (2014)
Shinee World V (2016–2017)
Japan tours
Shinee World 2012 (2012)
Shinee World 2013 ~Boys Meet U~ (2013)
Shinee World 2014 ~I'm Your Boy~ (2014)
Shinee World 2016 ~DxDxD~ (2016)
Shinee World 2017 ~Five~ (2017)
Shinee World The Best 2018 ~From Now On~ (2018)
Fanmeetings
Shinee World J Presents ~Shinee Special Fan Event~ (2018)
Online concerts
Beyond Live – Shinee: Shinee World (2021)
Online fanmeetings
Shinee World J Presents ~Bistro de Shinee~ (2021)
Concert participation
SM Town Live '08 (2008–2009)
SM Town Live '10 World Tour (2010–2011)
SM Town Live World Tour III (2012–2013)
SM Town Week – "The Wizard" (2013)
SM Town Live World Tour IV (2014–2015)
KCON: Paris, France and Los Angeles, United States (2016)
SM Town Live World Tour V in Japan (2016)
SM Town Live World Tour VI in Korea and Japan (2017)
Supporting act
TVXQ! Asia Tour "Mirotic" (2009)
Girls' Generation Asia Tour "Into the New World" (2009–2010)
Filmography
Film
Television drama
Reality shows
Awards and nominations
Publications
Children of the Sun: Onew, Key, Taemin of Shinee in Barcelona, Woongjin Think Big Co., Ltd (September 12, 2011)
Shinee Surprise Vacation - Travel Note, SM Entertainment (May 27, 2013),
References
External links
(2020 archive)
Japanese-language singers of South Korea
K-pop music groups
SM Entertainment artists
South Korean dance music groups
Musical groups established in 2008
Musical groups from Seoul
SM Town
South Korean boy bands
Universal Music Japan artists
Virgin Records artists
Mnet Asian Music Award winners
Musical quintets
Melon Music Award winners | false | [
"\"Tell Me What You Want Me to Do\" is the title of a number-one R&B single by singer Tevin Campbell. To date, the single is Campbell's biggest hit peaking at number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spending one week at number-one on the US R&B chart. The hit song is also Tevin's one and only Adult Contemporary hit, where it peaked at number 43. The song showcases Campbell's four-octave vocal range from a low note of E2 to a D#6 during the bridge of the song.\n\nTrack listings\nUS 7\" vinyl\nA \"Tell Me What You Want Me to Do\" (edit) – 4:16\t\nB \"Tell Me What You Want Me to Do\" (instrumental) – 5:00\n\n12\" vinyl\nA \"Tell Me What You Want Me to Do\" (edit) – 4:16\t\nB \"Tell Me What You Want Me to Do\" (album version) – 5:02\n\nUK CD\n \"Tell Me What You Want Me to Do\" – 4:16\n \"Goodbye\" (7\" Remix Edit) – 3:48\n \"Goodbye\" (Sidub and Listen) – 4:58\n \"Goodbye\" (Tevin's Dub Pt 1 & 2) – 6:53\n\nJapan CD\n \"Tell Me What You Want Me to Do\" – 4:10\n \"Tell Me What You Want Me to Do\" (instrumental version) – 4:10\n\nGermany CD\n \"Tell Me What You Want Me to Do\" (edit) – 4:10\n \"Just Ask Me\" (featuring Chubb Rock) – 4:07\n \"Tomorrow\" (A Better You, Better Me) – 4:46\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nSee also\nList of number-one R&B singles of 1992 (U.S.)\n\nReferences\n\nTevin Campbell songs\n1991 singles\n1991 songs\nSongs written by Tevin Campbell\nSongs written by Narada Michael Walden\nSong recordings produced by Narada Michael Walden\nWarner Records singles\nContemporary R&B ballads\nPop ballads\nSoul ballads\n1990s ballads",
"\"Tell Me What You Want\" is the fourth single by English R&B band Loose Ends from their first studio album, A Little Spice, and was released in February 1984 by Virgin Records. The single reached number 74 in the UK Singles Chart.\n\nTrack listing\n7” Single: VS658\n \"Tell Me What You Want) 3.35\n \"Tell Me What You Want (Dub Mix)\" 3.34\n\n12” Single: VS658-12\n \"Tell Me What You Want (Extended Version)\" 6.11\n \"Tell Me What You Want (Extended Dub Mix)\" 5.41\n\nU.S. only release - 12” Single: MCA23596 (released 1985)\n \"Tell Me What You Want (U.S. Extended Remix)\" 6.08 *\n \"Tell Me What You Want (U.S. Dub Version)\" 5.18\n\n* The U.S. Extended Remix version was released on CD on the U.S. Version of the 'A Little Spice' album (MCAD27141).\n\nThe Extended Version also featured on Side D of the limited gatefold sleeve version of 'Magic Touch'\n\nChart performance\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Tell Me What You Want at Discogs.\n\n1984 singles\nLoose Ends (band) songs\nSong recordings produced by Nick Martinelli\nSongs written by Carl McIntosh (musician)\nSongs written by Steve Nichol\n1984 songs\nVirgin Records singles"
] |
[
"Shinee",
"2009-2010: Rising popularity and Lucifer",
"What is Rising popularity about?",
"I don't know.",
"What interesting fact about the article can you tell me about?",
"In early February 2009, Shinee won the \"Best Newcomer\" award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards.",
"did they win any other awards?",
"awarded with the \"Popularity\" award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards.",
"What can you tell me about Lucifer?",
"On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full length studio album, Lucifer,"
] | C_49801ec35b494288bfa0169cde8bd97f_0 | how did that do? | 5 | How did Shinee's album Lucifer do? | Shinee | In early February 2009, Shinee won the "Best Newcomer" award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards. Shinee's second extended play, Romeo, was released on May 25. Its lead single, "Juliette", was released earlier on May 18. The song is an instrumental remake of Corbin Bleu's "Deal with It". Shinee had their first stage performance for the song on KBS's Music Bank in June, 2009, where the group also received the award for the first place. Shinee released the digital version of their third extended play, 2009, Year of Us on October 19, 2009, with a physical release on October 22. The lead single, "Ring Ding Dong", was released digitally on October 14 and charted atop of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. In early December 2009, the group was also awarded with the "Popularity" award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards. On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full length studio album, Lucifer, which topped various physical and digital sales charts in South Korea. The songs on the album "were more carefully selected than ever," and the album is said to "[give] listeners a great chance to experience the diverse musical characters and more mature vocal skills of the members." The group made their comeback on July 23, 2010 at KBS Music Bank. For its outstanding choreography, "Lucifer", was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards. Lucifer became the 6th best-selling album of 2010 in South Korea, selling over 120,000 copies. In October, 2010, the album was re-released under the title Hello. Amidst their promotional activities for the second studio album, the group also participated in the SMTown Live '10 World Tour on August 21, 2010. On December 26, 2010, Shinee commenced their first concert tour, Shinee World, at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo. The event was attended by approximately 24,000 people. CANNOTANSWER | which topped various physical and digital sales charts in South Korea. | Shinee ( ; ; ; stylized as SHINee) is a South Korean boy band formed by SM Entertainment in 2008. The group's musical impact in their native country has earned them numerous accolades and the title "Princes of K-pop". The group is composed of four members: Onew, Key, Minho, and Taemin. Originally a five-piece group, vocalist Jonghyun died in December 2017.
Shinee debuted in May 2008 with their first EP, Replay, on SBS' Inkigayo with their single "Replay". The group gained attention for starting a fashion trend amongst students, which the media dubbed the "Shinee Trend". In August 2008, the group released their first Korean studio album, The Shinee World, which won Newcomer Album of the Year at the 23rd Golden Disc Awards. Shinee further consolidated their popularity on the South Korean music scene with follow-up singles "Ring Ding Dong" and "Lucifer". "Ring Ding Dong" charted on top of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. "Lucifer" was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2010 for its outstanding choreography. In 2012 the group released Sherlock, which became the fifth most sold album of the year with over 180,000 copies sold. The group has also been included in the Forbes list of Korea Power Celebrity multiple times, once in 2014 and again in 2016.
In mid-2011, Shinee signed with EMI Records Japan to venture into the Japanese music scene. Their Japanese version of their single "Replay" sold over 100,000 copies, the highest number of sales for a Japanese debut single recorded by Oricon for a South Korean group at the time. It was followed by their first Japanese studio album, The First, on December 7, 2011 – both were certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. In 2011, the group also held their Japan Debut Premium Reception at Abbey Road Studios in London, making them the first Asian artists to perform there. Two years later they released their second Japanese album Boys Meet U (2013), followed by I'm Your Boy (2014), D×D×D (2016), and Five (2017).
Shinee is considered to be one of the best live vocal groups in K-pop and is known for their highly synchronized and complex dance routines, having been awarded the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards three times in a row for their dance performances to "Sherlock (Clue + Note)", "Dream Girl" and "View". Shinee's signature musical style is contemporary R&B, but the group is known for their experimental sound, incorporating various genres including funk rock, hip hop, and EDM.
History
2008: Debut and The Shinee World
Prior to the group's debut, the label company, SM Entertainment, introduced an upcoming contemporary R&B boy group with its goal to be trendsetters in all areas of music, fashion and dance. The group's Korean name, Shinee, is a new coined word and is explained as a combination of shine, meaning light, and the suffix ee, therefore meaning "one who receives the light". On May 22, 2008, the group's first EP, Replay, was released, which debuted at number ten on the South Korean music charts and peaked at number eight, selling 17,957 copies in the first half of 2008. On May 25, 2008, Shinee had their first stage performance on SBS' Inkigayo with their single "Replay".
In June 2008, the group won their first award, Rookie of the Month, at the Cyworld Digital Music Awards, and were also awarded with the Hot New Star award at the Mnet 20's Choice Awards in August 2008. In the same month, Shinee subsequently released their first full-length album, The Shinee World, which debuted at number three, selling 30,000 copies. Its title track "Love Like Oxygen" is a cover of "Show the World" by Martin Hoberg Hedegaard, originally written by the Danish songwriting and production team of Thomas Troelsen, Remee, and Lucas Secon. On September 18, 2008, the song won first place on M Countdown, making it the group's first win on a South Korean music show since debut.
Shinee participated in the 5th Asia Song Festival, where they received the Best New Artist award along with Japanese girl group Berryz Kobo. The group attended the Style Icon Awards on October 30, 2008, where they received the Best Style Icon Award. On the same day, a repackaged version of The Shinee World, titled Amigo, was released, which includes three new songs: "Forever or Never", a remix of "Love Should Go On", and the title track "Amigo". "Amigo" is a shortened version of the Korean phrase "areumdaun minyeoreul joahamyeon gosaenghanda", which can be translated to "The heart aches when you fall in love with a beauty".
In November 2008, Shinee won the Best New Male Group award at the 2008 Mnet Km Music Festival, beating fellow newcomers U-KISS, 2PM, 2AM and Mighty Mouth. In addition, the group also won the award for Newcomer Album of the Year at the 23rd Golden Disk Awards.
2009–2010: Rising popularity and Lucifer
In early February 2009, Shinee won the Best Newcomer award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards. Shinee's second extended play, Romeo, was released on May 25. Its lead single, "Juliette", was released earlier on May 18. The song is an instrumental remake of Corbin Bleu's "Deal with It". Shinee had their first stage performance for the song on KBS' Music Bank in June 2009, where the group also received the award for the first place.
Shinee released the digital version of their third extended play, 2009, Year of Us, on October 19, 2009, with a physical release on October 22. The lead single, "Ring Ding Dong", was released digitally on October 14 and charted atop of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. In early December 2009, the group won the Popularity Award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards.
On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full-length studio album, Lucifer, which topped various physical and digital sales charts in South Korea. The songs on the album "were more carefully selected than ever", and the album is said to "[give] listeners a great chance to experience the diverse musical characters and more mature vocal skills of the members." The group made their comeback on July 23, 2010, at KBS' Music Bank. For its outstanding choreography, "Lucifer" was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards. Lucifer became the sixth best-selling album of 2010 in South Korea, selling over 120,000 copies. In October 2010, the album was re-released under the title Hello. Amidst their promotional activities for the second studio album, the group also participated in the SM Town Live '10 World Tour on August 21, 2010. On December 26, 2010, Shinee commenced their first concert tour, Shinee World, at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo. The event was attended by approximately 24,000 people.
2011–2012: Japanese debut, The First and Sherlock
On January 1, 2011, Shinee performed at Olympic Gymnastics Arena in Seoul as a part of their tour, Shinee World, followed by various cities in Japan throughout 2011. On January 25 and 26, 2011, the group participated in the Japan leg of the SM Town Live '10 World Tour in Tokyo, which continued on to two concerts in Paris at Zénith Paris, three concerts in Tokyo at Tokyo Dome, and at Madison Square Garden in New York City. On June 22, 2011, the group made their debut in Japan with the Japanese version of "Replay", which sold more than 91,000 copies in the first week. It was subsequently certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. It was the highest sales recorded by Oricon for a South Korean group debut at the time.
On June 19, Shinee made history by becoming the first Asian artists to perform at Abbey Road Studios in London, holding their Japan Debut Premium Reception there. On July 22, 2011, Shinee started their Japan Debut Premium Reception Tour and held several concerts in various cities across Japan. On August 28 and October 12, 2011, two Japanese remakes, "Juliette" and "Lucifer", were released, respectively. On August 9, 2011, Shinee took part in an effort to help African children. The groups were joined by the United Nations' Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, in the "Help African Children" project co-organized by the Korean Red Cross Society and the Korean UNICEF committee.
In November 2011, Shinee were invited to be the opening act of the 6th London Korean Film Festival, which took place at the Odeon West End Theater. The group held an hour-long gala concert to open the festival with tickets selling out within minutes. This marked the first time that any Korean artist(s) had held an independent concert in London.
The group's first Japanese studio album, The First, was released in December 2011. It featured five new songs in addition to Japanese remakes of seven previously released Korean songs. The regular version of the album also featured the theme song of the drama Strangers 6, entitled "Stranger", as a bonus. The album was certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. On December 8, Taemin, Onew, and Key debuted as writers and released a travelogue, Children of the Sun, containing stories from their trip to Barcelona, Spain. The members shot the photos and wrote the commentaries themselves. Shinee also participated in the album 2011 Winter SM Town – The Warmest Gift with a cover of the song "Last Christmas". The compilation album by SM artists was released on December 13, 2011.
Shinee held a commemorative concert in honor of the successful release of their first Japanese album, The First, at the Tokyo International Forum Hall A on December 24, 2011. The live concert took place three times in order to accommodate the 15,000 fans that won a lottery to attend. They performed a total of six songs including their Japanese debut singles, "Replay (Kimi wa Boku no Everything)" and "Lucifer", and "To Your Heart". On December 28, 2011, Tower Records Japan announced that Shinee had won the Artist of the Year award at the 2011 K-Pop Lovers! Awards. Shinee's fourth Korean mini album, Sherlock, was released digitally on March 19 and physically on March 21. Sherlock became the fifth best-selling album of the year in South Korea with over 180,000 copies sold. On March 26, 2012, Shinee, alongside their labelmates, became stockholders of SM Entertainment. They received 340 shares each (value of around $13,600 for each member).
The Japanese remake of "Sherlock" was released in Japan on May 16. The group started their first Japan nationwide concert tour, Shinee World 2012, on April 25, 2012. The tour had a total of 20 concerts in Fukuoka, Sapporo, Nagoya, Osaka, Kobe, Tokyo and Hiroshima. Their tour set a record for the most people in attendance for a Korean act's first Japan tour with a total of 200,000 people. On May 20, 2012, Shinee participated in the SM Town Live World Tour III alongside their label-mates at Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Shinee held their second solo concert, Shinee World II, beginning in Seoul on July 21 and 22 at Olympic Gymnastics Arena.
Shinee released an original Japanese single, "Dazzling Girl", on October 10, 2012. The single sold 97,111 copies in its first week and was chosen to be the theme song for the Japanese TV series Sukkiri. On November 19, 2012, along with actor Kim Soo-hyun, Shinee won the Ministry of Culture Award at South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Korea Creative Content Agency's (KOCCA) annual award show, the Korean Popular Culture and Arts Awards, at Seoul Olympic Hall. Shinee attended the 2012 Mnet Asian Music Awards in November 2012, which was held in Hong Kong, winning Best Dance Performance – Male Group for their latest Korean single, "Sherlock (Clue + Note)". Shinee released their first Japanese ballad single (sixth overall), "1000-nen, Zutto Soba ni Ite...", and the concert video album for their Shinee World 2012 arena tour on December 12, 2012.
2013–2014: Dream Girl, Why So Serious?, Boys Meet U, Everybody and I'm Your Boy
On January 15, 2013, Shinee attended the 27th Golden Disk Awards, which was held in Kuala Lumpur at Sepang International Circuit, and received the Popularity Award for the third time after winning the same title in 2009 and 2010. They also received the Disk Bonsang for Sherlock, their second after winning for Lucifer in 2010. On February 3, MBC announced that Shinee would be starring in their own Lunar New Year special entitled Shinee's Wonderful Day (also known as Shinee's One Fine Day), which began airing on February 10. The special featured the Shinee members visiting various countries of their choice without the assistance of their management staff and with the production crew instructed to not interfere. For the special, Onew visited Thailand, Jonghyun visited Japan, Key and Minho visited England, and Taemin visited Switzerland.
Shinee's third Korean album consisted of two versions: the first part, Dream Girl – The Misconceptions of You, being released on February 19 and the second part, Why So Serious? – The Misconceptions of Me, being released on April 29. The title track of part one, "Dream Girl", is an acid electro funk track and was produced by Shin Hyuk and Joombas Music Factory, while the title track of part two, "Why So Serious?", is a funk rock dance track written and produced by Kenzie. A compilation album was subsequently released, The Misconceptions of Us, with two new songs: "Selene 6.23" and "Better Off".
On March 13, Shinee released the Japanese single "Fire". On June 26, the group released their second Japanese album, Boys Meet U, and on August 21, a single with the same name was released, including the Japanese version of "Dream Girl". On June 28, 2013, Shinee started their second Japan nationwide concert tour, Shinee World 2013, in Saitama.
In November 2013, Shinee won Artist of the Year at the Melon Music Awards, one of the biggest award ceremonies in the country, which awards prizes based on digital sales and online votes. It was the first time the group won the prize. On September 29, SM Entertainment announced that Shinee's fifth EP, Everybody, would be released on October 14. On November 6, 2013, SM Entertainment announced its week-long music festival called SM Town Week. Shinee's concert, titled The Wizard, opened the event on December 21 at the Kintex in Ilsan.
On January 29, 2014, it was announced that Shinee would hold their third Korean solo concert, Shinee World III, in March, with shows added in Latin America. On February 24, the mayor of Gangnam District, Shin Yeon-hee, announced that Shinee had been appointed honorary ambassadors of the district. On April 2, Shinee released a live concert album from their second solo concert.
On June 25, Universal Music Japan released Shinee's tenth Japanese single, "Lucky Star", as their first release under EMI Records. On September 24, Universal Music Japan released the group's third Japanese album, I'm Your Boy, preceded by the singles "Boys Meet U", "3 2 1", and "Lucky Star". From September till December 2014 Shinee embarked on their third Japan tour. It started off at Chiba on September 28, with 30 scheduled performances around the country.
On December 11, 2014, the group released their third live concert album, from Shinee World III, held in Olympic Gymnastics Arena on March 8 and 9 the same year. It contained two CDs with a total of 33 tracks. SM Entertainment stated on December 15 that Shinee sold out the World Memorial Hall in Kobe, Japan, with 16,000 fans attending between December 13 and 14. With that, Shinee successfully completed their 20-city, 30-concert tour, gathering 200,000 audience members overall. Furthermore, Shinee held a solo concert in Tokyo Dome, the first time since their Japanese debut, on March 14 and 15, 2015. The Tokyo Dome concert was the finale and encore for their Japanese tour. Forbes listed Shinee among Korea Power Celebrity in 2014.
2015–2016: Odd, DxDxD and 1 of 1
On February 17, Shinee were invited as the only Korean artist(s) to China's Lunar New Year Program, Chun Jie Wan Hui, which is hosted by Liaoning TV and has been the highest viewed show in its timeslot for 12 years. The same month, the group became ambassadors of the Ministry of Personnel Management to promote Korean music, dance and fashion. Their tasks as ambassadors included performing at events around the world to encourage cultural exchanges between the nations.
Shinee held a three-day long concert, Shinee World IV, at Seoul's Olympic Park Gymnastics Gymnasium between May 15 and 17, where the group premiered the new songs off their upcoming album. Their fourth studio album, Odd, was released on May 18, and the following day the music video to the title song, "View", was released. The track was written and produced by LDN Noise and Jonghyun. The music video for "View" was the most watched K-pop music video in the world for the month of May. Odd debuted at number nine on Billboards Heatseekers Albums chart as well as number one on Billboards World Albums chart and sold over 2,000 copies in the US. The repackaged album, Married to the Music, was released on August 3, 2015, with four additional songs. Gaon Music Chart released year-end sales for 2015 which revealed that Shinee was one of only five male groups to make it onto the digital chart, at 41st place, and one of only four male groups to make it into the top 100 of the download and streaming charts, at 78th and 65th place, respectively.
They released their eleventh and twelfth Japanese singles, "Sing Your Song" and "D×D×D", on October 25, 2015, and December 13, 2015, respectively, the latter being the lead single for their fourth Japanese album of the same name. On January 1, 2016, Shinee released their fourth full-length Japanese album, D×D×D, which included the group's previously released singles and the Japanese version of "View". The album topped the Oricon charts. To promote the album, they launched their fourth nationwide Japanese stadium tour, Shinee World 2016, starting in Fukuoka's Marine Messe on January 30, 2016, and ending at the Tokyo Dome on May 19, 2016, with a total of 20 concerts in nine cities. Their agency estimated that the concert could have gathered up to 350,000 people, which would bring the cumulative total of visitors to all of Shinee's Japanese tours to 1.12 million. The tour marked their second time headlining Tokyo Dome, which they did on May 18 and 19, and first time headlining Kyocera Dome, on May 14 and 15. They released their 13th Japanese single, "Kimi no Sei de", on May 18, which sold over 69,000 copies in Japan.
In February 2016, Forbes released their top forty of Forbes Korea Power Celebrity, Shinee being included once again. In March, Shinee won the Asia's Best Group Award at the 23rd DongFang Music Awards in Shanghai, one of the biggest annual award ceremonies in China. The group was the only K-pop act invited to attend and perform at the ceremony.
On September 4, 2016, Shinee held their fifth solo concert, titled Shinee World V, in Seoul. Four of the 34 songs performed were songs from the group's new album, which was released on October 5, 2016, under the title 1 of 1. The album "spins a hyper-modernized twist on the retro genre", inspired by the 1980–1990 period. The repackaged version, titled 1 and 1, was released on November 15, 2016, with five new songs. On December 21, 2016, Shinee released their fourteenth Japanese single, "Winter Wonderland", which debuted at number two on the Oricon Charts and sold over 80,000 copies in one week. Shinee also had the sixth biggest audience numbers for their concerts in Japan in 2016, with an estimated 510,000 people across 28 concerts. Shinee were one of two non-Japanese artists, along with Big Bang, to make it into the top ten of the list.
2017–2019: Five, Jonghyun's death, The Story of Light, and military service
On February 22, Shinee released their fifth full-length Japanese album, Five. To promote the album, they launched their fifth Japan tour, Shinee World 2017, starting on January 28, 2017, and ending in Tokyo on April 30, 2017, with a total of 25 concerts in 10 cities. Later on, the group added four additional performances for the tour at Tokyo Dome and Kyocera Dome starting September. Shinee ranked eighth in Japan for their concert audience numbers in 2017, with approximately 539,000 attendees.
On December 18, 2017, Jonghyun died from suicide. His funeral was held on December 21 with the rest of Shinee and numerous artists in attendance, including Girls' Generation, IU, Super Junior, and more. Shinee was slated to have a series of concerts in Japan in February 2018, and after entering into discussions on whether to postpone them, they decided to continue promoting as a four-member group and proceed with their Japanese tour as scheduled. On March 26, Shinee released their Japanese single, "From Now On", posthumously featuring Jonghyun, and shortly after, the group released their first Japanese compilation, Shinee The Best From Now On.
On May 15, 2018, SM Entertainment revealed teasers for a three-part Korean album, titled The Story of Light. The first part of the album was released on May 28 with the single "Good Evening", and the second part of the trilogy was released on June 11 with the single "I Want You". According to the group, the second part of the album represents the group's view of themselves, while the first part reflected what others think of them. The third and last part of the album is fronted by the single "Our Page" and was released on June 25. On August 1, 2018, the Japanese versions of "Good Evening" and "I Want You" were released on Shinee's 15th Japanese single "Sunny Side", alongside the track of the same name, which was written by the group members. On September 10, 2018, Shinee released their sixth album repackage, The Story of Light Epilogue, consisting of all tracks from the previous three albums, and one new song, titled "Countless".
Onew applied and enlisted for his mandatory military service in December 2018. It was announced in early 2019 that both Key and Minho would be enlisting in the first half of the year. Key applied for military band service and enlisted on March 4, 2019. Minho enlisted in the Marines on April 15, 2019.
2020–present: Don't Call Me and Superstar
Onew was discharged from the military on July 8, 2020, followed by Key and Minho on September 24 and November 15, respectively. On January 6, 2021, SM Entertainment announced Shinee would return with a new album after two and a half years. The group's seventh Korean studio album Don't Call Me, featuring the album's title track as the lead single alongside its music video, was released on February 22, 2021. The album was commercially successful, debuting at number one on the Gaon Album Chart and receiving a Platinum certification from KMCA for over 250,000 copies sold. Using the Beyond Live platform, they held an online concert titled Shinee World on April 4, 2021, which recorded 130,000 viewers across 120 countries. A repackaged version of their seventh album, Atlantis, was released on April 12, 2021, featuring three new songs including the title track of the same name.
On May 23, 2021, Shinee held an online fan meeting titled Bistro de Shinee to celebrate the tenth anniversary of their debut in Japan. They premiered their new Japanese single "Superstar" at the event, which was released on digital music platforms the following day. Taemin enlisted as part of the military band on May 31, becoming the final member of the group to enlist. On June 28, 2021, Shinee released the digital version of their new Japanese extended play Superstar, featuring five songs, their first Japanese release since 2018. The physical version was released on July 28, 2021. The EP became Shinee's fourth release to top the Oricon Albums Chart and was certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies.
Members
On December 18, 2017, Jonghyun died from suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning at the age of 27. Following Jonghyun's death, Shinee continued as a four-member group, and the remaining members completed their military service. Onew enlisted in the military in December 2018 and was discharged on July 8, 2020. Key enlisted on March 4, 2019 and was discharged on September 24, 2020. Minho enlisted on April 15, 2019 and was discharged on November 15, 2020. Taemin is the last member in military, enlisting on May 31, 2021.
Current (active)
Onew (온유)
Key (키)
Minho (민호)
Current (inactive)
Taemin (태민) (inactive due to military service)
Former
Jonghyun (종현)
Timeline
Note: Jonghyun still appears posthumously in The Story of Light despite his death on December 18, 2017.
Artistry
Public image
Shinee is known for their fashion style, initially created by designer Ha Sang-beg, which features high-top sneakers, skinny jeans, and colorful sweaters. Their style has created a fashion trend amongst students which the media dubbed the "Shinee Trend". The group's "boyish charm" was an important factor in Shinee gaining fans. With the release of 2009, Year of Us, Shinee's style became more mature, though still maintaining Shinee's unique image. Furthermore, instead of working with famous artists and photographers, SM Entertainment's Visual and Art Directing department usually works with up-and-coming talents with new ideas for Shinee's concepts. When Shinee debuted in 2008 with "Replay", it was not only their music which gained attention but also their colorful style—but even four years later, in 2012, Shinee maintained their colorful concept for Sherlock. Ha stated in an interview with The Korea Times: "Much has evolved over the years, since I change their styles to reflect their music. The feel from their debut single still exists, mixing the overground with the underground, haute couture with street fashion ... but it is very modern, like Shinee."
Vocals and choreography
Shinee are acknowledged for their "innovative approach to music and peerless choreography" and are considered some of the best live vocalists and dancers in Korean pop. They are known for their good vocal performances and complex choreographies, as well as a unique style of music that sets them apart from other K-pop artists. At SM Entertainment's showcase in New York in October 2011, Jon Caramanica of The New York Times summarized them as "the most ambitious" of the evening and also complimented the group's strong vocal performance. Furthermore, he stated: "Their music, especially "Replay", "Ring Ding Dong" and "Juliette", felt the riskiest, even if it only slightly tweaked that polyglot K-pop formula". Kim Joo-hyun of Beff Report considers Shinee's greatest strength the dismantling of the boundaries between the role of main vocal and subvocal. He positively emphasised the harmony between the two main vocals, Onew and Jonghyun, saying they sing with an aesthetic of "contrast", meaning they can't be separated from each other; on the contrary, they actually suit each other when brought together. He also praised the vocal development of Taemin, the youngest member in the group. Jakob Dorof of the monthly British style magazine Dazed described Shinee as possessing "technicolor visuals", "choreography as coordinated as ballet", and "wildly adventurous hit songs", stating they are a group that embodies the harmony of these qualities better than anyone else. Tamar Herman of Paste described Shinee as one of K-pop's most popular dance groups, "with cutting edge dance moves that are just as technically creative as the songs they've performed".
Shinee have worked with top choreographers such as Rino Nakasone, who choreographed Shinee's early songs like "Replay" and "Love Like Oxygen" in 2008, "Juliette" in 2009, and the group's hit single "Lucifer" in 2010, which was nominated for the Best Dance Performance at the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2010. Misha Gabriel choreographed the songs "Amigo" (2008) and "Ring Ding Dong" (2009). Tony Testa worked on Shinee's later hit songs like "Sherlock (Clue + Note)" (2012) and "Dream Girl" (2013), which are characterized by a unique and distinctive style, while Ian Eastwood worked on "View" (2015) – breaking away from the group's usual powerful and precise choreography and working instead with a groove style that showcases the teamwork of the group. All three songs were awarded with the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards: in 2012, 2013, and 2015.
Musical style and themes
The predominant musical genre of the group is contemporary R&B. The group's early singles like "Replay" and "Lucifer" were influenced by R&B and dance pop, while tracks such as "Get Down" and "JoJo" explored other musical styles such as hip-hop and dance. Shinee's third album is significantly influenced by funk rock, electronic music and rock. Billboard columnist Jeff Benjamin compared Shinee's songs like "Punch Drunk Love" and "Aside" to the sounds of Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, while tracks like "Beautiful" and "Runaway" combine "unique electronic production elements over sugary boy band harmonies to create year-round pop music".
Shinee as a group is known for their experimental sound and ability to execute a wide range of genres. An example of this is the group's fifth extended play, Everybody, whose title song is classified under the complextro genre. Jakob Dorof of Tiny Mix Tapes stated that "Everybody is proof positive that, even in a culture industry designed to minimize the role of real musicianship, talent will find its way to the top." He also remarked that "Close the Door" highlights the experimental and versatile nature of Shinee's music which frequently charts into unfamiliar territories.
With the release of their fourth Korean album, Odd, Shinee returned to their old sound while experimenting with new genres like deep house. According to Key, Odd marked the first time the group had direct involvement in the album production process, including the decision over picking the lead single as well as the album's concept. The costumes were based on Key's ideas — a vintage, old-school [aesthetic], during a time when other groups mostly wore uniforms. The album spanned a variety of styles including the two singles — the deep house "View" and Rocky Horror-inspired funk track "Married to the Music". Alexis Hodoyan-Gastelum of MTV praised the title song, "View", describing it as a "great, laid back summer jam" even though "the song fools us into thinking it's an uptempo ballad before reaching its techno peak at the chorus." Jeff Benjamin, on the other hand, praised "Odd Eye", which is written and composed by member Jonghyun. Benjamin states the group's "return to the R&B side of Shinee with feathery vocals, tight harmonies and member Onew's falsetto howls acting a centerpiece to this grooving opener" but he also adds, "despite initially debuting with a R&B sound, Shinee is arguably most exciting when experimenting".
Endorsements
Early in their career, Shinee were endorsers for several brands, such as the cosmetic brand Nana's B and the sports brand Reebok. Later, they endorsed the clothing brand Maypole as well as the popular Korean cosmetic brands Etude House and The Saem. In 2012, Etude House's Lash Pump 3-Step Volume-Cara, a PC-based and mobile micro-site featuring "doll eyelashes" main model Sandara Park and Shinee—appearing as puppets—was awarded first place in the Mobile Marketing and Product Promotions categories at the 9th Web Awards Korea. The group was also part of the popular Korean comic The Blade of the Phantom Master and webtoon series ENT. Furthermore, the group endorsed the sports brand Skechers and collaborated with Naver and Skechers for T-shirts and caps designed by the group members. Companies whose products are promoted by the Shinee label often see increased revenue; for example, "Shinee's Sparking Water", a carbonated bottled water sold by E-mart, boasted a combined sales of 67 million won over a one-month period.
Discography
Korean albums
The Shinee World (2008)
Lucifer (2010)
The Misconceptions of Us (2013)
Odd (2015)
1 of 1 (2016)
The Story of Light (2018)
Don't Call Me (2021)
Japanese albums
The First (2011)
Boys Meet U (2013)
I'm Your Boy (2014)
D×D×D (2016)
Five (2017)
Tours
Headlining
Asia tours
Shinee World (2010–2011)
Shinee World II (2012)
Shinee World IV (2015)
World tours
Shinee World III (2014)
Shinee World V (2016–2017)
Japan tours
Shinee World 2012 (2012)
Shinee World 2013 ~Boys Meet U~ (2013)
Shinee World 2014 ~I'm Your Boy~ (2014)
Shinee World 2016 ~DxDxD~ (2016)
Shinee World 2017 ~Five~ (2017)
Shinee World The Best 2018 ~From Now On~ (2018)
Fanmeetings
Shinee World J Presents ~Shinee Special Fan Event~ (2018)
Online concerts
Beyond Live – Shinee: Shinee World (2021)
Online fanmeetings
Shinee World J Presents ~Bistro de Shinee~ (2021)
Concert participation
SM Town Live '08 (2008–2009)
SM Town Live '10 World Tour (2010–2011)
SM Town Live World Tour III (2012–2013)
SM Town Week – "The Wizard" (2013)
SM Town Live World Tour IV (2014–2015)
KCON: Paris, France and Los Angeles, United States (2016)
SM Town Live World Tour V in Japan (2016)
SM Town Live World Tour VI in Korea and Japan (2017)
Supporting act
TVXQ! Asia Tour "Mirotic" (2009)
Girls' Generation Asia Tour "Into the New World" (2009–2010)
Filmography
Film
Television drama
Reality shows
Awards and nominations
Publications
Children of the Sun: Onew, Key, Taemin of Shinee in Barcelona, Woongjin Think Big Co., Ltd (September 12, 2011)
Shinee Surprise Vacation - Travel Note, SM Entertainment (May 27, 2013),
References
External links
(2020 archive)
Japanese-language singers of South Korea
K-pop music groups
SM Entertainment artists
South Korean dance music groups
Musical groups established in 2008
Musical groups from Seoul
SM Town
South Korean boy bands
Universal Music Japan artists
Virgin Records artists
Mnet Asian Music Award winners
Musical quintets
Melon Music Award winners | true | [
"The Migraine Disability Assessment Test (MIDAS) is a test used by doctors to determine how severely migraines affect a patient's life. Patients are asked questions about the frequency and duration of their headaches, as well as how often these headaches limited their ability to participate in activities at work, at school, or at home.\n\nThe test was evaluated by the professional journal Neurology in 2001; it was found to be both reliable and valid.\n\nQuestions\nThe MIDAS contains the following questions:\n\n On how many days in the last 3 months did you miss work or school because of your headaches?\n How many days in the last 3 months was your productivity at work or school reduced by half or more because of your headaches? (Do not include days you counted in question 1 where you missed work or school.)\n On how many days in the last 3 months did you not do household work because of your headaches?\n How many days in the last three months was your productivity in household work reduced by half of more because of your headaches? (Do not include days you counted in question 3 where you did not do household work.)\n On how many days in the last 3 months did you miss family, social or leisure activities because of your headaches?\n\nThe patient's score consists of the total of these five questions. Additionally, there is a section for patients to share with their doctors:\n\nWhat your Physician will need to know about your headache:\n\nA. On how many days in the last 3 months did you have a headache?\n(If a headache lasted more than 1 day, count each day.)\t\n\nB. On a scale of 0 - 10, on average how painful were these headaches? \n(where 0 = no pain at all and 10 = pain as bad as it can be.)\n\nScoring\nOnce scored, the test gives the patient an idea of how debilitating his/her migraines are based on this scale:\n\n0 to 5, MIDAS Grade I, Little or no disability \n\n6 to 10, MIDAS Grade II, Mild disability\n\n11 to 20, MIDAS Grade III, Moderate disability\n\n21+, MIDAS Grade IV, Severe disability\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nMigraine Treatment\n\nMigraine",
"\"How Do I Breathe\" is a song recorded by American singer Mario. It is the first single from his third studio album Go. The single was released on May 15, 2007. It was produced by Norwegian production team Stargate. On the issue date of July 7, 2007, the single debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 91. \"How Do I Breathe\" also debuted on the UK Singles Chart at number 30 on download sales alone, the day before the physical release of the song. It also became Mario's last charting single in the UK. The song also peaked at number 18 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The official remix of the song features Fabolous and the second official remix features Cassidy. A rare third one features both artists and switches between beats. The song was co-written by Mario.\n\nWriting and recording\nMario met Stargate, the producers from Norway. They met when Mario was overseas touring, and they talked about producing. They were up-and-coming at the time. Mario frequently heard their music on the radio and would later say he thought, \"Wow, I really like their music. These guys are classic.\" Mario and Stargate made two songs, which they collaborated on with Ne-Yo, but they did not make the cut. Then they did two more songs, which Mario co-wrote, one of which was \"How Do I Breathe\". Mario said: \"The truth is that I felt like the track already had a story to tell; but that there had to be a certain flow over the record. I had to show some vulnerability, and that is what the record is about. It's about being vulnerable and knowing that you lost something that so essential to your life. I'd say it's about 75% true to life, and the rest is just creative writing.\"\n\nCritical reception\nMark Edward Nero of About.com says \"The track isn't particularly groundbreaking, but it has a simple charm, in a sort of Ne-Yo meets Toni Braxton kind of way\".\n\nAaron Fields of KSTW.com stated: \"First single off the album, yet didn't have the success like \"Let me love you\" did. I remember thinking he was definitely back when I heard this song. I'm not sure why this song didn't get more attention as it is one of the better songs done by him, nevertheless I probably would have picked this for the first single as well. I still bump this one in the car.\"\n\nMusic video\nThe video was directed by Melina and premiered on BET's Access Granted on May 23, 2007. One scene where Mario is dressed in a white t-shirt while singing in smoke, is similar to the scene in Kanye West's video \"Touch the Sky\". After its premiere, \"How Do I Breathe\" received heavy airplay on BET's music video countdown show 106 & Park. It also appeared at number 87 on BET's Notarized: Top 100 Videos of 2007 countdown.\n\nVariations of \"How Do I Breathe\"\nAfter the song was released, there were two different variations that were available. The official version provided by Sony BMG, which was included within the official music video, has different lyrics than the one obtained via a peer-to-peer file sharing network. The specific difference in the lyrics is seen within the bridge of the song near the end.\n\nIn the official version, the bridge's lyrics are as follows:\"Ooh, I should've brought my love home, girl.And baby, I ain't perfect you know.The grind has got a tight hold.Girl, come back to me ... Cause girl you made it hard to breathe...When you're not with me...\"\nIn the other version obtained via a file sharing network, the bridge's lyrics are:\"Ooh, I can't get over you, no.Baby I don't wanna let go.Girl, you need to come home.Back to me ... Cause girl you made it hard to breathe...When you're not with me...\"\n\nThe other version obtained over a file sharing network also features a shout out to former NFL running back Shaun Alexander by an untold DJ near the end of the track.\n\nIn other media\nOn July 16, 2008, Kourtni Lind and Matt Dorame from the US television reality program and dance competition So You Think You Can Dance danced to \"How Do I Breathe\" as the part of the competition.\n\nTrack listing\nUK CD:\n \"How Do I Breathe\" (radio edit)\n \"How Do I Breathe\" (Full Phat remix featuring Rhymefest)\n\nPromo CD:\n \"How Do I Breathe\" (radio edit)\n \"How Do I Breathe\" (instrumental)\n\nHow Do I Breathe, Pt. 2:\n \"How Do I Breathe\" (radio edit)\n \"How Do I Breathe\" (Full Phat Remix featuring Rhymefest)\n \"How Do I Breathe\" (Allister Whitehead Remix)\n \"How Do I Breathe\" (video)\n\nCD single\n \"How Do I Breathe\" (radio edit) – 3:38\n \"How Do I Breathe\" (instrumental) – 3:38\n \"How Do I Breathe\" (call out hook) – 0:10\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n2006 songs\n2007 singles\nMario (American singer) songs\nJ Records singles\nMusic videos directed by Melina Matsoukas\nSong recordings produced by Stargate (record producers)\nSongs written by Tor Erik Hermansen\nSongs written by Mikkel Storleer Eriksen"
] |
[
"Shinee",
"2009-2010: Rising popularity and Lucifer",
"What is Rising popularity about?",
"I don't know.",
"What interesting fact about the article can you tell me about?",
"In early February 2009, Shinee won the \"Best Newcomer\" award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards.",
"did they win any other awards?",
"awarded with the \"Popularity\" award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards.",
"What can you tell me about Lucifer?",
"On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full length studio album, Lucifer,",
"how did that do?",
"which topped various physical and digital sales charts in South Korea."
] | C_49801ec35b494288bfa0169cde8bd97f_0 | Did they have any other albums during that time? | 6 | Besides Lucifer, did Shinee have any other albums during 2010? | Shinee | In early February 2009, Shinee won the "Best Newcomer" award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards. Shinee's second extended play, Romeo, was released on May 25. Its lead single, "Juliette", was released earlier on May 18. The song is an instrumental remake of Corbin Bleu's "Deal with It". Shinee had their first stage performance for the song on KBS's Music Bank in June, 2009, where the group also received the award for the first place. Shinee released the digital version of their third extended play, 2009, Year of Us on October 19, 2009, with a physical release on October 22. The lead single, "Ring Ding Dong", was released digitally on October 14 and charted atop of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. In early December 2009, the group was also awarded with the "Popularity" award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards. On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full length studio album, Lucifer, which topped various physical and digital sales charts in South Korea. The songs on the album "were more carefully selected than ever," and the album is said to "[give] listeners a great chance to experience the diverse musical characters and more mature vocal skills of the members." The group made their comeback on July 23, 2010 at KBS Music Bank. For its outstanding choreography, "Lucifer", was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards. Lucifer became the 6th best-selling album of 2010 in South Korea, selling over 120,000 copies. In October, 2010, the album was re-released under the title Hello. Amidst their promotional activities for the second studio album, the group also participated in the SMTown Live '10 World Tour on August 21, 2010. On December 26, 2010, Shinee commenced their first concert tour, Shinee World, at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo. The event was attended by approximately 24,000 people. CANNOTANSWER | the group also participated in the SMTown Live '10 World Tour on August 21, 2010. On December 26, 2010, | Shinee ( ; ; ; stylized as SHINee) is a South Korean boy band formed by SM Entertainment in 2008. The group's musical impact in their native country has earned them numerous accolades and the title "Princes of K-pop". The group is composed of four members: Onew, Key, Minho, and Taemin. Originally a five-piece group, vocalist Jonghyun died in December 2017.
Shinee debuted in May 2008 with their first EP, Replay, on SBS' Inkigayo with their single "Replay". The group gained attention for starting a fashion trend amongst students, which the media dubbed the "Shinee Trend". In August 2008, the group released their first Korean studio album, The Shinee World, which won Newcomer Album of the Year at the 23rd Golden Disc Awards. Shinee further consolidated their popularity on the South Korean music scene with follow-up singles "Ring Ding Dong" and "Lucifer". "Ring Ding Dong" charted on top of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. "Lucifer" was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2010 for its outstanding choreography. In 2012 the group released Sherlock, which became the fifth most sold album of the year with over 180,000 copies sold. The group has also been included in the Forbes list of Korea Power Celebrity multiple times, once in 2014 and again in 2016.
In mid-2011, Shinee signed with EMI Records Japan to venture into the Japanese music scene. Their Japanese version of their single "Replay" sold over 100,000 copies, the highest number of sales for a Japanese debut single recorded by Oricon for a South Korean group at the time. It was followed by their first Japanese studio album, The First, on December 7, 2011 – both were certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. In 2011, the group also held their Japan Debut Premium Reception at Abbey Road Studios in London, making them the first Asian artists to perform there. Two years later they released their second Japanese album Boys Meet U (2013), followed by I'm Your Boy (2014), D×D×D (2016), and Five (2017).
Shinee is considered to be one of the best live vocal groups in K-pop and is known for their highly synchronized and complex dance routines, having been awarded the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards three times in a row for their dance performances to "Sherlock (Clue + Note)", "Dream Girl" and "View". Shinee's signature musical style is contemporary R&B, but the group is known for their experimental sound, incorporating various genres including funk rock, hip hop, and EDM.
History
2008: Debut and The Shinee World
Prior to the group's debut, the label company, SM Entertainment, introduced an upcoming contemporary R&B boy group with its goal to be trendsetters in all areas of music, fashion and dance. The group's Korean name, Shinee, is a new coined word and is explained as a combination of shine, meaning light, and the suffix ee, therefore meaning "one who receives the light". On May 22, 2008, the group's first EP, Replay, was released, which debuted at number ten on the South Korean music charts and peaked at number eight, selling 17,957 copies in the first half of 2008. On May 25, 2008, Shinee had their first stage performance on SBS' Inkigayo with their single "Replay".
In June 2008, the group won their first award, Rookie of the Month, at the Cyworld Digital Music Awards, and were also awarded with the Hot New Star award at the Mnet 20's Choice Awards in August 2008. In the same month, Shinee subsequently released their first full-length album, The Shinee World, which debuted at number three, selling 30,000 copies. Its title track "Love Like Oxygen" is a cover of "Show the World" by Martin Hoberg Hedegaard, originally written by the Danish songwriting and production team of Thomas Troelsen, Remee, and Lucas Secon. On September 18, 2008, the song won first place on M Countdown, making it the group's first win on a South Korean music show since debut.
Shinee participated in the 5th Asia Song Festival, where they received the Best New Artist award along with Japanese girl group Berryz Kobo. The group attended the Style Icon Awards on October 30, 2008, where they received the Best Style Icon Award. On the same day, a repackaged version of The Shinee World, titled Amigo, was released, which includes three new songs: "Forever or Never", a remix of "Love Should Go On", and the title track "Amigo". "Amigo" is a shortened version of the Korean phrase "areumdaun minyeoreul joahamyeon gosaenghanda", which can be translated to "The heart aches when you fall in love with a beauty".
In November 2008, Shinee won the Best New Male Group award at the 2008 Mnet Km Music Festival, beating fellow newcomers U-KISS, 2PM, 2AM and Mighty Mouth. In addition, the group also won the award for Newcomer Album of the Year at the 23rd Golden Disk Awards.
2009–2010: Rising popularity and Lucifer
In early February 2009, Shinee won the Best Newcomer award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards. Shinee's second extended play, Romeo, was released on May 25. Its lead single, "Juliette", was released earlier on May 18. The song is an instrumental remake of Corbin Bleu's "Deal with It". Shinee had their first stage performance for the song on KBS' Music Bank in June 2009, where the group also received the award for the first place.
Shinee released the digital version of their third extended play, 2009, Year of Us, on October 19, 2009, with a physical release on October 22. The lead single, "Ring Ding Dong", was released digitally on October 14 and charted atop of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. In early December 2009, the group won the Popularity Award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards.
On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full-length studio album, Lucifer, which topped various physical and digital sales charts in South Korea. The songs on the album "were more carefully selected than ever", and the album is said to "[give] listeners a great chance to experience the diverse musical characters and more mature vocal skills of the members." The group made their comeback on July 23, 2010, at KBS' Music Bank. For its outstanding choreography, "Lucifer" was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards. Lucifer became the sixth best-selling album of 2010 in South Korea, selling over 120,000 copies. In October 2010, the album was re-released under the title Hello. Amidst their promotional activities for the second studio album, the group also participated in the SM Town Live '10 World Tour on August 21, 2010. On December 26, 2010, Shinee commenced their first concert tour, Shinee World, at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo. The event was attended by approximately 24,000 people.
2011–2012: Japanese debut, The First and Sherlock
On January 1, 2011, Shinee performed at Olympic Gymnastics Arena in Seoul as a part of their tour, Shinee World, followed by various cities in Japan throughout 2011. On January 25 and 26, 2011, the group participated in the Japan leg of the SM Town Live '10 World Tour in Tokyo, which continued on to two concerts in Paris at Zénith Paris, three concerts in Tokyo at Tokyo Dome, and at Madison Square Garden in New York City. On June 22, 2011, the group made their debut in Japan with the Japanese version of "Replay", which sold more than 91,000 copies in the first week. It was subsequently certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. It was the highest sales recorded by Oricon for a South Korean group debut at the time.
On June 19, Shinee made history by becoming the first Asian artists to perform at Abbey Road Studios in London, holding their Japan Debut Premium Reception there. On July 22, 2011, Shinee started their Japan Debut Premium Reception Tour and held several concerts in various cities across Japan. On August 28 and October 12, 2011, two Japanese remakes, "Juliette" and "Lucifer", were released, respectively. On August 9, 2011, Shinee took part in an effort to help African children. The groups were joined by the United Nations' Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, in the "Help African Children" project co-organized by the Korean Red Cross Society and the Korean UNICEF committee.
In November 2011, Shinee were invited to be the opening act of the 6th London Korean Film Festival, which took place at the Odeon West End Theater. The group held an hour-long gala concert to open the festival with tickets selling out within minutes. This marked the first time that any Korean artist(s) had held an independent concert in London.
The group's first Japanese studio album, The First, was released in December 2011. It featured five new songs in addition to Japanese remakes of seven previously released Korean songs. The regular version of the album also featured the theme song of the drama Strangers 6, entitled "Stranger", as a bonus. The album was certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. On December 8, Taemin, Onew, and Key debuted as writers and released a travelogue, Children of the Sun, containing stories from their trip to Barcelona, Spain. The members shot the photos and wrote the commentaries themselves. Shinee also participated in the album 2011 Winter SM Town – The Warmest Gift with a cover of the song "Last Christmas". The compilation album by SM artists was released on December 13, 2011.
Shinee held a commemorative concert in honor of the successful release of their first Japanese album, The First, at the Tokyo International Forum Hall A on December 24, 2011. The live concert took place three times in order to accommodate the 15,000 fans that won a lottery to attend. They performed a total of six songs including their Japanese debut singles, "Replay (Kimi wa Boku no Everything)" and "Lucifer", and "To Your Heart". On December 28, 2011, Tower Records Japan announced that Shinee had won the Artist of the Year award at the 2011 K-Pop Lovers! Awards. Shinee's fourth Korean mini album, Sherlock, was released digitally on March 19 and physically on March 21. Sherlock became the fifth best-selling album of the year in South Korea with over 180,000 copies sold. On March 26, 2012, Shinee, alongside their labelmates, became stockholders of SM Entertainment. They received 340 shares each (value of around $13,600 for each member).
The Japanese remake of "Sherlock" was released in Japan on May 16. The group started their first Japan nationwide concert tour, Shinee World 2012, on April 25, 2012. The tour had a total of 20 concerts in Fukuoka, Sapporo, Nagoya, Osaka, Kobe, Tokyo and Hiroshima. Their tour set a record for the most people in attendance for a Korean act's first Japan tour with a total of 200,000 people. On May 20, 2012, Shinee participated in the SM Town Live World Tour III alongside their label-mates at Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Shinee held their second solo concert, Shinee World II, beginning in Seoul on July 21 and 22 at Olympic Gymnastics Arena.
Shinee released an original Japanese single, "Dazzling Girl", on October 10, 2012. The single sold 97,111 copies in its first week and was chosen to be the theme song for the Japanese TV series Sukkiri. On November 19, 2012, along with actor Kim Soo-hyun, Shinee won the Ministry of Culture Award at South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Korea Creative Content Agency's (KOCCA) annual award show, the Korean Popular Culture and Arts Awards, at Seoul Olympic Hall. Shinee attended the 2012 Mnet Asian Music Awards in November 2012, which was held in Hong Kong, winning Best Dance Performance – Male Group for their latest Korean single, "Sherlock (Clue + Note)". Shinee released their first Japanese ballad single (sixth overall), "1000-nen, Zutto Soba ni Ite...", and the concert video album for their Shinee World 2012 arena tour on December 12, 2012.
2013–2014: Dream Girl, Why So Serious?, Boys Meet U, Everybody and I'm Your Boy
On January 15, 2013, Shinee attended the 27th Golden Disk Awards, which was held in Kuala Lumpur at Sepang International Circuit, and received the Popularity Award for the third time after winning the same title in 2009 and 2010. They also received the Disk Bonsang for Sherlock, their second after winning for Lucifer in 2010. On February 3, MBC announced that Shinee would be starring in their own Lunar New Year special entitled Shinee's Wonderful Day (also known as Shinee's One Fine Day), which began airing on February 10. The special featured the Shinee members visiting various countries of their choice without the assistance of their management staff and with the production crew instructed to not interfere. For the special, Onew visited Thailand, Jonghyun visited Japan, Key and Minho visited England, and Taemin visited Switzerland.
Shinee's third Korean album consisted of two versions: the first part, Dream Girl – The Misconceptions of You, being released on February 19 and the second part, Why So Serious? – The Misconceptions of Me, being released on April 29. The title track of part one, "Dream Girl", is an acid electro funk track and was produced by Shin Hyuk and Joombas Music Factory, while the title track of part two, "Why So Serious?", is a funk rock dance track written and produced by Kenzie. A compilation album was subsequently released, The Misconceptions of Us, with two new songs: "Selene 6.23" and "Better Off".
On March 13, Shinee released the Japanese single "Fire". On June 26, the group released their second Japanese album, Boys Meet U, and on August 21, a single with the same name was released, including the Japanese version of "Dream Girl". On June 28, 2013, Shinee started their second Japan nationwide concert tour, Shinee World 2013, in Saitama.
In November 2013, Shinee won Artist of the Year at the Melon Music Awards, one of the biggest award ceremonies in the country, which awards prizes based on digital sales and online votes. It was the first time the group won the prize. On September 29, SM Entertainment announced that Shinee's fifth EP, Everybody, would be released on October 14. On November 6, 2013, SM Entertainment announced its week-long music festival called SM Town Week. Shinee's concert, titled The Wizard, opened the event on December 21 at the Kintex in Ilsan.
On January 29, 2014, it was announced that Shinee would hold their third Korean solo concert, Shinee World III, in March, with shows added in Latin America. On February 24, the mayor of Gangnam District, Shin Yeon-hee, announced that Shinee had been appointed honorary ambassadors of the district. On April 2, Shinee released a live concert album from their second solo concert.
On June 25, Universal Music Japan released Shinee's tenth Japanese single, "Lucky Star", as their first release under EMI Records. On September 24, Universal Music Japan released the group's third Japanese album, I'm Your Boy, preceded by the singles "Boys Meet U", "3 2 1", and "Lucky Star". From September till December 2014 Shinee embarked on their third Japan tour. It started off at Chiba on September 28, with 30 scheduled performances around the country.
On December 11, 2014, the group released their third live concert album, from Shinee World III, held in Olympic Gymnastics Arena on March 8 and 9 the same year. It contained two CDs with a total of 33 tracks. SM Entertainment stated on December 15 that Shinee sold out the World Memorial Hall in Kobe, Japan, with 16,000 fans attending between December 13 and 14. With that, Shinee successfully completed their 20-city, 30-concert tour, gathering 200,000 audience members overall. Furthermore, Shinee held a solo concert in Tokyo Dome, the first time since their Japanese debut, on March 14 and 15, 2015. The Tokyo Dome concert was the finale and encore for their Japanese tour. Forbes listed Shinee among Korea Power Celebrity in 2014.
2015–2016: Odd, DxDxD and 1 of 1
On February 17, Shinee were invited as the only Korean artist(s) to China's Lunar New Year Program, Chun Jie Wan Hui, which is hosted by Liaoning TV and has been the highest viewed show in its timeslot for 12 years. The same month, the group became ambassadors of the Ministry of Personnel Management to promote Korean music, dance and fashion. Their tasks as ambassadors included performing at events around the world to encourage cultural exchanges between the nations.
Shinee held a three-day long concert, Shinee World IV, at Seoul's Olympic Park Gymnastics Gymnasium between May 15 and 17, where the group premiered the new songs off their upcoming album. Their fourth studio album, Odd, was released on May 18, and the following day the music video to the title song, "View", was released. The track was written and produced by LDN Noise and Jonghyun. The music video for "View" was the most watched K-pop music video in the world for the month of May. Odd debuted at number nine on Billboards Heatseekers Albums chart as well as number one on Billboards World Albums chart and sold over 2,000 copies in the US. The repackaged album, Married to the Music, was released on August 3, 2015, with four additional songs. Gaon Music Chart released year-end sales for 2015 which revealed that Shinee was one of only five male groups to make it onto the digital chart, at 41st place, and one of only four male groups to make it into the top 100 of the download and streaming charts, at 78th and 65th place, respectively.
They released their eleventh and twelfth Japanese singles, "Sing Your Song" and "D×D×D", on October 25, 2015, and December 13, 2015, respectively, the latter being the lead single for their fourth Japanese album of the same name. On January 1, 2016, Shinee released their fourth full-length Japanese album, D×D×D, which included the group's previously released singles and the Japanese version of "View". The album topped the Oricon charts. To promote the album, they launched their fourth nationwide Japanese stadium tour, Shinee World 2016, starting in Fukuoka's Marine Messe on January 30, 2016, and ending at the Tokyo Dome on May 19, 2016, with a total of 20 concerts in nine cities. Their agency estimated that the concert could have gathered up to 350,000 people, which would bring the cumulative total of visitors to all of Shinee's Japanese tours to 1.12 million. The tour marked their second time headlining Tokyo Dome, which they did on May 18 and 19, and first time headlining Kyocera Dome, on May 14 and 15. They released their 13th Japanese single, "Kimi no Sei de", on May 18, which sold over 69,000 copies in Japan.
In February 2016, Forbes released their top forty of Forbes Korea Power Celebrity, Shinee being included once again. In March, Shinee won the Asia's Best Group Award at the 23rd DongFang Music Awards in Shanghai, one of the biggest annual award ceremonies in China. The group was the only K-pop act invited to attend and perform at the ceremony.
On September 4, 2016, Shinee held their fifth solo concert, titled Shinee World V, in Seoul. Four of the 34 songs performed were songs from the group's new album, which was released on October 5, 2016, under the title 1 of 1. The album "spins a hyper-modernized twist on the retro genre", inspired by the 1980–1990 period. The repackaged version, titled 1 and 1, was released on November 15, 2016, with five new songs. On December 21, 2016, Shinee released their fourteenth Japanese single, "Winter Wonderland", which debuted at number two on the Oricon Charts and sold over 80,000 copies in one week. Shinee also had the sixth biggest audience numbers for their concerts in Japan in 2016, with an estimated 510,000 people across 28 concerts. Shinee were one of two non-Japanese artists, along with Big Bang, to make it into the top ten of the list.
2017–2019: Five, Jonghyun's death, The Story of Light, and military service
On February 22, Shinee released their fifth full-length Japanese album, Five. To promote the album, they launched their fifth Japan tour, Shinee World 2017, starting on January 28, 2017, and ending in Tokyo on April 30, 2017, with a total of 25 concerts in 10 cities. Later on, the group added four additional performances for the tour at Tokyo Dome and Kyocera Dome starting September. Shinee ranked eighth in Japan for their concert audience numbers in 2017, with approximately 539,000 attendees.
On December 18, 2017, Jonghyun died from suicide. His funeral was held on December 21 with the rest of Shinee and numerous artists in attendance, including Girls' Generation, IU, Super Junior, and more. Shinee was slated to have a series of concerts in Japan in February 2018, and after entering into discussions on whether to postpone them, they decided to continue promoting as a four-member group and proceed with their Japanese tour as scheduled. On March 26, Shinee released their Japanese single, "From Now On", posthumously featuring Jonghyun, and shortly after, the group released their first Japanese compilation, Shinee The Best From Now On.
On May 15, 2018, SM Entertainment revealed teasers for a three-part Korean album, titled The Story of Light. The first part of the album was released on May 28 with the single "Good Evening", and the second part of the trilogy was released on June 11 with the single "I Want You". According to the group, the second part of the album represents the group's view of themselves, while the first part reflected what others think of them. The third and last part of the album is fronted by the single "Our Page" and was released on June 25. On August 1, 2018, the Japanese versions of "Good Evening" and "I Want You" were released on Shinee's 15th Japanese single "Sunny Side", alongside the track of the same name, which was written by the group members. On September 10, 2018, Shinee released their sixth album repackage, The Story of Light Epilogue, consisting of all tracks from the previous three albums, and one new song, titled "Countless".
Onew applied and enlisted for his mandatory military service in December 2018. It was announced in early 2019 that both Key and Minho would be enlisting in the first half of the year. Key applied for military band service and enlisted on March 4, 2019. Minho enlisted in the Marines on April 15, 2019.
2020–present: Don't Call Me and Superstar
Onew was discharged from the military on July 8, 2020, followed by Key and Minho on September 24 and November 15, respectively. On January 6, 2021, SM Entertainment announced Shinee would return with a new album after two and a half years. The group's seventh Korean studio album Don't Call Me, featuring the album's title track as the lead single alongside its music video, was released on February 22, 2021. The album was commercially successful, debuting at number one on the Gaon Album Chart and receiving a Platinum certification from KMCA for over 250,000 copies sold. Using the Beyond Live platform, they held an online concert titled Shinee World on April 4, 2021, which recorded 130,000 viewers across 120 countries. A repackaged version of their seventh album, Atlantis, was released on April 12, 2021, featuring three new songs including the title track of the same name.
On May 23, 2021, Shinee held an online fan meeting titled Bistro de Shinee to celebrate the tenth anniversary of their debut in Japan. They premiered their new Japanese single "Superstar" at the event, which was released on digital music platforms the following day. Taemin enlisted as part of the military band on May 31, becoming the final member of the group to enlist. On June 28, 2021, Shinee released the digital version of their new Japanese extended play Superstar, featuring five songs, their first Japanese release since 2018. The physical version was released on July 28, 2021. The EP became Shinee's fourth release to top the Oricon Albums Chart and was certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies.
Members
On December 18, 2017, Jonghyun died from suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning at the age of 27. Following Jonghyun's death, Shinee continued as a four-member group, and the remaining members completed their military service. Onew enlisted in the military in December 2018 and was discharged on July 8, 2020. Key enlisted on March 4, 2019 and was discharged on September 24, 2020. Minho enlisted on April 15, 2019 and was discharged on November 15, 2020. Taemin is the last member in military, enlisting on May 31, 2021.
Current (active)
Onew (온유)
Key (키)
Minho (민호)
Current (inactive)
Taemin (태민) (inactive due to military service)
Former
Jonghyun (종현)
Timeline
Note: Jonghyun still appears posthumously in The Story of Light despite his death on December 18, 2017.
Artistry
Public image
Shinee is known for their fashion style, initially created by designer Ha Sang-beg, which features high-top sneakers, skinny jeans, and colorful sweaters. Their style has created a fashion trend amongst students which the media dubbed the "Shinee Trend". The group's "boyish charm" was an important factor in Shinee gaining fans. With the release of 2009, Year of Us, Shinee's style became more mature, though still maintaining Shinee's unique image. Furthermore, instead of working with famous artists and photographers, SM Entertainment's Visual and Art Directing department usually works with up-and-coming talents with new ideas for Shinee's concepts. When Shinee debuted in 2008 with "Replay", it was not only their music which gained attention but also their colorful style—but even four years later, in 2012, Shinee maintained their colorful concept for Sherlock. Ha stated in an interview with The Korea Times: "Much has evolved over the years, since I change their styles to reflect their music. The feel from their debut single still exists, mixing the overground with the underground, haute couture with street fashion ... but it is very modern, like Shinee."
Vocals and choreography
Shinee are acknowledged for their "innovative approach to music and peerless choreography" and are considered some of the best live vocalists and dancers in Korean pop. They are known for their good vocal performances and complex choreographies, as well as a unique style of music that sets them apart from other K-pop artists. At SM Entertainment's showcase in New York in October 2011, Jon Caramanica of The New York Times summarized them as "the most ambitious" of the evening and also complimented the group's strong vocal performance. Furthermore, he stated: "Their music, especially "Replay", "Ring Ding Dong" and "Juliette", felt the riskiest, even if it only slightly tweaked that polyglot K-pop formula". Kim Joo-hyun of Beff Report considers Shinee's greatest strength the dismantling of the boundaries between the role of main vocal and subvocal. He positively emphasised the harmony between the two main vocals, Onew and Jonghyun, saying they sing with an aesthetic of "contrast", meaning they can't be separated from each other; on the contrary, they actually suit each other when brought together. He also praised the vocal development of Taemin, the youngest member in the group. Jakob Dorof of the monthly British style magazine Dazed described Shinee as possessing "technicolor visuals", "choreography as coordinated as ballet", and "wildly adventurous hit songs", stating they are a group that embodies the harmony of these qualities better than anyone else. Tamar Herman of Paste described Shinee as one of K-pop's most popular dance groups, "with cutting edge dance moves that are just as technically creative as the songs they've performed".
Shinee have worked with top choreographers such as Rino Nakasone, who choreographed Shinee's early songs like "Replay" and "Love Like Oxygen" in 2008, "Juliette" in 2009, and the group's hit single "Lucifer" in 2010, which was nominated for the Best Dance Performance at the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2010. Misha Gabriel choreographed the songs "Amigo" (2008) and "Ring Ding Dong" (2009). Tony Testa worked on Shinee's later hit songs like "Sherlock (Clue + Note)" (2012) and "Dream Girl" (2013), which are characterized by a unique and distinctive style, while Ian Eastwood worked on "View" (2015) – breaking away from the group's usual powerful and precise choreography and working instead with a groove style that showcases the teamwork of the group. All three songs were awarded with the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards: in 2012, 2013, and 2015.
Musical style and themes
The predominant musical genre of the group is contemporary R&B. The group's early singles like "Replay" and "Lucifer" were influenced by R&B and dance pop, while tracks such as "Get Down" and "JoJo" explored other musical styles such as hip-hop and dance. Shinee's third album is significantly influenced by funk rock, electronic music and rock. Billboard columnist Jeff Benjamin compared Shinee's songs like "Punch Drunk Love" and "Aside" to the sounds of Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, while tracks like "Beautiful" and "Runaway" combine "unique electronic production elements over sugary boy band harmonies to create year-round pop music".
Shinee as a group is known for their experimental sound and ability to execute a wide range of genres. An example of this is the group's fifth extended play, Everybody, whose title song is classified under the complextro genre. Jakob Dorof of Tiny Mix Tapes stated that "Everybody is proof positive that, even in a culture industry designed to minimize the role of real musicianship, talent will find its way to the top." He also remarked that "Close the Door" highlights the experimental and versatile nature of Shinee's music which frequently charts into unfamiliar territories.
With the release of their fourth Korean album, Odd, Shinee returned to their old sound while experimenting with new genres like deep house. According to Key, Odd marked the first time the group had direct involvement in the album production process, including the decision over picking the lead single as well as the album's concept. The costumes were based on Key's ideas — a vintage, old-school [aesthetic], during a time when other groups mostly wore uniforms. The album spanned a variety of styles including the two singles — the deep house "View" and Rocky Horror-inspired funk track "Married to the Music". Alexis Hodoyan-Gastelum of MTV praised the title song, "View", describing it as a "great, laid back summer jam" even though "the song fools us into thinking it's an uptempo ballad before reaching its techno peak at the chorus." Jeff Benjamin, on the other hand, praised "Odd Eye", which is written and composed by member Jonghyun. Benjamin states the group's "return to the R&B side of Shinee with feathery vocals, tight harmonies and member Onew's falsetto howls acting a centerpiece to this grooving opener" but he also adds, "despite initially debuting with a R&B sound, Shinee is arguably most exciting when experimenting".
Endorsements
Early in their career, Shinee were endorsers for several brands, such as the cosmetic brand Nana's B and the sports brand Reebok. Later, they endorsed the clothing brand Maypole as well as the popular Korean cosmetic brands Etude House and The Saem. In 2012, Etude House's Lash Pump 3-Step Volume-Cara, a PC-based and mobile micro-site featuring "doll eyelashes" main model Sandara Park and Shinee—appearing as puppets—was awarded first place in the Mobile Marketing and Product Promotions categories at the 9th Web Awards Korea. The group was also part of the popular Korean comic The Blade of the Phantom Master and webtoon series ENT. Furthermore, the group endorsed the sports brand Skechers and collaborated with Naver and Skechers for T-shirts and caps designed by the group members. Companies whose products are promoted by the Shinee label often see increased revenue; for example, "Shinee's Sparking Water", a carbonated bottled water sold by E-mart, boasted a combined sales of 67 million won over a one-month period.
Discography
Korean albums
The Shinee World (2008)
Lucifer (2010)
The Misconceptions of Us (2013)
Odd (2015)
1 of 1 (2016)
The Story of Light (2018)
Don't Call Me (2021)
Japanese albums
The First (2011)
Boys Meet U (2013)
I'm Your Boy (2014)
D×D×D (2016)
Five (2017)
Tours
Headlining
Asia tours
Shinee World (2010–2011)
Shinee World II (2012)
Shinee World IV (2015)
World tours
Shinee World III (2014)
Shinee World V (2016–2017)
Japan tours
Shinee World 2012 (2012)
Shinee World 2013 ~Boys Meet U~ (2013)
Shinee World 2014 ~I'm Your Boy~ (2014)
Shinee World 2016 ~DxDxD~ (2016)
Shinee World 2017 ~Five~ (2017)
Shinee World The Best 2018 ~From Now On~ (2018)
Fanmeetings
Shinee World J Presents ~Shinee Special Fan Event~ (2018)
Online concerts
Beyond Live – Shinee: Shinee World (2021)
Online fanmeetings
Shinee World J Presents ~Bistro de Shinee~ (2021)
Concert participation
SM Town Live '08 (2008–2009)
SM Town Live '10 World Tour (2010–2011)
SM Town Live World Tour III (2012–2013)
SM Town Week – "The Wizard" (2013)
SM Town Live World Tour IV (2014–2015)
KCON: Paris, France and Los Angeles, United States (2016)
SM Town Live World Tour V in Japan (2016)
SM Town Live World Tour VI in Korea and Japan (2017)
Supporting act
TVXQ! Asia Tour "Mirotic" (2009)
Girls' Generation Asia Tour "Into the New World" (2009–2010)
Filmography
Film
Television drama
Reality shows
Awards and nominations
Publications
Children of the Sun: Onew, Key, Taemin of Shinee in Barcelona, Woongjin Think Big Co., Ltd (September 12, 2011)
Shinee Surprise Vacation - Travel Note, SM Entertainment (May 27, 2013),
References
External links
(2020 archive)
Japanese-language singers of South Korea
K-pop music groups
SM Entertainment artists
South Korean dance music groups
Musical groups established in 2008
Musical groups from Seoul
SM Town
South Korean boy bands
Universal Music Japan artists
Virgin Records artists
Mnet Asian Music Award winners
Musical quintets
Melon Music Award winners | false | [
"Recorded live at the Warfield Theater in San Francisco, California on May 31, 2003, this video features the Trey Anastasio Band (TAB) with Carlos Santana sitting in for a number of covers and Anastasio originals. It was released under the name Live at the Warfield. It features the entire second set of the show, with Santana sitting in on every song. Each of the four songs in the second set segued into one another. In addition, a bonus track, \"The Way I Feel\", was taken from the first set of the show and also includes Santana sitting in. Santana also sat in for the song \"Last Tube\" during the first set, but that was not included on the DVD.\n\nHighlights include a 27-minute \"Mr. Completely\" and an experimental version of Duke Ellington's \"Caravan.\" Trey's main band, Phish, covered Caravan frequently between 1990 and 1996, after which time it was dropped from their repertoire. This was the first time that TAB had covered Caravan.\n\nAll proceeds from the sale of the DVDs of this show were distributed to the Waterwheel Foundation and the Milagro Foundation.\n\nThis show was part of the brief tour TAB did in between Phish's winter and summer tours in 2003. Other guests during this tour included Mike Gordon and Warren Hayes. This show was also one of the few times during this tour that Trey did not perform any solo acoustic songs. For the encore, TAB played \"Root Down\" by the Beastie Boys for the first time. Santana did not sit in for the song.\n\nIn the summer of 1992, Phish was the opening act for Santana and the two often collaborated. In July 1996, Phish was booked as the opening act for Santana for three shows in Europe. Phish's opening set was rained out during the first of these shows, however Phish joined Santana for part of his headlining set later that night. Phish would also come on stage during Santana's set during the subsequent two shows, along with playing their own opening sets. Trey and Phish keyboardist Page Mcconnell sat in with Santana's band in April 1999 in San Francisco. The next time any member of Phish and Santana collaborated was at the TAB show at the Warfield in 2003. This is also the last time they have collaborated.\n\nTrack listing\n Mr. Completely> - 27:00\n John The Revelator> - 8:22\n Night Speaks To A Woman> - 12:33\n Caravan - 4:43\n The Way I Feel - 3:02\n\nReferences \n\n2003 live albums\nTrey Anastasio albums\n2003 video albums\nCollaborative albums\nLive video albums\nSantana (band) live albums",
"This is the discography of the hard rock band Magnum, which is headed by vocalist Bob Catley and guitarist/songwriter Tony Clarkin. Originally formed around 1972 they released their first single in 1975 (a cover of Sweets for My Sweet that did not chart) and their first album Kingdom of Madness in 1978. They continued recording and releasing albums until 1995 when they split. However, they re-formed in 2001 and have released albums every few years since. Many compilations and live albums were released in the gap, as well as Bob and Tony forming Hard Rain before re-forming Magnum with long-time keyboard player Mark Stanway.\n\nStudio albums\n\nLive albums\n\nCompilation albums\n\nThere have also been many other compilations across various labels.\n\nCharted singles\n\nVideos and DVDs\n\nReferences\n\nDiscographies of British artists\nRock music group discographies"
] |
[
"Shinee",
"2009-2010: Rising popularity and Lucifer",
"What is Rising popularity about?",
"I don't know.",
"What interesting fact about the article can you tell me about?",
"In early February 2009, Shinee won the \"Best Newcomer\" award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards.",
"did they win any other awards?",
"awarded with the \"Popularity\" award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards.",
"What can you tell me about Lucifer?",
"On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full length studio album, Lucifer,",
"how did that do?",
"which topped various physical and digital sales charts in South Korea.",
"Did they have any other albums during that time?",
"the group also participated in the SMTown Live '10 World Tour on August 21, 2010. On December 26, 2010,"
] | C_49801ec35b494288bfa0169cde8bd97f_0 | What other aspects of the article did you like? | 7 | Besides the awards and Lucifer, what other aspects of the article, "Shinee, 2009-2010: Rising popularity and Lucifer", did you like? | Shinee | In early February 2009, Shinee won the "Best Newcomer" award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards. Shinee's second extended play, Romeo, was released on May 25. Its lead single, "Juliette", was released earlier on May 18. The song is an instrumental remake of Corbin Bleu's "Deal with It". Shinee had their first stage performance for the song on KBS's Music Bank in June, 2009, where the group also received the award for the first place. Shinee released the digital version of their third extended play, 2009, Year of Us on October 19, 2009, with a physical release on October 22. The lead single, "Ring Ding Dong", was released digitally on October 14 and charted atop of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. In early December 2009, the group was also awarded with the "Popularity" award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards. On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full length studio album, Lucifer, which topped various physical and digital sales charts in South Korea. The songs on the album "were more carefully selected than ever," and the album is said to "[give] listeners a great chance to experience the diverse musical characters and more mature vocal skills of the members." The group made their comeback on July 23, 2010 at KBS Music Bank. For its outstanding choreography, "Lucifer", was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards. Lucifer became the 6th best-selling album of 2010 in South Korea, selling over 120,000 copies. In October, 2010, the album was re-released under the title Hello. Amidst their promotional activities for the second studio album, the group also participated in the SMTown Live '10 World Tour on August 21, 2010. On December 26, 2010, Shinee commenced their first concert tour, Shinee World, at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo. The event was attended by approximately 24,000 people. CANNOTANSWER | The event was attended by approximately 24,000 people. | Shinee ( ; ; ; stylized as SHINee) is a South Korean boy band formed by SM Entertainment in 2008. The group's musical impact in their native country has earned them numerous accolades and the title "Princes of K-pop". The group is composed of four members: Onew, Key, Minho, and Taemin. Originally a five-piece group, vocalist Jonghyun died in December 2017.
Shinee debuted in May 2008 with their first EP, Replay, on SBS' Inkigayo with their single "Replay". The group gained attention for starting a fashion trend amongst students, which the media dubbed the "Shinee Trend". In August 2008, the group released their first Korean studio album, The Shinee World, which won Newcomer Album of the Year at the 23rd Golden Disc Awards. Shinee further consolidated their popularity on the South Korean music scene with follow-up singles "Ring Ding Dong" and "Lucifer". "Ring Ding Dong" charted on top of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. "Lucifer" was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2010 for its outstanding choreography. In 2012 the group released Sherlock, which became the fifth most sold album of the year with over 180,000 copies sold. The group has also been included in the Forbes list of Korea Power Celebrity multiple times, once in 2014 and again in 2016.
In mid-2011, Shinee signed with EMI Records Japan to venture into the Japanese music scene. Their Japanese version of their single "Replay" sold over 100,000 copies, the highest number of sales for a Japanese debut single recorded by Oricon for a South Korean group at the time. It was followed by their first Japanese studio album, The First, on December 7, 2011 – both were certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. In 2011, the group also held their Japan Debut Premium Reception at Abbey Road Studios in London, making them the first Asian artists to perform there. Two years later they released their second Japanese album Boys Meet U (2013), followed by I'm Your Boy (2014), D×D×D (2016), and Five (2017).
Shinee is considered to be one of the best live vocal groups in K-pop and is known for their highly synchronized and complex dance routines, having been awarded the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards three times in a row for their dance performances to "Sherlock (Clue + Note)", "Dream Girl" and "View". Shinee's signature musical style is contemporary R&B, but the group is known for their experimental sound, incorporating various genres including funk rock, hip hop, and EDM.
History
2008: Debut and The Shinee World
Prior to the group's debut, the label company, SM Entertainment, introduced an upcoming contemporary R&B boy group with its goal to be trendsetters in all areas of music, fashion and dance. The group's Korean name, Shinee, is a new coined word and is explained as a combination of shine, meaning light, and the suffix ee, therefore meaning "one who receives the light". On May 22, 2008, the group's first EP, Replay, was released, which debuted at number ten on the South Korean music charts and peaked at number eight, selling 17,957 copies in the first half of 2008. On May 25, 2008, Shinee had their first stage performance on SBS' Inkigayo with their single "Replay".
In June 2008, the group won their first award, Rookie of the Month, at the Cyworld Digital Music Awards, and were also awarded with the Hot New Star award at the Mnet 20's Choice Awards in August 2008. In the same month, Shinee subsequently released their first full-length album, The Shinee World, which debuted at number three, selling 30,000 copies. Its title track "Love Like Oxygen" is a cover of "Show the World" by Martin Hoberg Hedegaard, originally written by the Danish songwriting and production team of Thomas Troelsen, Remee, and Lucas Secon. On September 18, 2008, the song won first place on M Countdown, making it the group's first win on a South Korean music show since debut.
Shinee participated in the 5th Asia Song Festival, where they received the Best New Artist award along with Japanese girl group Berryz Kobo. The group attended the Style Icon Awards on October 30, 2008, where they received the Best Style Icon Award. On the same day, a repackaged version of The Shinee World, titled Amigo, was released, which includes three new songs: "Forever or Never", a remix of "Love Should Go On", and the title track "Amigo". "Amigo" is a shortened version of the Korean phrase "areumdaun minyeoreul joahamyeon gosaenghanda", which can be translated to "The heart aches when you fall in love with a beauty".
In November 2008, Shinee won the Best New Male Group award at the 2008 Mnet Km Music Festival, beating fellow newcomers U-KISS, 2PM, 2AM and Mighty Mouth. In addition, the group also won the award for Newcomer Album of the Year at the 23rd Golden Disk Awards.
2009–2010: Rising popularity and Lucifer
In early February 2009, Shinee won the Best Newcomer award along with Davichi and Mighty Mouth at the 18th Seoul Music Awards. Shinee's second extended play, Romeo, was released on May 25. Its lead single, "Juliette", was released earlier on May 18. The song is an instrumental remake of Corbin Bleu's "Deal with It". Shinee had their first stage performance for the song on KBS' Music Bank in June 2009, where the group also received the award for the first place.
Shinee released the digital version of their third extended play, 2009, Year of Us, on October 19, 2009, with a physical release on October 22. The lead single, "Ring Ding Dong", was released digitally on October 14 and charted atop of several Korean music charts and gained popularity all over Asia. In early December 2009, the group won the Popularity Award along with Super Junior at the 24th Golden Disk Awards.
On July 19, 2010, the group released their second full-length studio album, Lucifer, which topped various physical and digital sales charts in South Korea. The songs on the album "were more carefully selected than ever", and the album is said to "[give] listeners a great chance to experience the diverse musical characters and more mature vocal skills of the members." The group made their comeback on July 23, 2010, at KBS' Music Bank. For its outstanding choreography, "Lucifer" was nominated for the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards. Lucifer became the sixth best-selling album of 2010 in South Korea, selling over 120,000 copies. In October 2010, the album was re-released under the title Hello. Amidst their promotional activities for the second studio album, the group also participated in the SM Town Live '10 World Tour on August 21, 2010. On December 26, 2010, Shinee commenced their first concert tour, Shinee World, at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo. The event was attended by approximately 24,000 people.
2011–2012: Japanese debut, The First and Sherlock
On January 1, 2011, Shinee performed at Olympic Gymnastics Arena in Seoul as a part of their tour, Shinee World, followed by various cities in Japan throughout 2011. On January 25 and 26, 2011, the group participated in the Japan leg of the SM Town Live '10 World Tour in Tokyo, which continued on to two concerts in Paris at Zénith Paris, three concerts in Tokyo at Tokyo Dome, and at Madison Square Garden in New York City. On June 22, 2011, the group made their debut in Japan with the Japanese version of "Replay", which sold more than 91,000 copies in the first week. It was subsequently certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. It was the highest sales recorded by Oricon for a South Korean group debut at the time.
On June 19, Shinee made history by becoming the first Asian artists to perform at Abbey Road Studios in London, holding their Japan Debut Premium Reception there. On July 22, 2011, Shinee started their Japan Debut Premium Reception Tour and held several concerts in various cities across Japan. On August 28 and October 12, 2011, two Japanese remakes, "Juliette" and "Lucifer", were released, respectively. On August 9, 2011, Shinee took part in an effort to help African children. The groups were joined by the United Nations' Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, in the "Help African Children" project co-organized by the Korean Red Cross Society and the Korean UNICEF committee.
In November 2011, Shinee were invited to be the opening act of the 6th London Korean Film Festival, which took place at the Odeon West End Theater. The group held an hour-long gala concert to open the festival with tickets selling out within minutes. This marked the first time that any Korean artist(s) had held an independent concert in London.
The group's first Japanese studio album, The First, was released in December 2011. It featured five new songs in addition to Japanese remakes of seven previously released Korean songs. The regular version of the album also featured the theme song of the drama Strangers 6, entitled "Stranger", as a bonus. The album was certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies. On December 8, Taemin, Onew, and Key debuted as writers and released a travelogue, Children of the Sun, containing stories from their trip to Barcelona, Spain. The members shot the photos and wrote the commentaries themselves. Shinee also participated in the album 2011 Winter SM Town – The Warmest Gift with a cover of the song "Last Christmas". The compilation album by SM artists was released on December 13, 2011.
Shinee held a commemorative concert in honor of the successful release of their first Japanese album, The First, at the Tokyo International Forum Hall A on December 24, 2011. The live concert took place three times in order to accommodate the 15,000 fans that won a lottery to attend. They performed a total of six songs including their Japanese debut singles, "Replay (Kimi wa Boku no Everything)" and "Lucifer", and "To Your Heart". On December 28, 2011, Tower Records Japan announced that Shinee had won the Artist of the Year award at the 2011 K-Pop Lovers! Awards. Shinee's fourth Korean mini album, Sherlock, was released digitally on March 19 and physically on March 21. Sherlock became the fifth best-selling album of the year in South Korea with over 180,000 copies sold. On March 26, 2012, Shinee, alongside their labelmates, became stockholders of SM Entertainment. They received 340 shares each (value of around $13,600 for each member).
The Japanese remake of "Sherlock" was released in Japan on May 16. The group started their first Japan nationwide concert tour, Shinee World 2012, on April 25, 2012. The tour had a total of 20 concerts in Fukuoka, Sapporo, Nagoya, Osaka, Kobe, Tokyo and Hiroshima. Their tour set a record for the most people in attendance for a Korean act's first Japan tour with a total of 200,000 people. On May 20, 2012, Shinee participated in the SM Town Live World Tour III alongside their label-mates at Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Shinee held their second solo concert, Shinee World II, beginning in Seoul on July 21 and 22 at Olympic Gymnastics Arena.
Shinee released an original Japanese single, "Dazzling Girl", on October 10, 2012. The single sold 97,111 copies in its first week and was chosen to be the theme song for the Japanese TV series Sukkiri. On November 19, 2012, along with actor Kim Soo-hyun, Shinee won the Ministry of Culture Award at South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Korea Creative Content Agency's (KOCCA) annual award show, the Korean Popular Culture and Arts Awards, at Seoul Olympic Hall. Shinee attended the 2012 Mnet Asian Music Awards in November 2012, which was held in Hong Kong, winning Best Dance Performance – Male Group for their latest Korean single, "Sherlock (Clue + Note)". Shinee released their first Japanese ballad single (sixth overall), "1000-nen, Zutto Soba ni Ite...", and the concert video album for their Shinee World 2012 arena tour on December 12, 2012.
2013–2014: Dream Girl, Why So Serious?, Boys Meet U, Everybody and I'm Your Boy
On January 15, 2013, Shinee attended the 27th Golden Disk Awards, which was held in Kuala Lumpur at Sepang International Circuit, and received the Popularity Award for the third time after winning the same title in 2009 and 2010. They also received the Disk Bonsang for Sherlock, their second after winning for Lucifer in 2010. On February 3, MBC announced that Shinee would be starring in their own Lunar New Year special entitled Shinee's Wonderful Day (also known as Shinee's One Fine Day), which began airing on February 10. The special featured the Shinee members visiting various countries of their choice without the assistance of their management staff and with the production crew instructed to not interfere. For the special, Onew visited Thailand, Jonghyun visited Japan, Key and Minho visited England, and Taemin visited Switzerland.
Shinee's third Korean album consisted of two versions: the first part, Dream Girl – The Misconceptions of You, being released on February 19 and the second part, Why So Serious? – The Misconceptions of Me, being released on April 29. The title track of part one, "Dream Girl", is an acid electro funk track and was produced by Shin Hyuk and Joombas Music Factory, while the title track of part two, "Why So Serious?", is a funk rock dance track written and produced by Kenzie. A compilation album was subsequently released, The Misconceptions of Us, with two new songs: "Selene 6.23" and "Better Off".
On March 13, Shinee released the Japanese single "Fire". On June 26, the group released their second Japanese album, Boys Meet U, and on August 21, a single with the same name was released, including the Japanese version of "Dream Girl". On June 28, 2013, Shinee started their second Japan nationwide concert tour, Shinee World 2013, in Saitama.
In November 2013, Shinee won Artist of the Year at the Melon Music Awards, one of the biggest award ceremonies in the country, which awards prizes based on digital sales and online votes. It was the first time the group won the prize. On September 29, SM Entertainment announced that Shinee's fifth EP, Everybody, would be released on October 14. On November 6, 2013, SM Entertainment announced its week-long music festival called SM Town Week. Shinee's concert, titled The Wizard, opened the event on December 21 at the Kintex in Ilsan.
On January 29, 2014, it was announced that Shinee would hold their third Korean solo concert, Shinee World III, in March, with shows added in Latin America. On February 24, the mayor of Gangnam District, Shin Yeon-hee, announced that Shinee had been appointed honorary ambassadors of the district. On April 2, Shinee released a live concert album from their second solo concert.
On June 25, Universal Music Japan released Shinee's tenth Japanese single, "Lucky Star", as their first release under EMI Records. On September 24, Universal Music Japan released the group's third Japanese album, I'm Your Boy, preceded by the singles "Boys Meet U", "3 2 1", and "Lucky Star". From September till December 2014 Shinee embarked on their third Japan tour. It started off at Chiba on September 28, with 30 scheduled performances around the country.
On December 11, 2014, the group released their third live concert album, from Shinee World III, held in Olympic Gymnastics Arena on March 8 and 9 the same year. It contained two CDs with a total of 33 tracks. SM Entertainment stated on December 15 that Shinee sold out the World Memorial Hall in Kobe, Japan, with 16,000 fans attending between December 13 and 14. With that, Shinee successfully completed their 20-city, 30-concert tour, gathering 200,000 audience members overall. Furthermore, Shinee held a solo concert in Tokyo Dome, the first time since their Japanese debut, on March 14 and 15, 2015. The Tokyo Dome concert was the finale and encore for their Japanese tour. Forbes listed Shinee among Korea Power Celebrity in 2014.
2015–2016: Odd, DxDxD and 1 of 1
On February 17, Shinee were invited as the only Korean artist(s) to China's Lunar New Year Program, Chun Jie Wan Hui, which is hosted by Liaoning TV and has been the highest viewed show in its timeslot for 12 years. The same month, the group became ambassadors of the Ministry of Personnel Management to promote Korean music, dance and fashion. Their tasks as ambassadors included performing at events around the world to encourage cultural exchanges between the nations.
Shinee held a three-day long concert, Shinee World IV, at Seoul's Olympic Park Gymnastics Gymnasium between May 15 and 17, where the group premiered the new songs off their upcoming album. Their fourth studio album, Odd, was released on May 18, and the following day the music video to the title song, "View", was released. The track was written and produced by LDN Noise and Jonghyun. The music video for "View" was the most watched K-pop music video in the world for the month of May. Odd debuted at number nine on Billboards Heatseekers Albums chart as well as number one on Billboards World Albums chart and sold over 2,000 copies in the US. The repackaged album, Married to the Music, was released on August 3, 2015, with four additional songs. Gaon Music Chart released year-end sales for 2015 which revealed that Shinee was one of only five male groups to make it onto the digital chart, at 41st place, and one of only four male groups to make it into the top 100 of the download and streaming charts, at 78th and 65th place, respectively.
They released their eleventh and twelfth Japanese singles, "Sing Your Song" and "D×D×D", on October 25, 2015, and December 13, 2015, respectively, the latter being the lead single for their fourth Japanese album of the same name. On January 1, 2016, Shinee released their fourth full-length Japanese album, D×D×D, which included the group's previously released singles and the Japanese version of "View". The album topped the Oricon charts. To promote the album, they launched their fourth nationwide Japanese stadium tour, Shinee World 2016, starting in Fukuoka's Marine Messe on January 30, 2016, and ending at the Tokyo Dome on May 19, 2016, with a total of 20 concerts in nine cities. Their agency estimated that the concert could have gathered up to 350,000 people, which would bring the cumulative total of visitors to all of Shinee's Japanese tours to 1.12 million. The tour marked their second time headlining Tokyo Dome, which they did on May 18 and 19, and first time headlining Kyocera Dome, on May 14 and 15. They released their 13th Japanese single, "Kimi no Sei de", on May 18, which sold over 69,000 copies in Japan.
In February 2016, Forbes released their top forty of Forbes Korea Power Celebrity, Shinee being included once again. In March, Shinee won the Asia's Best Group Award at the 23rd DongFang Music Awards in Shanghai, one of the biggest annual award ceremonies in China. The group was the only K-pop act invited to attend and perform at the ceremony.
On September 4, 2016, Shinee held their fifth solo concert, titled Shinee World V, in Seoul. Four of the 34 songs performed were songs from the group's new album, which was released on October 5, 2016, under the title 1 of 1. The album "spins a hyper-modernized twist on the retro genre", inspired by the 1980–1990 period. The repackaged version, titled 1 and 1, was released on November 15, 2016, with five new songs. On December 21, 2016, Shinee released their fourteenth Japanese single, "Winter Wonderland", which debuted at number two on the Oricon Charts and sold over 80,000 copies in one week. Shinee also had the sixth biggest audience numbers for their concerts in Japan in 2016, with an estimated 510,000 people across 28 concerts. Shinee were one of two non-Japanese artists, along with Big Bang, to make it into the top ten of the list.
2017–2019: Five, Jonghyun's death, The Story of Light, and military service
On February 22, Shinee released their fifth full-length Japanese album, Five. To promote the album, they launched their fifth Japan tour, Shinee World 2017, starting on January 28, 2017, and ending in Tokyo on April 30, 2017, with a total of 25 concerts in 10 cities. Later on, the group added four additional performances for the tour at Tokyo Dome and Kyocera Dome starting September. Shinee ranked eighth in Japan for their concert audience numbers in 2017, with approximately 539,000 attendees.
On December 18, 2017, Jonghyun died from suicide. His funeral was held on December 21 with the rest of Shinee and numerous artists in attendance, including Girls' Generation, IU, Super Junior, and more. Shinee was slated to have a series of concerts in Japan in February 2018, and after entering into discussions on whether to postpone them, they decided to continue promoting as a four-member group and proceed with their Japanese tour as scheduled. On March 26, Shinee released their Japanese single, "From Now On", posthumously featuring Jonghyun, and shortly after, the group released their first Japanese compilation, Shinee The Best From Now On.
On May 15, 2018, SM Entertainment revealed teasers for a three-part Korean album, titled The Story of Light. The first part of the album was released on May 28 with the single "Good Evening", and the second part of the trilogy was released on June 11 with the single "I Want You". According to the group, the second part of the album represents the group's view of themselves, while the first part reflected what others think of them. The third and last part of the album is fronted by the single "Our Page" and was released on June 25. On August 1, 2018, the Japanese versions of "Good Evening" and "I Want You" were released on Shinee's 15th Japanese single "Sunny Side", alongside the track of the same name, which was written by the group members. On September 10, 2018, Shinee released their sixth album repackage, The Story of Light Epilogue, consisting of all tracks from the previous three albums, and one new song, titled "Countless".
Onew applied and enlisted for his mandatory military service in December 2018. It was announced in early 2019 that both Key and Minho would be enlisting in the first half of the year. Key applied for military band service and enlisted on March 4, 2019. Minho enlisted in the Marines on April 15, 2019.
2020–present: Don't Call Me and Superstar
Onew was discharged from the military on July 8, 2020, followed by Key and Minho on September 24 and November 15, respectively. On January 6, 2021, SM Entertainment announced Shinee would return with a new album after two and a half years. The group's seventh Korean studio album Don't Call Me, featuring the album's title track as the lead single alongside its music video, was released on February 22, 2021. The album was commercially successful, debuting at number one on the Gaon Album Chart and receiving a Platinum certification from KMCA for over 250,000 copies sold. Using the Beyond Live platform, they held an online concert titled Shinee World on April 4, 2021, which recorded 130,000 viewers across 120 countries. A repackaged version of their seventh album, Atlantis, was released on April 12, 2021, featuring three new songs including the title track of the same name.
On May 23, 2021, Shinee held an online fan meeting titled Bistro de Shinee to celebrate the tenth anniversary of their debut in Japan. They premiered their new Japanese single "Superstar" at the event, which was released on digital music platforms the following day. Taemin enlisted as part of the military band on May 31, becoming the final member of the group to enlist. On June 28, 2021, Shinee released the digital version of their new Japanese extended play Superstar, featuring five songs, their first Japanese release since 2018. The physical version was released on July 28, 2021. The EP became Shinee's fourth release to top the Oricon Albums Chart and was certified Gold by RIAJ for selling over 100,000 copies.
Members
On December 18, 2017, Jonghyun died from suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning at the age of 27. Following Jonghyun's death, Shinee continued as a four-member group, and the remaining members completed their military service. Onew enlisted in the military in December 2018 and was discharged on July 8, 2020. Key enlisted on March 4, 2019 and was discharged on September 24, 2020. Minho enlisted on April 15, 2019 and was discharged on November 15, 2020. Taemin is the last member in military, enlisting on May 31, 2021.
Current (active)
Onew (온유)
Key (키)
Minho (민호)
Current (inactive)
Taemin (태민) (inactive due to military service)
Former
Jonghyun (종현)
Timeline
Note: Jonghyun still appears posthumously in The Story of Light despite his death on December 18, 2017.
Artistry
Public image
Shinee is known for their fashion style, initially created by designer Ha Sang-beg, which features high-top sneakers, skinny jeans, and colorful sweaters. Their style has created a fashion trend amongst students which the media dubbed the "Shinee Trend". The group's "boyish charm" was an important factor in Shinee gaining fans. With the release of 2009, Year of Us, Shinee's style became more mature, though still maintaining Shinee's unique image. Furthermore, instead of working with famous artists and photographers, SM Entertainment's Visual and Art Directing department usually works with up-and-coming talents with new ideas for Shinee's concepts. When Shinee debuted in 2008 with "Replay", it was not only their music which gained attention but also their colorful style—but even four years later, in 2012, Shinee maintained their colorful concept for Sherlock. Ha stated in an interview with The Korea Times: "Much has evolved over the years, since I change their styles to reflect their music. The feel from their debut single still exists, mixing the overground with the underground, haute couture with street fashion ... but it is very modern, like Shinee."
Vocals and choreography
Shinee are acknowledged for their "innovative approach to music and peerless choreography" and are considered some of the best live vocalists and dancers in Korean pop. They are known for their good vocal performances and complex choreographies, as well as a unique style of music that sets them apart from other K-pop artists. At SM Entertainment's showcase in New York in October 2011, Jon Caramanica of The New York Times summarized them as "the most ambitious" of the evening and also complimented the group's strong vocal performance. Furthermore, he stated: "Their music, especially "Replay", "Ring Ding Dong" and "Juliette", felt the riskiest, even if it only slightly tweaked that polyglot K-pop formula". Kim Joo-hyun of Beff Report considers Shinee's greatest strength the dismantling of the boundaries between the role of main vocal and subvocal. He positively emphasised the harmony between the two main vocals, Onew and Jonghyun, saying they sing with an aesthetic of "contrast", meaning they can't be separated from each other; on the contrary, they actually suit each other when brought together. He also praised the vocal development of Taemin, the youngest member in the group. Jakob Dorof of the monthly British style magazine Dazed described Shinee as possessing "technicolor visuals", "choreography as coordinated as ballet", and "wildly adventurous hit songs", stating they are a group that embodies the harmony of these qualities better than anyone else. Tamar Herman of Paste described Shinee as one of K-pop's most popular dance groups, "with cutting edge dance moves that are just as technically creative as the songs they've performed".
Shinee have worked with top choreographers such as Rino Nakasone, who choreographed Shinee's early songs like "Replay" and "Love Like Oxygen" in 2008, "Juliette" in 2009, and the group's hit single "Lucifer" in 2010, which was nominated for the Best Dance Performance at the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2010. Misha Gabriel choreographed the songs "Amigo" (2008) and "Ring Ding Dong" (2009). Tony Testa worked on Shinee's later hit songs like "Sherlock (Clue + Note)" (2012) and "Dream Girl" (2013), which are characterized by a unique and distinctive style, while Ian Eastwood worked on "View" (2015) – breaking away from the group's usual powerful and precise choreography and working instead with a groove style that showcases the teamwork of the group. All three songs were awarded with the Best Dance Performance Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards: in 2012, 2013, and 2015.
Musical style and themes
The predominant musical genre of the group is contemporary R&B. The group's early singles like "Replay" and "Lucifer" were influenced by R&B and dance pop, while tracks such as "Get Down" and "JoJo" explored other musical styles such as hip-hop and dance. Shinee's third album is significantly influenced by funk rock, electronic music and rock. Billboard columnist Jeff Benjamin compared Shinee's songs like "Punch Drunk Love" and "Aside" to the sounds of Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, while tracks like "Beautiful" and "Runaway" combine "unique electronic production elements over sugary boy band harmonies to create year-round pop music".
Shinee as a group is known for their experimental sound and ability to execute a wide range of genres. An example of this is the group's fifth extended play, Everybody, whose title song is classified under the complextro genre. Jakob Dorof of Tiny Mix Tapes stated that "Everybody is proof positive that, even in a culture industry designed to minimize the role of real musicianship, talent will find its way to the top." He also remarked that "Close the Door" highlights the experimental and versatile nature of Shinee's music which frequently charts into unfamiliar territories.
With the release of their fourth Korean album, Odd, Shinee returned to their old sound while experimenting with new genres like deep house. According to Key, Odd marked the first time the group had direct involvement in the album production process, including the decision over picking the lead single as well as the album's concept. The costumes were based on Key's ideas — a vintage, old-school [aesthetic], during a time when other groups mostly wore uniforms. The album spanned a variety of styles including the two singles — the deep house "View" and Rocky Horror-inspired funk track "Married to the Music". Alexis Hodoyan-Gastelum of MTV praised the title song, "View", describing it as a "great, laid back summer jam" even though "the song fools us into thinking it's an uptempo ballad before reaching its techno peak at the chorus." Jeff Benjamin, on the other hand, praised "Odd Eye", which is written and composed by member Jonghyun. Benjamin states the group's "return to the R&B side of Shinee with feathery vocals, tight harmonies and member Onew's falsetto howls acting a centerpiece to this grooving opener" but he also adds, "despite initially debuting with a R&B sound, Shinee is arguably most exciting when experimenting".
Endorsements
Early in their career, Shinee were endorsers for several brands, such as the cosmetic brand Nana's B and the sports brand Reebok. Later, they endorsed the clothing brand Maypole as well as the popular Korean cosmetic brands Etude House and The Saem. In 2012, Etude House's Lash Pump 3-Step Volume-Cara, a PC-based and mobile micro-site featuring "doll eyelashes" main model Sandara Park and Shinee—appearing as puppets—was awarded first place in the Mobile Marketing and Product Promotions categories at the 9th Web Awards Korea. The group was also part of the popular Korean comic The Blade of the Phantom Master and webtoon series ENT. Furthermore, the group endorsed the sports brand Skechers and collaborated with Naver and Skechers for T-shirts and caps designed by the group members. Companies whose products are promoted by the Shinee label often see increased revenue; for example, "Shinee's Sparking Water", a carbonated bottled water sold by E-mart, boasted a combined sales of 67 million won over a one-month period.
Discography
Korean albums
The Shinee World (2008)
Lucifer (2010)
The Misconceptions of Us (2013)
Odd (2015)
1 of 1 (2016)
The Story of Light (2018)
Don't Call Me (2021)
Japanese albums
The First (2011)
Boys Meet U (2013)
I'm Your Boy (2014)
D×D×D (2016)
Five (2017)
Tours
Headlining
Asia tours
Shinee World (2010–2011)
Shinee World II (2012)
Shinee World IV (2015)
World tours
Shinee World III (2014)
Shinee World V (2016–2017)
Japan tours
Shinee World 2012 (2012)
Shinee World 2013 ~Boys Meet U~ (2013)
Shinee World 2014 ~I'm Your Boy~ (2014)
Shinee World 2016 ~DxDxD~ (2016)
Shinee World 2017 ~Five~ (2017)
Shinee World The Best 2018 ~From Now On~ (2018)
Fanmeetings
Shinee World J Presents ~Shinee Special Fan Event~ (2018)
Online concerts
Beyond Live – Shinee: Shinee World (2021)
Online fanmeetings
Shinee World J Presents ~Bistro de Shinee~ (2021)
Concert participation
SM Town Live '08 (2008–2009)
SM Town Live '10 World Tour (2010–2011)
SM Town Live World Tour III (2012–2013)
SM Town Week – "The Wizard" (2013)
SM Town Live World Tour IV (2014–2015)
KCON: Paris, France and Los Angeles, United States (2016)
SM Town Live World Tour V in Japan (2016)
SM Town Live World Tour VI in Korea and Japan (2017)
Supporting act
TVXQ! Asia Tour "Mirotic" (2009)
Girls' Generation Asia Tour "Into the New World" (2009–2010)
Filmography
Film
Television drama
Reality shows
Awards and nominations
Publications
Children of the Sun: Onew, Key, Taemin of Shinee in Barcelona, Woongjin Think Big Co., Ltd (September 12, 2011)
Shinee Surprise Vacation - Travel Note, SM Entertainment (May 27, 2013),
References
External links
(2020 archive)
Japanese-language singers of South Korea
K-pop music groups
SM Entertainment artists
South Korean dance music groups
Musical groups established in 2008
Musical groups from Seoul
SM Town
South Korean boy bands
Universal Music Japan artists
Virgin Records artists
Mnet Asian Music Award winners
Musical quintets
Melon Music Award winners | true | [
"Follow Me! is a series of television programmes produced by Bayerischer Rundfunk and the BBC in the late 1970s to provide a crash course in the English language. It became popular in many overseas countries as a first introduction to English; in 1983, one hundred million people watched the show in China alone, featuring Kathy Flower.\n\nThe British actor Francis Matthews hosted and narrated the series.\n\nThe course consists of sixty lessons. Each lesson lasts from 12 to 15 minutes and covers a specific lexis. The lessons follow a consistent group of actors, with the relationships between their characters developing during the course.\n\nFollow Me! actors\n Francis Matthews\n Raymond Mason\n David Savile\n Ian Bamforth\n Keith Alexander\n Diane Mercer\n Jane Argyle\n Diana King\n Veronica Leigh\n Elaine Wells\n Danielle Cohn\n Lashawnda Bell\n\nEpisodes \n \"What's your name\"\n \"How are you\"\n \"Can you help me\"\n \"Left, right, straight ahead\"\n \"Where are they\"\n \"What's the time\"\n \"What's this What's that\"\n \"I like it very much\"\n \"Have you got any wine\"\n \"What are they doing\"\n \"Can I have your name, please\"\n \"What does she look like\"\n \"No smoking\"\n \"It's on the first floor\"\n \"Where's he gone\"\n \"Going away\"\n \"Buying things\"\n \"Why do you like it\"\n \"What do you need\"\n \"I sometimes work late\"\n \"Welcome to Britain\"\n \"Who's that\"\n \"What would you like to do\"\n \"How can I get there?\"\n \"Where is it\"\n \"What's the date\"\n \"Whose is it\"\n \"I enjoy it\"\n \"How many and how much\"\n \"What have you done\"\n \"Haven't we met before\"\n \"What did you say\"\n \"Please stop\"\n \"How can I get to Brightly\"\n \"Where can I get it\"\n \"There's a concert on Wednesday\"\n \"What's it like\"\n \"What do you think of him\"\n \"I need someone\"\n \"What were you doing\"\n \"What do you do\"\n \"What do you know about him\"\n \"You shouldn't do that\"\n \"I hope you enjoy your holiday\"\n \"Where can I see a football match\"\n \"When will it be ready\"\n \"Where did you go\"\n \"I think it's awful\"\n \"A room with a view\"\n \"You'll be ill\"\n \"I don't believe in strikes\"\n \"They look tired\"\n \"Would you like to\"\n \"Holiday plans\"\n \"The second shelf on the left\"\n \"When you are ready\"\n \"Tell them about Britain\"\n \"I liked everything\"\n \"Classical or modern\"\n \"Finale\"\n\nReferences \n\n BBC article about the series in China\n\nExternal links \n Follow Me – Beginner level \n Follow Me – Elementary level\n Follow Me – Intermediate level\n Follow Me – Advanced level\n\nAdult education television series\nEnglish-language education television programming",
"Like It Is, Was, and Evermore Shall Be is a compilation album from Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. It was released in the US (Hickory LPM 143 (mono) /LPS 143 (stereo)) in April 1968. Like It Is, Was, and Evermore Shall Be marked the second Hickory Records compilation of Donovan's 1965 Pye Records material in the United States, following the moderately successful The Real Donovan from 1966.\n\nHistory\nBy 1968, Donovan had released a string of hit singles and albums in both the United States and United Kingdom. With his popularity reaching its zenith, Hickory Records compiled and released Like It Is, Was, and Evermore Shall Be from his 1965 Pye Records catalog.\n\nAlthough Donovan's Pye recordings bore little resemblance to his subsequent material, Hickory released the album with brightly colorful artwork reminiscent of Donovan's latest albums for Epic Records. The back cover contained a pair of reprinted fan letters; one a testimonial from a young female fan, the other thanks from a middle-aged businessman for the way one of Donovan's songs had caused him to reconsider life. (The song unfortunately was not named.)\n\nWhile most of the songs on Like It Is, Was, and Evermore Shall Be had been released on What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid (US-title: Catch the Wind), Fairytale, and The Real Donovan, the new compilation did contain \"Why Do You Treat Me Like You Do\" and Donovan's recording of Bert Jansch's \"Do You Hear Me Now?\", neither of which had been included on any of Donovan's US long players. The album charted for 4 weeks, reaching No. 177 on the Billboard Magazine charts in the United States.\n\nAlbum origins of tracks\nThe following is a list explaining the original releases of each song.\n\n \"Summer Day Reflection Song\" (from Fairytale, released 22 October 1965)\n \"Do You Hear Me Now?\" (from The Universal Soldier EP, released 15 August 1965)\n \"Colours\" (from Fairytale)\n \"Universal Soldier\" (from Universal Soldier EP, released 15 August 1965)\n \"Josie\" (from What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid, released 14 May 1965)\n \"Catch the Wind\" (from What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid)\n \"Why Do You Treat Me Like You Do?\" (b-side of \"Catch the Wind\", released 12 March 1965)\n \"To Try for the Sun\" (from Fairytale)\n \"Hey Gyp (Dig the Slowness)\"* (b-side of \"Turquoise\", released 30 October 1965)\n \"The War Drags On\" (from The Universal Soldier EP)\n \"Sunny Goodge Street\" (from Fairytale)\n\nTrack listing\nAll tracks by Donovan Leitch, except where noted.\n\nSide one\n\n\"Summer Day Reflection Song\" – 2:11\n\"Do You Hear Me Now?\" (Bert Jansch) – 1:45\n\"Colours\" – 2:44\n\"Universal Soldier\" (Buffy Sainte-Marie) – 2:13\n\"Josie\" – 3:24\n\"Catch the Wind\" – 2:53\n\nSide two\n\n\"Why Do You Treat Me Like You Do?\" – 2:54\n\"To Try for the Sun\" – 3:37\n\"Hey Gyp (Dig the Slowness)\" – 3:05\n\"The War Drags On\" (Mick Softley) – 3:40\n\"Sunny Goodge Street\" – 2:55\n\nExternal links\n Like It Is, Was, And Evermore Shall Be – Donovan Unofficial Site\n\n1968 compilation albums\nDonovan compilation albums\nHickory Records compilation albums\nAlbums produced by Geoff Stephens"
] |
[
"Bananarama",
"1982-1985: Deep Sea Skiving and Bananarama"
] | C_a747e5200cb24b7f9a7164f7c7db2e41_0 | What is significant about this time period? | 1 | What is significant about Bananarama, 1982-1985? | Bananarama | Bananarama experienced their greatest success during the period 1982 to 1989, with their first three albums primarily produced and co-written with Jolley & Swain. Their debut album, Deep Sea Skiving (UK #7, US #63) (1983) contained several hit singles -- "Really Saying Something" (UK #5) and "Shy Boy" (UK #4) -- and included a cover version of "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" (UK #5). The band recorded a version of the Sex Pistols' song "No Feelings" in late 1982 for the soundtrack of the British teen-comedy film, Party Party. Although the group was now a success in their native UK, their earliest success in America was on an underground basis due to college radio and early MTV exposure. During 1982 and 1983, Bananarama did several promotional US press tours and TV appearances on American Bandstand and Solid Gold. Success in the United States eluded the group until the release of their first top 10 hit "Cruel Summer" in mid-1984. Their second album, Bananarama (UK #16, US #30) (1984) was a more socially conscious effort. The group wanted to be taken more seriously, so wrote songs that focused on heavier topics: "Hotline To Heaven" (UK#58) is a stand against the drugs-are-cool culture; and "Rough Justice" (UK#23) deals with social apathy. The album contained the hit singles, "Robert De Niro's Waiting...," (UK#3) and their first US Top 10 hit, "Cruel Summer" (UK#8, US#9) (1983), which was included in the film The Karate Kid. The trio also recorded the single, "The Wild Life" (US#70) for a 1984 American film of the same name. Bananarama featured on the Band Aid single, "Do They Know It's Christmas?," and were the only artists to appear on both the original 1984 Band Aid and the 1989 Band Aid II versions (though Fahey only appeared on the 1984 version). 1985 would be a quiet transitional year for Bananarama. London Records release of "Do Not Disturb" (UK #31) would keep the girls' public profile alive. CANNOTANSWER | Bananarama experienced their greatest success during the period 1982 to 1989, | Bananarama are an English pop group from London formed in 1980 by friends Sara Dallin, Siobhan Fahey and Keren Woodward. Their success on both pop and dance charts saw them listed in the Guinness World Records for achieving the world's highest number of chart entries by an all-female group. Between 1982 and 2009, they had 30 singles reach the Top 50 of the UK Singles Chart.
The group's UK top 10 hits include "It Ain't What You Do..." (1982), "Really Saying Something" (1982), "Shy Boy" (1982), "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" (1983), "Cruel Summer" (1983), "Robert De Niro's Waiting..." (1984), "Love in the First Degree" (1987), "I Want You Back" in 1988 and "Help" in 1989. In 1986, they had a U.S. number one with another of their UK top 10 hits, a cover of "Venus". In total, they had 11 singles reach the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 (1983–1988), including the top 10 hits "Cruel Summer" (1984) and "I Heard a Rumour" (1987). They are associated with the MTV-driven Second British Invasion of the US. The trio performed on "Do They Know It's Christmas?", a UK chart topping charity single released in 1984. They topped the Australian ARIA albums chart in June 1988 with Wow! (1987), and earned Brit Award nominations for Best British Single for "Love in the First Degree", and Best Music Video for their 1988 hit cover of the Supremes single "Nathan Jones".
Fahey left the group in 1988 and formed Shakespears Sister, best known for the UK number one "Stay" (1992). She was replaced by Jacquie O'Sullivan. This line-up had UK top five hits with "I Want You Back" (1988) and a cover of The Beatles' "Help!" (1989), recorded with comedy duo French and Saunders for the charity Comic Relief. They also had further hits with "Love, Truth and Honesty" and "Nathan Jones".
In 1989, they embarked on their first world tour and had another hit with a new remixed version of "Cruel Summer".
In 1990 and 1991, they had further top 30 chart hits with "Only Your Love", "Preacher Man" and "Long Train Running" and a new studio album Pop Life which featured these 3 singles and a fourth single "Tripping on Your Love" which was released soon after the album.
After O'Sullivan's late 1991 departure, Dallin and Woodward then continued Bananarama as a duo, with further top 30 hits including "Movin' On" (1992), "More, More, More" (1993), "Move in My Direction" (2005) and "Look on the Floor (Hypnotic Tango)".
Fahey rejoined Bananarama in 2017 and they toured the UK and North America between November that year until August 2018.
Career
1980–1982: Early years
Bananarama formed in September 1980 when teenagers and childhood friends Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward moved from Bristol to London and met Siobhan Fahey. Dallin and Fahey were studying journalism at the London College of Fashion (University of Arts) and Woodward was working at the BBC in Portland Place. Dallin and Woodward were living at the YWCA and were about to be made homeless until Paul Cook, with whom they had become fast friends after meeting at a club, offered them a place to live above the former Sex Pistols rehearsal room in Denmark Street, Charing Cross. They took their name, in part, from the Roxy Music song "Pyjamarama".
The trio were ardent followers of the punk rock and post-punk music scenes during the late 1970s and early 1980s. They often performed impromptu sets or backing vocals at gigs for such bands as The Monochrome Set, The Professionals, Subway Sect, Iggy Pop, Department S, The Nipple Erectors, and The Jam. In 1981, Bananarama recorded their first demo, "Aie a Mwana", a cover of a song by Black Blood, sung in Swahili. The demo was heard at Demon Records, who consequently offered Bananarama their first deal. The song was an underground hit (UK #92) and Bananarama were signed by Decca (later London Records) and remained on the label until 1993. UK music magazine The Face featured an article on Bananarama after the release of their first single. This caught the attention of ex-Specials member Terry Hall, who invited them to collaborate with his new vocal group Fun Boy Three on their album and the single "It Ain't What You Do (It's The Way That You Do It)". In 1982, the song hit the Top 5 in the UK and gave Bananarama their first significant mainstream success. Fun Boy Three then guested on Bananarama's single, "Really Saying Something", later that year.
1982–1985: Deep Sea Skiving and Bananarama
Bananarama experienced their greatest success during the period 1982 to 1989, with their first three albums primarily produced and co-written with Jolley & Swain. Their debut album, Deep Sea Skiving (UK #7, US #63) (1983) contained several hit singles – "Really Saying Something" (UK #5) and "Shy Boy" (UK #4) – and included a cover version of "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" (UK #5). "Cheers Then" (#45) was released as the third single, with little chart success, but very positive reviews from critics. The band recorded a version of the Sex Pistols' song "No Feelings" in late 1982 for the soundtrack of the British teen-comedy film, Party Party.
During 1982 and 1983, Bananarama did several promotional US press tours and TV appearances on American Bandstand and Solid Gold. Success in the United States came in 1984 with a Top Ten hit "Cruel Summer".
Their second album, Bananarama (UK #16, US #30) (1984) was a more socially conscious effort. The group wanted to be taken more seriously, so wrote songs that focused on heavier topics: "Hot Line To Heaven" (UK#58) is a stand against the drugs-are-cool culture; and "Rough Justice" (UK#23) deals with social apathy. The album contained the hit singles, "Robert De Niro's Waiting...," (UK#3) and their first US Top 10 hit, "Cruel Summer" (UK#8, US#9) (1983), which was included in the film The Karate Kid. The trio also recorded the single, "The Wild Life" (US#70) for a 1984 American film of the same name.
Bananarama featured on the Band Aid single, "Do They Know It's Christmas?," and were the only artists to appear on both the original 1984 Band Aid and the 1989 Band Aid II versions (though Fahey only appeared on the 1984 version).
1985 was a quiet transitional year for Bananarama. "Do Not Disturb" (UK #31) maintained their public profile.
1986–1987: True Confessions and international success
1986 saw the release of their third Jolley/Swain album, True Confessions. Later editions contained other tracks and some extra production duties were taken up by Mike Stock, Matt Aitken and Pete Waterman known as Stock Aitken Waterman (SAW). The move resulted in the international number one hit, "Venus", (a remake of Shocking Blue's song from 1969, which had been a number 1 hit in 1970). The dance-oriented beats on the song typified the SAW approach to pop production. Bananarama had tracked the producers down after hearing "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)" by Dead or Alive. The song won a Juno Award in Canada for International Single of The Year. Also in 1986, Dallin and Woodward were featured as backing vocalists on two songs on Family Album, produced by John Lydon.
The music video for "Venus" received heavy airplay on MTV in the United States. It featured the group in various costumes including a devil, a French temptress, a vampire and a Greek goddess. The video marked a pivotal shift towards a more glamorous and sexual image, which contrasted with the tomboyish style of their earlier work.
Follow-up singles "More Than Physical" (UK #41) and "A Trick of the Night" (UK #32) were less successful, possibly due to having less promotion. Woodward was pregnant with her son Thomas and unable to tour or physically promote the parent album or its subsequent singles.
"More Than Physical" marked the beginning of Bananarama's song writing relationship with Stock Aitken Waterman; a collaborative process Stock has described as troubled - despite producing a string of hits.
“It’s very difficult to be creative if someone’s just going to mock you, or laugh at you,” he said. “With Bananarama it was just awkward, all the time very awkward, and I didn’t feel comfortable writing with them.”
During a press tour in New York City, the group also recorded a song "Riskin' a Romance" featured in the film The Secret of My Success (1987). The track was notable because it featured Fahey taking lead vocals, and Daryl Hall was the producer. During this trip, the group also re-recorded the vocals for their next UK release "More Than Physical" and "A Trick of the Night" with Mike Stock in Miami.
1987–1988: Wow! and Fahey's departure
In the wake of the success of "Venus," Bananarama began work on the album Wow!. The group's sound graduated towards dance-orientated Europop. Wow! topped the Australian ARIA album charts for one week in June 1988.
"I Heard a Rumour" (UK #14, US #4) was their strongest performing international hit from this album. "Love in the First Degree" (UK #3) was one of their biggest UK hits and was nominated at the 1988 Brit Award for best single, and "I Can't Help It" (which boasted a semi-controversial video featuring the group in a milk bath filled with fruit and half-naked men) was also a hit (UK #20).
After the third single from Wow! was released in early 1988, Fahey – who had married Eurythmics' Dave Stewart – left the group - her last performance as a member of the group was at the Brit Awards in February 1988, performing "Love in the First Degree". She would later resurface in the BRIT Award-winning pop duo Shakespears Sister with Marcella Detroit.
1988–1991: Second line-up, Greatest Hits, Pop Life and world tour
After Fahey's exit, Jacquie O'Sullivan (formerly of the Shillelagh Sisters) joined the group in March 1988. The single "I Want You Back" (UK #5) was re-recorded with O'Sullivan, as was The Supremes cover "Nathan Jones" (UK #15) which was nominated for best video at the 1989 Brit Awards. "Love, Truth and Honesty" (UK #23) was released as a single from their 1988 retrospective compilation, Greatest Hits Collection (UK #3). At the same time, Bananarama entered the Guinness Book of World Records as the all-female group who have the most UK chart entries in history, a record they still hold.
As a fundraising charity single for Comic Relief in 1989, Bananarama recorded a cover of The Beatles' song "Help!" with Lananeeneenoonoo (UK #3), a mock girl-group created by British female comedy duo French and Saunders, with fellow comedian Kathy Burke. 1989 also saw the band's first world tour, which hit North America, East Asia and the UK.
Bananarama's 1991 album, Pop Life, saw Dallin and Woodward's songwriting collaboration with their friend Youth. They worked with a variety of producers including Youth, Shep Pettibone, and Steve Jolley, of Jolley & Swain. They also incorporated a wider range of musical genres including reggae, flamenco guitar, and acid house and received some of the strongest and most positive reviews of their career. Singles "Only Your Love" (UK #27), "Preacher Man" (UK #20), the Doobie Brothers' cover of "Long Train Running" (UK #30) and "Tripping on Your Love" (UK #76), were the final releases with O'Sullivan.
1992–2001: Duo re-launch, Please Yourself, Ultra Violet and Exotica
In 1992, Dallin and Woodward returned as a duo and had a UK top 30 hit with "Movin' On" (UK #24), which was the first single from the 1993 album Please Yourself and 'More More More' which reached #24. It was to be their last album on London Records.
Their next offering was 1995's Ultra Violet (titled I Found Love in Japan) on a new label. The album and its three singles "I Found Love", "Every Shade of Blue" and "Take Me to Your Heart" were only released in some European countries, North America, Japan and Australia, but not in Britain.
In 1998, Dallin and Woodward asked Fahey to join them to record the track "Waterloo" (a cover of the classic ABBA song) for the Eurovision celebration A Song for Eurotrash on Channel 4. However, Fahey made it clear that this was a one-off and that she was not formally rejoining the group. In 1999, Dallin, Woodward and Fahey were interviewed together for an episode of the BBC music documentary series Young Guns Go For It dedicated to the group. Jacquie O'Sullivan also took part in the programme.
In 2001, Dallin and Woodward, who had been working a lot in France, had recorded the album Exotica with the French label M6. The album also included Latin and R&B influenced dance songs, as well as reinterpreted versions of their earlier hits.
2002–2006: Drama
By 2002, Bananarama had sold 40 million records worldwide. That year, they released another greatest hits album, The Very Best of Bananarama, in the UK. They also recorded the song "Love Him, Leave Him, Forget Him" for Sky TV's show Is Harry on the Boat? as well as the song "U R My Baby" for a German disco project. With Siobhan Fahey returning as a special guest for a performance of "Venus", the group celebrated the 20th anniversary of their first hit with a gig at G-A-Y at the London Astoria, in front of an audience of 3000 people.
With 1980s retro in vogue, Bananarama made a comeback in the British dance charts in 2005. Solasso remixed their early hit "Really Saying Something." A video was filmed with models from Britain's Next Top Model TV show.
In 2005, Dallin and Woodward collaborated with Swedish hit makers Murlyn, writing and recording in Sweden for 6 months to produce the album 'Drama'. The first single 'Move in My Direction' reached #14 with the second single 'Look on the Floor (Hypnotic Tango) entering and peaking at #26 in the UK chart. In the US on the Billboard Dance Chart, Look on the Floor would peak at #2 with Move in My Direction reaching #14 in July 2006.
2006–2011: Remasters and Viva
Summer 2006 saw the Warner Bros. Records release of The Twelve Inches of Bananarama, a compilation of twelve remixes on CD for the first time. The collection features the rare George Michael remix of "Tripping on Your Love", among others.
On 19 March 2007, Bananarama's first six studio albums were reissued by Rhino Records on CD with bonus material, including alternative versions, remixes and B-sides. On 7 May 2007, another best-of collection titled Greatest Hits and More More More was released by Warner Bros. Records.
Dallin and Woodward performed a set along with other 1980s acts at Retro Fest on 1 September 2007 at Culzean Castle in Ayrshire, Scotland.
In February 2007, Bananarama's official website announced that they were back in the studio recording new material. A cover version of "Voyage Voyage" was performed at a concert in France. Bananarama also confirmed they were contributing vocals as guest artists on the song "Ultra Violet" (not to be confused with Bananarama's seventh album Ultra Violet) by new dance act Block Rocker, a teaming up of producers/remixers Digital Dog and Ashiva. However, the song never surfaced.
In October 2007, Bananarama announced that they would be appearing on 2008's Here and Now Tour with other 1980s artists such as Belinda Carlisle, Paul Young, ABC and Rick Astley. They also announced plans to record a new album of disco cover versions and new songs.
In August 2008, it was announced that Bananarama was back in the studio recording a track with Rev Run from Run-D.M.C. who had a new album in the pipeline. He wanted to sample "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" for his track but then decided to ask Dallin and Woodward to sing it instead. The title of the track was not confirmed but was to be credited as be "Run-D.M.C. featuring Bananarama". The song, 'Invincible', credited as Rev Run featuring Bananarama, did not surface until late 2014 on Rev Run's solo album Red Rhythm Rewind.
In June 2009, Bananarama performed at the Isle of Wight Festival. In August 2009, they performed at the 80s Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames alongside other 80s acts which included Rick Astley, Belinda Carlisle and Kim Wilde. The duo also performed at The Manchester Gay Pride Festival over the August Bank Holiday weekend.
Bananarama released a new single entitled "Love Comes" (UK #44), and a new album Viva (UK #87) in September 2009. The album was produced entirely by Ian Masterson, and released through Fascination Records. A second single was released from the album in April 2010, a new remix of the song "Love Don't Live Here" (UK #114) backed by Ian Masterson's 2010 reworking of the 1995 single "Every Shade of Blue" and "The Runner" (originally recorded by The Three Degrees), remixed by Buzz Junkies. Other covers recorded during this period included Bryan Adams' "Run To You", Simon & Garfunkel's "The Sound of Silence" and Bryan Ferry's "Tokyo Joe". These were included as B Sides to the released singles and as bonus digital tracks to the parent album.
In September 2010, Bananarama were back in the studio with producer Ian Masterson, and recorded a Christmas song titled "Baby It's Christmas" (UK #199). The track was written by Sara Dallin and Ian Masterson and was released on 13 December in the UK and Europe as a digital EP. The track was also included on a US digital
Christmas compilation entitled Super Dance Christmas Party, Volume 3. "Baby It's Christmas" reached #19 in the UK Indie Singles chart and #199 in the main UK Singles Chart.
In April 2011, Bananarama appeared on ITV's hit comedy Benidorm and performed "Love in the First Degree", "Robert De Niro's Waiting..." and "Movin' On".
In October 2011, Bananarama performed at Retrolicious 2011 in Singapore, together with The Human League and Belinda Carlisle.
Dallin and Woodward have continued to play live since 2002, with highlights including headlining the festival of the hand over of Hong Kong, The Isle of Wight Festival and the Singapore Grand Prix. In 2012, they embarked upon a 10 date USA tour for the Pinktober Hard Rock charity and released and EP 'Now or Never'.
In 2016, they played a sell out tour of Australia and some dates in Japan.
2012–2016: 30 Years of Bananarama and Now or Never
On 9 July 2012, Warner Music imprint Rhino Records released a greatest hits CD and DVD Collection 30 Years of Bananarama to celebrate the band's 30th anniversary. The album charted at #62 on the UK Albums Chart. On 9 August 2012, the band performed at the men's final of the beach volleyball at the London Olympics. They performed a medley of "Cruel Summer", "Love in the First Degree" and "Venus".
On 28 October 2013, Bananarama's first six albums Deep Sea Skiving, Bananarama, True Confessions, Wow!, Pop Life and Please Yourself were reissued by Edsel Records, each of them consisting of Deluxe 2CDs plus DVD. Bananarama are also confirmed to perform in 2014 at Let's Rock Bristol! (7 June), Let's Rock Leeds! (21 June) and Let's Rock Southampton! (12 July). On 9 November 2013, Bananarama revealed on the BBC show Pointless Celebrities that they were recording a new album in Nashville and that it would be influenced by country and pop. In March 2015, Edsel Records released Megarama, a 3 CD collection of remixes that was followed in August with a 33CD singles collection box set entitled In A Bunch, which contains all single releases from "Aie a Mwana" right through to "More, More, More". In 2016, Bananarama toured Australia in February and showcased their new song "Got to Get Away". On 9 March 2016, Sara confirmed on her Twitter page that Bananarama have signed a new deal with BMG. In November 2016, an excerpt of a song that bears the working title "Looking For Someone" was posted on the official Twitter page of the band.
In December 2016, Billboard magazine ranked them the 94th most successful dance artist of all time.
2017–present: Original line-up tour and In Stereo
In was announced on 23 April 2017 that Fahey had rejoined Bananarama. The Original Line-up Tour saw them perform 23 sell-out dates across the UK in November and December 2017. They performed many of their hits such as "Nathan Jones", "Robert De Niro's Waiting...", "Cruel Summer", "Really Saying Something", "I Heard A Rumour", "I Can't Help It", "Venus", and "Love in the First Degree" as well as the Shakespears Sister hit "Stay". In February 2018, they played four dates in North America; Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York in the United States and Toronto in Canada. Their performances at London's Eventim Apollo Hammersmith Theatre and Newcastle City Hall were released on CD, DVD and Blu-Ray through PledgeMusic in July 2018. Their final dates as a trio were in August 2018. In November 2018, Bananarama's first six London albums, Deep Sea Skiving, Bananarama, True Confessions, Wow!, Pop Life and Please Yourself were released as coloured vinyl and limited edition cassettes.
On 19 April 2019, Dallin and Woodward released their new album In Stereo (UK #29). The first track from the album that served as a taster was "Dance Music", followed by the first official single "Stuff Like That", which was released on 7 March. An accompanying video to the single was directed by Andy Morahan, who had also directed the videos for many former singles from "I Heard a Rumour" to "Preacher Man". On 30 March the album track "Looking for Someone" premiered on The Graham Norton Show on BBC Radio 2 and was released as the second single from In Stereo. The album was supported by a five -date promo tour in the UK, which later that year was released as a live album entitled Live in Stereo.
On 29 October 2020, Dallin and Woodward released their autobiography, entitled Really Saying Something.
Awards and nominations
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|-
! scope="col" | Award
! scope="col" | Year
! scope="col" | Category
! scope="col" | Nominee(s)
! scope="col" | Result
! scope="col" class="unsortable"|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=10|Billboard Music Awards
| rowspan=6|1986
| Top Hot 100 Artist
| rowspan=3|Themselves
|
|rowspan=6|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Artist
|
|-
| Top Dance Sales Artist
|
|-
| Top Hot 100 Song
| rowspan=3|"Venus"
|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Single
|
|-
| Top Dance Sales Single
|
|-
| rowspan=4|1987
| Top Hot 100 Artist
| rowspan=2|Themselves
|
|rowspan=4|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Artist
|
|-
| Top Hot 100 Song
| rowspan=2|"I Heard a Rumour"
|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Single
|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=2|Brit Awards
| 1988
| British Single of the Year
| "Love in the First Degree"
|
|
|-
| 1989
| British Video of the Year
| "Nathan Jones"
|
|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=2|Classic Pop Readers' Awards
| 2018
| Group of the Year
| Themselves
|
|
|-
| 2020
| Album of the Year
| In Stereo
|
|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=2|International Dance Music Awards
| rowspan=2|2007
| Best HiNRG/Euro Dance Track
| rowspan=2|"Look on the Floor"
|
|rowspan=2|
|-
| Best Dance Music Video
|
|-
! scope="row"|Smash Hits Poll Winners Party
| 1989
| Best Group
| Themselves
|
|
Members
Current members
Sara Dallin
Keren Woodward
Former members
Siobhan Fahey
Jacquie O'Sullivan
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Deep Sea Skiving (1983)
Bananarama (1984)
True Confessions (1986)
Wow! (1987)
Pop Life (1991)
Please Yourself (1993)
Ultra Violet (1995)
Exotica (2001)
Drama (2005)
Viva (2009)
In Stereo (2019)
Concert tours
Lovekids Tour (1988)
Bananarama World Tour (1989)
Ultra Violet/Dance Mix 95 Tour (1995–1996)
Bananarama Australian Tour (1997)
Bananarama & Culture Club UK Tour (1999)
Drama Tour (2005–2006)
Here and Now Tour (2007–2009)
Viva Tour (2009–2010)
The Bananarama USA Tour (2012)
Europe Tour (2014–2015)
The 2016 Australian Tour (2016)
The Original Line Up UK Tour (2017)
The Original Line Up North America and European Tour (2018)
The 2019 Australian Tour (2019)
In Stereo UK Tour (2019)
List of all record labels
London Records (UK, USA, and Canada, 1981–1993)
ZYX Records (Germany, 1994–1996)
avex trax (Japan, 1995 / Taiwan, 2006)
Quality Records (Canada, 1995)
Mega Records (Denmark, 1995)
DigIt International (Italy, 1995)
Festival Records (Australia, 1995)
Popular Records (Canada 1996)
Curb Records (USA,1996)
M6 Interactions (France, 2000)
A&G Productions (UK, 2004–2006)
The Lab (USA, 2006)
True North Records (Canada, 2006)
Edel Company (Germany, 2006)
EQ Music (Singapore and Malaysia, 2005)
Phantom Imports (Hong Kong, 2006)
Central Station (Australia, 2005)
Pony Canyon (Japan, 2006)
Universal Records (Philippines, 2005)
Blanco y Negro Records (Spain,1995–2006)
Megaliner Records (Russia, 2005)
Nice Records (France, 2007)
Fascination Records (UK, 2009–2010)
BMG (UK, 2016–19)
Absolute Label Services (UK, 2019–)
See also
Girl group
List of best-selling girl groups
References
External links
Bananarama official website
Bananarama Community
Musical groups established in 1981
British new wave girl groups
British Eurodance groups
English pop music duos
Dance-pop groups
Deram Records artists
English dance music groups
English new wave musical groups
English dance girl groups
English pop girl groups
London Records artists
British musical trios
Musical groups from London
Polydor Records artists
ZYX Music artists | true | [
"The year 1821 in archaeology involved some significant events.\n\nExplorations\n October - John Gardner Wilkinson begins a twelve-year stay in Egypt, surveying historical sites.\n\nExcavations\n\nPublications\n\nFinds\n'Gallagh Man', an Iron Age bog body, is found in County Galway, Ireland.\n\nAwards\n\nMiscellaneous\n\"Egyptian Hall\" in London displays artifacts from Ancient Egypt brought to the United Kingdom by Giovanni Battista Belzoni.\nWhile not specifically the year 1821, this time period is when one of the most significant categorical discoveries of archaeology was named. Christian Thomsen, a Danish archaeologist, developed the three age system to date objects in museums. These three ages were the \"Stone Age,\" \"Bronze Age,\" and \"Iron Age.\" \nWhile not specifically the year 1821, this time period is when one of the most significant findings regarding time and dating archaeological findings was discovered. Boucher de Perthes established a much deeper sense of time than what James Usher had previously established. Perthes determined that the world was significantly older than 4004 BC and thus gave archaeology a deeper, more realistic time frame to work with.\n\nBirths\n\nDeaths\n\nSee also\nAncient Egypt / Egyptology\n\nReferences\n\nArchaeology\nArchaeology by year\nArchaeology\nArchaeology",
"Morris Massey (born 1939) is a marketing professor/sociologist, and producer of training videos.\n\nEducation\nHis undergraduate and M.B.A. degrees are from the University of Texas, Austin, and his Ph.D. in business is from Louisiana State University.\n\nCareer\nDuring the late 1960s through the 1970s, as an Associate Dean and Professor of Marketing, at the University of Colorado at Boulder, he received four awards for teaching excellence.\n\nDr Massey was honored with the W.M. McFeely award presented by the International Management Council for \"significant contribution to the field of management and human relations.\" During the 1980s and 90s he was the #1 ranked resource for the Young Presidents Organization International. In What Works At Work (Lakewood Publications, 1988) he was cited as one of the 27 most influential workplace experts of the time. His work is focused on values, generations, and Significant Emotional Events (SEE).\n\nDevelopment of values\nMorris Massey has described three major periods during which values are developed.\n\n1. The Imprint Period. Up to the age of seven, we are like sponges, absorbing everything around us and accepting much of it as true, especially when it comes from our parents. The confusion and blind belief of this period can also lead to the early formation of trauma and other deep problems. The critical thing here is to learn a sense of right and wrong, good and bad. This is a human construction which we nevertheless often assume would exist even if we were not here (which is an indication of how deeply imprinted it has become).\n\n2. The Modeling Period. Between the ages of eight and thirteen, we copy people, often our parents, but also other people. Rather than blind acceptance, we are trying on things like suit of clothes, to see how they feel. We may be much impressed with religion or our teachers. You may remember being particularly influenced by junior school teachers who seemed so knowledgeable—maybe even more so than your parents.\n\n3. The Socialization Period. Between 13 and 21, we are very largely influenced by our peers. As we develop as individuals and look for ways to get away from the earlier programming, we naturally turn to people who seem more like us. Other influences at these ages include the media, especially those parts which seem to resonate with the values of our peer groups.\n\nRetirement\nHe retired in 1995 from the consulting/speaking circuit and now lives with his wife, Judith Ford Massey, in New Orleans, Louisiana. They have twin sons, Ryan Massey and Blake Massey.\n\nVideo programs \n What You Are Is Where You Were When... AGAIN!\n Just Get It!\n Flashpoint: When Values Collide\n The Original Massey Tapes - 1: What You Are Is Where You Were When\n The Original Massey Tapes - 3: What You Are Is\n The Original Massey Tapes - 4: What You Are Is Where You See\n What You Are Is What You Choose…So Don't Screw It Up\n Dancing With The Bogeyman\n The Massey Triad Program 1: What You Are Is Where You Were When\n The Massey Triad Program 2: What You Are is Not What You Have To Be\n The Massey Triad Program 3: What You Are Is Where You See\n\nSee also \n Significant Emotional Event (SEE)\n University of Colorado at Boulder\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Changing Minds\n\n1939 births\nLiving people\nLouisiana State University alumni"
] |
[
"Bananarama",
"1982-1985: Deep Sea Skiving and Bananarama",
"What is significant about this time period?",
"Bananarama experienced their greatest success during the period 1982 to 1989,"
] | C_a747e5200cb24b7f9a7164f7c7db2e41_0 | What is Deep Sea Skiving? | 2 | What is Deep Sea Skiving? | Bananarama | Bananarama experienced their greatest success during the period 1982 to 1989, with their first three albums primarily produced and co-written with Jolley & Swain. Their debut album, Deep Sea Skiving (UK #7, US #63) (1983) contained several hit singles -- "Really Saying Something" (UK #5) and "Shy Boy" (UK #4) -- and included a cover version of "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" (UK #5). The band recorded a version of the Sex Pistols' song "No Feelings" in late 1982 for the soundtrack of the British teen-comedy film, Party Party. Although the group was now a success in their native UK, their earliest success in America was on an underground basis due to college radio and early MTV exposure. During 1982 and 1983, Bananarama did several promotional US press tours and TV appearances on American Bandstand and Solid Gold. Success in the United States eluded the group until the release of their first top 10 hit "Cruel Summer" in mid-1984. Their second album, Bananarama (UK #16, US #30) (1984) was a more socially conscious effort. The group wanted to be taken more seriously, so wrote songs that focused on heavier topics: "Hotline To Heaven" (UK#58) is a stand against the drugs-are-cool culture; and "Rough Justice" (UK#23) deals with social apathy. The album contained the hit singles, "Robert De Niro's Waiting...," (UK#3) and their first US Top 10 hit, "Cruel Summer" (UK#8, US#9) (1983), which was included in the film The Karate Kid. The trio also recorded the single, "The Wild Life" (US#70) for a 1984 American film of the same name. Bananarama featured on the Band Aid single, "Do They Know It's Christmas?," and were the only artists to appear on both the original 1984 Band Aid and the 1989 Band Aid II versions (though Fahey only appeared on the 1984 version). 1985 would be a quiet transitional year for Bananarama. London Records release of "Do Not Disturb" (UK #31) would keep the girls' public profile alive. CANNOTANSWER | Their debut album, Deep Sea Skiving ( | Bananarama are an English pop group from London formed in 1980 by friends Sara Dallin, Siobhan Fahey and Keren Woodward. Their success on both pop and dance charts saw them listed in the Guinness World Records for achieving the world's highest number of chart entries by an all-female group. Between 1982 and 2009, they had 30 singles reach the Top 50 of the UK Singles Chart.
The group's UK top 10 hits include "It Ain't What You Do..." (1982), "Really Saying Something" (1982), "Shy Boy" (1982), "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" (1983), "Cruel Summer" (1983), "Robert De Niro's Waiting..." (1984), "Love in the First Degree" (1987), "I Want You Back" in 1988 and "Help" in 1989. In 1986, they had a U.S. number one with another of their UK top 10 hits, a cover of "Venus". In total, they had 11 singles reach the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 (1983–1988), including the top 10 hits "Cruel Summer" (1984) and "I Heard a Rumour" (1987). They are associated with the MTV-driven Second British Invasion of the US. The trio performed on "Do They Know It's Christmas?", a UK chart topping charity single released in 1984. They topped the Australian ARIA albums chart in June 1988 with Wow! (1987), and earned Brit Award nominations for Best British Single for "Love in the First Degree", and Best Music Video for their 1988 hit cover of the Supremes single "Nathan Jones".
Fahey left the group in 1988 and formed Shakespears Sister, best known for the UK number one "Stay" (1992). She was replaced by Jacquie O'Sullivan. This line-up had UK top five hits with "I Want You Back" (1988) and a cover of The Beatles' "Help!" (1989), recorded with comedy duo French and Saunders for the charity Comic Relief. They also had further hits with "Love, Truth and Honesty" and "Nathan Jones".
In 1989, they embarked on their first world tour and had another hit with a new remixed version of "Cruel Summer".
In 1990 and 1991, they had further top 30 chart hits with "Only Your Love", "Preacher Man" and "Long Train Running" and a new studio album Pop Life which featured these 3 singles and a fourth single "Tripping on Your Love" which was released soon after the album.
After O'Sullivan's late 1991 departure, Dallin and Woodward then continued Bananarama as a duo, with further top 30 hits including "Movin' On" (1992), "More, More, More" (1993), "Move in My Direction" (2005) and "Look on the Floor (Hypnotic Tango)".
Fahey rejoined Bananarama in 2017 and they toured the UK and North America between November that year until August 2018.
Career
1980–1982: Early years
Bananarama formed in September 1980 when teenagers and childhood friends Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward moved from Bristol to London and met Siobhan Fahey. Dallin and Fahey were studying journalism at the London College of Fashion (University of Arts) and Woodward was working at the BBC in Portland Place. Dallin and Woodward were living at the YWCA and were about to be made homeless until Paul Cook, with whom they had become fast friends after meeting at a club, offered them a place to live above the former Sex Pistols rehearsal room in Denmark Street, Charing Cross. They took their name, in part, from the Roxy Music song "Pyjamarama".
The trio were ardent followers of the punk rock and post-punk music scenes during the late 1970s and early 1980s. They often performed impromptu sets or backing vocals at gigs for such bands as The Monochrome Set, The Professionals, Subway Sect, Iggy Pop, Department S, The Nipple Erectors, and The Jam. In 1981, Bananarama recorded their first demo, "Aie a Mwana", a cover of a song by Black Blood, sung in Swahili. The demo was heard at Demon Records, who consequently offered Bananarama their first deal. The song was an underground hit (UK #92) and Bananarama were signed by Decca (later London Records) and remained on the label until 1993. UK music magazine The Face featured an article on Bananarama after the release of their first single. This caught the attention of ex-Specials member Terry Hall, who invited them to collaborate with his new vocal group Fun Boy Three on their album and the single "It Ain't What You Do (It's The Way That You Do It)". In 1982, the song hit the Top 5 in the UK and gave Bananarama their first significant mainstream success. Fun Boy Three then guested on Bananarama's single, "Really Saying Something", later that year.
1982–1985: Deep Sea Skiving and Bananarama
Bananarama experienced their greatest success during the period 1982 to 1989, with their first three albums primarily produced and co-written with Jolley & Swain. Their debut album, Deep Sea Skiving (UK #7, US #63) (1983) contained several hit singles – "Really Saying Something" (UK #5) and "Shy Boy" (UK #4) – and included a cover version of "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" (UK #5). "Cheers Then" (#45) was released as the third single, with little chart success, but very positive reviews from critics. The band recorded a version of the Sex Pistols' song "No Feelings" in late 1982 for the soundtrack of the British teen-comedy film, Party Party.
During 1982 and 1983, Bananarama did several promotional US press tours and TV appearances on American Bandstand and Solid Gold. Success in the United States came in 1984 with a Top Ten hit "Cruel Summer".
Their second album, Bananarama (UK #16, US #30) (1984) was a more socially conscious effort. The group wanted to be taken more seriously, so wrote songs that focused on heavier topics: "Hot Line To Heaven" (UK#58) is a stand against the drugs-are-cool culture; and "Rough Justice" (UK#23) deals with social apathy. The album contained the hit singles, "Robert De Niro's Waiting...," (UK#3) and their first US Top 10 hit, "Cruel Summer" (UK#8, US#9) (1983), which was included in the film The Karate Kid. The trio also recorded the single, "The Wild Life" (US#70) for a 1984 American film of the same name.
Bananarama featured on the Band Aid single, "Do They Know It's Christmas?," and were the only artists to appear on both the original 1984 Band Aid and the 1989 Band Aid II versions (though Fahey only appeared on the 1984 version).
1985 was a quiet transitional year for Bananarama. "Do Not Disturb" (UK #31) maintained their public profile.
1986–1987: True Confessions and international success
1986 saw the release of their third Jolley/Swain album, True Confessions. Later editions contained other tracks and some extra production duties were taken up by Mike Stock, Matt Aitken and Pete Waterman known as Stock Aitken Waterman (SAW). The move resulted in the international number one hit, "Venus", (a remake of Shocking Blue's song from 1969, which had been a number 1 hit in 1970). The dance-oriented beats on the song typified the SAW approach to pop production. Bananarama had tracked the producers down after hearing "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)" by Dead or Alive. The song won a Juno Award in Canada for International Single of The Year. Also in 1986, Dallin and Woodward were featured as backing vocalists on two songs on Family Album, produced by John Lydon.
The music video for "Venus" received heavy airplay on MTV in the United States. It featured the group in various costumes including a devil, a French temptress, a vampire and a Greek goddess. The video marked a pivotal shift towards a more glamorous and sexual image, which contrasted with the tomboyish style of their earlier work.
Follow-up singles "More Than Physical" (UK #41) and "A Trick of the Night" (UK #32) were less successful, possibly due to having less promotion. Woodward was pregnant with her son Thomas and unable to tour or physically promote the parent album or its subsequent singles.
"More Than Physical" marked the beginning of Bananarama's song writing relationship with Stock Aitken Waterman; a collaborative process Stock has described as troubled - despite producing a string of hits.
“It’s very difficult to be creative if someone’s just going to mock you, or laugh at you,” he said. “With Bananarama it was just awkward, all the time very awkward, and I didn’t feel comfortable writing with them.”
During a press tour in New York City, the group also recorded a song "Riskin' a Romance" featured in the film The Secret of My Success (1987). The track was notable because it featured Fahey taking lead vocals, and Daryl Hall was the producer. During this trip, the group also re-recorded the vocals for their next UK release "More Than Physical" and "A Trick of the Night" with Mike Stock in Miami.
1987–1988: Wow! and Fahey's departure
In the wake of the success of "Venus," Bananarama began work on the album Wow!. The group's sound graduated towards dance-orientated Europop. Wow! topped the Australian ARIA album charts for one week in June 1988.
"I Heard a Rumour" (UK #14, US #4) was their strongest performing international hit from this album. "Love in the First Degree" (UK #3) was one of their biggest UK hits and was nominated at the 1988 Brit Award for best single, and "I Can't Help It" (which boasted a semi-controversial video featuring the group in a milk bath filled with fruit and half-naked men) was also a hit (UK #20).
After the third single from Wow! was released in early 1988, Fahey – who had married Eurythmics' Dave Stewart – left the group - her last performance as a member of the group was at the Brit Awards in February 1988, performing "Love in the First Degree". She would later resurface in the BRIT Award-winning pop duo Shakespears Sister with Marcella Detroit.
1988–1991: Second line-up, Greatest Hits, Pop Life and world tour
After Fahey's exit, Jacquie O'Sullivan (formerly of the Shillelagh Sisters) joined the group in March 1988. The single "I Want You Back" (UK #5) was re-recorded with O'Sullivan, as was The Supremes cover "Nathan Jones" (UK #15) which was nominated for best video at the 1989 Brit Awards. "Love, Truth and Honesty" (UK #23) was released as a single from their 1988 retrospective compilation, Greatest Hits Collection (UK #3). At the same time, Bananarama entered the Guinness Book of World Records as the all-female group who have the most UK chart entries in history, a record they still hold.
As a fundraising charity single for Comic Relief in 1989, Bananarama recorded a cover of The Beatles' song "Help!" with Lananeeneenoonoo (UK #3), a mock girl-group created by British female comedy duo French and Saunders, with fellow comedian Kathy Burke. 1989 also saw the band's first world tour, which hit North America, East Asia and the UK.
Bananarama's 1991 album, Pop Life, saw Dallin and Woodward's songwriting collaboration with their friend Youth. They worked with a variety of producers including Youth, Shep Pettibone, and Steve Jolley, of Jolley & Swain. They also incorporated a wider range of musical genres including reggae, flamenco guitar, and acid house and received some of the strongest and most positive reviews of their career. Singles "Only Your Love" (UK #27), "Preacher Man" (UK #20), the Doobie Brothers' cover of "Long Train Running" (UK #30) and "Tripping on Your Love" (UK #76), were the final releases with O'Sullivan.
1992–2001: Duo re-launch, Please Yourself, Ultra Violet and Exotica
In 1992, Dallin and Woodward returned as a duo and had a UK top 30 hit with "Movin' On" (UK #24), which was the first single from the 1993 album Please Yourself and 'More More More' which reached #24. It was to be their last album on London Records.
Their next offering was 1995's Ultra Violet (titled I Found Love in Japan) on a new label. The album and its three singles "I Found Love", "Every Shade of Blue" and "Take Me to Your Heart" were only released in some European countries, North America, Japan and Australia, but not in Britain.
In 1998, Dallin and Woodward asked Fahey to join them to record the track "Waterloo" (a cover of the classic ABBA song) for the Eurovision celebration A Song for Eurotrash on Channel 4. However, Fahey made it clear that this was a one-off and that she was not formally rejoining the group. In 1999, Dallin, Woodward and Fahey were interviewed together for an episode of the BBC music documentary series Young Guns Go For It dedicated to the group. Jacquie O'Sullivan also took part in the programme.
In 2001, Dallin and Woodward, who had been working a lot in France, had recorded the album Exotica with the French label M6. The album also included Latin and R&B influenced dance songs, as well as reinterpreted versions of their earlier hits.
2002–2006: Drama
By 2002, Bananarama had sold 40 million records worldwide. That year, they released another greatest hits album, The Very Best of Bananarama, in the UK. They also recorded the song "Love Him, Leave Him, Forget Him" for Sky TV's show Is Harry on the Boat? as well as the song "U R My Baby" for a German disco project. With Siobhan Fahey returning as a special guest for a performance of "Venus", the group celebrated the 20th anniversary of their first hit with a gig at G-A-Y at the London Astoria, in front of an audience of 3000 people.
With 1980s retro in vogue, Bananarama made a comeback in the British dance charts in 2005. Solasso remixed their early hit "Really Saying Something." A video was filmed with models from Britain's Next Top Model TV show.
In 2005, Dallin and Woodward collaborated with Swedish hit makers Murlyn, writing and recording in Sweden for 6 months to produce the album 'Drama'. The first single 'Move in My Direction' reached #14 with the second single 'Look on the Floor (Hypnotic Tango) entering and peaking at #26 in the UK chart. In the US on the Billboard Dance Chart, Look on the Floor would peak at #2 with Move in My Direction reaching #14 in July 2006.
2006–2011: Remasters and Viva
Summer 2006 saw the Warner Bros. Records release of The Twelve Inches of Bananarama, a compilation of twelve remixes on CD for the first time. The collection features the rare George Michael remix of "Tripping on Your Love", among others.
On 19 March 2007, Bananarama's first six studio albums were reissued by Rhino Records on CD with bonus material, including alternative versions, remixes and B-sides. On 7 May 2007, another best-of collection titled Greatest Hits and More More More was released by Warner Bros. Records.
Dallin and Woodward performed a set along with other 1980s acts at Retro Fest on 1 September 2007 at Culzean Castle in Ayrshire, Scotland.
In February 2007, Bananarama's official website announced that they were back in the studio recording new material. A cover version of "Voyage Voyage" was performed at a concert in France. Bananarama also confirmed they were contributing vocals as guest artists on the song "Ultra Violet" (not to be confused with Bananarama's seventh album Ultra Violet) by new dance act Block Rocker, a teaming up of producers/remixers Digital Dog and Ashiva. However, the song never surfaced.
In October 2007, Bananarama announced that they would be appearing on 2008's Here and Now Tour with other 1980s artists such as Belinda Carlisle, Paul Young, ABC and Rick Astley. They also announced plans to record a new album of disco cover versions and new songs.
In August 2008, it was announced that Bananarama was back in the studio recording a track with Rev Run from Run-D.M.C. who had a new album in the pipeline. He wanted to sample "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" for his track but then decided to ask Dallin and Woodward to sing it instead. The title of the track was not confirmed but was to be credited as be "Run-D.M.C. featuring Bananarama". The song, 'Invincible', credited as Rev Run featuring Bananarama, did not surface until late 2014 on Rev Run's solo album Red Rhythm Rewind.
In June 2009, Bananarama performed at the Isle of Wight Festival. In August 2009, they performed at the 80s Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames alongside other 80s acts which included Rick Astley, Belinda Carlisle and Kim Wilde. The duo also performed at The Manchester Gay Pride Festival over the August Bank Holiday weekend.
Bananarama released a new single entitled "Love Comes" (UK #44), and a new album Viva (UK #87) in September 2009. The album was produced entirely by Ian Masterson, and released through Fascination Records. A second single was released from the album in April 2010, a new remix of the song "Love Don't Live Here" (UK #114) backed by Ian Masterson's 2010 reworking of the 1995 single "Every Shade of Blue" and "The Runner" (originally recorded by The Three Degrees), remixed by Buzz Junkies. Other covers recorded during this period included Bryan Adams' "Run To You", Simon & Garfunkel's "The Sound of Silence" and Bryan Ferry's "Tokyo Joe". These were included as B Sides to the released singles and as bonus digital tracks to the parent album.
In September 2010, Bananarama were back in the studio with producer Ian Masterson, and recorded a Christmas song titled "Baby It's Christmas" (UK #199). The track was written by Sara Dallin and Ian Masterson and was released on 13 December in the UK and Europe as a digital EP. The track was also included on a US digital
Christmas compilation entitled Super Dance Christmas Party, Volume 3. "Baby It's Christmas" reached #19 in the UK Indie Singles chart and #199 in the main UK Singles Chart.
In April 2011, Bananarama appeared on ITV's hit comedy Benidorm and performed "Love in the First Degree", "Robert De Niro's Waiting..." and "Movin' On".
In October 2011, Bananarama performed at Retrolicious 2011 in Singapore, together with The Human League and Belinda Carlisle.
Dallin and Woodward have continued to play live since 2002, with highlights including headlining the festival of the hand over of Hong Kong, The Isle of Wight Festival and the Singapore Grand Prix. In 2012, they embarked upon a 10 date USA tour for the Pinktober Hard Rock charity and released and EP 'Now or Never'.
In 2016, they played a sell out tour of Australia and some dates in Japan.
2012–2016: 30 Years of Bananarama and Now or Never
On 9 July 2012, Warner Music imprint Rhino Records released a greatest hits CD and DVD Collection 30 Years of Bananarama to celebrate the band's 30th anniversary. The album charted at #62 on the UK Albums Chart. On 9 August 2012, the band performed at the men's final of the beach volleyball at the London Olympics. They performed a medley of "Cruel Summer", "Love in the First Degree" and "Venus".
On 28 October 2013, Bananarama's first six albums Deep Sea Skiving, Bananarama, True Confessions, Wow!, Pop Life and Please Yourself were reissued by Edsel Records, each of them consisting of Deluxe 2CDs plus DVD. Bananarama are also confirmed to perform in 2014 at Let's Rock Bristol! (7 June), Let's Rock Leeds! (21 June) and Let's Rock Southampton! (12 July). On 9 November 2013, Bananarama revealed on the BBC show Pointless Celebrities that they were recording a new album in Nashville and that it would be influenced by country and pop. In March 2015, Edsel Records released Megarama, a 3 CD collection of remixes that was followed in August with a 33CD singles collection box set entitled In A Bunch, which contains all single releases from "Aie a Mwana" right through to "More, More, More". In 2016, Bananarama toured Australia in February and showcased their new song "Got to Get Away". On 9 March 2016, Sara confirmed on her Twitter page that Bananarama have signed a new deal with BMG. In November 2016, an excerpt of a song that bears the working title "Looking For Someone" was posted on the official Twitter page of the band.
In December 2016, Billboard magazine ranked them the 94th most successful dance artist of all time.
2017–present: Original line-up tour and In Stereo
In was announced on 23 April 2017 that Fahey had rejoined Bananarama. The Original Line-up Tour saw them perform 23 sell-out dates across the UK in November and December 2017. They performed many of their hits such as "Nathan Jones", "Robert De Niro's Waiting...", "Cruel Summer", "Really Saying Something", "I Heard A Rumour", "I Can't Help It", "Venus", and "Love in the First Degree" as well as the Shakespears Sister hit "Stay". In February 2018, they played four dates in North America; Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York in the United States and Toronto in Canada. Their performances at London's Eventim Apollo Hammersmith Theatre and Newcastle City Hall were released on CD, DVD and Blu-Ray through PledgeMusic in July 2018. Their final dates as a trio were in August 2018. In November 2018, Bananarama's first six London albums, Deep Sea Skiving, Bananarama, True Confessions, Wow!, Pop Life and Please Yourself were released as coloured vinyl and limited edition cassettes.
On 19 April 2019, Dallin and Woodward released their new album In Stereo (UK #29). The first track from the album that served as a taster was "Dance Music", followed by the first official single "Stuff Like That", which was released on 7 March. An accompanying video to the single was directed by Andy Morahan, who had also directed the videos for many former singles from "I Heard a Rumour" to "Preacher Man". On 30 March the album track "Looking for Someone" premiered on The Graham Norton Show on BBC Radio 2 and was released as the second single from In Stereo. The album was supported by a five -date promo tour in the UK, which later that year was released as a live album entitled Live in Stereo.
On 29 October 2020, Dallin and Woodward released their autobiography, entitled Really Saying Something.
Awards and nominations
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|-
! scope="col" | Award
! scope="col" | Year
! scope="col" | Category
! scope="col" | Nominee(s)
! scope="col" | Result
! scope="col" class="unsortable"|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=10|Billboard Music Awards
| rowspan=6|1986
| Top Hot 100 Artist
| rowspan=3|Themselves
|
|rowspan=6|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Artist
|
|-
| Top Dance Sales Artist
|
|-
| Top Hot 100 Song
| rowspan=3|"Venus"
|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Single
|
|-
| Top Dance Sales Single
|
|-
| rowspan=4|1987
| Top Hot 100 Artist
| rowspan=2|Themselves
|
|rowspan=4|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Artist
|
|-
| Top Hot 100 Song
| rowspan=2|"I Heard a Rumour"
|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Single
|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=2|Brit Awards
| 1988
| British Single of the Year
| "Love in the First Degree"
|
|
|-
| 1989
| British Video of the Year
| "Nathan Jones"
|
|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=2|Classic Pop Readers' Awards
| 2018
| Group of the Year
| Themselves
|
|
|-
| 2020
| Album of the Year
| In Stereo
|
|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=2|International Dance Music Awards
| rowspan=2|2007
| Best HiNRG/Euro Dance Track
| rowspan=2|"Look on the Floor"
|
|rowspan=2|
|-
| Best Dance Music Video
|
|-
! scope="row"|Smash Hits Poll Winners Party
| 1989
| Best Group
| Themselves
|
|
Members
Current members
Sara Dallin
Keren Woodward
Former members
Siobhan Fahey
Jacquie O'Sullivan
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Deep Sea Skiving (1983)
Bananarama (1984)
True Confessions (1986)
Wow! (1987)
Pop Life (1991)
Please Yourself (1993)
Ultra Violet (1995)
Exotica (2001)
Drama (2005)
Viva (2009)
In Stereo (2019)
Concert tours
Lovekids Tour (1988)
Bananarama World Tour (1989)
Ultra Violet/Dance Mix 95 Tour (1995–1996)
Bananarama Australian Tour (1997)
Bananarama & Culture Club UK Tour (1999)
Drama Tour (2005–2006)
Here and Now Tour (2007–2009)
Viva Tour (2009–2010)
The Bananarama USA Tour (2012)
Europe Tour (2014–2015)
The 2016 Australian Tour (2016)
The Original Line Up UK Tour (2017)
The Original Line Up North America and European Tour (2018)
The 2019 Australian Tour (2019)
In Stereo UK Tour (2019)
List of all record labels
London Records (UK, USA, and Canada, 1981–1993)
ZYX Records (Germany, 1994–1996)
avex trax (Japan, 1995 / Taiwan, 2006)
Quality Records (Canada, 1995)
Mega Records (Denmark, 1995)
DigIt International (Italy, 1995)
Festival Records (Australia, 1995)
Popular Records (Canada 1996)
Curb Records (USA,1996)
M6 Interactions (France, 2000)
A&G Productions (UK, 2004–2006)
The Lab (USA, 2006)
True North Records (Canada, 2006)
Edel Company (Germany, 2006)
EQ Music (Singapore and Malaysia, 2005)
Phantom Imports (Hong Kong, 2006)
Central Station (Australia, 2005)
Pony Canyon (Japan, 2006)
Universal Records (Philippines, 2005)
Blanco y Negro Records (Spain,1995–2006)
Megaliner Records (Russia, 2005)
Nice Records (France, 2007)
Fascination Records (UK, 2009–2010)
BMG (UK, 2016–19)
Absolute Label Services (UK, 2019–)
See also
Girl group
List of best-selling girl groups
References
External links
Bananarama official website
Bananarama Community
Musical groups established in 1981
British new wave girl groups
British Eurodance groups
English pop music duos
Dance-pop groups
Deram Records artists
English dance music groups
English new wave musical groups
English dance girl groups
English pop girl groups
London Records artists
British musical trios
Musical groups from London
Polydor Records artists
ZYX Music artists | true | [
"\"He's Got Tact\" is a song written and recorded by English girl group Bananarama. The song was written as a commercial jingle for the Honda Tact motor scooter and released to the Japanese market only. The popularity of the jingle prompted London Records to release the song on a 7-inch single and add the song to the Japanese version of Bananarama's debut album Deep Sea Skiving.\n\n\"He's Got Tact\" can be found on the 2007 UK reissue of Deep Sea Skiving as one of five bonus tracks.\n\nTrack Listings\n7\" vinyl\n\n\"He's Got Tact\" 2:59\n\"Give Us Back Our Cheap Fares\" 2:44\n\n1983 singles\nBananarama songs\nLondon Records singles\nSongs written by Sara Dallin\nSongs written by Siobhan Fahey\nSongs written by Keren Woodward\n1982 songs",
"Roller burnishing is a surface finishing technique where hardened rollers cold work surface imperfections to reduce surface roughness. Roller burnishing differs from abrasive surface finishing techniques in that material is displaced rather than removed. The tooling typically consists of a hardened sphere or cylindrical roller. The tooling is pressed into the surface of the part while it is rotated (in some applications, the tools are rotated instead of the part). The burnishing tool rolls against the surface of the part at a constant speed, producing a very consistent finish across the part. A surface finish of less than Ra 0.1 µm is achievable with roller burnishing. A side effect is that the outer surface of the part is work hardened.\n\nRoller burnishing is used in the production of some crankshafts. A dual roller (cylindrical) tool is moved into the thrust bearing journal of a crankshaft, while the crankshaft is spinning the tool is indexed (so each roller is perpendicular to the thrust surface while backing each other up) deforming the surfaces. So the diameters of each roller added together (compensated for elastic deformation) equals the finish dimension of the thrust bearing.\n\nIn deep hole machining, a roller burnishing tool is often combined with skiving knives on the same tool. The skiving knives pass first, scraping the inside layer of metal, followed by the burnishing rollers, which cold work the tube to create a mirror surface finish. Skive-burnishing is often used in hydraulic cylinder applications. This process can happen on a deep hole drilling machine or a dedicated skiving machine.\n\nSee also\nCrankshaft deep rolling\nBurnishing (metal)\n\nReferences\nExperimental investigation of mild steel components by Roller Burnishing process and mechanical properties by Taguchi method. https://www.irjet.net/archives/V6/i2/IRJET-V6I2398.pdf\n\nMetal forming"
] |
[
"Bananarama",
"1982-1985: Deep Sea Skiving and Bananarama",
"What is significant about this time period?",
"Bananarama experienced their greatest success during the period 1982 to 1989,",
"What is Deep Sea Skiving?",
"Their debut album, Deep Sea Skiving ("
] | C_a747e5200cb24b7f9a7164f7c7db2e41_0 | When was their debut released? | 3 | When was Bananarama's debut released? | Bananarama | Bananarama experienced their greatest success during the period 1982 to 1989, with their first three albums primarily produced and co-written with Jolley & Swain. Their debut album, Deep Sea Skiving (UK #7, US #63) (1983) contained several hit singles -- "Really Saying Something" (UK #5) and "Shy Boy" (UK #4) -- and included a cover version of "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" (UK #5). The band recorded a version of the Sex Pistols' song "No Feelings" in late 1982 for the soundtrack of the British teen-comedy film, Party Party. Although the group was now a success in their native UK, their earliest success in America was on an underground basis due to college radio and early MTV exposure. During 1982 and 1983, Bananarama did several promotional US press tours and TV appearances on American Bandstand and Solid Gold. Success in the United States eluded the group until the release of their first top 10 hit "Cruel Summer" in mid-1984. Their second album, Bananarama (UK #16, US #30) (1984) was a more socially conscious effort. The group wanted to be taken more seriously, so wrote songs that focused on heavier topics: "Hotline To Heaven" (UK#58) is a stand against the drugs-are-cool culture; and "Rough Justice" (UK#23) deals with social apathy. The album contained the hit singles, "Robert De Niro's Waiting...," (UK#3) and their first US Top 10 hit, "Cruel Summer" (UK#8, US#9) (1983), which was included in the film The Karate Kid. The trio also recorded the single, "The Wild Life" (US#70) for a 1984 American film of the same name. Bananarama featured on the Band Aid single, "Do They Know It's Christmas?," and were the only artists to appear on both the original 1984 Band Aid and the 1989 Band Aid II versions (though Fahey only appeared on the 1984 version). 1985 would be a quiet transitional year for Bananarama. London Records release of "Do Not Disturb" (UK #31) would keep the girls' public profile alive. CANNOTANSWER | ) (1983) contained several hit singles | Bananarama are an English pop group from London formed in 1980 by friends Sara Dallin, Siobhan Fahey and Keren Woodward. Their success on both pop and dance charts saw them listed in the Guinness World Records for achieving the world's highest number of chart entries by an all-female group. Between 1982 and 2009, they had 30 singles reach the Top 50 of the UK Singles Chart.
The group's UK top 10 hits include "It Ain't What You Do..." (1982), "Really Saying Something" (1982), "Shy Boy" (1982), "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" (1983), "Cruel Summer" (1983), "Robert De Niro's Waiting..." (1984), "Love in the First Degree" (1987), "I Want You Back" in 1988 and "Help" in 1989. In 1986, they had a U.S. number one with another of their UK top 10 hits, a cover of "Venus". In total, they had 11 singles reach the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 (1983–1988), including the top 10 hits "Cruel Summer" (1984) and "I Heard a Rumour" (1987). They are associated with the MTV-driven Second British Invasion of the US. The trio performed on "Do They Know It's Christmas?", a UK chart topping charity single released in 1984. They topped the Australian ARIA albums chart in June 1988 with Wow! (1987), and earned Brit Award nominations for Best British Single for "Love in the First Degree", and Best Music Video for their 1988 hit cover of the Supremes single "Nathan Jones".
Fahey left the group in 1988 and formed Shakespears Sister, best known for the UK number one "Stay" (1992). She was replaced by Jacquie O'Sullivan. This line-up had UK top five hits with "I Want You Back" (1988) and a cover of The Beatles' "Help!" (1989), recorded with comedy duo French and Saunders for the charity Comic Relief. They also had further hits with "Love, Truth and Honesty" and "Nathan Jones".
In 1989, they embarked on their first world tour and had another hit with a new remixed version of "Cruel Summer".
In 1990 and 1991, they had further top 30 chart hits with "Only Your Love", "Preacher Man" and "Long Train Running" and a new studio album Pop Life which featured these 3 singles and a fourth single "Tripping on Your Love" which was released soon after the album.
After O'Sullivan's late 1991 departure, Dallin and Woodward then continued Bananarama as a duo, with further top 30 hits including "Movin' On" (1992), "More, More, More" (1993), "Move in My Direction" (2005) and "Look on the Floor (Hypnotic Tango)".
Fahey rejoined Bananarama in 2017 and they toured the UK and North America between November that year until August 2018.
Career
1980–1982: Early years
Bananarama formed in September 1980 when teenagers and childhood friends Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward moved from Bristol to London and met Siobhan Fahey. Dallin and Fahey were studying journalism at the London College of Fashion (University of Arts) and Woodward was working at the BBC in Portland Place. Dallin and Woodward were living at the YWCA and were about to be made homeless until Paul Cook, with whom they had become fast friends after meeting at a club, offered them a place to live above the former Sex Pistols rehearsal room in Denmark Street, Charing Cross. They took their name, in part, from the Roxy Music song "Pyjamarama".
The trio were ardent followers of the punk rock and post-punk music scenes during the late 1970s and early 1980s. They often performed impromptu sets or backing vocals at gigs for such bands as The Monochrome Set, The Professionals, Subway Sect, Iggy Pop, Department S, The Nipple Erectors, and The Jam. In 1981, Bananarama recorded their first demo, "Aie a Mwana", a cover of a song by Black Blood, sung in Swahili. The demo was heard at Demon Records, who consequently offered Bananarama their first deal. The song was an underground hit (UK #92) and Bananarama were signed by Decca (later London Records) and remained on the label until 1993. UK music magazine The Face featured an article on Bananarama after the release of their first single. This caught the attention of ex-Specials member Terry Hall, who invited them to collaborate with his new vocal group Fun Boy Three on their album and the single "It Ain't What You Do (It's The Way That You Do It)". In 1982, the song hit the Top 5 in the UK and gave Bananarama their first significant mainstream success. Fun Boy Three then guested on Bananarama's single, "Really Saying Something", later that year.
1982–1985: Deep Sea Skiving and Bananarama
Bananarama experienced their greatest success during the period 1982 to 1989, with their first three albums primarily produced and co-written with Jolley & Swain. Their debut album, Deep Sea Skiving (UK #7, US #63) (1983) contained several hit singles – "Really Saying Something" (UK #5) and "Shy Boy" (UK #4) – and included a cover version of "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" (UK #5). "Cheers Then" (#45) was released as the third single, with little chart success, but very positive reviews from critics. The band recorded a version of the Sex Pistols' song "No Feelings" in late 1982 for the soundtrack of the British teen-comedy film, Party Party.
During 1982 and 1983, Bananarama did several promotional US press tours and TV appearances on American Bandstand and Solid Gold. Success in the United States came in 1984 with a Top Ten hit "Cruel Summer".
Their second album, Bananarama (UK #16, US #30) (1984) was a more socially conscious effort. The group wanted to be taken more seriously, so wrote songs that focused on heavier topics: "Hot Line To Heaven" (UK#58) is a stand against the drugs-are-cool culture; and "Rough Justice" (UK#23) deals with social apathy. The album contained the hit singles, "Robert De Niro's Waiting...," (UK#3) and their first US Top 10 hit, "Cruel Summer" (UK#8, US#9) (1983), which was included in the film The Karate Kid. The trio also recorded the single, "The Wild Life" (US#70) for a 1984 American film of the same name.
Bananarama featured on the Band Aid single, "Do They Know It's Christmas?," and were the only artists to appear on both the original 1984 Band Aid and the 1989 Band Aid II versions (though Fahey only appeared on the 1984 version).
1985 was a quiet transitional year for Bananarama. "Do Not Disturb" (UK #31) maintained their public profile.
1986–1987: True Confessions and international success
1986 saw the release of their third Jolley/Swain album, True Confessions. Later editions contained other tracks and some extra production duties were taken up by Mike Stock, Matt Aitken and Pete Waterman known as Stock Aitken Waterman (SAW). The move resulted in the international number one hit, "Venus", (a remake of Shocking Blue's song from 1969, which had been a number 1 hit in 1970). The dance-oriented beats on the song typified the SAW approach to pop production. Bananarama had tracked the producers down after hearing "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)" by Dead or Alive. The song won a Juno Award in Canada for International Single of The Year. Also in 1986, Dallin and Woodward were featured as backing vocalists on two songs on Family Album, produced by John Lydon.
The music video for "Venus" received heavy airplay on MTV in the United States. It featured the group in various costumes including a devil, a French temptress, a vampire and a Greek goddess. The video marked a pivotal shift towards a more glamorous and sexual image, which contrasted with the tomboyish style of their earlier work.
Follow-up singles "More Than Physical" (UK #41) and "A Trick of the Night" (UK #32) were less successful, possibly due to having less promotion. Woodward was pregnant with her son Thomas and unable to tour or physically promote the parent album or its subsequent singles.
"More Than Physical" marked the beginning of Bananarama's song writing relationship with Stock Aitken Waterman; a collaborative process Stock has described as troubled - despite producing a string of hits.
“It’s very difficult to be creative if someone’s just going to mock you, or laugh at you,” he said. “With Bananarama it was just awkward, all the time very awkward, and I didn’t feel comfortable writing with them.”
During a press tour in New York City, the group also recorded a song "Riskin' a Romance" featured in the film The Secret of My Success (1987). The track was notable because it featured Fahey taking lead vocals, and Daryl Hall was the producer. During this trip, the group also re-recorded the vocals for their next UK release "More Than Physical" and "A Trick of the Night" with Mike Stock in Miami.
1987–1988: Wow! and Fahey's departure
In the wake of the success of "Venus," Bananarama began work on the album Wow!. The group's sound graduated towards dance-orientated Europop. Wow! topped the Australian ARIA album charts for one week in June 1988.
"I Heard a Rumour" (UK #14, US #4) was their strongest performing international hit from this album. "Love in the First Degree" (UK #3) was one of their biggest UK hits and was nominated at the 1988 Brit Award for best single, and "I Can't Help It" (which boasted a semi-controversial video featuring the group in a milk bath filled with fruit and half-naked men) was also a hit (UK #20).
After the third single from Wow! was released in early 1988, Fahey – who had married Eurythmics' Dave Stewart – left the group - her last performance as a member of the group was at the Brit Awards in February 1988, performing "Love in the First Degree". She would later resurface in the BRIT Award-winning pop duo Shakespears Sister with Marcella Detroit.
1988–1991: Second line-up, Greatest Hits, Pop Life and world tour
After Fahey's exit, Jacquie O'Sullivan (formerly of the Shillelagh Sisters) joined the group in March 1988. The single "I Want You Back" (UK #5) was re-recorded with O'Sullivan, as was The Supremes cover "Nathan Jones" (UK #15) which was nominated for best video at the 1989 Brit Awards. "Love, Truth and Honesty" (UK #23) was released as a single from their 1988 retrospective compilation, Greatest Hits Collection (UK #3). At the same time, Bananarama entered the Guinness Book of World Records as the all-female group who have the most UK chart entries in history, a record they still hold.
As a fundraising charity single for Comic Relief in 1989, Bananarama recorded a cover of The Beatles' song "Help!" with Lananeeneenoonoo (UK #3), a mock girl-group created by British female comedy duo French and Saunders, with fellow comedian Kathy Burke. 1989 also saw the band's first world tour, which hit North America, East Asia and the UK.
Bananarama's 1991 album, Pop Life, saw Dallin and Woodward's songwriting collaboration with their friend Youth. They worked with a variety of producers including Youth, Shep Pettibone, and Steve Jolley, of Jolley & Swain. They also incorporated a wider range of musical genres including reggae, flamenco guitar, and acid house and received some of the strongest and most positive reviews of their career. Singles "Only Your Love" (UK #27), "Preacher Man" (UK #20), the Doobie Brothers' cover of "Long Train Running" (UK #30) and "Tripping on Your Love" (UK #76), were the final releases with O'Sullivan.
1992–2001: Duo re-launch, Please Yourself, Ultra Violet and Exotica
In 1992, Dallin and Woodward returned as a duo and had a UK top 30 hit with "Movin' On" (UK #24), which was the first single from the 1993 album Please Yourself and 'More More More' which reached #24. It was to be their last album on London Records.
Their next offering was 1995's Ultra Violet (titled I Found Love in Japan) on a new label. The album and its three singles "I Found Love", "Every Shade of Blue" and "Take Me to Your Heart" were only released in some European countries, North America, Japan and Australia, but not in Britain.
In 1998, Dallin and Woodward asked Fahey to join them to record the track "Waterloo" (a cover of the classic ABBA song) for the Eurovision celebration A Song for Eurotrash on Channel 4. However, Fahey made it clear that this was a one-off and that she was not formally rejoining the group. In 1999, Dallin, Woodward and Fahey were interviewed together for an episode of the BBC music documentary series Young Guns Go For It dedicated to the group. Jacquie O'Sullivan also took part in the programme.
In 2001, Dallin and Woodward, who had been working a lot in France, had recorded the album Exotica with the French label M6. The album also included Latin and R&B influenced dance songs, as well as reinterpreted versions of their earlier hits.
2002–2006: Drama
By 2002, Bananarama had sold 40 million records worldwide. That year, they released another greatest hits album, The Very Best of Bananarama, in the UK. They also recorded the song "Love Him, Leave Him, Forget Him" for Sky TV's show Is Harry on the Boat? as well as the song "U R My Baby" for a German disco project. With Siobhan Fahey returning as a special guest for a performance of "Venus", the group celebrated the 20th anniversary of their first hit with a gig at G-A-Y at the London Astoria, in front of an audience of 3000 people.
With 1980s retro in vogue, Bananarama made a comeback in the British dance charts in 2005. Solasso remixed their early hit "Really Saying Something." A video was filmed with models from Britain's Next Top Model TV show.
In 2005, Dallin and Woodward collaborated with Swedish hit makers Murlyn, writing and recording in Sweden for 6 months to produce the album 'Drama'. The first single 'Move in My Direction' reached #14 with the second single 'Look on the Floor (Hypnotic Tango) entering and peaking at #26 in the UK chart. In the US on the Billboard Dance Chart, Look on the Floor would peak at #2 with Move in My Direction reaching #14 in July 2006.
2006–2011: Remasters and Viva
Summer 2006 saw the Warner Bros. Records release of The Twelve Inches of Bananarama, a compilation of twelve remixes on CD for the first time. The collection features the rare George Michael remix of "Tripping on Your Love", among others.
On 19 March 2007, Bananarama's first six studio albums were reissued by Rhino Records on CD with bonus material, including alternative versions, remixes and B-sides. On 7 May 2007, another best-of collection titled Greatest Hits and More More More was released by Warner Bros. Records.
Dallin and Woodward performed a set along with other 1980s acts at Retro Fest on 1 September 2007 at Culzean Castle in Ayrshire, Scotland.
In February 2007, Bananarama's official website announced that they were back in the studio recording new material. A cover version of "Voyage Voyage" was performed at a concert in France. Bananarama also confirmed they were contributing vocals as guest artists on the song "Ultra Violet" (not to be confused with Bananarama's seventh album Ultra Violet) by new dance act Block Rocker, a teaming up of producers/remixers Digital Dog and Ashiva. However, the song never surfaced.
In October 2007, Bananarama announced that they would be appearing on 2008's Here and Now Tour with other 1980s artists such as Belinda Carlisle, Paul Young, ABC and Rick Astley. They also announced plans to record a new album of disco cover versions and new songs.
In August 2008, it was announced that Bananarama was back in the studio recording a track with Rev Run from Run-D.M.C. who had a new album in the pipeline. He wanted to sample "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" for his track but then decided to ask Dallin and Woodward to sing it instead. The title of the track was not confirmed but was to be credited as be "Run-D.M.C. featuring Bananarama". The song, 'Invincible', credited as Rev Run featuring Bananarama, did not surface until late 2014 on Rev Run's solo album Red Rhythm Rewind.
In June 2009, Bananarama performed at the Isle of Wight Festival. In August 2009, they performed at the 80s Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames alongside other 80s acts which included Rick Astley, Belinda Carlisle and Kim Wilde. The duo also performed at The Manchester Gay Pride Festival over the August Bank Holiday weekend.
Bananarama released a new single entitled "Love Comes" (UK #44), and a new album Viva (UK #87) in September 2009. The album was produced entirely by Ian Masterson, and released through Fascination Records. A second single was released from the album in April 2010, a new remix of the song "Love Don't Live Here" (UK #114) backed by Ian Masterson's 2010 reworking of the 1995 single "Every Shade of Blue" and "The Runner" (originally recorded by The Three Degrees), remixed by Buzz Junkies. Other covers recorded during this period included Bryan Adams' "Run To You", Simon & Garfunkel's "The Sound of Silence" and Bryan Ferry's "Tokyo Joe". These were included as B Sides to the released singles and as bonus digital tracks to the parent album.
In September 2010, Bananarama were back in the studio with producer Ian Masterson, and recorded a Christmas song titled "Baby It's Christmas" (UK #199). The track was written by Sara Dallin and Ian Masterson and was released on 13 December in the UK and Europe as a digital EP. The track was also included on a US digital
Christmas compilation entitled Super Dance Christmas Party, Volume 3. "Baby It's Christmas" reached #19 in the UK Indie Singles chart and #199 in the main UK Singles Chart.
In April 2011, Bananarama appeared on ITV's hit comedy Benidorm and performed "Love in the First Degree", "Robert De Niro's Waiting..." and "Movin' On".
In October 2011, Bananarama performed at Retrolicious 2011 in Singapore, together with The Human League and Belinda Carlisle.
Dallin and Woodward have continued to play live since 2002, with highlights including headlining the festival of the hand over of Hong Kong, The Isle of Wight Festival and the Singapore Grand Prix. In 2012, they embarked upon a 10 date USA tour for the Pinktober Hard Rock charity and released and EP 'Now or Never'.
In 2016, they played a sell out tour of Australia and some dates in Japan.
2012–2016: 30 Years of Bananarama and Now or Never
On 9 July 2012, Warner Music imprint Rhino Records released a greatest hits CD and DVD Collection 30 Years of Bananarama to celebrate the band's 30th anniversary. The album charted at #62 on the UK Albums Chart. On 9 August 2012, the band performed at the men's final of the beach volleyball at the London Olympics. They performed a medley of "Cruel Summer", "Love in the First Degree" and "Venus".
On 28 October 2013, Bananarama's first six albums Deep Sea Skiving, Bananarama, True Confessions, Wow!, Pop Life and Please Yourself were reissued by Edsel Records, each of them consisting of Deluxe 2CDs plus DVD. Bananarama are also confirmed to perform in 2014 at Let's Rock Bristol! (7 June), Let's Rock Leeds! (21 June) and Let's Rock Southampton! (12 July). On 9 November 2013, Bananarama revealed on the BBC show Pointless Celebrities that they were recording a new album in Nashville and that it would be influenced by country and pop. In March 2015, Edsel Records released Megarama, a 3 CD collection of remixes that was followed in August with a 33CD singles collection box set entitled In A Bunch, which contains all single releases from "Aie a Mwana" right through to "More, More, More". In 2016, Bananarama toured Australia in February and showcased their new song "Got to Get Away". On 9 March 2016, Sara confirmed on her Twitter page that Bananarama have signed a new deal with BMG. In November 2016, an excerpt of a song that bears the working title "Looking For Someone" was posted on the official Twitter page of the band.
In December 2016, Billboard magazine ranked them the 94th most successful dance artist of all time.
2017–present: Original line-up tour and In Stereo
In was announced on 23 April 2017 that Fahey had rejoined Bananarama. The Original Line-up Tour saw them perform 23 sell-out dates across the UK in November and December 2017. They performed many of their hits such as "Nathan Jones", "Robert De Niro's Waiting...", "Cruel Summer", "Really Saying Something", "I Heard A Rumour", "I Can't Help It", "Venus", and "Love in the First Degree" as well as the Shakespears Sister hit "Stay". In February 2018, they played four dates in North America; Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York in the United States and Toronto in Canada. Their performances at London's Eventim Apollo Hammersmith Theatre and Newcastle City Hall were released on CD, DVD and Blu-Ray through PledgeMusic in July 2018. Their final dates as a trio were in August 2018. In November 2018, Bananarama's first six London albums, Deep Sea Skiving, Bananarama, True Confessions, Wow!, Pop Life and Please Yourself were released as coloured vinyl and limited edition cassettes.
On 19 April 2019, Dallin and Woodward released their new album In Stereo (UK #29). The first track from the album that served as a taster was "Dance Music", followed by the first official single "Stuff Like That", which was released on 7 March. An accompanying video to the single was directed by Andy Morahan, who had also directed the videos for many former singles from "I Heard a Rumour" to "Preacher Man". On 30 March the album track "Looking for Someone" premiered on The Graham Norton Show on BBC Radio 2 and was released as the second single from In Stereo. The album was supported by a five -date promo tour in the UK, which later that year was released as a live album entitled Live in Stereo.
On 29 October 2020, Dallin and Woodward released their autobiography, entitled Really Saying Something.
Awards and nominations
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|-
! scope="col" | Award
! scope="col" | Year
! scope="col" | Category
! scope="col" | Nominee(s)
! scope="col" | Result
! scope="col" class="unsortable"|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=10|Billboard Music Awards
| rowspan=6|1986
| Top Hot 100 Artist
| rowspan=3|Themselves
|
|rowspan=6|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Artist
|
|-
| Top Dance Sales Artist
|
|-
| Top Hot 100 Song
| rowspan=3|"Venus"
|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Single
|
|-
| Top Dance Sales Single
|
|-
| rowspan=4|1987
| Top Hot 100 Artist
| rowspan=2|Themselves
|
|rowspan=4|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Artist
|
|-
| Top Hot 100 Song
| rowspan=2|"I Heard a Rumour"
|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Single
|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=2|Brit Awards
| 1988
| British Single of the Year
| "Love in the First Degree"
|
|
|-
| 1989
| British Video of the Year
| "Nathan Jones"
|
|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=2|Classic Pop Readers' Awards
| 2018
| Group of the Year
| Themselves
|
|
|-
| 2020
| Album of the Year
| In Stereo
|
|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=2|International Dance Music Awards
| rowspan=2|2007
| Best HiNRG/Euro Dance Track
| rowspan=2|"Look on the Floor"
|
|rowspan=2|
|-
| Best Dance Music Video
|
|-
! scope="row"|Smash Hits Poll Winners Party
| 1989
| Best Group
| Themselves
|
|
Members
Current members
Sara Dallin
Keren Woodward
Former members
Siobhan Fahey
Jacquie O'Sullivan
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Deep Sea Skiving (1983)
Bananarama (1984)
True Confessions (1986)
Wow! (1987)
Pop Life (1991)
Please Yourself (1993)
Ultra Violet (1995)
Exotica (2001)
Drama (2005)
Viva (2009)
In Stereo (2019)
Concert tours
Lovekids Tour (1988)
Bananarama World Tour (1989)
Ultra Violet/Dance Mix 95 Tour (1995–1996)
Bananarama Australian Tour (1997)
Bananarama & Culture Club UK Tour (1999)
Drama Tour (2005–2006)
Here and Now Tour (2007–2009)
Viva Tour (2009–2010)
The Bananarama USA Tour (2012)
Europe Tour (2014–2015)
The 2016 Australian Tour (2016)
The Original Line Up UK Tour (2017)
The Original Line Up North America and European Tour (2018)
The 2019 Australian Tour (2019)
In Stereo UK Tour (2019)
List of all record labels
London Records (UK, USA, and Canada, 1981–1993)
ZYX Records (Germany, 1994–1996)
avex trax (Japan, 1995 / Taiwan, 2006)
Quality Records (Canada, 1995)
Mega Records (Denmark, 1995)
DigIt International (Italy, 1995)
Festival Records (Australia, 1995)
Popular Records (Canada 1996)
Curb Records (USA,1996)
M6 Interactions (France, 2000)
A&G Productions (UK, 2004–2006)
The Lab (USA, 2006)
True North Records (Canada, 2006)
Edel Company (Germany, 2006)
EQ Music (Singapore and Malaysia, 2005)
Phantom Imports (Hong Kong, 2006)
Central Station (Australia, 2005)
Pony Canyon (Japan, 2006)
Universal Records (Philippines, 2005)
Blanco y Negro Records (Spain,1995–2006)
Megaliner Records (Russia, 2005)
Nice Records (France, 2007)
Fascination Records (UK, 2009–2010)
BMG (UK, 2016–19)
Absolute Label Services (UK, 2019–)
See also
Girl group
List of best-selling girl groups
References
External links
Bananarama official website
Bananarama Community
Musical groups established in 1981
British new wave girl groups
British Eurodance groups
English pop music duos
Dance-pop groups
Deram Records artists
English dance music groups
English new wave musical groups
English dance girl groups
English pop girl groups
London Records artists
British musical trios
Musical groups from London
Polydor Records artists
ZYX Music artists | true | [
"\"My Angel\" is the debut single by the pop/opera vocal quartet Romanz. The song was released on 28 December 2012,\nit was released via Select Music Records.\n\nBackground\nThe song was recorded in 2011 with Nianell on their joint project together 'N Duisend Drome. It was released as the Afrikaans version My Engel. In 2012 the song was re-recorded in English and was released as their debut worldwide single.\n\nMusic video\nThe music video for the song was released on October 12, 2012. The music video includes cuts of all four members. The video has over thirteen thousand views on YouTube.\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nReferences \n\n2012 debut singles\nRomanz songs\n2012 songs",
"\"Evil Woman\", sometimes titled \"Evil Woman (Don't Play Your Games with Me)\", is a song by Minneapolis-St. Paul-based band Crow, on their 1969 album Crow Music. It reached number 19 on the US Billboard Hot 100 pop chart and number 65 in Australia.\n\nChart performance\n\nCover versions\n\nBlack Sabbath version\n\nThe song was covered in 1969 by Black Sabbath and was released in England as the band's first-ever single. The song also appeared on the European version of the band's debut album, Black Sabbath, though it was excluded from versions released in other markets and was replaced by its B-side, \"Wicked World\", on the American version of the album.\n\nThe song was not officially released in North America until 2002, when it was included on the compilation album Symptom of the Universe: The Original Black Sabbath 1970–1978. It was later included on another compilation album, \"Black Sabbath: The Ultimate Collection\", released in 2016.\n\nOther recordings\n A gender swapped version of the song, retitled \"Evil Man\", was recorded by Ike & Tina Turner, and released on their May 1970 album Come Together.\n Jazz Sabbath released an instrumental jazz rendition of this song on their 2020 self-titled debut album.\n British heavy metal band Saxon covered the song on their 2021 album of covers Inspirations.\n\nReferences\n\n1969 singles\n1970 debut singles\nBlack Sabbath songs\n1969 songs"
] |
[
"Bananarama",
"1982-1985: Deep Sea Skiving and Bananarama",
"What is significant about this time period?",
"Bananarama experienced their greatest success during the period 1982 to 1989,",
"What is Deep Sea Skiving?",
"Their debut album, Deep Sea Skiving (",
"When was their debut released?",
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] | C_a747e5200cb24b7f9a7164f7c7db2e41_0 | What were some of their hit singles? | 4 | What were some of Bananarama's hit singles? | Bananarama | Bananarama experienced their greatest success during the period 1982 to 1989, with their first three albums primarily produced and co-written with Jolley & Swain. Their debut album, Deep Sea Skiving (UK #7, US #63) (1983) contained several hit singles -- "Really Saying Something" (UK #5) and "Shy Boy" (UK #4) -- and included a cover version of "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" (UK #5). The band recorded a version of the Sex Pistols' song "No Feelings" in late 1982 for the soundtrack of the British teen-comedy film, Party Party. Although the group was now a success in their native UK, their earliest success in America was on an underground basis due to college radio and early MTV exposure. During 1982 and 1983, Bananarama did several promotional US press tours and TV appearances on American Bandstand and Solid Gold. Success in the United States eluded the group until the release of their first top 10 hit "Cruel Summer" in mid-1984. Their second album, Bananarama (UK #16, US #30) (1984) was a more socially conscious effort. The group wanted to be taken more seriously, so wrote songs that focused on heavier topics: "Hotline To Heaven" (UK#58) is a stand against the drugs-are-cool culture; and "Rough Justice" (UK#23) deals with social apathy. The album contained the hit singles, "Robert De Niro's Waiting...," (UK#3) and their first US Top 10 hit, "Cruel Summer" (UK#8, US#9) (1983), which was included in the film The Karate Kid. The trio also recorded the single, "The Wild Life" (US#70) for a 1984 American film of the same name. Bananarama featured on the Band Aid single, "Do They Know It's Christmas?," and were the only artists to appear on both the original 1984 Band Aid and the 1989 Band Aid II versions (though Fahey only appeared on the 1984 version). 1985 would be a quiet transitional year for Bananarama. London Records release of "Do Not Disturb" (UK #31) would keep the girls' public profile alive. CANNOTANSWER | Robert De Niro's Waiting...," (UK#3) and their first US Top 10 hit, "Cruel Summer | Bananarama are an English pop group from London formed in 1980 by friends Sara Dallin, Siobhan Fahey and Keren Woodward. Their success on both pop and dance charts saw them listed in the Guinness World Records for achieving the world's highest number of chart entries by an all-female group. Between 1982 and 2009, they had 30 singles reach the Top 50 of the UK Singles Chart.
The group's UK top 10 hits include "It Ain't What You Do..." (1982), "Really Saying Something" (1982), "Shy Boy" (1982), "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" (1983), "Cruel Summer" (1983), "Robert De Niro's Waiting..." (1984), "Love in the First Degree" (1987), "I Want You Back" in 1988 and "Help" in 1989. In 1986, they had a U.S. number one with another of their UK top 10 hits, a cover of "Venus". In total, they had 11 singles reach the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 (1983–1988), including the top 10 hits "Cruel Summer" (1984) and "I Heard a Rumour" (1987). They are associated with the MTV-driven Second British Invasion of the US. The trio performed on "Do They Know It's Christmas?", a UK chart topping charity single released in 1984. They topped the Australian ARIA albums chart in June 1988 with Wow! (1987), and earned Brit Award nominations for Best British Single for "Love in the First Degree", and Best Music Video for their 1988 hit cover of the Supremes single "Nathan Jones".
Fahey left the group in 1988 and formed Shakespears Sister, best known for the UK number one "Stay" (1992). She was replaced by Jacquie O'Sullivan. This line-up had UK top five hits with "I Want You Back" (1988) and a cover of The Beatles' "Help!" (1989), recorded with comedy duo French and Saunders for the charity Comic Relief. They also had further hits with "Love, Truth and Honesty" and "Nathan Jones".
In 1989, they embarked on their first world tour and had another hit with a new remixed version of "Cruel Summer".
In 1990 and 1991, they had further top 30 chart hits with "Only Your Love", "Preacher Man" and "Long Train Running" and a new studio album Pop Life which featured these 3 singles and a fourth single "Tripping on Your Love" which was released soon after the album.
After O'Sullivan's late 1991 departure, Dallin and Woodward then continued Bananarama as a duo, with further top 30 hits including "Movin' On" (1992), "More, More, More" (1993), "Move in My Direction" (2005) and "Look on the Floor (Hypnotic Tango)".
Fahey rejoined Bananarama in 2017 and they toured the UK and North America between November that year until August 2018.
Career
1980–1982: Early years
Bananarama formed in September 1980 when teenagers and childhood friends Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward moved from Bristol to London and met Siobhan Fahey. Dallin and Fahey were studying journalism at the London College of Fashion (University of Arts) and Woodward was working at the BBC in Portland Place. Dallin and Woodward were living at the YWCA and were about to be made homeless until Paul Cook, with whom they had become fast friends after meeting at a club, offered them a place to live above the former Sex Pistols rehearsal room in Denmark Street, Charing Cross. They took their name, in part, from the Roxy Music song "Pyjamarama".
The trio were ardent followers of the punk rock and post-punk music scenes during the late 1970s and early 1980s. They often performed impromptu sets or backing vocals at gigs for such bands as The Monochrome Set, The Professionals, Subway Sect, Iggy Pop, Department S, The Nipple Erectors, and The Jam. In 1981, Bananarama recorded their first demo, "Aie a Mwana", a cover of a song by Black Blood, sung in Swahili. The demo was heard at Demon Records, who consequently offered Bananarama their first deal. The song was an underground hit (UK #92) and Bananarama were signed by Decca (later London Records) and remained on the label until 1993. UK music magazine The Face featured an article on Bananarama after the release of their first single. This caught the attention of ex-Specials member Terry Hall, who invited them to collaborate with his new vocal group Fun Boy Three on their album and the single "It Ain't What You Do (It's The Way That You Do It)". In 1982, the song hit the Top 5 in the UK and gave Bananarama their first significant mainstream success. Fun Boy Three then guested on Bananarama's single, "Really Saying Something", later that year.
1982–1985: Deep Sea Skiving and Bananarama
Bananarama experienced their greatest success during the period 1982 to 1989, with their first three albums primarily produced and co-written with Jolley & Swain. Their debut album, Deep Sea Skiving (UK #7, US #63) (1983) contained several hit singles – "Really Saying Something" (UK #5) and "Shy Boy" (UK #4) – and included a cover version of "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" (UK #5). "Cheers Then" (#45) was released as the third single, with little chart success, but very positive reviews from critics. The band recorded a version of the Sex Pistols' song "No Feelings" in late 1982 for the soundtrack of the British teen-comedy film, Party Party.
During 1982 and 1983, Bananarama did several promotional US press tours and TV appearances on American Bandstand and Solid Gold. Success in the United States came in 1984 with a Top Ten hit "Cruel Summer".
Their second album, Bananarama (UK #16, US #30) (1984) was a more socially conscious effort. The group wanted to be taken more seriously, so wrote songs that focused on heavier topics: "Hot Line To Heaven" (UK#58) is a stand against the drugs-are-cool culture; and "Rough Justice" (UK#23) deals with social apathy. The album contained the hit singles, "Robert De Niro's Waiting...," (UK#3) and their first US Top 10 hit, "Cruel Summer" (UK#8, US#9) (1983), which was included in the film The Karate Kid. The trio also recorded the single, "The Wild Life" (US#70) for a 1984 American film of the same name.
Bananarama featured on the Band Aid single, "Do They Know It's Christmas?," and were the only artists to appear on both the original 1984 Band Aid and the 1989 Band Aid II versions (though Fahey only appeared on the 1984 version).
1985 was a quiet transitional year for Bananarama. "Do Not Disturb" (UK #31) maintained their public profile.
1986–1987: True Confessions and international success
1986 saw the release of their third Jolley/Swain album, True Confessions. Later editions contained other tracks and some extra production duties were taken up by Mike Stock, Matt Aitken and Pete Waterman known as Stock Aitken Waterman (SAW). The move resulted in the international number one hit, "Venus", (a remake of Shocking Blue's song from 1969, which had been a number 1 hit in 1970). The dance-oriented beats on the song typified the SAW approach to pop production. Bananarama had tracked the producers down after hearing "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)" by Dead or Alive. The song won a Juno Award in Canada for International Single of The Year. Also in 1986, Dallin and Woodward were featured as backing vocalists on two songs on Family Album, produced by John Lydon.
The music video for "Venus" received heavy airplay on MTV in the United States. It featured the group in various costumes including a devil, a French temptress, a vampire and a Greek goddess. The video marked a pivotal shift towards a more glamorous and sexual image, which contrasted with the tomboyish style of their earlier work.
Follow-up singles "More Than Physical" (UK #41) and "A Trick of the Night" (UK #32) were less successful, possibly due to having less promotion. Woodward was pregnant with her son Thomas and unable to tour or physically promote the parent album or its subsequent singles.
"More Than Physical" marked the beginning of Bananarama's song writing relationship with Stock Aitken Waterman; a collaborative process Stock has described as troubled - despite producing a string of hits.
“It’s very difficult to be creative if someone’s just going to mock you, or laugh at you,” he said. “With Bananarama it was just awkward, all the time very awkward, and I didn’t feel comfortable writing with them.”
During a press tour in New York City, the group also recorded a song "Riskin' a Romance" featured in the film The Secret of My Success (1987). The track was notable because it featured Fahey taking lead vocals, and Daryl Hall was the producer. During this trip, the group also re-recorded the vocals for their next UK release "More Than Physical" and "A Trick of the Night" with Mike Stock in Miami.
1987–1988: Wow! and Fahey's departure
In the wake of the success of "Venus," Bananarama began work on the album Wow!. The group's sound graduated towards dance-orientated Europop. Wow! topped the Australian ARIA album charts for one week in June 1988.
"I Heard a Rumour" (UK #14, US #4) was their strongest performing international hit from this album. "Love in the First Degree" (UK #3) was one of their biggest UK hits and was nominated at the 1988 Brit Award for best single, and "I Can't Help It" (which boasted a semi-controversial video featuring the group in a milk bath filled with fruit and half-naked men) was also a hit (UK #20).
After the third single from Wow! was released in early 1988, Fahey – who had married Eurythmics' Dave Stewart – left the group - her last performance as a member of the group was at the Brit Awards in February 1988, performing "Love in the First Degree". She would later resurface in the BRIT Award-winning pop duo Shakespears Sister with Marcella Detroit.
1988–1991: Second line-up, Greatest Hits, Pop Life and world tour
After Fahey's exit, Jacquie O'Sullivan (formerly of the Shillelagh Sisters) joined the group in March 1988. The single "I Want You Back" (UK #5) was re-recorded with O'Sullivan, as was The Supremes cover "Nathan Jones" (UK #15) which was nominated for best video at the 1989 Brit Awards. "Love, Truth and Honesty" (UK #23) was released as a single from their 1988 retrospective compilation, Greatest Hits Collection (UK #3). At the same time, Bananarama entered the Guinness Book of World Records as the all-female group who have the most UK chart entries in history, a record they still hold.
As a fundraising charity single for Comic Relief in 1989, Bananarama recorded a cover of The Beatles' song "Help!" with Lananeeneenoonoo (UK #3), a mock girl-group created by British female comedy duo French and Saunders, with fellow comedian Kathy Burke. 1989 also saw the band's first world tour, which hit North America, East Asia and the UK.
Bananarama's 1991 album, Pop Life, saw Dallin and Woodward's songwriting collaboration with their friend Youth. They worked with a variety of producers including Youth, Shep Pettibone, and Steve Jolley, of Jolley & Swain. They also incorporated a wider range of musical genres including reggae, flamenco guitar, and acid house and received some of the strongest and most positive reviews of their career. Singles "Only Your Love" (UK #27), "Preacher Man" (UK #20), the Doobie Brothers' cover of "Long Train Running" (UK #30) and "Tripping on Your Love" (UK #76), were the final releases with O'Sullivan.
1992–2001: Duo re-launch, Please Yourself, Ultra Violet and Exotica
In 1992, Dallin and Woodward returned as a duo and had a UK top 30 hit with "Movin' On" (UK #24), which was the first single from the 1993 album Please Yourself and 'More More More' which reached #24. It was to be their last album on London Records.
Their next offering was 1995's Ultra Violet (titled I Found Love in Japan) on a new label. The album and its three singles "I Found Love", "Every Shade of Blue" and "Take Me to Your Heart" were only released in some European countries, North America, Japan and Australia, but not in Britain.
In 1998, Dallin and Woodward asked Fahey to join them to record the track "Waterloo" (a cover of the classic ABBA song) for the Eurovision celebration A Song for Eurotrash on Channel 4. However, Fahey made it clear that this was a one-off and that she was not formally rejoining the group. In 1999, Dallin, Woodward and Fahey were interviewed together for an episode of the BBC music documentary series Young Guns Go For It dedicated to the group. Jacquie O'Sullivan also took part in the programme.
In 2001, Dallin and Woodward, who had been working a lot in France, had recorded the album Exotica with the French label M6. The album also included Latin and R&B influenced dance songs, as well as reinterpreted versions of their earlier hits.
2002–2006: Drama
By 2002, Bananarama had sold 40 million records worldwide. That year, they released another greatest hits album, The Very Best of Bananarama, in the UK. They also recorded the song "Love Him, Leave Him, Forget Him" for Sky TV's show Is Harry on the Boat? as well as the song "U R My Baby" for a German disco project. With Siobhan Fahey returning as a special guest for a performance of "Venus", the group celebrated the 20th anniversary of their first hit with a gig at G-A-Y at the London Astoria, in front of an audience of 3000 people.
With 1980s retro in vogue, Bananarama made a comeback in the British dance charts in 2005. Solasso remixed their early hit "Really Saying Something." A video was filmed with models from Britain's Next Top Model TV show.
In 2005, Dallin and Woodward collaborated with Swedish hit makers Murlyn, writing and recording in Sweden for 6 months to produce the album 'Drama'. The first single 'Move in My Direction' reached #14 with the second single 'Look on the Floor (Hypnotic Tango) entering and peaking at #26 in the UK chart. In the US on the Billboard Dance Chart, Look on the Floor would peak at #2 with Move in My Direction reaching #14 in July 2006.
2006–2011: Remasters and Viva
Summer 2006 saw the Warner Bros. Records release of The Twelve Inches of Bananarama, a compilation of twelve remixes on CD for the first time. The collection features the rare George Michael remix of "Tripping on Your Love", among others.
On 19 March 2007, Bananarama's first six studio albums were reissued by Rhino Records on CD with bonus material, including alternative versions, remixes and B-sides. On 7 May 2007, another best-of collection titled Greatest Hits and More More More was released by Warner Bros. Records.
Dallin and Woodward performed a set along with other 1980s acts at Retro Fest on 1 September 2007 at Culzean Castle in Ayrshire, Scotland.
In February 2007, Bananarama's official website announced that they were back in the studio recording new material. A cover version of "Voyage Voyage" was performed at a concert in France. Bananarama also confirmed they were contributing vocals as guest artists on the song "Ultra Violet" (not to be confused with Bananarama's seventh album Ultra Violet) by new dance act Block Rocker, a teaming up of producers/remixers Digital Dog and Ashiva. However, the song never surfaced.
In October 2007, Bananarama announced that they would be appearing on 2008's Here and Now Tour with other 1980s artists such as Belinda Carlisle, Paul Young, ABC and Rick Astley. They also announced plans to record a new album of disco cover versions and new songs.
In August 2008, it was announced that Bananarama was back in the studio recording a track with Rev Run from Run-D.M.C. who had a new album in the pipeline. He wanted to sample "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" for his track but then decided to ask Dallin and Woodward to sing it instead. The title of the track was not confirmed but was to be credited as be "Run-D.M.C. featuring Bananarama". The song, 'Invincible', credited as Rev Run featuring Bananarama, did not surface until late 2014 on Rev Run's solo album Red Rhythm Rewind.
In June 2009, Bananarama performed at the Isle of Wight Festival. In August 2009, they performed at the 80s Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames alongside other 80s acts which included Rick Astley, Belinda Carlisle and Kim Wilde. The duo also performed at The Manchester Gay Pride Festival over the August Bank Holiday weekend.
Bananarama released a new single entitled "Love Comes" (UK #44), and a new album Viva (UK #87) in September 2009. The album was produced entirely by Ian Masterson, and released through Fascination Records. A second single was released from the album in April 2010, a new remix of the song "Love Don't Live Here" (UK #114) backed by Ian Masterson's 2010 reworking of the 1995 single "Every Shade of Blue" and "The Runner" (originally recorded by The Three Degrees), remixed by Buzz Junkies. Other covers recorded during this period included Bryan Adams' "Run To You", Simon & Garfunkel's "The Sound of Silence" and Bryan Ferry's "Tokyo Joe". These were included as B Sides to the released singles and as bonus digital tracks to the parent album.
In September 2010, Bananarama were back in the studio with producer Ian Masterson, and recorded a Christmas song titled "Baby It's Christmas" (UK #199). The track was written by Sara Dallin and Ian Masterson and was released on 13 December in the UK and Europe as a digital EP. The track was also included on a US digital
Christmas compilation entitled Super Dance Christmas Party, Volume 3. "Baby It's Christmas" reached #19 in the UK Indie Singles chart and #199 in the main UK Singles Chart.
In April 2011, Bananarama appeared on ITV's hit comedy Benidorm and performed "Love in the First Degree", "Robert De Niro's Waiting..." and "Movin' On".
In October 2011, Bananarama performed at Retrolicious 2011 in Singapore, together with The Human League and Belinda Carlisle.
Dallin and Woodward have continued to play live since 2002, with highlights including headlining the festival of the hand over of Hong Kong, The Isle of Wight Festival and the Singapore Grand Prix. In 2012, they embarked upon a 10 date USA tour for the Pinktober Hard Rock charity and released and EP 'Now or Never'.
In 2016, they played a sell out tour of Australia and some dates in Japan.
2012–2016: 30 Years of Bananarama and Now or Never
On 9 July 2012, Warner Music imprint Rhino Records released a greatest hits CD and DVD Collection 30 Years of Bananarama to celebrate the band's 30th anniversary. The album charted at #62 on the UK Albums Chart. On 9 August 2012, the band performed at the men's final of the beach volleyball at the London Olympics. They performed a medley of "Cruel Summer", "Love in the First Degree" and "Venus".
On 28 October 2013, Bananarama's first six albums Deep Sea Skiving, Bananarama, True Confessions, Wow!, Pop Life and Please Yourself were reissued by Edsel Records, each of them consisting of Deluxe 2CDs plus DVD. Bananarama are also confirmed to perform in 2014 at Let's Rock Bristol! (7 June), Let's Rock Leeds! (21 June) and Let's Rock Southampton! (12 July). On 9 November 2013, Bananarama revealed on the BBC show Pointless Celebrities that they were recording a new album in Nashville and that it would be influenced by country and pop. In March 2015, Edsel Records released Megarama, a 3 CD collection of remixes that was followed in August with a 33CD singles collection box set entitled In A Bunch, which contains all single releases from "Aie a Mwana" right through to "More, More, More". In 2016, Bananarama toured Australia in February and showcased their new song "Got to Get Away". On 9 March 2016, Sara confirmed on her Twitter page that Bananarama have signed a new deal with BMG. In November 2016, an excerpt of a song that bears the working title "Looking For Someone" was posted on the official Twitter page of the band.
In December 2016, Billboard magazine ranked them the 94th most successful dance artist of all time.
2017–present: Original line-up tour and In Stereo
In was announced on 23 April 2017 that Fahey had rejoined Bananarama. The Original Line-up Tour saw them perform 23 sell-out dates across the UK in November and December 2017. They performed many of their hits such as "Nathan Jones", "Robert De Niro's Waiting...", "Cruel Summer", "Really Saying Something", "I Heard A Rumour", "I Can't Help It", "Venus", and "Love in the First Degree" as well as the Shakespears Sister hit "Stay". In February 2018, they played four dates in North America; Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York in the United States and Toronto in Canada. Their performances at London's Eventim Apollo Hammersmith Theatre and Newcastle City Hall were released on CD, DVD and Blu-Ray through PledgeMusic in July 2018. Their final dates as a trio were in August 2018. In November 2018, Bananarama's first six London albums, Deep Sea Skiving, Bananarama, True Confessions, Wow!, Pop Life and Please Yourself were released as coloured vinyl and limited edition cassettes.
On 19 April 2019, Dallin and Woodward released their new album In Stereo (UK #29). The first track from the album that served as a taster was "Dance Music", followed by the first official single "Stuff Like That", which was released on 7 March. An accompanying video to the single was directed by Andy Morahan, who had also directed the videos for many former singles from "I Heard a Rumour" to "Preacher Man". On 30 March the album track "Looking for Someone" premiered on The Graham Norton Show on BBC Radio 2 and was released as the second single from In Stereo. The album was supported by a five -date promo tour in the UK, which later that year was released as a live album entitled Live in Stereo.
On 29 October 2020, Dallin and Woodward released their autobiography, entitled Really Saying Something.
Awards and nominations
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|-
! scope="col" | Award
! scope="col" | Year
! scope="col" | Category
! scope="col" | Nominee(s)
! scope="col" | Result
! scope="col" class="unsortable"|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=10|Billboard Music Awards
| rowspan=6|1986
| Top Hot 100 Artist
| rowspan=3|Themselves
|
|rowspan=6|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Artist
|
|-
| Top Dance Sales Artist
|
|-
| Top Hot 100 Song
| rowspan=3|"Venus"
|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Single
|
|-
| Top Dance Sales Single
|
|-
| rowspan=4|1987
| Top Hot 100 Artist
| rowspan=2|Themselves
|
|rowspan=4|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Artist
|
|-
| Top Hot 100 Song
| rowspan=2|"I Heard a Rumour"
|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Single
|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=2|Brit Awards
| 1988
| British Single of the Year
| "Love in the First Degree"
|
|
|-
| 1989
| British Video of the Year
| "Nathan Jones"
|
|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=2|Classic Pop Readers' Awards
| 2018
| Group of the Year
| Themselves
|
|
|-
| 2020
| Album of the Year
| In Stereo
|
|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=2|International Dance Music Awards
| rowspan=2|2007
| Best HiNRG/Euro Dance Track
| rowspan=2|"Look on the Floor"
|
|rowspan=2|
|-
| Best Dance Music Video
|
|-
! scope="row"|Smash Hits Poll Winners Party
| 1989
| Best Group
| Themselves
|
|
Members
Current members
Sara Dallin
Keren Woodward
Former members
Siobhan Fahey
Jacquie O'Sullivan
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Deep Sea Skiving (1983)
Bananarama (1984)
True Confessions (1986)
Wow! (1987)
Pop Life (1991)
Please Yourself (1993)
Ultra Violet (1995)
Exotica (2001)
Drama (2005)
Viva (2009)
In Stereo (2019)
Concert tours
Lovekids Tour (1988)
Bananarama World Tour (1989)
Ultra Violet/Dance Mix 95 Tour (1995–1996)
Bananarama Australian Tour (1997)
Bananarama & Culture Club UK Tour (1999)
Drama Tour (2005–2006)
Here and Now Tour (2007–2009)
Viva Tour (2009–2010)
The Bananarama USA Tour (2012)
Europe Tour (2014–2015)
The 2016 Australian Tour (2016)
The Original Line Up UK Tour (2017)
The Original Line Up North America and European Tour (2018)
The 2019 Australian Tour (2019)
In Stereo UK Tour (2019)
List of all record labels
London Records (UK, USA, and Canada, 1981–1993)
ZYX Records (Germany, 1994–1996)
avex trax (Japan, 1995 / Taiwan, 2006)
Quality Records (Canada, 1995)
Mega Records (Denmark, 1995)
DigIt International (Italy, 1995)
Festival Records (Australia, 1995)
Popular Records (Canada 1996)
Curb Records (USA,1996)
M6 Interactions (France, 2000)
A&G Productions (UK, 2004–2006)
The Lab (USA, 2006)
True North Records (Canada, 2006)
Edel Company (Germany, 2006)
EQ Music (Singapore and Malaysia, 2005)
Phantom Imports (Hong Kong, 2006)
Central Station (Australia, 2005)
Pony Canyon (Japan, 2006)
Universal Records (Philippines, 2005)
Blanco y Negro Records (Spain,1995–2006)
Megaliner Records (Russia, 2005)
Nice Records (France, 2007)
Fascination Records (UK, 2009–2010)
BMG (UK, 2016–19)
Absolute Label Services (UK, 2019–)
See also
Girl group
List of best-selling girl groups
References
External links
Bananarama official website
Bananarama Community
Musical groups established in 1981
British new wave girl groups
British Eurodance groups
English pop music duos
Dance-pop groups
Deram Records artists
English dance music groups
English new wave musical groups
English dance girl groups
English pop girl groups
London Records artists
British musical trios
Musical groups from London
Polydor Records artists
ZYX Music artists | true | [
"Best of Nina () is the second compilation album by Filipina singer Nina. It was released exclusively in South Korea on July 15, 2009 by Warner Music Korea.\n\nBackground\nBest of Nina contains eight hit singles and four other tracks taken from her 2002 album Heaven until 2006 album Nina, plus three unplugged tracks were also included from her 2005 live album Nina Live!.\n\nIn the said album, some of her hit singles were not included such as \"Heaven\", \"Make You Mine\", \"A Girl Can Dream\", and \"I Don't Want to Be Your Friend\". Instead of including these four hit singles on the album, she replaced them with some of her notable unreleased tracks such as \"Is It Over\", \"Can't Say I Love You\", \"What If\" and her OPM classic remake, \"I'll Always Stay in Love This Way\". Tracks from Nina Featuring the Hits of Barry Manilow, Nina Sings the Hits of Diane Warren and Renditions of the Soul were not included.\n\nTrack listing\n\nRelease history\n\nReferences\n\nNina Girado albums\n2009 greatest hits albums",
"A hit song, also known as a hit record, hit single or simply a hit, is a recorded song or instrumental that becomes broadly popular or well-known. Although hit song means any widely played or big-selling song, the specific term hit record usually refers to a single that has appeared in an official music chart through repeated radio airplay audience impressions, or significant streaming data and commercial sales.\n\nHistorically, before the dominance of recorded music, commercial sheet music sales of individual songs were similarly promoted and tracked as singles and albums are now. For example, in 1894, Edward B. Marks and Joe Stern released The Little Lost Child, which sold more than a million copies nationwide, based mainly on its success as an illustrated song, analogous to today's music videos.\n\nChart hits\nIn the United States and the United Kingdom, a single is usually considered a hit when it reaches the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 or the top 75 of the UK Singles Chart and stays there for at least one week. The Guinness Book of British Hit Singles has used this definition since the 1970s. Some argue that reaching at least the top 100—since the Official Charts Company increased the chart size on their website on 23 June 2007—lets a single be considered a hit due to the increasing singles market after chart rules included download singles. In most cases, the amount of weeks spent on either music chart may also play a big part in its relevance as a 'hit,' regardless of its peak chart position.\n\nA hit single is variously called a number one hit, a top 5 hit, a top 10 hit, a top 20 hit or a top 40 hit, depending on its peak position. In the UK (where radio play is not included in the official charts), this does not completely reflect the song's popularity—as the weekly chart position is based solely on direct comparison with concurrent sales of other singles. It is, therefore, not uncommon that a single fails to chart, but has actually sold more copies than other singles regarded as \"hits\" based on their higher chart placement in a period of low sales. (This is also possible in the United States, or anywhere, with slow but steady sellers; a number of minor hits, especially those that are popular in specific genre, have earned gold certifications despite relatively poor pop chart performances.)\n\nSales figures\nIn the UK, the number of sales required to achieve a hit single steadily declined in line with a general decline in single sales until the early 2000s. The number has, however, recovered strongly with growth in official digital downloads. 2011 was a record year for UK singles sales. Actual figures vary considerably depending on the time of year. In 2010 a number one single usually sold around 100,000 copies per week; sales of around 30,000 were often sufficient to reach the top ten, and a single selling over 6,000 copies could make the top forty.\n\nAlbums of hit singles\nRecord companies often release collections of hit singles by various artists as compilation albums, such as the Now That's What I Call Music! series. Well-known bands and artists also frequently release collections of their most popular singles as Greatest hits albums.\n\nSee also \n List of record charts\n Record chart\n Sleeper hit\n\nReferences \n\nRecorded music\nSingles (music)\nSong forms\nPopular culture\nPopular music\nMusical terminology"
] |
[
"Bananarama",
"1982-1985: Deep Sea Skiving and Bananarama",
"What is significant about this time period?",
"Bananarama experienced their greatest success during the period 1982 to 1989,",
"What is Deep Sea Skiving?",
"Their debut album, Deep Sea Skiving (",
"When was their debut released?",
") (1983) contained several hit singles",
"What were some of their hit singles?",
"Robert De Niro's Waiting...,\" (UK#3) and their first US Top 10 hit, \"Cruel Summer"
] | C_a747e5200cb24b7f9a7164f7c7db2e41_0 | Were they nominated for any awards? | 5 | Were Bananarama nominated for any awards? | Bananarama | Bananarama experienced their greatest success during the period 1982 to 1989, with their first three albums primarily produced and co-written with Jolley & Swain. Their debut album, Deep Sea Skiving (UK #7, US #63) (1983) contained several hit singles -- "Really Saying Something" (UK #5) and "Shy Boy" (UK #4) -- and included a cover version of "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" (UK #5). The band recorded a version of the Sex Pistols' song "No Feelings" in late 1982 for the soundtrack of the British teen-comedy film, Party Party. Although the group was now a success in their native UK, their earliest success in America was on an underground basis due to college radio and early MTV exposure. During 1982 and 1983, Bananarama did several promotional US press tours and TV appearances on American Bandstand and Solid Gold. Success in the United States eluded the group until the release of their first top 10 hit "Cruel Summer" in mid-1984. Their second album, Bananarama (UK #16, US #30) (1984) was a more socially conscious effort. The group wanted to be taken more seriously, so wrote songs that focused on heavier topics: "Hotline To Heaven" (UK#58) is a stand against the drugs-are-cool culture; and "Rough Justice" (UK#23) deals with social apathy. The album contained the hit singles, "Robert De Niro's Waiting...," (UK#3) and their first US Top 10 hit, "Cruel Summer" (UK#8, US#9) (1983), which was included in the film The Karate Kid. The trio also recorded the single, "The Wild Life" (US#70) for a 1984 American film of the same name. Bananarama featured on the Band Aid single, "Do They Know It's Christmas?," and were the only artists to appear on both the original 1984 Band Aid and the 1989 Band Aid II versions (though Fahey only appeared on the 1984 version). 1985 would be a quiet transitional year for Bananarama. London Records release of "Do Not Disturb" (UK #31) would keep the girls' public profile alive. CANNOTANSWER | the release of their first top 10 hit "Cruel Summer" in mid-1984. | Bananarama are an English pop group from London formed in 1980 by friends Sara Dallin, Siobhan Fahey and Keren Woodward. Their success on both pop and dance charts saw them listed in the Guinness World Records for achieving the world's highest number of chart entries by an all-female group. Between 1982 and 2009, they had 30 singles reach the Top 50 of the UK Singles Chart.
The group's UK top 10 hits include "It Ain't What You Do..." (1982), "Really Saying Something" (1982), "Shy Boy" (1982), "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" (1983), "Cruel Summer" (1983), "Robert De Niro's Waiting..." (1984), "Love in the First Degree" (1987), "I Want You Back" in 1988 and "Help" in 1989. In 1986, they had a U.S. number one with another of their UK top 10 hits, a cover of "Venus". In total, they had 11 singles reach the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 (1983–1988), including the top 10 hits "Cruel Summer" (1984) and "I Heard a Rumour" (1987). They are associated with the MTV-driven Second British Invasion of the US. The trio performed on "Do They Know It's Christmas?", a UK chart topping charity single released in 1984. They topped the Australian ARIA albums chart in June 1988 with Wow! (1987), and earned Brit Award nominations for Best British Single for "Love in the First Degree", and Best Music Video for their 1988 hit cover of the Supremes single "Nathan Jones".
Fahey left the group in 1988 and formed Shakespears Sister, best known for the UK number one "Stay" (1992). She was replaced by Jacquie O'Sullivan. This line-up had UK top five hits with "I Want You Back" (1988) and a cover of The Beatles' "Help!" (1989), recorded with comedy duo French and Saunders for the charity Comic Relief. They also had further hits with "Love, Truth and Honesty" and "Nathan Jones".
In 1989, they embarked on their first world tour and had another hit with a new remixed version of "Cruel Summer".
In 1990 and 1991, they had further top 30 chart hits with "Only Your Love", "Preacher Man" and "Long Train Running" and a new studio album Pop Life which featured these 3 singles and a fourth single "Tripping on Your Love" which was released soon after the album.
After O'Sullivan's late 1991 departure, Dallin and Woodward then continued Bananarama as a duo, with further top 30 hits including "Movin' On" (1992), "More, More, More" (1993), "Move in My Direction" (2005) and "Look on the Floor (Hypnotic Tango)".
Fahey rejoined Bananarama in 2017 and they toured the UK and North America between November that year until August 2018.
Career
1980–1982: Early years
Bananarama formed in September 1980 when teenagers and childhood friends Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward moved from Bristol to London and met Siobhan Fahey. Dallin and Fahey were studying journalism at the London College of Fashion (University of Arts) and Woodward was working at the BBC in Portland Place. Dallin and Woodward were living at the YWCA and were about to be made homeless until Paul Cook, with whom they had become fast friends after meeting at a club, offered them a place to live above the former Sex Pistols rehearsal room in Denmark Street, Charing Cross. They took their name, in part, from the Roxy Music song "Pyjamarama".
The trio were ardent followers of the punk rock and post-punk music scenes during the late 1970s and early 1980s. They often performed impromptu sets or backing vocals at gigs for such bands as The Monochrome Set, The Professionals, Subway Sect, Iggy Pop, Department S, The Nipple Erectors, and The Jam. In 1981, Bananarama recorded their first demo, "Aie a Mwana", a cover of a song by Black Blood, sung in Swahili. The demo was heard at Demon Records, who consequently offered Bananarama their first deal. The song was an underground hit (UK #92) and Bananarama were signed by Decca (later London Records) and remained on the label until 1993. UK music magazine The Face featured an article on Bananarama after the release of their first single. This caught the attention of ex-Specials member Terry Hall, who invited them to collaborate with his new vocal group Fun Boy Three on their album and the single "It Ain't What You Do (It's The Way That You Do It)". In 1982, the song hit the Top 5 in the UK and gave Bananarama their first significant mainstream success. Fun Boy Three then guested on Bananarama's single, "Really Saying Something", later that year.
1982–1985: Deep Sea Skiving and Bananarama
Bananarama experienced their greatest success during the period 1982 to 1989, with their first three albums primarily produced and co-written with Jolley & Swain. Their debut album, Deep Sea Skiving (UK #7, US #63) (1983) contained several hit singles – "Really Saying Something" (UK #5) and "Shy Boy" (UK #4) – and included a cover version of "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" (UK #5). "Cheers Then" (#45) was released as the third single, with little chart success, but very positive reviews from critics. The band recorded a version of the Sex Pistols' song "No Feelings" in late 1982 for the soundtrack of the British teen-comedy film, Party Party.
During 1982 and 1983, Bananarama did several promotional US press tours and TV appearances on American Bandstand and Solid Gold. Success in the United States came in 1984 with a Top Ten hit "Cruel Summer".
Their second album, Bananarama (UK #16, US #30) (1984) was a more socially conscious effort. The group wanted to be taken more seriously, so wrote songs that focused on heavier topics: "Hot Line To Heaven" (UK#58) is a stand against the drugs-are-cool culture; and "Rough Justice" (UK#23) deals with social apathy. The album contained the hit singles, "Robert De Niro's Waiting...," (UK#3) and their first US Top 10 hit, "Cruel Summer" (UK#8, US#9) (1983), which was included in the film The Karate Kid. The trio also recorded the single, "The Wild Life" (US#70) for a 1984 American film of the same name.
Bananarama featured on the Band Aid single, "Do They Know It's Christmas?," and were the only artists to appear on both the original 1984 Band Aid and the 1989 Band Aid II versions (though Fahey only appeared on the 1984 version).
1985 was a quiet transitional year for Bananarama. "Do Not Disturb" (UK #31) maintained their public profile.
1986–1987: True Confessions and international success
1986 saw the release of their third Jolley/Swain album, True Confessions. Later editions contained other tracks and some extra production duties were taken up by Mike Stock, Matt Aitken and Pete Waterman known as Stock Aitken Waterman (SAW). The move resulted in the international number one hit, "Venus", (a remake of Shocking Blue's song from 1969, which had been a number 1 hit in 1970). The dance-oriented beats on the song typified the SAW approach to pop production. Bananarama had tracked the producers down after hearing "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)" by Dead or Alive. The song won a Juno Award in Canada for International Single of The Year. Also in 1986, Dallin and Woodward were featured as backing vocalists on two songs on Family Album, produced by John Lydon.
The music video for "Venus" received heavy airplay on MTV in the United States. It featured the group in various costumes including a devil, a French temptress, a vampire and a Greek goddess. The video marked a pivotal shift towards a more glamorous and sexual image, which contrasted with the tomboyish style of their earlier work.
Follow-up singles "More Than Physical" (UK #41) and "A Trick of the Night" (UK #32) were less successful, possibly due to having less promotion. Woodward was pregnant with her son Thomas and unable to tour or physically promote the parent album or its subsequent singles.
"More Than Physical" marked the beginning of Bananarama's song writing relationship with Stock Aitken Waterman; a collaborative process Stock has described as troubled - despite producing a string of hits.
“It’s very difficult to be creative if someone’s just going to mock you, or laugh at you,” he said. “With Bananarama it was just awkward, all the time very awkward, and I didn’t feel comfortable writing with them.”
During a press tour in New York City, the group also recorded a song "Riskin' a Romance" featured in the film The Secret of My Success (1987). The track was notable because it featured Fahey taking lead vocals, and Daryl Hall was the producer. During this trip, the group also re-recorded the vocals for their next UK release "More Than Physical" and "A Trick of the Night" with Mike Stock in Miami.
1987–1988: Wow! and Fahey's departure
In the wake of the success of "Venus," Bananarama began work on the album Wow!. The group's sound graduated towards dance-orientated Europop. Wow! topped the Australian ARIA album charts for one week in June 1988.
"I Heard a Rumour" (UK #14, US #4) was their strongest performing international hit from this album. "Love in the First Degree" (UK #3) was one of their biggest UK hits and was nominated at the 1988 Brit Award for best single, and "I Can't Help It" (which boasted a semi-controversial video featuring the group in a milk bath filled with fruit and half-naked men) was also a hit (UK #20).
After the third single from Wow! was released in early 1988, Fahey – who had married Eurythmics' Dave Stewart – left the group - her last performance as a member of the group was at the Brit Awards in February 1988, performing "Love in the First Degree". She would later resurface in the BRIT Award-winning pop duo Shakespears Sister with Marcella Detroit.
1988–1991: Second line-up, Greatest Hits, Pop Life and world tour
After Fahey's exit, Jacquie O'Sullivan (formerly of the Shillelagh Sisters) joined the group in March 1988. The single "I Want You Back" (UK #5) was re-recorded with O'Sullivan, as was The Supremes cover "Nathan Jones" (UK #15) which was nominated for best video at the 1989 Brit Awards. "Love, Truth and Honesty" (UK #23) was released as a single from their 1988 retrospective compilation, Greatest Hits Collection (UK #3). At the same time, Bananarama entered the Guinness Book of World Records as the all-female group who have the most UK chart entries in history, a record they still hold.
As a fundraising charity single for Comic Relief in 1989, Bananarama recorded a cover of The Beatles' song "Help!" with Lananeeneenoonoo (UK #3), a mock girl-group created by British female comedy duo French and Saunders, with fellow comedian Kathy Burke. 1989 also saw the band's first world tour, which hit North America, East Asia and the UK.
Bananarama's 1991 album, Pop Life, saw Dallin and Woodward's songwriting collaboration with their friend Youth. They worked with a variety of producers including Youth, Shep Pettibone, and Steve Jolley, of Jolley & Swain. They also incorporated a wider range of musical genres including reggae, flamenco guitar, and acid house and received some of the strongest and most positive reviews of their career. Singles "Only Your Love" (UK #27), "Preacher Man" (UK #20), the Doobie Brothers' cover of "Long Train Running" (UK #30) and "Tripping on Your Love" (UK #76), were the final releases with O'Sullivan.
1992–2001: Duo re-launch, Please Yourself, Ultra Violet and Exotica
In 1992, Dallin and Woodward returned as a duo and had a UK top 30 hit with "Movin' On" (UK #24), which was the first single from the 1993 album Please Yourself and 'More More More' which reached #24. It was to be their last album on London Records.
Their next offering was 1995's Ultra Violet (titled I Found Love in Japan) on a new label. The album and its three singles "I Found Love", "Every Shade of Blue" and "Take Me to Your Heart" were only released in some European countries, North America, Japan and Australia, but not in Britain.
In 1998, Dallin and Woodward asked Fahey to join them to record the track "Waterloo" (a cover of the classic ABBA song) for the Eurovision celebration A Song for Eurotrash on Channel 4. However, Fahey made it clear that this was a one-off and that she was not formally rejoining the group. In 1999, Dallin, Woodward and Fahey were interviewed together for an episode of the BBC music documentary series Young Guns Go For It dedicated to the group. Jacquie O'Sullivan also took part in the programme.
In 2001, Dallin and Woodward, who had been working a lot in France, had recorded the album Exotica with the French label M6. The album also included Latin and R&B influenced dance songs, as well as reinterpreted versions of their earlier hits.
2002–2006: Drama
By 2002, Bananarama had sold 40 million records worldwide. That year, they released another greatest hits album, The Very Best of Bananarama, in the UK. They also recorded the song "Love Him, Leave Him, Forget Him" for Sky TV's show Is Harry on the Boat? as well as the song "U R My Baby" for a German disco project. With Siobhan Fahey returning as a special guest for a performance of "Venus", the group celebrated the 20th anniversary of their first hit with a gig at G-A-Y at the London Astoria, in front of an audience of 3000 people.
With 1980s retro in vogue, Bananarama made a comeback in the British dance charts in 2005. Solasso remixed their early hit "Really Saying Something." A video was filmed with models from Britain's Next Top Model TV show.
In 2005, Dallin and Woodward collaborated with Swedish hit makers Murlyn, writing and recording in Sweden for 6 months to produce the album 'Drama'. The first single 'Move in My Direction' reached #14 with the second single 'Look on the Floor (Hypnotic Tango) entering and peaking at #26 in the UK chart. In the US on the Billboard Dance Chart, Look on the Floor would peak at #2 with Move in My Direction reaching #14 in July 2006.
2006–2011: Remasters and Viva
Summer 2006 saw the Warner Bros. Records release of The Twelve Inches of Bananarama, a compilation of twelve remixes on CD for the first time. The collection features the rare George Michael remix of "Tripping on Your Love", among others.
On 19 March 2007, Bananarama's first six studio albums were reissued by Rhino Records on CD with bonus material, including alternative versions, remixes and B-sides. On 7 May 2007, another best-of collection titled Greatest Hits and More More More was released by Warner Bros. Records.
Dallin and Woodward performed a set along with other 1980s acts at Retro Fest on 1 September 2007 at Culzean Castle in Ayrshire, Scotland.
In February 2007, Bananarama's official website announced that they were back in the studio recording new material. A cover version of "Voyage Voyage" was performed at a concert in France. Bananarama also confirmed they were contributing vocals as guest artists on the song "Ultra Violet" (not to be confused with Bananarama's seventh album Ultra Violet) by new dance act Block Rocker, a teaming up of producers/remixers Digital Dog and Ashiva. However, the song never surfaced.
In October 2007, Bananarama announced that they would be appearing on 2008's Here and Now Tour with other 1980s artists such as Belinda Carlisle, Paul Young, ABC and Rick Astley. They also announced plans to record a new album of disco cover versions and new songs.
In August 2008, it was announced that Bananarama was back in the studio recording a track with Rev Run from Run-D.M.C. who had a new album in the pipeline. He wanted to sample "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" for his track but then decided to ask Dallin and Woodward to sing it instead. The title of the track was not confirmed but was to be credited as be "Run-D.M.C. featuring Bananarama". The song, 'Invincible', credited as Rev Run featuring Bananarama, did not surface until late 2014 on Rev Run's solo album Red Rhythm Rewind.
In June 2009, Bananarama performed at the Isle of Wight Festival. In August 2009, they performed at the 80s Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames alongside other 80s acts which included Rick Astley, Belinda Carlisle and Kim Wilde. The duo also performed at The Manchester Gay Pride Festival over the August Bank Holiday weekend.
Bananarama released a new single entitled "Love Comes" (UK #44), and a new album Viva (UK #87) in September 2009. The album was produced entirely by Ian Masterson, and released through Fascination Records. A second single was released from the album in April 2010, a new remix of the song "Love Don't Live Here" (UK #114) backed by Ian Masterson's 2010 reworking of the 1995 single "Every Shade of Blue" and "The Runner" (originally recorded by The Three Degrees), remixed by Buzz Junkies. Other covers recorded during this period included Bryan Adams' "Run To You", Simon & Garfunkel's "The Sound of Silence" and Bryan Ferry's "Tokyo Joe". These were included as B Sides to the released singles and as bonus digital tracks to the parent album.
In September 2010, Bananarama were back in the studio with producer Ian Masterson, and recorded a Christmas song titled "Baby It's Christmas" (UK #199). The track was written by Sara Dallin and Ian Masterson and was released on 13 December in the UK and Europe as a digital EP. The track was also included on a US digital
Christmas compilation entitled Super Dance Christmas Party, Volume 3. "Baby It's Christmas" reached #19 in the UK Indie Singles chart and #199 in the main UK Singles Chart.
In April 2011, Bananarama appeared on ITV's hit comedy Benidorm and performed "Love in the First Degree", "Robert De Niro's Waiting..." and "Movin' On".
In October 2011, Bananarama performed at Retrolicious 2011 in Singapore, together with The Human League and Belinda Carlisle.
Dallin and Woodward have continued to play live since 2002, with highlights including headlining the festival of the hand over of Hong Kong, The Isle of Wight Festival and the Singapore Grand Prix. In 2012, they embarked upon a 10 date USA tour for the Pinktober Hard Rock charity and released and EP 'Now or Never'.
In 2016, they played a sell out tour of Australia and some dates in Japan.
2012–2016: 30 Years of Bananarama and Now or Never
On 9 July 2012, Warner Music imprint Rhino Records released a greatest hits CD and DVD Collection 30 Years of Bananarama to celebrate the band's 30th anniversary. The album charted at #62 on the UK Albums Chart. On 9 August 2012, the band performed at the men's final of the beach volleyball at the London Olympics. They performed a medley of "Cruel Summer", "Love in the First Degree" and "Venus".
On 28 October 2013, Bananarama's first six albums Deep Sea Skiving, Bananarama, True Confessions, Wow!, Pop Life and Please Yourself were reissued by Edsel Records, each of them consisting of Deluxe 2CDs plus DVD. Bananarama are also confirmed to perform in 2014 at Let's Rock Bristol! (7 June), Let's Rock Leeds! (21 June) and Let's Rock Southampton! (12 July). On 9 November 2013, Bananarama revealed on the BBC show Pointless Celebrities that they were recording a new album in Nashville and that it would be influenced by country and pop. In March 2015, Edsel Records released Megarama, a 3 CD collection of remixes that was followed in August with a 33CD singles collection box set entitled In A Bunch, which contains all single releases from "Aie a Mwana" right through to "More, More, More". In 2016, Bananarama toured Australia in February and showcased their new song "Got to Get Away". On 9 March 2016, Sara confirmed on her Twitter page that Bananarama have signed a new deal with BMG. In November 2016, an excerpt of a song that bears the working title "Looking For Someone" was posted on the official Twitter page of the band.
In December 2016, Billboard magazine ranked them the 94th most successful dance artist of all time.
2017–present: Original line-up tour and In Stereo
In was announced on 23 April 2017 that Fahey had rejoined Bananarama. The Original Line-up Tour saw them perform 23 sell-out dates across the UK in November and December 2017. They performed many of their hits such as "Nathan Jones", "Robert De Niro's Waiting...", "Cruel Summer", "Really Saying Something", "I Heard A Rumour", "I Can't Help It", "Venus", and "Love in the First Degree" as well as the Shakespears Sister hit "Stay". In February 2018, they played four dates in North America; Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York in the United States and Toronto in Canada. Their performances at London's Eventim Apollo Hammersmith Theatre and Newcastle City Hall were released on CD, DVD and Blu-Ray through PledgeMusic in July 2018. Their final dates as a trio were in August 2018. In November 2018, Bananarama's first six London albums, Deep Sea Skiving, Bananarama, True Confessions, Wow!, Pop Life and Please Yourself were released as coloured vinyl and limited edition cassettes.
On 19 April 2019, Dallin and Woodward released their new album In Stereo (UK #29). The first track from the album that served as a taster was "Dance Music", followed by the first official single "Stuff Like That", which was released on 7 March. An accompanying video to the single was directed by Andy Morahan, who had also directed the videos for many former singles from "I Heard a Rumour" to "Preacher Man". On 30 March the album track "Looking for Someone" premiered on The Graham Norton Show on BBC Radio 2 and was released as the second single from In Stereo. The album was supported by a five -date promo tour in the UK, which later that year was released as a live album entitled Live in Stereo.
On 29 October 2020, Dallin and Woodward released their autobiography, entitled Really Saying Something.
Awards and nominations
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|-
! scope="col" | Award
! scope="col" | Year
! scope="col" | Category
! scope="col" | Nominee(s)
! scope="col" | Result
! scope="col" class="unsortable"|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=10|Billboard Music Awards
| rowspan=6|1986
| Top Hot 100 Artist
| rowspan=3|Themselves
|
|rowspan=6|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Artist
|
|-
| Top Dance Sales Artist
|
|-
| Top Hot 100 Song
| rowspan=3|"Venus"
|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Single
|
|-
| Top Dance Sales Single
|
|-
| rowspan=4|1987
| Top Hot 100 Artist
| rowspan=2|Themselves
|
|rowspan=4|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Artist
|
|-
| Top Hot 100 Song
| rowspan=2|"I Heard a Rumour"
|
|-
| Top Dance Club Play Single
|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=2|Brit Awards
| 1988
| British Single of the Year
| "Love in the First Degree"
|
|
|-
| 1989
| British Video of the Year
| "Nathan Jones"
|
|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=2|Classic Pop Readers' Awards
| 2018
| Group of the Year
| Themselves
|
|
|-
| 2020
| Album of the Year
| In Stereo
|
|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=2|International Dance Music Awards
| rowspan=2|2007
| Best HiNRG/Euro Dance Track
| rowspan=2|"Look on the Floor"
|
|rowspan=2|
|-
| Best Dance Music Video
|
|-
! scope="row"|Smash Hits Poll Winners Party
| 1989
| Best Group
| Themselves
|
|
Members
Current members
Sara Dallin
Keren Woodward
Former members
Siobhan Fahey
Jacquie O'Sullivan
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Deep Sea Skiving (1983)
Bananarama (1984)
True Confessions (1986)
Wow! (1987)
Pop Life (1991)
Please Yourself (1993)
Ultra Violet (1995)
Exotica (2001)
Drama (2005)
Viva (2009)
In Stereo (2019)
Concert tours
Lovekids Tour (1988)
Bananarama World Tour (1989)
Ultra Violet/Dance Mix 95 Tour (1995–1996)
Bananarama Australian Tour (1997)
Bananarama & Culture Club UK Tour (1999)
Drama Tour (2005–2006)
Here and Now Tour (2007–2009)
Viva Tour (2009–2010)
The Bananarama USA Tour (2012)
Europe Tour (2014–2015)
The 2016 Australian Tour (2016)
The Original Line Up UK Tour (2017)
The Original Line Up North America and European Tour (2018)
The 2019 Australian Tour (2019)
In Stereo UK Tour (2019)
List of all record labels
London Records (UK, USA, and Canada, 1981–1993)
ZYX Records (Germany, 1994–1996)
avex trax (Japan, 1995 / Taiwan, 2006)
Quality Records (Canada, 1995)
Mega Records (Denmark, 1995)
DigIt International (Italy, 1995)
Festival Records (Australia, 1995)
Popular Records (Canada 1996)
Curb Records (USA,1996)
M6 Interactions (France, 2000)
A&G Productions (UK, 2004–2006)
The Lab (USA, 2006)
True North Records (Canada, 2006)
Edel Company (Germany, 2006)
EQ Music (Singapore and Malaysia, 2005)
Phantom Imports (Hong Kong, 2006)
Central Station (Australia, 2005)
Pony Canyon (Japan, 2006)
Universal Records (Philippines, 2005)
Blanco y Negro Records (Spain,1995–2006)
Megaliner Records (Russia, 2005)
Nice Records (France, 2007)
Fascination Records (UK, 2009–2010)
BMG (UK, 2016–19)
Absolute Label Services (UK, 2019–)
See also
Girl group
List of best-selling girl groups
References
External links
Bananarama official website
Bananarama Community
Musical groups established in 1981
British new wave girl groups
British Eurodance groups
English pop music duos
Dance-pop groups
Deram Records artists
English dance music groups
English new wave musical groups
English dance girl groups
English pop girl groups
London Records artists
British musical trios
Musical groups from London
Polydor Records artists
ZYX Music artists | false | [
"Stargate Atlantis is an American-Canadian military science fiction television series and part of MGM's Stargate franchise. The series was created by Robert C. Cooper and Brad Wright as a spin-off series to Stargate SG-1. The series aired for five seasons and 100 episodes on the US Sci Fi Channel. Stargate Atlantis premiered on SCI FI on July 16, 2004; its final episode aired on January 9, 2009.\n\nSince 2005, Stargate Atlantis was nominated for various awards during its five-year run. Among them, the series has been nominated for four Emmy Awards, eleven Gemini Awards (two were won), 27 Leo Awards (ten were won), one Nebula Award, one People's Choice Award which was won, and two Visual Effects Society Awards. Out of the total 62 nominations, Stargate Atlantis won 19 awards.\n\nCanadian Screenwriting Awards\nStargate Atlantis was nominated for two Canadian Screenwriting Awards.\n\nChicago International Film Festival\nStargate Atlantis was nominated for one Silver Plaque in the Chicago International Film Festival, 2005.\n\nConstellation Awards\nThe series was nominated for two Constellation Awards.\n\nDGC Craft Awards\nStargate Atlantis was nominated for one DGC Craft Award by the Directors Guild of Canada.\n\nEmmy Awards\nStargate Atlantis was nominated for four Emmy Awards. From those, they were nominations for \"Outstanding Special Visual Effects for a Series\" twice, and one each for \"Outsdanding Main Title Theme Music\" and \"Outstanding Music Composition for a Series (Dramatical Underscore)\".\n\nGemini Awards\nStargate Atlantis was nominated for sixteen Gemini Awards. They were nominated for four awards in 2005, one in 2006, two in 2007, four in 2008, and five in 2009. In total, they won four awards.\n\nLeo Awards\nStargate Atlantis was nominated for a total of 27 Leo Awards, ten of which were for 2005, while the other 17 were for 2009.\n\nNebula Awards\nThe series was nominated for a Nebula Award in 2009.\n\nNew York Film Festival\nStargate Atlantis won a Bronze Worldmedal in the New York Film Festival in 2005.\n\nPeople's Choice Awards\nIn 2008, Stargate Atlantis was nominated for \"Best Sci-Fi Show\" for the 34th People's Choice Awards, where it was up against Battlestar Galactica and Doctor Who.\n\nSaturn Awards\nThe series was nominated for two Saturn Awards in 2005, and for one in 2006.\n\nVisual Effects Society Awards\nTwo episodes were nominated for Visual Effects Society Awards. One was nominated in 2005, while the other was nominated in 2008. Both were nominated for \"Outstanding Visual Effects in a Broadcast Series\".\n\nWorldFest-Houston International Film Festival\nStargate Atlantis was nominated for a First Place Platinum in the 2005 WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival.\n\nSee also\nList of Stargate SG-1 awards and nominations\nList of Stargate Universe awards and nominations\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Awards for Stargate Atlantis at IMDB\n\nStargate\nStargate",
"The 25th Annual American Music Awards were held on January 26, 1998, at the Shrine Auditorium, in Los Angeles, California. The awards recognized the most popular artists and albums from the year 1997.\n\nThe Spice Girls were the biggest winners of the night, winning all of the three awards they were nominated for, while Puff Daddy didn't win any of the five awards he had been nominated for.\n\nPerformances\n\nNotes\n Pretaped in Los Angeles on January 21st.\n\nWinners and nominees\n\nReferences\n http://www.rockonthenet.com/archive/1998/amas.htm\n\n1998"
] |
[
"Bart Starr",
"Packers quarterback"
] | C_72f3a07d556c4e5e9bf92c9f8d3013b8_1 | When did he begin with the Packers? | 1 | When did Bart Starr begin with the Packers? | Bart Starr | Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956 and split time with Babe Parilli until 1959, Vince Lombardi's first year as Packers coach. In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr, and he held the starting job henceforth. The following season, the Packers advanced to the 1960 NFL Championship Game, but lost to the Philadelphia Eagles, Lombardi's only post-season loss as a head coach. The Packers returned to the title game and won in 1961 and 1962, both over the New York Giants. In 1966, Starr was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by the Associated Press (AP), the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) and UPI. Starr was responsible for calling plays when he was quarterback, which was then the norm. One of his most famous play calls was in the Ice Bowl against the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL championship game on the final day of 1967. Consulting with Lombardi on the sideline, Starr suggested a basic wedge play -- with a twist. Instead of handing off to Chuck Mercein as the play dictated (and unbeknownst to his teammates), Starr suggested he would keep the ball and run it in himself. Having enough of the bitter cold weather, coach Lombardi said, "Then do it, and let's get the hell out of here!" Starr almost broke down in laughter as he ran back to the huddle, but held his composure. The play worked. The Packers went on to beat the Cowboys 21-17. At the Orange Bowl in Miami, the Packers defeated the AFL champion Oakland Raiders 33-14 in Super Bowl II, Lombardi's final game as head coach of the Packers, who were favored by 13 1/2 points. The 1967 Packers remain the only team to win a third consecutive NFL title since the playoff system was instituted in 1933. Starr's playing career ended with the 1971 season, having posted the second best career passer rating of 80.5 (First at the time was Otto Graham with 86.6). He had surgeries on his long-ailing throwing arm in July and August 1971, and saw limited action in his last season. Starr had originally planned to retire after the second Super Bowl win in January 1968, but without a clear successor and a new head coach, he stayed on; by February 1972 he was set for one last year. He participated in the team's spring camp in Arizona in April, then announced his retirement in July at age 38. CANNOTANSWER | Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956 | Bryan Bartlett Starr (January 9, 1934 – May 26, 2019) was a professional American football quarterback and coach. He played college football at the University of Alabama, and was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the 17th round of the 1956 NFL Draft, where he played for them until 1971. Starr is the only quarterback in NFL history to lead a team to three consecutive league championships (1965–1967). He led his team to victories in the first two Super Bowls: I and II. As the Packers' head coach, he was less successful, compiling a 52–76–3 () record from 1975 through 1983.
Starr was named the Most Valuable Player of the first two Super Bowls and during his career earned four Pro Bowl selections. He won the league MVP award in 1966. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Packers Hall of Fame in 1977. Starr has the highest postseason passer rating (104.8) of any quarterback in NFL history and a postseason record of 9–1. His career completion percentage of 57.4 was an NFL best when he retired in 1972. For 32 years (through the 2003 season), Starr also held the Packers' franchise record for games played (196).
Early life
Starr was born and raised in Montgomery, Alabama to parents Benjamin Bryan Starr (1910–1985), a labor foreman with the state highway department, and Lula (Tucker) Starr (1916–1995). Starr's early life was marked by hardships. Shortly after the start of World War II, his father's reserve unit was activated and in 1942 he was deployed to the Pacific Theater. He was first in the U.S. Army but transferred to the U.S. Air Force for his military career.
Starr had a younger brother, Hilton E. "Bubba" Starr. In 1946, Bubba stepped on a dog bone while playing in the yard and three days later died of tetanus. Starr's relationship with his father deteriorated after Hilton's death. He was an introverted child who rarely showed his emotions and his father pushed Starr to develop more of a mean streak.
Starr attended Sidney Lanier High School in Montgomery, and tried out for the football team in his sophomore year, but decided to quit after two weeks. His father gave him the option of playing football or working in the family garden; Starr chose to return to the football field.
In his junior year, the starting quarterback broke his leg and Starr became the starter. He led Lanier to an undefeated season. In his senior season, Starr was named all-state and All-American, and received college scholarship offers from universities across the country. He seriously considered the University of Kentucky, coached by Bear Bryant. Starr's high school sweetheart, Cherry Louise Morton, was planning to attend Auburn and Starr wished to attend a college close to her. Starr changed his mind and committed to the University of Alabama.
College career
During Starr’s freshman year at Alabama, the Southeastern Conference allowed freshmen to play varsity football. Starr did not start for Alabama as a freshman, but he did play enough minutes to earn a varsity letter. His high point of the season came in quarterback relief in the Orange Bowl, when he completed 8 of 12 passes for 93 yards and a touchdown against Syracuse.
Starr entered his sophomore year as Alabama's starting quarterback, safety and punter. His punting average of 41.4 yards per kick ranked second in the nation in 1953, behind Zeke Bratkowski. Alabama recorded a 6–2–3 record and lost in the Cotton Bowl to Rice by a score of 28–6. Starr completed 59 of 119 passes for 870 yards, with eight touchdowns that season.
In May 1954, Starr eloped with Cherry Morton. The couple chose to keep their marriage a secret. Colleges often revoked the scholarships of married athletes in the 1950s, believing their focus should remain on sports. Cherry remained in Jackson, Alabama, while Starr returned to the University of Alabama.
That summer, Starr suffered a severe back injury during a hazing incident for his initiation into the A Club. He covered up the cause by fabricating a story about being hurt while punting a football. He rarely played during his junior year due to the injury. The back injury disqualified him later from military service, and would occasionally bother him the rest of his football career. After a disappointing season of 4–5–2, Harold Drew was replaced by Jennings B. Whitworth as coach of Alabama.
Whitworth conducted a youth movement at Alabama for the 1955 season and only two seniors started for the team. Supposedly healed from the back injury, Starr rarely played in his senior season. Starr's decision to play football for Alabama rather than for Bear Bryant at the University of Kentucky did not sit well with Bryant, and four years later as head coach of the Blue–Gray Football Classic in 1955, Bryant hardly let Bart play at all.
Johnny Dee, the basketball coach at Alabama, was a friend of Jack Vainisi, the personnel director of the Green Bay Packers. Dee recommended Starr as a prospect to Vainisi. The Packers were convinced that Starr had the ability to succeed in the NFL and would learn quickly. In the 17th round of the 1956 NFL Draft, Starr was selected by the Packers, with the 200th overall pick.
Starr spent the summer of 1956 living with his in-laws and throwing footballs through a tire in their backyard in order to prepare for his rookie season. The Packers offered $6,500 (equal to $ today) to sign Starr and he accepted, with the added condition, requested by Starr, that he receive $1,000 up front.
Packers quarterback
Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956 and split time with Babe Parilli until 1959, Vince Lombardi's first year as Packers coach. In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr, and he held the starting job henceforth. The following season, the Packers advanced to the 1960 NFL Championship Game, but lost to the Philadelphia Eagles in Lombardi's only post-season loss as a head coach.
1961 was Starr's first season as a full-time starting quarterback for the Packers, throwing for over 2,400 yards and 16 touchdown passes, leading the Packers to an 11-3 record and a return to the NFL Championship Game, this time against the New York Giants. Starr threw for 164 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 37-0 Packers victory. Starr and the Packers continued their success in 1962, going 13-1. Even though Starr was not the focal point of the Packers' offense, with the running duo of Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung, he still provided a solid passing attack, throwing for a career-high 2,438 yards and 14 touchdowns, leading the league with a completion percentage of 62.5. The Packers repeated as NFL champions, beating the Giants again in the 1962 NFL Championship game, 16-7. While not as impressive with his passing in the early years of his career, Starr was responsible for calling plays on the Packers' offense (which was then the norm), proving to be an effective strategist on offense.
In 1963, the Packers fell short of qualifying for their fourth consecutive NFL Championship Game appearance, with injuries to Starr keeping him from finishing a few games. Even so, Starr still threw for 1,855 yards and 15 touchdowns. In 1964, with Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung struggling to continue their strong running game, Starr started to become more of the focus of the Packers' offensive attack. Vince Lombardi would help this shift by acquiring more capable pass catchers to the offense, trading for receiver Carroll Dale to join with Boyd Dowler and Max McGee, replacing tight end Ron Kramer with Marv Fleming, and drafting more pass-catching running backs in Elijah Pitts and Donny Anderson. With these new offensive weapons, Starr would put up his best passing seasons from 1964 to 1969. In 1964, despite the Packers only going 8-5-1, Starr threw for 2,144 yards, 15 touchdown passes, and only 4 interceptions. He led the league with a 97.1 passer rating.
In 1965, the Packers went 10-3-1, led by Starr's 2,055 passing yards and 16 touchdown passes, a career-high. The Packers and their Western division foe, the Baltimore Colts, finished the season with identical records, so the two teams met in a playoff game to determine the division winner. Starr was knocked out of the game after the first play when he suffered a rib injury from a hard hit, but the Packers managed to win in overtime, 13-10, led by Starr's backup, Zeke Bratkowski. Starr came back and started the 1965 NFL Championship Game against the Cleveland Browns. On a sloppy Lambeau field, the Packers went back to their classic backfield tandem of Taylor and Hornung, with the pair running for over 200 yards. Starr threw for only 147 yards, but that included a 47-yard touchdown pass to Carroll Dale.
In 1966, Starr had arguably the best season of his career, throwing for 2,257 yards, 14 touchdown passes, and only 3 interceptions. He led the NFL with a completion percentage of 62.2 and a 105 passer rating, while leading the Packers to a dominating 12-2 record. Starr would be named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by the Associated Press (AP), the Sporting News, the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA), and the UPI In the NFL Championship Game against the Dallas Cowboys, Starr had his best postseason performance, throwing for 304 yards and 4 touchdown passes, leading the Packers to a 34-27 victory, and the right to represent the NFL in the first ever Super Bowl, against the AFL champion Kansas City Chiefs. Starr had another solid game against the Chiefs, throwing for 250 yards and two touchdowns, both to Max McGee, in a decisive 35-10 Packers win. Starr was named the first-ever Super Bowl MVP for his performance.
1967 was a down year for Starr, especially when compared to his previous three seasons. Bothered by a hand injury for much of the season, Starr threw for only 1,823 yards and 9 touchdowns, with a career-high 17 interceptions thrown. Helped in large part by their defense, the Packers still finished 9-4-1, which was good enough for the Packers to reach the postseason. In the divisional playoff against the Los Angeles Rams, Starr was back in form, throwing for 222 yards and a touchdown pass in a 28-7 Packers triumph. This victory would set the stage for the infamous Ice Bowl against the Dallas Cowboys in the 1967 NFL Championship Game. Consulting with Lombardi on the sideline, Starr suggested a basic wedge play ― with a twist. Instead of handing off to Chuck Mercein as the play dictated (and unbeknownst to his teammates), Starr suggested running it in himself. Having enough of the bitterly cold weather, Lombardi said, “Then do it, and let's get the hell out of here!" Starr almost broke down in laughter as he ran back to the huddle, but held his composure. The quarterback sneak play worked and the Packers went on to beat the Cowboys 21-17. Even in the cold conditions, Starr was still able to throw for 191 yards in the Ice Bowl, with two touchdown passes to Boyd Dowler.
At the Orange Bowl in Miami, the Packers defeated the AFL champion Oakland Raiders 33–14 in Super Bowl II, Lombardi's final game as head coach of the Packers. Starr won his second consecutive Super Bowl MVP award for his performance, where he threw for 202 yards and a touchdown pass, a 62-yard strike to Boyd Dowler. The 1967 Packers remain the only team to win a third consecutive NFL title since the playoff system was instituted in 1933.
Starr had originally planned to retire after the second Super Bowl win in January 1968, but without a clear successor and a new head coach, he stayed on. After Lombardi's departure, Starr continued to be a productive quarterback under new Packers coach Phil Bengston, though injuries hampered him. Starr threw for 15 touchdown passes in 1968, leading the NFL once again in completion percentage (63.7) and passer rating (104.3). Starr struggled to stay healthy again in 1969, but still once again led the league with a 62.2 completion percentage and an 89.9 passer rating, but only threw for 9 touchdowns and 1,161 yards. Starr was able to stay healthy for most of the entire 1970 season, but his age was showing, throwing for only 1,645 yards and 8 touchdowns, the last touchdown passes of his career. In an attempt to prolong his career, Starr had surgeries on his long-ailing throwing arm in July and August 1971. This nearly ended Starr's life, as the initial surgery was botched, nearly causing Starr to bleed to death. The surgeries ended up damaging the nerves in Starr's right arm, causing him to struggle to even grip a football, and while he stayed on the Packers' roster for the entire 1971 season, he only played in three games, usually with a glove on his throwing hand to try to regain his grip on the ball. In February 1972 Starr was set for one last year. He participated in the team's spring camp in Arizona in April, but his throwing shoulder and arm were no longer effective. Starr announced his retirement in July 1972 at age 38.
Starr's playing career ended with the 1971 season, having posted the second-best career passer rating of 80.5 (First at the time was Otto Graham with 86.6).
Packers coach
Immediately following his retirement as a player, Starr served as the Packers' quarterbacks coach and called plays in 1972 under head coach Dan Devine, when the Packers won the NFC Central division title at 10–4 with Scott Hunter under center. He pursued business interests and was then a broadcaster for CBS for two seasons. When Devine left for Notre Dame after the 1974 season, Starr was hired as head coach of the Packers on Christmas Eve. Upon taking the job, he recognized the long odds of a Hall of Fame player becoming a successful head coach. Initially given a three-year contract, he led the Packers for nine years, the first five as his own general manager.
His regular season record was a disappointing 52–76–2 (), with a playoff record of 1–1. Posting a 5–3–1 record in the strike-shortened season of 1982, Starr's Packers made their first playoff appearance in ten years (and their last for another 11 years). They defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 41–16 in the expanded wild card round of 16 teams on January 8, 1983–their first home playoff game since 1967. However, they then lost to the Dallas Cowboys 37–26 in the divisional round the following week. He tallied only three other non-losing seasons as Packers coach. After a disappointing 8–8 finish the following year, Starr was dismissed in favor of his former teammate Forrest Gregg, who previously led the Cincinnati Bengals to Super Bowl XVI in the 1981 season and had coached the Cleveland Browns prior to that.
On January 13, 1984, Starr was named the head coach of the Arizona Firebirds, a proposed expansion team for the NFL in Phoenix. The NFL never granted the would-be ownership group of the Firebirds a team (Phoenix would get the Cardinals in 1988).
Honors
Starr was voted to the NFL Pro Bowl four times. He was voted NFL Most Valuable Player by both AP and UPI in 1966, and was chosen Super Bowl MVP in 1966 and 1967. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1977.
He is one of six Green Bay Packers to have had his number (15) retired by the team. The others are Tony Canadeo (3), Don Hutson (14), Ray Nitschke (66), Reggie White (92), and Brett Favre (4).
On October 17, 1970, President Richard Nixon spoke at a testimonial reception honoring Bart Starr in the Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena in Green Bay, Wisconsin. "We honor him as a very great practitioner of his profession, the proud profession of professional football," Nixon said. "And as we honor him for that, we honor him not only for his technical skill but, as I've indicated, also for something that is just as important: his leadership qualities, his character, his moral fiber ... But I think the best way that I can present Bart Starr to his friends is to say very simply that the sixties will be described as the decade in which football became the number one sport in America, in which the Packers were the number one team, and Bart Starr was proudly the number one Packer."
In 1973, Starr received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.
Starr was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1981.
Starr has an NFL award named after him. The Athletes in Action/Bart Starr Award is given annually, by a panel of judges, to an NFL player who best exemplifies outstanding character and leadership in the home, on the field, and in the community.
Head coaching record
NFL career statistics
Regular season
Personal life
Starr and his wife Cherry were married for more than 60 years. They had two sons, of whom the younger, Bret, is deceased (1988, age 24, drug overdose), and three granddaughters. He was a Christian.
In 1965, Starr and his wife Cherry helped co-found Rawhide Boys Ranch in New London, Wisconsin, a facility designed to help at-risk and troubled boys throughout the state of Wisconsin. Starr even donated the Corvette he received as MVP of Super Bowl II to help Rawhide during their early years. He was affiliated with Rawhide Boys Ranch until his death. As of 2019, Cherry and Bart Jr. are still spokespersons for Rawhide and are in communication with Rawhide on a frequent basis.
In 1971, Starr and his wife Cherry helped start the Vince Lombardi Cancer Foundation raising funds for cancer research and care in honor of his late coach, Vince Lombardi. They were active at all their events throughout the years. He and Cherry launched the Starr Children's Fund within the Vince Lombardi Cancer Foundation to continue their legacy of work supporting pediatric cancer research and care.
During his latter years, Starr suffered a number of physical ailments, including ischemic stroke, hemorrhagic stroke, a mild heart attack, seizures, and a broken hip. In June 2015, Starr's family reported that he was undergoing stem-cell therapy in a clinical trial. He managed to attend a ceremony at Lambeau Field on November 26, 2015 retiring QB Brett Favre's jersey number, and a fall 2017 reunion of the Ice Bowl Packers. At Super Bowl 50 in February 2016, the NFL held a pregame ceremony honoring the MVPs of all 49 Super Bowls. Although he wished to attend, Starr was not well enough to travel to the game and instead sent a videotaped greeting from home.
Starr died at the age of 85 on Sunday, May 26, 2019, in Birmingham, Alabama after a period of failing health caused by a serious stroke he suffered in 2014.
References
Claerbaut, David (2004), Bart Starr: When Leadership Mattered, Lanham, MD.:Taylor Trade Publishing
External links
1934 births
2019 deaths
Alabama Crimson Tide football players
Alabama Republicans
American football quarterbacks
Green Bay Packers general managers
Green Bay Packers head coaches
Green Bay Packers players
Journalists from Alabama
National Football League announcers
National Football League general managers
National Football League Most Valuable Player Award winners
National Football League players with retired numbers
Players of American football from Montgomery, Alabama
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Sidney Lanier High School alumni
Sportspeople from Montgomery, Alabama
Super Bowl MVPs
Western Conference Pro Bowl players | true | [
"Kenderick Allen (born September 14, 1978) is a former American football defensive tackle who played in 31 NFL games from 2003 through 2006. He was signed by the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent in 2003. He was also a member of the New York Giants, Green Bay Packers, Cincinnati Bengals and Minnesota Vikings. Allen played college football at Louisiana State University.\n\nProfessional career\n\nNew Orleans Saints\nAllen started his career with the New Orleans Saints in 2003. He was released on August 31, 2003.\n\nNew York Giants\nHe then signed with the New York Giants.\n\nGreen Bay Packers\nOn April 26, 2006, he signed with the Packers. On October 4, 2006, the Packers placed him on injured reserve, ending his 2006 season.\n\nCincinnati Bengals\nOn May 11, 2007, Allen signed with the Cincinnati Bengals, his fourth team in five years, but he did not make the team and was released on September 1, 2007.\n\nMinnesota Vikings\nOn March 20, 2008, he signed with the Minnesota Vikings but did not play for them.\n\nPersonal\nAllen is a cousin of former defensive lineman Ronald Fields.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nGreen Bay Packers bio\nMinnesota Vikings bio\n\n1978 births\nLiving people\nPeople from Bogalusa, Louisiana\nAmerican football defensive tackles\nPlayers of American football from Louisiana\nLSU Tigers football players\nNew Orleans Saints players\nNew York Giants players\nGreen Bay Packers players\nCincinnati Bengals players\nMinnesota Vikings players",
"Charles Adrian Johnson (born June 29, 1957) is a former American football defensive tackle who played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) for three seasons with the Green Bay Packers.\n\nJohnson was a third-round draft pick by the Packers in 1979, but did not make the 1981 team when Terry Jones became a starter. After a stint with the Philadelphia Eagles on the injured reserved list in 1982, and being cut from their 1983 team, Johnson rejoined the Packers in September 1983 for the 1983 season.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Just Sports Stats\n\n1957 births\nLiving people\nAmerican football defensive tackles\nGreen Bay Packers players\nMaryland Terrapins football players\nPlayers of American football from Baltimore"
] |
[
"Bart Starr",
"Packers quarterback",
"When did he begin with the Packers?",
"Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956"
] | C_72f3a07d556c4e5e9bf92c9f8d3013b8_1 | Did he play in any games? | 2 | Did Bart Starr play in any games? | Bart Starr | Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956 and split time with Babe Parilli until 1959, Vince Lombardi's first year as Packers coach. In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr, and he held the starting job henceforth. The following season, the Packers advanced to the 1960 NFL Championship Game, but lost to the Philadelphia Eagles, Lombardi's only post-season loss as a head coach. The Packers returned to the title game and won in 1961 and 1962, both over the New York Giants. In 1966, Starr was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by the Associated Press (AP), the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) and UPI. Starr was responsible for calling plays when he was quarterback, which was then the norm. One of his most famous play calls was in the Ice Bowl against the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL championship game on the final day of 1967. Consulting with Lombardi on the sideline, Starr suggested a basic wedge play -- with a twist. Instead of handing off to Chuck Mercein as the play dictated (and unbeknownst to his teammates), Starr suggested he would keep the ball and run it in himself. Having enough of the bitter cold weather, coach Lombardi said, "Then do it, and let's get the hell out of here!" Starr almost broke down in laughter as he ran back to the huddle, but held his composure. The play worked. The Packers went on to beat the Cowboys 21-17. At the Orange Bowl in Miami, the Packers defeated the AFL champion Oakland Raiders 33-14 in Super Bowl II, Lombardi's final game as head coach of the Packers, who were favored by 13 1/2 points. The 1967 Packers remain the only team to win a third consecutive NFL title since the playoff system was instituted in 1933. Starr's playing career ended with the 1971 season, having posted the second best career passer rating of 80.5 (First at the time was Otto Graham with 86.6). He had surgeries on his long-ailing throwing arm in July and August 1971, and saw limited action in his last season. Starr had originally planned to retire after the second Super Bowl win in January 1968, but without a clear successor and a new head coach, he stayed on; by February 1972 he was set for one last year. He participated in the team's spring camp in Arizona in April, then announced his retirement in July at age 38. CANNOTANSWER | In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr, | Bryan Bartlett Starr (January 9, 1934 – May 26, 2019) was a professional American football quarterback and coach. He played college football at the University of Alabama, and was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the 17th round of the 1956 NFL Draft, where he played for them until 1971. Starr is the only quarterback in NFL history to lead a team to three consecutive league championships (1965–1967). He led his team to victories in the first two Super Bowls: I and II. As the Packers' head coach, he was less successful, compiling a 52–76–3 () record from 1975 through 1983.
Starr was named the Most Valuable Player of the first two Super Bowls and during his career earned four Pro Bowl selections. He won the league MVP award in 1966. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Packers Hall of Fame in 1977. Starr has the highest postseason passer rating (104.8) of any quarterback in NFL history and a postseason record of 9–1. His career completion percentage of 57.4 was an NFL best when he retired in 1972. For 32 years (through the 2003 season), Starr also held the Packers' franchise record for games played (196).
Early life
Starr was born and raised in Montgomery, Alabama to parents Benjamin Bryan Starr (1910–1985), a labor foreman with the state highway department, and Lula (Tucker) Starr (1916–1995). Starr's early life was marked by hardships. Shortly after the start of World War II, his father's reserve unit was activated and in 1942 he was deployed to the Pacific Theater. He was first in the U.S. Army but transferred to the U.S. Air Force for his military career.
Starr had a younger brother, Hilton E. "Bubba" Starr. In 1946, Bubba stepped on a dog bone while playing in the yard and three days later died of tetanus. Starr's relationship with his father deteriorated after Hilton's death. He was an introverted child who rarely showed his emotions and his father pushed Starr to develop more of a mean streak.
Starr attended Sidney Lanier High School in Montgomery, and tried out for the football team in his sophomore year, but decided to quit after two weeks. His father gave him the option of playing football or working in the family garden; Starr chose to return to the football field.
In his junior year, the starting quarterback broke his leg and Starr became the starter. He led Lanier to an undefeated season. In his senior season, Starr was named all-state and All-American, and received college scholarship offers from universities across the country. He seriously considered the University of Kentucky, coached by Bear Bryant. Starr's high school sweetheart, Cherry Louise Morton, was planning to attend Auburn and Starr wished to attend a college close to her. Starr changed his mind and committed to the University of Alabama.
College career
During Starr’s freshman year at Alabama, the Southeastern Conference allowed freshmen to play varsity football. Starr did not start for Alabama as a freshman, but he did play enough minutes to earn a varsity letter. His high point of the season came in quarterback relief in the Orange Bowl, when he completed 8 of 12 passes for 93 yards and a touchdown against Syracuse.
Starr entered his sophomore year as Alabama's starting quarterback, safety and punter. His punting average of 41.4 yards per kick ranked second in the nation in 1953, behind Zeke Bratkowski. Alabama recorded a 6–2–3 record and lost in the Cotton Bowl to Rice by a score of 28–6. Starr completed 59 of 119 passes for 870 yards, with eight touchdowns that season.
In May 1954, Starr eloped with Cherry Morton. The couple chose to keep their marriage a secret. Colleges often revoked the scholarships of married athletes in the 1950s, believing their focus should remain on sports. Cherry remained in Jackson, Alabama, while Starr returned to the University of Alabama.
That summer, Starr suffered a severe back injury during a hazing incident for his initiation into the A Club. He covered up the cause by fabricating a story about being hurt while punting a football. He rarely played during his junior year due to the injury. The back injury disqualified him later from military service, and would occasionally bother him the rest of his football career. After a disappointing season of 4–5–2, Harold Drew was replaced by Jennings B. Whitworth as coach of Alabama.
Whitworth conducted a youth movement at Alabama for the 1955 season and only two seniors started for the team. Supposedly healed from the back injury, Starr rarely played in his senior season. Starr's decision to play football for Alabama rather than for Bear Bryant at the University of Kentucky did not sit well with Bryant, and four years later as head coach of the Blue–Gray Football Classic in 1955, Bryant hardly let Bart play at all.
Johnny Dee, the basketball coach at Alabama, was a friend of Jack Vainisi, the personnel director of the Green Bay Packers. Dee recommended Starr as a prospect to Vainisi. The Packers were convinced that Starr had the ability to succeed in the NFL and would learn quickly. In the 17th round of the 1956 NFL Draft, Starr was selected by the Packers, with the 200th overall pick.
Starr spent the summer of 1956 living with his in-laws and throwing footballs through a tire in their backyard in order to prepare for his rookie season. The Packers offered $6,500 (equal to $ today) to sign Starr and he accepted, with the added condition, requested by Starr, that he receive $1,000 up front.
Packers quarterback
Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956 and split time with Babe Parilli until 1959, Vince Lombardi's first year as Packers coach. In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr, and he held the starting job henceforth. The following season, the Packers advanced to the 1960 NFL Championship Game, but lost to the Philadelphia Eagles in Lombardi's only post-season loss as a head coach.
1961 was Starr's first season as a full-time starting quarterback for the Packers, throwing for over 2,400 yards and 16 touchdown passes, leading the Packers to an 11-3 record and a return to the NFL Championship Game, this time against the New York Giants. Starr threw for 164 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 37-0 Packers victory. Starr and the Packers continued their success in 1962, going 13-1. Even though Starr was not the focal point of the Packers' offense, with the running duo of Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung, he still provided a solid passing attack, throwing for a career-high 2,438 yards and 14 touchdowns, leading the league with a completion percentage of 62.5. The Packers repeated as NFL champions, beating the Giants again in the 1962 NFL Championship game, 16-7. While not as impressive with his passing in the early years of his career, Starr was responsible for calling plays on the Packers' offense (which was then the norm), proving to be an effective strategist on offense.
In 1963, the Packers fell short of qualifying for their fourth consecutive NFL Championship Game appearance, with injuries to Starr keeping him from finishing a few games. Even so, Starr still threw for 1,855 yards and 15 touchdowns. In 1964, with Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung struggling to continue their strong running game, Starr started to become more of the focus of the Packers' offensive attack. Vince Lombardi would help this shift by acquiring more capable pass catchers to the offense, trading for receiver Carroll Dale to join with Boyd Dowler and Max McGee, replacing tight end Ron Kramer with Marv Fleming, and drafting more pass-catching running backs in Elijah Pitts and Donny Anderson. With these new offensive weapons, Starr would put up his best passing seasons from 1964 to 1969. In 1964, despite the Packers only going 8-5-1, Starr threw for 2,144 yards, 15 touchdown passes, and only 4 interceptions. He led the league with a 97.1 passer rating.
In 1965, the Packers went 10-3-1, led by Starr's 2,055 passing yards and 16 touchdown passes, a career-high. The Packers and their Western division foe, the Baltimore Colts, finished the season with identical records, so the two teams met in a playoff game to determine the division winner. Starr was knocked out of the game after the first play when he suffered a rib injury from a hard hit, but the Packers managed to win in overtime, 13-10, led by Starr's backup, Zeke Bratkowski. Starr came back and started the 1965 NFL Championship Game against the Cleveland Browns. On a sloppy Lambeau field, the Packers went back to their classic backfield tandem of Taylor and Hornung, with the pair running for over 200 yards. Starr threw for only 147 yards, but that included a 47-yard touchdown pass to Carroll Dale.
In 1966, Starr had arguably the best season of his career, throwing for 2,257 yards, 14 touchdown passes, and only 3 interceptions. He led the NFL with a completion percentage of 62.2 and a 105 passer rating, while leading the Packers to a dominating 12-2 record. Starr would be named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by the Associated Press (AP), the Sporting News, the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA), and the UPI In the NFL Championship Game against the Dallas Cowboys, Starr had his best postseason performance, throwing for 304 yards and 4 touchdown passes, leading the Packers to a 34-27 victory, and the right to represent the NFL in the first ever Super Bowl, against the AFL champion Kansas City Chiefs. Starr had another solid game against the Chiefs, throwing for 250 yards and two touchdowns, both to Max McGee, in a decisive 35-10 Packers win. Starr was named the first-ever Super Bowl MVP for his performance.
1967 was a down year for Starr, especially when compared to his previous three seasons. Bothered by a hand injury for much of the season, Starr threw for only 1,823 yards and 9 touchdowns, with a career-high 17 interceptions thrown. Helped in large part by their defense, the Packers still finished 9-4-1, which was good enough for the Packers to reach the postseason. In the divisional playoff against the Los Angeles Rams, Starr was back in form, throwing for 222 yards and a touchdown pass in a 28-7 Packers triumph. This victory would set the stage for the infamous Ice Bowl against the Dallas Cowboys in the 1967 NFL Championship Game. Consulting with Lombardi on the sideline, Starr suggested a basic wedge play ― with a twist. Instead of handing off to Chuck Mercein as the play dictated (and unbeknownst to his teammates), Starr suggested running it in himself. Having enough of the bitterly cold weather, Lombardi said, “Then do it, and let's get the hell out of here!" Starr almost broke down in laughter as he ran back to the huddle, but held his composure. The quarterback sneak play worked and the Packers went on to beat the Cowboys 21-17. Even in the cold conditions, Starr was still able to throw for 191 yards in the Ice Bowl, with two touchdown passes to Boyd Dowler.
At the Orange Bowl in Miami, the Packers defeated the AFL champion Oakland Raiders 33–14 in Super Bowl II, Lombardi's final game as head coach of the Packers. Starr won his second consecutive Super Bowl MVP award for his performance, where he threw for 202 yards and a touchdown pass, a 62-yard strike to Boyd Dowler. The 1967 Packers remain the only team to win a third consecutive NFL title since the playoff system was instituted in 1933.
Starr had originally planned to retire after the second Super Bowl win in January 1968, but without a clear successor and a new head coach, he stayed on. After Lombardi's departure, Starr continued to be a productive quarterback under new Packers coach Phil Bengston, though injuries hampered him. Starr threw for 15 touchdown passes in 1968, leading the NFL once again in completion percentage (63.7) and passer rating (104.3). Starr struggled to stay healthy again in 1969, but still once again led the league with a 62.2 completion percentage and an 89.9 passer rating, but only threw for 9 touchdowns and 1,161 yards. Starr was able to stay healthy for most of the entire 1970 season, but his age was showing, throwing for only 1,645 yards and 8 touchdowns, the last touchdown passes of his career. In an attempt to prolong his career, Starr had surgeries on his long-ailing throwing arm in July and August 1971. This nearly ended Starr's life, as the initial surgery was botched, nearly causing Starr to bleed to death. The surgeries ended up damaging the nerves in Starr's right arm, causing him to struggle to even grip a football, and while he stayed on the Packers' roster for the entire 1971 season, he only played in three games, usually with a glove on his throwing hand to try to regain his grip on the ball. In February 1972 Starr was set for one last year. He participated in the team's spring camp in Arizona in April, but his throwing shoulder and arm were no longer effective. Starr announced his retirement in July 1972 at age 38.
Starr's playing career ended with the 1971 season, having posted the second-best career passer rating of 80.5 (First at the time was Otto Graham with 86.6).
Packers coach
Immediately following his retirement as a player, Starr served as the Packers' quarterbacks coach and called plays in 1972 under head coach Dan Devine, when the Packers won the NFC Central division title at 10–4 with Scott Hunter under center. He pursued business interests and was then a broadcaster for CBS for two seasons. When Devine left for Notre Dame after the 1974 season, Starr was hired as head coach of the Packers on Christmas Eve. Upon taking the job, he recognized the long odds of a Hall of Fame player becoming a successful head coach. Initially given a three-year contract, he led the Packers for nine years, the first five as his own general manager.
His regular season record was a disappointing 52–76–2 (), with a playoff record of 1–1. Posting a 5–3–1 record in the strike-shortened season of 1982, Starr's Packers made their first playoff appearance in ten years (and their last for another 11 years). They defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 41–16 in the expanded wild card round of 16 teams on January 8, 1983–their first home playoff game since 1967. However, they then lost to the Dallas Cowboys 37–26 in the divisional round the following week. He tallied only three other non-losing seasons as Packers coach. After a disappointing 8–8 finish the following year, Starr was dismissed in favor of his former teammate Forrest Gregg, who previously led the Cincinnati Bengals to Super Bowl XVI in the 1981 season and had coached the Cleveland Browns prior to that.
On January 13, 1984, Starr was named the head coach of the Arizona Firebirds, a proposed expansion team for the NFL in Phoenix. The NFL never granted the would-be ownership group of the Firebirds a team (Phoenix would get the Cardinals in 1988).
Honors
Starr was voted to the NFL Pro Bowl four times. He was voted NFL Most Valuable Player by both AP and UPI in 1966, and was chosen Super Bowl MVP in 1966 and 1967. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1977.
He is one of six Green Bay Packers to have had his number (15) retired by the team. The others are Tony Canadeo (3), Don Hutson (14), Ray Nitschke (66), Reggie White (92), and Brett Favre (4).
On October 17, 1970, President Richard Nixon spoke at a testimonial reception honoring Bart Starr in the Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena in Green Bay, Wisconsin. "We honor him as a very great practitioner of his profession, the proud profession of professional football," Nixon said. "And as we honor him for that, we honor him not only for his technical skill but, as I've indicated, also for something that is just as important: his leadership qualities, his character, his moral fiber ... But I think the best way that I can present Bart Starr to his friends is to say very simply that the sixties will be described as the decade in which football became the number one sport in America, in which the Packers were the number one team, and Bart Starr was proudly the number one Packer."
In 1973, Starr received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.
Starr was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1981.
Starr has an NFL award named after him. The Athletes in Action/Bart Starr Award is given annually, by a panel of judges, to an NFL player who best exemplifies outstanding character and leadership in the home, on the field, and in the community.
Head coaching record
NFL career statistics
Regular season
Personal life
Starr and his wife Cherry were married for more than 60 years. They had two sons, of whom the younger, Bret, is deceased (1988, age 24, drug overdose), and three granddaughters. He was a Christian.
In 1965, Starr and his wife Cherry helped co-found Rawhide Boys Ranch in New London, Wisconsin, a facility designed to help at-risk and troubled boys throughout the state of Wisconsin. Starr even donated the Corvette he received as MVP of Super Bowl II to help Rawhide during their early years. He was affiliated with Rawhide Boys Ranch until his death. As of 2019, Cherry and Bart Jr. are still spokespersons for Rawhide and are in communication with Rawhide on a frequent basis.
In 1971, Starr and his wife Cherry helped start the Vince Lombardi Cancer Foundation raising funds for cancer research and care in honor of his late coach, Vince Lombardi. They were active at all their events throughout the years. He and Cherry launched the Starr Children's Fund within the Vince Lombardi Cancer Foundation to continue their legacy of work supporting pediatric cancer research and care.
During his latter years, Starr suffered a number of physical ailments, including ischemic stroke, hemorrhagic stroke, a mild heart attack, seizures, and a broken hip. In June 2015, Starr's family reported that he was undergoing stem-cell therapy in a clinical trial. He managed to attend a ceremony at Lambeau Field on November 26, 2015 retiring QB Brett Favre's jersey number, and a fall 2017 reunion of the Ice Bowl Packers. At Super Bowl 50 in February 2016, the NFL held a pregame ceremony honoring the MVPs of all 49 Super Bowls. Although he wished to attend, Starr was not well enough to travel to the game and instead sent a videotaped greeting from home.
Starr died at the age of 85 on Sunday, May 26, 2019, in Birmingham, Alabama after a period of failing health caused by a serious stroke he suffered in 2014.
References
Claerbaut, David (2004), Bart Starr: When Leadership Mattered, Lanham, MD.:Taylor Trade Publishing
External links
1934 births
2019 deaths
Alabama Crimson Tide football players
Alabama Republicans
American football quarterbacks
Green Bay Packers general managers
Green Bay Packers head coaches
Green Bay Packers players
Journalists from Alabama
National Football League announcers
National Football League general managers
National Football League Most Valuable Player Award winners
National Football League players with retired numbers
Players of American football from Montgomery, Alabama
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Sidney Lanier High School alumni
Sportspeople from Montgomery, Alabama
Super Bowl MVPs
Western Conference Pro Bowl players | true | [
"Troy Warden Andrew (born December 12, 1979) is a former American football center who played one season for the Miami Dolphins in 2001.\n\nEarly life\nTroy Andrew was born in Tamuning, Guam on December 12, 1979. He went to high school at Klein (TX).\n\nCollege\nHe went to college at Duke.\n\nProfessional career\n\nMiami Dolphins\n\nAndrew was signed as a undrafted free agent by the Miami Dolphins on April 26, 2001. He played 8 games that season. He wore number 65 for the Dolphins. He was released on September 9, 2002. \n\nHouston Texans\n\nThe next day after being cut he was claimed off waivers by the Houston Texans. But he did not make the roster and was cut 4 days later. He did not play in any games for the Texans.\n\nMiami Dolphins (Second Stint)\n\nTroy was then signed to the Miami Dolphins practice squad three days after being cut by the Texans. He was on the practice squad all year and did not play in any games. In the offseason he played for the Barcelona Dragons. In 2002 he was cut before the season started.\n\nBarcelona Dragons\n\nDuring the offseason of 2002, he was the starting center the full season for the Barcelona Dragons. He played all ten games and started them.\n\nCleveland Browns\n\nOn November 26, 2003, he was signed to the Cleveland Browns practice squad. He did not play in any games for the Browns. On January 5, 2004, he was released.\n\nBerlin Thunder\n\nDuring the 2004 offseason, he was the starting center for the Berlin Thunder. He played in all the games as the Berlin Thunder won World Bowl XII against the Frankfurt Galaxy.\n\nSan Diego Chargers\n\nOn June 18, 2004, he was signed by the San Diego Chargers. However, he did not make the roster and was cut on August 31. In his career he played in 8 games, all in 2001. He was not signed and did not play for any other teams after he was released by the Chargers.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nReview A Chat With Football Player Troy Andrew\nTroy Andrew Stats\nTroy Andrew Stats, News and Video - C\n\nMiami Dolphins players\nAmerican football centers\n1977 births\nDuke Blue Devils football players\nLiving people",
"Peter C. Swanson (born March 26, 1974) is a former American football Offensive Guard who played one season for the St. Louis Rams. He also played for the Rhein Fire.\n\nEarly life\nPete Swanson was born on March 26, 1974 in Hollister, California\n\nProfessional career\nSwanson was originally signed with the Kansas City Chiefs in 1997 as an undrafted free agent. But he did not play any games. In 1999 he was picked in the Cleveland Browns Expansion Draft. He also signed with the San Francisco 49ers in 1999 but did not play any games. He played with the Rhein Fire and St Louis Rams in 2000, he played 3 games with the Rams. In his NFL career he played 3 games.\n\nReferences\n\nLos Angeles Rams players\n1974 births\nPlayers of American football from California\nLiving people\nRhein Fire players\nStanford Cardinal football players\nAmerican football offensive linemen\nPeople from Hollister, California"
] |
[
"Bart Starr",
"Packers quarterback",
"When did he begin with the Packers?",
"Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956",
"Did he play in any games?",
"In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr,"
] | C_72f3a07d556c4e5e9bf92c9f8d3013b8_1 | Was he a successful player? | 3 | Was Bart Starr a successful player? | Bart Starr | Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956 and split time with Babe Parilli until 1959, Vince Lombardi's first year as Packers coach. In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr, and he held the starting job henceforth. The following season, the Packers advanced to the 1960 NFL Championship Game, but lost to the Philadelphia Eagles, Lombardi's only post-season loss as a head coach. The Packers returned to the title game and won in 1961 and 1962, both over the New York Giants. In 1966, Starr was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by the Associated Press (AP), the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) and UPI. Starr was responsible for calling plays when he was quarterback, which was then the norm. One of his most famous play calls was in the Ice Bowl against the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL championship game on the final day of 1967. Consulting with Lombardi on the sideline, Starr suggested a basic wedge play -- with a twist. Instead of handing off to Chuck Mercein as the play dictated (and unbeknownst to his teammates), Starr suggested he would keep the ball and run it in himself. Having enough of the bitter cold weather, coach Lombardi said, "Then do it, and let's get the hell out of here!" Starr almost broke down in laughter as he ran back to the huddle, but held his composure. The play worked. The Packers went on to beat the Cowboys 21-17. At the Orange Bowl in Miami, the Packers defeated the AFL champion Oakland Raiders 33-14 in Super Bowl II, Lombardi's final game as head coach of the Packers, who were favored by 13 1/2 points. The 1967 Packers remain the only team to win a third consecutive NFL title since the playoff system was instituted in 1933. Starr's playing career ended with the 1971 season, having posted the second best career passer rating of 80.5 (First at the time was Otto Graham with 86.6). He had surgeries on his long-ailing throwing arm in July and August 1971, and saw limited action in his last season. Starr had originally planned to retire after the second Super Bowl win in January 1968, but without a clear successor and a new head coach, he stayed on; by February 1972 he was set for one last year. He participated in the team's spring camp in Arizona in April, then announced his retirement in July at age 38. CANNOTANSWER | he held the starting job henceforth. | Bryan Bartlett Starr (January 9, 1934 – May 26, 2019) was a professional American football quarterback and coach. He played college football at the University of Alabama, and was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the 17th round of the 1956 NFL Draft, where he played for them until 1971. Starr is the only quarterback in NFL history to lead a team to three consecutive league championships (1965–1967). He led his team to victories in the first two Super Bowls: I and II. As the Packers' head coach, he was less successful, compiling a 52–76–3 () record from 1975 through 1983.
Starr was named the Most Valuable Player of the first two Super Bowls and during his career earned four Pro Bowl selections. He won the league MVP award in 1966. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Packers Hall of Fame in 1977. Starr has the highest postseason passer rating (104.8) of any quarterback in NFL history and a postseason record of 9–1. His career completion percentage of 57.4 was an NFL best when he retired in 1972. For 32 years (through the 2003 season), Starr also held the Packers' franchise record for games played (196).
Early life
Starr was born and raised in Montgomery, Alabama to parents Benjamin Bryan Starr (1910–1985), a labor foreman with the state highway department, and Lula (Tucker) Starr (1916–1995). Starr's early life was marked by hardships. Shortly after the start of World War II, his father's reserve unit was activated and in 1942 he was deployed to the Pacific Theater. He was first in the U.S. Army but transferred to the U.S. Air Force for his military career.
Starr had a younger brother, Hilton E. "Bubba" Starr. In 1946, Bubba stepped on a dog bone while playing in the yard and three days later died of tetanus. Starr's relationship with his father deteriorated after Hilton's death. He was an introverted child who rarely showed his emotions and his father pushed Starr to develop more of a mean streak.
Starr attended Sidney Lanier High School in Montgomery, and tried out for the football team in his sophomore year, but decided to quit after two weeks. His father gave him the option of playing football or working in the family garden; Starr chose to return to the football field.
In his junior year, the starting quarterback broke his leg and Starr became the starter. He led Lanier to an undefeated season. In his senior season, Starr was named all-state and All-American, and received college scholarship offers from universities across the country. He seriously considered the University of Kentucky, coached by Bear Bryant. Starr's high school sweetheart, Cherry Louise Morton, was planning to attend Auburn and Starr wished to attend a college close to her. Starr changed his mind and committed to the University of Alabama.
College career
During Starr’s freshman year at Alabama, the Southeastern Conference allowed freshmen to play varsity football. Starr did not start for Alabama as a freshman, but he did play enough minutes to earn a varsity letter. His high point of the season came in quarterback relief in the Orange Bowl, when he completed 8 of 12 passes for 93 yards and a touchdown against Syracuse.
Starr entered his sophomore year as Alabama's starting quarterback, safety and punter. His punting average of 41.4 yards per kick ranked second in the nation in 1953, behind Zeke Bratkowski. Alabama recorded a 6–2–3 record and lost in the Cotton Bowl to Rice by a score of 28–6. Starr completed 59 of 119 passes for 870 yards, with eight touchdowns that season.
In May 1954, Starr eloped with Cherry Morton. The couple chose to keep their marriage a secret. Colleges often revoked the scholarships of married athletes in the 1950s, believing their focus should remain on sports. Cherry remained in Jackson, Alabama, while Starr returned to the University of Alabama.
That summer, Starr suffered a severe back injury during a hazing incident for his initiation into the A Club. He covered up the cause by fabricating a story about being hurt while punting a football. He rarely played during his junior year due to the injury. The back injury disqualified him later from military service, and would occasionally bother him the rest of his football career. After a disappointing season of 4–5–2, Harold Drew was replaced by Jennings B. Whitworth as coach of Alabama.
Whitworth conducted a youth movement at Alabama for the 1955 season and only two seniors started for the team. Supposedly healed from the back injury, Starr rarely played in his senior season. Starr's decision to play football for Alabama rather than for Bear Bryant at the University of Kentucky did not sit well with Bryant, and four years later as head coach of the Blue–Gray Football Classic in 1955, Bryant hardly let Bart play at all.
Johnny Dee, the basketball coach at Alabama, was a friend of Jack Vainisi, the personnel director of the Green Bay Packers. Dee recommended Starr as a prospect to Vainisi. The Packers were convinced that Starr had the ability to succeed in the NFL and would learn quickly. In the 17th round of the 1956 NFL Draft, Starr was selected by the Packers, with the 200th overall pick.
Starr spent the summer of 1956 living with his in-laws and throwing footballs through a tire in their backyard in order to prepare for his rookie season. The Packers offered $6,500 (equal to $ today) to sign Starr and he accepted, with the added condition, requested by Starr, that he receive $1,000 up front.
Packers quarterback
Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956 and split time with Babe Parilli until 1959, Vince Lombardi's first year as Packers coach. In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr, and he held the starting job henceforth. The following season, the Packers advanced to the 1960 NFL Championship Game, but lost to the Philadelphia Eagles in Lombardi's only post-season loss as a head coach.
1961 was Starr's first season as a full-time starting quarterback for the Packers, throwing for over 2,400 yards and 16 touchdown passes, leading the Packers to an 11-3 record and a return to the NFL Championship Game, this time against the New York Giants. Starr threw for 164 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 37-0 Packers victory. Starr and the Packers continued their success in 1962, going 13-1. Even though Starr was not the focal point of the Packers' offense, with the running duo of Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung, he still provided a solid passing attack, throwing for a career-high 2,438 yards and 14 touchdowns, leading the league with a completion percentage of 62.5. The Packers repeated as NFL champions, beating the Giants again in the 1962 NFL Championship game, 16-7. While not as impressive with his passing in the early years of his career, Starr was responsible for calling plays on the Packers' offense (which was then the norm), proving to be an effective strategist on offense.
In 1963, the Packers fell short of qualifying for their fourth consecutive NFL Championship Game appearance, with injuries to Starr keeping him from finishing a few games. Even so, Starr still threw for 1,855 yards and 15 touchdowns. In 1964, with Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung struggling to continue their strong running game, Starr started to become more of the focus of the Packers' offensive attack. Vince Lombardi would help this shift by acquiring more capable pass catchers to the offense, trading for receiver Carroll Dale to join with Boyd Dowler and Max McGee, replacing tight end Ron Kramer with Marv Fleming, and drafting more pass-catching running backs in Elijah Pitts and Donny Anderson. With these new offensive weapons, Starr would put up his best passing seasons from 1964 to 1969. In 1964, despite the Packers only going 8-5-1, Starr threw for 2,144 yards, 15 touchdown passes, and only 4 interceptions. He led the league with a 97.1 passer rating.
In 1965, the Packers went 10-3-1, led by Starr's 2,055 passing yards and 16 touchdown passes, a career-high. The Packers and their Western division foe, the Baltimore Colts, finished the season with identical records, so the two teams met in a playoff game to determine the division winner. Starr was knocked out of the game after the first play when he suffered a rib injury from a hard hit, but the Packers managed to win in overtime, 13-10, led by Starr's backup, Zeke Bratkowski. Starr came back and started the 1965 NFL Championship Game against the Cleveland Browns. On a sloppy Lambeau field, the Packers went back to their classic backfield tandem of Taylor and Hornung, with the pair running for over 200 yards. Starr threw for only 147 yards, but that included a 47-yard touchdown pass to Carroll Dale.
In 1966, Starr had arguably the best season of his career, throwing for 2,257 yards, 14 touchdown passes, and only 3 interceptions. He led the NFL with a completion percentage of 62.2 and a 105 passer rating, while leading the Packers to a dominating 12-2 record. Starr would be named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by the Associated Press (AP), the Sporting News, the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA), and the UPI In the NFL Championship Game against the Dallas Cowboys, Starr had his best postseason performance, throwing for 304 yards and 4 touchdown passes, leading the Packers to a 34-27 victory, and the right to represent the NFL in the first ever Super Bowl, against the AFL champion Kansas City Chiefs. Starr had another solid game against the Chiefs, throwing for 250 yards and two touchdowns, both to Max McGee, in a decisive 35-10 Packers win. Starr was named the first-ever Super Bowl MVP for his performance.
1967 was a down year for Starr, especially when compared to his previous three seasons. Bothered by a hand injury for much of the season, Starr threw for only 1,823 yards and 9 touchdowns, with a career-high 17 interceptions thrown. Helped in large part by their defense, the Packers still finished 9-4-1, which was good enough for the Packers to reach the postseason. In the divisional playoff against the Los Angeles Rams, Starr was back in form, throwing for 222 yards and a touchdown pass in a 28-7 Packers triumph. This victory would set the stage for the infamous Ice Bowl against the Dallas Cowboys in the 1967 NFL Championship Game. Consulting with Lombardi on the sideline, Starr suggested a basic wedge play ― with a twist. Instead of handing off to Chuck Mercein as the play dictated (and unbeknownst to his teammates), Starr suggested running it in himself. Having enough of the bitterly cold weather, Lombardi said, “Then do it, and let's get the hell out of here!" Starr almost broke down in laughter as he ran back to the huddle, but held his composure. The quarterback sneak play worked and the Packers went on to beat the Cowboys 21-17. Even in the cold conditions, Starr was still able to throw for 191 yards in the Ice Bowl, with two touchdown passes to Boyd Dowler.
At the Orange Bowl in Miami, the Packers defeated the AFL champion Oakland Raiders 33–14 in Super Bowl II, Lombardi's final game as head coach of the Packers. Starr won his second consecutive Super Bowl MVP award for his performance, where he threw for 202 yards and a touchdown pass, a 62-yard strike to Boyd Dowler. The 1967 Packers remain the only team to win a third consecutive NFL title since the playoff system was instituted in 1933.
Starr had originally planned to retire after the second Super Bowl win in January 1968, but without a clear successor and a new head coach, he stayed on. After Lombardi's departure, Starr continued to be a productive quarterback under new Packers coach Phil Bengston, though injuries hampered him. Starr threw for 15 touchdown passes in 1968, leading the NFL once again in completion percentage (63.7) and passer rating (104.3). Starr struggled to stay healthy again in 1969, but still once again led the league with a 62.2 completion percentage and an 89.9 passer rating, but only threw for 9 touchdowns and 1,161 yards. Starr was able to stay healthy for most of the entire 1970 season, but his age was showing, throwing for only 1,645 yards and 8 touchdowns, the last touchdown passes of his career. In an attempt to prolong his career, Starr had surgeries on his long-ailing throwing arm in July and August 1971. This nearly ended Starr's life, as the initial surgery was botched, nearly causing Starr to bleed to death. The surgeries ended up damaging the nerves in Starr's right arm, causing him to struggle to even grip a football, and while he stayed on the Packers' roster for the entire 1971 season, he only played in three games, usually with a glove on his throwing hand to try to regain his grip on the ball. In February 1972 Starr was set for one last year. He participated in the team's spring camp in Arizona in April, but his throwing shoulder and arm were no longer effective. Starr announced his retirement in July 1972 at age 38.
Starr's playing career ended with the 1971 season, having posted the second-best career passer rating of 80.5 (First at the time was Otto Graham with 86.6).
Packers coach
Immediately following his retirement as a player, Starr served as the Packers' quarterbacks coach and called plays in 1972 under head coach Dan Devine, when the Packers won the NFC Central division title at 10–4 with Scott Hunter under center. He pursued business interests and was then a broadcaster for CBS for two seasons. When Devine left for Notre Dame after the 1974 season, Starr was hired as head coach of the Packers on Christmas Eve. Upon taking the job, he recognized the long odds of a Hall of Fame player becoming a successful head coach. Initially given a three-year contract, he led the Packers for nine years, the first five as his own general manager.
His regular season record was a disappointing 52–76–2 (), with a playoff record of 1–1. Posting a 5–3–1 record in the strike-shortened season of 1982, Starr's Packers made their first playoff appearance in ten years (and their last for another 11 years). They defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 41–16 in the expanded wild card round of 16 teams on January 8, 1983–their first home playoff game since 1967. However, they then lost to the Dallas Cowboys 37–26 in the divisional round the following week. He tallied only three other non-losing seasons as Packers coach. After a disappointing 8–8 finish the following year, Starr was dismissed in favor of his former teammate Forrest Gregg, who previously led the Cincinnati Bengals to Super Bowl XVI in the 1981 season and had coached the Cleveland Browns prior to that.
On January 13, 1984, Starr was named the head coach of the Arizona Firebirds, a proposed expansion team for the NFL in Phoenix. The NFL never granted the would-be ownership group of the Firebirds a team (Phoenix would get the Cardinals in 1988).
Honors
Starr was voted to the NFL Pro Bowl four times. He was voted NFL Most Valuable Player by both AP and UPI in 1966, and was chosen Super Bowl MVP in 1966 and 1967. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1977.
He is one of six Green Bay Packers to have had his number (15) retired by the team. The others are Tony Canadeo (3), Don Hutson (14), Ray Nitschke (66), Reggie White (92), and Brett Favre (4).
On October 17, 1970, President Richard Nixon spoke at a testimonial reception honoring Bart Starr in the Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena in Green Bay, Wisconsin. "We honor him as a very great practitioner of his profession, the proud profession of professional football," Nixon said. "And as we honor him for that, we honor him not only for his technical skill but, as I've indicated, also for something that is just as important: his leadership qualities, his character, his moral fiber ... But I think the best way that I can present Bart Starr to his friends is to say very simply that the sixties will be described as the decade in which football became the number one sport in America, in which the Packers were the number one team, and Bart Starr was proudly the number one Packer."
In 1973, Starr received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.
Starr was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1981.
Starr has an NFL award named after him. The Athletes in Action/Bart Starr Award is given annually, by a panel of judges, to an NFL player who best exemplifies outstanding character and leadership in the home, on the field, and in the community.
Head coaching record
NFL career statistics
Regular season
Personal life
Starr and his wife Cherry were married for more than 60 years. They had two sons, of whom the younger, Bret, is deceased (1988, age 24, drug overdose), and three granddaughters. He was a Christian.
In 1965, Starr and his wife Cherry helped co-found Rawhide Boys Ranch in New London, Wisconsin, a facility designed to help at-risk and troubled boys throughout the state of Wisconsin. Starr even donated the Corvette he received as MVP of Super Bowl II to help Rawhide during their early years. He was affiliated with Rawhide Boys Ranch until his death. As of 2019, Cherry and Bart Jr. are still spokespersons for Rawhide and are in communication with Rawhide on a frequent basis.
In 1971, Starr and his wife Cherry helped start the Vince Lombardi Cancer Foundation raising funds for cancer research and care in honor of his late coach, Vince Lombardi. They were active at all their events throughout the years. He and Cherry launched the Starr Children's Fund within the Vince Lombardi Cancer Foundation to continue their legacy of work supporting pediatric cancer research and care.
During his latter years, Starr suffered a number of physical ailments, including ischemic stroke, hemorrhagic stroke, a mild heart attack, seizures, and a broken hip. In June 2015, Starr's family reported that he was undergoing stem-cell therapy in a clinical trial. He managed to attend a ceremony at Lambeau Field on November 26, 2015 retiring QB Brett Favre's jersey number, and a fall 2017 reunion of the Ice Bowl Packers. At Super Bowl 50 in February 2016, the NFL held a pregame ceremony honoring the MVPs of all 49 Super Bowls. Although he wished to attend, Starr was not well enough to travel to the game and instead sent a videotaped greeting from home.
Starr died at the age of 85 on Sunday, May 26, 2019, in Birmingham, Alabama after a period of failing health caused by a serious stroke he suffered in 2014.
References
Claerbaut, David (2004), Bart Starr: When Leadership Mattered, Lanham, MD.:Taylor Trade Publishing
External links
1934 births
2019 deaths
Alabama Crimson Tide football players
Alabama Republicans
American football quarterbacks
Green Bay Packers general managers
Green Bay Packers head coaches
Green Bay Packers players
Journalists from Alabama
National Football League announcers
National Football League general managers
National Football League Most Valuable Player Award winners
National Football League players with retired numbers
Players of American football from Montgomery, Alabama
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Sidney Lanier High School alumni
Sportspeople from Montgomery, Alabama
Super Bowl MVPs
Western Conference Pro Bowl players | true | [
"Boris Koytchou (1919 – 30 April 2006) was an American bridge player who played internationally both for France and North America.\n\nHe was also a highly talented croquet player and a very successful rubber bridge player, mainly at the Regency Whist Club. Koytchou was one of the most popular players of his generation, and was that rarity in competitive bridge, a successful player about whom nobody had an unpleasant word to say. \n\nHe was born in Russia in 1919, but after the revolution his family settled first in what is now Istanbul; they then moved to Paris. He spent most of World War II in a German prison camp. He began playing bridge full time after the war and represented France in the European Championship in 1948, 1949 and 1950.\n\nHe came to the United States in 1953 and lived most of his life in Manhattan till his death in 2006.\n\nBridge accomplishments\n\nAwards\n\n Fishbein Trophy (1) 1960\n\nWins\n\n North American Bridge Championships (2)\n Spingold (2) 1956, 1960\n\nRunners-up\n\n Bermuda Bowl (1) 1957 \n North American Bridge Championships (3)\n Vanderbilt (3) 1955, 1962, 1965\n\nReferences\n\nAmerican contract bridge players\nBermuda Bowl players",
"Károly Honfi (October 25, 1930 in Budapest – August 14, 1996 in Budapest) was a Hungarian chess player who held the chess title of International Master. Honfi was posthumously awarded the title of Grandmaster.\n\nBiography\nHonfi was born in Budapest on October 25, 1930. His father was also a successful chess player. He was the vice champion of Hungary in 1958, and became an International Master in 1962. He earned the Correspondence Chess International Master title in 1991.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \n \n \n \n\n1930 births\n1996 deaths\nHungarian chess players\nChess grandmasters\nSportspeople from Budapest\n20th-century chess players"
] |
[
"Bart Starr",
"Packers quarterback",
"When did he begin with the Packers?",
"Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956",
"Did he play in any games?",
"In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr,",
"Was he a successful player?",
"he held the starting job henceforth."
] | C_72f3a07d556c4e5e9bf92c9f8d3013b8_1 | did he have any other role in the team? | 4 | did Bart Starr have any other role in the team other than the starting job? | Bart Starr | Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956 and split time with Babe Parilli until 1959, Vince Lombardi's first year as Packers coach. In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr, and he held the starting job henceforth. The following season, the Packers advanced to the 1960 NFL Championship Game, but lost to the Philadelphia Eagles, Lombardi's only post-season loss as a head coach. The Packers returned to the title game and won in 1961 and 1962, both over the New York Giants. In 1966, Starr was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by the Associated Press (AP), the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) and UPI. Starr was responsible for calling plays when he was quarterback, which was then the norm. One of his most famous play calls was in the Ice Bowl against the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL championship game on the final day of 1967. Consulting with Lombardi on the sideline, Starr suggested a basic wedge play -- with a twist. Instead of handing off to Chuck Mercein as the play dictated (and unbeknownst to his teammates), Starr suggested he would keep the ball and run it in himself. Having enough of the bitter cold weather, coach Lombardi said, "Then do it, and let's get the hell out of here!" Starr almost broke down in laughter as he ran back to the huddle, but held his composure. The play worked. The Packers went on to beat the Cowboys 21-17. At the Orange Bowl in Miami, the Packers defeated the AFL champion Oakland Raiders 33-14 in Super Bowl II, Lombardi's final game as head coach of the Packers, who were favored by 13 1/2 points. The 1967 Packers remain the only team to win a third consecutive NFL title since the playoff system was instituted in 1933. Starr's playing career ended with the 1971 season, having posted the second best career passer rating of 80.5 (First at the time was Otto Graham with 86.6). He had surgeries on his long-ailing throwing arm in July and August 1971, and saw limited action in his last season. Starr had originally planned to retire after the second Super Bowl win in January 1968, but without a clear successor and a new head coach, he stayed on; by February 1972 he was set for one last year. He participated in the team's spring camp in Arizona in April, then announced his retirement in July at age 38. CANNOTANSWER | Starr was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by the Associated Press (AP), | Bryan Bartlett Starr (January 9, 1934 – May 26, 2019) was a professional American football quarterback and coach. He played college football at the University of Alabama, and was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the 17th round of the 1956 NFL Draft, where he played for them until 1971. Starr is the only quarterback in NFL history to lead a team to three consecutive league championships (1965–1967). He led his team to victories in the first two Super Bowls: I and II. As the Packers' head coach, he was less successful, compiling a 52–76–3 () record from 1975 through 1983.
Starr was named the Most Valuable Player of the first two Super Bowls and during his career earned four Pro Bowl selections. He won the league MVP award in 1966. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Packers Hall of Fame in 1977. Starr has the highest postseason passer rating (104.8) of any quarterback in NFL history and a postseason record of 9–1. His career completion percentage of 57.4 was an NFL best when he retired in 1972. For 32 years (through the 2003 season), Starr also held the Packers' franchise record for games played (196).
Early life
Starr was born and raised in Montgomery, Alabama to parents Benjamin Bryan Starr (1910–1985), a labor foreman with the state highway department, and Lula (Tucker) Starr (1916–1995). Starr's early life was marked by hardships. Shortly after the start of World War II, his father's reserve unit was activated and in 1942 he was deployed to the Pacific Theater. He was first in the U.S. Army but transferred to the U.S. Air Force for his military career.
Starr had a younger brother, Hilton E. "Bubba" Starr. In 1946, Bubba stepped on a dog bone while playing in the yard and three days later died of tetanus. Starr's relationship with his father deteriorated after Hilton's death. He was an introverted child who rarely showed his emotions and his father pushed Starr to develop more of a mean streak.
Starr attended Sidney Lanier High School in Montgomery, and tried out for the football team in his sophomore year, but decided to quit after two weeks. His father gave him the option of playing football or working in the family garden; Starr chose to return to the football field.
In his junior year, the starting quarterback broke his leg and Starr became the starter. He led Lanier to an undefeated season. In his senior season, Starr was named all-state and All-American, and received college scholarship offers from universities across the country. He seriously considered the University of Kentucky, coached by Bear Bryant. Starr's high school sweetheart, Cherry Louise Morton, was planning to attend Auburn and Starr wished to attend a college close to her. Starr changed his mind and committed to the University of Alabama.
College career
During Starr’s freshman year at Alabama, the Southeastern Conference allowed freshmen to play varsity football. Starr did not start for Alabama as a freshman, but he did play enough minutes to earn a varsity letter. His high point of the season came in quarterback relief in the Orange Bowl, when he completed 8 of 12 passes for 93 yards and a touchdown against Syracuse.
Starr entered his sophomore year as Alabama's starting quarterback, safety and punter. His punting average of 41.4 yards per kick ranked second in the nation in 1953, behind Zeke Bratkowski. Alabama recorded a 6–2–3 record and lost in the Cotton Bowl to Rice by a score of 28–6. Starr completed 59 of 119 passes for 870 yards, with eight touchdowns that season.
In May 1954, Starr eloped with Cherry Morton. The couple chose to keep their marriage a secret. Colleges often revoked the scholarships of married athletes in the 1950s, believing their focus should remain on sports. Cherry remained in Jackson, Alabama, while Starr returned to the University of Alabama.
That summer, Starr suffered a severe back injury during a hazing incident for his initiation into the A Club. He covered up the cause by fabricating a story about being hurt while punting a football. He rarely played during his junior year due to the injury. The back injury disqualified him later from military service, and would occasionally bother him the rest of his football career. After a disappointing season of 4–5–2, Harold Drew was replaced by Jennings B. Whitworth as coach of Alabama.
Whitworth conducted a youth movement at Alabama for the 1955 season and only two seniors started for the team. Supposedly healed from the back injury, Starr rarely played in his senior season. Starr's decision to play football for Alabama rather than for Bear Bryant at the University of Kentucky did not sit well with Bryant, and four years later as head coach of the Blue–Gray Football Classic in 1955, Bryant hardly let Bart play at all.
Johnny Dee, the basketball coach at Alabama, was a friend of Jack Vainisi, the personnel director of the Green Bay Packers. Dee recommended Starr as a prospect to Vainisi. The Packers were convinced that Starr had the ability to succeed in the NFL and would learn quickly. In the 17th round of the 1956 NFL Draft, Starr was selected by the Packers, with the 200th overall pick.
Starr spent the summer of 1956 living with his in-laws and throwing footballs through a tire in their backyard in order to prepare for his rookie season. The Packers offered $6,500 (equal to $ today) to sign Starr and he accepted, with the added condition, requested by Starr, that he receive $1,000 up front.
Packers quarterback
Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956 and split time with Babe Parilli until 1959, Vince Lombardi's first year as Packers coach. In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr, and he held the starting job henceforth. The following season, the Packers advanced to the 1960 NFL Championship Game, but lost to the Philadelphia Eagles in Lombardi's only post-season loss as a head coach.
1961 was Starr's first season as a full-time starting quarterback for the Packers, throwing for over 2,400 yards and 16 touchdown passes, leading the Packers to an 11-3 record and a return to the NFL Championship Game, this time against the New York Giants. Starr threw for 164 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 37-0 Packers victory. Starr and the Packers continued their success in 1962, going 13-1. Even though Starr was not the focal point of the Packers' offense, with the running duo of Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung, he still provided a solid passing attack, throwing for a career-high 2,438 yards and 14 touchdowns, leading the league with a completion percentage of 62.5. The Packers repeated as NFL champions, beating the Giants again in the 1962 NFL Championship game, 16-7. While not as impressive with his passing in the early years of his career, Starr was responsible for calling plays on the Packers' offense (which was then the norm), proving to be an effective strategist on offense.
In 1963, the Packers fell short of qualifying for their fourth consecutive NFL Championship Game appearance, with injuries to Starr keeping him from finishing a few games. Even so, Starr still threw for 1,855 yards and 15 touchdowns. In 1964, with Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung struggling to continue their strong running game, Starr started to become more of the focus of the Packers' offensive attack. Vince Lombardi would help this shift by acquiring more capable pass catchers to the offense, trading for receiver Carroll Dale to join with Boyd Dowler and Max McGee, replacing tight end Ron Kramer with Marv Fleming, and drafting more pass-catching running backs in Elijah Pitts and Donny Anderson. With these new offensive weapons, Starr would put up his best passing seasons from 1964 to 1969. In 1964, despite the Packers only going 8-5-1, Starr threw for 2,144 yards, 15 touchdown passes, and only 4 interceptions. He led the league with a 97.1 passer rating.
In 1965, the Packers went 10-3-1, led by Starr's 2,055 passing yards and 16 touchdown passes, a career-high. The Packers and their Western division foe, the Baltimore Colts, finished the season with identical records, so the two teams met in a playoff game to determine the division winner. Starr was knocked out of the game after the first play when he suffered a rib injury from a hard hit, but the Packers managed to win in overtime, 13-10, led by Starr's backup, Zeke Bratkowski. Starr came back and started the 1965 NFL Championship Game against the Cleveland Browns. On a sloppy Lambeau field, the Packers went back to their classic backfield tandem of Taylor and Hornung, with the pair running for over 200 yards. Starr threw for only 147 yards, but that included a 47-yard touchdown pass to Carroll Dale.
In 1966, Starr had arguably the best season of his career, throwing for 2,257 yards, 14 touchdown passes, and only 3 interceptions. He led the NFL with a completion percentage of 62.2 and a 105 passer rating, while leading the Packers to a dominating 12-2 record. Starr would be named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by the Associated Press (AP), the Sporting News, the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA), and the UPI In the NFL Championship Game against the Dallas Cowboys, Starr had his best postseason performance, throwing for 304 yards and 4 touchdown passes, leading the Packers to a 34-27 victory, and the right to represent the NFL in the first ever Super Bowl, against the AFL champion Kansas City Chiefs. Starr had another solid game against the Chiefs, throwing for 250 yards and two touchdowns, both to Max McGee, in a decisive 35-10 Packers win. Starr was named the first-ever Super Bowl MVP for his performance.
1967 was a down year for Starr, especially when compared to his previous three seasons. Bothered by a hand injury for much of the season, Starr threw for only 1,823 yards and 9 touchdowns, with a career-high 17 interceptions thrown. Helped in large part by their defense, the Packers still finished 9-4-1, which was good enough for the Packers to reach the postseason. In the divisional playoff against the Los Angeles Rams, Starr was back in form, throwing for 222 yards and a touchdown pass in a 28-7 Packers triumph. This victory would set the stage for the infamous Ice Bowl against the Dallas Cowboys in the 1967 NFL Championship Game. Consulting with Lombardi on the sideline, Starr suggested a basic wedge play ― with a twist. Instead of handing off to Chuck Mercein as the play dictated (and unbeknownst to his teammates), Starr suggested running it in himself. Having enough of the bitterly cold weather, Lombardi said, “Then do it, and let's get the hell out of here!" Starr almost broke down in laughter as he ran back to the huddle, but held his composure. The quarterback sneak play worked and the Packers went on to beat the Cowboys 21-17. Even in the cold conditions, Starr was still able to throw for 191 yards in the Ice Bowl, with two touchdown passes to Boyd Dowler.
At the Orange Bowl in Miami, the Packers defeated the AFL champion Oakland Raiders 33–14 in Super Bowl II, Lombardi's final game as head coach of the Packers. Starr won his second consecutive Super Bowl MVP award for his performance, where he threw for 202 yards and a touchdown pass, a 62-yard strike to Boyd Dowler. The 1967 Packers remain the only team to win a third consecutive NFL title since the playoff system was instituted in 1933.
Starr had originally planned to retire after the second Super Bowl win in January 1968, but without a clear successor and a new head coach, he stayed on. After Lombardi's departure, Starr continued to be a productive quarterback under new Packers coach Phil Bengston, though injuries hampered him. Starr threw for 15 touchdown passes in 1968, leading the NFL once again in completion percentage (63.7) and passer rating (104.3). Starr struggled to stay healthy again in 1969, but still once again led the league with a 62.2 completion percentage and an 89.9 passer rating, but only threw for 9 touchdowns and 1,161 yards. Starr was able to stay healthy for most of the entire 1970 season, but his age was showing, throwing for only 1,645 yards and 8 touchdowns, the last touchdown passes of his career. In an attempt to prolong his career, Starr had surgeries on his long-ailing throwing arm in July and August 1971. This nearly ended Starr's life, as the initial surgery was botched, nearly causing Starr to bleed to death. The surgeries ended up damaging the nerves in Starr's right arm, causing him to struggle to even grip a football, and while he stayed on the Packers' roster for the entire 1971 season, he only played in three games, usually with a glove on his throwing hand to try to regain his grip on the ball. In February 1972 Starr was set for one last year. He participated in the team's spring camp in Arizona in April, but his throwing shoulder and arm were no longer effective. Starr announced his retirement in July 1972 at age 38.
Starr's playing career ended with the 1971 season, having posted the second-best career passer rating of 80.5 (First at the time was Otto Graham with 86.6).
Packers coach
Immediately following his retirement as a player, Starr served as the Packers' quarterbacks coach and called plays in 1972 under head coach Dan Devine, when the Packers won the NFC Central division title at 10–4 with Scott Hunter under center. He pursued business interests and was then a broadcaster for CBS for two seasons. When Devine left for Notre Dame after the 1974 season, Starr was hired as head coach of the Packers on Christmas Eve. Upon taking the job, he recognized the long odds of a Hall of Fame player becoming a successful head coach. Initially given a three-year contract, he led the Packers for nine years, the first five as his own general manager.
His regular season record was a disappointing 52–76–2 (), with a playoff record of 1–1. Posting a 5–3–1 record in the strike-shortened season of 1982, Starr's Packers made their first playoff appearance in ten years (and their last for another 11 years). They defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 41–16 in the expanded wild card round of 16 teams on January 8, 1983–their first home playoff game since 1967. However, they then lost to the Dallas Cowboys 37–26 in the divisional round the following week. He tallied only three other non-losing seasons as Packers coach. After a disappointing 8–8 finish the following year, Starr was dismissed in favor of his former teammate Forrest Gregg, who previously led the Cincinnati Bengals to Super Bowl XVI in the 1981 season and had coached the Cleveland Browns prior to that.
On January 13, 1984, Starr was named the head coach of the Arizona Firebirds, a proposed expansion team for the NFL in Phoenix. The NFL never granted the would-be ownership group of the Firebirds a team (Phoenix would get the Cardinals in 1988).
Honors
Starr was voted to the NFL Pro Bowl four times. He was voted NFL Most Valuable Player by both AP and UPI in 1966, and was chosen Super Bowl MVP in 1966 and 1967. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1977.
He is one of six Green Bay Packers to have had his number (15) retired by the team. The others are Tony Canadeo (3), Don Hutson (14), Ray Nitschke (66), Reggie White (92), and Brett Favre (4).
On October 17, 1970, President Richard Nixon spoke at a testimonial reception honoring Bart Starr in the Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena in Green Bay, Wisconsin. "We honor him as a very great practitioner of his profession, the proud profession of professional football," Nixon said. "And as we honor him for that, we honor him not only for his technical skill but, as I've indicated, also for something that is just as important: his leadership qualities, his character, his moral fiber ... But I think the best way that I can present Bart Starr to his friends is to say very simply that the sixties will be described as the decade in which football became the number one sport in America, in which the Packers were the number one team, and Bart Starr was proudly the number one Packer."
In 1973, Starr received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.
Starr was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1981.
Starr has an NFL award named after him. The Athletes in Action/Bart Starr Award is given annually, by a panel of judges, to an NFL player who best exemplifies outstanding character and leadership in the home, on the field, and in the community.
Head coaching record
NFL career statistics
Regular season
Personal life
Starr and his wife Cherry were married for more than 60 years. They had two sons, of whom the younger, Bret, is deceased (1988, age 24, drug overdose), and three granddaughters. He was a Christian.
In 1965, Starr and his wife Cherry helped co-found Rawhide Boys Ranch in New London, Wisconsin, a facility designed to help at-risk and troubled boys throughout the state of Wisconsin. Starr even donated the Corvette he received as MVP of Super Bowl II to help Rawhide during their early years. He was affiliated with Rawhide Boys Ranch until his death. As of 2019, Cherry and Bart Jr. are still spokespersons for Rawhide and are in communication with Rawhide on a frequent basis.
In 1971, Starr and his wife Cherry helped start the Vince Lombardi Cancer Foundation raising funds for cancer research and care in honor of his late coach, Vince Lombardi. They were active at all their events throughout the years. He and Cherry launched the Starr Children's Fund within the Vince Lombardi Cancer Foundation to continue their legacy of work supporting pediatric cancer research and care.
During his latter years, Starr suffered a number of physical ailments, including ischemic stroke, hemorrhagic stroke, a mild heart attack, seizures, and a broken hip. In June 2015, Starr's family reported that he was undergoing stem-cell therapy in a clinical trial. He managed to attend a ceremony at Lambeau Field on November 26, 2015 retiring QB Brett Favre's jersey number, and a fall 2017 reunion of the Ice Bowl Packers. At Super Bowl 50 in February 2016, the NFL held a pregame ceremony honoring the MVPs of all 49 Super Bowls. Although he wished to attend, Starr was not well enough to travel to the game and instead sent a videotaped greeting from home.
Starr died at the age of 85 on Sunday, May 26, 2019, in Birmingham, Alabama after a period of failing health caused by a serious stroke he suffered in 2014.
References
Claerbaut, David (2004), Bart Starr: When Leadership Mattered, Lanham, MD.:Taylor Trade Publishing
External links
1934 births
2019 deaths
Alabama Crimson Tide football players
Alabama Republicans
American football quarterbacks
Green Bay Packers general managers
Green Bay Packers head coaches
Green Bay Packers players
Journalists from Alabama
National Football League announcers
National Football League general managers
National Football League Most Valuable Player Award winners
National Football League players with retired numbers
Players of American football from Montgomery, Alabama
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Sidney Lanier High School alumni
Sportspeople from Montgomery, Alabama
Super Bowl MVPs
Western Conference Pro Bowl players | false | [
"This page lists all association football national teams which managed to remain undefeated in either a FIFA World Cup main tournament, the qualifying process for that tournament, or both.\n\nFixtures decided by a penalty shoot-out are counted as draws and not as defeats. The tables only include teams which played at least one match in the particular final or qualifying tournament. They do not include teams which qualified automatically or by walkover, or teams which withdrew or were disqualified without playing any matches.\n\nAll but four World Cup winning teams were unbeaten in the finals. The four teams that won the World Cup despite losing a game in the finals were: West Germany in 1954 and again in 1974; Argentina in 1978; and Spain in 2010.\n\nAnother part of the teams listed below were eliminated despite not losing any games in the finals, or failed to qualify despite not losing any qualifying games. They exited the competition by various means: withdrawal; inferior points total or goal difference within a group; drawing of lots, away goals, or penalty shoot-out.\n\nGeneral statistics \n\nBrazil have remained unbeaten in a total of seven World Cup final tournaments, more than any other team, including all five tournaments where they triumphed as world champions. Italy are a close second with six, and England and France are third with three each. No other nation has achieved this more than twice.\n\nGermany (including West Germany) have had a record twelve unbeaten World Cup qualifying campaigns. In fact the German national team has lost only three World Cup qualifying games in its history: against Portugal in 1985, against England in 2001 and against North Macedonia in 2021.\n\nA number of teams have managed not to record any losses during an entire FIFA World Cup cycle (qualifying and final tournaments):\n Italy (1934 and 1998), Brazil (1958, 1970, 1978 and 1986), West Germany/Germany (1990 and 2014), Spain (2002 and 2018), France (2006) and Netherlands (2014) all remained unbeaten during both the qualification and the finals (in 1970 Brazil actually did not record any draws either, managing to win every single match en route to the title).\n Uruguay (1930), Italy (1938 and 1990), Brazil (1962), England (1966), Mexico (1986) and France (1998) all did not have to go through qualifying tournaments, and did not lose any games in the finals (Uruguay in 1930 and Italy in 1938 did not draw any games either).\n Uruguay in 1950 qualified without playing any matches due to the withdrawal of their opponents, and did not lose any games in the finals.\n Several teams remained undefeated during a qualifying campaign but nevertheless did not appear in the subsequent final tournament. Each of Cuba, Lesotho, Morocco and Tunisia have had this fate twice. For others, see the tables below.\n\nLegend to the tables \n\n The Result column indicates what stage the team reached in the particular final tournament: , , , , , , , , .\nOther columns: , , , , , .\n The Lost to column indicates what opponent progressed at the expense of the team in question.\n\nBy tournament\n\n1930\n\n1934\n\n1938\n\n1950\n\n1954\n\n1958\n\n1962\n\n1966\n\n1970\n\n1974\n\n1978\n\n1982\n\n1986\n\n1990\n\n1994\n\n1998\n\n2002\n\n2006\n\n2010\n\n2014\n\n2018\n\n2022\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Previous FIFA World Cups, FIFA\n World Cup 1930-2006, Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation\n\nFIFA World Cup records and statistics",
"List of Association football clubs in Palau.\n\n2014 Teams\nTeams that competed in the 2014 Palau Soccer League:\n\n Kramers FC - Champions in 2008.\n Lyon FC\n New Stars FC\n Surangel Kings\n Team Friendship\n\nDefunct Teams\nTeams that have competed in previous seasons of the Palau Soccer League:\n Belau Kanu Club\n Biib Strykers\n Daewoo Ngatpang - Champions in 2004 and 2010. Not known whether they competed in any other seasons.\n Melekeok FC - Champions in 2009. Not known if they competed in any other seasons, though they definitely did not compete in either 2004, 2006-07 or 2010 seasons.\n Mount Everest Nepal - Known to have competed in 2004 and 2006-07 seasons.\n Palau Tiger Team - Known to have competed in the 2006-07 season.\n Palau Track and Field Team - Known to have competed in the 2004 season.\n Surangel and Sons Company - Champions in 2006\n Taj FC - Known as Mason's Taj during the 2012 Spring League, and champions during the 2012 Fall League\n Team Bangladesh - Three times champions in 2005, 2007 and in the 2012 Spring League and most successful team in Palau.\n Universal Peace Foundation - Known to have competed in the 2004 season.\n\nAll-time Palau Soccer League champions\n\nReferences\n\nPalau\n \nFootball clubs"
] |
[
"Bart Starr",
"Packers quarterback",
"When did he begin with the Packers?",
"Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956",
"Did he play in any games?",
"In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr,",
"Was he a successful player?",
"he held the starting job henceforth.",
"did he have any other role in the team?",
"Starr was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by the Associated Press (AP),"
] | C_72f3a07d556c4e5e9bf92c9f8d3013b8_1 | what teams did he play against? | 5 | what teams did Bart Starr play against? | Bart Starr | Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956 and split time with Babe Parilli until 1959, Vince Lombardi's first year as Packers coach. In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr, and he held the starting job henceforth. The following season, the Packers advanced to the 1960 NFL Championship Game, but lost to the Philadelphia Eagles, Lombardi's only post-season loss as a head coach. The Packers returned to the title game and won in 1961 and 1962, both over the New York Giants. In 1966, Starr was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by the Associated Press (AP), the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) and UPI. Starr was responsible for calling plays when he was quarterback, which was then the norm. One of his most famous play calls was in the Ice Bowl against the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL championship game on the final day of 1967. Consulting with Lombardi on the sideline, Starr suggested a basic wedge play -- with a twist. Instead of handing off to Chuck Mercein as the play dictated (and unbeknownst to his teammates), Starr suggested he would keep the ball and run it in himself. Having enough of the bitter cold weather, coach Lombardi said, "Then do it, and let's get the hell out of here!" Starr almost broke down in laughter as he ran back to the huddle, but held his composure. The play worked. The Packers went on to beat the Cowboys 21-17. At the Orange Bowl in Miami, the Packers defeated the AFL champion Oakland Raiders 33-14 in Super Bowl II, Lombardi's final game as head coach of the Packers, who were favored by 13 1/2 points. The 1967 Packers remain the only team to win a third consecutive NFL title since the playoff system was instituted in 1933. Starr's playing career ended with the 1971 season, having posted the second best career passer rating of 80.5 (First at the time was Otto Graham with 86.6). He had surgeries on his long-ailing throwing arm in July and August 1971, and saw limited action in his last season. Starr had originally planned to retire after the second Super Bowl win in January 1968, but without a clear successor and a new head coach, he stayed on; by February 1972 he was set for one last year. He participated in the team's spring camp in Arizona in April, then announced his retirement in July at age 38. CANNOTANSWER | won in 1961 and 1962, both over the New York Giants. | Bryan Bartlett Starr (January 9, 1934 – May 26, 2019) was a professional American football quarterback and coach. He played college football at the University of Alabama, and was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the 17th round of the 1956 NFL Draft, where he played for them until 1971. Starr is the only quarterback in NFL history to lead a team to three consecutive league championships (1965–1967). He led his team to victories in the first two Super Bowls: I and II. As the Packers' head coach, he was less successful, compiling a 52–76–3 () record from 1975 through 1983.
Starr was named the Most Valuable Player of the first two Super Bowls and during his career earned four Pro Bowl selections. He won the league MVP award in 1966. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Packers Hall of Fame in 1977. Starr has the highest postseason passer rating (104.8) of any quarterback in NFL history and a postseason record of 9–1. His career completion percentage of 57.4 was an NFL best when he retired in 1972. For 32 years (through the 2003 season), Starr also held the Packers' franchise record for games played (196).
Early life
Starr was born and raised in Montgomery, Alabama to parents Benjamin Bryan Starr (1910–1985), a labor foreman with the state highway department, and Lula (Tucker) Starr (1916–1995). Starr's early life was marked by hardships. Shortly after the start of World War II, his father's reserve unit was activated and in 1942 he was deployed to the Pacific Theater. He was first in the U.S. Army but transferred to the U.S. Air Force for his military career.
Starr had a younger brother, Hilton E. "Bubba" Starr. In 1946, Bubba stepped on a dog bone while playing in the yard and three days later died of tetanus. Starr's relationship with his father deteriorated after Hilton's death. He was an introverted child who rarely showed his emotions and his father pushed Starr to develop more of a mean streak.
Starr attended Sidney Lanier High School in Montgomery, and tried out for the football team in his sophomore year, but decided to quit after two weeks. His father gave him the option of playing football or working in the family garden; Starr chose to return to the football field.
In his junior year, the starting quarterback broke his leg and Starr became the starter. He led Lanier to an undefeated season. In his senior season, Starr was named all-state and All-American, and received college scholarship offers from universities across the country. He seriously considered the University of Kentucky, coached by Bear Bryant. Starr's high school sweetheart, Cherry Louise Morton, was planning to attend Auburn and Starr wished to attend a college close to her. Starr changed his mind and committed to the University of Alabama.
College career
During Starr’s freshman year at Alabama, the Southeastern Conference allowed freshmen to play varsity football. Starr did not start for Alabama as a freshman, but he did play enough minutes to earn a varsity letter. His high point of the season came in quarterback relief in the Orange Bowl, when he completed 8 of 12 passes for 93 yards and a touchdown against Syracuse.
Starr entered his sophomore year as Alabama's starting quarterback, safety and punter. His punting average of 41.4 yards per kick ranked second in the nation in 1953, behind Zeke Bratkowski. Alabama recorded a 6–2–3 record and lost in the Cotton Bowl to Rice by a score of 28–6. Starr completed 59 of 119 passes for 870 yards, with eight touchdowns that season.
In May 1954, Starr eloped with Cherry Morton. The couple chose to keep their marriage a secret. Colleges often revoked the scholarships of married athletes in the 1950s, believing their focus should remain on sports. Cherry remained in Jackson, Alabama, while Starr returned to the University of Alabama.
That summer, Starr suffered a severe back injury during a hazing incident for his initiation into the A Club. He covered up the cause by fabricating a story about being hurt while punting a football. He rarely played during his junior year due to the injury. The back injury disqualified him later from military service, and would occasionally bother him the rest of his football career. After a disappointing season of 4–5–2, Harold Drew was replaced by Jennings B. Whitworth as coach of Alabama.
Whitworth conducted a youth movement at Alabama for the 1955 season and only two seniors started for the team. Supposedly healed from the back injury, Starr rarely played in his senior season. Starr's decision to play football for Alabama rather than for Bear Bryant at the University of Kentucky did not sit well with Bryant, and four years later as head coach of the Blue–Gray Football Classic in 1955, Bryant hardly let Bart play at all.
Johnny Dee, the basketball coach at Alabama, was a friend of Jack Vainisi, the personnel director of the Green Bay Packers. Dee recommended Starr as a prospect to Vainisi. The Packers were convinced that Starr had the ability to succeed in the NFL and would learn quickly. In the 17th round of the 1956 NFL Draft, Starr was selected by the Packers, with the 200th overall pick.
Starr spent the summer of 1956 living with his in-laws and throwing footballs through a tire in their backyard in order to prepare for his rookie season. The Packers offered $6,500 (equal to $ today) to sign Starr and he accepted, with the added condition, requested by Starr, that he receive $1,000 up front.
Packers quarterback
Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956 and split time with Babe Parilli until 1959, Vince Lombardi's first year as Packers coach. In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr, and he held the starting job henceforth. The following season, the Packers advanced to the 1960 NFL Championship Game, but lost to the Philadelphia Eagles in Lombardi's only post-season loss as a head coach.
1961 was Starr's first season as a full-time starting quarterback for the Packers, throwing for over 2,400 yards and 16 touchdown passes, leading the Packers to an 11-3 record and a return to the NFL Championship Game, this time against the New York Giants. Starr threw for 164 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 37-0 Packers victory. Starr and the Packers continued their success in 1962, going 13-1. Even though Starr was not the focal point of the Packers' offense, with the running duo of Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung, he still provided a solid passing attack, throwing for a career-high 2,438 yards and 14 touchdowns, leading the league with a completion percentage of 62.5. The Packers repeated as NFL champions, beating the Giants again in the 1962 NFL Championship game, 16-7. While not as impressive with his passing in the early years of his career, Starr was responsible for calling plays on the Packers' offense (which was then the norm), proving to be an effective strategist on offense.
In 1963, the Packers fell short of qualifying for their fourth consecutive NFL Championship Game appearance, with injuries to Starr keeping him from finishing a few games. Even so, Starr still threw for 1,855 yards and 15 touchdowns. In 1964, with Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung struggling to continue their strong running game, Starr started to become more of the focus of the Packers' offensive attack. Vince Lombardi would help this shift by acquiring more capable pass catchers to the offense, trading for receiver Carroll Dale to join with Boyd Dowler and Max McGee, replacing tight end Ron Kramer with Marv Fleming, and drafting more pass-catching running backs in Elijah Pitts and Donny Anderson. With these new offensive weapons, Starr would put up his best passing seasons from 1964 to 1969. In 1964, despite the Packers only going 8-5-1, Starr threw for 2,144 yards, 15 touchdown passes, and only 4 interceptions. He led the league with a 97.1 passer rating.
In 1965, the Packers went 10-3-1, led by Starr's 2,055 passing yards and 16 touchdown passes, a career-high. The Packers and their Western division foe, the Baltimore Colts, finished the season with identical records, so the two teams met in a playoff game to determine the division winner. Starr was knocked out of the game after the first play when he suffered a rib injury from a hard hit, but the Packers managed to win in overtime, 13-10, led by Starr's backup, Zeke Bratkowski. Starr came back and started the 1965 NFL Championship Game against the Cleveland Browns. On a sloppy Lambeau field, the Packers went back to their classic backfield tandem of Taylor and Hornung, with the pair running for over 200 yards. Starr threw for only 147 yards, but that included a 47-yard touchdown pass to Carroll Dale.
In 1966, Starr had arguably the best season of his career, throwing for 2,257 yards, 14 touchdown passes, and only 3 interceptions. He led the NFL with a completion percentage of 62.2 and a 105 passer rating, while leading the Packers to a dominating 12-2 record. Starr would be named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by the Associated Press (AP), the Sporting News, the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA), and the UPI In the NFL Championship Game against the Dallas Cowboys, Starr had his best postseason performance, throwing for 304 yards and 4 touchdown passes, leading the Packers to a 34-27 victory, and the right to represent the NFL in the first ever Super Bowl, against the AFL champion Kansas City Chiefs. Starr had another solid game against the Chiefs, throwing for 250 yards and two touchdowns, both to Max McGee, in a decisive 35-10 Packers win. Starr was named the first-ever Super Bowl MVP for his performance.
1967 was a down year for Starr, especially when compared to his previous three seasons. Bothered by a hand injury for much of the season, Starr threw for only 1,823 yards and 9 touchdowns, with a career-high 17 interceptions thrown. Helped in large part by their defense, the Packers still finished 9-4-1, which was good enough for the Packers to reach the postseason. In the divisional playoff against the Los Angeles Rams, Starr was back in form, throwing for 222 yards and a touchdown pass in a 28-7 Packers triumph. This victory would set the stage for the infamous Ice Bowl against the Dallas Cowboys in the 1967 NFL Championship Game. Consulting with Lombardi on the sideline, Starr suggested a basic wedge play ― with a twist. Instead of handing off to Chuck Mercein as the play dictated (and unbeknownst to his teammates), Starr suggested running it in himself. Having enough of the bitterly cold weather, Lombardi said, “Then do it, and let's get the hell out of here!" Starr almost broke down in laughter as he ran back to the huddle, but held his composure. The quarterback sneak play worked and the Packers went on to beat the Cowboys 21-17. Even in the cold conditions, Starr was still able to throw for 191 yards in the Ice Bowl, with two touchdown passes to Boyd Dowler.
At the Orange Bowl in Miami, the Packers defeated the AFL champion Oakland Raiders 33–14 in Super Bowl II, Lombardi's final game as head coach of the Packers. Starr won his second consecutive Super Bowl MVP award for his performance, where he threw for 202 yards and a touchdown pass, a 62-yard strike to Boyd Dowler. The 1967 Packers remain the only team to win a third consecutive NFL title since the playoff system was instituted in 1933.
Starr had originally planned to retire after the second Super Bowl win in January 1968, but without a clear successor and a new head coach, he stayed on. After Lombardi's departure, Starr continued to be a productive quarterback under new Packers coach Phil Bengston, though injuries hampered him. Starr threw for 15 touchdown passes in 1968, leading the NFL once again in completion percentage (63.7) and passer rating (104.3). Starr struggled to stay healthy again in 1969, but still once again led the league with a 62.2 completion percentage and an 89.9 passer rating, but only threw for 9 touchdowns and 1,161 yards. Starr was able to stay healthy for most of the entire 1970 season, but his age was showing, throwing for only 1,645 yards and 8 touchdowns, the last touchdown passes of his career. In an attempt to prolong his career, Starr had surgeries on his long-ailing throwing arm in July and August 1971. This nearly ended Starr's life, as the initial surgery was botched, nearly causing Starr to bleed to death. The surgeries ended up damaging the nerves in Starr's right arm, causing him to struggle to even grip a football, and while he stayed on the Packers' roster for the entire 1971 season, he only played in three games, usually with a glove on his throwing hand to try to regain his grip on the ball. In February 1972 Starr was set for one last year. He participated in the team's spring camp in Arizona in April, but his throwing shoulder and arm were no longer effective. Starr announced his retirement in July 1972 at age 38.
Starr's playing career ended with the 1971 season, having posted the second-best career passer rating of 80.5 (First at the time was Otto Graham with 86.6).
Packers coach
Immediately following his retirement as a player, Starr served as the Packers' quarterbacks coach and called plays in 1972 under head coach Dan Devine, when the Packers won the NFC Central division title at 10–4 with Scott Hunter under center. He pursued business interests and was then a broadcaster for CBS for two seasons. When Devine left for Notre Dame after the 1974 season, Starr was hired as head coach of the Packers on Christmas Eve. Upon taking the job, he recognized the long odds of a Hall of Fame player becoming a successful head coach. Initially given a three-year contract, he led the Packers for nine years, the first five as his own general manager.
His regular season record was a disappointing 52–76–2 (), with a playoff record of 1–1. Posting a 5–3–1 record in the strike-shortened season of 1982, Starr's Packers made their first playoff appearance in ten years (and their last for another 11 years). They defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 41–16 in the expanded wild card round of 16 teams on January 8, 1983–their first home playoff game since 1967. However, they then lost to the Dallas Cowboys 37–26 in the divisional round the following week. He tallied only three other non-losing seasons as Packers coach. After a disappointing 8–8 finish the following year, Starr was dismissed in favor of his former teammate Forrest Gregg, who previously led the Cincinnati Bengals to Super Bowl XVI in the 1981 season and had coached the Cleveland Browns prior to that.
On January 13, 1984, Starr was named the head coach of the Arizona Firebirds, a proposed expansion team for the NFL in Phoenix. The NFL never granted the would-be ownership group of the Firebirds a team (Phoenix would get the Cardinals in 1988).
Honors
Starr was voted to the NFL Pro Bowl four times. He was voted NFL Most Valuable Player by both AP and UPI in 1966, and was chosen Super Bowl MVP in 1966 and 1967. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1977.
He is one of six Green Bay Packers to have had his number (15) retired by the team. The others are Tony Canadeo (3), Don Hutson (14), Ray Nitschke (66), Reggie White (92), and Brett Favre (4).
On October 17, 1970, President Richard Nixon spoke at a testimonial reception honoring Bart Starr in the Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena in Green Bay, Wisconsin. "We honor him as a very great practitioner of his profession, the proud profession of professional football," Nixon said. "And as we honor him for that, we honor him not only for his technical skill but, as I've indicated, also for something that is just as important: his leadership qualities, his character, his moral fiber ... But I think the best way that I can present Bart Starr to his friends is to say very simply that the sixties will be described as the decade in which football became the number one sport in America, in which the Packers were the number one team, and Bart Starr was proudly the number one Packer."
In 1973, Starr received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.
Starr was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1981.
Starr has an NFL award named after him. The Athletes in Action/Bart Starr Award is given annually, by a panel of judges, to an NFL player who best exemplifies outstanding character and leadership in the home, on the field, and in the community.
Head coaching record
NFL career statistics
Regular season
Personal life
Starr and his wife Cherry were married for more than 60 years. They had two sons, of whom the younger, Bret, is deceased (1988, age 24, drug overdose), and three granddaughters. He was a Christian.
In 1965, Starr and his wife Cherry helped co-found Rawhide Boys Ranch in New London, Wisconsin, a facility designed to help at-risk and troubled boys throughout the state of Wisconsin. Starr even donated the Corvette he received as MVP of Super Bowl II to help Rawhide during their early years. He was affiliated with Rawhide Boys Ranch until his death. As of 2019, Cherry and Bart Jr. are still spokespersons for Rawhide and are in communication with Rawhide on a frequent basis.
In 1971, Starr and his wife Cherry helped start the Vince Lombardi Cancer Foundation raising funds for cancer research and care in honor of his late coach, Vince Lombardi. They were active at all their events throughout the years. He and Cherry launched the Starr Children's Fund within the Vince Lombardi Cancer Foundation to continue their legacy of work supporting pediatric cancer research and care.
During his latter years, Starr suffered a number of physical ailments, including ischemic stroke, hemorrhagic stroke, a mild heart attack, seizures, and a broken hip. In June 2015, Starr's family reported that he was undergoing stem-cell therapy in a clinical trial. He managed to attend a ceremony at Lambeau Field on November 26, 2015 retiring QB Brett Favre's jersey number, and a fall 2017 reunion of the Ice Bowl Packers. At Super Bowl 50 in February 2016, the NFL held a pregame ceremony honoring the MVPs of all 49 Super Bowls. Although he wished to attend, Starr was not well enough to travel to the game and instead sent a videotaped greeting from home.
Starr died at the age of 85 on Sunday, May 26, 2019, in Birmingham, Alabama after a period of failing health caused by a serious stroke he suffered in 2014.
References
Claerbaut, David (2004), Bart Starr: When Leadership Mattered, Lanham, MD.:Taylor Trade Publishing
External links
1934 births
2019 deaths
Alabama Crimson Tide football players
Alabama Republicans
American football quarterbacks
Green Bay Packers general managers
Green Bay Packers head coaches
Green Bay Packers players
Journalists from Alabama
National Football League announcers
National Football League general managers
National Football League Most Valuable Player Award winners
National Football League players with retired numbers
Players of American football from Montgomery, Alabama
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Sidney Lanier High School alumni
Sportspeople from Montgomery, Alabama
Super Bowl MVPs
Western Conference Pro Bowl players | false | [
"The 2020 Eurohockey Indoor Championship II was the 7th edition of the tournament. It took take place from 17 to 19 January 2020 in Lucerne, Switzerland.\n\nQualified Teams\n\nSweden finished 3rd in the previous tournament, but did not take part in 2020. Instead Turkey, which as 7th placed team in 2018 were originally relegated, took part.\n\nFormat\nThe eight teams are split into two groups of four teams. The bottom two teams from pool A and B, play in a new group, pool C, against the teams they did not play against in the group stage. The top two teams from pool A and B, will also play in a new group, pool D, where they play the teams they did not play against in the group stage to determine the winner. All points from pools A and B will be taken over in pools C and D. The top two teams will be promoted to the 2022 Men's EuroHockey Indoor Nations Championship. The last two teams will be relegated to the 2022 Eurohockey Indoor Championship III.\n\nResults\n''All times are local (UTC+1).\n\nPreliminary round\n\nPool A\n\nPool B\n\nFifth to eighth place classification\n\nPool C\nThe points obtained in the preliminary round against the other team are taken over.\n\nPool D\nThe points obtained in the preliminary round against the other team are taken over.\n\nFinal standings\n\nReferences\n\nMen's EuroHockey Indoor Championship II\nInternational indoor hockey competitions hosted by Switzerland\nEuroHockey Indoor Nations Championship Men\nIndoor Men\nEuroHockey Indoor Nations Championship Men\nEvents in Lucerne",
"The 2018–19 of the Finnish Basketball Cup is at its 33rd edition.\n\nThe competition was interrupted in 2013 and resumed for the season 2018–19. The Opening match was played on 30 October 2018.\n\nFormat \nEvery Finnish basketball team from any league could join voluntarily the Finnish Basketball Cup. The competition is structured in single game play-off series, with the exception that the teams that lose at the first and second round have a second chance to qualify by playing an additional play-out round.\n\nTeams\n\nFirst round \nIn the first round all the teams qualify to the second round, no matter what the result is. But the winners from the first round play against each other in a single game play-off format, while the losers go in a play-out round.\n\nSecond round \nThe second round play-offs are played amongst the teams that won in the first round. The winning teams go directly to the fourth round, while the losing teams play an extra third round with the chance to qualify to the fourth round.\n\nThe play-outs are played amongst the teams that lost the first play off round. The losing teams are out from the competition, while the winning teams play in the additional round against the losing team from the play-offs of the second round, with a chance to qualify to the fourth round.\n\nPlay off\n\nPlay out\n\nThird round \nIn the third round the teams who won the play-outs play against the teams that lost the second round of play-offs. The winners will qualify to the fourth round and will play against the teams that won the second round of play-offs\n\nBracket \nThe final stage is played in single match quarters, semifinals and final.\n\nFinal\n\nReferences\n\n2018–19 in European basketball leagues\n2018–19 in Finnish basketball"
] |
[
"Bart Starr",
"Packers quarterback",
"When did he begin with the Packers?",
"Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956",
"Did he play in any games?",
"In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr,",
"Was he a successful player?",
"he held the starting job henceforth.",
"did he have any other role in the team?",
"Starr was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by the Associated Press (AP),",
"what teams did he play against?",
"won in 1961 and 1962, both over the New York Giants."
] | C_72f3a07d556c4e5e9bf92c9f8d3013b8_1 | Did he have any injuries? | 6 | Did Bart Starr have any injuries? | Bart Starr | Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956 and split time with Babe Parilli until 1959, Vince Lombardi's first year as Packers coach. In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr, and he held the starting job henceforth. The following season, the Packers advanced to the 1960 NFL Championship Game, but lost to the Philadelphia Eagles, Lombardi's only post-season loss as a head coach. The Packers returned to the title game and won in 1961 and 1962, both over the New York Giants. In 1966, Starr was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by the Associated Press (AP), the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) and UPI. Starr was responsible for calling plays when he was quarterback, which was then the norm. One of his most famous play calls was in the Ice Bowl against the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL championship game on the final day of 1967. Consulting with Lombardi on the sideline, Starr suggested a basic wedge play -- with a twist. Instead of handing off to Chuck Mercein as the play dictated (and unbeknownst to his teammates), Starr suggested he would keep the ball and run it in himself. Having enough of the bitter cold weather, coach Lombardi said, "Then do it, and let's get the hell out of here!" Starr almost broke down in laughter as he ran back to the huddle, but held his composure. The play worked. The Packers went on to beat the Cowboys 21-17. At the Orange Bowl in Miami, the Packers defeated the AFL champion Oakland Raiders 33-14 in Super Bowl II, Lombardi's final game as head coach of the Packers, who were favored by 13 1/2 points. The 1967 Packers remain the only team to win a third consecutive NFL title since the playoff system was instituted in 1933. Starr's playing career ended with the 1971 season, having posted the second best career passer rating of 80.5 (First at the time was Otto Graham with 86.6). He had surgeries on his long-ailing throwing arm in July and August 1971, and saw limited action in his last season. Starr had originally planned to retire after the second Super Bowl win in January 1968, but without a clear successor and a new head coach, he stayed on; by February 1972 he was set for one last year. He participated in the team's spring camp in Arizona in April, then announced his retirement in July at age 38. CANNOTANSWER | He had surgeries on his long-ailing throwing arm in July and August 1971, and saw limited action in his last season. | Bryan Bartlett Starr (January 9, 1934 – May 26, 2019) was a professional American football quarterback and coach. He played college football at the University of Alabama, and was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the 17th round of the 1956 NFL Draft, where he played for them until 1971. Starr is the only quarterback in NFL history to lead a team to three consecutive league championships (1965–1967). He led his team to victories in the first two Super Bowls: I and II. As the Packers' head coach, he was less successful, compiling a 52–76–3 () record from 1975 through 1983.
Starr was named the Most Valuable Player of the first two Super Bowls and during his career earned four Pro Bowl selections. He won the league MVP award in 1966. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Packers Hall of Fame in 1977. Starr has the highest postseason passer rating (104.8) of any quarterback in NFL history and a postseason record of 9–1. His career completion percentage of 57.4 was an NFL best when he retired in 1972. For 32 years (through the 2003 season), Starr also held the Packers' franchise record for games played (196).
Early life
Starr was born and raised in Montgomery, Alabama to parents Benjamin Bryan Starr (1910–1985), a labor foreman with the state highway department, and Lula (Tucker) Starr (1916–1995). Starr's early life was marked by hardships. Shortly after the start of World War II, his father's reserve unit was activated and in 1942 he was deployed to the Pacific Theater. He was first in the U.S. Army but transferred to the U.S. Air Force for his military career.
Starr had a younger brother, Hilton E. "Bubba" Starr. In 1946, Bubba stepped on a dog bone while playing in the yard and three days later died of tetanus. Starr's relationship with his father deteriorated after Hilton's death. He was an introverted child who rarely showed his emotions and his father pushed Starr to develop more of a mean streak.
Starr attended Sidney Lanier High School in Montgomery, and tried out for the football team in his sophomore year, but decided to quit after two weeks. His father gave him the option of playing football or working in the family garden; Starr chose to return to the football field.
In his junior year, the starting quarterback broke his leg and Starr became the starter. He led Lanier to an undefeated season. In his senior season, Starr was named all-state and All-American, and received college scholarship offers from universities across the country. He seriously considered the University of Kentucky, coached by Bear Bryant. Starr's high school sweetheart, Cherry Louise Morton, was planning to attend Auburn and Starr wished to attend a college close to her. Starr changed his mind and committed to the University of Alabama.
College career
During Starr’s freshman year at Alabama, the Southeastern Conference allowed freshmen to play varsity football. Starr did not start for Alabama as a freshman, but he did play enough minutes to earn a varsity letter. His high point of the season came in quarterback relief in the Orange Bowl, when he completed 8 of 12 passes for 93 yards and a touchdown against Syracuse.
Starr entered his sophomore year as Alabama's starting quarterback, safety and punter. His punting average of 41.4 yards per kick ranked second in the nation in 1953, behind Zeke Bratkowski. Alabama recorded a 6–2–3 record and lost in the Cotton Bowl to Rice by a score of 28–6. Starr completed 59 of 119 passes for 870 yards, with eight touchdowns that season.
In May 1954, Starr eloped with Cherry Morton. The couple chose to keep their marriage a secret. Colleges often revoked the scholarships of married athletes in the 1950s, believing their focus should remain on sports. Cherry remained in Jackson, Alabama, while Starr returned to the University of Alabama.
That summer, Starr suffered a severe back injury during a hazing incident for his initiation into the A Club. He covered up the cause by fabricating a story about being hurt while punting a football. He rarely played during his junior year due to the injury. The back injury disqualified him later from military service, and would occasionally bother him the rest of his football career. After a disappointing season of 4–5–2, Harold Drew was replaced by Jennings B. Whitworth as coach of Alabama.
Whitworth conducted a youth movement at Alabama for the 1955 season and only two seniors started for the team. Supposedly healed from the back injury, Starr rarely played in his senior season. Starr's decision to play football for Alabama rather than for Bear Bryant at the University of Kentucky did not sit well with Bryant, and four years later as head coach of the Blue–Gray Football Classic in 1955, Bryant hardly let Bart play at all.
Johnny Dee, the basketball coach at Alabama, was a friend of Jack Vainisi, the personnel director of the Green Bay Packers. Dee recommended Starr as a prospect to Vainisi. The Packers were convinced that Starr had the ability to succeed in the NFL and would learn quickly. In the 17th round of the 1956 NFL Draft, Starr was selected by the Packers, with the 200th overall pick.
Starr spent the summer of 1956 living with his in-laws and throwing footballs through a tire in their backyard in order to prepare for his rookie season. The Packers offered $6,500 (equal to $ today) to sign Starr and he accepted, with the added condition, requested by Starr, that he receive $1,000 up front.
Packers quarterback
Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956 and split time with Babe Parilli until 1959, Vince Lombardi's first year as Packers coach. In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr, and he held the starting job henceforth. The following season, the Packers advanced to the 1960 NFL Championship Game, but lost to the Philadelphia Eagles in Lombardi's only post-season loss as a head coach.
1961 was Starr's first season as a full-time starting quarterback for the Packers, throwing for over 2,400 yards and 16 touchdown passes, leading the Packers to an 11-3 record and a return to the NFL Championship Game, this time against the New York Giants. Starr threw for 164 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 37-0 Packers victory. Starr and the Packers continued their success in 1962, going 13-1. Even though Starr was not the focal point of the Packers' offense, with the running duo of Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung, he still provided a solid passing attack, throwing for a career-high 2,438 yards and 14 touchdowns, leading the league with a completion percentage of 62.5. The Packers repeated as NFL champions, beating the Giants again in the 1962 NFL Championship game, 16-7. While not as impressive with his passing in the early years of his career, Starr was responsible for calling plays on the Packers' offense (which was then the norm), proving to be an effective strategist on offense.
In 1963, the Packers fell short of qualifying for their fourth consecutive NFL Championship Game appearance, with injuries to Starr keeping him from finishing a few games. Even so, Starr still threw for 1,855 yards and 15 touchdowns. In 1964, with Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung struggling to continue their strong running game, Starr started to become more of the focus of the Packers' offensive attack. Vince Lombardi would help this shift by acquiring more capable pass catchers to the offense, trading for receiver Carroll Dale to join with Boyd Dowler and Max McGee, replacing tight end Ron Kramer with Marv Fleming, and drafting more pass-catching running backs in Elijah Pitts and Donny Anderson. With these new offensive weapons, Starr would put up his best passing seasons from 1964 to 1969. In 1964, despite the Packers only going 8-5-1, Starr threw for 2,144 yards, 15 touchdown passes, and only 4 interceptions. He led the league with a 97.1 passer rating.
In 1965, the Packers went 10-3-1, led by Starr's 2,055 passing yards and 16 touchdown passes, a career-high. The Packers and their Western division foe, the Baltimore Colts, finished the season with identical records, so the two teams met in a playoff game to determine the division winner. Starr was knocked out of the game after the first play when he suffered a rib injury from a hard hit, but the Packers managed to win in overtime, 13-10, led by Starr's backup, Zeke Bratkowski. Starr came back and started the 1965 NFL Championship Game against the Cleveland Browns. On a sloppy Lambeau field, the Packers went back to their classic backfield tandem of Taylor and Hornung, with the pair running for over 200 yards. Starr threw for only 147 yards, but that included a 47-yard touchdown pass to Carroll Dale.
In 1966, Starr had arguably the best season of his career, throwing for 2,257 yards, 14 touchdown passes, and only 3 interceptions. He led the NFL with a completion percentage of 62.2 and a 105 passer rating, while leading the Packers to a dominating 12-2 record. Starr would be named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by the Associated Press (AP), the Sporting News, the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA), and the UPI In the NFL Championship Game against the Dallas Cowboys, Starr had his best postseason performance, throwing for 304 yards and 4 touchdown passes, leading the Packers to a 34-27 victory, and the right to represent the NFL in the first ever Super Bowl, against the AFL champion Kansas City Chiefs. Starr had another solid game against the Chiefs, throwing for 250 yards and two touchdowns, both to Max McGee, in a decisive 35-10 Packers win. Starr was named the first-ever Super Bowl MVP for his performance.
1967 was a down year for Starr, especially when compared to his previous three seasons. Bothered by a hand injury for much of the season, Starr threw for only 1,823 yards and 9 touchdowns, with a career-high 17 interceptions thrown. Helped in large part by their defense, the Packers still finished 9-4-1, which was good enough for the Packers to reach the postseason. In the divisional playoff against the Los Angeles Rams, Starr was back in form, throwing for 222 yards and a touchdown pass in a 28-7 Packers triumph. This victory would set the stage for the infamous Ice Bowl against the Dallas Cowboys in the 1967 NFL Championship Game. Consulting with Lombardi on the sideline, Starr suggested a basic wedge play ― with a twist. Instead of handing off to Chuck Mercein as the play dictated (and unbeknownst to his teammates), Starr suggested running it in himself. Having enough of the bitterly cold weather, Lombardi said, “Then do it, and let's get the hell out of here!" Starr almost broke down in laughter as he ran back to the huddle, but held his composure. The quarterback sneak play worked and the Packers went on to beat the Cowboys 21-17. Even in the cold conditions, Starr was still able to throw for 191 yards in the Ice Bowl, with two touchdown passes to Boyd Dowler.
At the Orange Bowl in Miami, the Packers defeated the AFL champion Oakland Raiders 33–14 in Super Bowl II, Lombardi's final game as head coach of the Packers. Starr won his second consecutive Super Bowl MVP award for his performance, where he threw for 202 yards and a touchdown pass, a 62-yard strike to Boyd Dowler. The 1967 Packers remain the only team to win a third consecutive NFL title since the playoff system was instituted in 1933.
Starr had originally planned to retire after the second Super Bowl win in January 1968, but without a clear successor and a new head coach, he stayed on. After Lombardi's departure, Starr continued to be a productive quarterback under new Packers coach Phil Bengston, though injuries hampered him. Starr threw for 15 touchdown passes in 1968, leading the NFL once again in completion percentage (63.7) and passer rating (104.3). Starr struggled to stay healthy again in 1969, but still once again led the league with a 62.2 completion percentage and an 89.9 passer rating, but only threw for 9 touchdowns and 1,161 yards. Starr was able to stay healthy for most of the entire 1970 season, but his age was showing, throwing for only 1,645 yards and 8 touchdowns, the last touchdown passes of his career. In an attempt to prolong his career, Starr had surgeries on his long-ailing throwing arm in July and August 1971. This nearly ended Starr's life, as the initial surgery was botched, nearly causing Starr to bleed to death. The surgeries ended up damaging the nerves in Starr's right arm, causing him to struggle to even grip a football, and while he stayed on the Packers' roster for the entire 1971 season, he only played in three games, usually with a glove on his throwing hand to try to regain his grip on the ball. In February 1972 Starr was set for one last year. He participated in the team's spring camp in Arizona in April, but his throwing shoulder and arm were no longer effective. Starr announced his retirement in July 1972 at age 38.
Starr's playing career ended with the 1971 season, having posted the second-best career passer rating of 80.5 (First at the time was Otto Graham with 86.6).
Packers coach
Immediately following his retirement as a player, Starr served as the Packers' quarterbacks coach and called plays in 1972 under head coach Dan Devine, when the Packers won the NFC Central division title at 10–4 with Scott Hunter under center. He pursued business interests and was then a broadcaster for CBS for two seasons. When Devine left for Notre Dame after the 1974 season, Starr was hired as head coach of the Packers on Christmas Eve. Upon taking the job, he recognized the long odds of a Hall of Fame player becoming a successful head coach. Initially given a three-year contract, he led the Packers for nine years, the first five as his own general manager.
His regular season record was a disappointing 52–76–2 (), with a playoff record of 1–1. Posting a 5–3–1 record in the strike-shortened season of 1982, Starr's Packers made their first playoff appearance in ten years (and their last for another 11 years). They defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 41–16 in the expanded wild card round of 16 teams on January 8, 1983–their first home playoff game since 1967. However, they then lost to the Dallas Cowboys 37–26 in the divisional round the following week. He tallied only three other non-losing seasons as Packers coach. After a disappointing 8–8 finish the following year, Starr was dismissed in favor of his former teammate Forrest Gregg, who previously led the Cincinnati Bengals to Super Bowl XVI in the 1981 season and had coached the Cleveland Browns prior to that.
On January 13, 1984, Starr was named the head coach of the Arizona Firebirds, a proposed expansion team for the NFL in Phoenix. The NFL never granted the would-be ownership group of the Firebirds a team (Phoenix would get the Cardinals in 1988).
Honors
Starr was voted to the NFL Pro Bowl four times. He was voted NFL Most Valuable Player by both AP and UPI in 1966, and was chosen Super Bowl MVP in 1966 and 1967. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1977.
He is one of six Green Bay Packers to have had his number (15) retired by the team. The others are Tony Canadeo (3), Don Hutson (14), Ray Nitschke (66), Reggie White (92), and Brett Favre (4).
On October 17, 1970, President Richard Nixon spoke at a testimonial reception honoring Bart Starr in the Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena in Green Bay, Wisconsin. "We honor him as a very great practitioner of his profession, the proud profession of professional football," Nixon said. "And as we honor him for that, we honor him not only for his technical skill but, as I've indicated, also for something that is just as important: his leadership qualities, his character, his moral fiber ... But I think the best way that I can present Bart Starr to his friends is to say very simply that the sixties will be described as the decade in which football became the number one sport in America, in which the Packers were the number one team, and Bart Starr was proudly the number one Packer."
In 1973, Starr received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.
Starr was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1981.
Starr has an NFL award named after him. The Athletes in Action/Bart Starr Award is given annually, by a panel of judges, to an NFL player who best exemplifies outstanding character and leadership in the home, on the field, and in the community.
Head coaching record
NFL career statistics
Regular season
Personal life
Starr and his wife Cherry were married for more than 60 years. They had two sons, of whom the younger, Bret, is deceased (1988, age 24, drug overdose), and three granddaughters. He was a Christian.
In 1965, Starr and his wife Cherry helped co-found Rawhide Boys Ranch in New London, Wisconsin, a facility designed to help at-risk and troubled boys throughout the state of Wisconsin. Starr even donated the Corvette he received as MVP of Super Bowl II to help Rawhide during their early years. He was affiliated with Rawhide Boys Ranch until his death. As of 2019, Cherry and Bart Jr. are still spokespersons for Rawhide and are in communication with Rawhide on a frequent basis.
In 1971, Starr and his wife Cherry helped start the Vince Lombardi Cancer Foundation raising funds for cancer research and care in honor of his late coach, Vince Lombardi. They were active at all their events throughout the years. He and Cherry launched the Starr Children's Fund within the Vince Lombardi Cancer Foundation to continue their legacy of work supporting pediatric cancer research and care.
During his latter years, Starr suffered a number of physical ailments, including ischemic stroke, hemorrhagic stroke, a mild heart attack, seizures, and a broken hip. In June 2015, Starr's family reported that he was undergoing stem-cell therapy in a clinical trial. He managed to attend a ceremony at Lambeau Field on November 26, 2015 retiring QB Brett Favre's jersey number, and a fall 2017 reunion of the Ice Bowl Packers. At Super Bowl 50 in February 2016, the NFL held a pregame ceremony honoring the MVPs of all 49 Super Bowls. Although he wished to attend, Starr was not well enough to travel to the game and instead sent a videotaped greeting from home.
Starr died at the age of 85 on Sunday, May 26, 2019, in Birmingham, Alabama after a period of failing health caused by a serious stroke he suffered in 2014.
References
Claerbaut, David (2004), Bart Starr: When Leadership Mattered, Lanham, MD.:Taylor Trade Publishing
External links
1934 births
2019 deaths
Alabama Crimson Tide football players
Alabama Republicans
American football quarterbacks
Green Bay Packers general managers
Green Bay Packers head coaches
Green Bay Packers players
Journalists from Alabama
National Football League announcers
National Football League general managers
National Football League Most Valuable Player Award winners
National Football League players with retired numbers
Players of American football from Montgomery, Alabama
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Sidney Lanier High School alumni
Sportspeople from Montgomery, Alabama
Super Bowl MVPs
Western Conference Pro Bowl players | false | [
"Steeplejack Charles Miller (1882–1910), nicknamed the Human Fly, was an American man famous for climbing buildings. He began climbing in 1900, and earned a living from his stunts. Miller did not use any climbing equipment. He died after falling sixty feet from the fourth floor of the Hamburger building in Los Angeles in full view of hundreds of spectators, who transported his unconscious body to the hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries.\n\nSee also\n List of stunt performers nicknamed the \"Human Fly\"\nBuildering\n\nReferences\n\n1882 births\n1910 deaths\nUrban climbers\nUrban exploration",
"A chest injury, also known as chest trauma, is any form of physical injury to the chest including the ribs, heart and lungs. Chest injuries account for 25% of all deaths from traumatic injury. Typically chest injuries are caused by blunt mechanisms such as direct, indirect, compression, contusion, deceleration, or blasts- caused by motor vehicle collisions or penetrating mechanisms such as stabbings.\n\nClassification\nChest injuries can be classified as blunt or penetrating. Blunt and penetrating injuries have different pathophysiologies and clinical courses.\n\nSpecific types of injuries include:\n Injuries to the chest wall\n Chest wall contusions or hematomas. \n Rib fractures\n Flail chest\n Sternal fractures\n Fractures of the shoulder girdle\n Pulmonary injury (injury to the lung) and injuries involving the pleural space\n Pulmonary contusion \n Pulmonary laceration\n Pneumothorax\n Hemothorax\n Hemopneumothorax\n Injury to the airways\n Tracheobronchial tear\n Cardiac injury\n Pericardial tamponade\n Myocardial contusion\n Traumatic arrest\n Hemopericardium\n Blood vessel injuries\n Traumatic aortic rupture\n Thoracic aorta injury\n Aortic dissection\n And injuries to other structures within the torso\n Esophageal injury (Boerhaave syndrome)\n Diaphragm injury\n\nDiagnosis\nMost blunt injuries are managed with relatively simple interventions like tracheal intubation and mechanical ventilation and chest tube insertion. Diagnosis of blunt injuries may be more difficult and require additional investigations such as CT scanning. Penetrating injuries often require surgery, and complex investigations are usually not needed to come to a diagnosis. Patients with penetrating trauma may deteriorate rapidly, but may also recover much faster than patients with blunt injury.\n\nSee also\n Transmediastinal gunshot wound\n Commotio thoracis\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n\nMedical emergencies"
] |
[
"Weather Report",
"1982-1985: A new band"
] | C_d9f2723ad001441abb6bc1285e77609e_0 | Who did the recruit | 1 | Who did Weather Report recruit? | Weather Report | On the recommendation of Michal Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited the 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians (including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon). Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new rhythm section. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player Jose Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle. The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music", which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer. Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), furthering developing the band's involvement with technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson. The band was beginning to suffer from the revival of more traditionally styled jazz at the time, which made it harder to market jazz fusion. Percussionist and singer Mino Cinelu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers. By the time of the release of Sportin' Life Shorter and Zawinul had opted not to tour the material. Instead, they took a break for long-delayed solo projects. CANNOTANSWER | Omar | Weather Report was an American jazz fusion band active from 1970 to 1986. The band was founded (and initially co-led) by Austrian keyboard player Joe Zawinul, American saxophonist Wayne Shorter, and Czech bassist Miroslav Vitouš. Other prominent members at various points in the band's lifespan included Jaco Pastorius, Alphonso Johnson, Victor Bailey, Chester Thompson, Peter Erskine, Airto Moreira, and Alex Acuña. Throughout most of its existence, the band was a quintet consisting of Zawinul, Shorter, a bass guitarist, a drummer, and a percussionist.
The band started as a free improvising jazz group with avant-garde and experimental electronic leanings (pioneered by Zawinul); when Vitouš left Weather Report (due mostly to creative disagreements), Zawinul increasingly steered the band towards a funky, edgy sound incorporating elements of R&B and native musics from around the world. Zawinul used the latest developments in synthesizer technology, and took advantage of a large variety of sounds and tone colors to make the band stand out. During the first half of their career, Weather Report were seen as one of the defining acts in modern jazz, winning the DownBeat "best album award" five times in a row.
Alongside bands such as Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return to Forever, Herbie Hancock's Headhunters (all with members inspired by and partially responsible for the fusion-era work of Miles Davis), Weather Report is widely considered one of the defining bands of the jazz fusion genre.
Musical style
Over their 16-year career, Weather Report explored various areas of music, predominantly centered on jazz (initially the "free" variety), but also incorporating elements of art music, ethnic music, R&B, funk, and rock. While their work was categorized as "jazz fusion", the band members generally distanced themselves from that term.
From the start, Weather Report took the unusual approach of abandoning the traditional "soloist/accompaniment" demarcation of straight-ahead jazz and featured opportunities for continuous improvisation by every member of the band. That position remained consistent throughout the life of the band. From the point where Alphonso Johnson joined the band, individual solos became more prominent in concert, but were never allowed to overwhelm the collective approach. Initially, the band's music featured an improvisational method (similar to Miles Davis's Bitches Brew-period), but eventually that shifted to a more groove-oriented approach, and catchier compositions (as epitomized by their 1977 hit single "Birdland").
Joe Zawinul's playing style was often dominated by quirky melodic improvisations (simultaneously bebop-, ethnic-, and pop-sounding) combined with sparse but rhythmic big-band chords or bass lines. Having originally made his name as a pioneering electric piano player, he went on to consistently develop the role of the synthesizer in jazz during his time with Weather Report. Working with companies such as ARP and Oberheim, Zawinul developed new ways of voicing and patching electronic tones for textures, ensemble roles (including emulations of traditional band instruments) and soloing. In Weather Report, he often employed a vocoder, as well as recorded sounds played (i.e., filtered and transposed) through a synthesizer, creating a very distinctive, often beautiful, synthesis of jazz harmonics and "noise" (which he referred to as "using all the sounds the world generates"). On some Weather Report tunes, however, Zawinul was criticized for allowing his synthesized arrangements to dominate the sound.
Wayne Shorter came to the group with a reputation as a dominant role as an instrumentalist, drawn from both his solo work and his contributions to Miles Davis' "second great quintet" during the 1960s. His choice not to follow the same approach with Weather Report led to some criticism of the group. During his time with Weather Report, Shorter was noted for generally playing saxophone with an economical, "listening" style. Rather than continually taking the lead, he generally added subtle harmonic, melodic, and/or rhythmic complexity by responding to other member's improvisations (although he could and did sometimes exercise a more frenetic style akin to that of John Coltrane or Michael Brecker). As a composer, he chose a more abstract, sometimes atonal and "free jazz" style of music, opposed to the sometimes flamboyant melodicism of the tunes written by Zawinul or Pastorius. Playing both tenor and soprano saxophones, Shorter continued to develop the role of the latter instrument in jazz, taking his cue from previous work by Coltrane, Sidney Bechet, Lucky Thompson, and Steve Lacy.
Weather Report maintained a consistent interest in a textured sound and developments in music technology and processing. Both Zawinul and original bassist Miroslav Vitouš experimented with electronic effects pedals (as generally used by rock guitarists) with Zawinul using them on electric piano and synthesizers and Vitouš on his upright bass (which he frequently bowed through distortion to create a second horn-like voice). The band's third bass player, Jaco Pastorius, popularized the use of fretless bass guitar, melodic bass soloing and extensive use of string harmonics, as well as consolidating the driving R&B pulse in the band's music (which had been brought in by his predecessor Alphonso Johnson).
With the exception of a brief quartet period between 1978 and 1979 (wherein other members could double on various percussion instruments), Weather Report's instrumentation always included both a drummer and a percussionist. For its first eight years of existence, the group had difficulty finding a permanent drummer, moving through about one drummer per year until Jaco Pastorius helped to recruit Peter Erskine in 1978. Erskine and Omar Hakim were the only drummers who played with Weather Report for more than two years.
History
1970: Inception and formation
Joe Zawinul and Wayne Shorter had first met and become friends in 1959 while they were playing in Maynard Ferguson's Big Band. Zawinul went on to play with Cannonball Adderley's group in the 1960s, while Shorter joined Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers and then, in 1964, Miles Davis' second great quintet. During this decade, both men made names for themselves as being among the best composers in jazz.
Zawinul later joined Shorter in contributing to the initial fusion music recordings of Miles Davis, and both men were part of the studio groups that recorded the key Davis albums In a Silent Way (1969) and Bitches Brew (1970). Weather Report was initially formed to explore a more impressionistic and individualistic music (or, as Zawinul put it, "away from all that eight bars shit and then you go to the bridge...").
There's some dispute over how Weather Report initially formed. According to Zawinul, it began when he and Shorter recruited another Miles Davis associate, the classically trained Czech-born bass player Miroslav Vitouš, who had previously played with each of them separately (as well as with Herbie Mann, Bob Brookmeyer, Stan Getz, and Chick Corea). According to Vitouš himself, it was he and Shorter who actually founded Weather Report, with Shorter bringing in Zawinul afterwards. Whichever story is true, it was those three musicians – all composers – who formed the initial core of the project.
To complete the band, Zawinul, Shorter and Vitouš brought in former McCoy Tyner drummer Alphonse Mouzon and began recording their debut album while looking for a full-time auxiliary percussionist. The initial recruits were session percussion player Don Alias and symphony orchestra percussionist Barbara Burton. During recording, Alias quarreled with Zawinul (allegedly due to Zawinul being too dictatorial over the percussion approach) and the innovative Brazilian percussionist Airto Moreira (yet another Davis alumnus) was brought in to complete the record. Guitarist John McLaughlin was also invited to join the group, but decided to pursue his solo career, instead.
1971–1972: Avant-garde collective
Weather Report's debut album Weather Report featured a softer sound than would be the case in later years, predominantly using acoustic bass, with Shorter exclusively playing soprano saxophone. It built on the avant-garde experiments which Zawinul and Shorter had pioneered with Miles Davis on Bitches Brew, including an avoidance of head-and-chorus composition in favor of continuous rhythm and movement. DownBeat magazine described the album as "music beyond category".
In 1972, Weather Report released its second album, I Sing the Body Electric. The first side featured new studio recordings, while the second side was taken from live recordings of a concert in Tokyo, featuring the full-band lineup of Zawinul, Shorter, Vitouš, Gravatt, and Um Romão (and later available in full as the 1972 Japan-only double album Live in Tokyo). The studio side used extended versions of the band including various guest performers, suggesting that Weather Report was not necessarily an integral jazz band, but might possibly work as an expandable project set up to realise the music of its three composers. The album also featured Zawinul's first use of a synthesizer (an instrument with which he would become synonymous within jazz) and of sound effects.
I Sing the Body Electric also showed the first signs of a shift in the balance of control within the band, away from the more collective approach of the debut album. During the following year, this tendency would develop further.
1973: Move towards groove
On 1973's Sweetnighter, Weather Report began to abandon the primarily acoustic group improvisation format, and the band started to take a new direction. Primarily at Zawinul's instigation, Weather Report became more jazz funk- and groove-oriented, drawing more heavily on R&B influences and dense electric keyboard work while adding more structure to both the prewritten and the improvisational sections.
Gravatt took his replacement in the studio sessions badly and quit the band at the end of recording, moving to Minneapolis to join the band Natural Life. Many years later, Zawinul paid tribute to Gravatt's skills and stated that he had been the finest of the band's "pure jazz" drummers as well as being "from the jazz side... my favorite of them all". With Gravatt gone and Dwellingham unavailable for touring, former Sly & the Family Stone drummer Greg Errico played on the Sweetnighter tour, but did not stay with the band afterwards.
At this point, Vitouš and Zawinul found themselves at creative loggerheads, since the former preferred Weather Report's original approach and the latter wished to continue further along the road to funk. Retrospectively, Zawinul accused Vitouš of being unable to play funk convincingly (something which Greg Errico corroborated) and claimed that he had not provided enough music for the band. Vitouš countered that he had in fact brought in compositions, but that Zawinul had been unable to play them. Vitouš has also accused Zawinul of having been "a first-class manipulator" primarily interested in commercial success. When Shorter sided with Zawinul, the original three-man partnership broke down acrimoniously and Vitouš left Weather Report, moving on to an illustrious career leading his own band and winning respect as a composer. His final contribution to Weather Report was to play bass on a single track, which appeared on the band's 1974 album Mysterious Traveller ("American Tango", which he had co-written with Zawinul).
Vitouš' departure marked the end of the first phase of Weather Report and the shift of overall creative dominance of the band to Josef Zawinul, although Shorter remained an integral, influential, and vital part of the project. Vitouš has subsequently accused both Zawinul and Shorter of having used foul play to edge him out of the band, to deny the scale of his contribution to Weather Report's history and creative approach, and to cheat him out of remuneration.
1974–1975: Further into groove
Vitouš' replacement was the Philadelphian electric bass guitarist Alphonso Johnson (formerly a sideman for the pop-fusion player Chuck Mangione). Recruited by Shorter, Johnson was a supple player more than capable of providing the funk element which Zawinul desired. He was also an early advocate of the Chapman Stick, which he can be heard playing on some of the live Weather Report recordings of the period.
According to Zawinul, Wilburn apparently "lost heart" on tour (despite performing well in the studio). To shore up the music, the band hired another drummer, Darryl Brown, to play alongside him. At the end of the tour, both Wilburn and Brown left the band (as did Dom Um Romão) and Weather Report was, once again, drummerless.
For the next set of studio sessions, Weather Report added a new Brazilian percussionist (Alyrio Lima) and a new drummer – Chuck Bazemore of The Delfonics.
The new album, Tale Spinnin', was released in 1975. It was the first Weather Report album to feature a consistent rhythm section (rather than a varied set of drummers, percussionists, and bass players) since their debut. The album also made further strides in using technological improvements in synthesizers, even making use of the gigantic studio-based TONTO array.
During the same year, Shorter also recorded Native Dancer under his own name (with the Brazilian composer and vocalist Milton Nascimento). Tale Spinnin won the DownBeat best album award for 1975 (the third Weather Report album to do so) and Native Dancer was the runner-up.
1976: In transition
1976's Black Market album was perhaps the most rock-oriented work which the group had produced to date. Weather Report's music had evolved further from open-ended funk jams into more melody-oriented, concise forms, which also offered a greater mass-market appeal. Zawinul further consolidated his use of keyboard synthesizers, while Shorter experimented with an early form of wind synthesizer, the Lyricon.
However, the album was recorded during yet another period of change for the group, with multiple personnel shuffles. Although Alyrio Lima played percussion on one track, he was replaced during the sessions by Don Alias (his first appearance with the group since the debut album debacle) and by Alex Acuña (a Peruvian drummer and conga player based in Las Vegas, who had played with Elvis Presley and Ike Turner, among others). Alphonso Johnson was also worn out from the strain put on the rhythm by the band's frequent changes of drummer. During a break in activity halfway through the recording of Black Market, Johnson opted to leave Weather Report to play with the Billy Cobham/George Duke Band (which featured a young John Scofield on guitar).
Prior to his departure, Johnson played on all but two of the new album's tracks. His replacement was Jaco Pastorius, a virtuoso fretless bass guitarist from Florida, who had been in touch with Zawinul for several years, and who came in to play on "Cannon Ball" and his own composition "Barbary Coast". Zawinul and Shorter had assumed that Chester Thompson would be departing alongside his friend Johnson, and for the second set of sessions they replaced him (on Pastorius' recommendation) with the former Mahavishnu Orchestra drummer Narada Michael Walden. Although Walden played on several album tracks, he ultimately proved unsuitable. Thompson returned for the final Black Market sessions, but left again after failing to gel as a rhythm section with Pastorius (whose style was much busier than that of Johnson). Thompson subsequently joined Genesis as their touring drummer.
Black Market continued Weather Report's ongoing run of success, selling well and being the fourth of the band's albums to win the album of the year award from DownBeat magazine. For the subsequent tour, Alex Acuña moved from percussion to the drum kit, and Don Alias was replaced by the young Puerto Rican percussionist Manolo Badrena, who had previously played with various Latin rock bands and with Art Blakey. The band made a very well-received appearance in July at the Montreux Jazz Festival 1976, which was filmed for future release.
1977–1979: Jazz-rock stars
The recruitment of Jaco Pastorius helped to push Weather Report to the height of its popularity. Already a rising star in his own right, Pastorius brought a very musical, melodic quality to the bass. He could play muscular, lightning-fast groove lines influenced by R&B or funk, as well as demonstrating an extraordinary solo control of tone and string harmonics, often sounding more like a horn player. Pastorius was also a multi-instrumentalist (contributing drums, steel pan, and mandocello to the latest recording sessions), a gifted composer (eventually responsible for some signature Weather Report pieces such as "Teen Town" and "Three Views of a Secret"), and a useful production foil for Zawinul due to his knowledge of recording studios and techniques. Finally, Pastorius' stagecraft and aggressive showmanship helped the band to bring in a new audience.
The band's next album was 1977's acclaimed Heavy Weather, which proved to be the band's most successful recording in terms of sales, while still retaining wide critical acclaim. It contained the band's biggest hit, the propulsive and danceable "Birdland" (highlighting Pastorius' singing bass lines and Zawinul's synthesized ensemble brass), which became a pop hit and later became a jazz standard. Weather Report appeared on the Burt Sugarman-produced series The Midnight Special, performing both "Birdland" and "Teen Town". Heavy Weather dominated Weather Report's disc awards, including their last DownBeat Album of the Year award.
During this period, Pastorius' strong professional connection with Joni Mitchell (for whom he played bass throughout the latter half of the 1970s) led to another musical connection. Over the next few years, Mitchell hired the Weather Report line-up en masse (although without Zawinul in each case) to play on her studio albums Don Juan's Reckless Daughter (1977) and Mingus (1979).
During August 1978 the band joined Maurice White's vanity label ARC at Columbia. At the time they were once again without either a full-time drummer and percussionist, with Alex Acuña having returned to Las Vegas for a career as a studio musician and Manolo Badrena having been fired for "non-musical reasons". Shorter had been focusing most of his attention and compositional ideas into his solo work, while Zawinul was sketching out ideas for a solo album of his own, which involved moving away from a raw group sound in favor of constructing a far more orchestrated and experimental studio-based recording with multiple overdubs. However, Weather Report's contract and work schedule required another album, so Zawinul's solo work was absorbed into what became Weather Report's eighth album, Mr. Gone (1978).
The studio sessions made use of a variety of drummers – Pastorius played the kit on two tracks and further contributions came from Tony Williams, Steve Gadd, and Peter Erskine (the latter an ex-Stan Kenton/Maynard Ferguson drummer recruited to the project by Pastorius). Erskine became a full member of the band for the next tour and remained with Weather Report until 1982. The album also featured guest appearances from Deniece Williams and Earth Wind and Fire leader Maurice White.
The album rose to No. 1 on the Billboard Jazz Albums chart.
Notoriously, Mr. Gone (1978) received only a one-star review rating from DownBeat after a string of group releases which had all pulled a five-star rating. The group arranged for a rebuttal interview with the magazine to defend their efforts. Zawinul and Pastorius were defiant in their responses to the interviewer, Shorter more philosophical, and Erskine the most reticent of the four.
By the late '70s, Weather Report was a quartet of Zawinul, Shorter, Pastorius, and Erskine, and (for the first time) had dispensed with the auxiliary percussionist role, which had been integral since the band's inception. Instead, all four members doubled on percussion at various points in live performances. Zawinul commented that this sleeker, less crowded sound provided more listening range and made the music less chaotic now that the band were focusing more on melody and harmony.
The larger scale and multimedia staging of the band's tours (complete with stagehands, laser and film projections) began to take on the kind of rock-star proportions mostly unknown in jazz circles. The 1979 double live album 8:30 (which won that year's Best Jazz Fusion Performance) was recorded on the Mr. Gone tour and captured the direct power and energy of this lineup of Weather Report. Zawinul would later describe this lineup as "one of the greatest bands of all time! That band was a hummer!"
Between March 2 and 4, 1979, Weather Report traveled to Havana, Cuba, to participate in the historic Havana Jam festival, a break in mutual Cuban/American political hostilities, which had American artists such as Stephen Stills, the CBS Jazz All-Stars, Bonnie Bramlett, Kris Kristofferson, Rita Coolidge, and Billy Joel play alongside Cuban artists such as Irakere, Pacho Alonso, Tata Güines, and Orquesta Aragón. Another featured performance was by the Trio of Doom (a short-lived teaming of Pastorius with John McLaughlin and Tony Williams). Weather Report's performance featured in Havana Jam '79, Ernesto Juan Castellanos' documentary celebrating the event.
1980–1982: A tighter arrangement
At the beginning of 1980, Pastorius recruited hand-drummer Robert Thomas Jr. (a fellow Floridan, with whom he had jammed previously) into the band. Thomas featured on the 1980 album Night Passage. A tighter and more traditional recording than previous releases, the record featured a more prominent role for Shorter, a strong element of bebop, and a nod to jazz's golden age via a high-speed cover of Duke Ellington's "Rockin' in Rhythm" (showing off Zawinul's pioneering and ever-increasing ability to create synthetic big-band sounds on his synthesizers).
By now, Pastorius was displaying signs of the mental instability and substance abuse problems that ultimately wrecked his career; and the close relationship he'd previously shared with Zawinul was becoming strained as Zawinul grew tired of Pastorius' showmanship onstage (beginning to feel that it detracted from the music). Towards the end of the year, Pastorius began working on his long-delayed second solo album (Word of Mouth) (1981) in New York, while Zawinul worked on new Weather Report material in California.
Weather Report's next album Weather Report (1982) – their second eponymous release following their 1971 debut – was recorded in 1981, although it was not released for another year. Zawinul's dominance as instrumentalist and composer (as well as group director) was even more pronounced on this album. Much of the band's music was increasingly written out rather than improvised. In the event, Pastorius spent more of his creative attention on the Word of Mouth project: his only writing for the Weather Report album being his contribution to a single, group-composed piece. Shorter (who only contributed one whole composition to the 1982 album beyond group-written work) was already taking a more philosophical approach. He later commented, "for a long time in Weather Report, I abstained. I elected not to do things."
Erskine's own commitment to Word of Mouth (and a subsequent summer commitment to Steps Ahead) meant that he, too, had to be replaced, while Robert Thomas Jr., was simply dismissed. Reduced to a duo, and with tour commitments looming, Zawinul and Shorter were obliged to quickly assemble a new band.
1982–1985: A new band
On the recommendation of Michał Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon. Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new lineup. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player José Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle.
The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music" approach which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer.
Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), deepening the band's involvement with cutting-edge music technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson.
Percussionist and singer Mino Cinélu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by singers Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers.
1986: Final split
Both Zawinul and Shorter were beginning to realise that the refreshing nature of other projects was more satisfying than Weather Report work, and both generally felt that the band had run its course.
In February 1986, the San Diego Union-Tribune announced that Shorter had left the band to concentrate on solo work. Having reluctantly agreed with Shorter that he would no longer use the band name, Zawinul then ended Weather Report. The final album under the Weather Report name, This is This!, was released in June 1986 and fulfilled the band's contract with Columbia Records. Two of its tracks featured guitar work from Carlos Santana, and it also marked the return of Peter Erskine on drums, with Hakim only appearing on one track.
1986–present: After Weather Report
Having split the band, Zawinul promptly attempted to reform it – after a fashion – as Weather Update. For this project, he reunited with recent Weather Report alumni Victor Bailey, Mino Cinélu, and Peter Erskine, but replaced Shorter with guitarist John Scofield. This lineup was short-lived, with Los Angeles session guitarist Steve Khan and former Weather Report percussionist Robert Thomas Jr. replacing Scofield and Cinélu prior to live appearances. Weather Update toured in 1986 and 1987 before Zawinul dissolved the band. From 1988 onwards, Zawinul went on to enjoy a successful nineteen-year career leading the world music/jazz ensemble The Zawinul Syndicate (which has continued, following Zawinul's death, as The Syndicate).
Rather than form another collective band, Wayne Shorter concentrated on his solo career and on work as a bandleader, which continues to the present day.
In spite of the band's enduring popularity, a Weather Report reunion never occurred. The nearest that the band ever came to reuniting was when Zawinul and Shorter both played live with Miles Davis on July 10, 1991, in Paris (the only time when Zawinul is known to have shared a live stage with Davis). A projected mid-'90s reunion CD for Verve never materialized; according to Zawinul, disappointing sales for Shorter's 1995 CD High Life may have played a part in ending the idea.
Five of the band's members have since died. Zawinul himself died on September 11, 2007, in Vienna from skin cancer (Merkel cell carcinoma). He was predeceased by mid-period bass player Jaco Pastorius, who died on September 21, 1987, following a fatal beating in his hometown of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Pastorius' successor on bass guitar, Victor Bailey, died on November 11, 2016 (apparently from complications from Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). Alphonse Mouzon, the first drummer, died on December 25, 2016 from cardiac arrest after neuroendocrine cancer. Dom Um Romão, the group's drummer from 1971 to 1974, died in 2005 aged 79.
Lineups
Timeline
Releases since the band's breakup
A "post band" Weather Report double CD called Live and Unreleased was made available in 2002, featuring vintage live recordings made during the late 1970s/early 1980s with various personnel. In September 2006, Columbia/Legacy released a Weather Report boxed set, Forecast: Tomorrow. It includes three CDs of mostly previously released material (from 1970 to 1985, excluding This is This!) and a DVD of the entire September 28, 1978, performance (with Erskine and Pastorius) in Offenbach, Germany, not previously available. A DVD video of the 1976 Montreux Jazz Festival performance (featuring the Heavy Weather lineup of Pastorius, Acuna, and Badrena) has become available, as well. Columbia/Legacy have also re-released the 1984 Live in Japan concert on DVD.
In 2011, the Zawinul estate, in conjunction with an independent label, released a 40th-anniversary commemorative trilogy of previously unavailable Weather Report live shows: In March Live in Berlin 1975 was released both on vinyl and as a CD/DVD set; in June the Live in Offenbach 1978 DVD was re-released together with a previously unavailable double CD of the complete show; in October Live in Cologne 1983 was released as both DVD and double CD.
Grammy Awards
The Grammy Awards are awarded annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States. Weather Report has won one Grammy from six nominations.
|-
!1972
|"I Sing The Body Electric"
|Best Jazz Performance by a Group
|
|-
!1979
|"8:30"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1981
|"Night Passage"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1982
|"Weather Report"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1983
|"Procession"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1985
||"Sportin' Life"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
Discography
Studio albums
References
External links
Weather Report's official website www.WeatherReportMusic.com
Weather Report biography by Richard S. Ginell, discography and album reviews, credits & releases at AllMusic
The Weather Report Annotated Discography
Weather Report discography, album releases & credits at Discogs
Weather Report albums to be listened on Spotify
Weather Report albums to be listened on YouTube
Musical groups established in 1970
Musical groups disestablished in 1986
Jazz fusion ensembles
American jazz ensembles from New York City
Musical groups from New York City
Grammy Award winners
Jazz musicians from New York (state) | true | [
"The Recruit is a 2003 American-German spy thriller film.\n\nThe Recruit may also refer to:\nThe Recruit (Dad's Army), an episode of the TV series Dad's Army\nThe Recruit (novel), the first book of the CHERUB series\nThe Recruit (TV series), Australian rules football reality TV series\n\nSee also\nRecruit (disambiguation)\nRecruits (TV series), Police reality TV series\nThe Recruiter (disambiguation)\nRecruitment",
"The Second Recruit Training Battalion is part of the Marine Recruit Training Regiment. It is composed of Four Training Companies: Echo Company, Fox Company, Golf Company, and Hotel Company. The recruit training battalion is responsible ensuring that each company is following the procedures set forth by the Recruit Training Regiment.\n\nMission\n\nProvide Reception, processing, and recruit training for male enlisted personnel following initial entry into the Marine Corps. Provide training for Drill Instructors and officers entrusted with recruit training responsibilities.\n\nHistory\n\n2nd Recruit Training\n\nIn 1921, the MCRDSD was formally commissioned and in 1923, it became the primary recruiting center for the west coast. During World War II, the flow of recruits into the base surged, with 18,000 recruits arriving in one month. In 1948, the base was formally named Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego and was home to the Recruit Training Regiment.\n\nReferences\n\n National Archives Catalog. https://catalog.archives.gov/id/6665774\n\nExternal links\nMarines: The official website of the United States Marine Corps. 2nd Recruit Training Battalion.\n\nTraining units and formations of the United States Marine Corps"
] |
[
"Weather Report",
"1982-1985: A new band",
"Who did the recruit",
"Omar"
] | C_d9f2723ad001441abb6bc1285e77609e_0 | Why | 2 | Why did the Weather Report recruit Omar? | Weather Report | On the recommendation of Michal Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited the 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians (including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon). Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new rhythm section. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player Jose Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle. The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music", which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer. Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), furthering developing the band's involvement with technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson. The band was beginning to suffer from the revival of more traditionally styled jazz at the time, which made it harder to market jazz fusion. Percussionist and singer Mino Cinelu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers. By the time of the release of Sportin' Life Shorter and Zawinul had opted not to tour the material. Instead, they took a break for long-delayed solo projects. CANNOTANSWER | recommendation | Weather Report was an American jazz fusion band active from 1970 to 1986. The band was founded (and initially co-led) by Austrian keyboard player Joe Zawinul, American saxophonist Wayne Shorter, and Czech bassist Miroslav Vitouš. Other prominent members at various points in the band's lifespan included Jaco Pastorius, Alphonso Johnson, Victor Bailey, Chester Thompson, Peter Erskine, Airto Moreira, and Alex Acuña. Throughout most of its existence, the band was a quintet consisting of Zawinul, Shorter, a bass guitarist, a drummer, and a percussionist.
The band started as a free improvising jazz group with avant-garde and experimental electronic leanings (pioneered by Zawinul); when Vitouš left Weather Report (due mostly to creative disagreements), Zawinul increasingly steered the band towards a funky, edgy sound incorporating elements of R&B and native musics from around the world. Zawinul used the latest developments in synthesizer technology, and took advantage of a large variety of sounds and tone colors to make the band stand out. During the first half of their career, Weather Report were seen as one of the defining acts in modern jazz, winning the DownBeat "best album award" five times in a row.
Alongside bands such as Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return to Forever, Herbie Hancock's Headhunters (all with members inspired by and partially responsible for the fusion-era work of Miles Davis), Weather Report is widely considered one of the defining bands of the jazz fusion genre.
Musical style
Over their 16-year career, Weather Report explored various areas of music, predominantly centered on jazz (initially the "free" variety), but also incorporating elements of art music, ethnic music, R&B, funk, and rock. While their work was categorized as "jazz fusion", the band members generally distanced themselves from that term.
From the start, Weather Report took the unusual approach of abandoning the traditional "soloist/accompaniment" demarcation of straight-ahead jazz and featured opportunities for continuous improvisation by every member of the band. That position remained consistent throughout the life of the band. From the point where Alphonso Johnson joined the band, individual solos became more prominent in concert, but were never allowed to overwhelm the collective approach. Initially, the band's music featured an improvisational method (similar to Miles Davis's Bitches Brew-period), but eventually that shifted to a more groove-oriented approach, and catchier compositions (as epitomized by their 1977 hit single "Birdland").
Joe Zawinul's playing style was often dominated by quirky melodic improvisations (simultaneously bebop-, ethnic-, and pop-sounding) combined with sparse but rhythmic big-band chords or bass lines. Having originally made his name as a pioneering electric piano player, he went on to consistently develop the role of the synthesizer in jazz during his time with Weather Report. Working with companies such as ARP and Oberheim, Zawinul developed new ways of voicing and patching electronic tones for textures, ensemble roles (including emulations of traditional band instruments) and soloing. In Weather Report, he often employed a vocoder, as well as recorded sounds played (i.e., filtered and transposed) through a synthesizer, creating a very distinctive, often beautiful, synthesis of jazz harmonics and "noise" (which he referred to as "using all the sounds the world generates"). On some Weather Report tunes, however, Zawinul was criticized for allowing his synthesized arrangements to dominate the sound.
Wayne Shorter came to the group with a reputation as a dominant role as an instrumentalist, drawn from both his solo work and his contributions to Miles Davis' "second great quintet" during the 1960s. His choice not to follow the same approach with Weather Report led to some criticism of the group. During his time with Weather Report, Shorter was noted for generally playing saxophone with an economical, "listening" style. Rather than continually taking the lead, he generally added subtle harmonic, melodic, and/or rhythmic complexity by responding to other member's improvisations (although he could and did sometimes exercise a more frenetic style akin to that of John Coltrane or Michael Brecker). As a composer, he chose a more abstract, sometimes atonal and "free jazz" style of music, opposed to the sometimes flamboyant melodicism of the tunes written by Zawinul or Pastorius. Playing both tenor and soprano saxophones, Shorter continued to develop the role of the latter instrument in jazz, taking his cue from previous work by Coltrane, Sidney Bechet, Lucky Thompson, and Steve Lacy.
Weather Report maintained a consistent interest in a textured sound and developments in music technology and processing. Both Zawinul and original bassist Miroslav Vitouš experimented with electronic effects pedals (as generally used by rock guitarists) with Zawinul using them on electric piano and synthesizers and Vitouš on his upright bass (which he frequently bowed through distortion to create a second horn-like voice). The band's third bass player, Jaco Pastorius, popularized the use of fretless bass guitar, melodic bass soloing and extensive use of string harmonics, as well as consolidating the driving R&B pulse in the band's music (which had been brought in by his predecessor Alphonso Johnson).
With the exception of a brief quartet period between 1978 and 1979 (wherein other members could double on various percussion instruments), Weather Report's instrumentation always included both a drummer and a percussionist. For its first eight years of existence, the group had difficulty finding a permanent drummer, moving through about one drummer per year until Jaco Pastorius helped to recruit Peter Erskine in 1978. Erskine and Omar Hakim were the only drummers who played with Weather Report for more than two years.
History
1970: Inception and formation
Joe Zawinul and Wayne Shorter had first met and become friends in 1959 while they were playing in Maynard Ferguson's Big Band. Zawinul went on to play with Cannonball Adderley's group in the 1960s, while Shorter joined Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers and then, in 1964, Miles Davis' second great quintet. During this decade, both men made names for themselves as being among the best composers in jazz.
Zawinul later joined Shorter in contributing to the initial fusion music recordings of Miles Davis, and both men were part of the studio groups that recorded the key Davis albums In a Silent Way (1969) and Bitches Brew (1970). Weather Report was initially formed to explore a more impressionistic and individualistic music (or, as Zawinul put it, "away from all that eight bars shit and then you go to the bridge...").
There's some dispute over how Weather Report initially formed. According to Zawinul, it began when he and Shorter recruited another Miles Davis associate, the classically trained Czech-born bass player Miroslav Vitouš, who had previously played with each of them separately (as well as with Herbie Mann, Bob Brookmeyer, Stan Getz, and Chick Corea). According to Vitouš himself, it was he and Shorter who actually founded Weather Report, with Shorter bringing in Zawinul afterwards. Whichever story is true, it was those three musicians – all composers – who formed the initial core of the project.
To complete the band, Zawinul, Shorter and Vitouš brought in former McCoy Tyner drummer Alphonse Mouzon and began recording their debut album while looking for a full-time auxiliary percussionist. The initial recruits were session percussion player Don Alias and symphony orchestra percussionist Barbara Burton. During recording, Alias quarreled with Zawinul (allegedly due to Zawinul being too dictatorial over the percussion approach) and the innovative Brazilian percussionist Airto Moreira (yet another Davis alumnus) was brought in to complete the record. Guitarist John McLaughlin was also invited to join the group, but decided to pursue his solo career, instead.
1971–1972: Avant-garde collective
Weather Report's debut album Weather Report featured a softer sound than would be the case in later years, predominantly using acoustic bass, with Shorter exclusively playing soprano saxophone. It built on the avant-garde experiments which Zawinul and Shorter had pioneered with Miles Davis on Bitches Brew, including an avoidance of head-and-chorus composition in favor of continuous rhythm and movement. DownBeat magazine described the album as "music beyond category".
In 1972, Weather Report released its second album, I Sing the Body Electric. The first side featured new studio recordings, while the second side was taken from live recordings of a concert in Tokyo, featuring the full-band lineup of Zawinul, Shorter, Vitouš, Gravatt, and Um Romão (and later available in full as the 1972 Japan-only double album Live in Tokyo). The studio side used extended versions of the band including various guest performers, suggesting that Weather Report was not necessarily an integral jazz band, but might possibly work as an expandable project set up to realise the music of its three composers. The album also featured Zawinul's first use of a synthesizer (an instrument with which he would become synonymous within jazz) and of sound effects.
I Sing the Body Electric also showed the first signs of a shift in the balance of control within the band, away from the more collective approach of the debut album. During the following year, this tendency would develop further.
1973: Move towards groove
On 1973's Sweetnighter, Weather Report began to abandon the primarily acoustic group improvisation format, and the band started to take a new direction. Primarily at Zawinul's instigation, Weather Report became more jazz funk- and groove-oriented, drawing more heavily on R&B influences and dense electric keyboard work while adding more structure to both the prewritten and the improvisational sections.
Gravatt took his replacement in the studio sessions badly and quit the band at the end of recording, moving to Minneapolis to join the band Natural Life. Many years later, Zawinul paid tribute to Gravatt's skills and stated that he had been the finest of the band's "pure jazz" drummers as well as being "from the jazz side... my favorite of them all". With Gravatt gone and Dwellingham unavailable for touring, former Sly & the Family Stone drummer Greg Errico played on the Sweetnighter tour, but did not stay with the band afterwards.
At this point, Vitouš and Zawinul found themselves at creative loggerheads, since the former preferred Weather Report's original approach and the latter wished to continue further along the road to funk. Retrospectively, Zawinul accused Vitouš of being unable to play funk convincingly (something which Greg Errico corroborated) and claimed that he had not provided enough music for the band. Vitouš countered that he had in fact brought in compositions, but that Zawinul had been unable to play them. Vitouš has also accused Zawinul of having been "a first-class manipulator" primarily interested in commercial success. When Shorter sided with Zawinul, the original three-man partnership broke down acrimoniously and Vitouš left Weather Report, moving on to an illustrious career leading his own band and winning respect as a composer. His final contribution to Weather Report was to play bass on a single track, which appeared on the band's 1974 album Mysterious Traveller ("American Tango", which he had co-written with Zawinul).
Vitouš' departure marked the end of the first phase of Weather Report and the shift of overall creative dominance of the band to Josef Zawinul, although Shorter remained an integral, influential, and vital part of the project. Vitouš has subsequently accused both Zawinul and Shorter of having used foul play to edge him out of the band, to deny the scale of his contribution to Weather Report's history and creative approach, and to cheat him out of remuneration.
1974–1975: Further into groove
Vitouš' replacement was the Philadelphian electric bass guitarist Alphonso Johnson (formerly a sideman for the pop-fusion player Chuck Mangione). Recruited by Shorter, Johnson was a supple player more than capable of providing the funk element which Zawinul desired. He was also an early advocate of the Chapman Stick, which he can be heard playing on some of the live Weather Report recordings of the period.
According to Zawinul, Wilburn apparently "lost heart" on tour (despite performing well in the studio). To shore up the music, the band hired another drummer, Darryl Brown, to play alongside him. At the end of the tour, both Wilburn and Brown left the band (as did Dom Um Romão) and Weather Report was, once again, drummerless.
For the next set of studio sessions, Weather Report added a new Brazilian percussionist (Alyrio Lima) and a new drummer – Chuck Bazemore of The Delfonics.
The new album, Tale Spinnin', was released in 1975. It was the first Weather Report album to feature a consistent rhythm section (rather than a varied set of drummers, percussionists, and bass players) since their debut. The album also made further strides in using technological improvements in synthesizers, even making use of the gigantic studio-based TONTO array.
During the same year, Shorter also recorded Native Dancer under his own name (with the Brazilian composer and vocalist Milton Nascimento). Tale Spinnin won the DownBeat best album award for 1975 (the third Weather Report album to do so) and Native Dancer was the runner-up.
1976: In transition
1976's Black Market album was perhaps the most rock-oriented work which the group had produced to date. Weather Report's music had evolved further from open-ended funk jams into more melody-oriented, concise forms, which also offered a greater mass-market appeal. Zawinul further consolidated his use of keyboard synthesizers, while Shorter experimented with an early form of wind synthesizer, the Lyricon.
However, the album was recorded during yet another period of change for the group, with multiple personnel shuffles. Although Alyrio Lima played percussion on one track, he was replaced during the sessions by Don Alias (his first appearance with the group since the debut album debacle) and by Alex Acuña (a Peruvian drummer and conga player based in Las Vegas, who had played with Elvis Presley and Ike Turner, among others). Alphonso Johnson was also worn out from the strain put on the rhythm by the band's frequent changes of drummer. During a break in activity halfway through the recording of Black Market, Johnson opted to leave Weather Report to play with the Billy Cobham/George Duke Band (which featured a young John Scofield on guitar).
Prior to his departure, Johnson played on all but two of the new album's tracks. His replacement was Jaco Pastorius, a virtuoso fretless bass guitarist from Florida, who had been in touch with Zawinul for several years, and who came in to play on "Cannon Ball" and his own composition "Barbary Coast". Zawinul and Shorter had assumed that Chester Thompson would be departing alongside his friend Johnson, and for the second set of sessions they replaced him (on Pastorius' recommendation) with the former Mahavishnu Orchestra drummer Narada Michael Walden. Although Walden played on several album tracks, he ultimately proved unsuitable. Thompson returned for the final Black Market sessions, but left again after failing to gel as a rhythm section with Pastorius (whose style was much busier than that of Johnson). Thompson subsequently joined Genesis as their touring drummer.
Black Market continued Weather Report's ongoing run of success, selling well and being the fourth of the band's albums to win the album of the year award from DownBeat magazine. For the subsequent tour, Alex Acuña moved from percussion to the drum kit, and Don Alias was replaced by the young Puerto Rican percussionist Manolo Badrena, who had previously played with various Latin rock bands and with Art Blakey. The band made a very well-received appearance in July at the Montreux Jazz Festival 1976, which was filmed for future release.
1977–1979: Jazz-rock stars
The recruitment of Jaco Pastorius helped to push Weather Report to the height of its popularity. Already a rising star in his own right, Pastorius brought a very musical, melodic quality to the bass. He could play muscular, lightning-fast groove lines influenced by R&B or funk, as well as demonstrating an extraordinary solo control of tone and string harmonics, often sounding more like a horn player. Pastorius was also a multi-instrumentalist (contributing drums, steel pan, and mandocello to the latest recording sessions), a gifted composer (eventually responsible for some signature Weather Report pieces such as "Teen Town" and "Three Views of a Secret"), and a useful production foil for Zawinul due to his knowledge of recording studios and techniques. Finally, Pastorius' stagecraft and aggressive showmanship helped the band to bring in a new audience.
The band's next album was 1977's acclaimed Heavy Weather, which proved to be the band's most successful recording in terms of sales, while still retaining wide critical acclaim. It contained the band's biggest hit, the propulsive and danceable "Birdland" (highlighting Pastorius' singing bass lines and Zawinul's synthesized ensemble brass), which became a pop hit and later became a jazz standard. Weather Report appeared on the Burt Sugarman-produced series The Midnight Special, performing both "Birdland" and "Teen Town". Heavy Weather dominated Weather Report's disc awards, including their last DownBeat Album of the Year award.
During this period, Pastorius' strong professional connection with Joni Mitchell (for whom he played bass throughout the latter half of the 1970s) led to another musical connection. Over the next few years, Mitchell hired the Weather Report line-up en masse (although without Zawinul in each case) to play on her studio albums Don Juan's Reckless Daughter (1977) and Mingus (1979).
During August 1978 the band joined Maurice White's vanity label ARC at Columbia. At the time they were once again without either a full-time drummer and percussionist, with Alex Acuña having returned to Las Vegas for a career as a studio musician and Manolo Badrena having been fired for "non-musical reasons". Shorter had been focusing most of his attention and compositional ideas into his solo work, while Zawinul was sketching out ideas for a solo album of his own, which involved moving away from a raw group sound in favor of constructing a far more orchestrated and experimental studio-based recording with multiple overdubs. However, Weather Report's contract and work schedule required another album, so Zawinul's solo work was absorbed into what became Weather Report's eighth album, Mr. Gone (1978).
The studio sessions made use of a variety of drummers – Pastorius played the kit on two tracks and further contributions came from Tony Williams, Steve Gadd, and Peter Erskine (the latter an ex-Stan Kenton/Maynard Ferguson drummer recruited to the project by Pastorius). Erskine became a full member of the band for the next tour and remained with Weather Report until 1982. The album also featured guest appearances from Deniece Williams and Earth Wind and Fire leader Maurice White.
The album rose to No. 1 on the Billboard Jazz Albums chart.
Notoriously, Mr. Gone (1978) received only a one-star review rating from DownBeat after a string of group releases which had all pulled a five-star rating. The group arranged for a rebuttal interview with the magazine to defend their efforts. Zawinul and Pastorius were defiant in their responses to the interviewer, Shorter more philosophical, and Erskine the most reticent of the four.
By the late '70s, Weather Report was a quartet of Zawinul, Shorter, Pastorius, and Erskine, and (for the first time) had dispensed with the auxiliary percussionist role, which had been integral since the band's inception. Instead, all four members doubled on percussion at various points in live performances. Zawinul commented that this sleeker, less crowded sound provided more listening range and made the music less chaotic now that the band were focusing more on melody and harmony.
The larger scale and multimedia staging of the band's tours (complete with stagehands, laser and film projections) began to take on the kind of rock-star proportions mostly unknown in jazz circles. The 1979 double live album 8:30 (which won that year's Best Jazz Fusion Performance) was recorded on the Mr. Gone tour and captured the direct power and energy of this lineup of Weather Report. Zawinul would later describe this lineup as "one of the greatest bands of all time! That band was a hummer!"
Between March 2 and 4, 1979, Weather Report traveled to Havana, Cuba, to participate in the historic Havana Jam festival, a break in mutual Cuban/American political hostilities, which had American artists such as Stephen Stills, the CBS Jazz All-Stars, Bonnie Bramlett, Kris Kristofferson, Rita Coolidge, and Billy Joel play alongside Cuban artists such as Irakere, Pacho Alonso, Tata Güines, and Orquesta Aragón. Another featured performance was by the Trio of Doom (a short-lived teaming of Pastorius with John McLaughlin and Tony Williams). Weather Report's performance featured in Havana Jam '79, Ernesto Juan Castellanos' documentary celebrating the event.
1980–1982: A tighter arrangement
At the beginning of 1980, Pastorius recruited hand-drummer Robert Thomas Jr. (a fellow Floridan, with whom he had jammed previously) into the band. Thomas featured on the 1980 album Night Passage. A tighter and more traditional recording than previous releases, the record featured a more prominent role for Shorter, a strong element of bebop, and a nod to jazz's golden age via a high-speed cover of Duke Ellington's "Rockin' in Rhythm" (showing off Zawinul's pioneering and ever-increasing ability to create synthetic big-band sounds on his synthesizers).
By now, Pastorius was displaying signs of the mental instability and substance abuse problems that ultimately wrecked his career; and the close relationship he'd previously shared with Zawinul was becoming strained as Zawinul grew tired of Pastorius' showmanship onstage (beginning to feel that it detracted from the music). Towards the end of the year, Pastorius began working on his long-delayed second solo album (Word of Mouth) (1981) in New York, while Zawinul worked on new Weather Report material in California.
Weather Report's next album Weather Report (1982) – their second eponymous release following their 1971 debut – was recorded in 1981, although it was not released for another year. Zawinul's dominance as instrumentalist and composer (as well as group director) was even more pronounced on this album. Much of the band's music was increasingly written out rather than improvised. In the event, Pastorius spent more of his creative attention on the Word of Mouth project: his only writing for the Weather Report album being his contribution to a single, group-composed piece. Shorter (who only contributed one whole composition to the 1982 album beyond group-written work) was already taking a more philosophical approach. He later commented, "for a long time in Weather Report, I abstained. I elected not to do things."
Erskine's own commitment to Word of Mouth (and a subsequent summer commitment to Steps Ahead) meant that he, too, had to be replaced, while Robert Thomas Jr., was simply dismissed. Reduced to a duo, and with tour commitments looming, Zawinul and Shorter were obliged to quickly assemble a new band.
1982–1985: A new band
On the recommendation of Michał Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon. Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new lineup. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player José Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle.
The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music" approach which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer.
Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), deepening the band's involvement with cutting-edge music technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson.
Percussionist and singer Mino Cinélu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by singers Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers.
1986: Final split
Both Zawinul and Shorter were beginning to realise that the refreshing nature of other projects was more satisfying than Weather Report work, and both generally felt that the band had run its course.
In February 1986, the San Diego Union-Tribune announced that Shorter had left the band to concentrate on solo work. Having reluctantly agreed with Shorter that he would no longer use the band name, Zawinul then ended Weather Report. The final album under the Weather Report name, This is This!, was released in June 1986 and fulfilled the band's contract with Columbia Records. Two of its tracks featured guitar work from Carlos Santana, and it also marked the return of Peter Erskine on drums, with Hakim only appearing on one track.
1986–present: After Weather Report
Having split the band, Zawinul promptly attempted to reform it – after a fashion – as Weather Update. For this project, he reunited with recent Weather Report alumni Victor Bailey, Mino Cinélu, and Peter Erskine, but replaced Shorter with guitarist John Scofield. This lineup was short-lived, with Los Angeles session guitarist Steve Khan and former Weather Report percussionist Robert Thomas Jr. replacing Scofield and Cinélu prior to live appearances. Weather Update toured in 1986 and 1987 before Zawinul dissolved the band. From 1988 onwards, Zawinul went on to enjoy a successful nineteen-year career leading the world music/jazz ensemble The Zawinul Syndicate (which has continued, following Zawinul's death, as The Syndicate).
Rather than form another collective band, Wayne Shorter concentrated on his solo career and on work as a bandleader, which continues to the present day.
In spite of the band's enduring popularity, a Weather Report reunion never occurred. The nearest that the band ever came to reuniting was when Zawinul and Shorter both played live with Miles Davis on July 10, 1991, in Paris (the only time when Zawinul is known to have shared a live stage with Davis). A projected mid-'90s reunion CD for Verve never materialized; according to Zawinul, disappointing sales for Shorter's 1995 CD High Life may have played a part in ending the idea.
Five of the band's members have since died. Zawinul himself died on September 11, 2007, in Vienna from skin cancer (Merkel cell carcinoma). He was predeceased by mid-period bass player Jaco Pastorius, who died on September 21, 1987, following a fatal beating in his hometown of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Pastorius' successor on bass guitar, Victor Bailey, died on November 11, 2016 (apparently from complications from Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). Alphonse Mouzon, the first drummer, died on December 25, 2016 from cardiac arrest after neuroendocrine cancer. Dom Um Romão, the group's drummer from 1971 to 1974, died in 2005 aged 79.
Lineups
Timeline
Releases since the band's breakup
A "post band" Weather Report double CD called Live and Unreleased was made available in 2002, featuring vintage live recordings made during the late 1970s/early 1980s with various personnel. In September 2006, Columbia/Legacy released a Weather Report boxed set, Forecast: Tomorrow. It includes three CDs of mostly previously released material (from 1970 to 1985, excluding This is This!) and a DVD of the entire September 28, 1978, performance (with Erskine and Pastorius) in Offenbach, Germany, not previously available. A DVD video of the 1976 Montreux Jazz Festival performance (featuring the Heavy Weather lineup of Pastorius, Acuna, and Badrena) has become available, as well. Columbia/Legacy have also re-released the 1984 Live in Japan concert on DVD.
In 2011, the Zawinul estate, in conjunction with an independent label, released a 40th-anniversary commemorative trilogy of previously unavailable Weather Report live shows: In March Live in Berlin 1975 was released both on vinyl and as a CD/DVD set; in June the Live in Offenbach 1978 DVD was re-released together with a previously unavailable double CD of the complete show; in October Live in Cologne 1983 was released as both DVD and double CD.
Grammy Awards
The Grammy Awards are awarded annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States. Weather Report has won one Grammy from six nominations.
|-
!1972
|"I Sing The Body Electric"
|Best Jazz Performance by a Group
|
|-
!1979
|"8:30"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1981
|"Night Passage"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1982
|"Weather Report"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1983
|"Procession"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1985
||"Sportin' Life"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
Discography
Studio albums
References
External links
Weather Report's official website www.WeatherReportMusic.com
Weather Report biography by Richard S. Ginell, discography and album reviews, credits & releases at AllMusic
The Weather Report Annotated Discography
Weather Report discography, album releases & credits at Discogs
Weather Report albums to be listened on Spotify
Weather Report albums to be listened on YouTube
Musical groups established in 1970
Musical groups disestablished in 1986
Jazz fusion ensembles
American jazz ensembles from New York City
Musical groups from New York City
Grammy Award winners
Jazz musicians from New York (state) | true | [
"Why may refer to:\n\n Causality, a consequential relationship between two events\n Reason (argument), a premise in support of an argument, for what reason or purpose\n Grounding (metaphysics), a topic in metaphysics regarding how things exist in virtue of more fundamental things.\n Why?, one of the Five Ws used in journalism\n\nMusic\n\nArtists\n Why? (American band), a hip hop/indie rock band formed in Oakland, California, in 2004\n Yoni Wolf, formerly known by the stage name Why?\n Why?, a 1990s UK folk band, two members of which later formed Quench in 2001\n Why (Canadian band), a rock band formed in Winnipeg, Manitoba, in 1993\n\nAlbums\n Why? (Discharge album)\n Why? (Ginger Baker album)\n Why? (Jacob Whitesides album)\n Why (Prudence Liew album)\n Why? (They Might Be Giants album)\n Why (Taeyeon EP)\n Why (Baby V.O.X)\n Why, by Moahni Moahna\n\nSongs\n \"Why\" (3T song), featuring Michael Jackson\n \"Why\" (Andy Gibb song)\n \"Why\" (Annie Lennox song), covered by DJ Sammy, Kelly Clarkson, Lara Fabian, Allison Crowe, and others\n \"Why?\" (Bronski Beat song)\n \"Why\" (The Byrds song), B-side to the single \"Eight Miles High\"\n \"Why\" (Carly Simon song)\n \"Why\" (Cathy Dennis song)\n \"Why\" (Frankie Avalon song), covered by Anthony Newley and by Donny Osmond\n \"Why\" (Gabrielle song)\n \"Why?\" (Geir Rönning song)\n \"Why\" (Glamma Kid song)\n \"Why\" (Jadakiss song)\n \"Why\" (Jason Aldean song)\n \"Why\" (Jieqiong song)\n \"Why\" (Lionel Richie song)\n \"Why?\" (Marika Gombitová song)\n \"Why\" (Mary J. Blige song), featuring Rick Ross\n \"Why\" (Miliyah Kato song)\n \"Why?\" (Mis-Teeq song)\n \"Why\" (Rascal Flatts song)\n \"Why\" (Sabrina Carpenter song)\n \"Why\" (Sonique song)\n \"Why\" (Taeyeon song)\n \"Why\" (Tony Sheridan song), with The Beatles\n \"Why (Must We Fall in Love)\", a song by Diana Ross & The Supremes\n \"Why, Why, Why\", a song by Billy Currington\n \"Why\", by 4Minute from Best of 4Minute\n \"Why\", by Air Supply from Mumbo Jumbo\n \"Why?\", by Aminé from OnePointFive\n \"Why\", by Antique from Die for You\n \"Why\", by Average White Band from Cut the Cake\n \"Why\" by Avril Lavigne, B-side to the single \"Complicated\"\n \"Why\", by Ayaka from the single \"Clap & Love\"/\"Why\" and the theme song of the PSP game Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII\n \"Why\", by Bazzi from Cosmic\n \"Why\", by Basshunter from Bass Generation\n \"Why\", by Busted from A Present for Everyone\n \"Why, Pt. 2\", by Collective Soul from Blender\n \"Why\", by Crossfade from Falling Away\n \"Why?\", by Des'ree from Dream Soldier\n \"Why! ...\", by Enigma from Le Roi Est Mort, Vive Le Roi!\n \"Why\", by Fleetwood Mac from Mystery to Me\n \"Why\", by Frankie Valli from Closeup\n \"Why\", by Godsmack from Awake\n \"Why\", by Helloween from Master of the Rings\n \"Why\", by Irene Cara from Anyone Can See\n \"Why\", by Jamie Walters from Jamie Walters\n \"Why\", by Jason Aldean, also covered by Shannon Brown from Corn Fed\n \"Why\", by Jocelyn Enriquez from All My Life\n \"Why\", by Joe Satriani from The Extremist\n \"Why\", by Limp Bizkit from Greatest Hitz\n \"Why?\", by Lonnie Mack from The Wham of that Memphis Man\n \"Why\", by Mario from Go!\n \"Why\", by Melanie Chisholm from Northern Star\n \"Why\", by Natalie Imbruglia from Left of the Middle\n \"Why\", by Ne-Yo from Non-Fiction\n \"Why\", by NF from The Search\n \"Why\", by Rooney\n \"Why?\", by Secondhand Serenade from A Twist In My Story\n \"Why\", by Shawn Mendes from Shawn Mendes\n \"Why\", by Stabbing Westward from Wither Blister Burn & Peel\n \"Why\", by Swift from Thoughts Are Thought\n \"Why?\", by Tracy Chapman from Tracy Chapman\n \"Why\", by Uriah Heep from Demons and Wizards\n \"Why?\", by Vanilla Ninja from Vanilla Ninja\n \"Why\", by Wide Mouth Mason from Where I Started\n \"Why\", by Yoko Ono from Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band\n \"Why?\", by Z-Ro from The Life of Joseph W. McVey\n \"Why\", written by Buddy Feyne, notably performed by Nat King Cole\n \"Why\", from the musical Tick, tick... BOOM!\n \"Why\", from the television series Fraggle Rock\n \"Why? (The King of Love Is Dead)\", by Nina Simone from 'Nuff Said!\n \"Why (What's Goin' On?)\", a song by The Roots from The Tipping Point \"Why, Why, Why\", a song by Eddie Rabbitt from Songs from Rabbittland \"Why? Why? Why? (Is It So Hard)\", a song by Paul Revere & The Raiders from The Spirit of '67Other media\n Why (board game), a game based on the television series Alfred Hitchcock Presents Why? (film), a 1987 Czech film\n Why? (1971 film), a 1971 short starring O. J. Simpson and Tim Buckley\n Why? (book), a children's book by Tomie dePaola\n \"Why?\", an episode of the TV series As Time Goes By Why? with Hannibal Buress'', a Comedy Central television series\n\nPlaces\n Why, Arizona, an unincorporated community in the United States\n Why, Lakes, South Sudan\n\nSurname\n Alby Why (1899–1969), Australian rugby league footballer\n Jack Why (1903–1944), Australian rugby league footballer\n\nTransport\n Whyteleafe railway station, Surrey, National Rail station code\n\nOther uses\n Why the lucky stiff, or simply why or _why, a computer programmer and artist\n World Hunger Year (WHY), a charity organization\n Why?, a satirical wiki and subproject of Uncyclopedia\n\nSee also\n Wai (disambiguation)\n Wye (disambiguation)\n Y (disambiguation)",
"Tell Me Why may refer to:\n\nBooks \n Tell Me Why (magazine), a British children's magazine relaunched as World of Wonder\n Tell Me Why, a 2009 book by Eric Walters\n\nMusic\n\nAlbums\n Tell Me Why (Archie Roach album), 2019\n Tell Me Why (Bobby Vinton album), 1964, or the title song\n Tell Me Why (Jann Browne album), 1990, or the title song\n Tell Me Why (Wynonna Judd album) 1993, or the title song\n Tell Me Why, a 2002 EP and its title song by Pocket Venus\n\nSongs\n \"Tell Me Why\" (1951 song), song written by Al Alberts and Marty Gold, popularized by The Four Aces and by Eddie Fisher\n \"Tell Me Why\" (1956 song), song written by Titus Turner, popularized by Marie Knight, and later by Elvis Presley\n \"Tell Me Why\" (Beatles song), 1964\n \"Tell Me Why\" (Declan Galbraith song), 2002\n \"Tell Me Why\" (Earl Thomas Conley song), 1981\n \"Tell Me Why\" (Echobelly song)\n \"Tell Me Why\" (Exposé song), 1989\n \"Tell Me Why\" (Genesis song), 1991\n \"Tell Me Why\" (Jann Browne song), 1990\n \"Tell Me Why\" (M.I.A. song), 2010\n \"Tell Me Why\" (Monica Anghel and Marcel Pavel song), 2002\n \"Tell Me Why\" (Neil Young song), 1970\n \"Tell Me Why\" (Spice Girls song), 2000\n \"Tell Me Why\" (Supermode song), 2006\n \"Tell Me Why\" (Wah Wah Collective song), 2013\n \"Tell Me Why\" (Wynonna Judd song), 1993\n \"Tell Me Why (The Riddle)\", a 2000 song by Paul van Dyk and Saint Etienne\n \"Tell Me Why\", by the Bee Gees from 2 Years On\n \"Tell Me Why\", by Berlin from Pleasure Victim\n \"Tell Me Why\", by Eddie Cochran from Singin' to My Baby, adapted from\n \"Tell Me Why\", written by Mitchell Parish, Michael Edwards, and Sigmund Spaeth, adapted from\n \"Tell Me Why\", composed by Roy L. Burtch, lyrics by Fred Mower, c. 1899\n \"Tell Me Why\", by Gorky Park from Moscow Calling\n \"Tell Me Why\", by John Cale from Walking on Locusts\n \"Tell Me Why\", by Jonas Brothers from JONAS\n \"Tell Me Why\", by The Kid Laroi from F*ck Love\n \"Tell Me Why\", by Musical Youth\n \"Tell Me Why\", by Norman Fox & The Rob-Roys, and covered in 1961 by Dion and the Belmonts\n \"Tell Me Why\", by the Penpals from Berserk\n \"Tell Me Why\", by P.O.D. from When Angels & Serpents Dance\n \"Tell Me Why\", by Prezioso & Marvin\n \"Tell Me Why\", by Taylor Swift from Fearless\n \"Tell Me Why\", by Three Days Grace from Human\n \"Tell Me Why\", by Will Smith featuring Mary J. Blige from Smith's album Lost and Found\n \"Tell Me Why\", from the musical A Man of No Importance\n\nOthers\n Tell Me Why (video game), a video game by Dontnod Entertainment\n\nSee also\n Tell Me (disambiguation)"
] |
[
"Weather Report",
"1982-1985: A new band",
"Who did the recruit",
"Omar",
"Why",
"recommendation"
] | C_d9f2723ad001441abb6bc1285e77609e_0 | By who | 3 | Who recommended the Weather Report recruit Omar? | Weather Report | On the recommendation of Michal Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited the 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians (including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon). Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new rhythm section. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player Jose Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle. The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music", which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer. Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), furthering developing the band's involvement with technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson. The band was beginning to suffer from the revival of more traditionally styled jazz at the time, which made it harder to market jazz fusion. Percussionist and singer Mino Cinelu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers. By the time of the release of Sportin' Life Shorter and Zawinul had opted not to tour the material. Instead, they took a break for long-delayed solo projects. CANNOTANSWER | Michal Urbaniak, | Weather Report was an American jazz fusion band active from 1970 to 1986. The band was founded (and initially co-led) by Austrian keyboard player Joe Zawinul, American saxophonist Wayne Shorter, and Czech bassist Miroslav Vitouš. Other prominent members at various points in the band's lifespan included Jaco Pastorius, Alphonso Johnson, Victor Bailey, Chester Thompson, Peter Erskine, Airto Moreira, and Alex Acuña. Throughout most of its existence, the band was a quintet consisting of Zawinul, Shorter, a bass guitarist, a drummer, and a percussionist.
The band started as a free improvising jazz group with avant-garde and experimental electronic leanings (pioneered by Zawinul); when Vitouš left Weather Report (due mostly to creative disagreements), Zawinul increasingly steered the band towards a funky, edgy sound incorporating elements of R&B and native musics from around the world. Zawinul used the latest developments in synthesizer technology, and took advantage of a large variety of sounds and tone colors to make the band stand out. During the first half of their career, Weather Report were seen as one of the defining acts in modern jazz, winning the DownBeat "best album award" five times in a row.
Alongside bands such as Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return to Forever, Herbie Hancock's Headhunters (all with members inspired by and partially responsible for the fusion-era work of Miles Davis), Weather Report is widely considered one of the defining bands of the jazz fusion genre.
Musical style
Over their 16-year career, Weather Report explored various areas of music, predominantly centered on jazz (initially the "free" variety), but also incorporating elements of art music, ethnic music, R&B, funk, and rock. While their work was categorized as "jazz fusion", the band members generally distanced themselves from that term.
From the start, Weather Report took the unusual approach of abandoning the traditional "soloist/accompaniment" demarcation of straight-ahead jazz and featured opportunities for continuous improvisation by every member of the band. That position remained consistent throughout the life of the band. From the point where Alphonso Johnson joined the band, individual solos became more prominent in concert, but were never allowed to overwhelm the collective approach. Initially, the band's music featured an improvisational method (similar to Miles Davis's Bitches Brew-period), but eventually that shifted to a more groove-oriented approach, and catchier compositions (as epitomized by their 1977 hit single "Birdland").
Joe Zawinul's playing style was often dominated by quirky melodic improvisations (simultaneously bebop-, ethnic-, and pop-sounding) combined with sparse but rhythmic big-band chords or bass lines. Having originally made his name as a pioneering electric piano player, he went on to consistently develop the role of the synthesizer in jazz during his time with Weather Report. Working with companies such as ARP and Oberheim, Zawinul developed new ways of voicing and patching electronic tones for textures, ensemble roles (including emulations of traditional band instruments) and soloing. In Weather Report, he often employed a vocoder, as well as recorded sounds played (i.e., filtered and transposed) through a synthesizer, creating a very distinctive, often beautiful, synthesis of jazz harmonics and "noise" (which he referred to as "using all the sounds the world generates"). On some Weather Report tunes, however, Zawinul was criticized for allowing his synthesized arrangements to dominate the sound.
Wayne Shorter came to the group with a reputation as a dominant role as an instrumentalist, drawn from both his solo work and his contributions to Miles Davis' "second great quintet" during the 1960s. His choice not to follow the same approach with Weather Report led to some criticism of the group. During his time with Weather Report, Shorter was noted for generally playing saxophone with an economical, "listening" style. Rather than continually taking the lead, he generally added subtle harmonic, melodic, and/or rhythmic complexity by responding to other member's improvisations (although he could and did sometimes exercise a more frenetic style akin to that of John Coltrane or Michael Brecker). As a composer, he chose a more abstract, sometimes atonal and "free jazz" style of music, opposed to the sometimes flamboyant melodicism of the tunes written by Zawinul or Pastorius. Playing both tenor and soprano saxophones, Shorter continued to develop the role of the latter instrument in jazz, taking his cue from previous work by Coltrane, Sidney Bechet, Lucky Thompson, and Steve Lacy.
Weather Report maintained a consistent interest in a textured sound and developments in music technology and processing. Both Zawinul and original bassist Miroslav Vitouš experimented with electronic effects pedals (as generally used by rock guitarists) with Zawinul using them on electric piano and synthesizers and Vitouš on his upright bass (which he frequently bowed through distortion to create a second horn-like voice). The band's third bass player, Jaco Pastorius, popularized the use of fretless bass guitar, melodic bass soloing and extensive use of string harmonics, as well as consolidating the driving R&B pulse in the band's music (which had been brought in by his predecessor Alphonso Johnson).
With the exception of a brief quartet period between 1978 and 1979 (wherein other members could double on various percussion instruments), Weather Report's instrumentation always included both a drummer and a percussionist. For its first eight years of existence, the group had difficulty finding a permanent drummer, moving through about one drummer per year until Jaco Pastorius helped to recruit Peter Erskine in 1978. Erskine and Omar Hakim were the only drummers who played with Weather Report for more than two years.
History
1970: Inception and formation
Joe Zawinul and Wayne Shorter had first met and become friends in 1959 while they were playing in Maynard Ferguson's Big Band. Zawinul went on to play with Cannonball Adderley's group in the 1960s, while Shorter joined Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers and then, in 1964, Miles Davis' second great quintet. During this decade, both men made names for themselves as being among the best composers in jazz.
Zawinul later joined Shorter in contributing to the initial fusion music recordings of Miles Davis, and both men were part of the studio groups that recorded the key Davis albums In a Silent Way (1969) and Bitches Brew (1970). Weather Report was initially formed to explore a more impressionistic and individualistic music (or, as Zawinul put it, "away from all that eight bars shit and then you go to the bridge...").
There's some dispute over how Weather Report initially formed. According to Zawinul, it began when he and Shorter recruited another Miles Davis associate, the classically trained Czech-born bass player Miroslav Vitouš, who had previously played with each of them separately (as well as with Herbie Mann, Bob Brookmeyer, Stan Getz, and Chick Corea). According to Vitouš himself, it was he and Shorter who actually founded Weather Report, with Shorter bringing in Zawinul afterwards. Whichever story is true, it was those three musicians – all composers – who formed the initial core of the project.
To complete the band, Zawinul, Shorter and Vitouš brought in former McCoy Tyner drummer Alphonse Mouzon and began recording their debut album while looking for a full-time auxiliary percussionist. The initial recruits were session percussion player Don Alias and symphony orchestra percussionist Barbara Burton. During recording, Alias quarreled with Zawinul (allegedly due to Zawinul being too dictatorial over the percussion approach) and the innovative Brazilian percussionist Airto Moreira (yet another Davis alumnus) was brought in to complete the record. Guitarist John McLaughlin was also invited to join the group, but decided to pursue his solo career, instead.
1971–1972: Avant-garde collective
Weather Report's debut album Weather Report featured a softer sound than would be the case in later years, predominantly using acoustic bass, with Shorter exclusively playing soprano saxophone. It built on the avant-garde experiments which Zawinul and Shorter had pioneered with Miles Davis on Bitches Brew, including an avoidance of head-and-chorus composition in favor of continuous rhythm and movement. DownBeat magazine described the album as "music beyond category".
In 1972, Weather Report released its second album, I Sing the Body Electric. The first side featured new studio recordings, while the second side was taken from live recordings of a concert in Tokyo, featuring the full-band lineup of Zawinul, Shorter, Vitouš, Gravatt, and Um Romão (and later available in full as the 1972 Japan-only double album Live in Tokyo). The studio side used extended versions of the band including various guest performers, suggesting that Weather Report was not necessarily an integral jazz band, but might possibly work as an expandable project set up to realise the music of its three composers. The album also featured Zawinul's first use of a synthesizer (an instrument with which he would become synonymous within jazz) and of sound effects.
I Sing the Body Electric also showed the first signs of a shift in the balance of control within the band, away from the more collective approach of the debut album. During the following year, this tendency would develop further.
1973: Move towards groove
On 1973's Sweetnighter, Weather Report began to abandon the primarily acoustic group improvisation format, and the band started to take a new direction. Primarily at Zawinul's instigation, Weather Report became more jazz funk- and groove-oriented, drawing more heavily on R&B influences and dense electric keyboard work while adding more structure to both the prewritten and the improvisational sections.
Gravatt took his replacement in the studio sessions badly and quit the band at the end of recording, moving to Minneapolis to join the band Natural Life. Many years later, Zawinul paid tribute to Gravatt's skills and stated that he had been the finest of the band's "pure jazz" drummers as well as being "from the jazz side... my favorite of them all". With Gravatt gone and Dwellingham unavailable for touring, former Sly & the Family Stone drummer Greg Errico played on the Sweetnighter tour, but did not stay with the band afterwards.
At this point, Vitouš and Zawinul found themselves at creative loggerheads, since the former preferred Weather Report's original approach and the latter wished to continue further along the road to funk. Retrospectively, Zawinul accused Vitouš of being unable to play funk convincingly (something which Greg Errico corroborated) and claimed that he had not provided enough music for the band. Vitouš countered that he had in fact brought in compositions, but that Zawinul had been unable to play them. Vitouš has also accused Zawinul of having been "a first-class manipulator" primarily interested in commercial success. When Shorter sided with Zawinul, the original three-man partnership broke down acrimoniously and Vitouš left Weather Report, moving on to an illustrious career leading his own band and winning respect as a composer. His final contribution to Weather Report was to play bass on a single track, which appeared on the band's 1974 album Mysterious Traveller ("American Tango", which he had co-written with Zawinul).
Vitouš' departure marked the end of the first phase of Weather Report and the shift of overall creative dominance of the band to Josef Zawinul, although Shorter remained an integral, influential, and vital part of the project. Vitouš has subsequently accused both Zawinul and Shorter of having used foul play to edge him out of the band, to deny the scale of his contribution to Weather Report's history and creative approach, and to cheat him out of remuneration.
1974–1975: Further into groove
Vitouš' replacement was the Philadelphian electric bass guitarist Alphonso Johnson (formerly a sideman for the pop-fusion player Chuck Mangione). Recruited by Shorter, Johnson was a supple player more than capable of providing the funk element which Zawinul desired. He was also an early advocate of the Chapman Stick, which he can be heard playing on some of the live Weather Report recordings of the period.
According to Zawinul, Wilburn apparently "lost heart" on tour (despite performing well in the studio). To shore up the music, the band hired another drummer, Darryl Brown, to play alongside him. At the end of the tour, both Wilburn and Brown left the band (as did Dom Um Romão) and Weather Report was, once again, drummerless.
For the next set of studio sessions, Weather Report added a new Brazilian percussionist (Alyrio Lima) and a new drummer – Chuck Bazemore of The Delfonics.
The new album, Tale Spinnin', was released in 1975. It was the first Weather Report album to feature a consistent rhythm section (rather than a varied set of drummers, percussionists, and bass players) since their debut. The album also made further strides in using technological improvements in synthesizers, even making use of the gigantic studio-based TONTO array.
During the same year, Shorter also recorded Native Dancer under his own name (with the Brazilian composer and vocalist Milton Nascimento). Tale Spinnin won the DownBeat best album award for 1975 (the third Weather Report album to do so) and Native Dancer was the runner-up.
1976: In transition
1976's Black Market album was perhaps the most rock-oriented work which the group had produced to date. Weather Report's music had evolved further from open-ended funk jams into more melody-oriented, concise forms, which also offered a greater mass-market appeal. Zawinul further consolidated his use of keyboard synthesizers, while Shorter experimented with an early form of wind synthesizer, the Lyricon.
However, the album was recorded during yet another period of change for the group, with multiple personnel shuffles. Although Alyrio Lima played percussion on one track, he was replaced during the sessions by Don Alias (his first appearance with the group since the debut album debacle) and by Alex Acuña (a Peruvian drummer and conga player based in Las Vegas, who had played with Elvis Presley and Ike Turner, among others). Alphonso Johnson was also worn out from the strain put on the rhythm by the band's frequent changes of drummer. During a break in activity halfway through the recording of Black Market, Johnson opted to leave Weather Report to play with the Billy Cobham/George Duke Band (which featured a young John Scofield on guitar).
Prior to his departure, Johnson played on all but two of the new album's tracks. His replacement was Jaco Pastorius, a virtuoso fretless bass guitarist from Florida, who had been in touch with Zawinul for several years, and who came in to play on "Cannon Ball" and his own composition "Barbary Coast". Zawinul and Shorter had assumed that Chester Thompson would be departing alongside his friend Johnson, and for the second set of sessions they replaced him (on Pastorius' recommendation) with the former Mahavishnu Orchestra drummer Narada Michael Walden. Although Walden played on several album tracks, he ultimately proved unsuitable. Thompson returned for the final Black Market sessions, but left again after failing to gel as a rhythm section with Pastorius (whose style was much busier than that of Johnson). Thompson subsequently joined Genesis as their touring drummer.
Black Market continued Weather Report's ongoing run of success, selling well and being the fourth of the band's albums to win the album of the year award from DownBeat magazine. For the subsequent tour, Alex Acuña moved from percussion to the drum kit, and Don Alias was replaced by the young Puerto Rican percussionist Manolo Badrena, who had previously played with various Latin rock bands and with Art Blakey. The band made a very well-received appearance in July at the Montreux Jazz Festival 1976, which was filmed for future release.
1977–1979: Jazz-rock stars
The recruitment of Jaco Pastorius helped to push Weather Report to the height of its popularity. Already a rising star in his own right, Pastorius brought a very musical, melodic quality to the bass. He could play muscular, lightning-fast groove lines influenced by R&B or funk, as well as demonstrating an extraordinary solo control of tone and string harmonics, often sounding more like a horn player. Pastorius was also a multi-instrumentalist (contributing drums, steel pan, and mandocello to the latest recording sessions), a gifted composer (eventually responsible for some signature Weather Report pieces such as "Teen Town" and "Three Views of a Secret"), and a useful production foil for Zawinul due to his knowledge of recording studios and techniques. Finally, Pastorius' stagecraft and aggressive showmanship helped the band to bring in a new audience.
The band's next album was 1977's acclaimed Heavy Weather, which proved to be the band's most successful recording in terms of sales, while still retaining wide critical acclaim. It contained the band's biggest hit, the propulsive and danceable "Birdland" (highlighting Pastorius' singing bass lines and Zawinul's synthesized ensemble brass), which became a pop hit and later became a jazz standard. Weather Report appeared on the Burt Sugarman-produced series The Midnight Special, performing both "Birdland" and "Teen Town". Heavy Weather dominated Weather Report's disc awards, including their last DownBeat Album of the Year award.
During this period, Pastorius' strong professional connection with Joni Mitchell (for whom he played bass throughout the latter half of the 1970s) led to another musical connection. Over the next few years, Mitchell hired the Weather Report line-up en masse (although without Zawinul in each case) to play on her studio albums Don Juan's Reckless Daughter (1977) and Mingus (1979).
During August 1978 the band joined Maurice White's vanity label ARC at Columbia. At the time they were once again without either a full-time drummer and percussionist, with Alex Acuña having returned to Las Vegas for a career as a studio musician and Manolo Badrena having been fired for "non-musical reasons". Shorter had been focusing most of his attention and compositional ideas into his solo work, while Zawinul was sketching out ideas for a solo album of his own, which involved moving away from a raw group sound in favor of constructing a far more orchestrated and experimental studio-based recording with multiple overdubs. However, Weather Report's contract and work schedule required another album, so Zawinul's solo work was absorbed into what became Weather Report's eighth album, Mr. Gone (1978).
The studio sessions made use of a variety of drummers – Pastorius played the kit on two tracks and further contributions came from Tony Williams, Steve Gadd, and Peter Erskine (the latter an ex-Stan Kenton/Maynard Ferguson drummer recruited to the project by Pastorius). Erskine became a full member of the band for the next tour and remained with Weather Report until 1982. The album also featured guest appearances from Deniece Williams and Earth Wind and Fire leader Maurice White.
The album rose to No. 1 on the Billboard Jazz Albums chart.
Notoriously, Mr. Gone (1978) received only a one-star review rating from DownBeat after a string of group releases which had all pulled a five-star rating. The group arranged for a rebuttal interview with the magazine to defend their efforts. Zawinul and Pastorius were defiant in their responses to the interviewer, Shorter more philosophical, and Erskine the most reticent of the four.
By the late '70s, Weather Report was a quartet of Zawinul, Shorter, Pastorius, and Erskine, and (for the first time) had dispensed with the auxiliary percussionist role, which had been integral since the band's inception. Instead, all four members doubled on percussion at various points in live performances. Zawinul commented that this sleeker, less crowded sound provided more listening range and made the music less chaotic now that the band were focusing more on melody and harmony.
The larger scale and multimedia staging of the band's tours (complete with stagehands, laser and film projections) began to take on the kind of rock-star proportions mostly unknown in jazz circles. The 1979 double live album 8:30 (which won that year's Best Jazz Fusion Performance) was recorded on the Mr. Gone tour and captured the direct power and energy of this lineup of Weather Report. Zawinul would later describe this lineup as "one of the greatest bands of all time! That band was a hummer!"
Between March 2 and 4, 1979, Weather Report traveled to Havana, Cuba, to participate in the historic Havana Jam festival, a break in mutual Cuban/American political hostilities, which had American artists such as Stephen Stills, the CBS Jazz All-Stars, Bonnie Bramlett, Kris Kristofferson, Rita Coolidge, and Billy Joel play alongside Cuban artists such as Irakere, Pacho Alonso, Tata Güines, and Orquesta Aragón. Another featured performance was by the Trio of Doom (a short-lived teaming of Pastorius with John McLaughlin and Tony Williams). Weather Report's performance featured in Havana Jam '79, Ernesto Juan Castellanos' documentary celebrating the event.
1980–1982: A tighter arrangement
At the beginning of 1980, Pastorius recruited hand-drummer Robert Thomas Jr. (a fellow Floridan, with whom he had jammed previously) into the band. Thomas featured on the 1980 album Night Passage. A tighter and more traditional recording than previous releases, the record featured a more prominent role for Shorter, a strong element of bebop, and a nod to jazz's golden age via a high-speed cover of Duke Ellington's "Rockin' in Rhythm" (showing off Zawinul's pioneering and ever-increasing ability to create synthetic big-band sounds on his synthesizers).
By now, Pastorius was displaying signs of the mental instability and substance abuse problems that ultimately wrecked his career; and the close relationship he'd previously shared with Zawinul was becoming strained as Zawinul grew tired of Pastorius' showmanship onstage (beginning to feel that it detracted from the music). Towards the end of the year, Pastorius began working on his long-delayed second solo album (Word of Mouth) (1981) in New York, while Zawinul worked on new Weather Report material in California.
Weather Report's next album Weather Report (1982) – their second eponymous release following their 1971 debut – was recorded in 1981, although it was not released for another year. Zawinul's dominance as instrumentalist and composer (as well as group director) was even more pronounced on this album. Much of the band's music was increasingly written out rather than improvised. In the event, Pastorius spent more of his creative attention on the Word of Mouth project: his only writing for the Weather Report album being his contribution to a single, group-composed piece. Shorter (who only contributed one whole composition to the 1982 album beyond group-written work) was already taking a more philosophical approach. He later commented, "for a long time in Weather Report, I abstained. I elected not to do things."
Erskine's own commitment to Word of Mouth (and a subsequent summer commitment to Steps Ahead) meant that he, too, had to be replaced, while Robert Thomas Jr., was simply dismissed. Reduced to a duo, and with tour commitments looming, Zawinul and Shorter were obliged to quickly assemble a new band.
1982–1985: A new band
On the recommendation of Michał Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon. Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new lineup. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player José Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle.
The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music" approach which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer.
Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), deepening the band's involvement with cutting-edge music technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson.
Percussionist and singer Mino Cinélu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by singers Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers.
1986: Final split
Both Zawinul and Shorter were beginning to realise that the refreshing nature of other projects was more satisfying than Weather Report work, and both generally felt that the band had run its course.
In February 1986, the San Diego Union-Tribune announced that Shorter had left the band to concentrate on solo work. Having reluctantly agreed with Shorter that he would no longer use the band name, Zawinul then ended Weather Report. The final album under the Weather Report name, This is This!, was released in June 1986 and fulfilled the band's contract with Columbia Records. Two of its tracks featured guitar work from Carlos Santana, and it also marked the return of Peter Erskine on drums, with Hakim only appearing on one track.
1986–present: After Weather Report
Having split the band, Zawinul promptly attempted to reform it – after a fashion – as Weather Update. For this project, he reunited with recent Weather Report alumni Victor Bailey, Mino Cinélu, and Peter Erskine, but replaced Shorter with guitarist John Scofield. This lineup was short-lived, with Los Angeles session guitarist Steve Khan and former Weather Report percussionist Robert Thomas Jr. replacing Scofield and Cinélu prior to live appearances. Weather Update toured in 1986 and 1987 before Zawinul dissolved the band. From 1988 onwards, Zawinul went on to enjoy a successful nineteen-year career leading the world music/jazz ensemble The Zawinul Syndicate (which has continued, following Zawinul's death, as The Syndicate).
Rather than form another collective band, Wayne Shorter concentrated on his solo career and on work as a bandleader, which continues to the present day.
In spite of the band's enduring popularity, a Weather Report reunion never occurred. The nearest that the band ever came to reuniting was when Zawinul and Shorter both played live with Miles Davis on July 10, 1991, in Paris (the only time when Zawinul is known to have shared a live stage with Davis). A projected mid-'90s reunion CD for Verve never materialized; according to Zawinul, disappointing sales for Shorter's 1995 CD High Life may have played a part in ending the idea.
Five of the band's members have since died. Zawinul himself died on September 11, 2007, in Vienna from skin cancer (Merkel cell carcinoma). He was predeceased by mid-period bass player Jaco Pastorius, who died on September 21, 1987, following a fatal beating in his hometown of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Pastorius' successor on bass guitar, Victor Bailey, died on November 11, 2016 (apparently from complications from Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). Alphonse Mouzon, the first drummer, died on December 25, 2016 from cardiac arrest after neuroendocrine cancer. Dom Um Romão, the group's drummer from 1971 to 1974, died in 2005 aged 79.
Lineups
Timeline
Releases since the band's breakup
A "post band" Weather Report double CD called Live and Unreleased was made available in 2002, featuring vintage live recordings made during the late 1970s/early 1980s with various personnel. In September 2006, Columbia/Legacy released a Weather Report boxed set, Forecast: Tomorrow. It includes three CDs of mostly previously released material (from 1970 to 1985, excluding This is This!) and a DVD of the entire September 28, 1978, performance (with Erskine and Pastorius) in Offenbach, Germany, not previously available. A DVD video of the 1976 Montreux Jazz Festival performance (featuring the Heavy Weather lineup of Pastorius, Acuna, and Badrena) has become available, as well. Columbia/Legacy have also re-released the 1984 Live in Japan concert on DVD.
In 2011, the Zawinul estate, in conjunction with an independent label, released a 40th-anniversary commemorative trilogy of previously unavailable Weather Report live shows: In March Live in Berlin 1975 was released both on vinyl and as a CD/DVD set; in June the Live in Offenbach 1978 DVD was re-released together with a previously unavailable double CD of the complete show; in October Live in Cologne 1983 was released as both DVD and double CD.
Grammy Awards
The Grammy Awards are awarded annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States. Weather Report has won one Grammy from six nominations.
|-
!1972
|"I Sing The Body Electric"
|Best Jazz Performance by a Group
|
|-
!1979
|"8:30"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1981
|"Night Passage"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1982
|"Weather Report"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1983
|"Procession"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1985
||"Sportin' Life"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
Discography
Studio albums
References
External links
Weather Report's official website www.WeatherReportMusic.com
Weather Report biography by Richard S. Ginell, discography and album reviews, credits & releases at AllMusic
The Weather Report Annotated Discography
Weather Report discography, album releases & credits at Discogs
Weather Report albums to be listened on Spotify
Weather Report albums to be listened on YouTube
Musical groups established in 1970
Musical groups disestablished in 1986
Jazz fusion ensembles
American jazz ensembles from New York City
Musical groups from New York City
Grammy Award winners
Jazz musicians from New York (state) | false | [
"Who Am I? or Who Am I may refer to:\n\nFilm \n Who Am I? (1921 film). a silent drama directed by Henry Kolker\n Who Am I? (1998 film), a Hong Kong film starring Jackie Chan\n Who Am I? (2009 film), a Cambodian film\n Who Am I (2014 film), or Who Am I – No System is Safe, a 2014 German film\n Who Am I 2015, a 2015 Chinese film\n\nMusic\n\nAlbums \n\n Who Am I (Drapht album)\n Who Am I (B1A4 album)\n Who Am I? (Pale Waves album)\n\nSongs \n \"Who Am I?\" (Casting Crowns song), 2003\n \"Who Am I\" (Katy B song), 2016\n \"Who Am I?\" (Petula Clark song), 1966\n \"Who Am I\" (Will Young song), 2005\n \"Who Am I (Sim Simma)\", by Beenie Man, 1997\n \"Who Am I? (What's My Name?)\", by Snoop Doggy Dogg, 1993\n \"Who Am I\", by Ace of Base from The Golden Ratio, 2010\n \"Who Am I\", by New Found Glory from Catalyst, 2004\n \"Who Am I\", by Parachute Express from Feel the Music, 1986\n \"Who Am I\", by Royce da 5'9\" from Rock City, 2002\n \"Who Am I?\", by Craig's Brother from Homecoming, 1998\n \"Who Am I?\", by Peace Orchestra from Peace Orchestra, 1999\n \"Who Am I?\", by Rusty Goodman, 1969\n \"Who Am I\", by Leonard Bernstein from the musical Peter Pan, 1950\n \"Who Am I?\" soundtrack by Jule Styne and Walter Bullock from the film Hit Parade of 1941, 1940\n \"Who Am I?\", song from the musical Les Misérables\n \"Who Am I?\", song featured in the SpongeBob SquarePants episode \"Mimic Madness\", 2017\n \"Who Am I?\", song performed by Cameron Diaz, Jamie Foxx and, Quvenzhané Wallis, from the musical Annie, 2014\n \"Who Am I\", by Status Quo from Rockin' All Over the World, 1977\n\nOther \n\n \"Who Am I\", teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi on self-enquiry\n Who Am I?, a 1966 religious education book by Katherine Paterson\n A question about personal identity\n\nSee also\n \"Who Am I This Time?\", a short story by Kurt Vonnegut\n Who Am I This Time? (film), a film adaptation of Vonnegut's story\n whoami, a shell command\n \"Raise Up\", a 2001 song by Petey Pablo",
"Who I Am may refer to:\n\nAlbums \n Who I Am (Alan Jackson album)\n Who I Am (Amy Pearson album), 2008\n Who I Am (Beverley Knight album), 2002\n Who I Am (Cory Marks album), 2020\n Who I Am (David Ruffin album), 1975\n Who I Am (Jason Castro album), 2010\n Who I Am (Jessica Andrews album), 2001\n Who I Am (Nick Jonas & the Administration album)\n Who I Am, by Alice Peacock\n Who I Am, by Gary Wright\n Who I AM (Abraham Mateo album), 2014\n Who I Am (Blanca EP), 2015\n\nSongs \n \"Who I Am\" (Nick Jonas & the Administration song), 2009\n \"Who I Am\" (Jessica Andrews song), 2000\n \"Who I Am\" (Blog 27 song), 2006\n \"Who I Am\" (Ashley Tisdale song), 2007\n \"Who I Am\" (Lena Katina song)\n \"Who I Am\" (Shannon Noll song), 2017\n \"Who I Am\" (Maroon 5 song), 2017\n \"Who I Am\", a song by Abraham Mateo on his album Who I AM, 2014\n \"Who I Am\", a song by Pusha T on his album My Name Is My Name, 2013\n \"Who I Am\", a song by After Forever on their self-titled album, 2007\n \"Who I Am\", a song by David Archuleta from his album The Other Side of Down, 2010\n \"Who I Am\", a song by Magna-Fi, on their album VerseChorusKillMe, 2007\n \"Who I Am\", a song by Sandra from her album Back to Life, 2009\n \"Who I Am\", a song by Natasha Bedingfield from the 2014 film The Pirate Fairy\n \"Who I Am\", a song by Notaker & Declan James feat. Karra, 2017\n \"Who I Am\", a song by Trapt on their album Amalgamation, 1999\n \"Who I Am\", a song by miwa on her single DAITAN!, 2020\n \"Who I Am\", a song by Cory Marks from his album Who I Am, 2020\n \"Who I Am\", a song from the Bratz Rock Angelz soundtrack, 2005\n\nBooks\n Who I Am (book), a memoir by Pete Townshend"
] |
[
"Weather Report",
"1982-1985: A new band",
"Who did the recruit",
"Omar",
"Why",
"recommendation",
"By who",
"Michal Urbaniak,"
] | C_d9f2723ad001441abb6bc1285e77609e_0 | Who assited on this | 4 | Who assisted Michael Urbaniak? | Weather Report | On the recommendation of Michal Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited the 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians (including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon). Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new rhythm section. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player Jose Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle. The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music", which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer. Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), furthering developing the band's involvement with technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson. The band was beginning to suffer from the revival of more traditionally styled jazz at the time, which made it harder to market jazz fusion. Percussionist and singer Mino Cinelu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers. By the time of the release of Sportin' Life Shorter and Zawinul had opted not to tour the material. Instead, they took a break for long-delayed solo projects. CANNOTANSWER | Zawinul and Shorter recruited | Weather Report was an American jazz fusion band active from 1970 to 1986. The band was founded (and initially co-led) by Austrian keyboard player Joe Zawinul, American saxophonist Wayne Shorter, and Czech bassist Miroslav Vitouš. Other prominent members at various points in the band's lifespan included Jaco Pastorius, Alphonso Johnson, Victor Bailey, Chester Thompson, Peter Erskine, Airto Moreira, and Alex Acuña. Throughout most of its existence, the band was a quintet consisting of Zawinul, Shorter, a bass guitarist, a drummer, and a percussionist.
The band started as a free improvising jazz group with avant-garde and experimental electronic leanings (pioneered by Zawinul); when Vitouš left Weather Report (due mostly to creative disagreements), Zawinul increasingly steered the band towards a funky, edgy sound incorporating elements of R&B and native musics from around the world. Zawinul used the latest developments in synthesizer technology, and took advantage of a large variety of sounds and tone colors to make the band stand out. During the first half of their career, Weather Report were seen as one of the defining acts in modern jazz, winning the DownBeat "best album award" five times in a row.
Alongside bands such as Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return to Forever, Herbie Hancock's Headhunters (all with members inspired by and partially responsible for the fusion-era work of Miles Davis), Weather Report is widely considered one of the defining bands of the jazz fusion genre.
Musical style
Over their 16-year career, Weather Report explored various areas of music, predominantly centered on jazz (initially the "free" variety), but also incorporating elements of art music, ethnic music, R&B, funk, and rock. While their work was categorized as "jazz fusion", the band members generally distanced themselves from that term.
From the start, Weather Report took the unusual approach of abandoning the traditional "soloist/accompaniment" demarcation of straight-ahead jazz and featured opportunities for continuous improvisation by every member of the band. That position remained consistent throughout the life of the band. From the point where Alphonso Johnson joined the band, individual solos became more prominent in concert, but were never allowed to overwhelm the collective approach. Initially, the band's music featured an improvisational method (similar to Miles Davis's Bitches Brew-period), but eventually that shifted to a more groove-oriented approach, and catchier compositions (as epitomized by their 1977 hit single "Birdland").
Joe Zawinul's playing style was often dominated by quirky melodic improvisations (simultaneously bebop-, ethnic-, and pop-sounding) combined with sparse but rhythmic big-band chords or bass lines. Having originally made his name as a pioneering electric piano player, he went on to consistently develop the role of the synthesizer in jazz during his time with Weather Report. Working with companies such as ARP and Oberheim, Zawinul developed new ways of voicing and patching electronic tones for textures, ensemble roles (including emulations of traditional band instruments) and soloing. In Weather Report, he often employed a vocoder, as well as recorded sounds played (i.e., filtered and transposed) through a synthesizer, creating a very distinctive, often beautiful, synthesis of jazz harmonics and "noise" (which he referred to as "using all the sounds the world generates"). On some Weather Report tunes, however, Zawinul was criticized for allowing his synthesized arrangements to dominate the sound.
Wayne Shorter came to the group with a reputation as a dominant role as an instrumentalist, drawn from both his solo work and his contributions to Miles Davis' "second great quintet" during the 1960s. His choice not to follow the same approach with Weather Report led to some criticism of the group. During his time with Weather Report, Shorter was noted for generally playing saxophone with an economical, "listening" style. Rather than continually taking the lead, he generally added subtle harmonic, melodic, and/or rhythmic complexity by responding to other member's improvisations (although he could and did sometimes exercise a more frenetic style akin to that of John Coltrane or Michael Brecker). As a composer, he chose a more abstract, sometimes atonal and "free jazz" style of music, opposed to the sometimes flamboyant melodicism of the tunes written by Zawinul or Pastorius. Playing both tenor and soprano saxophones, Shorter continued to develop the role of the latter instrument in jazz, taking his cue from previous work by Coltrane, Sidney Bechet, Lucky Thompson, and Steve Lacy.
Weather Report maintained a consistent interest in a textured sound and developments in music technology and processing. Both Zawinul and original bassist Miroslav Vitouš experimented with electronic effects pedals (as generally used by rock guitarists) with Zawinul using them on electric piano and synthesizers and Vitouš on his upright bass (which he frequently bowed through distortion to create a second horn-like voice). The band's third bass player, Jaco Pastorius, popularized the use of fretless bass guitar, melodic bass soloing and extensive use of string harmonics, as well as consolidating the driving R&B pulse in the band's music (which had been brought in by his predecessor Alphonso Johnson).
With the exception of a brief quartet period between 1978 and 1979 (wherein other members could double on various percussion instruments), Weather Report's instrumentation always included both a drummer and a percussionist. For its first eight years of existence, the group had difficulty finding a permanent drummer, moving through about one drummer per year until Jaco Pastorius helped to recruit Peter Erskine in 1978. Erskine and Omar Hakim were the only drummers who played with Weather Report for more than two years.
History
1970: Inception and formation
Joe Zawinul and Wayne Shorter had first met and become friends in 1959 while they were playing in Maynard Ferguson's Big Band. Zawinul went on to play with Cannonball Adderley's group in the 1960s, while Shorter joined Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers and then, in 1964, Miles Davis' second great quintet. During this decade, both men made names for themselves as being among the best composers in jazz.
Zawinul later joined Shorter in contributing to the initial fusion music recordings of Miles Davis, and both men were part of the studio groups that recorded the key Davis albums In a Silent Way (1969) and Bitches Brew (1970). Weather Report was initially formed to explore a more impressionistic and individualistic music (or, as Zawinul put it, "away from all that eight bars shit and then you go to the bridge...").
There's some dispute over how Weather Report initially formed. According to Zawinul, it began when he and Shorter recruited another Miles Davis associate, the classically trained Czech-born bass player Miroslav Vitouš, who had previously played with each of them separately (as well as with Herbie Mann, Bob Brookmeyer, Stan Getz, and Chick Corea). According to Vitouš himself, it was he and Shorter who actually founded Weather Report, with Shorter bringing in Zawinul afterwards. Whichever story is true, it was those three musicians – all composers – who formed the initial core of the project.
To complete the band, Zawinul, Shorter and Vitouš brought in former McCoy Tyner drummer Alphonse Mouzon and began recording their debut album while looking for a full-time auxiliary percussionist. The initial recruits were session percussion player Don Alias and symphony orchestra percussionist Barbara Burton. During recording, Alias quarreled with Zawinul (allegedly due to Zawinul being too dictatorial over the percussion approach) and the innovative Brazilian percussionist Airto Moreira (yet another Davis alumnus) was brought in to complete the record. Guitarist John McLaughlin was also invited to join the group, but decided to pursue his solo career, instead.
1971–1972: Avant-garde collective
Weather Report's debut album Weather Report featured a softer sound than would be the case in later years, predominantly using acoustic bass, with Shorter exclusively playing soprano saxophone. It built on the avant-garde experiments which Zawinul and Shorter had pioneered with Miles Davis on Bitches Brew, including an avoidance of head-and-chorus composition in favor of continuous rhythm and movement. DownBeat magazine described the album as "music beyond category".
In 1972, Weather Report released its second album, I Sing the Body Electric. The first side featured new studio recordings, while the second side was taken from live recordings of a concert in Tokyo, featuring the full-band lineup of Zawinul, Shorter, Vitouš, Gravatt, and Um Romão (and later available in full as the 1972 Japan-only double album Live in Tokyo). The studio side used extended versions of the band including various guest performers, suggesting that Weather Report was not necessarily an integral jazz band, but might possibly work as an expandable project set up to realise the music of its three composers. The album also featured Zawinul's first use of a synthesizer (an instrument with which he would become synonymous within jazz) and of sound effects.
I Sing the Body Electric also showed the first signs of a shift in the balance of control within the band, away from the more collective approach of the debut album. During the following year, this tendency would develop further.
1973: Move towards groove
On 1973's Sweetnighter, Weather Report began to abandon the primarily acoustic group improvisation format, and the band started to take a new direction. Primarily at Zawinul's instigation, Weather Report became more jazz funk- and groove-oriented, drawing more heavily on R&B influences and dense electric keyboard work while adding more structure to both the prewritten and the improvisational sections.
Gravatt took his replacement in the studio sessions badly and quit the band at the end of recording, moving to Minneapolis to join the band Natural Life. Many years later, Zawinul paid tribute to Gravatt's skills and stated that he had been the finest of the band's "pure jazz" drummers as well as being "from the jazz side... my favorite of them all". With Gravatt gone and Dwellingham unavailable for touring, former Sly & the Family Stone drummer Greg Errico played on the Sweetnighter tour, but did not stay with the band afterwards.
At this point, Vitouš and Zawinul found themselves at creative loggerheads, since the former preferred Weather Report's original approach and the latter wished to continue further along the road to funk. Retrospectively, Zawinul accused Vitouš of being unable to play funk convincingly (something which Greg Errico corroborated) and claimed that he had not provided enough music for the band. Vitouš countered that he had in fact brought in compositions, but that Zawinul had been unable to play them. Vitouš has also accused Zawinul of having been "a first-class manipulator" primarily interested in commercial success. When Shorter sided with Zawinul, the original three-man partnership broke down acrimoniously and Vitouš left Weather Report, moving on to an illustrious career leading his own band and winning respect as a composer. His final contribution to Weather Report was to play bass on a single track, which appeared on the band's 1974 album Mysterious Traveller ("American Tango", which he had co-written with Zawinul).
Vitouš' departure marked the end of the first phase of Weather Report and the shift of overall creative dominance of the band to Josef Zawinul, although Shorter remained an integral, influential, and vital part of the project. Vitouš has subsequently accused both Zawinul and Shorter of having used foul play to edge him out of the band, to deny the scale of his contribution to Weather Report's history and creative approach, and to cheat him out of remuneration.
1974–1975: Further into groove
Vitouš' replacement was the Philadelphian electric bass guitarist Alphonso Johnson (formerly a sideman for the pop-fusion player Chuck Mangione). Recruited by Shorter, Johnson was a supple player more than capable of providing the funk element which Zawinul desired. He was also an early advocate of the Chapman Stick, which he can be heard playing on some of the live Weather Report recordings of the period.
According to Zawinul, Wilburn apparently "lost heart" on tour (despite performing well in the studio). To shore up the music, the band hired another drummer, Darryl Brown, to play alongside him. At the end of the tour, both Wilburn and Brown left the band (as did Dom Um Romão) and Weather Report was, once again, drummerless.
For the next set of studio sessions, Weather Report added a new Brazilian percussionist (Alyrio Lima) and a new drummer – Chuck Bazemore of The Delfonics.
The new album, Tale Spinnin', was released in 1975. It was the first Weather Report album to feature a consistent rhythm section (rather than a varied set of drummers, percussionists, and bass players) since their debut. The album also made further strides in using technological improvements in synthesizers, even making use of the gigantic studio-based TONTO array.
During the same year, Shorter also recorded Native Dancer under his own name (with the Brazilian composer and vocalist Milton Nascimento). Tale Spinnin won the DownBeat best album award for 1975 (the third Weather Report album to do so) and Native Dancer was the runner-up.
1976: In transition
1976's Black Market album was perhaps the most rock-oriented work which the group had produced to date. Weather Report's music had evolved further from open-ended funk jams into more melody-oriented, concise forms, which also offered a greater mass-market appeal. Zawinul further consolidated his use of keyboard synthesizers, while Shorter experimented with an early form of wind synthesizer, the Lyricon.
However, the album was recorded during yet another period of change for the group, with multiple personnel shuffles. Although Alyrio Lima played percussion on one track, he was replaced during the sessions by Don Alias (his first appearance with the group since the debut album debacle) and by Alex Acuña (a Peruvian drummer and conga player based in Las Vegas, who had played with Elvis Presley and Ike Turner, among others). Alphonso Johnson was also worn out from the strain put on the rhythm by the band's frequent changes of drummer. During a break in activity halfway through the recording of Black Market, Johnson opted to leave Weather Report to play with the Billy Cobham/George Duke Band (which featured a young John Scofield on guitar).
Prior to his departure, Johnson played on all but two of the new album's tracks. His replacement was Jaco Pastorius, a virtuoso fretless bass guitarist from Florida, who had been in touch with Zawinul for several years, and who came in to play on "Cannon Ball" and his own composition "Barbary Coast". Zawinul and Shorter had assumed that Chester Thompson would be departing alongside his friend Johnson, and for the second set of sessions they replaced him (on Pastorius' recommendation) with the former Mahavishnu Orchestra drummer Narada Michael Walden. Although Walden played on several album tracks, he ultimately proved unsuitable. Thompson returned for the final Black Market sessions, but left again after failing to gel as a rhythm section with Pastorius (whose style was much busier than that of Johnson). Thompson subsequently joined Genesis as their touring drummer.
Black Market continued Weather Report's ongoing run of success, selling well and being the fourth of the band's albums to win the album of the year award from DownBeat magazine. For the subsequent tour, Alex Acuña moved from percussion to the drum kit, and Don Alias was replaced by the young Puerto Rican percussionist Manolo Badrena, who had previously played with various Latin rock bands and with Art Blakey. The band made a very well-received appearance in July at the Montreux Jazz Festival 1976, which was filmed for future release.
1977–1979: Jazz-rock stars
The recruitment of Jaco Pastorius helped to push Weather Report to the height of its popularity. Already a rising star in his own right, Pastorius brought a very musical, melodic quality to the bass. He could play muscular, lightning-fast groove lines influenced by R&B or funk, as well as demonstrating an extraordinary solo control of tone and string harmonics, often sounding more like a horn player. Pastorius was also a multi-instrumentalist (contributing drums, steel pan, and mandocello to the latest recording sessions), a gifted composer (eventually responsible for some signature Weather Report pieces such as "Teen Town" and "Three Views of a Secret"), and a useful production foil for Zawinul due to his knowledge of recording studios and techniques. Finally, Pastorius' stagecraft and aggressive showmanship helped the band to bring in a new audience.
The band's next album was 1977's acclaimed Heavy Weather, which proved to be the band's most successful recording in terms of sales, while still retaining wide critical acclaim. It contained the band's biggest hit, the propulsive and danceable "Birdland" (highlighting Pastorius' singing bass lines and Zawinul's synthesized ensemble brass), which became a pop hit and later became a jazz standard. Weather Report appeared on the Burt Sugarman-produced series The Midnight Special, performing both "Birdland" and "Teen Town". Heavy Weather dominated Weather Report's disc awards, including their last DownBeat Album of the Year award.
During this period, Pastorius' strong professional connection with Joni Mitchell (for whom he played bass throughout the latter half of the 1970s) led to another musical connection. Over the next few years, Mitchell hired the Weather Report line-up en masse (although without Zawinul in each case) to play on her studio albums Don Juan's Reckless Daughter (1977) and Mingus (1979).
During August 1978 the band joined Maurice White's vanity label ARC at Columbia. At the time they were once again without either a full-time drummer and percussionist, with Alex Acuña having returned to Las Vegas for a career as a studio musician and Manolo Badrena having been fired for "non-musical reasons". Shorter had been focusing most of his attention and compositional ideas into his solo work, while Zawinul was sketching out ideas for a solo album of his own, which involved moving away from a raw group sound in favor of constructing a far more orchestrated and experimental studio-based recording with multiple overdubs. However, Weather Report's contract and work schedule required another album, so Zawinul's solo work was absorbed into what became Weather Report's eighth album, Mr. Gone (1978).
The studio sessions made use of a variety of drummers – Pastorius played the kit on two tracks and further contributions came from Tony Williams, Steve Gadd, and Peter Erskine (the latter an ex-Stan Kenton/Maynard Ferguson drummer recruited to the project by Pastorius). Erskine became a full member of the band for the next tour and remained with Weather Report until 1982. The album also featured guest appearances from Deniece Williams and Earth Wind and Fire leader Maurice White.
The album rose to No. 1 on the Billboard Jazz Albums chart.
Notoriously, Mr. Gone (1978) received only a one-star review rating from DownBeat after a string of group releases which had all pulled a five-star rating. The group arranged for a rebuttal interview with the magazine to defend their efforts. Zawinul and Pastorius were defiant in their responses to the interviewer, Shorter more philosophical, and Erskine the most reticent of the four.
By the late '70s, Weather Report was a quartet of Zawinul, Shorter, Pastorius, and Erskine, and (for the first time) had dispensed with the auxiliary percussionist role, which had been integral since the band's inception. Instead, all four members doubled on percussion at various points in live performances. Zawinul commented that this sleeker, less crowded sound provided more listening range and made the music less chaotic now that the band were focusing more on melody and harmony.
The larger scale and multimedia staging of the band's tours (complete with stagehands, laser and film projections) began to take on the kind of rock-star proportions mostly unknown in jazz circles. The 1979 double live album 8:30 (which won that year's Best Jazz Fusion Performance) was recorded on the Mr. Gone tour and captured the direct power and energy of this lineup of Weather Report. Zawinul would later describe this lineup as "one of the greatest bands of all time! That band was a hummer!"
Between March 2 and 4, 1979, Weather Report traveled to Havana, Cuba, to participate in the historic Havana Jam festival, a break in mutual Cuban/American political hostilities, which had American artists such as Stephen Stills, the CBS Jazz All-Stars, Bonnie Bramlett, Kris Kristofferson, Rita Coolidge, and Billy Joel play alongside Cuban artists such as Irakere, Pacho Alonso, Tata Güines, and Orquesta Aragón. Another featured performance was by the Trio of Doom (a short-lived teaming of Pastorius with John McLaughlin and Tony Williams). Weather Report's performance featured in Havana Jam '79, Ernesto Juan Castellanos' documentary celebrating the event.
1980–1982: A tighter arrangement
At the beginning of 1980, Pastorius recruited hand-drummer Robert Thomas Jr. (a fellow Floridan, with whom he had jammed previously) into the band. Thomas featured on the 1980 album Night Passage. A tighter and more traditional recording than previous releases, the record featured a more prominent role for Shorter, a strong element of bebop, and a nod to jazz's golden age via a high-speed cover of Duke Ellington's "Rockin' in Rhythm" (showing off Zawinul's pioneering and ever-increasing ability to create synthetic big-band sounds on his synthesizers).
By now, Pastorius was displaying signs of the mental instability and substance abuse problems that ultimately wrecked his career; and the close relationship he'd previously shared with Zawinul was becoming strained as Zawinul grew tired of Pastorius' showmanship onstage (beginning to feel that it detracted from the music). Towards the end of the year, Pastorius began working on his long-delayed second solo album (Word of Mouth) (1981) in New York, while Zawinul worked on new Weather Report material in California.
Weather Report's next album Weather Report (1982) – their second eponymous release following their 1971 debut – was recorded in 1981, although it was not released for another year. Zawinul's dominance as instrumentalist and composer (as well as group director) was even more pronounced on this album. Much of the band's music was increasingly written out rather than improvised. In the event, Pastorius spent more of his creative attention on the Word of Mouth project: his only writing for the Weather Report album being his contribution to a single, group-composed piece. Shorter (who only contributed one whole composition to the 1982 album beyond group-written work) was already taking a more philosophical approach. He later commented, "for a long time in Weather Report, I abstained. I elected not to do things."
Erskine's own commitment to Word of Mouth (and a subsequent summer commitment to Steps Ahead) meant that he, too, had to be replaced, while Robert Thomas Jr., was simply dismissed. Reduced to a duo, and with tour commitments looming, Zawinul and Shorter were obliged to quickly assemble a new band.
1982–1985: A new band
On the recommendation of Michał Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon. Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new lineup. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player José Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle.
The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music" approach which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer.
Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), deepening the band's involvement with cutting-edge music technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson.
Percussionist and singer Mino Cinélu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by singers Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers.
1986: Final split
Both Zawinul and Shorter were beginning to realise that the refreshing nature of other projects was more satisfying than Weather Report work, and both generally felt that the band had run its course.
In February 1986, the San Diego Union-Tribune announced that Shorter had left the band to concentrate on solo work. Having reluctantly agreed with Shorter that he would no longer use the band name, Zawinul then ended Weather Report. The final album under the Weather Report name, This is This!, was released in June 1986 and fulfilled the band's contract with Columbia Records. Two of its tracks featured guitar work from Carlos Santana, and it also marked the return of Peter Erskine on drums, with Hakim only appearing on one track.
1986–present: After Weather Report
Having split the band, Zawinul promptly attempted to reform it – after a fashion – as Weather Update. For this project, he reunited with recent Weather Report alumni Victor Bailey, Mino Cinélu, and Peter Erskine, but replaced Shorter with guitarist John Scofield. This lineup was short-lived, with Los Angeles session guitarist Steve Khan and former Weather Report percussionist Robert Thomas Jr. replacing Scofield and Cinélu prior to live appearances. Weather Update toured in 1986 and 1987 before Zawinul dissolved the band. From 1988 onwards, Zawinul went on to enjoy a successful nineteen-year career leading the world music/jazz ensemble The Zawinul Syndicate (which has continued, following Zawinul's death, as The Syndicate).
Rather than form another collective band, Wayne Shorter concentrated on his solo career and on work as a bandleader, which continues to the present day.
In spite of the band's enduring popularity, a Weather Report reunion never occurred. The nearest that the band ever came to reuniting was when Zawinul and Shorter both played live with Miles Davis on July 10, 1991, in Paris (the only time when Zawinul is known to have shared a live stage with Davis). A projected mid-'90s reunion CD for Verve never materialized; according to Zawinul, disappointing sales for Shorter's 1995 CD High Life may have played a part in ending the idea.
Five of the band's members have since died. Zawinul himself died on September 11, 2007, in Vienna from skin cancer (Merkel cell carcinoma). He was predeceased by mid-period bass player Jaco Pastorius, who died on September 21, 1987, following a fatal beating in his hometown of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Pastorius' successor on bass guitar, Victor Bailey, died on November 11, 2016 (apparently from complications from Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). Alphonse Mouzon, the first drummer, died on December 25, 2016 from cardiac arrest after neuroendocrine cancer. Dom Um Romão, the group's drummer from 1971 to 1974, died in 2005 aged 79.
Lineups
Timeline
Releases since the band's breakup
A "post band" Weather Report double CD called Live and Unreleased was made available in 2002, featuring vintage live recordings made during the late 1970s/early 1980s with various personnel. In September 2006, Columbia/Legacy released a Weather Report boxed set, Forecast: Tomorrow. It includes three CDs of mostly previously released material (from 1970 to 1985, excluding This is This!) and a DVD of the entire September 28, 1978, performance (with Erskine and Pastorius) in Offenbach, Germany, not previously available. A DVD video of the 1976 Montreux Jazz Festival performance (featuring the Heavy Weather lineup of Pastorius, Acuna, and Badrena) has become available, as well. Columbia/Legacy have also re-released the 1984 Live in Japan concert on DVD.
In 2011, the Zawinul estate, in conjunction with an independent label, released a 40th-anniversary commemorative trilogy of previously unavailable Weather Report live shows: In March Live in Berlin 1975 was released both on vinyl and as a CD/DVD set; in June the Live in Offenbach 1978 DVD was re-released together with a previously unavailable double CD of the complete show; in October Live in Cologne 1983 was released as both DVD and double CD.
Grammy Awards
The Grammy Awards are awarded annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States. Weather Report has won one Grammy from six nominations.
|-
!1972
|"I Sing The Body Electric"
|Best Jazz Performance by a Group
|
|-
!1979
|"8:30"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1981
|"Night Passage"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1982
|"Weather Report"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1983
|"Procession"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1985
||"Sportin' Life"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
Discography
Studio albums
References
External links
Weather Report's official website www.WeatherReportMusic.com
Weather Report biography by Richard S. Ginell, discography and album reviews, credits & releases at AllMusic
The Weather Report Annotated Discography
Weather Report discography, album releases & credits at Discogs
Weather Report albums to be listened on Spotify
Weather Report albums to be listened on YouTube
Musical groups established in 1970
Musical groups disestablished in 1986
Jazz fusion ensembles
American jazz ensembles from New York City
Musical groups from New York City
Grammy Award winners
Jazz musicians from New York (state) | true | [
"\"This Is Who I Am\" is a song by Australian recording artist Vanessa Amorosi. It was released in Australian on 9 October 2009 as the lead single from Amorosi's fourth studio album Hazardous. The song debuted at number 1 on the ARIA charts; becoming Amorosi's first number one single. When she heard this, Amorosi said \"I am completely overwhelmed when I heard 'This Is Who I Am' came in at number one. I am so excited and thrilled to have the support from both the media and my fans. It is my first number one single and I will absolutely treasure this moment.\"\n\nPromotion\n\"This Is Who I Am\" made its radio debut on the Kyle & Jackie O show on 28 August 2009 on the Fox FM radio station in Melbourne.\n\nOn 26 September 2009, Amorosi performed \"This Is Who I Am\" live on Channel 9's AFL Grand Final Breakfast. On 3 October 2009, Amorosi performed the song during Telethon in Perth.\n\nMusic video\nThe video clip for \"This Is Who I Am\" was shot in Los Angeles and directed by Christopher R. Watson. The video was shot on green screen and was launched on 14 September 2009.\n\nThe video premiered on Take 40 Australia and The Hot Hits' web pages a few days before its official release.\n\nTrack listing\nCD single\n\nCharts\n\"This Is Who I Am\" is Amorosi's first number-one single in Australia. Her single is also the first Australian female artist's single to debut at number one since Kylie Minogue's \"2 Hearts\" back in 2007, and the first debut number-one single since Flo Rida's \"Right Round\".\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nCertifications\n\nRelease history\n\nSee also\n List of number-one singles in Australia in 2009\n\nReferences\n\nVanessa Amorosi songs\n2009 singles\nNumber-one singles in Australia\nSong recordings produced by MachoPsycho\nSongs written by Vanessa Amorosi\nUniversal Music Australia singles",
"The Men's 100 metre backstroke swimming events for the 2020 Summer Paralympics took place at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre from August 25 to September 3, 2021. A total of 11 events were contested over this distance.\n\nSchedule\n\nMedal summary\nThe following is a summary of the medals awarded across all 100 metre backstroke events.\n\nResults\nThe following were the results of the finals only of each of the Men's 100 metre backstroke events in each of the classifications. Further details of each event, including where appropriate heats and semi finals results, are available on that event's dedicated page.\n\nS1\n\nThe S1 category is for swimmers who may have tetraplegia, or some form of loss of muscular power in their legs, arms and hands. These swimmers would regularly use a wheelchair.\n\nThe final in this classification took place on 25 August 2021:\n\nS2\n\nThe S2 category is for swimmers who may have limited function in their hands, trunk, and legs, and mainly rely on their arms to swim.\n\nThe final in this classification took place on 25 August 2021:\n\nS6\n\nThe S6 category is for swimmers who have short stature, arm amputations, or some form of coordination problem on one side of their body.\n\nThe final in this classification took place on 3 September 2021:\n\nS7\n\nThe S7 category is for swimmers who have one leg and one arm amputation on opposite side, or paralysis on one side of their body. These swimmers have full control of their arms and trunk but variable function in their legs.\n\nThe final in this classification took place on 30 August 2021:\n\nS8\n\nThe S8 category is for swimmers who have a single amputation, or restrictive movement in their hip, knee and ankle joints.\n\nThe final in this classification took place on 27 August 2021:\n\nS9\n\nThe S9 category is for swimmers who have joint restrictions in one leg, or double below-the-knee amputations.\n\nThe final in this classification took place on 30 August 2021:\n\nS10\n\nThe S10 category is for swimmers who have minor physical impairments, for example, loss of one hand.\n\nThe final in this classification took place on 2 September 2021:\n\nS11\n\nThe S11 category is for swimmers who have severe visual impairments and have very low or no light perception, such as blindness, they are required to wear blackened goggles to compete. They use tappers when competing in swimming events.\n\nThe final in this classification took place on 28 August 2021:\n\nS12\n\nThe S12 category is for swimmers who have moderate visual impairment and have a visual field of less than 5 degrees radius. They are required to wear blackened goggles to compete. They may wish to use a tapper.\n\nThe final in this classification took place on 27 August 2021:\n\nS13\n\nThe S13 category is for swimmers who have minor visual impairment and have high visual acuity. They are required to wear blackened goggles to compete. They may wish to use a tapper.\n\nThe final in this classification took place on 26 August 2021:\n\nS14\n\nThe S14 category is for swimmers who have an intellectual impairment.\n\nThe final in this classification took place on 2 September 2021:\n\nReferences\n\nSwimming at the 2020 Summer Paralympics"
] |
[
"Weather Report",
"1982-1985: A new band",
"Who did the recruit",
"Omar",
"Why",
"recommendation",
"By who",
"Michal Urbaniak,",
"Who assited on this",
"Zawinul and Shorter recruited"
] | C_d9f2723ad001441abb6bc1285e77609e_0 | How old was he | 5 | How old was Omar? | Weather Report | On the recommendation of Michal Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited the 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians (including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon). Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new rhythm section. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player Jose Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle. The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music", which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer. Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), furthering developing the band's involvement with technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson. The band was beginning to suffer from the revival of more traditionally styled jazz at the time, which made it harder to market jazz fusion. Percussionist and singer Mino Cinelu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers. By the time of the release of Sportin' Life Shorter and Zawinul had opted not to tour the material. Instead, they took a break for long-delayed solo projects. CANNOTANSWER | 23-year-old drummer | Weather Report was an American jazz fusion band active from 1970 to 1986. The band was founded (and initially co-led) by Austrian keyboard player Joe Zawinul, American saxophonist Wayne Shorter, and Czech bassist Miroslav Vitouš. Other prominent members at various points in the band's lifespan included Jaco Pastorius, Alphonso Johnson, Victor Bailey, Chester Thompson, Peter Erskine, Airto Moreira, and Alex Acuña. Throughout most of its existence, the band was a quintet consisting of Zawinul, Shorter, a bass guitarist, a drummer, and a percussionist.
The band started as a free improvising jazz group with avant-garde and experimental electronic leanings (pioneered by Zawinul); when Vitouš left Weather Report (due mostly to creative disagreements), Zawinul increasingly steered the band towards a funky, edgy sound incorporating elements of R&B and native musics from around the world. Zawinul used the latest developments in synthesizer technology, and took advantage of a large variety of sounds and tone colors to make the band stand out. During the first half of their career, Weather Report were seen as one of the defining acts in modern jazz, winning the DownBeat "best album award" five times in a row.
Alongside bands such as Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return to Forever, Herbie Hancock's Headhunters (all with members inspired by and partially responsible for the fusion-era work of Miles Davis), Weather Report is widely considered one of the defining bands of the jazz fusion genre.
Musical style
Over their 16-year career, Weather Report explored various areas of music, predominantly centered on jazz (initially the "free" variety), but also incorporating elements of art music, ethnic music, R&B, funk, and rock. While their work was categorized as "jazz fusion", the band members generally distanced themselves from that term.
From the start, Weather Report took the unusual approach of abandoning the traditional "soloist/accompaniment" demarcation of straight-ahead jazz and featured opportunities for continuous improvisation by every member of the band. That position remained consistent throughout the life of the band. From the point where Alphonso Johnson joined the band, individual solos became more prominent in concert, but were never allowed to overwhelm the collective approach. Initially, the band's music featured an improvisational method (similar to Miles Davis's Bitches Brew-period), but eventually that shifted to a more groove-oriented approach, and catchier compositions (as epitomized by their 1977 hit single "Birdland").
Joe Zawinul's playing style was often dominated by quirky melodic improvisations (simultaneously bebop-, ethnic-, and pop-sounding) combined with sparse but rhythmic big-band chords or bass lines. Having originally made his name as a pioneering electric piano player, he went on to consistently develop the role of the synthesizer in jazz during his time with Weather Report. Working with companies such as ARP and Oberheim, Zawinul developed new ways of voicing and patching electronic tones for textures, ensemble roles (including emulations of traditional band instruments) and soloing. In Weather Report, he often employed a vocoder, as well as recorded sounds played (i.e., filtered and transposed) through a synthesizer, creating a very distinctive, often beautiful, synthesis of jazz harmonics and "noise" (which he referred to as "using all the sounds the world generates"). On some Weather Report tunes, however, Zawinul was criticized for allowing his synthesized arrangements to dominate the sound.
Wayne Shorter came to the group with a reputation as a dominant role as an instrumentalist, drawn from both his solo work and his contributions to Miles Davis' "second great quintet" during the 1960s. His choice not to follow the same approach with Weather Report led to some criticism of the group. During his time with Weather Report, Shorter was noted for generally playing saxophone with an economical, "listening" style. Rather than continually taking the lead, he generally added subtle harmonic, melodic, and/or rhythmic complexity by responding to other member's improvisations (although he could and did sometimes exercise a more frenetic style akin to that of John Coltrane or Michael Brecker). As a composer, he chose a more abstract, sometimes atonal and "free jazz" style of music, opposed to the sometimes flamboyant melodicism of the tunes written by Zawinul or Pastorius. Playing both tenor and soprano saxophones, Shorter continued to develop the role of the latter instrument in jazz, taking his cue from previous work by Coltrane, Sidney Bechet, Lucky Thompson, and Steve Lacy.
Weather Report maintained a consistent interest in a textured sound and developments in music technology and processing. Both Zawinul and original bassist Miroslav Vitouš experimented with electronic effects pedals (as generally used by rock guitarists) with Zawinul using them on electric piano and synthesizers and Vitouš on his upright bass (which he frequently bowed through distortion to create a second horn-like voice). The band's third bass player, Jaco Pastorius, popularized the use of fretless bass guitar, melodic bass soloing and extensive use of string harmonics, as well as consolidating the driving R&B pulse in the band's music (which had been brought in by his predecessor Alphonso Johnson).
With the exception of a brief quartet period between 1978 and 1979 (wherein other members could double on various percussion instruments), Weather Report's instrumentation always included both a drummer and a percussionist. For its first eight years of existence, the group had difficulty finding a permanent drummer, moving through about one drummer per year until Jaco Pastorius helped to recruit Peter Erskine in 1978. Erskine and Omar Hakim were the only drummers who played with Weather Report for more than two years.
History
1970: Inception and formation
Joe Zawinul and Wayne Shorter had first met and become friends in 1959 while they were playing in Maynard Ferguson's Big Band. Zawinul went on to play with Cannonball Adderley's group in the 1960s, while Shorter joined Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers and then, in 1964, Miles Davis' second great quintet. During this decade, both men made names for themselves as being among the best composers in jazz.
Zawinul later joined Shorter in contributing to the initial fusion music recordings of Miles Davis, and both men were part of the studio groups that recorded the key Davis albums In a Silent Way (1969) and Bitches Brew (1970). Weather Report was initially formed to explore a more impressionistic and individualistic music (or, as Zawinul put it, "away from all that eight bars shit and then you go to the bridge...").
There's some dispute over how Weather Report initially formed. According to Zawinul, it began when he and Shorter recruited another Miles Davis associate, the classically trained Czech-born bass player Miroslav Vitouš, who had previously played with each of them separately (as well as with Herbie Mann, Bob Brookmeyer, Stan Getz, and Chick Corea). According to Vitouš himself, it was he and Shorter who actually founded Weather Report, with Shorter bringing in Zawinul afterwards. Whichever story is true, it was those three musicians – all composers – who formed the initial core of the project.
To complete the band, Zawinul, Shorter and Vitouš brought in former McCoy Tyner drummer Alphonse Mouzon and began recording their debut album while looking for a full-time auxiliary percussionist. The initial recruits were session percussion player Don Alias and symphony orchestra percussionist Barbara Burton. During recording, Alias quarreled with Zawinul (allegedly due to Zawinul being too dictatorial over the percussion approach) and the innovative Brazilian percussionist Airto Moreira (yet another Davis alumnus) was brought in to complete the record. Guitarist John McLaughlin was also invited to join the group, but decided to pursue his solo career, instead.
1971–1972: Avant-garde collective
Weather Report's debut album Weather Report featured a softer sound than would be the case in later years, predominantly using acoustic bass, with Shorter exclusively playing soprano saxophone. It built on the avant-garde experiments which Zawinul and Shorter had pioneered with Miles Davis on Bitches Brew, including an avoidance of head-and-chorus composition in favor of continuous rhythm and movement. DownBeat magazine described the album as "music beyond category".
In 1972, Weather Report released its second album, I Sing the Body Electric. The first side featured new studio recordings, while the second side was taken from live recordings of a concert in Tokyo, featuring the full-band lineup of Zawinul, Shorter, Vitouš, Gravatt, and Um Romão (and later available in full as the 1972 Japan-only double album Live in Tokyo). The studio side used extended versions of the band including various guest performers, suggesting that Weather Report was not necessarily an integral jazz band, but might possibly work as an expandable project set up to realise the music of its three composers. The album also featured Zawinul's first use of a synthesizer (an instrument with which he would become synonymous within jazz) and of sound effects.
I Sing the Body Electric also showed the first signs of a shift in the balance of control within the band, away from the more collective approach of the debut album. During the following year, this tendency would develop further.
1973: Move towards groove
On 1973's Sweetnighter, Weather Report began to abandon the primarily acoustic group improvisation format, and the band started to take a new direction. Primarily at Zawinul's instigation, Weather Report became more jazz funk- and groove-oriented, drawing more heavily on R&B influences and dense electric keyboard work while adding more structure to both the prewritten and the improvisational sections.
Gravatt took his replacement in the studio sessions badly and quit the band at the end of recording, moving to Minneapolis to join the band Natural Life. Many years later, Zawinul paid tribute to Gravatt's skills and stated that he had been the finest of the band's "pure jazz" drummers as well as being "from the jazz side... my favorite of them all". With Gravatt gone and Dwellingham unavailable for touring, former Sly & the Family Stone drummer Greg Errico played on the Sweetnighter tour, but did not stay with the band afterwards.
At this point, Vitouš and Zawinul found themselves at creative loggerheads, since the former preferred Weather Report's original approach and the latter wished to continue further along the road to funk. Retrospectively, Zawinul accused Vitouš of being unable to play funk convincingly (something which Greg Errico corroborated) and claimed that he had not provided enough music for the band. Vitouš countered that he had in fact brought in compositions, but that Zawinul had been unable to play them. Vitouš has also accused Zawinul of having been "a first-class manipulator" primarily interested in commercial success. When Shorter sided with Zawinul, the original three-man partnership broke down acrimoniously and Vitouš left Weather Report, moving on to an illustrious career leading his own band and winning respect as a composer. His final contribution to Weather Report was to play bass on a single track, which appeared on the band's 1974 album Mysterious Traveller ("American Tango", which he had co-written with Zawinul).
Vitouš' departure marked the end of the first phase of Weather Report and the shift of overall creative dominance of the band to Josef Zawinul, although Shorter remained an integral, influential, and vital part of the project. Vitouš has subsequently accused both Zawinul and Shorter of having used foul play to edge him out of the band, to deny the scale of his contribution to Weather Report's history and creative approach, and to cheat him out of remuneration.
1974–1975: Further into groove
Vitouš' replacement was the Philadelphian electric bass guitarist Alphonso Johnson (formerly a sideman for the pop-fusion player Chuck Mangione). Recruited by Shorter, Johnson was a supple player more than capable of providing the funk element which Zawinul desired. He was also an early advocate of the Chapman Stick, which he can be heard playing on some of the live Weather Report recordings of the period.
According to Zawinul, Wilburn apparently "lost heart" on tour (despite performing well in the studio). To shore up the music, the band hired another drummer, Darryl Brown, to play alongside him. At the end of the tour, both Wilburn and Brown left the band (as did Dom Um Romão) and Weather Report was, once again, drummerless.
For the next set of studio sessions, Weather Report added a new Brazilian percussionist (Alyrio Lima) and a new drummer – Chuck Bazemore of The Delfonics.
The new album, Tale Spinnin', was released in 1975. It was the first Weather Report album to feature a consistent rhythm section (rather than a varied set of drummers, percussionists, and bass players) since their debut. The album also made further strides in using technological improvements in synthesizers, even making use of the gigantic studio-based TONTO array.
During the same year, Shorter also recorded Native Dancer under his own name (with the Brazilian composer and vocalist Milton Nascimento). Tale Spinnin won the DownBeat best album award for 1975 (the third Weather Report album to do so) and Native Dancer was the runner-up.
1976: In transition
1976's Black Market album was perhaps the most rock-oriented work which the group had produced to date. Weather Report's music had evolved further from open-ended funk jams into more melody-oriented, concise forms, which also offered a greater mass-market appeal. Zawinul further consolidated his use of keyboard synthesizers, while Shorter experimented with an early form of wind synthesizer, the Lyricon.
However, the album was recorded during yet another period of change for the group, with multiple personnel shuffles. Although Alyrio Lima played percussion on one track, he was replaced during the sessions by Don Alias (his first appearance with the group since the debut album debacle) and by Alex Acuña (a Peruvian drummer and conga player based in Las Vegas, who had played with Elvis Presley and Ike Turner, among others). Alphonso Johnson was also worn out from the strain put on the rhythm by the band's frequent changes of drummer. During a break in activity halfway through the recording of Black Market, Johnson opted to leave Weather Report to play with the Billy Cobham/George Duke Band (which featured a young John Scofield on guitar).
Prior to his departure, Johnson played on all but two of the new album's tracks. His replacement was Jaco Pastorius, a virtuoso fretless bass guitarist from Florida, who had been in touch with Zawinul for several years, and who came in to play on "Cannon Ball" and his own composition "Barbary Coast". Zawinul and Shorter had assumed that Chester Thompson would be departing alongside his friend Johnson, and for the second set of sessions they replaced him (on Pastorius' recommendation) with the former Mahavishnu Orchestra drummer Narada Michael Walden. Although Walden played on several album tracks, he ultimately proved unsuitable. Thompson returned for the final Black Market sessions, but left again after failing to gel as a rhythm section with Pastorius (whose style was much busier than that of Johnson). Thompson subsequently joined Genesis as their touring drummer.
Black Market continued Weather Report's ongoing run of success, selling well and being the fourth of the band's albums to win the album of the year award from DownBeat magazine. For the subsequent tour, Alex Acuña moved from percussion to the drum kit, and Don Alias was replaced by the young Puerto Rican percussionist Manolo Badrena, who had previously played with various Latin rock bands and with Art Blakey. The band made a very well-received appearance in July at the Montreux Jazz Festival 1976, which was filmed for future release.
1977–1979: Jazz-rock stars
The recruitment of Jaco Pastorius helped to push Weather Report to the height of its popularity. Already a rising star in his own right, Pastorius brought a very musical, melodic quality to the bass. He could play muscular, lightning-fast groove lines influenced by R&B or funk, as well as demonstrating an extraordinary solo control of tone and string harmonics, often sounding more like a horn player. Pastorius was also a multi-instrumentalist (contributing drums, steel pan, and mandocello to the latest recording sessions), a gifted composer (eventually responsible for some signature Weather Report pieces such as "Teen Town" and "Three Views of a Secret"), and a useful production foil for Zawinul due to his knowledge of recording studios and techniques. Finally, Pastorius' stagecraft and aggressive showmanship helped the band to bring in a new audience.
The band's next album was 1977's acclaimed Heavy Weather, which proved to be the band's most successful recording in terms of sales, while still retaining wide critical acclaim. It contained the band's biggest hit, the propulsive and danceable "Birdland" (highlighting Pastorius' singing bass lines and Zawinul's synthesized ensemble brass), which became a pop hit and later became a jazz standard. Weather Report appeared on the Burt Sugarman-produced series The Midnight Special, performing both "Birdland" and "Teen Town". Heavy Weather dominated Weather Report's disc awards, including their last DownBeat Album of the Year award.
During this period, Pastorius' strong professional connection with Joni Mitchell (for whom he played bass throughout the latter half of the 1970s) led to another musical connection. Over the next few years, Mitchell hired the Weather Report line-up en masse (although without Zawinul in each case) to play on her studio albums Don Juan's Reckless Daughter (1977) and Mingus (1979).
During August 1978 the band joined Maurice White's vanity label ARC at Columbia. At the time they were once again without either a full-time drummer and percussionist, with Alex Acuña having returned to Las Vegas for a career as a studio musician and Manolo Badrena having been fired for "non-musical reasons". Shorter had been focusing most of his attention and compositional ideas into his solo work, while Zawinul was sketching out ideas for a solo album of his own, which involved moving away from a raw group sound in favor of constructing a far more orchestrated and experimental studio-based recording with multiple overdubs. However, Weather Report's contract and work schedule required another album, so Zawinul's solo work was absorbed into what became Weather Report's eighth album, Mr. Gone (1978).
The studio sessions made use of a variety of drummers – Pastorius played the kit on two tracks and further contributions came from Tony Williams, Steve Gadd, and Peter Erskine (the latter an ex-Stan Kenton/Maynard Ferguson drummer recruited to the project by Pastorius). Erskine became a full member of the band for the next tour and remained with Weather Report until 1982. The album also featured guest appearances from Deniece Williams and Earth Wind and Fire leader Maurice White.
The album rose to No. 1 on the Billboard Jazz Albums chart.
Notoriously, Mr. Gone (1978) received only a one-star review rating from DownBeat after a string of group releases which had all pulled a five-star rating. The group arranged for a rebuttal interview with the magazine to defend their efforts. Zawinul and Pastorius were defiant in their responses to the interviewer, Shorter more philosophical, and Erskine the most reticent of the four.
By the late '70s, Weather Report was a quartet of Zawinul, Shorter, Pastorius, and Erskine, and (for the first time) had dispensed with the auxiliary percussionist role, which had been integral since the band's inception. Instead, all four members doubled on percussion at various points in live performances. Zawinul commented that this sleeker, less crowded sound provided more listening range and made the music less chaotic now that the band were focusing more on melody and harmony.
The larger scale and multimedia staging of the band's tours (complete with stagehands, laser and film projections) began to take on the kind of rock-star proportions mostly unknown in jazz circles. The 1979 double live album 8:30 (which won that year's Best Jazz Fusion Performance) was recorded on the Mr. Gone tour and captured the direct power and energy of this lineup of Weather Report. Zawinul would later describe this lineup as "one of the greatest bands of all time! That band was a hummer!"
Between March 2 and 4, 1979, Weather Report traveled to Havana, Cuba, to participate in the historic Havana Jam festival, a break in mutual Cuban/American political hostilities, which had American artists such as Stephen Stills, the CBS Jazz All-Stars, Bonnie Bramlett, Kris Kristofferson, Rita Coolidge, and Billy Joel play alongside Cuban artists such as Irakere, Pacho Alonso, Tata Güines, and Orquesta Aragón. Another featured performance was by the Trio of Doom (a short-lived teaming of Pastorius with John McLaughlin and Tony Williams). Weather Report's performance featured in Havana Jam '79, Ernesto Juan Castellanos' documentary celebrating the event.
1980–1982: A tighter arrangement
At the beginning of 1980, Pastorius recruited hand-drummer Robert Thomas Jr. (a fellow Floridan, with whom he had jammed previously) into the band. Thomas featured on the 1980 album Night Passage. A tighter and more traditional recording than previous releases, the record featured a more prominent role for Shorter, a strong element of bebop, and a nod to jazz's golden age via a high-speed cover of Duke Ellington's "Rockin' in Rhythm" (showing off Zawinul's pioneering and ever-increasing ability to create synthetic big-band sounds on his synthesizers).
By now, Pastorius was displaying signs of the mental instability and substance abuse problems that ultimately wrecked his career; and the close relationship he'd previously shared with Zawinul was becoming strained as Zawinul grew tired of Pastorius' showmanship onstage (beginning to feel that it detracted from the music). Towards the end of the year, Pastorius began working on his long-delayed second solo album (Word of Mouth) (1981) in New York, while Zawinul worked on new Weather Report material in California.
Weather Report's next album Weather Report (1982) – their second eponymous release following their 1971 debut – was recorded in 1981, although it was not released for another year. Zawinul's dominance as instrumentalist and composer (as well as group director) was even more pronounced on this album. Much of the band's music was increasingly written out rather than improvised. In the event, Pastorius spent more of his creative attention on the Word of Mouth project: his only writing for the Weather Report album being his contribution to a single, group-composed piece. Shorter (who only contributed one whole composition to the 1982 album beyond group-written work) was already taking a more philosophical approach. He later commented, "for a long time in Weather Report, I abstained. I elected not to do things."
Erskine's own commitment to Word of Mouth (and a subsequent summer commitment to Steps Ahead) meant that he, too, had to be replaced, while Robert Thomas Jr., was simply dismissed. Reduced to a duo, and with tour commitments looming, Zawinul and Shorter were obliged to quickly assemble a new band.
1982–1985: A new band
On the recommendation of Michał Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon. Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new lineup. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player José Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle.
The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music" approach which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer.
Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), deepening the band's involvement with cutting-edge music technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson.
Percussionist and singer Mino Cinélu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by singers Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers.
1986: Final split
Both Zawinul and Shorter were beginning to realise that the refreshing nature of other projects was more satisfying than Weather Report work, and both generally felt that the band had run its course.
In February 1986, the San Diego Union-Tribune announced that Shorter had left the band to concentrate on solo work. Having reluctantly agreed with Shorter that he would no longer use the band name, Zawinul then ended Weather Report. The final album under the Weather Report name, This is This!, was released in June 1986 and fulfilled the band's contract with Columbia Records. Two of its tracks featured guitar work from Carlos Santana, and it also marked the return of Peter Erskine on drums, with Hakim only appearing on one track.
1986–present: After Weather Report
Having split the band, Zawinul promptly attempted to reform it – after a fashion – as Weather Update. For this project, he reunited with recent Weather Report alumni Victor Bailey, Mino Cinélu, and Peter Erskine, but replaced Shorter with guitarist John Scofield. This lineup was short-lived, with Los Angeles session guitarist Steve Khan and former Weather Report percussionist Robert Thomas Jr. replacing Scofield and Cinélu prior to live appearances. Weather Update toured in 1986 and 1987 before Zawinul dissolved the band. From 1988 onwards, Zawinul went on to enjoy a successful nineteen-year career leading the world music/jazz ensemble The Zawinul Syndicate (which has continued, following Zawinul's death, as The Syndicate).
Rather than form another collective band, Wayne Shorter concentrated on his solo career and on work as a bandleader, which continues to the present day.
In spite of the band's enduring popularity, a Weather Report reunion never occurred. The nearest that the band ever came to reuniting was when Zawinul and Shorter both played live with Miles Davis on July 10, 1991, in Paris (the only time when Zawinul is known to have shared a live stage with Davis). A projected mid-'90s reunion CD for Verve never materialized; according to Zawinul, disappointing sales for Shorter's 1995 CD High Life may have played a part in ending the idea.
Five of the band's members have since died. Zawinul himself died on September 11, 2007, in Vienna from skin cancer (Merkel cell carcinoma). He was predeceased by mid-period bass player Jaco Pastorius, who died on September 21, 1987, following a fatal beating in his hometown of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Pastorius' successor on bass guitar, Victor Bailey, died on November 11, 2016 (apparently from complications from Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). Alphonse Mouzon, the first drummer, died on December 25, 2016 from cardiac arrest after neuroendocrine cancer. Dom Um Romão, the group's drummer from 1971 to 1974, died in 2005 aged 79.
Lineups
Timeline
Releases since the band's breakup
A "post band" Weather Report double CD called Live and Unreleased was made available in 2002, featuring vintage live recordings made during the late 1970s/early 1980s with various personnel. In September 2006, Columbia/Legacy released a Weather Report boxed set, Forecast: Tomorrow. It includes three CDs of mostly previously released material (from 1970 to 1985, excluding This is This!) and a DVD of the entire September 28, 1978, performance (with Erskine and Pastorius) in Offenbach, Germany, not previously available. A DVD video of the 1976 Montreux Jazz Festival performance (featuring the Heavy Weather lineup of Pastorius, Acuna, and Badrena) has become available, as well. Columbia/Legacy have also re-released the 1984 Live in Japan concert on DVD.
In 2011, the Zawinul estate, in conjunction with an independent label, released a 40th-anniversary commemorative trilogy of previously unavailable Weather Report live shows: In March Live in Berlin 1975 was released both on vinyl and as a CD/DVD set; in June the Live in Offenbach 1978 DVD was re-released together with a previously unavailable double CD of the complete show; in October Live in Cologne 1983 was released as both DVD and double CD.
Grammy Awards
The Grammy Awards are awarded annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States. Weather Report has won one Grammy from six nominations.
|-
!1972
|"I Sing The Body Electric"
|Best Jazz Performance by a Group
|
|-
!1979
|"8:30"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1981
|"Night Passage"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1982
|"Weather Report"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1983
|"Procession"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1985
||"Sportin' Life"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
Discography
Studio albums
References
External links
Weather Report's official website www.WeatherReportMusic.com
Weather Report biography by Richard S. Ginell, discography and album reviews, credits & releases at AllMusic
The Weather Report Annotated Discography
Weather Report discography, album releases & credits at Discogs
Weather Report albums to be listened on Spotify
Weather Report albums to be listened on YouTube
Musical groups established in 1970
Musical groups disestablished in 1986
Jazz fusion ensembles
American jazz ensembles from New York City
Musical groups from New York City
Grammy Award winners
Jazz musicians from New York (state) | true | [
"Walter Ernest How (25 December 1885 – 5 August 1972) was an English sailor, known for taking part in the Ernest Shackleton-led Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition from 1914 to 1917.\n\nBorn in Bermondsey, London, he became a sailor when he was 12 years old. He married Helen Varey in 1913, and his first daughter was born only six weeks before his departure on the .\n\nWhen the Endurance made a stop at Buenos Aires en route to the Antarctica, How, along with William Bakewell, helped smuggle Perce Blackborow on board as a stowaway. After the Endurance sank, trapped in the sea ice around Antarctica, How was forced to survive upon the icebergs along with the rest of the crew. When they later used the three wooden lifeboats to row to Elephant Island, How was in the Stancomb Wills.\n\nOn return to England after their eventual rescue, How was awarded the Polar Medal and joined the Merchant Navy during the Great War.\n\nFootnotes\n\nExternal links \n \n\n1885 births\n1972 deaths\nEnglish explorers\nSailors from London\nImperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition\nPeople from Bermondsey\nRecipients of the Polar Medal",
"Henry W. How (September 29, 1919 – February 1, 2001) was a Canadian politician. He represented the electoral district of Kings South in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1970 to 1983. He was a member of the Progressive Conservative Party of Nova Scotia.\n\nBorn in 1919 in Granville Ferry, Annapolis County, Nova Scotia, How was a graduate of the University of New Brunswick. How was a resident of Wolfville when he entered provincial politics in the 1970 election, being elected MLA for Kings South. He was re-elected in the 1974, 1978, and 1981 elections.\n\nOn October 5, 1978, How was appointed to the Executive Council of Nova Scotia as Attorney General and Provincial Secretary. He held the positions until November 1983, when he retired from politics and was appointed Chief Judge of the Provincial Court of Nova Scotia. Prior to the 1993 election, How returned to provincial politics and defeated incumbent MLA Derrick Kimball for the Progressive Conservative nomination in his old riding of Kings South. In the general election, Liberal Robbie Harrison defeated How by 128 votes, while Kimball who ran as an independent finished third. How briefly returned to political life in 2000 when he joined the Canadian Alliance, and campaigned against federal Progressive Conservative leader Joe Clark in the September 2000 Kings—Hants byelection.\n\nHow died in Kentville on February 1, 2001.\n\nReferences\n\n1919 births\n2001 deaths\nProgressive Conservative Association of Nova Scotia MLAs\nMembers of the Executive Council of Nova Scotia\nPeople from Annapolis County, Nova Scotia\nPeople from Kings County, Nova Scotia\nUniversity of New Brunswick alumni\nJudges in Nova Scotia"
] |
[
"Weather Report",
"1982-1985: A new band",
"Who did the recruit",
"Omar",
"Why",
"recommendation",
"By who",
"Michal Urbaniak,",
"Who assited on this",
"Zawinul and Shorter recruited",
"How old was he",
"23-year-old drummer"
] | C_d9f2723ad001441abb6bc1285e77609e_0 | What else did they like about him | 6 | Aside from being a drummer, what else did Zawinul and Shorter like about Omar? | Weather Report | On the recommendation of Michal Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited the 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians (including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon). Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new rhythm section. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player Jose Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle. The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music", which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer. Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), furthering developing the band's involvement with technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson. The band was beginning to suffer from the revival of more traditionally styled jazz at the time, which made it harder to market jazz fusion. Percussionist and singer Mino Cinelu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers. By the time of the release of Sportin' Life Shorter and Zawinul had opted not to tour the material. Instead, they took a break for long-delayed solo projects. CANNOTANSWER | talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, | Weather Report was an American jazz fusion band active from 1970 to 1986. The band was founded (and initially co-led) by Austrian keyboard player Joe Zawinul, American saxophonist Wayne Shorter, and Czech bassist Miroslav Vitouš. Other prominent members at various points in the band's lifespan included Jaco Pastorius, Alphonso Johnson, Victor Bailey, Chester Thompson, Peter Erskine, Airto Moreira, and Alex Acuña. Throughout most of its existence, the band was a quintet consisting of Zawinul, Shorter, a bass guitarist, a drummer, and a percussionist.
The band started as a free improvising jazz group with avant-garde and experimental electronic leanings (pioneered by Zawinul); when Vitouš left Weather Report (due mostly to creative disagreements), Zawinul increasingly steered the band towards a funky, edgy sound incorporating elements of R&B and native musics from around the world. Zawinul used the latest developments in synthesizer technology, and took advantage of a large variety of sounds and tone colors to make the band stand out. During the first half of their career, Weather Report were seen as one of the defining acts in modern jazz, winning the DownBeat "best album award" five times in a row.
Alongside bands such as Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return to Forever, Herbie Hancock's Headhunters (all with members inspired by and partially responsible for the fusion-era work of Miles Davis), Weather Report is widely considered one of the defining bands of the jazz fusion genre.
Musical style
Over their 16-year career, Weather Report explored various areas of music, predominantly centered on jazz (initially the "free" variety), but also incorporating elements of art music, ethnic music, R&B, funk, and rock. While their work was categorized as "jazz fusion", the band members generally distanced themselves from that term.
From the start, Weather Report took the unusual approach of abandoning the traditional "soloist/accompaniment" demarcation of straight-ahead jazz and featured opportunities for continuous improvisation by every member of the band. That position remained consistent throughout the life of the band. From the point where Alphonso Johnson joined the band, individual solos became more prominent in concert, but were never allowed to overwhelm the collective approach. Initially, the band's music featured an improvisational method (similar to Miles Davis's Bitches Brew-period), but eventually that shifted to a more groove-oriented approach, and catchier compositions (as epitomized by their 1977 hit single "Birdland").
Joe Zawinul's playing style was often dominated by quirky melodic improvisations (simultaneously bebop-, ethnic-, and pop-sounding) combined with sparse but rhythmic big-band chords or bass lines. Having originally made his name as a pioneering electric piano player, he went on to consistently develop the role of the synthesizer in jazz during his time with Weather Report. Working with companies such as ARP and Oberheim, Zawinul developed new ways of voicing and patching electronic tones for textures, ensemble roles (including emulations of traditional band instruments) and soloing. In Weather Report, he often employed a vocoder, as well as recorded sounds played (i.e., filtered and transposed) through a synthesizer, creating a very distinctive, often beautiful, synthesis of jazz harmonics and "noise" (which he referred to as "using all the sounds the world generates"). On some Weather Report tunes, however, Zawinul was criticized for allowing his synthesized arrangements to dominate the sound.
Wayne Shorter came to the group with a reputation as a dominant role as an instrumentalist, drawn from both his solo work and his contributions to Miles Davis' "second great quintet" during the 1960s. His choice not to follow the same approach with Weather Report led to some criticism of the group. During his time with Weather Report, Shorter was noted for generally playing saxophone with an economical, "listening" style. Rather than continually taking the lead, he generally added subtle harmonic, melodic, and/or rhythmic complexity by responding to other member's improvisations (although he could and did sometimes exercise a more frenetic style akin to that of John Coltrane or Michael Brecker). As a composer, he chose a more abstract, sometimes atonal and "free jazz" style of music, opposed to the sometimes flamboyant melodicism of the tunes written by Zawinul or Pastorius. Playing both tenor and soprano saxophones, Shorter continued to develop the role of the latter instrument in jazz, taking his cue from previous work by Coltrane, Sidney Bechet, Lucky Thompson, and Steve Lacy.
Weather Report maintained a consistent interest in a textured sound and developments in music technology and processing. Both Zawinul and original bassist Miroslav Vitouš experimented with electronic effects pedals (as generally used by rock guitarists) with Zawinul using them on electric piano and synthesizers and Vitouš on his upright bass (which he frequently bowed through distortion to create a second horn-like voice). The band's third bass player, Jaco Pastorius, popularized the use of fretless bass guitar, melodic bass soloing and extensive use of string harmonics, as well as consolidating the driving R&B pulse in the band's music (which had been brought in by his predecessor Alphonso Johnson).
With the exception of a brief quartet period between 1978 and 1979 (wherein other members could double on various percussion instruments), Weather Report's instrumentation always included both a drummer and a percussionist. For its first eight years of existence, the group had difficulty finding a permanent drummer, moving through about one drummer per year until Jaco Pastorius helped to recruit Peter Erskine in 1978. Erskine and Omar Hakim were the only drummers who played with Weather Report for more than two years.
History
1970: Inception and formation
Joe Zawinul and Wayne Shorter had first met and become friends in 1959 while they were playing in Maynard Ferguson's Big Band. Zawinul went on to play with Cannonball Adderley's group in the 1960s, while Shorter joined Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers and then, in 1964, Miles Davis' second great quintet. During this decade, both men made names for themselves as being among the best composers in jazz.
Zawinul later joined Shorter in contributing to the initial fusion music recordings of Miles Davis, and both men were part of the studio groups that recorded the key Davis albums In a Silent Way (1969) and Bitches Brew (1970). Weather Report was initially formed to explore a more impressionistic and individualistic music (or, as Zawinul put it, "away from all that eight bars shit and then you go to the bridge...").
There's some dispute over how Weather Report initially formed. According to Zawinul, it began when he and Shorter recruited another Miles Davis associate, the classically trained Czech-born bass player Miroslav Vitouš, who had previously played with each of them separately (as well as with Herbie Mann, Bob Brookmeyer, Stan Getz, and Chick Corea). According to Vitouš himself, it was he and Shorter who actually founded Weather Report, with Shorter bringing in Zawinul afterwards. Whichever story is true, it was those three musicians – all composers – who formed the initial core of the project.
To complete the band, Zawinul, Shorter and Vitouš brought in former McCoy Tyner drummer Alphonse Mouzon and began recording their debut album while looking for a full-time auxiliary percussionist. The initial recruits were session percussion player Don Alias and symphony orchestra percussionist Barbara Burton. During recording, Alias quarreled with Zawinul (allegedly due to Zawinul being too dictatorial over the percussion approach) and the innovative Brazilian percussionist Airto Moreira (yet another Davis alumnus) was brought in to complete the record. Guitarist John McLaughlin was also invited to join the group, but decided to pursue his solo career, instead.
1971–1972: Avant-garde collective
Weather Report's debut album Weather Report featured a softer sound than would be the case in later years, predominantly using acoustic bass, with Shorter exclusively playing soprano saxophone. It built on the avant-garde experiments which Zawinul and Shorter had pioneered with Miles Davis on Bitches Brew, including an avoidance of head-and-chorus composition in favor of continuous rhythm and movement. DownBeat magazine described the album as "music beyond category".
In 1972, Weather Report released its second album, I Sing the Body Electric. The first side featured new studio recordings, while the second side was taken from live recordings of a concert in Tokyo, featuring the full-band lineup of Zawinul, Shorter, Vitouš, Gravatt, and Um Romão (and later available in full as the 1972 Japan-only double album Live in Tokyo). The studio side used extended versions of the band including various guest performers, suggesting that Weather Report was not necessarily an integral jazz band, but might possibly work as an expandable project set up to realise the music of its three composers. The album also featured Zawinul's first use of a synthesizer (an instrument with which he would become synonymous within jazz) and of sound effects.
I Sing the Body Electric also showed the first signs of a shift in the balance of control within the band, away from the more collective approach of the debut album. During the following year, this tendency would develop further.
1973: Move towards groove
On 1973's Sweetnighter, Weather Report began to abandon the primarily acoustic group improvisation format, and the band started to take a new direction. Primarily at Zawinul's instigation, Weather Report became more jazz funk- and groove-oriented, drawing more heavily on R&B influences and dense electric keyboard work while adding more structure to both the prewritten and the improvisational sections.
Gravatt took his replacement in the studio sessions badly and quit the band at the end of recording, moving to Minneapolis to join the band Natural Life. Many years later, Zawinul paid tribute to Gravatt's skills and stated that he had been the finest of the band's "pure jazz" drummers as well as being "from the jazz side... my favorite of them all". With Gravatt gone and Dwellingham unavailable for touring, former Sly & the Family Stone drummer Greg Errico played on the Sweetnighter tour, but did not stay with the band afterwards.
At this point, Vitouš and Zawinul found themselves at creative loggerheads, since the former preferred Weather Report's original approach and the latter wished to continue further along the road to funk. Retrospectively, Zawinul accused Vitouš of being unable to play funk convincingly (something which Greg Errico corroborated) and claimed that he had not provided enough music for the band. Vitouš countered that he had in fact brought in compositions, but that Zawinul had been unable to play them. Vitouš has also accused Zawinul of having been "a first-class manipulator" primarily interested in commercial success. When Shorter sided with Zawinul, the original three-man partnership broke down acrimoniously and Vitouš left Weather Report, moving on to an illustrious career leading his own band and winning respect as a composer. His final contribution to Weather Report was to play bass on a single track, which appeared on the band's 1974 album Mysterious Traveller ("American Tango", which he had co-written with Zawinul).
Vitouš' departure marked the end of the first phase of Weather Report and the shift of overall creative dominance of the band to Josef Zawinul, although Shorter remained an integral, influential, and vital part of the project. Vitouš has subsequently accused both Zawinul and Shorter of having used foul play to edge him out of the band, to deny the scale of his contribution to Weather Report's history and creative approach, and to cheat him out of remuneration.
1974–1975: Further into groove
Vitouš' replacement was the Philadelphian electric bass guitarist Alphonso Johnson (formerly a sideman for the pop-fusion player Chuck Mangione). Recruited by Shorter, Johnson was a supple player more than capable of providing the funk element which Zawinul desired. He was also an early advocate of the Chapman Stick, which he can be heard playing on some of the live Weather Report recordings of the period.
According to Zawinul, Wilburn apparently "lost heart" on tour (despite performing well in the studio). To shore up the music, the band hired another drummer, Darryl Brown, to play alongside him. At the end of the tour, both Wilburn and Brown left the band (as did Dom Um Romão) and Weather Report was, once again, drummerless.
For the next set of studio sessions, Weather Report added a new Brazilian percussionist (Alyrio Lima) and a new drummer – Chuck Bazemore of The Delfonics.
The new album, Tale Spinnin', was released in 1975. It was the first Weather Report album to feature a consistent rhythm section (rather than a varied set of drummers, percussionists, and bass players) since their debut. The album also made further strides in using technological improvements in synthesizers, even making use of the gigantic studio-based TONTO array.
During the same year, Shorter also recorded Native Dancer under his own name (with the Brazilian composer and vocalist Milton Nascimento). Tale Spinnin won the DownBeat best album award for 1975 (the third Weather Report album to do so) and Native Dancer was the runner-up.
1976: In transition
1976's Black Market album was perhaps the most rock-oriented work which the group had produced to date. Weather Report's music had evolved further from open-ended funk jams into more melody-oriented, concise forms, which also offered a greater mass-market appeal. Zawinul further consolidated his use of keyboard synthesizers, while Shorter experimented with an early form of wind synthesizer, the Lyricon.
However, the album was recorded during yet another period of change for the group, with multiple personnel shuffles. Although Alyrio Lima played percussion on one track, he was replaced during the sessions by Don Alias (his first appearance with the group since the debut album debacle) and by Alex Acuña (a Peruvian drummer and conga player based in Las Vegas, who had played with Elvis Presley and Ike Turner, among others). Alphonso Johnson was also worn out from the strain put on the rhythm by the band's frequent changes of drummer. During a break in activity halfway through the recording of Black Market, Johnson opted to leave Weather Report to play with the Billy Cobham/George Duke Band (which featured a young John Scofield on guitar).
Prior to his departure, Johnson played on all but two of the new album's tracks. His replacement was Jaco Pastorius, a virtuoso fretless bass guitarist from Florida, who had been in touch with Zawinul for several years, and who came in to play on "Cannon Ball" and his own composition "Barbary Coast". Zawinul and Shorter had assumed that Chester Thompson would be departing alongside his friend Johnson, and for the second set of sessions they replaced him (on Pastorius' recommendation) with the former Mahavishnu Orchestra drummer Narada Michael Walden. Although Walden played on several album tracks, he ultimately proved unsuitable. Thompson returned for the final Black Market sessions, but left again after failing to gel as a rhythm section with Pastorius (whose style was much busier than that of Johnson). Thompson subsequently joined Genesis as their touring drummer.
Black Market continued Weather Report's ongoing run of success, selling well and being the fourth of the band's albums to win the album of the year award from DownBeat magazine. For the subsequent tour, Alex Acuña moved from percussion to the drum kit, and Don Alias was replaced by the young Puerto Rican percussionist Manolo Badrena, who had previously played with various Latin rock bands and with Art Blakey. The band made a very well-received appearance in July at the Montreux Jazz Festival 1976, which was filmed for future release.
1977–1979: Jazz-rock stars
The recruitment of Jaco Pastorius helped to push Weather Report to the height of its popularity. Already a rising star in his own right, Pastorius brought a very musical, melodic quality to the bass. He could play muscular, lightning-fast groove lines influenced by R&B or funk, as well as demonstrating an extraordinary solo control of tone and string harmonics, often sounding more like a horn player. Pastorius was also a multi-instrumentalist (contributing drums, steel pan, and mandocello to the latest recording sessions), a gifted composer (eventually responsible for some signature Weather Report pieces such as "Teen Town" and "Three Views of a Secret"), and a useful production foil for Zawinul due to his knowledge of recording studios and techniques. Finally, Pastorius' stagecraft and aggressive showmanship helped the band to bring in a new audience.
The band's next album was 1977's acclaimed Heavy Weather, which proved to be the band's most successful recording in terms of sales, while still retaining wide critical acclaim. It contained the band's biggest hit, the propulsive and danceable "Birdland" (highlighting Pastorius' singing bass lines and Zawinul's synthesized ensemble brass), which became a pop hit and later became a jazz standard. Weather Report appeared on the Burt Sugarman-produced series The Midnight Special, performing both "Birdland" and "Teen Town". Heavy Weather dominated Weather Report's disc awards, including their last DownBeat Album of the Year award.
During this period, Pastorius' strong professional connection with Joni Mitchell (for whom he played bass throughout the latter half of the 1970s) led to another musical connection. Over the next few years, Mitchell hired the Weather Report line-up en masse (although without Zawinul in each case) to play on her studio albums Don Juan's Reckless Daughter (1977) and Mingus (1979).
During August 1978 the band joined Maurice White's vanity label ARC at Columbia. At the time they were once again without either a full-time drummer and percussionist, with Alex Acuña having returned to Las Vegas for a career as a studio musician and Manolo Badrena having been fired for "non-musical reasons". Shorter had been focusing most of his attention and compositional ideas into his solo work, while Zawinul was sketching out ideas for a solo album of his own, which involved moving away from a raw group sound in favor of constructing a far more orchestrated and experimental studio-based recording with multiple overdubs. However, Weather Report's contract and work schedule required another album, so Zawinul's solo work was absorbed into what became Weather Report's eighth album, Mr. Gone (1978).
The studio sessions made use of a variety of drummers – Pastorius played the kit on two tracks and further contributions came from Tony Williams, Steve Gadd, and Peter Erskine (the latter an ex-Stan Kenton/Maynard Ferguson drummer recruited to the project by Pastorius). Erskine became a full member of the band for the next tour and remained with Weather Report until 1982. The album also featured guest appearances from Deniece Williams and Earth Wind and Fire leader Maurice White.
The album rose to No. 1 on the Billboard Jazz Albums chart.
Notoriously, Mr. Gone (1978) received only a one-star review rating from DownBeat after a string of group releases which had all pulled a five-star rating. The group arranged for a rebuttal interview with the magazine to defend their efforts. Zawinul and Pastorius were defiant in their responses to the interviewer, Shorter more philosophical, and Erskine the most reticent of the four.
By the late '70s, Weather Report was a quartet of Zawinul, Shorter, Pastorius, and Erskine, and (for the first time) had dispensed with the auxiliary percussionist role, which had been integral since the band's inception. Instead, all four members doubled on percussion at various points in live performances. Zawinul commented that this sleeker, less crowded sound provided more listening range and made the music less chaotic now that the band were focusing more on melody and harmony.
The larger scale and multimedia staging of the band's tours (complete with stagehands, laser and film projections) began to take on the kind of rock-star proportions mostly unknown in jazz circles. The 1979 double live album 8:30 (which won that year's Best Jazz Fusion Performance) was recorded on the Mr. Gone tour and captured the direct power and energy of this lineup of Weather Report. Zawinul would later describe this lineup as "one of the greatest bands of all time! That band was a hummer!"
Between March 2 and 4, 1979, Weather Report traveled to Havana, Cuba, to participate in the historic Havana Jam festival, a break in mutual Cuban/American political hostilities, which had American artists such as Stephen Stills, the CBS Jazz All-Stars, Bonnie Bramlett, Kris Kristofferson, Rita Coolidge, and Billy Joel play alongside Cuban artists such as Irakere, Pacho Alonso, Tata Güines, and Orquesta Aragón. Another featured performance was by the Trio of Doom (a short-lived teaming of Pastorius with John McLaughlin and Tony Williams). Weather Report's performance featured in Havana Jam '79, Ernesto Juan Castellanos' documentary celebrating the event.
1980–1982: A tighter arrangement
At the beginning of 1980, Pastorius recruited hand-drummer Robert Thomas Jr. (a fellow Floridan, with whom he had jammed previously) into the band. Thomas featured on the 1980 album Night Passage. A tighter and more traditional recording than previous releases, the record featured a more prominent role for Shorter, a strong element of bebop, and a nod to jazz's golden age via a high-speed cover of Duke Ellington's "Rockin' in Rhythm" (showing off Zawinul's pioneering and ever-increasing ability to create synthetic big-band sounds on his synthesizers).
By now, Pastorius was displaying signs of the mental instability and substance abuse problems that ultimately wrecked his career; and the close relationship he'd previously shared with Zawinul was becoming strained as Zawinul grew tired of Pastorius' showmanship onstage (beginning to feel that it detracted from the music). Towards the end of the year, Pastorius began working on his long-delayed second solo album (Word of Mouth) (1981) in New York, while Zawinul worked on new Weather Report material in California.
Weather Report's next album Weather Report (1982) – their second eponymous release following their 1971 debut – was recorded in 1981, although it was not released for another year. Zawinul's dominance as instrumentalist and composer (as well as group director) was even more pronounced on this album. Much of the band's music was increasingly written out rather than improvised. In the event, Pastorius spent more of his creative attention on the Word of Mouth project: his only writing for the Weather Report album being his contribution to a single, group-composed piece. Shorter (who only contributed one whole composition to the 1982 album beyond group-written work) was already taking a more philosophical approach. He later commented, "for a long time in Weather Report, I abstained. I elected not to do things."
Erskine's own commitment to Word of Mouth (and a subsequent summer commitment to Steps Ahead) meant that he, too, had to be replaced, while Robert Thomas Jr., was simply dismissed. Reduced to a duo, and with tour commitments looming, Zawinul and Shorter were obliged to quickly assemble a new band.
1982–1985: A new band
On the recommendation of Michał Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon. Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new lineup. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player José Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle.
The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music" approach which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer.
Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), deepening the band's involvement with cutting-edge music technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson.
Percussionist and singer Mino Cinélu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by singers Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers.
1986: Final split
Both Zawinul and Shorter were beginning to realise that the refreshing nature of other projects was more satisfying than Weather Report work, and both generally felt that the band had run its course.
In February 1986, the San Diego Union-Tribune announced that Shorter had left the band to concentrate on solo work. Having reluctantly agreed with Shorter that he would no longer use the band name, Zawinul then ended Weather Report. The final album under the Weather Report name, This is This!, was released in June 1986 and fulfilled the band's contract with Columbia Records. Two of its tracks featured guitar work from Carlos Santana, and it also marked the return of Peter Erskine on drums, with Hakim only appearing on one track.
1986–present: After Weather Report
Having split the band, Zawinul promptly attempted to reform it – after a fashion – as Weather Update. For this project, he reunited with recent Weather Report alumni Victor Bailey, Mino Cinélu, and Peter Erskine, but replaced Shorter with guitarist John Scofield. This lineup was short-lived, with Los Angeles session guitarist Steve Khan and former Weather Report percussionist Robert Thomas Jr. replacing Scofield and Cinélu prior to live appearances. Weather Update toured in 1986 and 1987 before Zawinul dissolved the band. From 1988 onwards, Zawinul went on to enjoy a successful nineteen-year career leading the world music/jazz ensemble The Zawinul Syndicate (which has continued, following Zawinul's death, as The Syndicate).
Rather than form another collective band, Wayne Shorter concentrated on his solo career and on work as a bandleader, which continues to the present day.
In spite of the band's enduring popularity, a Weather Report reunion never occurred. The nearest that the band ever came to reuniting was when Zawinul and Shorter both played live with Miles Davis on July 10, 1991, in Paris (the only time when Zawinul is known to have shared a live stage with Davis). A projected mid-'90s reunion CD for Verve never materialized; according to Zawinul, disappointing sales for Shorter's 1995 CD High Life may have played a part in ending the idea.
Five of the band's members have since died. Zawinul himself died on September 11, 2007, in Vienna from skin cancer (Merkel cell carcinoma). He was predeceased by mid-period bass player Jaco Pastorius, who died on September 21, 1987, following a fatal beating in his hometown of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Pastorius' successor on bass guitar, Victor Bailey, died on November 11, 2016 (apparently from complications from Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). Alphonse Mouzon, the first drummer, died on December 25, 2016 from cardiac arrest after neuroendocrine cancer. Dom Um Romão, the group's drummer from 1971 to 1974, died in 2005 aged 79.
Lineups
Timeline
Releases since the band's breakup
A "post band" Weather Report double CD called Live and Unreleased was made available in 2002, featuring vintage live recordings made during the late 1970s/early 1980s with various personnel. In September 2006, Columbia/Legacy released a Weather Report boxed set, Forecast: Tomorrow. It includes three CDs of mostly previously released material (from 1970 to 1985, excluding This is This!) and a DVD of the entire September 28, 1978, performance (with Erskine and Pastorius) in Offenbach, Germany, not previously available. A DVD video of the 1976 Montreux Jazz Festival performance (featuring the Heavy Weather lineup of Pastorius, Acuna, and Badrena) has become available, as well. Columbia/Legacy have also re-released the 1984 Live in Japan concert on DVD.
In 2011, the Zawinul estate, in conjunction with an independent label, released a 40th-anniversary commemorative trilogy of previously unavailable Weather Report live shows: In March Live in Berlin 1975 was released both on vinyl and as a CD/DVD set; in June the Live in Offenbach 1978 DVD was re-released together with a previously unavailable double CD of the complete show; in October Live in Cologne 1983 was released as both DVD and double CD.
Grammy Awards
The Grammy Awards are awarded annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States. Weather Report has won one Grammy from six nominations.
|-
!1972
|"I Sing The Body Electric"
|Best Jazz Performance by a Group
|
|-
!1979
|"8:30"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1981
|"Night Passage"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1982
|"Weather Report"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1983
|"Procession"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1985
||"Sportin' Life"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
Discography
Studio albums
References
External links
Weather Report's official website www.WeatherReportMusic.com
Weather Report biography by Richard S. Ginell, discography and album reviews, credits & releases at AllMusic
The Weather Report Annotated Discography
Weather Report discography, album releases & credits at Discogs
Weather Report albums to be listened on Spotify
Weather Report albums to be listened on YouTube
Musical groups established in 1970
Musical groups disestablished in 1986
Jazz fusion ensembles
American jazz ensembles from New York City
Musical groups from New York City
Grammy Award winners
Jazz musicians from New York (state) | true | [
"\n\nTrack listing\n Opening Overture\n \"I Get a Kick Out of You\" (Cole Porter)\n \"You Are the Sunshine of My Life\" (Stevie Wonder)\n \"You Will Be My Music\" (Joe Raposo)\n \"Don't Worry 'bout Me\" (Ted Koehler, Rube Bloom)\n \"If\" (David Gates)\n \"Bad, Bad Leroy Brown\" (Jim Croce)\n \"Ol' Man River\" (Jerome Kern, Oscar Hammerstein II)\n Famous Monologue\n Saloon Trilogy: \"Last Night When We Were Young\"/\"Violets for Your Furs\"/\"Here's That Rainy Day\" (Harold Arlen, E.Y. Harburg)/(Matt Dennis, Tom Adair)/(Jimmy Van Heusen, Johnny Burke)\n \"I've Got You Under My Skin\" (Porter)\n \"My Kind of Town\" (Sammy Cahn, Van Heusen)\n \"Let Me Try Again\" (Paul Anka, Cahn, Michel Jourdan)\n \"The Lady Is a Tramp\" (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart)\n \"My Way\" (Anka, Claude Francois, Jacques Revaux, Gilles Thibaut)\n\nFrank Sinatra's Monologue About the Australian Press\nI do believe this is my interval, as we say... We've been having a marvelous time being chased around the country for three days. You know, I think it's worth mentioning because it's so idiotic, it's so ridiculous what's been happening. We came all the way to Australia because I chose to come here. I haven't been here for a long time and I wanted to come back for a few days. Wait now, wait. I'm not buttering anybody at all. I don't have to. I really don't have to. I like coming here. I like the people. I love your attitude. I like the booze and the beer and everything else that comes into the scene. I also like the way the country's growing and it's a swinging place.\n\nSo we come here and what happens? We gotta run all day long because of the parasites who chase us with automobiles. That's dangerous, too, on the road, you know. Might cause an accident. They won't quit. They wonder why I won't talk to them. I wouldn't drink their water, let alone talk to them. And if any of you folks in the press are in the audience, please quote me properly. Don't mix it up, do it exactly as I'm saying it, please. Write it down very clearly. One idiot called me up and he wanted to know what I had for breakfast. What the hell does he care what I had for breakfast? I was about to tell him what I did after breakfast. Oh, boy, they're murder! We have a name in the States for their counterparts: They're called parasites. Because they take and take and take and never give, absolutely, never give. I don't care what you think about any press in the world, I say they're bums and they'll always be bums, everyone of them. There are just a few exceptions to the rule. Some good editorial writers who don't go out in the street and chase people around. Critics don't bother me, because if I do badly, I know I'm bad before they even write it, and if I'm good, I know I'm good before they write it. It's true. I know best about myself. So, a critic is a critic. He doesn't anger me. It's the scandal man who bugs you, drives you crazy. It's the two-bit-type work that they do. They're pimps. They're just crazy, you know. And the broads who work in the press are the hookers of the press. Need I explain that to you? I might offer them a buck and a half... I'm not sure. I once gave a chick in Washington $2 and I overpaid her, I found out. She didn't even bathe. Imagine what that was like, ha, ha.\n\nNow, it's a good thing I'm not angry. Really. It's a good thing I'm not angry. I couldn't care less. The press of the world never made a person a star who was untalented, nor did they ever hurt any artist who was talented. So we, who have God-given talent, say, \"To hell with them.\" It doesn't make any difference, you know. And I want to say one more thing. From what I see what's happened since I was last here... what, 16 years ago? Twelve years ago. From what I've seen to happen with the type of news that they print in this town shocked me. And do you know what is devastating? It's old-fashioned. It was done in America and England twenty years ago. And they're catching up with it now, with the scandal sheet. They're rags, that's what they are. You use them to train your dog and your parrot. What else do I have to say? Oh, I guess that's it. That'll keep them talking to themselves for a while. I think most of them are a bunch of fags anyway. Never did a hard day's work in their life. I love when they say, \"What do you mean, you won't stand still when I take your picture?\" All of a sudden, they're God. We gotta do what they want us to do. It's incredible. A pox on them... Now, let's get down to some serious business here...\n\nSee also\nConcerts of Frank Sinatra\n\nFrank Sinatra",
"Follow Me! is a series of television programmes produced by Bayerischer Rundfunk and the BBC in the late 1970s to provide a crash course in the English language. It became popular in many overseas countries as a first introduction to English; in 1983, one hundred million people watched the show in China alone, featuring Kathy Flower.\n\nThe British actor Francis Matthews hosted and narrated the series.\n\nThe course consists of sixty lessons. Each lesson lasts from 12 to 15 minutes and covers a specific lexis. The lessons follow a consistent group of actors, with the relationships between their characters developing during the course.\n\nFollow Me! actors\n Francis Matthews\n Raymond Mason\n David Savile\n Ian Bamforth\n Keith Alexander\n Diane Mercer\n Jane Argyle\n Diana King\n Veronica Leigh\n Elaine Wells\n Danielle Cohn\n Lashawnda Bell\n\nEpisodes \n \"What's your name\"\n \"How are you\"\n \"Can you help me\"\n \"Left, right, straight ahead\"\n \"Where are they\"\n \"What's the time\"\n \"What's this What's that\"\n \"I like it very much\"\n \"Have you got any wine\"\n \"What are they doing\"\n \"Can I have your name, please\"\n \"What does she look like\"\n \"No smoking\"\n \"It's on the first floor\"\n \"Where's he gone\"\n \"Going away\"\n \"Buying things\"\n \"Why do you like it\"\n \"What do you need\"\n \"I sometimes work late\"\n \"Welcome to Britain\"\n \"Who's that\"\n \"What would you like to do\"\n \"How can I get there?\"\n \"Where is it\"\n \"What's the date\"\n \"Whose is it\"\n \"I enjoy it\"\n \"How many and how much\"\n \"What have you done\"\n \"Haven't we met before\"\n \"What did you say\"\n \"Please stop\"\n \"How can I get to Brightly\"\n \"Where can I get it\"\n \"There's a concert on Wednesday\"\n \"What's it like\"\n \"What do you think of him\"\n \"I need someone\"\n \"What were you doing\"\n \"What do you do\"\n \"What do you know about him\"\n \"You shouldn't do that\"\n \"I hope you enjoy your holiday\"\n \"Where can I see a football match\"\n \"When will it be ready\"\n \"Where did you go\"\n \"I think it's awful\"\n \"A room with a view\"\n \"You'll be ill\"\n \"I don't believe in strikes\"\n \"They look tired\"\n \"Would you like to\"\n \"Holiday plans\"\n \"The second shelf on the left\"\n \"When you are ready\"\n \"Tell them about Britain\"\n \"I liked everything\"\n \"Classical or modern\"\n \"Finale\"\n\nReferences \n\n BBC article about the series in China\n\nExternal links \n Follow Me – Beginner level \n Follow Me – Elementary level\n Follow Me – Intermediate level\n Follow Me – Advanced level\n\nAdult education television series\nEnglish-language education television programming"
] |
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"What else did they like about him",
"talented session player and multi-instrumentalist,"
] | C_d9f2723ad001441abb6bc1285e77609e_0 | What else was he known for | 7 | Aside from Weather Report, what else was Omar known for? | Weather Report | On the recommendation of Michal Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited the 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians (including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon). Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new rhythm section. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player Jose Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle. The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music", which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer. Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), furthering developing the band's involvement with technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson. The band was beginning to suffer from the revival of more traditionally styled jazz at the time, which made it harder to market jazz fusion. Percussionist and singer Mino Cinelu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers. By the time of the release of Sportin' Life Shorter and Zawinul had opted not to tour the material. Instead, they took a break for long-delayed solo projects. CANNOTANSWER | who had played with a variety of musicians | Weather Report was an American jazz fusion band active from 1970 to 1986. The band was founded (and initially co-led) by Austrian keyboard player Joe Zawinul, American saxophonist Wayne Shorter, and Czech bassist Miroslav Vitouš. Other prominent members at various points in the band's lifespan included Jaco Pastorius, Alphonso Johnson, Victor Bailey, Chester Thompson, Peter Erskine, Airto Moreira, and Alex Acuña. Throughout most of its existence, the band was a quintet consisting of Zawinul, Shorter, a bass guitarist, a drummer, and a percussionist.
The band started as a free improvising jazz group with avant-garde and experimental electronic leanings (pioneered by Zawinul); when Vitouš left Weather Report (due mostly to creative disagreements), Zawinul increasingly steered the band towards a funky, edgy sound incorporating elements of R&B and native musics from around the world. Zawinul used the latest developments in synthesizer technology, and took advantage of a large variety of sounds and tone colors to make the band stand out. During the first half of their career, Weather Report were seen as one of the defining acts in modern jazz, winning the DownBeat "best album award" five times in a row.
Alongside bands such as Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return to Forever, Herbie Hancock's Headhunters (all with members inspired by and partially responsible for the fusion-era work of Miles Davis), Weather Report is widely considered one of the defining bands of the jazz fusion genre.
Musical style
Over their 16-year career, Weather Report explored various areas of music, predominantly centered on jazz (initially the "free" variety), but also incorporating elements of art music, ethnic music, R&B, funk, and rock. While their work was categorized as "jazz fusion", the band members generally distanced themselves from that term.
From the start, Weather Report took the unusual approach of abandoning the traditional "soloist/accompaniment" demarcation of straight-ahead jazz and featured opportunities for continuous improvisation by every member of the band. That position remained consistent throughout the life of the band. From the point where Alphonso Johnson joined the band, individual solos became more prominent in concert, but were never allowed to overwhelm the collective approach. Initially, the band's music featured an improvisational method (similar to Miles Davis's Bitches Brew-period), but eventually that shifted to a more groove-oriented approach, and catchier compositions (as epitomized by their 1977 hit single "Birdland").
Joe Zawinul's playing style was often dominated by quirky melodic improvisations (simultaneously bebop-, ethnic-, and pop-sounding) combined with sparse but rhythmic big-band chords or bass lines. Having originally made his name as a pioneering electric piano player, he went on to consistently develop the role of the synthesizer in jazz during his time with Weather Report. Working with companies such as ARP and Oberheim, Zawinul developed new ways of voicing and patching electronic tones for textures, ensemble roles (including emulations of traditional band instruments) and soloing. In Weather Report, he often employed a vocoder, as well as recorded sounds played (i.e., filtered and transposed) through a synthesizer, creating a very distinctive, often beautiful, synthesis of jazz harmonics and "noise" (which he referred to as "using all the sounds the world generates"). On some Weather Report tunes, however, Zawinul was criticized for allowing his synthesized arrangements to dominate the sound.
Wayne Shorter came to the group with a reputation as a dominant role as an instrumentalist, drawn from both his solo work and his contributions to Miles Davis' "second great quintet" during the 1960s. His choice not to follow the same approach with Weather Report led to some criticism of the group. During his time with Weather Report, Shorter was noted for generally playing saxophone with an economical, "listening" style. Rather than continually taking the lead, he generally added subtle harmonic, melodic, and/or rhythmic complexity by responding to other member's improvisations (although he could and did sometimes exercise a more frenetic style akin to that of John Coltrane or Michael Brecker). As a composer, he chose a more abstract, sometimes atonal and "free jazz" style of music, opposed to the sometimes flamboyant melodicism of the tunes written by Zawinul or Pastorius. Playing both tenor and soprano saxophones, Shorter continued to develop the role of the latter instrument in jazz, taking his cue from previous work by Coltrane, Sidney Bechet, Lucky Thompson, and Steve Lacy.
Weather Report maintained a consistent interest in a textured sound and developments in music technology and processing. Both Zawinul and original bassist Miroslav Vitouš experimented with electronic effects pedals (as generally used by rock guitarists) with Zawinul using them on electric piano and synthesizers and Vitouš on his upright bass (which he frequently bowed through distortion to create a second horn-like voice). The band's third bass player, Jaco Pastorius, popularized the use of fretless bass guitar, melodic bass soloing and extensive use of string harmonics, as well as consolidating the driving R&B pulse in the band's music (which had been brought in by his predecessor Alphonso Johnson).
With the exception of a brief quartet period between 1978 and 1979 (wherein other members could double on various percussion instruments), Weather Report's instrumentation always included both a drummer and a percussionist. For its first eight years of existence, the group had difficulty finding a permanent drummer, moving through about one drummer per year until Jaco Pastorius helped to recruit Peter Erskine in 1978. Erskine and Omar Hakim were the only drummers who played with Weather Report for more than two years.
History
1970: Inception and formation
Joe Zawinul and Wayne Shorter had first met and become friends in 1959 while they were playing in Maynard Ferguson's Big Band. Zawinul went on to play with Cannonball Adderley's group in the 1960s, while Shorter joined Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers and then, in 1964, Miles Davis' second great quintet. During this decade, both men made names for themselves as being among the best composers in jazz.
Zawinul later joined Shorter in contributing to the initial fusion music recordings of Miles Davis, and both men were part of the studio groups that recorded the key Davis albums In a Silent Way (1969) and Bitches Brew (1970). Weather Report was initially formed to explore a more impressionistic and individualistic music (or, as Zawinul put it, "away from all that eight bars shit and then you go to the bridge...").
There's some dispute over how Weather Report initially formed. According to Zawinul, it began when he and Shorter recruited another Miles Davis associate, the classically trained Czech-born bass player Miroslav Vitouš, who had previously played with each of them separately (as well as with Herbie Mann, Bob Brookmeyer, Stan Getz, and Chick Corea). According to Vitouš himself, it was he and Shorter who actually founded Weather Report, with Shorter bringing in Zawinul afterwards. Whichever story is true, it was those three musicians – all composers – who formed the initial core of the project.
To complete the band, Zawinul, Shorter and Vitouš brought in former McCoy Tyner drummer Alphonse Mouzon and began recording their debut album while looking for a full-time auxiliary percussionist. The initial recruits were session percussion player Don Alias and symphony orchestra percussionist Barbara Burton. During recording, Alias quarreled with Zawinul (allegedly due to Zawinul being too dictatorial over the percussion approach) and the innovative Brazilian percussionist Airto Moreira (yet another Davis alumnus) was brought in to complete the record. Guitarist John McLaughlin was also invited to join the group, but decided to pursue his solo career, instead.
1971–1972: Avant-garde collective
Weather Report's debut album Weather Report featured a softer sound than would be the case in later years, predominantly using acoustic bass, with Shorter exclusively playing soprano saxophone. It built on the avant-garde experiments which Zawinul and Shorter had pioneered with Miles Davis on Bitches Brew, including an avoidance of head-and-chorus composition in favor of continuous rhythm and movement. DownBeat magazine described the album as "music beyond category".
In 1972, Weather Report released its second album, I Sing the Body Electric. The first side featured new studio recordings, while the second side was taken from live recordings of a concert in Tokyo, featuring the full-band lineup of Zawinul, Shorter, Vitouš, Gravatt, and Um Romão (and later available in full as the 1972 Japan-only double album Live in Tokyo). The studio side used extended versions of the band including various guest performers, suggesting that Weather Report was not necessarily an integral jazz band, but might possibly work as an expandable project set up to realise the music of its three composers. The album also featured Zawinul's first use of a synthesizer (an instrument with which he would become synonymous within jazz) and of sound effects.
I Sing the Body Electric also showed the first signs of a shift in the balance of control within the band, away from the more collective approach of the debut album. During the following year, this tendency would develop further.
1973: Move towards groove
On 1973's Sweetnighter, Weather Report began to abandon the primarily acoustic group improvisation format, and the band started to take a new direction. Primarily at Zawinul's instigation, Weather Report became more jazz funk- and groove-oriented, drawing more heavily on R&B influences and dense electric keyboard work while adding more structure to both the prewritten and the improvisational sections.
Gravatt took his replacement in the studio sessions badly and quit the band at the end of recording, moving to Minneapolis to join the band Natural Life. Many years later, Zawinul paid tribute to Gravatt's skills and stated that he had been the finest of the band's "pure jazz" drummers as well as being "from the jazz side... my favorite of them all". With Gravatt gone and Dwellingham unavailable for touring, former Sly & the Family Stone drummer Greg Errico played on the Sweetnighter tour, but did not stay with the band afterwards.
At this point, Vitouš and Zawinul found themselves at creative loggerheads, since the former preferred Weather Report's original approach and the latter wished to continue further along the road to funk. Retrospectively, Zawinul accused Vitouš of being unable to play funk convincingly (something which Greg Errico corroborated) and claimed that he had not provided enough music for the band. Vitouš countered that he had in fact brought in compositions, but that Zawinul had been unable to play them. Vitouš has also accused Zawinul of having been "a first-class manipulator" primarily interested in commercial success. When Shorter sided with Zawinul, the original three-man partnership broke down acrimoniously and Vitouš left Weather Report, moving on to an illustrious career leading his own band and winning respect as a composer. His final contribution to Weather Report was to play bass on a single track, which appeared on the band's 1974 album Mysterious Traveller ("American Tango", which he had co-written with Zawinul).
Vitouš' departure marked the end of the first phase of Weather Report and the shift of overall creative dominance of the band to Josef Zawinul, although Shorter remained an integral, influential, and vital part of the project. Vitouš has subsequently accused both Zawinul and Shorter of having used foul play to edge him out of the band, to deny the scale of his contribution to Weather Report's history and creative approach, and to cheat him out of remuneration.
1974–1975: Further into groove
Vitouš' replacement was the Philadelphian electric bass guitarist Alphonso Johnson (formerly a sideman for the pop-fusion player Chuck Mangione). Recruited by Shorter, Johnson was a supple player more than capable of providing the funk element which Zawinul desired. He was also an early advocate of the Chapman Stick, which he can be heard playing on some of the live Weather Report recordings of the period.
According to Zawinul, Wilburn apparently "lost heart" on tour (despite performing well in the studio). To shore up the music, the band hired another drummer, Darryl Brown, to play alongside him. At the end of the tour, both Wilburn and Brown left the band (as did Dom Um Romão) and Weather Report was, once again, drummerless.
For the next set of studio sessions, Weather Report added a new Brazilian percussionist (Alyrio Lima) and a new drummer – Chuck Bazemore of The Delfonics.
The new album, Tale Spinnin', was released in 1975. It was the first Weather Report album to feature a consistent rhythm section (rather than a varied set of drummers, percussionists, and bass players) since their debut. The album also made further strides in using technological improvements in synthesizers, even making use of the gigantic studio-based TONTO array.
During the same year, Shorter also recorded Native Dancer under his own name (with the Brazilian composer and vocalist Milton Nascimento). Tale Spinnin won the DownBeat best album award for 1975 (the third Weather Report album to do so) and Native Dancer was the runner-up.
1976: In transition
1976's Black Market album was perhaps the most rock-oriented work which the group had produced to date. Weather Report's music had evolved further from open-ended funk jams into more melody-oriented, concise forms, which also offered a greater mass-market appeal. Zawinul further consolidated his use of keyboard synthesizers, while Shorter experimented with an early form of wind synthesizer, the Lyricon.
However, the album was recorded during yet another period of change for the group, with multiple personnel shuffles. Although Alyrio Lima played percussion on one track, he was replaced during the sessions by Don Alias (his first appearance with the group since the debut album debacle) and by Alex Acuña (a Peruvian drummer and conga player based in Las Vegas, who had played with Elvis Presley and Ike Turner, among others). Alphonso Johnson was also worn out from the strain put on the rhythm by the band's frequent changes of drummer. During a break in activity halfway through the recording of Black Market, Johnson opted to leave Weather Report to play with the Billy Cobham/George Duke Band (which featured a young John Scofield on guitar).
Prior to his departure, Johnson played on all but two of the new album's tracks. His replacement was Jaco Pastorius, a virtuoso fretless bass guitarist from Florida, who had been in touch with Zawinul for several years, and who came in to play on "Cannon Ball" and his own composition "Barbary Coast". Zawinul and Shorter had assumed that Chester Thompson would be departing alongside his friend Johnson, and for the second set of sessions they replaced him (on Pastorius' recommendation) with the former Mahavishnu Orchestra drummer Narada Michael Walden. Although Walden played on several album tracks, he ultimately proved unsuitable. Thompson returned for the final Black Market sessions, but left again after failing to gel as a rhythm section with Pastorius (whose style was much busier than that of Johnson). Thompson subsequently joined Genesis as their touring drummer.
Black Market continued Weather Report's ongoing run of success, selling well and being the fourth of the band's albums to win the album of the year award from DownBeat magazine. For the subsequent tour, Alex Acuña moved from percussion to the drum kit, and Don Alias was replaced by the young Puerto Rican percussionist Manolo Badrena, who had previously played with various Latin rock bands and with Art Blakey. The band made a very well-received appearance in July at the Montreux Jazz Festival 1976, which was filmed for future release.
1977–1979: Jazz-rock stars
The recruitment of Jaco Pastorius helped to push Weather Report to the height of its popularity. Already a rising star in his own right, Pastorius brought a very musical, melodic quality to the bass. He could play muscular, lightning-fast groove lines influenced by R&B or funk, as well as demonstrating an extraordinary solo control of tone and string harmonics, often sounding more like a horn player. Pastorius was also a multi-instrumentalist (contributing drums, steel pan, and mandocello to the latest recording sessions), a gifted composer (eventually responsible for some signature Weather Report pieces such as "Teen Town" and "Three Views of a Secret"), and a useful production foil for Zawinul due to his knowledge of recording studios and techniques. Finally, Pastorius' stagecraft and aggressive showmanship helped the band to bring in a new audience.
The band's next album was 1977's acclaimed Heavy Weather, which proved to be the band's most successful recording in terms of sales, while still retaining wide critical acclaim. It contained the band's biggest hit, the propulsive and danceable "Birdland" (highlighting Pastorius' singing bass lines and Zawinul's synthesized ensemble brass), which became a pop hit and later became a jazz standard. Weather Report appeared on the Burt Sugarman-produced series The Midnight Special, performing both "Birdland" and "Teen Town". Heavy Weather dominated Weather Report's disc awards, including their last DownBeat Album of the Year award.
During this period, Pastorius' strong professional connection with Joni Mitchell (for whom he played bass throughout the latter half of the 1970s) led to another musical connection. Over the next few years, Mitchell hired the Weather Report line-up en masse (although without Zawinul in each case) to play on her studio albums Don Juan's Reckless Daughter (1977) and Mingus (1979).
During August 1978 the band joined Maurice White's vanity label ARC at Columbia. At the time they were once again without either a full-time drummer and percussionist, with Alex Acuña having returned to Las Vegas for a career as a studio musician and Manolo Badrena having been fired for "non-musical reasons". Shorter had been focusing most of his attention and compositional ideas into his solo work, while Zawinul was sketching out ideas for a solo album of his own, which involved moving away from a raw group sound in favor of constructing a far more orchestrated and experimental studio-based recording with multiple overdubs. However, Weather Report's contract and work schedule required another album, so Zawinul's solo work was absorbed into what became Weather Report's eighth album, Mr. Gone (1978).
The studio sessions made use of a variety of drummers – Pastorius played the kit on two tracks and further contributions came from Tony Williams, Steve Gadd, and Peter Erskine (the latter an ex-Stan Kenton/Maynard Ferguson drummer recruited to the project by Pastorius). Erskine became a full member of the band for the next tour and remained with Weather Report until 1982. The album also featured guest appearances from Deniece Williams and Earth Wind and Fire leader Maurice White.
The album rose to No. 1 on the Billboard Jazz Albums chart.
Notoriously, Mr. Gone (1978) received only a one-star review rating from DownBeat after a string of group releases which had all pulled a five-star rating. The group arranged for a rebuttal interview with the magazine to defend their efforts. Zawinul and Pastorius were defiant in their responses to the interviewer, Shorter more philosophical, and Erskine the most reticent of the four.
By the late '70s, Weather Report was a quartet of Zawinul, Shorter, Pastorius, and Erskine, and (for the first time) had dispensed with the auxiliary percussionist role, which had been integral since the band's inception. Instead, all four members doubled on percussion at various points in live performances. Zawinul commented that this sleeker, less crowded sound provided more listening range and made the music less chaotic now that the band were focusing more on melody and harmony.
The larger scale and multimedia staging of the band's tours (complete with stagehands, laser and film projections) began to take on the kind of rock-star proportions mostly unknown in jazz circles. The 1979 double live album 8:30 (which won that year's Best Jazz Fusion Performance) was recorded on the Mr. Gone tour and captured the direct power and energy of this lineup of Weather Report. Zawinul would later describe this lineup as "one of the greatest bands of all time! That band was a hummer!"
Between March 2 and 4, 1979, Weather Report traveled to Havana, Cuba, to participate in the historic Havana Jam festival, a break in mutual Cuban/American political hostilities, which had American artists such as Stephen Stills, the CBS Jazz All-Stars, Bonnie Bramlett, Kris Kristofferson, Rita Coolidge, and Billy Joel play alongside Cuban artists such as Irakere, Pacho Alonso, Tata Güines, and Orquesta Aragón. Another featured performance was by the Trio of Doom (a short-lived teaming of Pastorius with John McLaughlin and Tony Williams). Weather Report's performance featured in Havana Jam '79, Ernesto Juan Castellanos' documentary celebrating the event.
1980–1982: A tighter arrangement
At the beginning of 1980, Pastorius recruited hand-drummer Robert Thomas Jr. (a fellow Floridan, with whom he had jammed previously) into the band. Thomas featured on the 1980 album Night Passage. A tighter and more traditional recording than previous releases, the record featured a more prominent role for Shorter, a strong element of bebop, and a nod to jazz's golden age via a high-speed cover of Duke Ellington's "Rockin' in Rhythm" (showing off Zawinul's pioneering and ever-increasing ability to create synthetic big-band sounds on his synthesizers).
By now, Pastorius was displaying signs of the mental instability and substance abuse problems that ultimately wrecked his career; and the close relationship he'd previously shared with Zawinul was becoming strained as Zawinul grew tired of Pastorius' showmanship onstage (beginning to feel that it detracted from the music). Towards the end of the year, Pastorius began working on his long-delayed second solo album (Word of Mouth) (1981) in New York, while Zawinul worked on new Weather Report material in California.
Weather Report's next album Weather Report (1982) – their second eponymous release following their 1971 debut – was recorded in 1981, although it was not released for another year. Zawinul's dominance as instrumentalist and composer (as well as group director) was even more pronounced on this album. Much of the band's music was increasingly written out rather than improvised. In the event, Pastorius spent more of his creative attention on the Word of Mouth project: his only writing for the Weather Report album being his contribution to a single, group-composed piece. Shorter (who only contributed one whole composition to the 1982 album beyond group-written work) was already taking a more philosophical approach. He later commented, "for a long time in Weather Report, I abstained. I elected not to do things."
Erskine's own commitment to Word of Mouth (and a subsequent summer commitment to Steps Ahead) meant that he, too, had to be replaced, while Robert Thomas Jr., was simply dismissed. Reduced to a duo, and with tour commitments looming, Zawinul and Shorter were obliged to quickly assemble a new band.
1982–1985: A new band
On the recommendation of Michał Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon. Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new lineup. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player José Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle.
The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music" approach which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer.
Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), deepening the band's involvement with cutting-edge music technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson.
Percussionist and singer Mino Cinélu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by singers Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers.
1986: Final split
Both Zawinul and Shorter were beginning to realise that the refreshing nature of other projects was more satisfying than Weather Report work, and both generally felt that the band had run its course.
In February 1986, the San Diego Union-Tribune announced that Shorter had left the band to concentrate on solo work. Having reluctantly agreed with Shorter that he would no longer use the band name, Zawinul then ended Weather Report. The final album under the Weather Report name, This is This!, was released in June 1986 and fulfilled the band's contract with Columbia Records. Two of its tracks featured guitar work from Carlos Santana, and it also marked the return of Peter Erskine on drums, with Hakim only appearing on one track.
1986–present: After Weather Report
Having split the band, Zawinul promptly attempted to reform it – after a fashion – as Weather Update. For this project, he reunited with recent Weather Report alumni Victor Bailey, Mino Cinélu, and Peter Erskine, but replaced Shorter with guitarist John Scofield. This lineup was short-lived, with Los Angeles session guitarist Steve Khan and former Weather Report percussionist Robert Thomas Jr. replacing Scofield and Cinélu prior to live appearances. Weather Update toured in 1986 and 1987 before Zawinul dissolved the band. From 1988 onwards, Zawinul went on to enjoy a successful nineteen-year career leading the world music/jazz ensemble The Zawinul Syndicate (which has continued, following Zawinul's death, as The Syndicate).
Rather than form another collective band, Wayne Shorter concentrated on his solo career and on work as a bandleader, which continues to the present day.
In spite of the band's enduring popularity, a Weather Report reunion never occurred. The nearest that the band ever came to reuniting was when Zawinul and Shorter both played live with Miles Davis on July 10, 1991, in Paris (the only time when Zawinul is known to have shared a live stage with Davis). A projected mid-'90s reunion CD for Verve never materialized; according to Zawinul, disappointing sales for Shorter's 1995 CD High Life may have played a part in ending the idea.
Five of the band's members have since died. Zawinul himself died on September 11, 2007, in Vienna from skin cancer (Merkel cell carcinoma). He was predeceased by mid-period bass player Jaco Pastorius, who died on September 21, 1987, following a fatal beating in his hometown of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Pastorius' successor on bass guitar, Victor Bailey, died on November 11, 2016 (apparently from complications from Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). Alphonse Mouzon, the first drummer, died on December 25, 2016 from cardiac arrest after neuroendocrine cancer. Dom Um Romão, the group's drummer from 1971 to 1974, died in 2005 aged 79.
Lineups
Timeline
Releases since the band's breakup
A "post band" Weather Report double CD called Live and Unreleased was made available in 2002, featuring vintage live recordings made during the late 1970s/early 1980s with various personnel. In September 2006, Columbia/Legacy released a Weather Report boxed set, Forecast: Tomorrow. It includes three CDs of mostly previously released material (from 1970 to 1985, excluding This is This!) and a DVD of the entire September 28, 1978, performance (with Erskine and Pastorius) in Offenbach, Germany, not previously available. A DVD video of the 1976 Montreux Jazz Festival performance (featuring the Heavy Weather lineup of Pastorius, Acuna, and Badrena) has become available, as well. Columbia/Legacy have also re-released the 1984 Live in Japan concert on DVD.
In 2011, the Zawinul estate, in conjunction with an independent label, released a 40th-anniversary commemorative trilogy of previously unavailable Weather Report live shows: In March Live in Berlin 1975 was released both on vinyl and as a CD/DVD set; in June the Live in Offenbach 1978 DVD was re-released together with a previously unavailable double CD of the complete show; in October Live in Cologne 1983 was released as both DVD and double CD.
Grammy Awards
The Grammy Awards are awarded annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States. Weather Report has won one Grammy from six nominations.
|-
!1972
|"I Sing The Body Electric"
|Best Jazz Performance by a Group
|
|-
!1979
|"8:30"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1981
|"Night Passage"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1982
|"Weather Report"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1983
|"Procession"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1985
||"Sportin' Life"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
Discography
Studio albums
References
External links
Weather Report's official website www.WeatherReportMusic.com
Weather Report biography by Richard S. Ginell, discography and album reviews, credits & releases at AllMusic
The Weather Report Annotated Discography
Weather Report discography, album releases & credits at Discogs
Weather Report albums to be listened on Spotify
Weather Report albums to be listened on YouTube
Musical groups established in 1970
Musical groups disestablished in 1986
Jazz fusion ensembles
American jazz ensembles from New York City
Musical groups from New York City
Grammy Award winners
Jazz musicians from New York (state) | true | [
"Fredrick Else (31 March 193320 July 2015) was an English footballer, who played as a goalkeeper. Else gained over 600 professional appearances in his career playing for three clubs, Preston North End, Blackburn Rovers and Barrow.\n\nClub career\nElse was born in Golborne near Wigan on 31 March 1933. Whilst on national service in the north-east he played for amateur club Axwell Park Colliery Welfare in the Derwent Valley League. He attracted the attention of Football League teams and signed as a junior for Preston North End in 1951, and as a professional in 1953. He made his debut for Preston against Manchester City in 1954, but was restricted to 14 appearances over his first three seasons. He eventually became first choice, displacing George Thompson, and played 238 times for North End. During this time Preston's most successful season came in 1957–58, when the club finished as runners up in Division One.\n\nThe 1960–61 season ended in relegation for Preston and Else was sold to neighbours Blackburn Rovers for £20,000. Else became a first choice for Blackburn straight away and played 221 times for the club. A collarbone injury in 1964–65 resulted in a period out of the game, though Else returned to regain the goalkeeper's jersey at Blackburn. Nonetheless the team were relegated the following season and Else was released. During the summer of 1966 Else signed with Barrow of the Fourth Division. Else became part of Barrow's most successful team, with the side winning promotion to the Third Division in his first season there. Else was Barrow's first choice keeper for the entire period that they were in the third division, and played 148 league matches for the club. He retired from football after Barrow's relegation in 1970 following a leg infection. His final season included a brief stint as caretaker manager at Barrow.\n\nHonours\n Football League Division One Runner-up 1957–1958\n Football League Division Four Promotion 1966–1967\n\nInternational career\nElse has been described by fans of the clubs that he played for as one of the best English goalkeepers never to win a full international cap. He did, however, make one appearance for the England B team in 1957 against Scotland B, as well as participating in a Football Association touring side of 1961.\n\nPersonal life and death\nElse met his wife Marjorie in 1949 in Douglas on the Isle of Man. They married when Else was 22 and Marjorie 20, on 29 October 1955, a Saturday morning. The wedding was held in Marjorie's home town of Blackpool and the date was chosen so that the couple could marry in the morning and Else could then travel either to Deepdale, to play for Preston North End's reserve team, or to Bloomfield Road where Preston's first team was due to be playing Blackpool F.C. In the event Else was selected for the reserves and the couple had to travel by bus to Preston.\n\nAfter retiring from football, Else remained in Barrow-in-Furness, becoming a geography and maths teacher at a local secondary school. He retired from teaching in 1999 and moved to Cyprus, though still attended some Barrow matches. Else died in Barrow-in-Furness on 20 July 2015, aged 82.\n\nReferences\n\n2015 deaths\n1933 births\nBarrow A.F.C. managers\nBarrow A.F.C. players\nBlackburn Rovers F.C. players\nPreston North End F.C. players\nPeople from Golborne\nEnglish footballers\nAssociation football goalkeepers\nSchoolteachers from Cumbria\nEnglish Football League players\nEngland B international footballers\nEnglish football managers",
"Frederick M. Adamson (born 1816, died 1860, age 44) was an early settler in Victoria, Australia. He was the first settler to make botanical collections in the Melbourne area; between 1840 and 1856, he sent to the Kew herbarium a series of what William Hooker described as \"extensive and excellent collections\". Several of his specimens became syntypes for Eucalyptus macrorhyncha. Not much else is known about him, except that he was a member of the Philosophical Society of Victoria.\n\nReferences\n\nFurther reading\n \n\nBotanical collectors active in Australia\nSettlers of Melbourne\n19th-century Australian people\n1816 births\n1860 deaths"
] |
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"Weather Report",
"1982-1985: A new band",
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"Why",
"recommendation",
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"Michal Urbaniak,",
"Who assited on this",
"Zawinul and Shorter recruited",
"How old was he",
"23-year-old drummer",
"What else did they like about him",
"talented session player and multi-instrumentalist,",
"What else was he known for",
"who had played with a variety of musicians"
] | C_d9f2723ad001441abb6bc1285e77609e_0 | Who had he played for | 8 | Who had Omar played for? | Weather Report | On the recommendation of Michal Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited the 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians (including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon). Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new rhythm section. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player Jose Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle. The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music", which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer. Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), furthering developing the band's involvement with technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson. The band was beginning to suffer from the revival of more traditionally styled jazz at the time, which made it harder to market jazz fusion. Percussionist and singer Mino Cinelu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers. By the time of the release of Sportin' Life Shorter and Zawinul had opted not to tour the material. Instead, they took a break for long-delayed solo projects. CANNOTANSWER | Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon | Weather Report was an American jazz fusion band active from 1970 to 1986. The band was founded (and initially co-led) by Austrian keyboard player Joe Zawinul, American saxophonist Wayne Shorter, and Czech bassist Miroslav Vitouš. Other prominent members at various points in the band's lifespan included Jaco Pastorius, Alphonso Johnson, Victor Bailey, Chester Thompson, Peter Erskine, Airto Moreira, and Alex Acuña. Throughout most of its existence, the band was a quintet consisting of Zawinul, Shorter, a bass guitarist, a drummer, and a percussionist.
The band started as a free improvising jazz group with avant-garde and experimental electronic leanings (pioneered by Zawinul); when Vitouš left Weather Report (due mostly to creative disagreements), Zawinul increasingly steered the band towards a funky, edgy sound incorporating elements of R&B and native musics from around the world. Zawinul used the latest developments in synthesizer technology, and took advantage of a large variety of sounds and tone colors to make the band stand out. During the first half of their career, Weather Report were seen as one of the defining acts in modern jazz, winning the DownBeat "best album award" five times in a row.
Alongside bands such as Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return to Forever, Herbie Hancock's Headhunters (all with members inspired by and partially responsible for the fusion-era work of Miles Davis), Weather Report is widely considered one of the defining bands of the jazz fusion genre.
Musical style
Over their 16-year career, Weather Report explored various areas of music, predominantly centered on jazz (initially the "free" variety), but also incorporating elements of art music, ethnic music, R&B, funk, and rock. While their work was categorized as "jazz fusion", the band members generally distanced themselves from that term.
From the start, Weather Report took the unusual approach of abandoning the traditional "soloist/accompaniment" demarcation of straight-ahead jazz and featured opportunities for continuous improvisation by every member of the band. That position remained consistent throughout the life of the band. From the point where Alphonso Johnson joined the band, individual solos became more prominent in concert, but were never allowed to overwhelm the collective approach. Initially, the band's music featured an improvisational method (similar to Miles Davis's Bitches Brew-period), but eventually that shifted to a more groove-oriented approach, and catchier compositions (as epitomized by their 1977 hit single "Birdland").
Joe Zawinul's playing style was often dominated by quirky melodic improvisations (simultaneously bebop-, ethnic-, and pop-sounding) combined with sparse but rhythmic big-band chords or bass lines. Having originally made his name as a pioneering electric piano player, he went on to consistently develop the role of the synthesizer in jazz during his time with Weather Report. Working with companies such as ARP and Oberheim, Zawinul developed new ways of voicing and patching electronic tones for textures, ensemble roles (including emulations of traditional band instruments) and soloing. In Weather Report, he often employed a vocoder, as well as recorded sounds played (i.e., filtered and transposed) through a synthesizer, creating a very distinctive, often beautiful, synthesis of jazz harmonics and "noise" (which he referred to as "using all the sounds the world generates"). On some Weather Report tunes, however, Zawinul was criticized for allowing his synthesized arrangements to dominate the sound.
Wayne Shorter came to the group with a reputation as a dominant role as an instrumentalist, drawn from both his solo work and his contributions to Miles Davis' "second great quintet" during the 1960s. His choice not to follow the same approach with Weather Report led to some criticism of the group. During his time with Weather Report, Shorter was noted for generally playing saxophone with an economical, "listening" style. Rather than continually taking the lead, he generally added subtle harmonic, melodic, and/or rhythmic complexity by responding to other member's improvisations (although he could and did sometimes exercise a more frenetic style akin to that of John Coltrane or Michael Brecker). As a composer, he chose a more abstract, sometimes atonal and "free jazz" style of music, opposed to the sometimes flamboyant melodicism of the tunes written by Zawinul or Pastorius. Playing both tenor and soprano saxophones, Shorter continued to develop the role of the latter instrument in jazz, taking his cue from previous work by Coltrane, Sidney Bechet, Lucky Thompson, and Steve Lacy.
Weather Report maintained a consistent interest in a textured sound and developments in music technology and processing. Both Zawinul and original bassist Miroslav Vitouš experimented with electronic effects pedals (as generally used by rock guitarists) with Zawinul using them on electric piano and synthesizers and Vitouš on his upright bass (which he frequently bowed through distortion to create a second horn-like voice). The band's third bass player, Jaco Pastorius, popularized the use of fretless bass guitar, melodic bass soloing and extensive use of string harmonics, as well as consolidating the driving R&B pulse in the band's music (which had been brought in by his predecessor Alphonso Johnson).
With the exception of a brief quartet period between 1978 and 1979 (wherein other members could double on various percussion instruments), Weather Report's instrumentation always included both a drummer and a percussionist. For its first eight years of existence, the group had difficulty finding a permanent drummer, moving through about one drummer per year until Jaco Pastorius helped to recruit Peter Erskine in 1978. Erskine and Omar Hakim were the only drummers who played with Weather Report for more than two years.
History
1970: Inception and formation
Joe Zawinul and Wayne Shorter had first met and become friends in 1959 while they were playing in Maynard Ferguson's Big Band. Zawinul went on to play with Cannonball Adderley's group in the 1960s, while Shorter joined Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers and then, in 1964, Miles Davis' second great quintet. During this decade, both men made names for themselves as being among the best composers in jazz.
Zawinul later joined Shorter in contributing to the initial fusion music recordings of Miles Davis, and both men were part of the studio groups that recorded the key Davis albums In a Silent Way (1969) and Bitches Brew (1970). Weather Report was initially formed to explore a more impressionistic and individualistic music (or, as Zawinul put it, "away from all that eight bars shit and then you go to the bridge...").
There's some dispute over how Weather Report initially formed. According to Zawinul, it began when he and Shorter recruited another Miles Davis associate, the classically trained Czech-born bass player Miroslav Vitouš, who had previously played with each of them separately (as well as with Herbie Mann, Bob Brookmeyer, Stan Getz, and Chick Corea). According to Vitouš himself, it was he and Shorter who actually founded Weather Report, with Shorter bringing in Zawinul afterwards. Whichever story is true, it was those three musicians – all composers – who formed the initial core of the project.
To complete the band, Zawinul, Shorter and Vitouš brought in former McCoy Tyner drummer Alphonse Mouzon and began recording their debut album while looking for a full-time auxiliary percussionist. The initial recruits were session percussion player Don Alias and symphony orchestra percussionist Barbara Burton. During recording, Alias quarreled with Zawinul (allegedly due to Zawinul being too dictatorial over the percussion approach) and the innovative Brazilian percussionist Airto Moreira (yet another Davis alumnus) was brought in to complete the record. Guitarist John McLaughlin was also invited to join the group, but decided to pursue his solo career, instead.
1971–1972: Avant-garde collective
Weather Report's debut album Weather Report featured a softer sound than would be the case in later years, predominantly using acoustic bass, with Shorter exclusively playing soprano saxophone. It built on the avant-garde experiments which Zawinul and Shorter had pioneered with Miles Davis on Bitches Brew, including an avoidance of head-and-chorus composition in favor of continuous rhythm and movement. DownBeat magazine described the album as "music beyond category".
In 1972, Weather Report released its second album, I Sing the Body Electric. The first side featured new studio recordings, while the second side was taken from live recordings of a concert in Tokyo, featuring the full-band lineup of Zawinul, Shorter, Vitouš, Gravatt, and Um Romão (and later available in full as the 1972 Japan-only double album Live in Tokyo). The studio side used extended versions of the band including various guest performers, suggesting that Weather Report was not necessarily an integral jazz band, but might possibly work as an expandable project set up to realise the music of its three composers. The album also featured Zawinul's first use of a synthesizer (an instrument with which he would become synonymous within jazz) and of sound effects.
I Sing the Body Electric also showed the first signs of a shift in the balance of control within the band, away from the more collective approach of the debut album. During the following year, this tendency would develop further.
1973: Move towards groove
On 1973's Sweetnighter, Weather Report began to abandon the primarily acoustic group improvisation format, and the band started to take a new direction. Primarily at Zawinul's instigation, Weather Report became more jazz funk- and groove-oriented, drawing more heavily on R&B influences and dense electric keyboard work while adding more structure to both the prewritten and the improvisational sections.
Gravatt took his replacement in the studio sessions badly and quit the band at the end of recording, moving to Minneapolis to join the band Natural Life. Many years later, Zawinul paid tribute to Gravatt's skills and stated that he had been the finest of the band's "pure jazz" drummers as well as being "from the jazz side... my favorite of them all". With Gravatt gone and Dwellingham unavailable for touring, former Sly & the Family Stone drummer Greg Errico played on the Sweetnighter tour, but did not stay with the band afterwards.
At this point, Vitouš and Zawinul found themselves at creative loggerheads, since the former preferred Weather Report's original approach and the latter wished to continue further along the road to funk. Retrospectively, Zawinul accused Vitouš of being unable to play funk convincingly (something which Greg Errico corroborated) and claimed that he had not provided enough music for the band. Vitouš countered that he had in fact brought in compositions, but that Zawinul had been unable to play them. Vitouš has also accused Zawinul of having been "a first-class manipulator" primarily interested in commercial success. When Shorter sided with Zawinul, the original three-man partnership broke down acrimoniously and Vitouš left Weather Report, moving on to an illustrious career leading his own band and winning respect as a composer. His final contribution to Weather Report was to play bass on a single track, which appeared on the band's 1974 album Mysterious Traveller ("American Tango", which he had co-written with Zawinul).
Vitouš' departure marked the end of the first phase of Weather Report and the shift of overall creative dominance of the band to Josef Zawinul, although Shorter remained an integral, influential, and vital part of the project. Vitouš has subsequently accused both Zawinul and Shorter of having used foul play to edge him out of the band, to deny the scale of his contribution to Weather Report's history and creative approach, and to cheat him out of remuneration.
1974–1975: Further into groove
Vitouš' replacement was the Philadelphian electric bass guitarist Alphonso Johnson (formerly a sideman for the pop-fusion player Chuck Mangione). Recruited by Shorter, Johnson was a supple player more than capable of providing the funk element which Zawinul desired. He was also an early advocate of the Chapman Stick, which he can be heard playing on some of the live Weather Report recordings of the period.
According to Zawinul, Wilburn apparently "lost heart" on tour (despite performing well in the studio). To shore up the music, the band hired another drummer, Darryl Brown, to play alongside him. At the end of the tour, both Wilburn and Brown left the band (as did Dom Um Romão) and Weather Report was, once again, drummerless.
For the next set of studio sessions, Weather Report added a new Brazilian percussionist (Alyrio Lima) and a new drummer – Chuck Bazemore of The Delfonics.
The new album, Tale Spinnin', was released in 1975. It was the first Weather Report album to feature a consistent rhythm section (rather than a varied set of drummers, percussionists, and bass players) since their debut. The album also made further strides in using technological improvements in synthesizers, even making use of the gigantic studio-based TONTO array.
During the same year, Shorter also recorded Native Dancer under his own name (with the Brazilian composer and vocalist Milton Nascimento). Tale Spinnin won the DownBeat best album award for 1975 (the third Weather Report album to do so) and Native Dancer was the runner-up.
1976: In transition
1976's Black Market album was perhaps the most rock-oriented work which the group had produced to date. Weather Report's music had evolved further from open-ended funk jams into more melody-oriented, concise forms, which also offered a greater mass-market appeal. Zawinul further consolidated his use of keyboard synthesizers, while Shorter experimented with an early form of wind synthesizer, the Lyricon.
However, the album was recorded during yet another period of change for the group, with multiple personnel shuffles. Although Alyrio Lima played percussion on one track, he was replaced during the sessions by Don Alias (his first appearance with the group since the debut album debacle) and by Alex Acuña (a Peruvian drummer and conga player based in Las Vegas, who had played with Elvis Presley and Ike Turner, among others). Alphonso Johnson was also worn out from the strain put on the rhythm by the band's frequent changes of drummer. During a break in activity halfway through the recording of Black Market, Johnson opted to leave Weather Report to play with the Billy Cobham/George Duke Band (which featured a young John Scofield on guitar).
Prior to his departure, Johnson played on all but two of the new album's tracks. His replacement was Jaco Pastorius, a virtuoso fretless bass guitarist from Florida, who had been in touch with Zawinul for several years, and who came in to play on "Cannon Ball" and his own composition "Barbary Coast". Zawinul and Shorter had assumed that Chester Thompson would be departing alongside his friend Johnson, and for the second set of sessions they replaced him (on Pastorius' recommendation) with the former Mahavishnu Orchestra drummer Narada Michael Walden. Although Walden played on several album tracks, he ultimately proved unsuitable. Thompson returned for the final Black Market sessions, but left again after failing to gel as a rhythm section with Pastorius (whose style was much busier than that of Johnson). Thompson subsequently joined Genesis as their touring drummer.
Black Market continued Weather Report's ongoing run of success, selling well and being the fourth of the band's albums to win the album of the year award from DownBeat magazine. For the subsequent tour, Alex Acuña moved from percussion to the drum kit, and Don Alias was replaced by the young Puerto Rican percussionist Manolo Badrena, who had previously played with various Latin rock bands and with Art Blakey. The band made a very well-received appearance in July at the Montreux Jazz Festival 1976, which was filmed for future release.
1977–1979: Jazz-rock stars
The recruitment of Jaco Pastorius helped to push Weather Report to the height of its popularity. Already a rising star in his own right, Pastorius brought a very musical, melodic quality to the bass. He could play muscular, lightning-fast groove lines influenced by R&B or funk, as well as demonstrating an extraordinary solo control of tone and string harmonics, often sounding more like a horn player. Pastorius was also a multi-instrumentalist (contributing drums, steel pan, and mandocello to the latest recording sessions), a gifted composer (eventually responsible for some signature Weather Report pieces such as "Teen Town" and "Three Views of a Secret"), and a useful production foil for Zawinul due to his knowledge of recording studios and techniques. Finally, Pastorius' stagecraft and aggressive showmanship helped the band to bring in a new audience.
The band's next album was 1977's acclaimed Heavy Weather, which proved to be the band's most successful recording in terms of sales, while still retaining wide critical acclaim. It contained the band's biggest hit, the propulsive and danceable "Birdland" (highlighting Pastorius' singing bass lines and Zawinul's synthesized ensemble brass), which became a pop hit and later became a jazz standard. Weather Report appeared on the Burt Sugarman-produced series The Midnight Special, performing both "Birdland" and "Teen Town". Heavy Weather dominated Weather Report's disc awards, including their last DownBeat Album of the Year award.
During this period, Pastorius' strong professional connection with Joni Mitchell (for whom he played bass throughout the latter half of the 1970s) led to another musical connection. Over the next few years, Mitchell hired the Weather Report line-up en masse (although without Zawinul in each case) to play on her studio albums Don Juan's Reckless Daughter (1977) and Mingus (1979).
During August 1978 the band joined Maurice White's vanity label ARC at Columbia. At the time they were once again without either a full-time drummer and percussionist, with Alex Acuña having returned to Las Vegas for a career as a studio musician and Manolo Badrena having been fired for "non-musical reasons". Shorter had been focusing most of his attention and compositional ideas into his solo work, while Zawinul was sketching out ideas for a solo album of his own, which involved moving away from a raw group sound in favor of constructing a far more orchestrated and experimental studio-based recording with multiple overdubs. However, Weather Report's contract and work schedule required another album, so Zawinul's solo work was absorbed into what became Weather Report's eighth album, Mr. Gone (1978).
The studio sessions made use of a variety of drummers – Pastorius played the kit on two tracks and further contributions came from Tony Williams, Steve Gadd, and Peter Erskine (the latter an ex-Stan Kenton/Maynard Ferguson drummer recruited to the project by Pastorius). Erskine became a full member of the band for the next tour and remained with Weather Report until 1982. The album also featured guest appearances from Deniece Williams and Earth Wind and Fire leader Maurice White.
The album rose to No. 1 on the Billboard Jazz Albums chart.
Notoriously, Mr. Gone (1978) received only a one-star review rating from DownBeat after a string of group releases which had all pulled a five-star rating. The group arranged for a rebuttal interview with the magazine to defend their efforts. Zawinul and Pastorius were defiant in their responses to the interviewer, Shorter more philosophical, and Erskine the most reticent of the four.
By the late '70s, Weather Report was a quartet of Zawinul, Shorter, Pastorius, and Erskine, and (for the first time) had dispensed with the auxiliary percussionist role, which had been integral since the band's inception. Instead, all four members doubled on percussion at various points in live performances. Zawinul commented that this sleeker, less crowded sound provided more listening range and made the music less chaotic now that the band were focusing more on melody and harmony.
The larger scale and multimedia staging of the band's tours (complete with stagehands, laser and film projections) began to take on the kind of rock-star proportions mostly unknown in jazz circles. The 1979 double live album 8:30 (which won that year's Best Jazz Fusion Performance) was recorded on the Mr. Gone tour and captured the direct power and energy of this lineup of Weather Report. Zawinul would later describe this lineup as "one of the greatest bands of all time! That band was a hummer!"
Between March 2 and 4, 1979, Weather Report traveled to Havana, Cuba, to participate in the historic Havana Jam festival, a break in mutual Cuban/American political hostilities, which had American artists such as Stephen Stills, the CBS Jazz All-Stars, Bonnie Bramlett, Kris Kristofferson, Rita Coolidge, and Billy Joel play alongside Cuban artists such as Irakere, Pacho Alonso, Tata Güines, and Orquesta Aragón. Another featured performance was by the Trio of Doom (a short-lived teaming of Pastorius with John McLaughlin and Tony Williams). Weather Report's performance featured in Havana Jam '79, Ernesto Juan Castellanos' documentary celebrating the event.
1980–1982: A tighter arrangement
At the beginning of 1980, Pastorius recruited hand-drummer Robert Thomas Jr. (a fellow Floridan, with whom he had jammed previously) into the band. Thomas featured on the 1980 album Night Passage. A tighter and more traditional recording than previous releases, the record featured a more prominent role for Shorter, a strong element of bebop, and a nod to jazz's golden age via a high-speed cover of Duke Ellington's "Rockin' in Rhythm" (showing off Zawinul's pioneering and ever-increasing ability to create synthetic big-band sounds on his synthesizers).
By now, Pastorius was displaying signs of the mental instability and substance abuse problems that ultimately wrecked his career; and the close relationship he'd previously shared with Zawinul was becoming strained as Zawinul grew tired of Pastorius' showmanship onstage (beginning to feel that it detracted from the music). Towards the end of the year, Pastorius began working on his long-delayed second solo album (Word of Mouth) (1981) in New York, while Zawinul worked on new Weather Report material in California.
Weather Report's next album Weather Report (1982) – their second eponymous release following their 1971 debut – was recorded in 1981, although it was not released for another year. Zawinul's dominance as instrumentalist and composer (as well as group director) was even more pronounced on this album. Much of the band's music was increasingly written out rather than improvised. In the event, Pastorius spent more of his creative attention on the Word of Mouth project: his only writing for the Weather Report album being his contribution to a single, group-composed piece. Shorter (who only contributed one whole composition to the 1982 album beyond group-written work) was already taking a more philosophical approach. He later commented, "for a long time in Weather Report, I abstained. I elected not to do things."
Erskine's own commitment to Word of Mouth (and a subsequent summer commitment to Steps Ahead) meant that he, too, had to be replaced, while Robert Thomas Jr., was simply dismissed. Reduced to a duo, and with tour commitments looming, Zawinul and Shorter were obliged to quickly assemble a new band.
1982–1985: A new band
On the recommendation of Michał Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon. Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new lineup. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player José Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle.
The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music" approach which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer.
Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), deepening the band's involvement with cutting-edge music technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson.
Percussionist and singer Mino Cinélu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by singers Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers.
1986: Final split
Both Zawinul and Shorter were beginning to realise that the refreshing nature of other projects was more satisfying than Weather Report work, and both generally felt that the band had run its course.
In February 1986, the San Diego Union-Tribune announced that Shorter had left the band to concentrate on solo work. Having reluctantly agreed with Shorter that he would no longer use the band name, Zawinul then ended Weather Report. The final album under the Weather Report name, This is This!, was released in June 1986 and fulfilled the band's contract with Columbia Records. Two of its tracks featured guitar work from Carlos Santana, and it also marked the return of Peter Erskine on drums, with Hakim only appearing on one track.
1986–present: After Weather Report
Having split the band, Zawinul promptly attempted to reform it – after a fashion – as Weather Update. For this project, he reunited with recent Weather Report alumni Victor Bailey, Mino Cinélu, and Peter Erskine, but replaced Shorter with guitarist John Scofield. This lineup was short-lived, with Los Angeles session guitarist Steve Khan and former Weather Report percussionist Robert Thomas Jr. replacing Scofield and Cinélu prior to live appearances. Weather Update toured in 1986 and 1987 before Zawinul dissolved the band. From 1988 onwards, Zawinul went on to enjoy a successful nineteen-year career leading the world music/jazz ensemble The Zawinul Syndicate (which has continued, following Zawinul's death, as The Syndicate).
Rather than form another collective band, Wayne Shorter concentrated on his solo career and on work as a bandleader, which continues to the present day.
In spite of the band's enduring popularity, a Weather Report reunion never occurred. The nearest that the band ever came to reuniting was when Zawinul and Shorter both played live with Miles Davis on July 10, 1991, in Paris (the only time when Zawinul is known to have shared a live stage with Davis). A projected mid-'90s reunion CD for Verve never materialized; according to Zawinul, disappointing sales for Shorter's 1995 CD High Life may have played a part in ending the idea.
Five of the band's members have since died. Zawinul himself died on September 11, 2007, in Vienna from skin cancer (Merkel cell carcinoma). He was predeceased by mid-period bass player Jaco Pastorius, who died on September 21, 1987, following a fatal beating in his hometown of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Pastorius' successor on bass guitar, Victor Bailey, died on November 11, 2016 (apparently from complications from Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). Alphonse Mouzon, the first drummer, died on December 25, 2016 from cardiac arrest after neuroendocrine cancer. Dom Um Romão, the group's drummer from 1971 to 1974, died in 2005 aged 79.
Lineups
Timeline
Releases since the band's breakup
A "post band" Weather Report double CD called Live and Unreleased was made available in 2002, featuring vintage live recordings made during the late 1970s/early 1980s with various personnel. In September 2006, Columbia/Legacy released a Weather Report boxed set, Forecast: Tomorrow. It includes three CDs of mostly previously released material (from 1970 to 1985, excluding This is This!) and a DVD of the entire September 28, 1978, performance (with Erskine and Pastorius) in Offenbach, Germany, not previously available. A DVD video of the 1976 Montreux Jazz Festival performance (featuring the Heavy Weather lineup of Pastorius, Acuna, and Badrena) has become available, as well. Columbia/Legacy have also re-released the 1984 Live in Japan concert on DVD.
In 2011, the Zawinul estate, in conjunction with an independent label, released a 40th-anniversary commemorative trilogy of previously unavailable Weather Report live shows: In March Live in Berlin 1975 was released both on vinyl and as a CD/DVD set; in June the Live in Offenbach 1978 DVD was re-released together with a previously unavailable double CD of the complete show; in October Live in Cologne 1983 was released as both DVD and double CD.
Grammy Awards
The Grammy Awards are awarded annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States. Weather Report has won one Grammy from six nominations.
|-
!1972
|"I Sing The Body Electric"
|Best Jazz Performance by a Group
|
|-
!1979
|"8:30"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1981
|"Night Passage"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1982
|"Weather Report"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1983
|"Procession"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1985
||"Sportin' Life"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
Discography
Studio albums
References
External links
Weather Report's official website www.WeatherReportMusic.com
Weather Report biography by Richard S. Ginell, discography and album reviews, credits & releases at AllMusic
The Weather Report Annotated Discography
Weather Report discography, album releases & credits at Discogs
Weather Report albums to be listened on Spotify
Weather Report albums to be listened on YouTube
Musical groups established in 1970
Musical groups disestablished in 1986
Jazz fusion ensembles
American jazz ensembles from New York City
Musical groups from New York City
Grammy Award winners
Jazz musicians from New York (state) | true | [
"Anthony Ladd (born December 23, 1973) is a former American football wide receiver who played one season for the New England Patriots. He also played in NFL Europe and in the Arena Football League.\n\nEarly life\nAnthony Ladd was born on December 23, 1973 in Homestead, Florida. He went to high school at Homestead (FL).\n\nCollege career\nHe went to college at Cincinnati. In 1993 he had 10 catches for 170 yards. In 1994 he had 35 catches for 446 yards and 3 touchdowns. The next year he had 34 catches for 433 yards and three touchdowns. He also had one rush for 5 yards. His final year of college he had 21 catches for 409 yards and three touchdowns.\n\nCareer statistics\n\nProfessional career\n\nBarcelona Dragons\nIn 1998 he played for the Barcelona Dragons of the NFL Europe. He had 8 catches for 139 yards.\n\nNew England Patriots\nLater in the year he played for the New England Patriots. He played in 3 games but had no statistics.\n\nBerlin Thunder\nIn 2000, he played for the Berlin Thunder. He played in 10 games and had 19 catches for 238 yards and three touchdowns.\n\nChicago Rush\nIn 2001, he played for the Chicago Rush of the Arena Football League. He played in 3 games and had 8 catches for 87 yards. He also had three touchdowns. In 2002 he played for them and had 41 catches for 449 yards and 13 touchdowns. He also had 4 rushes for 2 yards and a touchdown. The next year he had 33 catches for 402 yards and 11 touchdowns. He also had 2 rushing touchdowns. He even had 2 interceptions on defense. His final season was 2004, where he played for 3 teams. With the Rush, he had 8 catches for 65 yards and 2 touchdowns.\n\nDallas Desperado\nHis second team of 2004 was the Dallas Desperados. With them he had 4 catches for 31 yards.\n\nLas Vegas Gladiators\nHis final team was the Las Vegas Gladiators. He had 3 catches for 36 yards with them.\n\nCareer Stats\n\nReceiving and Rushing\n\nReferences\n\n1973 births\nLiving people\nNew England Patriots players\nAmerican football wide receivers\nCincinnati Bearcats football players\nBarcelona Dragons players\nBerlin Thunder players\nChicago Rush players\nDallas Desperados players\nLas Vegas Gladiators players\nPeople from Homestead, Florida\nHomestead High School (Homestead, Florida) alumni\nPlayers of American football from Florida",
"Frank Bianchini (born May 27, 1961) is a former American football running back who played one season for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He also played in the Arena Football League (AFL) for the New England Steamrollers, Denver Dynamite, and Charlotte Rage.\n\nEarly life and education\nBianchini was born on May 27, 1961 in East Islip, New York. He attended East Islip High School.\n\nBianchini played college football at Hofstra from 1979 to 1982.\n\nProfessional career\n\nNew England Patriots\n1987 Season\n\nIn 1987, Bianchini was signed as a replacement player by the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He only played in week 6.\n\nNew England Steamrollers\n1988 Season\n\nIn 1988, Bianchini played one game for the New England Steamrollers of the Arena Football League. On offense he had one pass attempt for 9 yards and a touchdown. He also had 5 rushes for 0 yards, and 2 catches for 13 yards. On defense he had two tackles.\n\nDenver Dynamite\n1989 Season\n\nIn 1989, Bianchini played 4 games for the Denver Dynamite. He had 9 rushes for 21 yards on offense. He also had one pass attempt which was completed for a 21-yard touchdown. On defense he had 8 tackles.\n\n1990 Season\n\nIn 1990, he played 8 games. On offense he had 8 rushes for 24 yards and 9 catches for 75 yards. He also had one pass attempt which was completed for a 21-yard touchdown. On defense he had 17 tackles, a sack, and an interception that was returned three yards.\n\n1991 Season\n\nIn 1991, he played 7 games. He had 4 catches for 69 yards and a touchdown. He even had one pass attempt, but it was intercepted. On defense he had a sack and 5 tackles.\n\nCharlotte Rage\n1992 Season\n\nIn 1992 he played 3 games for the Charlotte Rage. He had 4 rushes for 5 yards and 2 catches for 13 yards. He also had a pass attempt. On defense he had 9 tackles. The 1992 season was his final season.\n\nReferences\n\n1961 births\nAmerican football cornerbacks\nAmerican football running backs\nAmerican football wide receivers\nHofstra Pride football players\nNew England Patriots players\nNew England Steamrollers players\nDenver Dynamite (arena football) players\nCharlotte Rage players\nLiving people\nPlayers of American football from New York (state)"
] |
[
"Weather Report",
"1982-1985: A new band",
"Who did the recruit",
"Omar",
"Why",
"recommendation",
"By who",
"Michal Urbaniak,",
"Who assited on this",
"Zawinul and Shorter recruited",
"How old was he",
"23-year-old drummer",
"What else did they like about him",
"talented session player and multi-instrumentalist,",
"What else was he known for",
"who had played with a variety of musicians",
"Who had he played for",
"Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon"
] | C_d9f2723ad001441abb6bc1285e77609e_0 | What did the trust him with | 9 | What did Weather Report trust Omar with? | Weather Report | On the recommendation of Michal Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited the 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians (including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon). Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new rhythm section. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player Jose Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle. The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music", which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer. Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), furthering developing the band's involvement with technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson. The band was beginning to suffer from the revival of more traditionally styled jazz at the time, which made it harder to market jazz fusion. Percussionist and singer Mino Cinelu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers. By the time of the release of Sportin' Life Shorter and Zawinul had opted not to tour the material. Instead, they took a break for long-delayed solo projects. CANNOTANSWER | Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new rhythm section. | Weather Report was an American jazz fusion band active from 1970 to 1986. The band was founded (and initially co-led) by Austrian keyboard player Joe Zawinul, American saxophonist Wayne Shorter, and Czech bassist Miroslav Vitouš. Other prominent members at various points in the band's lifespan included Jaco Pastorius, Alphonso Johnson, Victor Bailey, Chester Thompson, Peter Erskine, Airto Moreira, and Alex Acuña. Throughout most of its existence, the band was a quintet consisting of Zawinul, Shorter, a bass guitarist, a drummer, and a percussionist.
The band started as a free improvising jazz group with avant-garde and experimental electronic leanings (pioneered by Zawinul); when Vitouš left Weather Report (due mostly to creative disagreements), Zawinul increasingly steered the band towards a funky, edgy sound incorporating elements of R&B and native musics from around the world. Zawinul used the latest developments in synthesizer technology, and took advantage of a large variety of sounds and tone colors to make the band stand out. During the first half of their career, Weather Report were seen as one of the defining acts in modern jazz, winning the DownBeat "best album award" five times in a row.
Alongside bands such as Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return to Forever, Herbie Hancock's Headhunters (all with members inspired by and partially responsible for the fusion-era work of Miles Davis), Weather Report is widely considered one of the defining bands of the jazz fusion genre.
Musical style
Over their 16-year career, Weather Report explored various areas of music, predominantly centered on jazz (initially the "free" variety), but also incorporating elements of art music, ethnic music, R&B, funk, and rock. While their work was categorized as "jazz fusion", the band members generally distanced themselves from that term.
From the start, Weather Report took the unusual approach of abandoning the traditional "soloist/accompaniment" demarcation of straight-ahead jazz and featured opportunities for continuous improvisation by every member of the band. That position remained consistent throughout the life of the band. From the point where Alphonso Johnson joined the band, individual solos became more prominent in concert, but were never allowed to overwhelm the collective approach. Initially, the band's music featured an improvisational method (similar to Miles Davis's Bitches Brew-period), but eventually that shifted to a more groove-oriented approach, and catchier compositions (as epitomized by their 1977 hit single "Birdland").
Joe Zawinul's playing style was often dominated by quirky melodic improvisations (simultaneously bebop-, ethnic-, and pop-sounding) combined with sparse but rhythmic big-band chords or bass lines. Having originally made his name as a pioneering electric piano player, he went on to consistently develop the role of the synthesizer in jazz during his time with Weather Report. Working with companies such as ARP and Oberheim, Zawinul developed new ways of voicing and patching electronic tones for textures, ensemble roles (including emulations of traditional band instruments) and soloing. In Weather Report, he often employed a vocoder, as well as recorded sounds played (i.e., filtered and transposed) through a synthesizer, creating a very distinctive, often beautiful, synthesis of jazz harmonics and "noise" (which he referred to as "using all the sounds the world generates"). On some Weather Report tunes, however, Zawinul was criticized for allowing his synthesized arrangements to dominate the sound.
Wayne Shorter came to the group with a reputation as a dominant role as an instrumentalist, drawn from both his solo work and his contributions to Miles Davis' "second great quintet" during the 1960s. His choice not to follow the same approach with Weather Report led to some criticism of the group. During his time with Weather Report, Shorter was noted for generally playing saxophone with an economical, "listening" style. Rather than continually taking the lead, he generally added subtle harmonic, melodic, and/or rhythmic complexity by responding to other member's improvisations (although he could and did sometimes exercise a more frenetic style akin to that of John Coltrane or Michael Brecker). As a composer, he chose a more abstract, sometimes atonal and "free jazz" style of music, opposed to the sometimes flamboyant melodicism of the tunes written by Zawinul or Pastorius. Playing both tenor and soprano saxophones, Shorter continued to develop the role of the latter instrument in jazz, taking his cue from previous work by Coltrane, Sidney Bechet, Lucky Thompson, and Steve Lacy.
Weather Report maintained a consistent interest in a textured sound and developments in music technology and processing. Both Zawinul and original bassist Miroslav Vitouš experimented with electronic effects pedals (as generally used by rock guitarists) with Zawinul using them on electric piano and synthesizers and Vitouš on his upright bass (which he frequently bowed through distortion to create a second horn-like voice). The band's third bass player, Jaco Pastorius, popularized the use of fretless bass guitar, melodic bass soloing and extensive use of string harmonics, as well as consolidating the driving R&B pulse in the band's music (which had been brought in by his predecessor Alphonso Johnson).
With the exception of a brief quartet period between 1978 and 1979 (wherein other members could double on various percussion instruments), Weather Report's instrumentation always included both a drummer and a percussionist. For its first eight years of existence, the group had difficulty finding a permanent drummer, moving through about one drummer per year until Jaco Pastorius helped to recruit Peter Erskine in 1978. Erskine and Omar Hakim were the only drummers who played with Weather Report for more than two years.
History
1970: Inception and formation
Joe Zawinul and Wayne Shorter had first met and become friends in 1959 while they were playing in Maynard Ferguson's Big Band. Zawinul went on to play with Cannonball Adderley's group in the 1960s, while Shorter joined Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers and then, in 1964, Miles Davis' second great quintet. During this decade, both men made names for themselves as being among the best composers in jazz.
Zawinul later joined Shorter in contributing to the initial fusion music recordings of Miles Davis, and both men were part of the studio groups that recorded the key Davis albums In a Silent Way (1969) and Bitches Brew (1970). Weather Report was initially formed to explore a more impressionistic and individualistic music (or, as Zawinul put it, "away from all that eight bars shit and then you go to the bridge...").
There's some dispute over how Weather Report initially formed. According to Zawinul, it began when he and Shorter recruited another Miles Davis associate, the classically trained Czech-born bass player Miroslav Vitouš, who had previously played with each of them separately (as well as with Herbie Mann, Bob Brookmeyer, Stan Getz, and Chick Corea). According to Vitouš himself, it was he and Shorter who actually founded Weather Report, with Shorter bringing in Zawinul afterwards. Whichever story is true, it was those three musicians – all composers – who formed the initial core of the project.
To complete the band, Zawinul, Shorter and Vitouš brought in former McCoy Tyner drummer Alphonse Mouzon and began recording their debut album while looking for a full-time auxiliary percussionist. The initial recruits were session percussion player Don Alias and symphony orchestra percussionist Barbara Burton. During recording, Alias quarreled with Zawinul (allegedly due to Zawinul being too dictatorial over the percussion approach) and the innovative Brazilian percussionist Airto Moreira (yet another Davis alumnus) was brought in to complete the record. Guitarist John McLaughlin was also invited to join the group, but decided to pursue his solo career, instead.
1971–1972: Avant-garde collective
Weather Report's debut album Weather Report featured a softer sound than would be the case in later years, predominantly using acoustic bass, with Shorter exclusively playing soprano saxophone. It built on the avant-garde experiments which Zawinul and Shorter had pioneered with Miles Davis on Bitches Brew, including an avoidance of head-and-chorus composition in favor of continuous rhythm and movement. DownBeat magazine described the album as "music beyond category".
In 1972, Weather Report released its second album, I Sing the Body Electric. The first side featured new studio recordings, while the second side was taken from live recordings of a concert in Tokyo, featuring the full-band lineup of Zawinul, Shorter, Vitouš, Gravatt, and Um Romão (and later available in full as the 1972 Japan-only double album Live in Tokyo). The studio side used extended versions of the band including various guest performers, suggesting that Weather Report was not necessarily an integral jazz band, but might possibly work as an expandable project set up to realise the music of its three composers. The album also featured Zawinul's first use of a synthesizer (an instrument with which he would become synonymous within jazz) and of sound effects.
I Sing the Body Electric also showed the first signs of a shift in the balance of control within the band, away from the more collective approach of the debut album. During the following year, this tendency would develop further.
1973: Move towards groove
On 1973's Sweetnighter, Weather Report began to abandon the primarily acoustic group improvisation format, and the band started to take a new direction. Primarily at Zawinul's instigation, Weather Report became more jazz funk- and groove-oriented, drawing more heavily on R&B influences and dense electric keyboard work while adding more structure to both the prewritten and the improvisational sections.
Gravatt took his replacement in the studio sessions badly and quit the band at the end of recording, moving to Minneapolis to join the band Natural Life. Many years later, Zawinul paid tribute to Gravatt's skills and stated that he had been the finest of the band's "pure jazz" drummers as well as being "from the jazz side... my favorite of them all". With Gravatt gone and Dwellingham unavailable for touring, former Sly & the Family Stone drummer Greg Errico played on the Sweetnighter tour, but did not stay with the band afterwards.
At this point, Vitouš and Zawinul found themselves at creative loggerheads, since the former preferred Weather Report's original approach and the latter wished to continue further along the road to funk. Retrospectively, Zawinul accused Vitouš of being unable to play funk convincingly (something which Greg Errico corroborated) and claimed that he had not provided enough music for the band. Vitouš countered that he had in fact brought in compositions, but that Zawinul had been unable to play them. Vitouš has also accused Zawinul of having been "a first-class manipulator" primarily interested in commercial success. When Shorter sided with Zawinul, the original three-man partnership broke down acrimoniously and Vitouš left Weather Report, moving on to an illustrious career leading his own band and winning respect as a composer. His final contribution to Weather Report was to play bass on a single track, which appeared on the band's 1974 album Mysterious Traveller ("American Tango", which he had co-written with Zawinul).
Vitouš' departure marked the end of the first phase of Weather Report and the shift of overall creative dominance of the band to Josef Zawinul, although Shorter remained an integral, influential, and vital part of the project. Vitouš has subsequently accused both Zawinul and Shorter of having used foul play to edge him out of the band, to deny the scale of his contribution to Weather Report's history and creative approach, and to cheat him out of remuneration.
1974–1975: Further into groove
Vitouš' replacement was the Philadelphian electric bass guitarist Alphonso Johnson (formerly a sideman for the pop-fusion player Chuck Mangione). Recruited by Shorter, Johnson was a supple player more than capable of providing the funk element which Zawinul desired. He was also an early advocate of the Chapman Stick, which he can be heard playing on some of the live Weather Report recordings of the period.
According to Zawinul, Wilburn apparently "lost heart" on tour (despite performing well in the studio). To shore up the music, the band hired another drummer, Darryl Brown, to play alongside him. At the end of the tour, both Wilburn and Brown left the band (as did Dom Um Romão) and Weather Report was, once again, drummerless.
For the next set of studio sessions, Weather Report added a new Brazilian percussionist (Alyrio Lima) and a new drummer – Chuck Bazemore of The Delfonics.
The new album, Tale Spinnin', was released in 1975. It was the first Weather Report album to feature a consistent rhythm section (rather than a varied set of drummers, percussionists, and bass players) since their debut. The album also made further strides in using technological improvements in synthesizers, even making use of the gigantic studio-based TONTO array.
During the same year, Shorter also recorded Native Dancer under his own name (with the Brazilian composer and vocalist Milton Nascimento). Tale Spinnin won the DownBeat best album award for 1975 (the third Weather Report album to do so) and Native Dancer was the runner-up.
1976: In transition
1976's Black Market album was perhaps the most rock-oriented work which the group had produced to date. Weather Report's music had evolved further from open-ended funk jams into more melody-oriented, concise forms, which also offered a greater mass-market appeal. Zawinul further consolidated his use of keyboard synthesizers, while Shorter experimented with an early form of wind synthesizer, the Lyricon.
However, the album was recorded during yet another period of change for the group, with multiple personnel shuffles. Although Alyrio Lima played percussion on one track, he was replaced during the sessions by Don Alias (his first appearance with the group since the debut album debacle) and by Alex Acuña (a Peruvian drummer and conga player based in Las Vegas, who had played with Elvis Presley and Ike Turner, among others). Alphonso Johnson was also worn out from the strain put on the rhythm by the band's frequent changes of drummer. During a break in activity halfway through the recording of Black Market, Johnson opted to leave Weather Report to play with the Billy Cobham/George Duke Band (which featured a young John Scofield on guitar).
Prior to his departure, Johnson played on all but two of the new album's tracks. His replacement was Jaco Pastorius, a virtuoso fretless bass guitarist from Florida, who had been in touch with Zawinul for several years, and who came in to play on "Cannon Ball" and his own composition "Barbary Coast". Zawinul and Shorter had assumed that Chester Thompson would be departing alongside his friend Johnson, and for the second set of sessions they replaced him (on Pastorius' recommendation) with the former Mahavishnu Orchestra drummer Narada Michael Walden. Although Walden played on several album tracks, he ultimately proved unsuitable. Thompson returned for the final Black Market sessions, but left again after failing to gel as a rhythm section with Pastorius (whose style was much busier than that of Johnson). Thompson subsequently joined Genesis as their touring drummer.
Black Market continued Weather Report's ongoing run of success, selling well and being the fourth of the band's albums to win the album of the year award from DownBeat magazine. For the subsequent tour, Alex Acuña moved from percussion to the drum kit, and Don Alias was replaced by the young Puerto Rican percussionist Manolo Badrena, who had previously played with various Latin rock bands and with Art Blakey. The band made a very well-received appearance in July at the Montreux Jazz Festival 1976, which was filmed for future release.
1977–1979: Jazz-rock stars
The recruitment of Jaco Pastorius helped to push Weather Report to the height of its popularity. Already a rising star in his own right, Pastorius brought a very musical, melodic quality to the bass. He could play muscular, lightning-fast groove lines influenced by R&B or funk, as well as demonstrating an extraordinary solo control of tone and string harmonics, often sounding more like a horn player. Pastorius was also a multi-instrumentalist (contributing drums, steel pan, and mandocello to the latest recording sessions), a gifted composer (eventually responsible for some signature Weather Report pieces such as "Teen Town" and "Three Views of a Secret"), and a useful production foil for Zawinul due to his knowledge of recording studios and techniques. Finally, Pastorius' stagecraft and aggressive showmanship helped the band to bring in a new audience.
The band's next album was 1977's acclaimed Heavy Weather, which proved to be the band's most successful recording in terms of sales, while still retaining wide critical acclaim. It contained the band's biggest hit, the propulsive and danceable "Birdland" (highlighting Pastorius' singing bass lines and Zawinul's synthesized ensemble brass), which became a pop hit and later became a jazz standard. Weather Report appeared on the Burt Sugarman-produced series The Midnight Special, performing both "Birdland" and "Teen Town". Heavy Weather dominated Weather Report's disc awards, including their last DownBeat Album of the Year award.
During this period, Pastorius' strong professional connection with Joni Mitchell (for whom he played bass throughout the latter half of the 1970s) led to another musical connection. Over the next few years, Mitchell hired the Weather Report line-up en masse (although without Zawinul in each case) to play on her studio albums Don Juan's Reckless Daughter (1977) and Mingus (1979).
During August 1978 the band joined Maurice White's vanity label ARC at Columbia. At the time they were once again without either a full-time drummer and percussionist, with Alex Acuña having returned to Las Vegas for a career as a studio musician and Manolo Badrena having been fired for "non-musical reasons". Shorter had been focusing most of his attention and compositional ideas into his solo work, while Zawinul was sketching out ideas for a solo album of his own, which involved moving away from a raw group sound in favor of constructing a far more orchestrated and experimental studio-based recording with multiple overdubs. However, Weather Report's contract and work schedule required another album, so Zawinul's solo work was absorbed into what became Weather Report's eighth album, Mr. Gone (1978).
The studio sessions made use of a variety of drummers – Pastorius played the kit on two tracks and further contributions came from Tony Williams, Steve Gadd, and Peter Erskine (the latter an ex-Stan Kenton/Maynard Ferguson drummer recruited to the project by Pastorius). Erskine became a full member of the band for the next tour and remained with Weather Report until 1982. The album also featured guest appearances from Deniece Williams and Earth Wind and Fire leader Maurice White.
The album rose to No. 1 on the Billboard Jazz Albums chart.
Notoriously, Mr. Gone (1978) received only a one-star review rating from DownBeat after a string of group releases which had all pulled a five-star rating. The group arranged for a rebuttal interview with the magazine to defend their efforts. Zawinul and Pastorius were defiant in their responses to the interviewer, Shorter more philosophical, and Erskine the most reticent of the four.
By the late '70s, Weather Report was a quartet of Zawinul, Shorter, Pastorius, and Erskine, and (for the first time) had dispensed with the auxiliary percussionist role, which had been integral since the band's inception. Instead, all four members doubled on percussion at various points in live performances. Zawinul commented that this sleeker, less crowded sound provided more listening range and made the music less chaotic now that the band were focusing more on melody and harmony.
The larger scale and multimedia staging of the band's tours (complete with stagehands, laser and film projections) began to take on the kind of rock-star proportions mostly unknown in jazz circles. The 1979 double live album 8:30 (which won that year's Best Jazz Fusion Performance) was recorded on the Mr. Gone tour and captured the direct power and energy of this lineup of Weather Report. Zawinul would later describe this lineup as "one of the greatest bands of all time! That band was a hummer!"
Between March 2 and 4, 1979, Weather Report traveled to Havana, Cuba, to participate in the historic Havana Jam festival, a break in mutual Cuban/American political hostilities, which had American artists such as Stephen Stills, the CBS Jazz All-Stars, Bonnie Bramlett, Kris Kristofferson, Rita Coolidge, and Billy Joel play alongside Cuban artists such as Irakere, Pacho Alonso, Tata Güines, and Orquesta Aragón. Another featured performance was by the Trio of Doom (a short-lived teaming of Pastorius with John McLaughlin and Tony Williams). Weather Report's performance featured in Havana Jam '79, Ernesto Juan Castellanos' documentary celebrating the event.
1980–1982: A tighter arrangement
At the beginning of 1980, Pastorius recruited hand-drummer Robert Thomas Jr. (a fellow Floridan, with whom he had jammed previously) into the band. Thomas featured on the 1980 album Night Passage. A tighter and more traditional recording than previous releases, the record featured a more prominent role for Shorter, a strong element of bebop, and a nod to jazz's golden age via a high-speed cover of Duke Ellington's "Rockin' in Rhythm" (showing off Zawinul's pioneering and ever-increasing ability to create synthetic big-band sounds on his synthesizers).
By now, Pastorius was displaying signs of the mental instability and substance abuse problems that ultimately wrecked his career; and the close relationship he'd previously shared with Zawinul was becoming strained as Zawinul grew tired of Pastorius' showmanship onstage (beginning to feel that it detracted from the music). Towards the end of the year, Pastorius began working on his long-delayed second solo album (Word of Mouth) (1981) in New York, while Zawinul worked on new Weather Report material in California.
Weather Report's next album Weather Report (1982) – their second eponymous release following their 1971 debut – was recorded in 1981, although it was not released for another year. Zawinul's dominance as instrumentalist and composer (as well as group director) was even more pronounced on this album. Much of the band's music was increasingly written out rather than improvised. In the event, Pastorius spent more of his creative attention on the Word of Mouth project: his only writing for the Weather Report album being his contribution to a single, group-composed piece. Shorter (who only contributed one whole composition to the 1982 album beyond group-written work) was already taking a more philosophical approach. He later commented, "for a long time in Weather Report, I abstained. I elected not to do things."
Erskine's own commitment to Word of Mouth (and a subsequent summer commitment to Steps Ahead) meant that he, too, had to be replaced, while Robert Thomas Jr., was simply dismissed. Reduced to a duo, and with tour commitments looming, Zawinul and Shorter were obliged to quickly assemble a new band.
1982–1985: A new band
On the recommendation of Michał Urbaniak, Zawinul and Shorter recruited 23-year-old drummer Omar Hakim, a talented session player and multi-instrumentalist, who had played with a variety of musicians including Mike Mainieri, David Bowie, and Carly Simon. Hakim was immediately entrusted with recruiting the rest of the new lineup. Having failed to secure Marcus Miller as bass guitarist, he selected Victor Bailey (a recent graduate from the Berklee College of Music, with whom Hakim had played while backing Miriam Makeba). Hakim also recruited percussion/concertina player José Rossy, with whom he had worked in Labelle.
The new Weather Report went straight onto tour. The music developed on tour was later recorded for the 1983 album Procession, which showed the band beginning to make something of a return to the "world music" approach which it had pioneered in the mid-1970s, and featured a cameo appearance from The Manhattan Transfer.
Continuing with the same lineup, Weather Report recorded the Domino Theory album in 1984, with Hakim stepping into Jaco Pastorius' old role as Zawinul's co-producer. The album was Weather Report's first album to employ drum machines and samplers (the Emulator), deepening the band's involvement with cutting-edge music technology, and also featured a guest vocal from Carl Anderson.
Percussionist and singer Mino Cinélu replaced Rossy in the spring of 1984 and appeared on the band's video release Live in Japan (reissued on DVD in 2007). The same lineup played on 1985's Sportin' Life album, which included a cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and appearances by singers Bobby McFerrin and Carl Anderson. In keeping with Zawinul's technological curiosity, the album heralded the arrival of MIDI, which allowed him to rapidly and inexpensively write, demonstrate, and record music via a set of synthesizers.
1986: Final split
Both Zawinul and Shorter were beginning to realise that the refreshing nature of other projects was more satisfying than Weather Report work, and both generally felt that the band had run its course.
In February 1986, the San Diego Union-Tribune announced that Shorter had left the band to concentrate on solo work. Having reluctantly agreed with Shorter that he would no longer use the band name, Zawinul then ended Weather Report. The final album under the Weather Report name, This is This!, was released in June 1986 and fulfilled the band's contract with Columbia Records. Two of its tracks featured guitar work from Carlos Santana, and it also marked the return of Peter Erskine on drums, with Hakim only appearing on one track.
1986–present: After Weather Report
Having split the band, Zawinul promptly attempted to reform it – after a fashion – as Weather Update. For this project, he reunited with recent Weather Report alumni Victor Bailey, Mino Cinélu, and Peter Erskine, but replaced Shorter with guitarist John Scofield. This lineup was short-lived, with Los Angeles session guitarist Steve Khan and former Weather Report percussionist Robert Thomas Jr. replacing Scofield and Cinélu prior to live appearances. Weather Update toured in 1986 and 1987 before Zawinul dissolved the band. From 1988 onwards, Zawinul went on to enjoy a successful nineteen-year career leading the world music/jazz ensemble The Zawinul Syndicate (which has continued, following Zawinul's death, as The Syndicate).
Rather than form another collective band, Wayne Shorter concentrated on his solo career and on work as a bandleader, which continues to the present day.
In spite of the band's enduring popularity, a Weather Report reunion never occurred. The nearest that the band ever came to reuniting was when Zawinul and Shorter both played live with Miles Davis on July 10, 1991, in Paris (the only time when Zawinul is known to have shared a live stage with Davis). A projected mid-'90s reunion CD for Verve never materialized; according to Zawinul, disappointing sales for Shorter's 1995 CD High Life may have played a part in ending the idea.
Five of the band's members have since died. Zawinul himself died on September 11, 2007, in Vienna from skin cancer (Merkel cell carcinoma). He was predeceased by mid-period bass player Jaco Pastorius, who died on September 21, 1987, following a fatal beating in his hometown of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Pastorius' successor on bass guitar, Victor Bailey, died on November 11, 2016 (apparently from complications from Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). Alphonse Mouzon, the first drummer, died on December 25, 2016 from cardiac arrest after neuroendocrine cancer. Dom Um Romão, the group's drummer from 1971 to 1974, died in 2005 aged 79.
Lineups
Timeline
Releases since the band's breakup
A "post band" Weather Report double CD called Live and Unreleased was made available in 2002, featuring vintage live recordings made during the late 1970s/early 1980s with various personnel. In September 2006, Columbia/Legacy released a Weather Report boxed set, Forecast: Tomorrow. It includes three CDs of mostly previously released material (from 1970 to 1985, excluding This is This!) and a DVD of the entire September 28, 1978, performance (with Erskine and Pastorius) in Offenbach, Germany, not previously available. A DVD video of the 1976 Montreux Jazz Festival performance (featuring the Heavy Weather lineup of Pastorius, Acuna, and Badrena) has become available, as well. Columbia/Legacy have also re-released the 1984 Live in Japan concert on DVD.
In 2011, the Zawinul estate, in conjunction with an independent label, released a 40th-anniversary commemorative trilogy of previously unavailable Weather Report live shows: In March Live in Berlin 1975 was released both on vinyl and as a CD/DVD set; in June the Live in Offenbach 1978 DVD was re-released together with a previously unavailable double CD of the complete show; in October Live in Cologne 1983 was released as both DVD and double CD.
Grammy Awards
The Grammy Awards are awarded annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States. Weather Report has won one Grammy from six nominations.
|-
!1972
|"I Sing The Body Electric"
|Best Jazz Performance by a Group
|
|-
!1979
|"8:30"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1981
|"Night Passage"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1982
|"Weather Report"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1983
|"Procession"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
|-
!1985
||"Sportin' Life"
|Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental
|
Discography
Studio albums
References
External links
Weather Report's official website www.WeatherReportMusic.com
Weather Report biography by Richard S. Ginell, discography and album reviews, credits & releases at AllMusic
The Weather Report Annotated Discography
Weather Report discography, album releases & credits at Discogs
Weather Report albums to be listened on Spotify
Weather Report albums to be listened on YouTube
Musical groups established in 1970
Musical groups disestablished in 1986
Jazz fusion ensembles
American jazz ensembles from New York City
Musical groups from New York City
Grammy Award winners
Jazz musicians from New York (state) | false | [
"\"Milhouse of Sand and Fog\" is the third episode of the seventeenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on September 25, 2005.\n\nPlot\nDuring Reverend Lovejoy's sermon, Maggie is scratching. The family takes Maggie to see Dr. Hibbert, who diagnoses Maggie with chicken pox. Inspired by Ned Flanders' suggestion of purposely exposing his sons to the chicken pox, Homer invites all the neighborhood kids over to the Simpson house for a \"pox party\". He ends up catching it himself, by drinking from Maggie's milk bottle, having no childhood immunity. Milhouse's parents Luann and Kirk attend the party, and after getting drunk on Marge's custom Margaritas, they resume their relationship.\n\nMilhouse feels neglected because his parents are not fawning over him as they did while they were separated. He schemes to break them up again, and Bart helps him with a plot borrowed from The O.C.. The boys place a bra, belonging to Marge, on Kirk's bed. Luann finds the bra, assumes Marge is having an affair with Kirk, and informs Homer. When Homer confronts Marge, she angrily denies the allegation and kicks him out of the house.\n\nProdded by Lisa, Bart confesses to Marge that he left the bra in Kirk's bed. However, Marge refuses to reunite with Homer as he still does not trust her. In order to bring Homer and Marge back together, Lisa inadvertently influences Bart and Milhouse to plan to throw a dummy that looks like Bart off a cliff into the river below, while Homer and Marge, after receiving false messages from each other to meet, watch. However, after breaking his glasses, Milhouse accidentally pushes the real Bart off the cliff. Homer leaps into the rapids to rescue him, but they end up clinging on to a rock near a waterfall. There Bart confesses to Homer what he did, causing Homer to strangle him. Marge tells them to trust her, and let go of the rock. They let go and she catches them, swinging from a rope attached to a tree. Once safely on the river bank, Marge and Homer reconcile. They see Milhouse, thinking Bart died, jump off the cliff, leaving his fate unresolved. Marge wonders if Milhouse can swim, to which Bart asks \"What do you think?\"\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n \n\nThe Simpsons (season 17) episodes\n2005 American television episodes",
"Thomas Bleakley McDowell often called T. B. McDowell, or simply \"the Major\", (18 May 1923 – 9 September 2009) was a British Army officer and subsequently chief executive of The Irish Times for nearly 40 years.\n\nEarly life\nBorn in Belfast in 1923, the only child of a Protestant and unionist couple, McDowell finished school at the Royal Belfast Academic Institution in 1941 as the second World War was under way. He was dissuaded from enlisting immediately in the British army by his parents: his father, also Thomas, had been gassed in the first World War and suffered serious lung problems which led to his early death in 1944. The young Tom went instead to Queen's University in Belfast to study commerce but, a year later and still uncertain about his long-term plans, he joined the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, being commissioned in 1943. He went on to join the Royal Ulster Rifles.\n\nA knee injury during a night training exercise in Omagh made him ineligible for active military service and he became a weapons instructor. The accident also led to him meeting his future wife, Margaret Telfer, the physiotherapist who treated him in hospital in Bangor, Co Down.\n\nHe rose to the rank of major and was part of the Allied forces in occupied Austria following the end of the war, taking part in joint patrols in Vienna with Russian, American and French officers. In the post-war period, he was given two years to finish his college course and spent a summer studying law with a tutor before passing the English bar and returning to the British army.\n\nAfter a further military posting to Edinburgh, his legal qualification brought him to the army legal service in the War Office in London. With little prospect of further promotion and every chance of being posted abroad without his young family, he decided to leave the army. He was offered a job as legal adviser in London to James North Ltd, a company which made protective clothing; with no experience of industry, he asked to be given a managerial role at first.\n\nThe company suggested a managing position in its operations in Dublin. He slotted easily into the city's old business establishment, joining the Kildare Street club, becoming a director of Pim's department store, and setting his career firmly on a commercial rather than a legal path.\n\nThe Irish Times\nHis involvement with newspapers came about through the recognition of his business acumen. He was asked by some acquaintances to take a look at the financial troubles of the Evening Mail, which was bought subsequently by The Irish Times, adding to the latter's own financial difficulties.\n\nHe was asked later by The Irish Times to see if Roy Thomson, the Canadian-born British press baron whom he had met while they both looked separately at the Evening Mail, might be interested in taking it over. Thomson passed and the company then asked McDowell himself to take charge as chief executive in 1962.\n\nAmong his first actions were to close the Evening Mail and the Sunday Review, a short-lived tabloid that was ahead of its time. A year later, another problem was resolved when Douglas Gageby, who had been hired as managing director of The Irish Times shortly before McDowell's arrival, took over as editor.\n\nRelationship with Douglas Gageby\nThus, what had begun as a slightly awkward relationship, turned into a highly successful partnership as Gageby set about broadening the newspaper's editorial appeal and McDowell set it on a successful commercial course.\n\nMcDowell always credited Gageby and his successors as editor with the success of the newspaper, pointing out in an interview last year for the newspaper's archives that \"people buy the paper to see what the editor has said, not to know how it is printed or what kind of paper is used\".\n\nAlthough he had a close relationship with editors, especially Gageby, he did not interfere in the editorial running of the newspaper. He did not share Gageby's republicanism but believed that the minority in the North had been treated badly by the majority.\n\nWhen the North erupted in violence in 1969 - a time when there was little or no real communication between nationalists and unionists or between Irish and British politicians and bureaucrats - he tried on his own initiative to interest the then British prime minister, Harold Wilson, in talks with all the other parties involved.\n\nHis efforts came to nothing but irritated the then British ambassador to Dublin, Sir Andrew Gilchrist, whom he had bypassed.\n\nIn a briefing letter about McDowell's approach, Gilchrist wrote that McDowell had described Gageby as \"a renegade or white nigger\". McDowell strongly denied the charge when Gilchrist's letter was published in 2003: \"I never used that phrase, nor would I have thought of using it, about Gageby,\" he said in last year's interview. \"Other people (in Belfast) called him a renegade, but I never thought he was a renegade. Douglas never made any secret of what he was. There could be no doubt about him turning or changing or anything like that.\"\n\nThe Irish Times Trust\n\nBy the early 1970s, the circulation of The Irish Times had almost doubled in a decade to 60,000 and it was making money. Some of the directors indicated an interest in selling the company and McDowell proposed instead that it be turned into a trust. It was a period when several newspapers in Ireland and Britain had changed hands or were seen as being vulnerable to takeovers.\n\nHis aims were to protect the newspaper's independence, make it as difficult as possible for anyone to take over, and formalise its aims in a guiding trust.\n\nMcDowell's primary interest in the arrangements was in drawing up the terms of the trust, using his legal expertise and drawing on a wide range of media models including the Guardian, the Observer, the Economist magazine, and the New York Times as well as other documents ranging from the Constitution to the American Declaration of Independence.\n\nHe worked on the trust document for many months, going through 28 drafts before he was satisfied with the result. Among the issues he had to consider was the mechanism for appointing trustees: various options which would allow public bodies or interests to name members were considered but ruled out because of fears that the appointments would become politicised.\n\nIn the end, he opted to appoint them himself, with the help of each one selected to appoint others. When he had finished the draft trust document he showed it to Gageby who suggested that a proviso requiring the newspaper to reflect minority views be included, which it was.\n\nThe five directors of the company, including McDowell and Gageby, transferred their shares in the company to a solicitor in the autumn of 1973 in anticipation of announcing the trust at the end of that year.\n\nFurther delays in finalising the trust terms resulted in its announcement in April 1974, on the eve of the introduction of capital gains tax.\n\nThe timing gave rise to suggestions that the directors were taking their cash (£325,000 each) out of the company before the new tax took effect.\n\nMcDowell always denied that this was the case, maintaining that the timing was coincidental: he was also adamant that the motivation behind the formation of the trust itself was altruistic. The formation of the trust left the newspaper with a large bank debt, used to buy out the directors/shareholders, at what turned out to be a difficult economic period after the first oil crisis hit the western world in the autumn of 1974. McDowell successfully guided The Irish Times' financial fortunes through the subsequent recession and into further periods of growth throughout the 1980s and 1990s.\n\nHe stood down as chief executive of the company in 1997 and retired from the chairmanship of The Irish Times Trust in 2001: he was given the title President for Life in recognition of his huge contribution to the newspaper.\n\nTom McDowell was a private person and never sought or exploited the public status or limelight that goes with being a newspaper publisher. But he was an extraordinary presence in \"the bunker\", his office in D'Olier Street. He always dressed formally and though he was somewhat aloof, he knew every employee.\n\nDuring his visit to the new The Irish Times offices on Tara Street, in June 2008 for the unveiling of a portrait of him by Andrew Festing, he described the newspaper and his family as the two loves of his life.\n\nPersonal life\n\nHis wife, Margaret, predeceased him in 1992. At the time of his death he was survived by his daughters Penelope and Karen, sons-in-law, five grandchildren and four great grandchildren.\n\nReferences\n\n1923 births\n2009 deaths\nBusinesspeople from Northern Ireland\nIrish chief executives\nThe Irish Times people"
] |
[
"Alvin and the Chipmunks",
"Alvin and the Chipmunks (1983-90)"
] | C_1a26c9cccd24479ab425d2bbd4fd169b_1 | How popular was alvin and the chipmunks during this time frame? | 1 | How popular was Alvin and the Chipmunks during 1983-1990? | Alvin and the Chipmunks | The group's name changed from the "Chipmunks" to "Alvin and the Chipmunks". In 1983, a second animated television series for the group, produced by Ruby-Spears Productions, was released. Titled simply Alvin and the Chipmunks, the outline of the show closely paralleled the original Alvin Show. The series lasted eight production seasons, until 1990. In the first season, the show introduced the Chipettes, three female versions of the Chipmunks -- Brittany, Jeanette, and Eleanor, who each paralleled the original Chipmunks in personality except for Brittany being vainer than Alvin, with Jeanette smart like Simon, and Eleanor fond of food like Theodore, with their own human guardian, the myopic Miss Beatrice Miller (who arrived for the 1986 season). The success of the show led to the release of a soundtrack album in 1984, Songs from Our TV Shows. The Chipmunks even walked a variation of NBC's "Let's All Be There" campaign for its Saturday-morning lineup in 1984 (shows included The Smurfs, Snorks, Going Bananas, Pink Panther and Sons, Kidd Video, Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, Mister T, etc.). After 1988, the show was renamed just The Chipmunks to indicate that there were now two groups of them. Also introduced was the boys' "Uncle" Harry, who may or may not have actually been a relative. The show reflected contemporaneous trends popular culture; the Chipmunks sang recent hits, and wore contemporary clothing. One "documentary" episode spoofed John Lennon's 1966 infamous comment that The Beatles had become "more popular than Jesus", by recalling how the Chipmunks had fallen in popularity after Alvin boasted they were "bigger than Mickey Mouse!". In 1985, the Chipmunks, along with the Chipettes, were featured in the live stage show, Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Amazing Computer. In 1987, during the fifth season of the show on television, the Chipmunks had their first animated feature film, The Chipmunk Adventure, directed by Janice Karman and Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and released to theaters by The Samuel Goldwyn Company. The film featured the Chipmunks and the Chipettes in a contest traveling around the world. In the 1988-89 season, the show switched production companies to DIC Entertainment, by which time the Chipmunks had truly become anthropomorphized. In 1990, the show switched titles again to The Chipmunks Go to the Movies. Each episode in this season was a spoof of a Hollywood film, such as Back to the Future, King Kong, and others. In addition, several television specials featuring the characters were also released. At the conclusion of the eighth season, the show was canceled again. In 1990, a documentary was produced about the show entitled Alvin and the Chipmunks/Five Decades with the Chipmunks. In that year, the Chipmunks also teamed up for the only time with other famous cartoon stars (such as Bugs Bunny, Garfield, etc.) for the drug abuse-prevention special Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks or simply The Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band created by Ross Bagdasarian for a novelty record in 1958. The group consists of three singing animated anthropomorphic chipmunks named Alvin, Simon, and Theodore. They are managed by their human adoptive father, David "Dave" Seville.
Bagdasarian provided the group's voices sped up to create high-pitched squeaky voices (which wasn't entirely new to him, having worked on "Witch Doctor" earned the record two Grammy Awards for engineering).
"The Chipmunk Song" became a number-one single in the United States. After Bagdasarian died in 1972, the characters’ voices were provided by his son Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and the latter's wife Janice Karman in the subsequent incarnations of the 1981s and 1991s.
A CGI-animated TV series reboot, titled ALVINNN!!! and the Chipmunks, premiered on Nickelodeon on August 3, 2016. In 2019, The Chipmunks received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Through the successful franchise, the Chipmunks have become one of the most successful children's artists of all time. It has garnered two number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100 and won five Grammy Awards, having four Top 10 albums on the Billboard 200 and three certified platinum albums. "The Chipmunk Song" became one of the best-selling singles of all time at 5 million physical copies sold.
On November 2, 2021, Bagdasarian Productions announced it would sell the property for $300 million. Paramount Global was reported as one of the interested buyers.
History
"Witch Doctor"
In 1958, Ross Bagdasarian Sr. released a novelty song (as David Seville) about being unsuccessful at love until he found a witch doctor who told him how to woo his woman. The song was done by Bagdasarian in his normal voice, except for the "magic" words, done first in Bagdasarian's pitched-up, pre-Chipmunk voice, then in a duet between his pitched-up voice and his normal voice. The words themselves are nonsense: "Oo-ee, oo-ah-ah, ting-tang, walla-walla, bing-bang".
The song was a hit, holding number one for three weeks in the Billboard Top 100 chart. Nothing makes any reference to chipmunks, but the song is sometimes included on Chipmunk compilations as if the Chipmunks had provided the voice of the Witch Doctor. Bagdasarian did record a Chipmunks version of "Witch Doctor", which appeared on the second Chipmunks album, Sing Again with the Chipmunks, in 1960. Bagdasarian performed the song "live" (with a pre-recorded track of the pitched-up voice) on The Ed Sullivan Show.
Bagdasarian (again as Seville) recorded a follow-up song, "The Bird on My Head", singing a duet with his own sped-up voice as the bird. It also reached the Top 40, peaking at No. 34. While driving in Sequoia National Park, Bagdasarian saw a chipmunk dash in front of him. That moment inspired him to create his chipmunk characters.
The technique was imitated by Sheb Wooley's "The Purple People Eater" and The Big Bopper's "The Purple People Eater Meets the Witch Doctor".
"The Chipmunk Song"
After the success of Witch Doctor, Liberty Records asked Bagdasarian to create another successful novelty record. He then came up with three singing chipmunks who were named, as an inside joke, after executives at Liberty Records. Alvin (named after Al Bennett), Simon (named after Si Waronker), and Theodore (Ted Keep).
The Chipmunks first officially appeared on the scene in a novelty record released in late fall 1958 by Bagdasarian. The song, originally listed on the record label (Liberty F-55168) as "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)", featured the singing skills of the chipmunk trio. One phrase in the chorus has Alvin wishing for a hula hoop, which was that year's hot new toy. The novelty record was highly successful, selling more than 4 million copies in seven weeks, and it launched the careers of its chipmunk stars. It spent four weeks at Number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart from December 22, 1958, to January 12, 1959, succeeding "To Know Him Is to Love Him" at Number 1 on the same chart by the Teddy Bears, a pop group that featured Phil Spector. It also earned three Grammy Awards and a nomination for Record of the Year. At the height of its popularity, Bagdasarian and three chipmunk hand-puppets appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show, lip-synching the song. "The Chipmunk Song" appeared on the Chipmunks' debut album, Let's All Sing with the Chipmunks, in 1959, and was repeated on Christmas with the Chipmunks, released in 1962. The song also has been included on several compilation albums.
Bob Rivers did a parody of this song for his 2000 Christmas album Chipmunks Roasting on an Open Fire which was titled "The Twisted Chipmunk Song". In the song, the Chipmunks are referred to as Thagadore (Theodore), Squeaky (Simon), and Melvin (Alvin).
The Three Chipmunks (1959)
The Chipmunks first appeared in comic book form on Dell Comics' Four Color Comics series, issue #1042 (cover-dated Dec. 1959). Alvin, Theodore and Simon were depicted as somewhat realistic, nearly identical anthropomorphic rodents with almond-shaped eyes. When Herb Klynn's Format Films made a deal to develop the Three Chipmunks for animation, the old designs were rejected and new versions of the characters were created. Liberty Records eventually re-issued the early albums with the "new" Chipmunks and it was this new version of the Chipmunks that was used when Alvin's own title was released by Dell in 1962.
The Alvin Show (1961–62)
The first television series to feature the characters was The Alvin Show. By this period, the Chipmunks looked much like their modern incarnations. Also, an animated portrayal of Seville was a reasonable caricature of Bagdasarian himself. The series ran from 1961 to 1962 and was one of a small number of animated series to be shown in prime time on CBS. It was not a prime-time ratings success and was subsequently canceled after one season. Ratings improved significantly in syndication.
In addition to Alvin cartoons, the series also featured the scientist Clyde Crashcup and his assistant Leonardo. Those characters did not feature prominently on any of the later series. Crashcup made a single cameo appearance in A Chipmunk Christmas, and in an episode of the 1983 TV series. The television series was produced by Format Films for Bagdasarian Film Corporation. Although the series was broadcast in black and white, it was produced and later re-run in color. Twenty-six episodes each were produced for the "Alvin and the Chipmunks" and "Clyde Crashcup" segments, along with 52 musical segments.
New albums and A Chipmunk Christmas (1969–82)
The final Chipmunks album in the project's original incarnation, The Chipmunks Go to the Movies, was released in 1969. After the death of Ross Bagdasarian in 1972 from a heart attack, the Chipmunks' careers stalled until NBC showed interest in the original show (the network carried Saturday morning reruns of The Alvin Show as a midseason replacement in 1979) and the following year, Excelsior Records released a new album of contemporary songs performed by the Chipmunks. That album, Chipmunk Punk, featured Bagdasarian's son, Ross Bagdasarian Jr., doing the voices of the characters. That album and the continued reruns of the series proved to be popular enough to warrant further new records as well as new television productions, and in 1981, the Chipmunks and Seville returned to television in the Christmas special A Chipmunk Christmas, produced by Marvel Productions, which was first broadcast on NBC on December 14 of that year. Next year, two more albums were released (Chipmunk Rock and The Chipmunks Go Hollywood).
Alvin and the Chipmunks (1983–90)
The group's name changed from "the Chipmunks" to "Alvin and the Chipmunks".
In 1983, a second animated television series for the group, produced by Ruby-Spears Productions, was released. Titled simply Alvin and the Chipmunks, the outline of the show closely paralleled the original Alvin Show. The series lasted eight production seasons until 1990. The first season introduced the Chipettes (three female versions of the Chipmunks): Brittany, Jeanette, and Eleanor with their human guardian, the myopic Miss Beatrice Miller (who arrived for the 1986 season). The show's success led to the release of a soundtrack album in 1984, Songs from Our TV Shows.
After 1988, the show was renamed just The Chipmunks to indicate that there were now two groups of them. Also introduced was the boys' "Uncle" Harry, who may or may not have been a relative. The show reflected contemporaneous trends in popular culture; the Chipmunks sang recent hits, and wore contemporary clothing. One "documentary" episode spoofed John Lennon's 1966 infamous comment that the Beatles had become "more popular than Jesus", by recalling how the Chipmunks had fallen in popularity after Alvin boasted they were "bigger than Mickey Mouse!". In 1985, the Chipmunks, along with the Chipettes, were featured in the live stage show, Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Amazing Computer. In 1987, during the fifth season of the television show, the Chipmunks had their first animated feature film, The Chipmunk Adventure, directed by Janice Karman and Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and released to theaters by The Samuel Goldwyn Company. The film featured the Chipmunks and the Chipettes in a contest traveling around the world.
In the 1988–89 season, the show switched production companies to DIC Entertainment (1988-1990) and Murakami Wolf Swenson (1988), by which time the Chipmunks had truly become anthropomorphized. In 1990, the show switched titles again to The Chipmunks Go to the Movies. Each episode in this season was a spoof of a Hollywood film, such as Back to the Future, King Kong, and others. In addition, several television specials featuring the characters were also released. After the eighth season, the show was canceled again. In 1990, a documentary was produced about the show entitled Alvin and the Chipmunks/Five Decades with the Chipmunks. In that year, the Chipmunks also teamed up for the only time with other famous cartoon stars (such as Bugs Bunny, Garfield, etc.) for the drug abuse-prevention special Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue.
Music releases and short-lived Universal acquisition (1991–2002)
On January 18, 1991, NBC aired a television special starring the Chipmunks entitled Rockin' Through the Decades. The same year, it released the album The Chipmunks Rock the House. In 1992, the group released the country album Chipmunks in Low Places. Released on September 29, 1992, the album was certified platinum by the RIAA, becoming the group's first platinum record and making it the Chipmunks' best-selling album followed by a greatest hits release and a reissue of 1981's A Chipmunk Christmas. By 1993, Urban Chipmunk was re-released as a compilation album The Chipmunks' 35th Birthday Party with a double album, called The Chipmunks Sing-Alongs.
Their fourth Christmas album, A Very Merry Chipmunk, saw a release in 1994, then When You Wish Upon a Chipmunk in 1995, Club Chipmunk: The Dance Mixes peaked in the Top 10 on Billboard's Top Kid Audio.
In 1996, Universal Studios purchased the rights to the characters. In 1998, Sony Wonder and Columbia Records released The A-Files: Alien Songs and Greatest Hits: Still Squeaky After All These Years on September 21, 1999. The purchase of the rights to the characters by Universal resulted in The Chipmunks' 1999 reappearance, in the form of the direct-to-video movie Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet Frankenstein, released on September 28, 1999. Five new songs were composed for the film were made available via a soundtrack released by MCA Records. Later that year, The Chipmunks' Greatest Christmas Hits was released.
The movie was successful enough to spark interest in a sequel, and in 2000, Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet the Wolfman appeared. Three new songs were composed for the film, that were also made available on a soundtrack by MCA.
Both movies featured the original cast of the second series reprising their roles as the tone was very similar to the series. Universal lost the rights to the characters in 2002 due to a breach of contract with Bagdasarian Productions.
Return to independency, movies and merchandise (2003–2021)
On September 17, 2004, Fox 2000 Pictures, Regency Enterprises, and Bagdasarian Productions announced a live-action hybrid film starring Alvin and the Chipmunks. Tim Hill directed the 2007 CGI/live-action film adaptation, with Justin Long, Matthew Gray Gubler, and Jesse McCartney providing the voices, along with its 2009, 2011, and 2015 sequels. Bagdasarian Jr. and Karman continue to perform the singing voices for Alvin, Theodore, and the Chipettes, but Steve Vining did Simon's singing voice. The projects have earned five Grammy awards, an American Music Award, a Golden Reel Award, three Kids' Choice Awards, and Emmy nominations.
Possible acquisition (2021–present)
The franchise was announced to be sold to a potential buyer.
Main characters
Dave Seville
The Chipmunks
The 1983 series revealed that the boys' mother "Vinnie" is a similarly anthropomorphic chipmunk living in a nearby forest. One year a particularly harsh winter had caused a nut shortage. Vinnie realized that her newborn children would likely not survive the winter, so she anonymously left them on Dave's doorstep. She returned briefly to see what happened years later. Dave and the boys were unaware of their origins until they asked him during an argument over the exact date of their birthday. Vinnie had never revealed herself to him, but the boys investigated and eventually tracked her down.
In the 2007 feature film, the chipmunks lived in a tree, fending for themselves as their parents had taken off to join a hippie commune and had problems gathering nuts for the winter. Their tree is cut down and carted off to grace the entrance lobby of a city office building, with them in it. They eventually wind up in Dave's home, where they wreak havoc. After being thrown out, Dave notices how well they can sing, making them famous. They eventually win his heart.
In the 1980s media, the boys are triplets, as they celebrate their birthday together in "''A Chipmunk Reunion''" (Alvin stating to be born five minutes before Simon), and they are about 8–9 years. While never mentioned, in the CGI movies and 2015 series, the chipmunks are no longer triplets and celebrate different birthdays; but seem to be around the same school age.
Recording technique
The Chipmunks' voices were recorded at half the normal tape speed on audiotape by voice talent (on the 1960s records, generally Ross Bagdasarian Sr.'s own voice overdubbed three times, on the post-1980s records, studio singers) talking or singing at half the normal speaking rate. When the tape was played back at normal speed, they would sound a full octave higher in pitch, at normal tempo. The technique was by no means new to the Chipmunks. For example, the high- and low-pitched characters in The Wizard of Oz were achieved by speeding up and slowing down vocal recordings. Also, Mel Blanc's voice characterization for Daffy Duck was Sylvester the Cat's voice sped up to some extent. Now, the same effect is created digitally and in real-time with a pitch shift.
However, the extensive use of this technique with the Chipmunks, coupled with their popularity, linked this technique to them. The term "chipmunk-voiced" has entered the American vernacular to describe any artificially high-pitched voice. A similar effect could be obtained in playback by merely taking an LP recorded at 33 RPM and playing it back at 45 or 78 RPM, a trick sometimes tried out by ordinary record listeners. The instrumental portions of the song are sped up as well, however, making it obvious that the music is being played at the wrong speed. Bagdasarian recorded vocals and music at different speeds to combine properly on his recording. Guitarist Les Paul said he visited Bagdasarian's studio in 1958 and helped with the recording.
The technique was used extensively in the British puppet show Pinky and Perky, which predated the Chipmunks. The sound was frequently imitated in comedy records, notably "Transistor Radio" by Benny Hill, "Bridget the Midget" by Ray Stevens, "The Laughing Gnome" by David Bowie, and on several tracks on Joe Meek and the Blue Men's album I Hear a New World. The technique also appears in the "Yeah! You!" line of the Coasters' song "Charlie Brown". Prince used the technique on several of his songs, as well as Frank Zappa on We're Only in It for the Money and on the instrumental album Hot Rats, among others. The early production style of hip-hop artist Kanye West involved sped-up, high-pitch vocal samples from classic soul records incorporated with his own (additional) instrumentation. Due in part to the acclaim of his debut album The College Dropout, such sampling techniques subsequently became much copied by a myriad of other hip-hop producers. In the early 1990s rave scene, many breakbeat hardcore productions would utilize the same studio tricks, often taking a cappella from house records and speeding them up to fit the faster tempo. Vocals in songs that used this method would typically be referred to as "chipmunk vocals".
Guest appearances
The Chipmunks made their first guest appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show on December 13, 1959, when they performed "The Chipmunk Song".
In 1968, the Chipmunks appeared in an Italian commercial TV program Carosello, in their sponsorship of Prealpi, a cheese-maker in Varese, Italy.
The Chipmunks appeared in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade twice; 1983 and 1986. In the 1983 parade, they performed Tomorrow. In 1986, they performed The Girls of Rock and Roll with The Chipettes as a way to promote their film, The Chipmunk Adventure, which was released six months later.
The Chipmunks performed with Canned Heat on the band's interpretation of "The Chipmunk Song", which is sufficiently derivative of the Chipmunk's 1958 hit that Ross Bagdasarian Sr. gets sole writing credit. It was featured as the flip-side of the band's Christmas Blues single released in late 2009.
The Chipmunks made a guest appearance on Xuxa in 1993, where they performed "Country Pride" from their album, Chipmunks in Low Places.
They also appeared on the FOX NFL Sunday intro (which premiered on December 20, 2009) with the cameo character, Digger (the mascot for NASCAR on Fox).
The Chipmunks made an appearance at a Los Angeles Dodgers preseason game on April 3, 2010, when the Dodgers squared off against their rivals, the Los Angeles Angels. The group performed, "America the Beautiful" with a group of children prior to the game. Also, Simon Seville wore a wig of Manny Ramirez's dreadlocks. Ross Bagdasarian Jr. made the opening ceremonial pitch for that game.
The Chipmunks made multiple appearances on ads for Food Safety to help kids learn safe food practices.
Discography
Video games
The Chipmunks (1990) – platforms: Tiger Electronic Game.
Alvin and the Chipmunks (2007) – platforms: Nintendo DS, Wii, PlayStation 2 and Microsoft Windows.
Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel (2009) – platforms: Nintendo DS and Wii.
Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (2011) – arranger: Eleonora Rossin - platforms: Nintendo DS, Wii and Xbox 360.
Concert tours
1984:The Chipmunks and the Magic Camera (The Chipmunks)
1985: Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Amazing Computer (The Chipmunks and the Chipettes)
2008: Get Munk'd Tour (The Chipmunks)
2015: Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Musical (The Chipmunks and the Chipettes)
Awards and nominations
1959, won three Grammy Awards for Best Recording for Children, Best Comedy Performance and Best Engineered Record –Non-Classical for the song "The Chipmunk Song" (it was also nominated for Record of the Year, but did not win).
1960, won a Grammy Award for Best Engineered Recording -Non-Classical for the song "Alvin's Harmonica."
1961, won a Grammy Award for Best Album for Children for the album Let's All Sing with the Chipmunks (it was also nominated for Best Engineered Record -Non-Classical). The song "Alvin for President" was also nominated for both Best Comedy Performance –Musical and Best Engineered Record –Novelty, making two nominations in the latter category.
1962, was nominated again for a Grammy Award for Best Engineered Record –Novelty for the television tie-in album The Alvin Show.
1963, was nominated again for Grammy Awards for both Best Album for Children and Best Engineered Record –Novelty for the album The Chipmunk Songbook.
1966, was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Recording for Children for the song "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious".
1985, was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category "Outstanding Animated Program (Daytime)."
1987, the second television series was nominated for a Young Artist Award in the category "Exceptional Family Animation Series or Specials."
1987, was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category "Outstanding Animated Program (Daytime)."
1988, was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category "Outstanding Animated Program (Daytime)."
1988, was nominated for a Young Artist Award in the category "Best Motion Picture –Animation" for the movie The Chipmunk Adventure.
2000, won the Golden Reel Award in the category "Best Sound Editing –Direct to Video – Sound Editorial" for the movie Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet Frankenstein.
2008, Jason Lee won the Kids' Choice Awards in the category "Favorite Movie" for the movie Alvin and the Chipmunks.
2008, the 2007 Alvin and the Chipmunks soundtrack won the American Music Award for "Best Movie Soundtrack."
2010, Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel won the Kids' Choice Awards in the category "Favorite Movie."
2012, Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked won the 2012 Kids' Choice Awards in the category "Favorite Movie."
2019, earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
There were five Grammy Awards, an American Music Award, a Golden Reel Award, three Kids Choice Awards in total, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
References
External links
Chipmunks.com, Bagdasarian Productions' official site
Cinema.ch Trailer
"The History of the Chipmunks", Animation.Archive.org
Alvin and the Chipmunks" at Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Archived from the original on April 4, 2012.
1958 establishments in the United States
American children's musical groups
American novelty song performers
Animated musical groups
American animation studios
Anthropomorphic rodents
Atlantic Records artists
Capitol Records artists
Child musical groups
Columbia Records artists
Decca Records artists
Family musical groups
Fictional musical groups
Fictional adoptees
Fictional characters introduced in 1958
Fictional chipmunks
Fictional dancers
Fictional musicians
Fictional singers
Fictional trios
Grammy Award winners
Hollywood Records artists
Liberty Records artists
Child characters in animated films
Child characters in animated series
Child characters in film
American companies established in 1961
1961 establishments in California
Companies based in Santa Barbara County, California
Child characters in television
Teenage characters in film
Animated television series about children
MCA Records artists
Musical groups established in 1958
Parody musicians
RCA Records artists
Recorded music characters
Video game musicians | false | [
"Club Chipmunk: The Dance Mixes is a music album by Alvin and the Chipmunks and was released by Sony Wonder. The album was released on October 6, 1996 and contains cover versions of popular pop/dance songs, and a Spanish version of \"Macarena\". The album peaked at #8 on Billboard's Top Kid Audio.\n\nTrack listing\n\"Macarena\" (Los del Río) - The Chipmunks and The Chipettes\n\"Vogue\" (Madonna) - The Chipettes\n\"Stayin' Alive\" (Bee Gees) - The Chipmunks\n\"Play That Funky Music\" (Wild Cherry) - The Chipmunks\n\"I'm Too Sexy\" (Right Said Fred) - Alvin\n\"Turn the Beat Around\" (Vicki Sue Robinson, Gloria Estefan) - The Chipettes\n\"Witch Doctor\" - The Chipmunks\n\"Shout\" (The Isley Brothers) - The Chipmunks\n\"Love Shack\" (The B-52's) - The Chipmunks and The Chipettes\n\"Macarena (Spanish Version)\" - The Chipmunks and The Chipettes\n\nReferences\n\n1996 albums\nAlvin and the Chipmunks albums",
"Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks or simply The Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band created by Ross Bagdasarian for a novelty record in 1958. The group consists of three singing animated anthropomorphic chipmunks named Alvin, Simon, and Theodore. They are managed by their human adoptive father, David \"Dave\" Seville.\n\nBagdasarian provided the group's voices sped up to create high-pitched squeaky voices (which wasn't entirely new to him, having worked on \"Witch Doctor\" earned the record two Grammy Awards for engineering). \n\n\"The Chipmunk Song\" became a number-one single in the United States. After Bagdasarian died in 1972, the characters’ voices were provided by his son Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and the latter's wife Janice Karman in the subsequent incarnations of the 1981s and 1991s.\n\nA CGI-animated TV series reboot, titled ALVINNN!!! and the Chipmunks, premiered on Nickelodeon on August 3, 2016. In 2019, The Chipmunks received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.\n\nThrough the successful franchise, the Chipmunks have become one of the most successful children's artists of all time. It has garnered two number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100 and won five Grammy Awards, having four Top 10 albums on the Billboard 200 and three certified platinum albums. \"The Chipmunk Song\" became one of the best-selling singles of all time at 5 million physical copies sold.\n\nOn November 2, 2021, Bagdasarian Productions announced it would sell the property for $300 million. Paramount Global was reported as one of the interested buyers.\n\nHistory\n\n\"Witch Doctor\" \n\nIn 1958, Ross Bagdasarian Sr. released a novelty song (as David Seville) about being unsuccessful at love until he found a witch doctor who told him how to woo his woman. The song was done by Bagdasarian in his normal voice, except for the \"magic\" words, done first in Bagdasarian's pitched-up, pre-Chipmunk voice, then in a duet between his pitched-up voice and his normal voice. The words themselves are nonsense: \"Oo-ee, oo-ah-ah, ting-tang, walla-walla, bing-bang\".\n\nThe song was a hit, holding number one for three weeks in the Billboard Top 100 chart. Nothing makes any reference to chipmunks, but the song is sometimes included on Chipmunk compilations as if the Chipmunks had provided the voice of the Witch Doctor. Bagdasarian did record a Chipmunks version of \"Witch Doctor\", which appeared on the second Chipmunks album, Sing Again with the Chipmunks, in 1960. Bagdasarian performed the song \"live\" (with a pre-recorded track of the pitched-up voice) on The Ed Sullivan Show.\n\nBagdasarian (again as Seville) recorded a follow-up song, \"The Bird on My Head\", singing a duet with his own sped-up voice as the bird. It also reached the Top 40, peaking at No. 34. While driving in Sequoia National Park, Bagdasarian saw a chipmunk dash in front of him. That moment inspired him to create his chipmunk characters.\n\nThe technique was imitated by Sheb Wooley's \"The Purple People Eater\" and The Big Bopper's \"The Purple People Eater Meets the Witch Doctor\".\n\n\"The Chipmunk Song\" \n\nAfter the success of Witch Doctor, Liberty Records asked Bagdasarian to create another successful novelty record. He then came up with three singing chipmunks who were named, as an inside joke, after executives at Liberty Records. Alvin (named after Al Bennett), Simon (named after Si Waronker), and Theodore (Ted Keep).\n\nThe Chipmunks first officially appeared on the scene in a novelty record released in late fall 1958 by Bagdasarian. The song, originally listed on the record label (Liberty F-55168) as \"The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)\", featured the singing skills of the chipmunk trio. One phrase in the chorus has Alvin wishing for a hula hoop, which was that year's hot new toy. The novelty record was highly successful, selling more than 4 million copies in seven weeks, and it launched the careers of its chipmunk stars. It spent four weeks at Number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart from December 22, 1958, to January 12, 1959, succeeding \"To Know Him Is to Love Him\" at Number 1 on the same chart by the Teddy Bears, a pop group that featured Phil Spector. It also earned three Grammy Awards and a nomination for Record of the Year. At the height of its popularity, Bagdasarian and three chipmunk hand-puppets appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show, lip-synching the song. \"The Chipmunk Song\" appeared on the Chipmunks' debut album, Let's All Sing with the Chipmunks, in 1959, and was repeated on Christmas with the Chipmunks, released in 1962. The song also has been included on several compilation albums.\n\nBob Rivers did a parody of this song for his 2000 Christmas album Chipmunks Roasting on an Open Fire which was titled \"The Twisted Chipmunk Song\". In the song, the Chipmunks are referred to as Thagadore (Theodore), Squeaky (Simon), and Melvin (Alvin).\n\nThe Three Chipmunks (1959) \nThe Chipmunks first appeared in comic book form on Dell Comics' Four Color Comics series, issue #1042 (cover-dated Dec. 1959). Alvin, Theodore and Simon were depicted as somewhat realistic, nearly identical anthropomorphic rodents with almond-shaped eyes. When Herb Klynn's Format Films made a deal to develop the Three Chipmunks for animation, the old designs were rejected and new versions of the characters were created. Liberty Records eventually re-issued the early albums with the \"new\" Chipmunks and it was this new version of the Chipmunks that was used when Alvin's own title was released by Dell in 1962.\n\nThe Alvin Show (1961–62) \n\nThe first television series to feature the characters was The Alvin Show. By this period, the Chipmunks looked much like their modern incarnations. Also, an animated portrayal of Seville was a reasonable caricature of Bagdasarian himself. The series ran from 1961 to 1962 and was one of a small number of animated series to be shown in prime time on CBS. It was not a prime-time ratings success and was subsequently canceled after one season. Ratings improved significantly in syndication.\n\nIn addition to Alvin cartoons, the series also featured the scientist Clyde Crashcup and his assistant Leonardo. Those characters did not feature prominently on any of the later series. Crashcup made a single cameo appearance in A Chipmunk Christmas, and in an episode of the 1983 TV series. The television series was produced by Format Films for Bagdasarian Film Corporation. Although the series was broadcast in black and white, it was produced and later re-run in color. Twenty-six episodes each were produced for the \"Alvin and the Chipmunks\" and \"Clyde Crashcup\" segments, along with 52 musical segments.\n\nNew albums and A Chipmunk Christmas (1969–82)\nThe final Chipmunks album in the project's original incarnation, The Chipmunks Go to the Movies, was released in 1969. After the death of Ross Bagdasarian in 1972 from a heart attack, the Chipmunks' careers stalled until NBC showed interest in the original show (the network carried Saturday morning reruns of The Alvin Show as a midseason replacement in 1979) and the following year, Excelsior Records released a new album of contemporary songs performed by the Chipmunks. That album, Chipmunk Punk, featured Bagdasarian's son, Ross Bagdasarian Jr., doing the voices of the characters. That album and the continued reruns of the series proved to be popular enough to warrant further new records as well as new television productions, and in 1981, the Chipmunks and Seville returned to television in the Christmas special A Chipmunk Christmas, produced by Marvel Productions, which was first broadcast on NBC on December 14 of that year. Next year, two more albums were released (Chipmunk Rock and The Chipmunks Go Hollywood).\n\nAlvin and the Chipmunks (1983–90)\n\nThe group's name changed from \"the Chipmunks\" to \"Alvin and the Chipmunks\".\n\nIn 1983, a second animated television series for the group, produced by Ruby-Spears Productions, was released. Titled simply Alvin and the Chipmunks, the outline of the show closely paralleled the original Alvin Show. The series lasted eight production seasons until 1990. The first season introduced the Chipettes (three female versions of the Chipmunks): Brittany, Jeanette, and Eleanor with their human guardian, the myopic Miss Beatrice Miller (who arrived for the 1986 season). The show's success led to the release of a soundtrack album in 1984, Songs from Our TV Shows.\n\nAfter 1988, the show was renamed just The Chipmunks to indicate that there were now two groups of them. Also introduced was the boys' \"Uncle\" Harry, who may or may not have been a relative. The show reflected contemporaneous trends in popular culture; the Chipmunks sang recent hits, and wore contemporary clothing. One \"documentary\" episode spoofed John Lennon's 1966 infamous comment that the Beatles had become \"more popular than Jesus\", by recalling how the Chipmunks had fallen in popularity after Alvin boasted they were \"bigger than Mickey Mouse!\". In 1985, the Chipmunks, along with the Chipettes, were featured in the live stage show, Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Amazing Computer. In 1987, during the fifth season of the television show, the Chipmunks had their first animated feature film, The Chipmunk Adventure, directed by Janice Karman and Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and released to theaters by The Samuel Goldwyn Company. The film featured the Chipmunks and the Chipettes in a contest traveling around the world.\n\nIn the 1988–89 season, the show switched production companies to DIC Entertainment (1988-1990) and Murakami Wolf Swenson (1988), by which time the Chipmunks had truly become anthropomorphized. In 1990, the show switched titles again to The Chipmunks Go to the Movies. Each episode in this season was a spoof of a Hollywood film, such as Back to the Future, King Kong, and others. In addition, several television specials featuring the characters were also released. After the eighth season, the show was canceled again. In 1990, a documentary was produced about the show entitled Alvin and the Chipmunks/Five Decades with the Chipmunks. In that year, the Chipmunks also teamed up for the only time with other famous cartoon stars (such as Bugs Bunny, Garfield, etc.) for the drug abuse-prevention special Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue.\n\nMusic releases and short-lived Universal acquisition (1991–2002) \nOn January 18, 1991, NBC aired a television special starring the Chipmunks entitled Rockin' Through the Decades. The same year, it released the album The Chipmunks Rock the House. In 1992, the group released the country album Chipmunks in Low Places. Released on September 29, 1992, the album was certified platinum by the RIAA, becoming the group's first platinum record and making it the Chipmunks' best-selling album followed by a greatest hits release and a reissue of 1981's A Chipmunk Christmas. By 1993, Urban Chipmunk was re-released as a compilation album The Chipmunks' 35th Birthday Party with a double album, called The Chipmunks Sing-Alongs.\n\nTheir fourth Christmas album, A Very Merry Chipmunk, saw a release in 1994, then When You Wish Upon a Chipmunk in 1995, Club Chipmunk: The Dance Mixes peaked in the Top 10 on Billboard's Top Kid Audio.\n\nIn 1996, Universal Studios purchased the rights to the characters. In 1998, Sony Wonder and Columbia Records released The A-Files: Alien Songs and Greatest Hits: Still Squeaky After All These Years on September 21, 1999. The purchase of the rights to the characters by Universal resulted in The Chipmunks' 1999 reappearance, in the form of the direct-to-video movie Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet Frankenstein, released on September 28, 1999. Five new songs were composed for the film were made available via a soundtrack released by MCA Records. Later that year, The Chipmunks' Greatest Christmas Hits was released.\n\nThe movie was successful enough to spark interest in a sequel, and in 2000, Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet the Wolfman appeared. Three new songs were composed for the film, that were also made available on a soundtrack by MCA.\n\nBoth movies featured the original cast of the second series reprising their roles as the tone was very similar to the series. Universal lost the rights to the characters in 2002 due to a breach of contract with Bagdasarian Productions.\n\nReturn to independency, movies and merchandise (2003–2021) \nOn September 17, 2004, Fox 2000 Pictures, Regency Enterprises, and Bagdasarian Productions announced a live-action hybrid film starring Alvin and the Chipmunks. Tim Hill directed the 2007 CGI/live-action film adaptation, with Justin Long, Matthew Gray Gubler, and Jesse McCartney providing the voices, along with its 2009, 2011, and 2015 sequels. Bagdasarian Jr. and Karman continue to perform the singing voices for Alvin, Theodore, and the Chipettes, but Steve Vining did Simon's singing voice. The projects have earned five Grammy awards, an American Music Award, a Golden Reel Award, three Kids' Choice Awards, and Emmy nominations.\n\nPossible acquisition (2021–present) \nThe franchise was announced to be sold to a potential buyer.\n\nMain characters\n\nDave Seville\n\nThe Chipmunks\nThe 1983 series revealed that the boys' mother \"Vinnie\" is a similarly anthropomorphic chipmunk living in a nearby forest. One year a particularly harsh winter had caused a nut shortage. Vinnie realized that her newborn children would likely not survive the winter, so she anonymously left them on Dave's doorstep. She returned briefly to see what happened years later. Dave and the boys were unaware of their origins until they asked him during an argument over the exact date of their birthday. Vinnie had never revealed herself to him, but the boys investigated and eventually tracked her down.\n\nIn the 2007 feature film, the chipmunks lived in a tree, fending for themselves as their parents had taken off to join a hippie commune and had problems gathering nuts for the winter. Their tree is cut down and carted off to grace the entrance lobby of a city office building, with them in it. They eventually wind up in Dave's home, where they wreak havoc. After being thrown out, Dave notices how well they can sing, making them famous. They eventually win his heart.\n\nIn the 1980s media, the boys are triplets, as they celebrate their birthday together in \"''A Chipmunk Reunion''\" (Alvin stating to be born five minutes before Simon), and they are about 8–9 years. While never mentioned, in the CGI movies and 2015 series, the chipmunks are no longer triplets and celebrate different birthdays; but seem to be around the same school age.\n\nRecording technique\n\nThe Chipmunks' voices were recorded at half the normal tape speed on audiotape by voice talent (on the 1960s records, generally Ross Bagdasarian Sr.'s own voice overdubbed three times, on the post-1980s records, studio singers) talking or singing at half the normal speaking rate. When the tape was played back at normal speed, they would sound a full octave higher in pitch, at normal tempo. The technique was by no means new to the Chipmunks. For example, the high- and low-pitched characters in The Wizard of Oz were achieved by speeding up and slowing down vocal recordings. Also, Mel Blanc's voice characterization for Daffy Duck was Sylvester the Cat's voice sped up to some extent. Now, the same effect is created digitally and in real-time with a pitch shift.\n\nHowever, the extensive use of this technique with the Chipmunks, coupled with their popularity, linked this technique to them. The term \"chipmunk-voiced\" has entered the American vernacular to describe any artificially high-pitched voice. A similar effect could be obtained in playback by merely taking an LP recorded at 33 RPM and playing it back at 45 or 78 RPM, a trick sometimes tried out by ordinary record listeners. The instrumental portions of the song are sped up as well, however, making it obvious that the music is being played at the wrong speed. Bagdasarian recorded vocals and music at different speeds to combine properly on his recording. Guitarist Les Paul said he visited Bagdasarian's studio in 1958 and helped with the recording.\n\nThe technique was used extensively in the British puppet show Pinky and Perky, which predated the Chipmunks. The sound was frequently imitated in comedy records, notably \"Transistor Radio\" by Benny Hill, \"Bridget the Midget\" by Ray Stevens, \"The Laughing Gnome\" by David Bowie, and on several tracks on Joe Meek and the Blue Men's album I Hear a New World. The technique also appears in the \"Yeah! You!\" line of the Coasters' song \"Charlie Brown\". Prince used the technique on several of his songs, as well as Frank Zappa on We're Only in It for the Money and on the instrumental album Hot Rats, among others. The early production style of hip-hop artist Kanye West involved sped-up, high-pitch vocal samples from classic soul records incorporated with his own (additional) instrumentation. Due in part to the acclaim of his debut album The College Dropout, such sampling techniques subsequently became much copied by a myriad of other hip-hop producers. In the early 1990s rave scene, many breakbeat hardcore productions would utilize the same studio tricks, often taking a cappella from house records and speeding them up to fit the faster tempo. Vocals in songs that used this method would typically be referred to as \"chipmunk vocals\".\n\nGuest appearances\nThe Chipmunks made their first guest appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show on December 13, 1959, when they performed \"The Chipmunk Song\".\n\nIn 1968, the Chipmunks appeared in an Italian commercial TV program Carosello, in their sponsorship of Prealpi, a cheese-maker in Varese, Italy.\n\nThe Chipmunks appeared in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade twice; 1983 and 1986. In the 1983 parade, they performed Tomorrow. In 1986, they performed The Girls of Rock and Roll with The Chipettes as a way to promote their film, The Chipmunk Adventure, which was released six months later.\n\nThe Chipmunks performed with Canned Heat on the band's interpretation of \"The Chipmunk Song\", which is sufficiently derivative of the Chipmunk's 1958 hit that Ross Bagdasarian Sr. gets sole writing credit. It was featured as the flip-side of the band's Christmas Blues single released in late 2009.\n\nThe Chipmunks made a guest appearance on Xuxa in 1993, where they performed \"Country Pride\" from their album, Chipmunks in Low Places.\n\nThey also appeared on the FOX NFL Sunday intro (which premiered on December 20, 2009) with the cameo character, Digger (the mascot for NASCAR on Fox).\n\nThe Chipmunks made an appearance at a Los Angeles Dodgers preseason game on April 3, 2010, when the Dodgers squared off against their rivals, the Los Angeles Angels. The group performed, \"America the Beautiful\" with a group of children prior to the game. Also, Simon Seville wore a wig of Manny Ramirez's dreadlocks. Ross Bagdasarian Jr. made the opening ceremonial pitch for that game.\n\nThe Chipmunks made multiple appearances on ads for Food Safety to help kids learn safe food practices.\n\nDiscography\n\nVideo games\n The Chipmunks (1990) – platforms: Tiger Electronic Game.\n Alvin and the Chipmunks (2007) – platforms: Nintendo DS, Wii, PlayStation 2 and Microsoft Windows.\n Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel (2009) – platforms: Nintendo DS and Wii.\n Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (2011) – arranger: Eleonora Rossin - platforms: Nintendo DS, Wii and Xbox 360.\n\nConcert tours\n 1984:The Chipmunks and the Magic Camera (The Chipmunks)\n 1985: Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Amazing Computer (The Chipmunks and the Chipettes)\n 2008: Get Munk'd Tour (The Chipmunks)\n 2015: Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Musical (The Chipmunks and the Chipettes)\n\nAwards and nominations\n 1959, won three Grammy Awards for Best Recording for Children, Best Comedy Performance and Best Engineered Record –Non-Classical for the song \"The Chipmunk Song\" (it was also nominated for Record of the Year, but did not win).\n 1960, won a Grammy Award for Best Engineered Recording -Non-Classical for the song \"Alvin's Harmonica.\"\n 1961, won a Grammy Award for Best Album for Children for the album Let's All Sing with the Chipmunks (it was also nominated for Best Engineered Record -Non-Classical). The song \"Alvin for President\" was also nominated for both Best Comedy Performance –Musical and Best Engineered Record –Novelty, making two nominations in the latter category.\n 1962, was nominated again for a Grammy Award for Best Engineered Record –Novelty for the television tie-in album The Alvin Show.\n 1963, was nominated again for Grammy Awards for both Best Album for Children and Best Engineered Record –Novelty for the album The Chipmunk Songbook.\n 1966, was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Recording for Children for the song \"Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious\".\n 1985, was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category \"Outstanding Animated Program (Daytime).\"\n 1987, the second television series was nominated for a Young Artist Award in the category \"Exceptional Family Animation Series or Specials.\"\n 1987, was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category \"Outstanding Animated Program (Daytime).\"\n 1988, was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category \"Outstanding Animated Program (Daytime).\"\n 1988, was nominated for a Young Artist Award in the category \"Best Motion Picture –Animation\" for the movie The Chipmunk Adventure.\n 2000, won the Golden Reel Award in the category \"Best Sound Editing –Direct to Video – Sound Editorial\" for the movie Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet Frankenstein.\n 2008, Jason Lee won the Kids' Choice Awards in the category \"Favorite Movie\" for the movie Alvin and the Chipmunks.\n 2008, the 2007 Alvin and the Chipmunks soundtrack won the American Music Award for \"Best Movie Soundtrack.\"\n 2010, Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel won the Kids' Choice Awards in the category \"Favorite Movie.\"\n 2012, Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked won the 2012 Kids' Choice Awards in the category \"Favorite Movie.\"\n 2019, earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.\n\nThere were five Grammy Awards, an American Music Award, a Golden Reel Award, three Kids Choice Awards in total, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n Chipmunks.com, Bagdasarian Productions' official site\n \n Cinema.ch Trailer\n \"The History of the Chipmunks\", Animation.Archive.org\n Alvin and the Chipmunks\" at Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Archived from the original on April 4, 2012.\n \n \n\n1958 establishments in the United States\n \nAmerican children's musical groups\nAmerican novelty song performers\nAnimated musical groups\nAmerican animation studios\nAnthropomorphic rodents\nAtlantic Records artists\nCapitol Records artists\nChild musical groups\nColumbia Records artists\nDecca Records artists\nFamily musical groups\nFictional musical groups\nFictional adoptees\nFictional characters introduced in 1958\nFictional chipmunks\nFictional dancers\nFictional musicians\nFictional singers\nFictional trios\nGrammy Award winners\nHollywood Records artists\nLiberty Records artists\nChild characters in animated films\nChild characters in animated series\nChild characters in film\nAmerican companies established in 1961\n1961 establishments in California\nCompanies based in Santa Barbara County, California\nChild characters in television\nTeenage characters in film\nAnimated television series about children\nMCA Records artists\nMusical groups established in 1958\nParody musicians\nRCA Records artists\nRecorded music characters\nVideo game musicians"
] |
[
"Alvin and the Chipmunks",
"Alvin and the Chipmunks (1983-90)",
"How popular was alvin and the chipmunks during this time frame?",
"I don't know."
] | C_1a26c9cccd24479ab425d2bbd4fd169b_1 | Are there any other interesting aspects about this article? | 2 | Besides its popularity, are there any other interesting aspects about Alvin and the Chipmunks? | Alvin and the Chipmunks | The group's name changed from the "Chipmunks" to "Alvin and the Chipmunks". In 1983, a second animated television series for the group, produced by Ruby-Spears Productions, was released. Titled simply Alvin and the Chipmunks, the outline of the show closely paralleled the original Alvin Show. The series lasted eight production seasons, until 1990. In the first season, the show introduced the Chipettes, three female versions of the Chipmunks -- Brittany, Jeanette, and Eleanor, who each paralleled the original Chipmunks in personality except for Brittany being vainer than Alvin, with Jeanette smart like Simon, and Eleanor fond of food like Theodore, with their own human guardian, the myopic Miss Beatrice Miller (who arrived for the 1986 season). The success of the show led to the release of a soundtrack album in 1984, Songs from Our TV Shows. The Chipmunks even walked a variation of NBC's "Let's All Be There" campaign for its Saturday-morning lineup in 1984 (shows included The Smurfs, Snorks, Going Bananas, Pink Panther and Sons, Kidd Video, Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, Mister T, etc.). After 1988, the show was renamed just The Chipmunks to indicate that there were now two groups of them. Also introduced was the boys' "Uncle" Harry, who may or may not have actually been a relative. The show reflected contemporaneous trends popular culture; the Chipmunks sang recent hits, and wore contemporary clothing. One "documentary" episode spoofed John Lennon's 1966 infamous comment that The Beatles had become "more popular than Jesus", by recalling how the Chipmunks had fallen in popularity after Alvin boasted they were "bigger than Mickey Mouse!". In 1985, the Chipmunks, along with the Chipettes, were featured in the live stage show, Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Amazing Computer. In 1987, during the fifth season of the show on television, the Chipmunks had their first animated feature film, The Chipmunk Adventure, directed by Janice Karman and Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and released to theaters by The Samuel Goldwyn Company. The film featured the Chipmunks and the Chipettes in a contest traveling around the world. In the 1988-89 season, the show switched production companies to DIC Entertainment, by which time the Chipmunks had truly become anthropomorphized. In 1990, the show switched titles again to The Chipmunks Go to the Movies. Each episode in this season was a spoof of a Hollywood film, such as Back to the Future, King Kong, and others. In addition, several television specials featuring the characters were also released. At the conclusion of the eighth season, the show was canceled again. In 1990, a documentary was produced about the show entitled Alvin and the Chipmunks/Five Decades with the Chipmunks. In that year, the Chipmunks also teamed up for the only time with other famous cartoon stars (such as Bugs Bunny, Garfield, etc.) for the drug abuse-prevention special Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue. CANNOTANSWER | The group's name changed from the "Chipmunks" to "Alvin and the Chipmunks". In 1983, | Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks or simply The Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band created by Ross Bagdasarian for a novelty record in 1958. The group consists of three singing animated anthropomorphic chipmunks named Alvin, Simon, and Theodore. They are managed by their human adoptive father, David "Dave" Seville.
Bagdasarian provided the group's voices sped up to create high-pitched squeaky voices (which wasn't entirely new to him, having worked on "Witch Doctor" earned the record two Grammy Awards for engineering).
"The Chipmunk Song" became a number-one single in the United States. After Bagdasarian died in 1972, the characters’ voices were provided by his son Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and the latter's wife Janice Karman in the subsequent incarnations of the 1981s and 1991s.
A CGI-animated TV series reboot, titled ALVINNN!!! and the Chipmunks, premiered on Nickelodeon on August 3, 2016. In 2019, The Chipmunks received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Through the successful franchise, the Chipmunks have become one of the most successful children's artists of all time. It has garnered two number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100 and won five Grammy Awards, having four Top 10 albums on the Billboard 200 and three certified platinum albums. "The Chipmunk Song" became one of the best-selling singles of all time at 5 million physical copies sold.
On November 2, 2021, Bagdasarian Productions announced it would sell the property for $300 million. Paramount Global was reported as one of the interested buyers.
History
"Witch Doctor"
In 1958, Ross Bagdasarian Sr. released a novelty song (as David Seville) about being unsuccessful at love until he found a witch doctor who told him how to woo his woman. The song was done by Bagdasarian in his normal voice, except for the "magic" words, done first in Bagdasarian's pitched-up, pre-Chipmunk voice, then in a duet between his pitched-up voice and his normal voice. The words themselves are nonsense: "Oo-ee, oo-ah-ah, ting-tang, walla-walla, bing-bang".
The song was a hit, holding number one for three weeks in the Billboard Top 100 chart. Nothing makes any reference to chipmunks, but the song is sometimes included on Chipmunk compilations as if the Chipmunks had provided the voice of the Witch Doctor. Bagdasarian did record a Chipmunks version of "Witch Doctor", which appeared on the second Chipmunks album, Sing Again with the Chipmunks, in 1960. Bagdasarian performed the song "live" (with a pre-recorded track of the pitched-up voice) on The Ed Sullivan Show.
Bagdasarian (again as Seville) recorded a follow-up song, "The Bird on My Head", singing a duet with his own sped-up voice as the bird. It also reached the Top 40, peaking at No. 34. While driving in Sequoia National Park, Bagdasarian saw a chipmunk dash in front of him. That moment inspired him to create his chipmunk characters.
The technique was imitated by Sheb Wooley's "The Purple People Eater" and The Big Bopper's "The Purple People Eater Meets the Witch Doctor".
"The Chipmunk Song"
After the success of Witch Doctor, Liberty Records asked Bagdasarian to create another successful novelty record. He then came up with three singing chipmunks who were named, as an inside joke, after executives at Liberty Records. Alvin (named after Al Bennett), Simon (named after Si Waronker), and Theodore (Ted Keep).
The Chipmunks first officially appeared on the scene in a novelty record released in late fall 1958 by Bagdasarian. The song, originally listed on the record label (Liberty F-55168) as "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)", featured the singing skills of the chipmunk trio. One phrase in the chorus has Alvin wishing for a hula hoop, which was that year's hot new toy. The novelty record was highly successful, selling more than 4 million copies in seven weeks, and it launched the careers of its chipmunk stars. It spent four weeks at Number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart from December 22, 1958, to January 12, 1959, succeeding "To Know Him Is to Love Him" at Number 1 on the same chart by the Teddy Bears, a pop group that featured Phil Spector. It also earned three Grammy Awards and a nomination for Record of the Year. At the height of its popularity, Bagdasarian and three chipmunk hand-puppets appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show, lip-synching the song. "The Chipmunk Song" appeared on the Chipmunks' debut album, Let's All Sing with the Chipmunks, in 1959, and was repeated on Christmas with the Chipmunks, released in 1962. The song also has been included on several compilation albums.
Bob Rivers did a parody of this song for his 2000 Christmas album Chipmunks Roasting on an Open Fire which was titled "The Twisted Chipmunk Song". In the song, the Chipmunks are referred to as Thagadore (Theodore), Squeaky (Simon), and Melvin (Alvin).
The Three Chipmunks (1959)
The Chipmunks first appeared in comic book form on Dell Comics' Four Color Comics series, issue #1042 (cover-dated Dec. 1959). Alvin, Theodore and Simon were depicted as somewhat realistic, nearly identical anthropomorphic rodents with almond-shaped eyes. When Herb Klynn's Format Films made a deal to develop the Three Chipmunks for animation, the old designs were rejected and new versions of the characters were created. Liberty Records eventually re-issued the early albums with the "new" Chipmunks and it was this new version of the Chipmunks that was used when Alvin's own title was released by Dell in 1962.
The Alvin Show (1961–62)
The first television series to feature the characters was The Alvin Show. By this period, the Chipmunks looked much like their modern incarnations. Also, an animated portrayal of Seville was a reasonable caricature of Bagdasarian himself. The series ran from 1961 to 1962 and was one of a small number of animated series to be shown in prime time on CBS. It was not a prime-time ratings success and was subsequently canceled after one season. Ratings improved significantly in syndication.
In addition to Alvin cartoons, the series also featured the scientist Clyde Crashcup and his assistant Leonardo. Those characters did not feature prominently on any of the later series. Crashcup made a single cameo appearance in A Chipmunk Christmas, and in an episode of the 1983 TV series. The television series was produced by Format Films for Bagdasarian Film Corporation. Although the series was broadcast in black and white, it was produced and later re-run in color. Twenty-six episodes each were produced for the "Alvin and the Chipmunks" and "Clyde Crashcup" segments, along with 52 musical segments.
New albums and A Chipmunk Christmas (1969–82)
The final Chipmunks album in the project's original incarnation, The Chipmunks Go to the Movies, was released in 1969. After the death of Ross Bagdasarian in 1972 from a heart attack, the Chipmunks' careers stalled until NBC showed interest in the original show (the network carried Saturday morning reruns of The Alvin Show as a midseason replacement in 1979) and the following year, Excelsior Records released a new album of contemporary songs performed by the Chipmunks. That album, Chipmunk Punk, featured Bagdasarian's son, Ross Bagdasarian Jr., doing the voices of the characters. That album and the continued reruns of the series proved to be popular enough to warrant further new records as well as new television productions, and in 1981, the Chipmunks and Seville returned to television in the Christmas special A Chipmunk Christmas, produced by Marvel Productions, which was first broadcast on NBC on December 14 of that year. Next year, two more albums were released (Chipmunk Rock and The Chipmunks Go Hollywood).
Alvin and the Chipmunks (1983–90)
The group's name changed from "the Chipmunks" to "Alvin and the Chipmunks".
In 1983, a second animated television series for the group, produced by Ruby-Spears Productions, was released. Titled simply Alvin and the Chipmunks, the outline of the show closely paralleled the original Alvin Show. The series lasted eight production seasons until 1990. The first season introduced the Chipettes (three female versions of the Chipmunks): Brittany, Jeanette, and Eleanor with their human guardian, the myopic Miss Beatrice Miller (who arrived for the 1986 season). The show's success led to the release of a soundtrack album in 1984, Songs from Our TV Shows.
After 1988, the show was renamed just The Chipmunks to indicate that there were now two groups of them. Also introduced was the boys' "Uncle" Harry, who may or may not have been a relative. The show reflected contemporaneous trends in popular culture; the Chipmunks sang recent hits, and wore contemporary clothing. One "documentary" episode spoofed John Lennon's 1966 infamous comment that the Beatles had become "more popular than Jesus", by recalling how the Chipmunks had fallen in popularity after Alvin boasted they were "bigger than Mickey Mouse!". In 1985, the Chipmunks, along with the Chipettes, were featured in the live stage show, Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Amazing Computer. In 1987, during the fifth season of the television show, the Chipmunks had their first animated feature film, The Chipmunk Adventure, directed by Janice Karman and Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and released to theaters by The Samuel Goldwyn Company. The film featured the Chipmunks and the Chipettes in a contest traveling around the world.
In the 1988–89 season, the show switched production companies to DIC Entertainment (1988-1990) and Murakami Wolf Swenson (1988), by which time the Chipmunks had truly become anthropomorphized. In 1990, the show switched titles again to The Chipmunks Go to the Movies. Each episode in this season was a spoof of a Hollywood film, such as Back to the Future, King Kong, and others. In addition, several television specials featuring the characters were also released. After the eighth season, the show was canceled again. In 1990, a documentary was produced about the show entitled Alvin and the Chipmunks/Five Decades with the Chipmunks. In that year, the Chipmunks also teamed up for the only time with other famous cartoon stars (such as Bugs Bunny, Garfield, etc.) for the drug abuse-prevention special Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue.
Music releases and short-lived Universal acquisition (1991–2002)
On January 18, 1991, NBC aired a television special starring the Chipmunks entitled Rockin' Through the Decades. The same year, it released the album The Chipmunks Rock the House. In 1992, the group released the country album Chipmunks in Low Places. Released on September 29, 1992, the album was certified platinum by the RIAA, becoming the group's first platinum record and making it the Chipmunks' best-selling album followed by a greatest hits release and a reissue of 1981's A Chipmunk Christmas. By 1993, Urban Chipmunk was re-released as a compilation album The Chipmunks' 35th Birthday Party with a double album, called The Chipmunks Sing-Alongs.
Their fourth Christmas album, A Very Merry Chipmunk, saw a release in 1994, then When You Wish Upon a Chipmunk in 1995, Club Chipmunk: The Dance Mixes peaked in the Top 10 on Billboard's Top Kid Audio.
In 1996, Universal Studios purchased the rights to the characters. In 1998, Sony Wonder and Columbia Records released The A-Files: Alien Songs and Greatest Hits: Still Squeaky After All These Years on September 21, 1999. The purchase of the rights to the characters by Universal resulted in The Chipmunks' 1999 reappearance, in the form of the direct-to-video movie Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet Frankenstein, released on September 28, 1999. Five new songs were composed for the film were made available via a soundtrack released by MCA Records. Later that year, The Chipmunks' Greatest Christmas Hits was released.
The movie was successful enough to spark interest in a sequel, and in 2000, Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet the Wolfman appeared. Three new songs were composed for the film, that were also made available on a soundtrack by MCA.
Both movies featured the original cast of the second series reprising their roles as the tone was very similar to the series. Universal lost the rights to the characters in 2002 due to a breach of contract with Bagdasarian Productions.
Return to independency, movies and merchandise (2003–2021)
On September 17, 2004, Fox 2000 Pictures, Regency Enterprises, and Bagdasarian Productions announced a live-action hybrid film starring Alvin and the Chipmunks. Tim Hill directed the 2007 CGI/live-action film adaptation, with Justin Long, Matthew Gray Gubler, and Jesse McCartney providing the voices, along with its 2009, 2011, and 2015 sequels. Bagdasarian Jr. and Karman continue to perform the singing voices for Alvin, Theodore, and the Chipettes, but Steve Vining did Simon's singing voice. The projects have earned five Grammy awards, an American Music Award, a Golden Reel Award, three Kids' Choice Awards, and Emmy nominations.
Possible acquisition (2021–present)
The franchise was announced to be sold to a potential buyer.
Main characters
Dave Seville
The Chipmunks
The 1983 series revealed that the boys' mother "Vinnie" is a similarly anthropomorphic chipmunk living in a nearby forest. One year a particularly harsh winter had caused a nut shortage. Vinnie realized that her newborn children would likely not survive the winter, so she anonymously left them on Dave's doorstep. She returned briefly to see what happened years later. Dave and the boys were unaware of their origins until they asked him during an argument over the exact date of their birthday. Vinnie had never revealed herself to him, but the boys investigated and eventually tracked her down.
In the 2007 feature film, the chipmunks lived in a tree, fending for themselves as their parents had taken off to join a hippie commune and had problems gathering nuts for the winter. Their tree is cut down and carted off to grace the entrance lobby of a city office building, with them in it. They eventually wind up in Dave's home, where they wreak havoc. After being thrown out, Dave notices how well they can sing, making them famous. They eventually win his heart.
In the 1980s media, the boys are triplets, as they celebrate their birthday together in "''A Chipmunk Reunion''" (Alvin stating to be born five minutes before Simon), and they are about 8–9 years. While never mentioned, in the CGI movies and 2015 series, the chipmunks are no longer triplets and celebrate different birthdays; but seem to be around the same school age.
Recording technique
The Chipmunks' voices were recorded at half the normal tape speed on audiotape by voice talent (on the 1960s records, generally Ross Bagdasarian Sr.'s own voice overdubbed three times, on the post-1980s records, studio singers) talking or singing at half the normal speaking rate. When the tape was played back at normal speed, they would sound a full octave higher in pitch, at normal tempo. The technique was by no means new to the Chipmunks. For example, the high- and low-pitched characters in The Wizard of Oz were achieved by speeding up and slowing down vocal recordings. Also, Mel Blanc's voice characterization for Daffy Duck was Sylvester the Cat's voice sped up to some extent. Now, the same effect is created digitally and in real-time with a pitch shift.
However, the extensive use of this technique with the Chipmunks, coupled with their popularity, linked this technique to them. The term "chipmunk-voiced" has entered the American vernacular to describe any artificially high-pitched voice. A similar effect could be obtained in playback by merely taking an LP recorded at 33 RPM and playing it back at 45 or 78 RPM, a trick sometimes tried out by ordinary record listeners. The instrumental portions of the song are sped up as well, however, making it obvious that the music is being played at the wrong speed. Bagdasarian recorded vocals and music at different speeds to combine properly on his recording. Guitarist Les Paul said he visited Bagdasarian's studio in 1958 and helped with the recording.
The technique was used extensively in the British puppet show Pinky and Perky, which predated the Chipmunks. The sound was frequently imitated in comedy records, notably "Transistor Radio" by Benny Hill, "Bridget the Midget" by Ray Stevens, "The Laughing Gnome" by David Bowie, and on several tracks on Joe Meek and the Blue Men's album I Hear a New World. The technique also appears in the "Yeah! You!" line of the Coasters' song "Charlie Brown". Prince used the technique on several of his songs, as well as Frank Zappa on We're Only in It for the Money and on the instrumental album Hot Rats, among others. The early production style of hip-hop artist Kanye West involved sped-up, high-pitch vocal samples from classic soul records incorporated with his own (additional) instrumentation. Due in part to the acclaim of his debut album The College Dropout, such sampling techniques subsequently became much copied by a myriad of other hip-hop producers. In the early 1990s rave scene, many breakbeat hardcore productions would utilize the same studio tricks, often taking a cappella from house records and speeding them up to fit the faster tempo. Vocals in songs that used this method would typically be referred to as "chipmunk vocals".
Guest appearances
The Chipmunks made their first guest appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show on December 13, 1959, when they performed "The Chipmunk Song".
In 1968, the Chipmunks appeared in an Italian commercial TV program Carosello, in their sponsorship of Prealpi, a cheese-maker in Varese, Italy.
The Chipmunks appeared in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade twice; 1983 and 1986. In the 1983 parade, they performed Tomorrow. In 1986, they performed The Girls of Rock and Roll with The Chipettes as a way to promote their film, The Chipmunk Adventure, which was released six months later.
The Chipmunks performed with Canned Heat on the band's interpretation of "The Chipmunk Song", which is sufficiently derivative of the Chipmunk's 1958 hit that Ross Bagdasarian Sr. gets sole writing credit. It was featured as the flip-side of the band's Christmas Blues single released in late 2009.
The Chipmunks made a guest appearance on Xuxa in 1993, where they performed "Country Pride" from their album, Chipmunks in Low Places.
They also appeared on the FOX NFL Sunday intro (which premiered on December 20, 2009) with the cameo character, Digger (the mascot for NASCAR on Fox).
The Chipmunks made an appearance at a Los Angeles Dodgers preseason game on April 3, 2010, when the Dodgers squared off against their rivals, the Los Angeles Angels. The group performed, "America the Beautiful" with a group of children prior to the game. Also, Simon Seville wore a wig of Manny Ramirez's dreadlocks. Ross Bagdasarian Jr. made the opening ceremonial pitch for that game.
The Chipmunks made multiple appearances on ads for Food Safety to help kids learn safe food practices.
Discography
Video games
The Chipmunks (1990) – platforms: Tiger Electronic Game.
Alvin and the Chipmunks (2007) – platforms: Nintendo DS, Wii, PlayStation 2 and Microsoft Windows.
Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel (2009) – platforms: Nintendo DS and Wii.
Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (2011) – arranger: Eleonora Rossin - platforms: Nintendo DS, Wii and Xbox 360.
Concert tours
1984:The Chipmunks and the Magic Camera (The Chipmunks)
1985: Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Amazing Computer (The Chipmunks and the Chipettes)
2008: Get Munk'd Tour (The Chipmunks)
2015: Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Musical (The Chipmunks and the Chipettes)
Awards and nominations
1959, won three Grammy Awards for Best Recording for Children, Best Comedy Performance and Best Engineered Record –Non-Classical for the song "The Chipmunk Song" (it was also nominated for Record of the Year, but did not win).
1960, won a Grammy Award for Best Engineered Recording -Non-Classical for the song "Alvin's Harmonica."
1961, won a Grammy Award for Best Album for Children for the album Let's All Sing with the Chipmunks (it was also nominated for Best Engineered Record -Non-Classical). The song "Alvin for President" was also nominated for both Best Comedy Performance –Musical and Best Engineered Record –Novelty, making two nominations in the latter category.
1962, was nominated again for a Grammy Award for Best Engineered Record –Novelty for the television tie-in album The Alvin Show.
1963, was nominated again for Grammy Awards for both Best Album for Children and Best Engineered Record –Novelty for the album The Chipmunk Songbook.
1966, was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Recording for Children for the song "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious".
1985, was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category "Outstanding Animated Program (Daytime)."
1987, the second television series was nominated for a Young Artist Award in the category "Exceptional Family Animation Series or Specials."
1987, was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category "Outstanding Animated Program (Daytime)."
1988, was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category "Outstanding Animated Program (Daytime)."
1988, was nominated for a Young Artist Award in the category "Best Motion Picture –Animation" for the movie The Chipmunk Adventure.
2000, won the Golden Reel Award in the category "Best Sound Editing –Direct to Video – Sound Editorial" for the movie Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet Frankenstein.
2008, Jason Lee won the Kids' Choice Awards in the category "Favorite Movie" for the movie Alvin and the Chipmunks.
2008, the 2007 Alvin and the Chipmunks soundtrack won the American Music Award for "Best Movie Soundtrack."
2010, Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel won the Kids' Choice Awards in the category "Favorite Movie."
2012, Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked won the 2012 Kids' Choice Awards in the category "Favorite Movie."
2019, earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
There were five Grammy Awards, an American Music Award, a Golden Reel Award, three Kids Choice Awards in total, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
References
External links
Chipmunks.com, Bagdasarian Productions' official site
Cinema.ch Trailer
"The History of the Chipmunks", Animation.Archive.org
Alvin and the Chipmunks" at Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Archived from the original on April 4, 2012.
1958 establishments in the United States
American children's musical groups
American novelty song performers
Animated musical groups
American animation studios
Anthropomorphic rodents
Atlantic Records artists
Capitol Records artists
Child musical groups
Columbia Records artists
Decca Records artists
Family musical groups
Fictional musical groups
Fictional adoptees
Fictional characters introduced in 1958
Fictional chipmunks
Fictional dancers
Fictional musicians
Fictional singers
Fictional trios
Grammy Award winners
Hollywood Records artists
Liberty Records artists
Child characters in animated films
Child characters in animated series
Child characters in film
American companies established in 1961
1961 establishments in California
Companies based in Santa Barbara County, California
Child characters in television
Teenage characters in film
Animated television series about children
MCA Records artists
Musical groups established in 1958
Parody musicians
RCA Records artists
Recorded music characters
Video game musicians | false | [
"Přírodní park Třebíčsko (before Oblast klidu Třebíčsko) is a natural park near Třebíč in the Czech Republic. There are many interesting plants. The park was founded in 1983.\n\nKobylinec and Ptáčovský kopeček\n\nKobylinec is a natural monument situated ca 0,5 km from the village of Trnava.\nThe area of this monument is 0,44 ha. Pulsatilla grandis can be found here and in the Ptáčovský kopeček park near Ptáčov near Třebíč. Both monuments are very popular for tourists.\n\nPonds\n\nIn the natural park there are some interesting ponds such as Velký Bor, Malý Bor, Buršík near Přeckov and a brook Březinka. Dams on the brook are examples of European beaver activity.\n\nSyenitové skály near Pocoucov\n\nSyenitové skály (rocks of syenit) near Pocoucov is one of famed locations. There are interesting granite boulders. The area of the reservation is 0,77 ha.\n\nExternal links\nParts of this article or all article was translated from Czech. The original article is :cs:Přírodní park Třebíčsko.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nNature near the village Trnava which is there\n\nTřebíč\nParks in the Czech Republic\nTourist attractions in the Vysočina Region",
"Damn Interesting is an independent website founded by Alan Bellows in 2005. The website presents true stories from science, history, and psychology, primarily as long-form articles, often illustrated with original artwork. Works are written by various authors, and published at irregular intervals. The website openly rejects advertising, relying on reader and listener donations to cover operating costs.\n\nAs of October 2012, each article is also published as a podcast under the same name. In November 2019, a second podcast was launched under the title Damn Interesting Week, featuring unscripted commentary on an assortment of news articles featured on the website's \"Curated Links\" section that week. In mid-2020, a third podcast called Damn Interesting Curio Cabinet began highlighting the website's periodic short-form articles in the same radioplay format as the original podcast.\n\nIn July 2009, Damn Interesting published the print book Alien Hand Syndrome through Workman Publishing. It contains some favorites from the site and some exclusive content.\n\nAwards and recognition \nIn August 2007, PC Magazine named Damn Interesting one of the \"Top 100 Undiscovered Web Sites\".\nThe article \"The Zero-Armed Bandit\" by Alan Bellows won a 2015 Sidney Award from David Brooks in The New York Times.\nThe article \"Ghoulish Acts and Dastardly Deeds\" by Alan Bellows was cited as \"nonfiction journalism from 2017 that will stand the test of time\" by Conor Friedersdorf in The Atlantic.\nThe article \"Dupes and Duplicity\" by Jennifer Lee Noonan won a 2020 Sidney Award from David Brooks in the New York Times.\n\nAccusing The Dollop of plagiarism \n\nOn July 9, 2015, Bellows posted an open letter accusing The Dollop, a comedy podcast about history, of plagiarism due to their repeated use of verbatim text from Damn Interesting articles without permission or attribution. Dave Anthony, the writer of The Dollop, responded on reddit, admitting to using Damn Interesting content, but claiming that the use was protected by fair use, and that \"historical facts are not copyrightable.\" In an article about the controversy on Plagiarism Today, Jonathan Bailey concluded, \"Any way one looks at it, The Dollop failed its ethical obligations to all of the people, not just those writing for Damn Interesting, who put in the time, energy and expertise into writing the original content upon which their show is based.\"\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Official website\n\n2005 podcast debuts"
] |
[
"Alvin and the Chipmunks",
"Alvin and the Chipmunks (1983-90)",
"How popular was alvin and the chipmunks during this time frame?",
"I don't know.",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"The group's name changed from the \"Chipmunks\" to \"Alvin and the Chipmunks\". In 1983,"
] | C_1a26c9cccd24479ab425d2bbd4fd169b_1 | Why did they change it? | 3 | Why was the name of Alvin and the Chipmunks changed? | Alvin and the Chipmunks | The group's name changed from the "Chipmunks" to "Alvin and the Chipmunks". In 1983, a second animated television series for the group, produced by Ruby-Spears Productions, was released. Titled simply Alvin and the Chipmunks, the outline of the show closely paralleled the original Alvin Show. The series lasted eight production seasons, until 1990. In the first season, the show introduced the Chipettes, three female versions of the Chipmunks -- Brittany, Jeanette, and Eleanor, who each paralleled the original Chipmunks in personality except for Brittany being vainer than Alvin, with Jeanette smart like Simon, and Eleanor fond of food like Theodore, with their own human guardian, the myopic Miss Beatrice Miller (who arrived for the 1986 season). The success of the show led to the release of a soundtrack album in 1984, Songs from Our TV Shows. The Chipmunks even walked a variation of NBC's "Let's All Be There" campaign for its Saturday-morning lineup in 1984 (shows included The Smurfs, Snorks, Going Bananas, Pink Panther and Sons, Kidd Video, Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, Mister T, etc.). After 1988, the show was renamed just The Chipmunks to indicate that there were now two groups of them. Also introduced was the boys' "Uncle" Harry, who may or may not have actually been a relative. The show reflected contemporaneous trends popular culture; the Chipmunks sang recent hits, and wore contemporary clothing. One "documentary" episode spoofed John Lennon's 1966 infamous comment that The Beatles had become "more popular than Jesus", by recalling how the Chipmunks had fallen in popularity after Alvin boasted they were "bigger than Mickey Mouse!". In 1985, the Chipmunks, along with the Chipettes, were featured in the live stage show, Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Amazing Computer. In 1987, during the fifth season of the show on television, the Chipmunks had their first animated feature film, The Chipmunk Adventure, directed by Janice Karman and Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and released to theaters by The Samuel Goldwyn Company. The film featured the Chipmunks and the Chipettes in a contest traveling around the world. In the 1988-89 season, the show switched production companies to DIC Entertainment, by which time the Chipmunks had truly become anthropomorphized. In 1990, the show switched titles again to The Chipmunks Go to the Movies. Each episode in this season was a spoof of a Hollywood film, such as Back to the Future, King Kong, and others. In addition, several television specials featuring the characters were also released. At the conclusion of the eighth season, the show was canceled again. In 1990, a documentary was produced about the show entitled Alvin and the Chipmunks/Five Decades with the Chipmunks. In that year, the Chipmunks also teamed up for the only time with other famous cartoon stars (such as Bugs Bunny, Garfield, etc.) for the drug abuse-prevention special Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue. CANNOTANSWER | Titled simply Alvin and the Chipmunks, the outline of the show closely paralleled the original Alvin Show. | Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks or simply The Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band created by Ross Bagdasarian for a novelty record in 1958. The group consists of three singing animated anthropomorphic chipmunks named Alvin, Simon, and Theodore. They are managed by their human adoptive father, David "Dave" Seville.
Bagdasarian provided the group's voices sped up to create high-pitched squeaky voices (which wasn't entirely new to him, having worked on "Witch Doctor" earned the record two Grammy Awards for engineering).
"The Chipmunk Song" became a number-one single in the United States. After Bagdasarian died in 1972, the characters’ voices were provided by his son Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and the latter's wife Janice Karman in the subsequent incarnations of the 1981s and 1991s.
A CGI-animated TV series reboot, titled ALVINNN!!! and the Chipmunks, premiered on Nickelodeon on August 3, 2016. In 2019, The Chipmunks received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Through the successful franchise, the Chipmunks have become one of the most successful children's artists of all time. It has garnered two number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100 and won five Grammy Awards, having four Top 10 albums on the Billboard 200 and three certified platinum albums. "The Chipmunk Song" became one of the best-selling singles of all time at 5 million physical copies sold.
On November 2, 2021, Bagdasarian Productions announced it would sell the property for $300 million. Paramount Global was reported as one of the interested buyers.
History
"Witch Doctor"
In 1958, Ross Bagdasarian Sr. released a novelty song (as David Seville) about being unsuccessful at love until he found a witch doctor who told him how to woo his woman. The song was done by Bagdasarian in his normal voice, except for the "magic" words, done first in Bagdasarian's pitched-up, pre-Chipmunk voice, then in a duet between his pitched-up voice and his normal voice. The words themselves are nonsense: "Oo-ee, oo-ah-ah, ting-tang, walla-walla, bing-bang".
The song was a hit, holding number one for three weeks in the Billboard Top 100 chart. Nothing makes any reference to chipmunks, but the song is sometimes included on Chipmunk compilations as if the Chipmunks had provided the voice of the Witch Doctor. Bagdasarian did record a Chipmunks version of "Witch Doctor", which appeared on the second Chipmunks album, Sing Again with the Chipmunks, in 1960. Bagdasarian performed the song "live" (with a pre-recorded track of the pitched-up voice) on The Ed Sullivan Show.
Bagdasarian (again as Seville) recorded a follow-up song, "The Bird on My Head", singing a duet with his own sped-up voice as the bird. It also reached the Top 40, peaking at No. 34. While driving in Sequoia National Park, Bagdasarian saw a chipmunk dash in front of him. That moment inspired him to create his chipmunk characters.
The technique was imitated by Sheb Wooley's "The Purple People Eater" and The Big Bopper's "The Purple People Eater Meets the Witch Doctor".
"The Chipmunk Song"
After the success of Witch Doctor, Liberty Records asked Bagdasarian to create another successful novelty record. He then came up with three singing chipmunks who were named, as an inside joke, after executives at Liberty Records. Alvin (named after Al Bennett), Simon (named after Si Waronker), and Theodore (Ted Keep).
The Chipmunks first officially appeared on the scene in a novelty record released in late fall 1958 by Bagdasarian. The song, originally listed on the record label (Liberty F-55168) as "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)", featured the singing skills of the chipmunk trio. One phrase in the chorus has Alvin wishing for a hula hoop, which was that year's hot new toy. The novelty record was highly successful, selling more than 4 million copies in seven weeks, and it launched the careers of its chipmunk stars. It spent four weeks at Number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart from December 22, 1958, to January 12, 1959, succeeding "To Know Him Is to Love Him" at Number 1 on the same chart by the Teddy Bears, a pop group that featured Phil Spector. It also earned three Grammy Awards and a nomination for Record of the Year. At the height of its popularity, Bagdasarian and three chipmunk hand-puppets appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show, lip-synching the song. "The Chipmunk Song" appeared on the Chipmunks' debut album, Let's All Sing with the Chipmunks, in 1959, and was repeated on Christmas with the Chipmunks, released in 1962. The song also has been included on several compilation albums.
Bob Rivers did a parody of this song for his 2000 Christmas album Chipmunks Roasting on an Open Fire which was titled "The Twisted Chipmunk Song". In the song, the Chipmunks are referred to as Thagadore (Theodore), Squeaky (Simon), and Melvin (Alvin).
The Three Chipmunks (1959)
The Chipmunks first appeared in comic book form on Dell Comics' Four Color Comics series, issue #1042 (cover-dated Dec. 1959). Alvin, Theodore and Simon were depicted as somewhat realistic, nearly identical anthropomorphic rodents with almond-shaped eyes. When Herb Klynn's Format Films made a deal to develop the Three Chipmunks for animation, the old designs were rejected and new versions of the characters were created. Liberty Records eventually re-issued the early albums with the "new" Chipmunks and it was this new version of the Chipmunks that was used when Alvin's own title was released by Dell in 1962.
The Alvin Show (1961–62)
The first television series to feature the characters was The Alvin Show. By this period, the Chipmunks looked much like their modern incarnations. Also, an animated portrayal of Seville was a reasonable caricature of Bagdasarian himself. The series ran from 1961 to 1962 and was one of a small number of animated series to be shown in prime time on CBS. It was not a prime-time ratings success and was subsequently canceled after one season. Ratings improved significantly in syndication.
In addition to Alvin cartoons, the series also featured the scientist Clyde Crashcup and his assistant Leonardo. Those characters did not feature prominently on any of the later series. Crashcup made a single cameo appearance in A Chipmunk Christmas, and in an episode of the 1983 TV series. The television series was produced by Format Films for Bagdasarian Film Corporation. Although the series was broadcast in black and white, it was produced and later re-run in color. Twenty-six episodes each were produced for the "Alvin and the Chipmunks" and "Clyde Crashcup" segments, along with 52 musical segments.
New albums and A Chipmunk Christmas (1969–82)
The final Chipmunks album in the project's original incarnation, The Chipmunks Go to the Movies, was released in 1969. After the death of Ross Bagdasarian in 1972 from a heart attack, the Chipmunks' careers stalled until NBC showed interest in the original show (the network carried Saturday morning reruns of The Alvin Show as a midseason replacement in 1979) and the following year, Excelsior Records released a new album of contemporary songs performed by the Chipmunks. That album, Chipmunk Punk, featured Bagdasarian's son, Ross Bagdasarian Jr., doing the voices of the characters. That album and the continued reruns of the series proved to be popular enough to warrant further new records as well as new television productions, and in 1981, the Chipmunks and Seville returned to television in the Christmas special A Chipmunk Christmas, produced by Marvel Productions, which was first broadcast on NBC on December 14 of that year. Next year, two more albums were released (Chipmunk Rock and The Chipmunks Go Hollywood).
Alvin and the Chipmunks (1983–90)
The group's name changed from "the Chipmunks" to "Alvin and the Chipmunks".
In 1983, a second animated television series for the group, produced by Ruby-Spears Productions, was released. Titled simply Alvin and the Chipmunks, the outline of the show closely paralleled the original Alvin Show. The series lasted eight production seasons until 1990. The first season introduced the Chipettes (three female versions of the Chipmunks): Brittany, Jeanette, and Eleanor with their human guardian, the myopic Miss Beatrice Miller (who arrived for the 1986 season). The show's success led to the release of a soundtrack album in 1984, Songs from Our TV Shows.
After 1988, the show was renamed just The Chipmunks to indicate that there were now two groups of them. Also introduced was the boys' "Uncle" Harry, who may or may not have been a relative. The show reflected contemporaneous trends in popular culture; the Chipmunks sang recent hits, and wore contemporary clothing. One "documentary" episode spoofed John Lennon's 1966 infamous comment that the Beatles had become "more popular than Jesus", by recalling how the Chipmunks had fallen in popularity after Alvin boasted they were "bigger than Mickey Mouse!". In 1985, the Chipmunks, along with the Chipettes, were featured in the live stage show, Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Amazing Computer. In 1987, during the fifth season of the television show, the Chipmunks had their first animated feature film, The Chipmunk Adventure, directed by Janice Karman and Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and released to theaters by The Samuel Goldwyn Company. The film featured the Chipmunks and the Chipettes in a contest traveling around the world.
In the 1988–89 season, the show switched production companies to DIC Entertainment (1988-1990) and Murakami Wolf Swenson (1988), by which time the Chipmunks had truly become anthropomorphized. In 1990, the show switched titles again to The Chipmunks Go to the Movies. Each episode in this season was a spoof of a Hollywood film, such as Back to the Future, King Kong, and others. In addition, several television specials featuring the characters were also released. After the eighth season, the show was canceled again. In 1990, a documentary was produced about the show entitled Alvin and the Chipmunks/Five Decades with the Chipmunks. In that year, the Chipmunks also teamed up for the only time with other famous cartoon stars (such as Bugs Bunny, Garfield, etc.) for the drug abuse-prevention special Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue.
Music releases and short-lived Universal acquisition (1991–2002)
On January 18, 1991, NBC aired a television special starring the Chipmunks entitled Rockin' Through the Decades. The same year, it released the album The Chipmunks Rock the House. In 1992, the group released the country album Chipmunks in Low Places. Released on September 29, 1992, the album was certified platinum by the RIAA, becoming the group's first platinum record and making it the Chipmunks' best-selling album followed by a greatest hits release and a reissue of 1981's A Chipmunk Christmas. By 1993, Urban Chipmunk was re-released as a compilation album The Chipmunks' 35th Birthday Party with a double album, called The Chipmunks Sing-Alongs.
Their fourth Christmas album, A Very Merry Chipmunk, saw a release in 1994, then When You Wish Upon a Chipmunk in 1995, Club Chipmunk: The Dance Mixes peaked in the Top 10 on Billboard's Top Kid Audio.
In 1996, Universal Studios purchased the rights to the characters. In 1998, Sony Wonder and Columbia Records released The A-Files: Alien Songs and Greatest Hits: Still Squeaky After All These Years on September 21, 1999. The purchase of the rights to the characters by Universal resulted in The Chipmunks' 1999 reappearance, in the form of the direct-to-video movie Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet Frankenstein, released on September 28, 1999. Five new songs were composed for the film were made available via a soundtrack released by MCA Records. Later that year, The Chipmunks' Greatest Christmas Hits was released.
The movie was successful enough to spark interest in a sequel, and in 2000, Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet the Wolfman appeared. Three new songs were composed for the film, that were also made available on a soundtrack by MCA.
Both movies featured the original cast of the second series reprising their roles as the tone was very similar to the series. Universal lost the rights to the characters in 2002 due to a breach of contract with Bagdasarian Productions.
Return to independency, movies and merchandise (2003–2021)
On September 17, 2004, Fox 2000 Pictures, Regency Enterprises, and Bagdasarian Productions announced a live-action hybrid film starring Alvin and the Chipmunks. Tim Hill directed the 2007 CGI/live-action film adaptation, with Justin Long, Matthew Gray Gubler, and Jesse McCartney providing the voices, along with its 2009, 2011, and 2015 sequels. Bagdasarian Jr. and Karman continue to perform the singing voices for Alvin, Theodore, and the Chipettes, but Steve Vining did Simon's singing voice. The projects have earned five Grammy awards, an American Music Award, a Golden Reel Award, three Kids' Choice Awards, and Emmy nominations.
Possible acquisition (2021–present)
The franchise was announced to be sold to a potential buyer.
Main characters
Dave Seville
The Chipmunks
The 1983 series revealed that the boys' mother "Vinnie" is a similarly anthropomorphic chipmunk living in a nearby forest. One year a particularly harsh winter had caused a nut shortage. Vinnie realized that her newborn children would likely not survive the winter, so she anonymously left them on Dave's doorstep. She returned briefly to see what happened years later. Dave and the boys were unaware of their origins until they asked him during an argument over the exact date of their birthday. Vinnie had never revealed herself to him, but the boys investigated and eventually tracked her down.
In the 2007 feature film, the chipmunks lived in a tree, fending for themselves as their parents had taken off to join a hippie commune and had problems gathering nuts for the winter. Their tree is cut down and carted off to grace the entrance lobby of a city office building, with them in it. They eventually wind up in Dave's home, where they wreak havoc. After being thrown out, Dave notices how well they can sing, making them famous. They eventually win his heart.
In the 1980s media, the boys are triplets, as they celebrate their birthday together in "''A Chipmunk Reunion''" (Alvin stating to be born five minutes before Simon), and they are about 8–9 years. While never mentioned, in the CGI movies and 2015 series, the chipmunks are no longer triplets and celebrate different birthdays; but seem to be around the same school age.
Recording technique
The Chipmunks' voices were recorded at half the normal tape speed on audiotape by voice talent (on the 1960s records, generally Ross Bagdasarian Sr.'s own voice overdubbed three times, on the post-1980s records, studio singers) talking or singing at half the normal speaking rate. When the tape was played back at normal speed, they would sound a full octave higher in pitch, at normal tempo. The technique was by no means new to the Chipmunks. For example, the high- and low-pitched characters in The Wizard of Oz were achieved by speeding up and slowing down vocal recordings. Also, Mel Blanc's voice characterization for Daffy Duck was Sylvester the Cat's voice sped up to some extent. Now, the same effect is created digitally and in real-time with a pitch shift.
However, the extensive use of this technique with the Chipmunks, coupled with their popularity, linked this technique to them. The term "chipmunk-voiced" has entered the American vernacular to describe any artificially high-pitched voice. A similar effect could be obtained in playback by merely taking an LP recorded at 33 RPM and playing it back at 45 or 78 RPM, a trick sometimes tried out by ordinary record listeners. The instrumental portions of the song are sped up as well, however, making it obvious that the music is being played at the wrong speed. Bagdasarian recorded vocals and music at different speeds to combine properly on his recording. Guitarist Les Paul said he visited Bagdasarian's studio in 1958 and helped with the recording.
The technique was used extensively in the British puppet show Pinky and Perky, which predated the Chipmunks. The sound was frequently imitated in comedy records, notably "Transistor Radio" by Benny Hill, "Bridget the Midget" by Ray Stevens, "The Laughing Gnome" by David Bowie, and on several tracks on Joe Meek and the Blue Men's album I Hear a New World. The technique also appears in the "Yeah! You!" line of the Coasters' song "Charlie Brown". Prince used the technique on several of his songs, as well as Frank Zappa on We're Only in It for the Money and on the instrumental album Hot Rats, among others. The early production style of hip-hop artist Kanye West involved sped-up, high-pitch vocal samples from classic soul records incorporated with his own (additional) instrumentation. Due in part to the acclaim of his debut album The College Dropout, such sampling techniques subsequently became much copied by a myriad of other hip-hop producers. In the early 1990s rave scene, many breakbeat hardcore productions would utilize the same studio tricks, often taking a cappella from house records and speeding them up to fit the faster tempo. Vocals in songs that used this method would typically be referred to as "chipmunk vocals".
Guest appearances
The Chipmunks made their first guest appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show on December 13, 1959, when they performed "The Chipmunk Song".
In 1968, the Chipmunks appeared in an Italian commercial TV program Carosello, in their sponsorship of Prealpi, a cheese-maker in Varese, Italy.
The Chipmunks appeared in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade twice; 1983 and 1986. In the 1983 parade, they performed Tomorrow. In 1986, they performed The Girls of Rock and Roll with The Chipettes as a way to promote their film, The Chipmunk Adventure, which was released six months later.
The Chipmunks performed with Canned Heat on the band's interpretation of "The Chipmunk Song", which is sufficiently derivative of the Chipmunk's 1958 hit that Ross Bagdasarian Sr. gets sole writing credit. It was featured as the flip-side of the band's Christmas Blues single released in late 2009.
The Chipmunks made a guest appearance on Xuxa in 1993, where they performed "Country Pride" from their album, Chipmunks in Low Places.
They also appeared on the FOX NFL Sunday intro (which premiered on December 20, 2009) with the cameo character, Digger (the mascot for NASCAR on Fox).
The Chipmunks made an appearance at a Los Angeles Dodgers preseason game on April 3, 2010, when the Dodgers squared off against their rivals, the Los Angeles Angels. The group performed, "America the Beautiful" with a group of children prior to the game. Also, Simon Seville wore a wig of Manny Ramirez's dreadlocks. Ross Bagdasarian Jr. made the opening ceremonial pitch for that game.
The Chipmunks made multiple appearances on ads for Food Safety to help kids learn safe food practices.
Discography
Video games
The Chipmunks (1990) – platforms: Tiger Electronic Game.
Alvin and the Chipmunks (2007) – platforms: Nintendo DS, Wii, PlayStation 2 and Microsoft Windows.
Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel (2009) – platforms: Nintendo DS and Wii.
Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (2011) – arranger: Eleonora Rossin - platforms: Nintendo DS, Wii and Xbox 360.
Concert tours
1984:The Chipmunks and the Magic Camera (The Chipmunks)
1985: Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Amazing Computer (The Chipmunks and the Chipettes)
2008: Get Munk'd Tour (The Chipmunks)
2015: Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Musical (The Chipmunks and the Chipettes)
Awards and nominations
1959, won three Grammy Awards for Best Recording for Children, Best Comedy Performance and Best Engineered Record –Non-Classical for the song "The Chipmunk Song" (it was also nominated for Record of the Year, but did not win).
1960, won a Grammy Award for Best Engineered Recording -Non-Classical for the song "Alvin's Harmonica."
1961, won a Grammy Award for Best Album for Children for the album Let's All Sing with the Chipmunks (it was also nominated for Best Engineered Record -Non-Classical). The song "Alvin for President" was also nominated for both Best Comedy Performance –Musical and Best Engineered Record –Novelty, making two nominations in the latter category.
1962, was nominated again for a Grammy Award for Best Engineered Record –Novelty for the television tie-in album The Alvin Show.
1963, was nominated again for Grammy Awards for both Best Album for Children and Best Engineered Record –Novelty for the album The Chipmunk Songbook.
1966, was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Recording for Children for the song "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious".
1985, was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category "Outstanding Animated Program (Daytime)."
1987, the second television series was nominated for a Young Artist Award in the category "Exceptional Family Animation Series or Specials."
1987, was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category "Outstanding Animated Program (Daytime)."
1988, was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category "Outstanding Animated Program (Daytime)."
1988, was nominated for a Young Artist Award in the category "Best Motion Picture –Animation" for the movie The Chipmunk Adventure.
2000, won the Golden Reel Award in the category "Best Sound Editing –Direct to Video – Sound Editorial" for the movie Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet Frankenstein.
2008, Jason Lee won the Kids' Choice Awards in the category "Favorite Movie" for the movie Alvin and the Chipmunks.
2008, the 2007 Alvin and the Chipmunks soundtrack won the American Music Award for "Best Movie Soundtrack."
2010, Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel won the Kids' Choice Awards in the category "Favorite Movie."
2012, Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked won the 2012 Kids' Choice Awards in the category "Favorite Movie."
2019, earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
There were five Grammy Awards, an American Music Award, a Golden Reel Award, three Kids Choice Awards in total, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
References
External links
Chipmunks.com, Bagdasarian Productions' official site
Cinema.ch Trailer
"The History of the Chipmunks", Animation.Archive.org
Alvin and the Chipmunks" at Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Archived from the original on April 4, 2012.
1958 establishments in the United States
American children's musical groups
American novelty song performers
Animated musical groups
American animation studios
Anthropomorphic rodents
Atlantic Records artists
Capitol Records artists
Child musical groups
Columbia Records artists
Decca Records artists
Family musical groups
Fictional musical groups
Fictional adoptees
Fictional characters introduced in 1958
Fictional chipmunks
Fictional dancers
Fictional musicians
Fictional singers
Fictional trios
Grammy Award winners
Hollywood Records artists
Liberty Records artists
Child characters in animated films
Child characters in animated series
Child characters in film
American companies established in 1961
1961 establishments in California
Companies based in Santa Barbara County, California
Child characters in television
Teenage characters in film
Animated television series about children
MCA Records artists
Musical groups established in 1958
Parody musicians
RCA Records artists
Recorded music characters
Video game musicians | true | [
"\"Llangollen Market\" is a song from early 19th century Wales. It is known to have been performed at an eisteddfod at Llangollen in 1858.\n\nThe text of the song survives in a manuscript held by the National Museum of Wales, which came into the possession of singer Mary Davies, a co-founder of the Welsh Folk-Song Society.\n\nThe song tells the tale of a young man from the Llangollen area going off to war and leaving behind his broken-hearted girlfriend. Originally written in English, the song has been translated into Welsh and recorded by several artists such as Siân James, Siobhan Owen, Calennig and Siwsann George.\n\nLyrics\nIt’s far beyond the mountains that look so distant here,\nTo fight his country’s battles, last Mayday went my dear;\nAh, well shall I remember with bitter sighs the day,\nWhy, Owen, did you leave me? At home why did I stay?\n\nAh, cruel was my father that did my flight restrain,\nAnd I was cruel-hearted that did at home remain,\nWith you, my love, contented, I’d journey far away;\nWhy, Owen, did you leave me? At home why did I stay?\n\nWhile thinking of my Owen, my eyes with tears do fill,\nAnd then my mother chides me because my wheel stands still,\nBut how can I think of spinning when my Owen’s far away;\nWhy, Owen, did you leave me? At home why did I stay?\n\nTo market at Llangollen each morning do I go,\nBut how to strike a bargain no longer do I know;\nMy father chides at evening, my mother all the day;\nWhy, Owen, did you leave me, at home why did I stay?\n\nOh, would it please kind heaven to shield my love from harm,\nTo clasp him to my bosom would every care disarm,\nBut alas, I fear, 'tis distant - that happy, happy day;\nWhy, Owen, did you leave me, at home why did stay?\n\nReferences\n\nWelsh folk songs",
"Why We Disagree About Climate Change: Understanding Controversy, Inaction and Opportunity is a 2009 book by Mike Hulme. It was published by the Cambridge University Press. As of September 2017 it has sold over 18,000 copies. In 2009 it was selected by The Economist magazine as one of its science and technology 'Books of the Year' and in 2010 was jointly awarded the Gerald L Young Prize for the best book in human ecology.\n\nSynopsis\nWhy We Disagree About Climate Change is an exploration on how the idea of climate change has taken such a dominant position in modern politics and why it is so contested. In the book, the author looks at the differing views from various disciplines, including natural science, economics, ethics, social psychology and politics, to try to explain why people disagree about climate change. The book argues that climate change, rather than being a problem to be solved, is an idea which reveals different individual and collective beliefs, values and attitudes about ways of living in the world.\n\nReception\n\nMax Boykoff writing for Nature Reports Climate Change said, \"Overall, Hulme articulates quite complex arguments in a remarkably clear and effective manner. He not only covers a lot of ground, but by avoiding an overly compartmentalized approach he achieves a great deal of connectivity throughout the book. For those who are regularly immersed in the social sciences literature on climate change, the content itself may not hold many surprises. But Hulme's approach makes these arguments accessible and meaningful for a wider audience, and this tome could also serve as a great teaching text\".\n\nSteven Yearley writing for The Times Higher Education said, \"This is a distinctive and courageous book. Mike Hulme is a geographer and climate modeller, a contributor to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and professor of climate change at the infamously hacked University of East Anglia. He must be acutely aware of the temptation not to give an inch. It would be entirely understandable if he presented to the world only assertions about the robustness and persuasiveness of the scientific understanding of climate change, and followed them up with strict warnings to take measures to limit further climate-damaging emissions\".\n\nStuart Blackman writing for The Register said, \"In his new book, Why We Disagree About Climate Change, he explores how the issue of climate change has come to be such a dominant issue in modern politics. He treats climate change not as a problem that we need to solve – indeed, he believes that the complexity of the issue means that it cannot be solved, only lived with – and instead considers it as much of a cultural idea as a physical phenomenon.\"\n\nNatasha Mitchell writing on her ABC blog said, \"It's a book that some may be surprised to see from a scientist who has been a central contributor to establishing the international scientific consensus on climate change. It's wide reaching...delving into the realms of faith, politics, sociology, risk, media, history, psychology and beyond, to dig beneath the often tediously polarised public discourse on climate change.\"\n\nDuncan Green, the head of research for Oxfam GB has said, \"First what the book is not. It is not a polemic, nor an attempt to ‘settle’ the argument with climate change deniers. It’s much more interesting than that. Hulme stands back and looks at the broader significance of climate and climate change, from the viewpoint of science, economics, religion, psychology, media, development and governance. If you want an intelligent take on the IPCC, the Stern Report, the disagreements between North and South – it’s all here. His intent is to show that the disputes over climate change are not just (or even mainly) about the science, which is in any case hugely uncertain. Rather they are deeply rooted in all aspects of the human condition.\"\n\nRichard D. North writing on his personal website said, \"Most of the books on global warming science and policy are pretty muddled, hysterical or dreamy by turns. Very few have real quality. Mike Hulme’s book, Why We Disagree About Climate Change seems to be in a different class\".\n\nSee also\n\nWhat's the Worst That Could Happen?: A Rational Response to the Climate Change Debate\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Publishers Catalog page\n\nClimate change books\n2009 non-fiction books\n2009 in the environment\nCambridge University Press books\nBritish non-fiction literature"
] |
[
"Alvin and the Chipmunks",
"Alvin and the Chipmunks (1983-90)",
"How popular was alvin and the chipmunks during this time frame?",
"I don't know.",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"The group's name changed from the \"Chipmunks\" to \"Alvin and the Chipmunks\". In 1983,",
"Why did they change it?",
"Titled simply Alvin and the Chipmunks, the outline of the show closely paralleled the original Alvin Show."
] | C_1a26c9cccd24479ab425d2bbd4fd169b_1 | Did the show win any awards? | 4 | Did Alvin and the Chipmunks win any awards? | Alvin and the Chipmunks | The group's name changed from the "Chipmunks" to "Alvin and the Chipmunks". In 1983, a second animated television series for the group, produced by Ruby-Spears Productions, was released. Titled simply Alvin and the Chipmunks, the outline of the show closely paralleled the original Alvin Show. The series lasted eight production seasons, until 1990. In the first season, the show introduced the Chipettes, three female versions of the Chipmunks -- Brittany, Jeanette, and Eleanor, who each paralleled the original Chipmunks in personality except for Brittany being vainer than Alvin, with Jeanette smart like Simon, and Eleanor fond of food like Theodore, with their own human guardian, the myopic Miss Beatrice Miller (who arrived for the 1986 season). The success of the show led to the release of a soundtrack album in 1984, Songs from Our TV Shows. The Chipmunks even walked a variation of NBC's "Let's All Be There" campaign for its Saturday-morning lineup in 1984 (shows included The Smurfs, Snorks, Going Bananas, Pink Panther and Sons, Kidd Video, Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, Mister T, etc.). After 1988, the show was renamed just The Chipmunks to indicate that there were now two groups of them. Also introduced was the boys' "Uncle" Harry, who may or may not have actually been a relative. The show reflected contemporaneous trends popular culture; the Chipmunks sang recent hits, and wore contemporary clothing. One "documentary" episode spoofed John Lennon's 1966 infamous comment that The Beatles had become "more popular than Jesus", by recalling how the Chipmunks had fallen in popularity after Alvin boasted they were "bigger than Mickey Mouse!". In 1985, the Chipmunks, along with the Chipettes, were featured in the live stage show, Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Amazing Computer. In 1987, during the fifth season of the show on television, the Chipmunks had their first animated feature film, The Chipmunk Adventure, directed by Janice Karman and Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and released to theaters by The Samuel Goldwyn Company. The film featured the Chipmunks and the Chipettes in a contest traveling around the world. In the 1988-89 season, the show switched production companies to DIC Entertainment, by which time the Chipmunks had truly become anthropomorphized. In 1990, the show switched titles again to The Chipmunks Go to the Movies. Each episode in this season was a spoof of a Hollywood film, such as Back to the Future, King Kong, and others. In addition, several television specials featuring the characters were also released. At the conclusion of the eighth season, the show was canceled again. In 1990, a documentary was produced about the show entitled Alvin and the Chipmunks/Five Decades with the Chipmunks. In that year, the Chipmunks also teamed up for the only time with other famous cartoon stars (such as Bugs Bunny, Garfield, etc.) for the drug abuse-prevention special Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks or simply The Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band created by Ross Bagdasarian for a novelty record in 1958. The group consists of three singing animated anthropomorphic chipmunks named Alvin, Simon, and Theodore. They are managed by their human adoptive father, David "Dave" Seville.
Bagdasarian provided the group's voices sped up to create high-pitched squeaky voices (which wasn't entirely new to him, having worked on "Witch Doctor" earned the record two Grammy Awards for engineering).
"The Chipmunk Song" became a number-one single in the United States. After Bagdasarian died in 1972, the characters’ voices were provided by his son Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and the latter's wife Janice Karman in the subsequent incarnations of the 1981s and 1991s.
A CGI-animated TV series reboot, titled ALVINNN!!! and the Chipmunks, premiered on Nickelodeon on August 3, 2016. In 2019, The Chipmunks received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Through the successful franchise, the Chipmunks have become one of the most successful children's artists of all time. It has garnered two number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100 and won five Grammy Awards, having four Top 10 albums on the Billboard 200 and three certified platinum albums. "The Chipmunk Song" became one of the best-selling singles of all time at 5 million physical copies sold.
On November 2, 2021, Bagdasarian Productions announced it would sell the property for $300 million. Paramount Global was reported as one of the interested buyers.
History
"Witch Doctor"
In 1958, Ross Bagdasarian Sr. released a novelty song (as David Seville) about being unsuccessful at love until he found a witch doctor who told him how to woo his woman. The song was done by Bagdasarian in his normal voice, except for the "magic" words, done first in Bagdasarian's pitched-up, pre-Chipmunk voice, then in a duet between his pitched-up voice and his normal voice. The words themselves are nonsense: "Oo-ee, oo-ah-ah, ting-tang, walla-walla, bing-bang".
The song was a hit, holding number one for three weeks in the Billboard Top 100 chart. Nothing makes any reference to chipmunks, but the song is sometimes included on Chipmunk compilations as if the Chipmunks had provided the voice of the Witch Doctor. Bagdasarian did record a Chipmunks version of "Witch Doctor", which appeared on the second Chipmunks album, Sing Again with the Chipmunks, in 1960. Bagdasarian performed the song "live" (with a pre-recorded track of the pitched-up voice) on The Ed Sullivan Show.
Bagdasarian (again as Seville) recorded a follow-up song, "The Bird on My Head", singing a duet with his own sped-up voice as the bird. It also reached the Top 40, peaking at No. 34. While driving in Sequoia National Park, Bagdasarian saw a chipmunk dash in front of him. That moment inspired him to create his chipmunk characters.
The technique was imitated by Sheb Wooley's "The Purple People Eater" and The Big Bopper's "The Purple People Eater Meets the Witch Doctor".
"The Chipmunk Song"
After the success of Witch Doctor, Liberty Records asked Bagdasarian to create another successful novelty record. He then came up with three singing chipmunks who were named, as an inside joke, after executives at Liberty Records. Alvin (named after Al Bennett), Simon (named after Si Waronker), and Theodore (Ted Keep).
The Chipmunks first officially appeared on the scene in a novelty record released in late fall 1958 by Bagdasarian. The song, originally listed on the record label (Liberty F-55168) as "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)", featured the singing skills of the chipmunk trio. One phrase in the chorus has Alvin wishing for a hula hoop, which was that year's hot new toy. The novelty record was highly successful, selling more than 4 million copies in seven weeks, and it launched the careers of its chipmunk stars. It spent four weeks at Number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart from December 22, 1958, to January 12, 1959, succeeding "To Know Him Is to Love Him" at Number 1 on the same chart by the Teddy Bears, a pop group that featured Phil Spector. It also earned three Grammy Awards and a nomination for Record of the Year. At the height of its popularity, Bagdasarian and three chipmunk hand-puppets appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show, lip-synching the song. "The Chipmunk Song" appeared on the Chipmunks' debut album, Let's All Sing with the Chipmunks, in 1959, and was repeated on Christmas with the Chipmunks, released in 1962. The song also has been included on several compilation albums.
Bob Rivers did a parody of this song for his 2000 Christmas album Chipmunks Roasting on an Open Fire which was titled "The Twisted Chipmunk Song". In the song, the Chipmunks are referred to as Thagadore (Theodore), Squeaky (Simon), and Melvin (Alvin).
The Three Chipmunks (1959)
The Chipmunks first appeared in comic book form on Dell Comics' Four Color Comics series, issue #1042 (cover-dated Dec. 1959). Alvin, Theodore and Simon were depicted as somewhat realistic, nearly identical anthropomorphic rodents with almond-shaped eyes. When Herb Klynn's Format Films made a deal to develop the Three Chipmunks for animation, the old designs were rejected and new versions of the characters were created. Liberty Records eventually re-issued the early albums with the "new" Chipmunks and it was this new version of the Chipmunks that was used when Alvin's own title was released by Dell in 1962.
The Alvin Show (1961–62)
The first television series to feature the characters was The Alvin Show. By this period, the Chipmunks looked much like their modern incarnations. Also, an animated portrayal of Seville was a reasonable caricature of Bagdasarian himself. The series ran from 1961 to 1962 and was one of a small number of animated series to be shown in prime time on CBS. It was not a prime-time ratings success and was subsequently canceled after one season. Ratings improved significantly in syndication.
In addition to Alvin cartoons, the series also featured the scientist Clyde Crashcup and his assistant Leonardo. Those characters did not feature prominently on any of the later series. Crashcup made a single cameo appearance in A Chipmunk Christmas, and in an episode of the 1983 TV series. The television series was produced by Format Films for Bagdasarian Film Corporation. Although the series was broadcast in black and white, it was produced and later re-run in color. Twenty-six episodes each were produced for the "Alvin and the Chipmunks" and "Clyde Crashcup" segments, along with 52 musical segments.
New albums and A Chipmunk Christmas (1969–82)
The final Chipmunks album in the project's original incarnation, The Chipmunks Go to the Movies, was released in 1969. After the death of Ross Bagdasarian in 1972 from a heart attack, the Chipmunks' careers stalled until NBC showed interest in the original show (the network carried Saturday morning reruns of The Alvin Show as a midseason replacement in 1979) and the following year, Excelsior Records released a new album of contemporary songs performed by the Chipmunks. That album, Chipmunk Punk, featured Bagdasarian's son, Ross Bagdasarian Jr., doing the voices of the characters. That album and the continued reruns of the series proved to be popular enough to warrant further new records as well as new television productions, and in 1981, the Chipmunks and Seville returned to television in the Christmas special A Chipmunk Christmas, produced by Marvel Productions, which was first broadcast on NBC on December 14 of that year. Next year, two more albums were released (Chipmunk Rock and The Chipmunks Go Hollywood).
Alvin and the Chipmunks (1983–90)
The group's name changed from "the Chipmunks" to "Alvin and the Chipmunks".
In 1983, a second animated television series for the group, produced by Ruby-Spears Productions, was released. Titled simply Alvin and the Chipmunks, the outline of the show closely paralleled the original Alvin Show. The series lasted eight production seasons until 1990. The first season introduced the Chipettes (three female versions of the Chipmunks): Brittany, Jeanette, and Eleanor with their human guardian, the myopic Miss Beatrice Miller (who arrived for the 1986 season). The show's success led to the release of a soundtrack album in 1984, Songs from Our TV Shows.
After 1988, the show was renamed just The Chipmunks to indicate that there were now two groups of them. Also introduced was the boys' "Uncle" Harry, who may or may not have been a relative. The show reflected contemporaneous trends in popular culture; the Chipmunks sang recent hits, and wore contemporary clothing. One "documentary" episode spoofed John Lennon's 1966 infamous comment that the Beatles had become "more popular than Jesus", by recalling how the Chipmunks had fallen in popularity after Alvin boasted they were "bigger than Mickey Mouse!". In 1985, the Chipmunks, along with the Chipettes, were featured in the live stage show, Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Amazing Computer. In 1987, during the fifth season of the television show, the Chipmunks had their first animated feature film, The Chipmunk Adventure, directed by Janice Karman and Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and released to theaters by The Samuel Goldwyn Company. The film featured the Chipmunks and the Chipettes in a contest traveling around the world.
In the 1988–89 season, the show switched production companies to DIC Entertainment (1988-1990) and Murakami Wolf Swenson (1988), by which time the Chipmunks had truly become anthropomorphized. In 1990, the show switched titles again to The Chipmunks Go to the Movies. Each episode in this season was a spoof of a Hollywood film, such as Back to the Future, King Kong, and others. In addition, several television specials featuring the characters were also released. After the eighth season, the show was canceled again. In 1990, a documentary was produced about the show entitled Alvin and the Chipmunks/Five Decades with the Chipmunks. In that year, the Chipmunks also teamed up for the only time with other famous cartoon stars (such as Bugs Bunny, Garfield, etc.) for the drug abuse-prevention special Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue.
Music releases and short-lived Universal acquisition (1991–2002)
On January 18, 1991, NBC aired a television special starring the Chipmunks entitled Rockin' Through the Decades. The same year, it released the album The Chipmunks Rock the House. In 1992, the group released the country album Chipmunks in Low Places. Released on September 29, 1992, the album was certified platinum by the RIAA, becoming the group's first platinum record and making it the Chipmunks' best-selling album followed by a greatest hits release and a reissue of 1981's A Chipmunk Christmas. By 1993, Urban Chipmunk was re-released as a compilation album The Chipmunks' 35th Birthday Party with a double album, called The Chipmunks Sing-Alongs.
Their fourth Christmas album, A Very Merry Chipmunk, saw a release in 1994, then When You Wish Upon a Chipmunk in 1995, Club Chipmunk: The Dance Mixes peaked in the Top 10 on Billboard's Top Kid Audio.
In 1996, Universal Studios purchased the rights to the characters. In 1998, Sony Wonder and Columbia Records released The A-Files: Alien Songs and Greatest Hits: Still Squeaky After All These Years on September 21, 1999. The purchase of the rights to the characters by Universal resulted in The Chipmunks' 1999 reappearance, in the form of the direct-to-video movie Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet Frankenstein, released on September 28, 1999. Five new songs were composed for the film were made available via a soundtrack released by MCA Records. Later that year, The Chipmunks' Greatest Christmas Hits was released.
The movie was successful enough to spark interest in a sequel, and in 2000, Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet the Wolfman appeared. Three new songs were composed for the film, that were also made available on a soundtrack by MCA.
Both movies featured the original cast of the second series reprising their roles as the tone was very similar to the series. Universal lost the rights to the characters in 2002 due to a breach of contract with Bagdasarian Productions.
Return to independency, movies and merchandise (2003–2021)
On September 17, 2004, Fox 2000 Pictures, Regency Enterprises, and Bagdasarian Productions announced a live-action hybrid film starring Alvin and the Chipmunks. Tim Hill directed the 2007 CGI/live-action film adaptation, with Justin Long, Matthew Gray Gubler, and Jesse McCartney providing the voices, along with its 2009, 2011, and 2015 sequels. Bagdasarian Jr. and Karman continue to perform the singing voices for Alvin, Theodore, and the Chipettes, but Steve Vining did Simon's singing voice. The projects have earned five Grammy awards, an American Music Award, a Golden Reel Award, three Kids' Choice Awards, and Emmy nominations.
Possible acquisition (2021–present)
The franchise was announced to be sold to a potential buyer.
Main characters
Dave Seville
The Chipmunks
The 1983 series revealed that the boys' mother "Vinnie" is a similarly anthropomorphic chipmunk living in a nearby forest. One year a particularly harsh winter had caused a nut shortage. Vinnie realized that her newborn children would likely not survive the winter, so she anonymously left them on Dave's doorstep. She returned briefly to see what happened years later. Dave and the boys were unaware of their origins until they asked him during an argument over the exact date of their birthday. Vinnie had never revealed herself to him, but the boys investigated and eventually tracked her down.
In the 2007 feature film, the chipmunks lived in a tree, fending for themselves as their parents had taken off to join a hippie commune and had problems gathering nuts for the winter. Their tree is cut down and carted off to grace the entrance lobby of a city office building, with them in it. They eventually wind up in Dave's home, where they wreak havoc. After being thrown out, Dave notices how well they can sing, making them famous. They eventually win his heart.
In the 1980s media, the boys are triplets, as they celebrate their birthday together in "''A Chipmunk Reunion''" (Alvin stating to be born five minutes before Simon), and they are about 8–9 years. While never mentioned, in the CGI movies and 2015 series, the chipmunks are no longer triplets and celebrate different birthdays; but seem to be around the same school age.
Recording technique
The Chipmunks' voices were recorded at half the normal tape speed on audiotape by voice talent (on the 1960s records, generally Ross Bagdasarian Sr.'s own voice overdubbed three times, on the post-1980s records, studio singers) talking or singing at half the normal speaking rate. When the tape was played back at normal speed, they would sound a full octave higher in pitch, at normal tempo. The technique was by no means new to the Chipmunks. For example, the high- and low-pitched characters in The Wizard of Oz were achieved by speeding up and slowing down vocal recordings. Also, Mel Blanc's voice characterization for Daffy Duck was Sylvester the Cat's voice sped up to some extent. Now, the same effect is created digitally and in real-time with a pitch shift.
However, the extensive use of this technique with the Chipmunks, coupled with their popularity, linked this technique to them. The term "chipmunk-voiced" has entered the American vernacular to describe any artificially high-pitched voice. A similar effect could be obtained in playback by merely taking an LP recorded at 33 RPM and playing it back at 45 or 78 RPM, a trick sometimes tried out by ordinary record listeners. The instrumental portions of the song are sped up as well, however, making it obvious that the music is being played at the wrong speed. Bagdasarian recorded vocals and music at different speeds to combine properly on his recording. Guitarist Les Paul said he visited Bagdasarian's studio in 1958 and helped with the recording.
The technique was used extensively in the British puppet show Pinky and Perky, which predated the Chipmunks. The sound was frequently imitated in comedy records, notably "Transistor Radio" by Benny Hill, "Bridget the Midget" by Ray Stevens, "The Laughing Gnome" by David Bowie, and on several tracks on Joe Meek and the Blue Men's album I Hear a New World. The technique also appears in the "Yeah! You!" line of the Coasters' song "Charlie Brown". Prince used the technique on several of his songs, as well as Frank Zappa on We're Only in It for the Money and on the instrumental album Hot Rats, among others. The early production style of hip-hop artist Kanye West involved sped-up, high-pitch vocal samples from classic soul records incorporated with his own (additional) instrumentation. Due in part to the acclaim of his debut album The College Dropout, such sampling techniques subsequently became much copied by a myriad of other hip-hop producers. In the early 1990s rave scene, many breakbeat hardcore productions would utilize the same studio tricks, often taking a cappella from house records and speeding them up to fit the faster tempo. Vocals in songs that used this method would typically be referred to as "chipmunk vocals".
Guest appearances
The Chipmunks made their first guest appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show on December 13, 1959, when they performed "The Chipmunk Song".
In 1968, the Chipmunks appeared in an Italian commercial TV program Carosello, in their sponsorship of Prealpi, a cheese-maker in Varese, Italy.
The Chipmunks appeared in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade twice; 1983 and 1986. In the 1983 parade, they performed Tomorrow. In 1986, they performed The Girls of Rock and Roll with The Chipettes as a way to promote their film, The Chipmunk Adventure, which was released six months later.
The Chipmunks performed with Canned Heat on the band's interpretation of "The Chipmunk Song", which is sufficiently derivative of the Chipmunk's 1958 hit that Ross Bagdasarian Sr. gets sole writing credit. It was featured as the flip-side of the band's Christmas Blues single released in late 2009.
The Chipmunks made a guest appearance on Xuxa in 1993, where they performed "Country Pride" from their album, Chipmunks in Low Places.
They also appeared on the FOX NFL Sunday intro (which premiered on December 20, 2009) with the cameo character, Digger (the mascot for NASCAR on Fox).
The Chipmunks made an appearance at a Los Angeles Dodgers preseason game on April 3, 2010, when the Dodgers squared off against their rivals, the Los Angeles Angels. The group performed, "America the Beautiful" with a group of children prior to the game. Also, Simon Seville wore a wig of Manny Ramirez's dreadlocks. Ross Bagdasarian Jr. made the opening ceremonial pitch for that game.
The Chipmunks made multiple appearances on ads for Food Safety to help kids learn safe food practices.
Discography
Video games
The Chipmunks (1990) – platforms: Tiger Electronic Game.
Alvin and the Chipmunks (2007) – platforms: Nintendo DS, Wii, PlayStation 2 and Microsoft Windows.
Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel (2009) – platforms: Nintendo DS and Wii.
Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (2011) – arranger: Eleonora Rossin - platforms: Nintendo DS, Wii and Xbox 360.
Concert tours
1984:The Chipmunks and the Magic Camera (The Chipmunks)
1985: Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Amazing Computer (The Chipmunks and the Chipettes)
2008: Get Munk'd Tour (The Chipmunks)
2015: Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Musical (The Chipmunks and the Chipettes)
Awards and nominations
1959, won three Grammy Awards for Best Recording for Children, Best Comedy Performance and Best Engineered Record –Non-Classical for the song "The Chipmunk Song" (it was also nominated for Record of the Year, but did not win).
1960, won a Grammy Award for Best Engineered Recording -Non-Classical for the song "Alvin's Harmonica."
1961, won a Grammy Award for Best Album for Children for the album Let's All Sing with the Chipmunks (it was also nominated for Best Engineered Record -Non-Classical). The song "Alvin for President" was also nominated for both Best Comedy Performance –Musical and Best Engineered Record –Novelty, making two nominations in the latter category.
1962, was nominated again for a Grammy Award for Best Engineered Record –Novelty for the television tie-in album The Alvin Show.
1963, was nominated again for Grammy Awards for both Best Album for Children and Best Engineered Record –Novelty for the album The Chipmunk Songbook.
1966, was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Recording for Children for the song "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious".
1985, was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category "Outstanding Animated Program (Daytime)."
1987, the second television series was nominated for a Young Artist Award in the category "Exceptional Family Animation Series or Specials."
1987, was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category "Outstanding Animated Program (Daytime)."
1988, was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category "Outstanding Animated Program (Daytime)."
1988, was nominated for a Young Artist Award in the category "Best Motion Picture –Animation" for the movie The Chipmunk Adventure.
2000, won the Golden Reel Award in the category "Best Sound Editing –Direct to Video – Sound Editorial" for the movie Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet Frankenstein.
2008, Jason Lee won the Kids' Choice Awards in the category "Favorite Movie" for the movie Alvin and the Chipmunks.
2008, the 2007 Alvin and the Chipmunks soundtrack won the American Music Award for "Best Movie Soundtrack."
2010, Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel won the Kids' Choice Awards in the category "Favorite Movie."
2012, Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked won the 2012 Kids' Choice Awards in the category "Favorite Movie."
2019, earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
There were five Grammy Awards, an American Music Award, a Golden Reel Award, three Kids Choice Awards in total, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
References
External links
Chipmunks.com, Bagdasarian Productions' official site
Cinema.ch Trailer
"The History of the Chipmunks", Animation.Archive.org
Alvin and the Chipmunks" at Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Archived from the original on April 4, 2012.
1958 establishments in the United States
American children's musical groups
American novelty song performers
Animated musical groups
American animation studios
Anthropomorphic rodents
Atlantic Records artists
Capitol Records artists
Child musical groups
Columbia Records artists
Decca Records artists
Family musical groups
Fictional musical groups
Fictional adoptees
Fictional characters introduced in 1958
Fictional chipmunks
Fictional dancers
Fictional musicians
Fictional singers
Fictional trios
Grammy Award winners
Hollywood Records artists
Liberty Records artists
Child characters in animated films
Child characters in animated series
Child characters in film
American companies established in 1961
1961 establishments in California
Companies based in Santa Barbara County, California
Child characters in television
Teenage characters in film
Animated television series about children
MCA Records artists
Musical groups established in 1958
Parody musicians
RCA Records artists
Recorded music characters
Video game musicians | false | [
"The Star Awards for Best Variety Special is an award presented annually at the Star Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1994.\n\nThe category was introduced in 1998, at the 5th Star Awards ceremony; NKF 5th Anniversary Charity Show received the award and it is given in honour of a Mediacorp variety special which has delivered an outstanding overall performance. The nominees are determined by a team of judges employed by Mediacorp; winners are selected by a majority vote from the entire judging panel.\n\nSince its inception, the award has been given to 19 variety specials. Star Awards 2019 is the most recent winner in this category. Since the ceremony held in 2015, NKF Charity Show and Star Awards remain as the only two variety specials to win in this category six times, surpassing Ren Ci Charity Show which has two wins. In addition, Star Awards has been nominated on 18 occasions, more than any other variety special. Lunar New Year's Eve Special holds the record for most nominations without a win, with 11.\n\nThe award was not presented in 2000 & 2018.\n\nRecipients\n\n Each year is linked to the article about the Star Awards held that year.\n\nCategory facts\nMost wins\n\nMost nominations\n\nSee also \nStar Awards\nStar Awards for Best Variety Show Host\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n\nStar Awards",
"The 49th Primetime Emmy Awards were held at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in Pasadena, California in 1997. They were presented in two ceremonies hosted by Bryant Gumbel, one on Saturday, September 13 and another on Sunday, September 14. The September 14th ceremony was televised on CBS.\n\nFrasier became the first series to win Outstanding Comedy Series four consecutive years, it joined Hill Street Blues which won Outstanding Drama Series four straight years a decade earlier. For the first time since 1979, James Burrows did not receive a Directing nomination, ending his run at 17 consecutive years. Beginning the following year, Burrows would begin a new streak that lasted another six years. In the drama field perennial nominee Law & Order won for its seventh season, the first time a show had won for this specific season. In winning Law & Order became the first drama series that did not have serialized story arcs since Hill Street Blues perfected the formula. Law & Order remains the only non-serialized winner since 1981.\n\nFor the first time, not only did the Fox Network win the Lead Actress, Drama award, with Gillian Anderson, for The X-Files, but hers was also the network's first win in any of the Major Acting categories. (Laurence Fishburne and Peter Boyle won for Fox in only guest performances. The latter of which was for The X-Files just the year before.)\n\nThis ceremony marked the end of a 20-year residency for the Primetime Emmy Awards at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium dating back to the 29th Primetime Emmy Awards in 1977 ceremony.\n\nThis is the most recent year in which the Big Four Networks (ABC, CBS, FOX, and NBC) took home the top 14 Emmys (Comedy and Drama Series, Actor, Actress, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress in Comedy and Drama, and Directing and Writing for Comedy and Drama).\n\nThe Larry Sanders Show had 16 nominations and zero wins, tying the record with Northern Exposure in 1993 and becoming the first (and only to date) comedy series to set the record. These records with later be broken by Mad Men in 2012 with 17 nominations and without a single win and The Handmaid's Tale in 2021 with 21 nominations and without a single win.\n\nWinners and nominees\n\nPrograms\n\nActing\n\nLead performances\n\nSupporting performances\n\nGuest performances\n\nDirecting\n\nWriting\n\nMost major nominations\nBy network \n NBC – 50\n HBO – 41\n CBS – 21\n ABC – 19\n\nBy program\n ER (NBC) – 14\n The Larry Sanders Show (HBO) – 12\n NYPD Blue (ABC) – 8\n Seinfeld (NBC) – 7\n Chicago Hope (CBS) / Frasier (NBC) / Mad About You (NBC) / Miss Evers' Boys (HBO) – 6\n\nMost major awards\nBy network \n NBC – 11\n HBO – 7\n ABC – 6\n CBS – 2\n PBS – 2\n\nBy program\n NYPD Blue (ABC) – 4\n\nNotes\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Emmys.com list of 1997 Nominees & Winners\n \n\n049\nPrimetime Emmy Awards\n1997 in California\nEvents in Pasadena, California\nSeptember 1997 events in the United States\n20th century in Pasadena, California"
] |
[
"Beastie Boys",
"2012-present: Deaths of Yauch and Berry"
] | C_135bb6c0abb44071b79b28c1c5149a4a_0 | How did Yauch die and when? | 1 | When and how did Yauch of the Beastie Boys die? | Beastie Boys | On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer at the age of 47. On May 24, in an interview with Rolling Stone, Mike D said that the Beastie Boys recorded new music in late 2011 after the release of Hot Sauce Committee (Part 2), but he did not say if these recordings would be released. He also said that the Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock and that "Yauch would genuinely want us to try whatever crazy thing we wanted but never got around to." In April 2013 it was announced that the group has signed a deal to write an autobiography. The book was scheduled to be released in the fall of 2015. However, Horovitz stated that the autobiography is being delayed. According to Horovitz, "We've got pages!....How it's going to fit together, I don't know. But we've got some ideas. It's interesting. It's fun." On May 3, 2013 a children's playground in Brooklyn was renamed for Adam Yauch. In June 2014, Mike D stated that neither he nor Horovitz would perform under the Beastie Boys name again out of respect for Yauch. Founding Beastie Boys guitarist John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, after a decline of health for several years. He was credited with coming up with the Beastie Boys name, and played guitar on the first EP the Beastie Boys recorded. Before the Beastie Boys, he was also a part of Even Worse, Big Fat Love, Highway Stars, Bourbon Deluxe, and Idaho. The first Beastie Boys show took place at Berry's loft. CANNOTANSWER | On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer | Beastie Boys were an American hip hop group from New York City, formed in 1981. The group was composed of Michael "Mike D" Diamond (vocals, drums), Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (vocals, guitar, programming).
Beastie Boys were formed out of members of experimental hardcore punk band The Young Aborigines in 1978, with Diamond as vocalist, Jeremy Shatan on bass guitar, John Berry on guitar, and Kate Schellenbach on drums. When Shatan left in 1981, Yauch replaced him on bass and the band changed their name to Beastie Boys. Berry left shortly thereafter and was replaced by Horovitz.
After achieving local success with the 1983 comedy hip hop single "Cooky Puss", Beastie Boys made a full transition to hip hop, and Schellenbach left. They toured with Madonna in 1985 and a year later released their debut album, Licensed to Ill (1986), the first rap record to top the Billboard 200 chart. Their second album, Paul's Boutique (1989), composed almost entirely of samples, was a commercial failure, but later received critical acclaim. Check Your Head (1992) and Ill Communication (1994) found mainstream success, followed by Hello Nasty (1998), To the 5 Boroughs (2004), The Mix-Up (2007), and Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011).
Beastie Boys have sold 20 million records in the United States and had seven platinum-selling albums from 1986 to 2004. They are the biggest-selling rap group since Billboard began recording sales in 1991. In 2012, they became the third rap group to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In the same year, Yauch died of cancer and Beastie Boys disbanded. Since then, the remaining two members have released several retrospective works, including a book and documentary film detailing the history of the group as well as a career-spanning compilation album. Diamond has produced acts including Portugal. The Man, while Horovitz has taken small acting roles and continues to play music.
History
1981–1983: Formation and early years
Prior to forming Beastie Boys, Michael Diamond was part of a number of bands such as the Walden Jazz Band, BAN, and the Young Aborigines. Beastie Boys formed in July 1981 when the Young Aborigines bassist Jeremy Shatan left New York City for the summer and the remaining members Michael Diamond, John Berry and Kate Schellenbach formed a new hardcore punk band with Adam Yauch.
In a 2007 interview with Charlie Rose, Yauch recalled that it was Berry who suggested the name Beastie Boys. Although the band stated that "Beastie" is an acronym standing for "Boys Entering Anarchistic States Towards Inner Excellence", in the Charlie Rose interview, both Yauch and Diamond acknowledged that the acronym was an "afterthought" conceived after the name was chosen. The band supported Bad Brains, the Dead Kennedys, the Misfits and Reagan Youth at venues such as CBGB, A7, Trudy Hellers Place and Max's Kansas City, playing at the latter venue on its closing night. In November 1982, Beastie Boys recorded the 7-inch EP Polly Wog Stew at 171A studios, an early recorded example of New York hardcore.
On November 13, 1982, Beastie Boys played Philip Pucci's birthday for the purposes of his short concert film, Beastie. Pucci held the concert in Bard College's Preston Drama Dance Department Theatre. This performance marked Beastie Boys' first on screen appearance in a published motion picture. Pucci's concept for Beastie was to distribute a mixture of both a half dozen 16 mm Bell & Howell Filmo cameras, and 16 mm Bolex cameras to audience members and ask that they capture Beastie Boys performance from the audience's own point of view while a master sync sound camera filmed from the balcony of the abandoned theater where the performance was held. The opening band for that performance was The Young and the Useless, which featured Adam Horovitz as the lead singer. A one-minute clip of Beastie was subsequently excerpted and licensed by Beastie Boys for use in the "Egg Raid on Mojo" segment of the "Skills to Pay the Bills" long-form home video released by Capitol Records. "Skills to Pay the Bills" later went on to be certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Berry left the group in 1982 (later forming Thwig, Big Fat Love and Bourbon Deluxe) and was replaced by Horovitz, who had become close friends with Beastie Boys.
The band also recorded and then performed its first hip hop track, "Cooky Puss", based on a prank call by the group to a Carvel Ice Cream franchise in 1983. It was a part of the new lineup's first EP, also called Cooky Puss, which was the first piece of work that showed their incorporation of the underground rap phenomenon and the use of samples. It quickly became a hit in New York underground dance clubs and night clubs. "Beastie Revolution" was later sampled for a British Airways commercial. Beastie Boys threatened to sue them over the use of the song. British Airways immediately paid them $40,000 in royalties.
1984–1987: Def Jam years and Licensed to Ill
Following the success of "Cooky Puss", the band began to incorporate rap into their sets. They hired a DJ for their live shows, New York University student Rick Rubin, who began producing records soon thereafter. "I met Mike first," Rubin recalled. "I thought he was an arrogant asshole. Through spending time with the Beasties I grew to see that they had this great sense of humour. It wasn't that they were assholes, and even if it was, they were funny with it." Rubin formed Def Jam Recordings with fellow NYU student Russell Simmons, and approached the band about producing them for his new label. As the band was transitioning to hip hop, Schellenbach was fired in 1984, with Diamond taking over on drums. In their 2018 memoir, Ad-Rock expressed regret for firing Schellenbach, which he attributed to her not fitting with the "new tough-rapper-guy identity".
The band's 12-inch single "Rock Hard" (1984) was the second Def Jam record crediting Rubin as producer (the first was "It's Yours" by T La Rock and Jazzy Jay). On July 22, 1986, Beastie Boys opened for John Lydon's post-Sex Pistols band Public Image Ltd., and supported Madonna on her North American The Virgin Tour. Then headlining with Fishbone and Murphy's Law with DJ Hurricane and later in the year, the group was on the Raising Hell tour with Run-DMC, Whodini, LL Cool J, and the Timex Social Club. Thanks to this exposure, "Hold It Now, Hit It" charted on Billboards US R&B and dance charts. "She's on It" from the Krush Groove soundtrack continued in a rap/metal vein while a double A-side 12", "Paul Revere/The New Style", was released at the end of the year.
The band recorded Licensed to Ill in 1986 and released it on November 15, 1986. The album was favorably reviewed by Rolling Stone magazine. Licensed to Ill became one of the best-selling rap albums of the 1980s and the first rap album to go number 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, where it stayed for five weeks. It also reached number 2 on the Top R&B album chart. It was Def Jam's fastest selling debut record to date and sold over nine million copies. The fourth single, "(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)", reached number 7 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Although the group has sold over 26 million records in the US, this is their only single to peak in the US top ten or top twenty. The accompanying video (directed by Ric Menello and Adam Dubin) became an MTV staple. Another song from the album, "No Sleep till Brooklyn", peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart.
The band took the Licensed to Ill tour around the world the following year. The tour was troubled by lawsuits and arrests, with the band accused of provoking the crowd. This culminated in a notorious gig at the Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool, England, on May 30, 1987, that erupted into a riot approximately 10 minutes after the group hit the stage and the arrest of Adam Horovitz by Merseyside Police. He was charged with assault causing grievous bodily harm.
1988–1989: Move to Capitol Records and Paul's Boutique
In 1988, Beastie Boys appeared in Tougher Than Leather, a film directed by Rubin as a star vehicle for Run-D.M.C. and Def Jam Recordings. After Def Jam stopped paying them for work they'd already done and were owed money for, Beastie Boys left Def Jam and signed with Capitol Records.
The second Beastie Boys album, Paul's Boutique, was released on July 25, 1989. Produced by the Dust Brothers, it blends eclectic samples and has been described as an early work of experimental hip hop. It failed to match the sales of Licensed to Ill, peaking at number 14 on the US album charts, but later attracted wide acclaim; Rolling Stone ranked it number 156 on its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
1990–1996: Check Your Head and Ill Communication
Check Your Head was recorded in the band's G-Son studio in Atwater Village, California, and released on its Grand Royal record label. The band was influenced to play instruments on this album by Dutch group Urban Dance Squad; with Mike D on drums, Yauch on bass, Horovitz on guitar and Mark Ramos Nishita ("Keyboard Money Mark") on keyboards. Mario Caldato, Jr., who had helped in the production of Paul's Boutique, engineered the record and became a longtime collaborator. Check Your Head was released in 1992 and was certified double Platinum in the US and peaked at number 10 on the Billboard 200. The single "So What'cha Want" reached number 93 on the Billboard Hot 100 and charted on both the Rap and Modern Rock Chart, while the album's first single, "Pass the Mic", peaked at number 38 on the Hot Dance Music chart. The album also introduced a more experimental direction, with funk and jazz inspired songs including "Lighten Up" and "Something's Got to Give". The band returned to their hardcore punk roots for the song "Time for Livin'", a cover of a 1974 Sly and the Family Stone song. The addition of instruments and the harder rock sound of the album could be considered a precursor to the nu metal genre of music to come out in the later half of the 1990s.
Beastie Boys signed an eclectic roster of artists to their Grand Royal label, including Luscious Jackson, Sean Lennon, and Australian artist Ben Lee. The group owned Grand Royal Records until 2001. Grand Royal's first independent release was Luscious Jackson's album In Search of Manny in 1993. Also in 1993, the band contributed the track "It's the New Style" (with DJ Hurricane) to the AIDS benefit album No Alternative, produced by the Red Hot Organization.
Beastie Boys also published Grand Royal Magazine, with the first edition in 1993 featuring a cover story on Bruce Lee, artwork by George Clinton, and interviews with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and A Tribe Called Quest's MC Q-Tip. The 1995 issue of the magazine contained a memorable piece on the mullet. The Oxford English Dictionary cites this as the first published use of the term, along with the lyrics from the band's 1994 song, "Mullet Head". That term was not heard in the 1980s, even though that decade has retroactively been hailed as the mullet's peak in popularity. The OED says that the term was "apparently coined, and certainly popularized, by US hip-hop group Beastie Boys". Grand Royal Magazine is also responsible for giving British band Sneaker Pimps their name.
Ill Communication, released in 1994, saw Beastie Boys' return to the top of the charts when the album debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200 and peaked at number 2 on the R&B/hip hop album chart. The single "Sabotage" became a hit on the modern rock charts and the music video, directed by Spike Jonze, received extensive play on MTV. "Get It Together" reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. Also in 1994, the band released Some Old Bullshit, featuring the band's early independent material, which made it to number 46 on the Billboard Independent Albums chart.
Beastie Boys headlined at Lollapalooza—an American travelling music festival—in 1994, together with The Smashing Pumpkins. In addition, the band performed three concerts (in Los Angeles, New York City, and Washington, D.C.) to raise money for the Milarepa Fund and dedicated the royalties from "Shambala" and "Bodhisattva Vow" from the Ill Communication to the cause. The Milarepa Fund aims to raise awareness of Tibetan human rights issues and the exile of the Dalai Lama. In 1996, Yauch organized the largest rock benefit show since 1985's Live Aid – the Tibetan Freedom Concert, a two-day festival at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco that attracted over 100,000 attendees.
In 1995, the popularity of Beastie Boys was underlined when tickets for an arena tour went on sale in the US and Madison Square Garden and Chicago's Rosemont Horizon sold out within 30 minutes. One dollar from each ticket sold went through Milarepa to local charities in each city on the tour. Beastie Boys toured South America and Southeast Asia for the first time. The band also released Aglio e Olio, a collection of eight songs lasting just 11 minutes harking back to their punk roots, in 1995. The In Sound from Way Out!, a collection of previously released jazz/funk instrumentals, was released on Grand Royal in 1996 with the title and artwork a homage to an album by electronic pop music pioneers Perrey and Kingsley.
In 1992, Beastie Boys decided to sample portions of the sound recording of "Choir" by James Newton in various renditions of their song "Pass the Mic". The band did not obtain a license from Newton to use the composition. Pursuant to their license from ECM Records, Beastie Boys digitally sampled the opening six seconds of Newton's sound recording of "Choir", and repeated this six-second sample as a background element throughout their song. Newton brought suit, claiming that the band infringed his copyright in the underlying composition of "Choir". The district court granted Beastie Boys summary judgment. The district court said that no license was required because the three-note segment of "Choir" lacked the requisite originality and was therefore not copyrightable. The decision was affirmed on appeal.
1997–2001: Hello Nasty
Beastie Boys began work on the album Hello Nasty at the G-Son studios, Los Angeles in 1995, but continued to produce and record it in New York City after Yauch moved to Manhattan in 1996. The album displayed a substantial shift in musical feel, with the addition of Mix Master Mike. The album featured bombastic beats, rap samples, and experimental sounds. Released on July 14, 1998, Hello Nasty earned first week sales of 681,000 in the US and went straight to number 1 in the US, the UK, Germany, Australia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and Sweden. The album achieved number 2 rank on the charts in Canada and Japan, and reached top-ten chart positions in Austria, Switzerland, Ireland, Belgium, Finland, France and Israel.
Beastie Boys won two Grammy Awards in 1999, receiving the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album for Hello Nasty as well as the Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for "Intergalactic". This was the first and, as of 2008, only time that a band had won awards in both rap and alternative categories.
Also at the 1998 MTV Video Music Awards they won the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award for their contribution to music videos. The following year at the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards they also won the award for Best Hip Hop Video for their hit song "Intergalactic". Beastie Boys used both appearances at the Video Music Awards to make politically charged speeches of considerable length to the sizable MTV audiences. At the 1998 ceremony, Yauch addressed the issue of Muslim people being stereotyped as terrorists and that most people of the Muslim faith are not terrorists. These comments were made in the wake of the US Embassy bombings that had occurred in both Kenya and Tanzania only a month earlier. At the 1999 ceremony in the wake of the horror stories that were coming out of Woodstock 99, Adam Horovitz addressed the fact that there had been many cases of sexual assaults and rapes at the festival, suggesting the need for bands and festivals to pay much more attention to the security details at their concerts.
Beastie Boys started an arena tour in 1998. Through Ian C. Rogers, the band made live downloads of their performances available for their fans, but were temporarily thwarted when Capitol Records removed them from its website. Beastie Boys was one of the first bands who made MP3 downloads available on their website. The group got a high level of response and public awareness as a result including a published article in The Wall Street Journal on the band's efforts.
On September 28, 1999, Beastie Boys joined Elvis Costello to play "Radio Radio" on the 25th anniversary season of Saturday Night Live.
Beastie Boys released The Sounds of Science, a two-CD anthology of their works in 1999. This album reached number 19 on the Billboard 200, number 18 in Canada, and number 14 on the R&B/Hip Hop chart. The one new song, the single "Alive", reached number 11 on the Billboard Modern Rock chart.
In 2000, Beastie Boys had planned to co-headline the "Rhyme and Reason Tour" with Rage Against the Machine and Busta Rhymes, but the tour was canceled when drummer Mike D suffered a serious injury due to a bicycle accident. The official diagnosis was fifth-degree acromioclavicular joint dislocation; he needed surgery and extensive rehabilitation. By the time he recovered, Rage Against the Machine had disbanded, although they would reunite seven years later.
Under the name Country Mike, Mike D recorded an album, Country Mike's Greatest Hits, and gave it to friends and family for Christmas in 2000. Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz's side project BS 2000 released Simply Mortified in 2001.
In October 2001, after the September 11, 2001 attacks, Beastie Boys organized and headlined the New Yorkers Against Violence Concert at the Hammerstein Ballroom.
2002–2008: To the 5 Boroughs and The Mix-Up
In 2002, Adam Yauch started building a new studio facility, Oscilloscope Laboratories, in downtown Manhattan, New York and the band started work on a new album there. The band released a protest song, "In a World Gone Mad", against the 2003 Iraq war as a free download on several websites, including the Milarepa website, the MTV website, MoveOn.org, and Win Without War. The 19th and 20th Tibetan Freedom Concerts were held in Tokyo and Taipei, Beastie Boys' first Taiwan appearance. Beastie Boys also headlined the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.
Their single, "Ch-Check It Out", debuted on The O.C. in "The Vegas" episode from Season 1, which aired April 28, 2004.
To the 5 Boroughs was released worldwide on June 15, 2004. It was the first album the band produced themselves and reached number 1 on the Billboard albums chart, number 2 in the UK and Australia, and number 3 in Germany. The first single from the album, "Ch-Check It Out", reached number 1 in Canada and on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart.
The album was the cause of some controversy with allegations that it installed spyware when inserted into the CD drive of a computer. The band denied this allegation, defending that there is no copy protection software on the albums sold in the US and UK. While there is Macrovision CDS-200 copy protection software installed on European copies of the album, this is standard practice for all European releases on EMI/Capitol Records released in Europe, and it does not install spyware or any form of permanent software.
The band stated in mid-2006 that they were writing material for their next album and would be producing it themselves.
Speaking to British music weekly NME (April 26, 2007), Diamond revealed that a new album was to be called The Mix-Up. Despite initial confusion regarding whether the album would have lyrics as opposed to being purely instrumental, the Mic-To-Mic blog reported that Capitol Records had confirmed it would be strictly instrumental and erroneously reported a release date scheduled for July 10, 2007. (The album was eventually released June 26, as originally reported.) On May 1, 2007, this was further cemented by an e-mail sent to those on the band's mailing list – explicitly stating that the album would be all instrumental:
The band subsequently confirmed the new album and announced a short tour that focused on festivals as opposed to a traditional tour, including the likes of Sónar (Spain), Roskilde (Denmark), Hurricane/Southside (Germany), Bestival (Isle of Wight), Electric Picnic (Ireland) and Open'er Festival (Poland). Beastie Boys performed at the UK leg of Live Earth July 7, 2007 at Wembley Stadium, London with "Sabotage", "So What'cha Want", "Intergalactic", and "Sure Shot".
They worked with Reverb, a non-profit environmental organization, on their 2007 summer tour.
They headlined the Langerado Music Festival in South Florida on Friday, March 7, 2008.
They won a Grammy for The Mix-Up in the "Best Pop Instrumental Album" category at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards in 2008.
2009–2012: Hot Sauce Committee
In February 2009, Yauch revealed their forthcoming new album had taken the band's sound in a "bizarre" new direction, saying "It's a combination of playing and sampling stuff as we're playing, and also sampling pretty obscure records." The tentative title for the record was Tadlock's Glasses, of which Yauch explained the inspiration behind the title:
On May 25, 2009, it was announced during an interview on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon that the name of their new album would be Hot Sauce Committee and was set for release on September 15 (with the track listing of the album announced through their mailing list on June 23). The album included a collaboration with Santigold who co-wrote and sang with the band on the track "Don't Play No Game That I Can't Win".
In June, the group appeared at Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival and performed the new single from the album titled "Too Many Rappers" alongside rapper Nas who appears on the track. It would be the last live performance by Beastie Boys as a trio. The group would have toured the UK later in the year in support of the new record.
Speaking to Drowned in Sound, Beastie Boys revealed that Part 2 was done. Mike D also hinted it may be released via unusual means:
On July 20, Yauch announced on the band's official YouTube channel and through the fan mailing list, the cancellation of several tour dates and the postponement of the new album due to the discovery of a cancerous tumor in his parotid gland and a lymph node. The group also had to cancel their co-headlining gig at the Osheaga Festival in Montreal and also another headlining spot for the first night of the All Points West Festival in Jersey City, New Jersey.
In late October 2010, Beastie Boys sent out two emails regarding the status of Hot Sauce Committee Pts. 1 and 2 to their online mailing list. An email dated October 18 read: "Although we regret to inform you that Hot Sauce Committee Part 1 will continue to be delayed indefinitely, Hot Sauce Committee Part 2 will be released on time as originally planned in spring of 2011." One week later, a second email was sent out, reading as follows:
The official release dates were April 27, 2011, for Japan; April 29 in the UK and Europe, and May 3, 2011, in the US. The third single for the album "Make Some Noise" was made available for download on April 11, 2011, as well as a limited edition 7-inch vinyl single for Record Store Day five days later with a Passion Pit remix of the track as a b-side. The track was leaked online on April 6 and subsequently made available via their blog.
On April 22, Beastie Boys emailed out the cryptic message "This Sat, 10:35 am EST – Just listen, listen, listen to the beat box". A day later, they live streamed their album online via beatbox inside Madison Square Garden.
The band was announced as an inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in December 2011. They were inducted by Chuck D and LL Cool J on April 14, 2012. Yauch was too sick to attend the ceremony, having been admitted to NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital the same day, therefore the group didn't perform; instead Black Thought, Travie from Gym Class Heroes and Kid Rock performed a medley of their songs. Diamond and Horovitz accepted and read a speech that Yauch had written.
2012–present: Deaths of Yauch and Berry and disbandment
On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer at the age of 47. Mike D told Rolling Stone that Beastie Boys had recorded new music in late 2011, but did not say if these recordings would be released. He also said that Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock and that "Yauch would genuinely want us to try whatever crazy thing we wanted but never got around to". In June 2014, Mike D confirmed that he and Ad-Rock would not make music under the Beastie Boys name again.
Founding Beastie Boys guitarist John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, following several years of ill health. He was credited with naming the band Beastie Boys and played guitar on the first EP. The first Beastie Boys show took place at Berry's loft.
Yauch's will forbids the use of Beastie Boys music in advertisements. In June 2014, Beastie Boys won a lawsuit against Monster Energy for using their music in a commercial without permission. They were awarded $1.7 million in damages and $668,000 for legal fees. In October 2018, Michael Diamond and Adam Horovitz released a memoir, Beastie Boys Book. In 2020, they released a documentary, Beastie Boys Story, directed by Spike Jonze. The career-spanning book and documentary were complemented by the compilation album Beastie Boys Music in October 2020.
Tibetan Freedom Concert
In 1994, Yauch and activist Erin Potts organized the Tibetan Freedom Concert in order to raise awareness of humans rights abuses by the Chinese government on the Tibetan people. Yauch became aware of this after hiking in Nepal and speaking with Tibetan refugees. The events became annual, and shortly after went international with acts such as Live, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe of R.E.M., Rage Against the Machine, The Smashing Pumpkins, and U2.
Musical style, influences, and legacy
Originally a hardcore punk band, Beastie Boys had largely abandoned the genre in favor of hip hop and rap rock by the time work began on their debut studio album Licensed to Ill. The group mixed elements of hip hop, punk, funk, electro, jazz and Latin music into their music. They have also been described as alternative hip hop and .
Around the time of the release of their debut album, Licensed to Ill, Mike D started to appear on stage and in publicity photographs wearing a large Volkswagen emblem attached to a chain-link necklace. This started a rash of thefts of the emblem from vehicles around the world as fans tried to emulate him. A controversial concert in Columbus, Georgia in 1987 led to the passage of a lewdness ordinance in that city.
Beastie Boys are considered very influential in both the hip hop and rock music scenes, with artists such as Eminem, Rage Against the Machine, Hed PE, , Sublime, Mac Miller , Korn , Slipknot, and Blur citing them as an influence. Beastie Boys have had four albums reach the top of the Billboard album charts (Licensed to Ill, Ill Communication, Hello Nasty and To the 5 Boroughs) since 1986. In the November 2004 issue, Rolling Stone named "Sabotage" the 475th song on their 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list.
In their April 2005 issue, Rolling Stone ranked them number 77 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. VH1 ranked them number 89 on their list of their 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. On September 27, 2007, it was announced that Beastie Boys were one of the nine nominees for the 2008 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductions. In December 2011, they were announced to be official 2012 inductees.
Beastie Boys have many high-profile longtime fans, including UFC president Dana White, who has a hand-signed bass guitar signed by all three members in his office and a copy of the Beastie Boys book. Speaking on the death of Adam Yauch, White said, "I seriously haven't been impacted by a death in a long time like I was with the Beastie Boys". Actor Seth Rogen, who appeared in the video for "Make Some Noise", also said, "I'm a huge Beastie Boys fan and they just called and asked if I wanted to be a part of it, and I said yes without hesitation. I didn't need to hear anything. I didn't need to see anything, any concepts. I was just like, 'I will literally do anything you ask me to do". Ben Stiller was seen in the crowd for the DVD release Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! and featured Horovitz in his movie While We're Young, where he said, "I'm a huge Beastie Boys fan, so doing that, for me, was beyond anything". Eminem was highly influenced by the Beastie Boys and cited them alongside LL Cool J as being the reason he got into rap. During an interview with MTV after the death of Yauch, he said, "Adam Yauch brought a lot of positivity into the world and I think it's obvious to anyone how big of an influence the Beastie Boys were on me and so many others. They are trailblazers and pioneers and Adam will be sorely missed. My thoughts and prayers are with his family, Mike D., and Ad-Rock." His album cover for Kamikaze paid homage to Licensed to Ill and he also paid homage in his "Berzerk" video. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Beavis and Butt-Head creator Mike Judge acknowledged he was a fan of the band, citing his favorite song as "Fight for Your Right", as the Beastie Boys appeared on Beavis and Butt-Head on numerous occasions. Kid Rock wrote an in-depth tribute to Yauch after being influenced by the band, which said, "I thought I was the 4th member of Beastie Boys in 7th grade. You couldn't tell me I wasn't. The first time I ever saw them on stage was a very early show of theirs before Licensed to Ill came out, opening for Run DMC at Joe Louis Arena. My jaw dropped to the floor!".
In 2020, Spin Magazine ranked Beastie Boys as the 12th most influential artist of the previous 35 years.
Sampling lawsuit
In 2003, Beastie Boys were involved in the landmark sampling decision, Newton v. Diamond. In that case, a federal judge ruled that the band was not liable for sampling James Newton's "Choir" in their track, "Pass the Mic". The sample used is the six-second flute stab. In short, Beastie Boys cleared the sample but obtained only the rights to use the sound recording and not the composition rights to the song "Choir". In the decision, the judge found that:
Band members
Members
John Berry – guitars (1981–1982; died 2016)
Mike D – vocals, drums (1981–2012)
Kate Schellenbach – drums, percussion (1981–1984)
MCA – vocals, bass (1981–2012; died 2012)
Ad-Rock – vocals, guitars (1982–2012)
Touring musicians
DJ Double R – disc jockey (1984–1985)
Doctor Dré – disc jockey (1986)
DJ Hurricane – disc jockey (1986–1997)
Eric Bobo – percussion, drums (1992–1996)
Money Mark (Mark Ramos-Nishita) – keyboards, vocals (1992–2012)
Amery "AWOL" Smith – drums, backing vocals, percussion (1992–?)
Alfredo Ortiz – drums, percussion (1996–2012)
Mix Master Mike – disc jockey, backing vocals (1998–2012)
Timeline
Touring Members Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Licensed to Ill (1986)
Paul's Boutique (1989)
Check Your Head (1992)
Ill Communication (1994)
Hello Nasty (1998)
To the 5 Boroughs (2004)
The Mix-Up (2007)
Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011)
Tours
The Virgin Tour (1985) (supporting Madonna)
Raising Hell Tour (1986) (supporting Run-D.M.C.)
Licensed to Ill Tour (1987) (with Public Enemy)
Together Forever Tour (1987) (with Run-D.M.C.)
Check Your Head Tour (1992) (with Cypress Hill, Rollins Band, Firehose, and Basehead)
Ill Communication Tour (1994–1995)
In the Round Tour (1998–1999) (with A Tribe Called Quest and Money Mark)
To the 5 Boroughs Tour (2004)
The Mix-Up Tour (2007–2008)
Awards and nominations
Grammy Awards
|-
|1992
|Check Your Head
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|1995
|"Sabotage"
|Best Hard Rock Performance
|
|-
|Rowspan="2"|1999
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|Hello Nasty
|Best Alternative Music Album
|
|-
|2001
|"Alive"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2005
|"Ch-Check It Out"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|To The 5 Boroughs
|Best Rap Album
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2008
|"Off the Grid"
|Best Pop Instrumental Performance
|
|-
|The Mix-Up
|Best Contemporary Instrumental Album
|
|-
|2010
|"Too Many Rappers" (featuring Nas)
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|}
MTV Video Music Awards
|-
|rowspan="5"|1994
|rowspan="5"|"Sabotage"
|Video of the Year
|
|-
|Best Group Video
|
|-
|Breakthrough Video
|
|-
|Best Direction (Director: Spike Jonze)
|
|-
|Viewer's Choice
|
|-
|1998
|Beastie Boys
|Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award
|
|-
|1999
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Hip-Hop Video
|
|-
|2009
|"Sabotage"
|Best Video (That Should Have Won a Moonman)
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2011
|rowspan="2"|"Make Some Noise"
|Video of the Year
|
|-
|Best Direction (Director: Adam Yauch)
|
|}
MTV Europe Music Awards
|-
|1994
|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|rowspan="4"|1998
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Video
|
|-
|Hello Nasty
|Best Album
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|1999
|Beastie Boys
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2004
|rowspan="2"|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|2011
|"Make Some Noise"
|Best Video
|
|}
MTV Video Music Awards Japan
|-
|2005
|"Ch-Check It Out"
|Best Hip-Hop Video
|
|-
|2009
|Beastie Boys
|MTV Street Icon Award
|
|}
Filmography
Krush Groove (1985)
Tougher Than Leather (1988)
Futurama episode "Hell Is Other Robots" (1999)
Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! (2006)
Fight for Your Right Revisited (2011)
Beastie Boys Story (2020)
Notes
References
External links
Beastie Boys Lyrics Annotated – Beastie Boys lyrics laid out with annotated comments explaining popular culture and historical references as well as known samples.
Beastie Boys
1981 establishments in New York City
Alternative hip hop groups
Capitol Records artists
Def Jam Recordings artists
Grammy Award winners for rap music
Hardcore punk groups from New York (state)
Hip hop groups from New York City
Jewish hip hop groups
Jewish musical groups
Alternative rock groups from New York (state)
Musical groups established in 1981
Musical groups from New York City
Rap rock groups
Rapcore groups
ROIR artists
Musical groups disestablished in 2012
Jews in punk rock
Grand Royal artists
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Feminist musicians
Hardcore hip hop groups | true | [
"Adam Nathaniel Yauch (pronounced ; August 5, 1964 – May 4, 2012), better known under the stage name MCA, was an American rapper, bass player, filmmaker and a founding member of the hip hop group Beastie Boys. \n\nYauch founded Oscilloscope Laboratories, an independent film production and distribution company based in New York City. As a Buddhist, he was involved in the Tibetan independence movement and organized the Tibetan Freedom Concert. He died in 2012 from parotid cancer.\n\nEarly life and education\nBorn in Brooklyn, New York City, Yauch was an only child. His father Noel was an architect, and his mother Frances was a social worker. Yauch's mother was Jewish and his father Catholic, but he had a non-religious upbringing in Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn.\n\nYauch attended Edward R. Murrow High School in Brooklyn's Midwood neighborhood. In high school, he taught himself to play the bass guitar and formed Beastie Boys with John Berry, Kate Schellenbach, and Michael Diamond. They played their first show—while still a hardcore punk band in the vein of Reagan Youth—on his 17th birthday. He attended Bard College for two years before dropping out.\n\nHis stage name, MCA, is an acronym for \"Master of Ceremonies Adam.\"\n\nBeastie Boys\n\nBeastie Boys, a hip-hop trio, released their first album Licensed to Ill on Def Jam Records when Yauch was 22. He directed many of Beastie Boys' music videos, often under the pseudonym Nathaniel Hörnblowér.\n\nIn 2002, Yauch constructed a recording studio in New York City called Oscilloscope Laboratories. He began an independent film distributing company called Oscilloscope Pictures. He directed the 2006 Beastie Boys concert film, Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That!. \n\nBeastie Boys had sold 40 million records worldwide by 2010. In April 2012, the group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Yauch was inducted in absentia due to his illness. His bandmates paid tribute to him; a letter from Yauch was read to the audience.\n\nIn 2011, Yauch received the Charles Flint Kellogg Award in Arts and Letters from Bard College, the college he attended for two years. The award is \"given in recognition of a significant contribution to the American artistic or literary heritage\".\n\nOther independent work\n\nHe directed the 2008 film Gunnin' For That #1 Spot about eight high school basketball prospects at the Boost Mobile Elite 24 Hoops Classic at Rucker Park in Harlem, New York City. Yauch produced Build a Nation, the comeback album from hardcore/punk band Bad Brains. In addition, Oscilloscope Laboratories also distributed Kelly Reichardt's Wendy and Lucy (2008) and Oren Moverman's The Messenger (2009).\n\nPersonal life and views\n\nYauch was a practicing Buddhist. He became an important voice in the Tibetan independence movement, creating the Milarepa Fund, a nonprofit organization devoted to Tibetan independence and organized several benefit concerts to support the cause, including the Tibetan Freedom Concert.\n\nIn the 1994 Beastie Boys single \"Sure Shot\", he rapped the verse: \"I want to say a little something that's long overdue / The disrespect to women has to got to be through / To all the mothers and sisters and the wives and friends / I want to offer my love and respect till the end\".\n\nIn 1995, while attending a speech by the Dalai Lama at Harvard University, he met his wife, Tibetan American Dechen Wangdu. They married in 1998 and had a daughter, Tenzin Losel, the same year.\n\nIn 1998, during the MTV Video Music Awards, when receiving the Video Vanguard Award, Yauch condemned America's wars in Muslim countries and prejudice against Muslims and Arabs. Artist Cihan Kaan wrote an obituary in Al Jazeera that Yauch was \"Muslim Americans' hero, and America's personal Jewish Gandhi\".\n\nIllness, death and legacy\n\nIn 2009, Yauch was diagnosed with a cancerous parotid gland and lymph node. He underwent surgery and radiation therapy, delaying the release of Hot Sauce Committee Part Two and the subsequent tour. He was unable to appear in music videos for the album. Yauch became a vegan on the recommendation of his doctors. At the time, Yauch described the cancer as \"very treatable\".\n\nYauch died at age 47 on May 4, 2012. Upon his death, fellow musicians and artists paid tribute. Russell Simmons of Def Jam Records said that Yauch \"was incredibly sweet and the most sensitive artist, whom I loved dearly\". Ben Stiller tweeted that Yauch \"stood for integrity as an artist\". Jeff Ament of Pearl Jam said that Yauch was \"a crazy talent whose contributions with his band were inspirational and consistently ground breaking\". Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke wrote: \"We looked up to the Beastie Boys a lot when we were starting out and how they maintained artistic control making wicked records but still were on a major label and the Tibetan Freedom Concerts they organized had a very big influence on me personally and the way Adam conducted himself and dealt with it all impressed me a lot. He was a mellow and [very] smart guy. May he rest in peace.\" Eminem said in an interview, \"Adam Yauch brought a lot of positivity into the world and I think it's obvious to anyone how big of an influence the Beastie Boys were on me and so many others.\" Three days after Yauch's death, bandmate Adam \"Ad-Rock\" Horovitz posted a note on the Beastie Boys' Tumblr page about it, acknowledging the pain of losing Yauch and his admiration for him.\n\nIn his last will and testament, Yauch left instructions that his music could not be used in advertising, though the legal validity of such an instruction has been questioned.\n\nPhish dedicated their cover of \"Sabotage\" to Yauch during a July 7, 2012 concert at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center. On May 3, 2013, ceremonies were held to rename the Palmetto Playground in Brooklyn Heights to Adam Yauch Park.\n\nDiscography\n\nwith Beastie Boys\n Licensed to Ill (1986)\n Paul's Boutique (1989)\n Check Your Head (1992)\n Ill Communication (1994)\n The In Sound from Way Out (1996)\n Hello Nasty (1998)\n To the 5 Boroughs (2004)\n The Mix-Up (2007)\n Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011)\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n \n \n \n \n \n Village Voice Slideshow Dedication of Adam Yauch Park\n\nInterviews\n Interview in Shambhala Sun\n Audio interview on the.LIFE Files\n Interview on \"Gunnin' For That #1 Spot\" at IFC, June 2008\n\n1964 births\n2012 deaths\nAlternative hip hop musicians\nAmerican activists\nAmerican male rappers\nAmerican music video directors\nAmerican people of Jewish descent\nAmerican punk rock bass guitarists\nAmerican male bass guitarists\nBard College alumni\nBeastie Boys members\nConverts to Buddhism\nDeaths from cancer in New York (state)\nDeaths from salivary gland cancer\nGrammy Award winners\nJewish rappers\nJewish American musicians\nRap rock musicians\nRappers from Brooklyn\nTibetan Buddhists from the United States\nLGBT rights activists from the United States\nAmerican baritones\nJews in punk rock\nGuitarists from New York City\nAmerican male guitarists\n20th-century American guitarists\nEdward R. Murrow High School alumni\nFeminist musicians\nDeaths from cancer in the United States\nAmerican people of German descent",
"\"Paul Revere\" is a song by American hip hop group Beastie Boys, released as the third single from their debut album Licensed to Ill (1986). It was written by Adam Horovitz, Joseph Simmons, Darryl McDaniels, and Rick Rubin. It was produced by Rick Rubin and the Beastie Boys. The song tells a fictional story of how the Beastie Boys met.\n\nAdam Horovitz told how the song evolved from an incident when the Beastie Boys were waiting outside a recording studio for Run-D.M.C., when Joseph Simmons (\"Run\") suddenly came running down the street screaming incoherently. When he reached the Beastie Boys, he said \"Here's a little story I got to tell...\". After much confusion, Simmons stated \"THAT's the song\". The band worked on it from there.\n\nRecording\nMike D remembered how the group played around with an 808 drum machine during the Ill sessions and Adam Yauch asked what the tracks would sound like if the beats were played backwards. “Run from Run-D.M.C. was there, and he was like, ’Man, this is crazy.’ But Yauch recorded this beat, bounced it to another tape, flipped it around — this is pre-digital sampling — and bounced it back to the multi-track tape,” he said. “The reversed beat basically became ’Paul Revere.’ Yauch saw this thing we couldn't see — and he killed it.”\n\nContent\nThe song tells a fictional story of how Ad-Rock, Mike D, and MCA first met. Adrock describes riding through the desert on a horse named Paul Revere, also the name of a horse in the musical Guys and Dolls, while he is on the run from the police. He runs into MCA, who asks him for a drink. When Adrock refuses, MCA pulls a gun on him and says, \"You got two choices of what you can do...I can blow you away or you can ride with me.\" Adrock agrees, saying that he'll go if they can get to the border because \"The sheriff's after me for what I did to his daughter\".\n\nThe two ride to a bar and sit down next to Mike D, who tells them he's planning to rob the place. He then pulls out his guns and shoots them in the air, telling the people in the bar, \"Your cash and your jewelry is what I expect!\" MCA and Adrock help Mike D escape with the money and jewelry, first causing a distraction and then helping him carry the stolen goods out, along with \"Two girlies and a beer that's cold\".\n\nCharts\n\nLegacy and covers\nLyrics from the song are referenced and sampled in several rap songs by other artists. Cypress Hill did a cover of the song called \"Busted in the Hood\" on their album Till Death Do Us Part, with the lyrics changed to be about getting arrested for drug-dealing. The lyrics are also referenced several times in the song \"Bad Guys Always Die\" on the soundtrack to the film Wild Wild West.\n\nIt was covered by Justin Timberlake and Jimmy Fallon on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon as part of their \"History of Rap\" medley.\n\nA cover was done by Zachariah and the Lobos Riders in a country styling on the album Alcoholiday.\n\nA genre-bending cover was played by swing band The Asylum Street Spankers on their album Mercurial.\n\nThe Disco Biscuits debuted their cover of Paul Revere on New Year's Eve 2006 to open the second set. They continued to play it several times throughout 2007 and 2008.\n\nN.W.A liked the song so much that they used to perform it with dirty lyrics early in their career, according to Ice Cube.\n\nIt is referenced in \"Bad Guys Always Die\" from \"Wild Wild West\" Soundtrack by Eminem and Dr. Dre. Eminem's final line in the song is \"I grabbed two girlies and blunt that's rolled\", referencing Ad-Rock's final line of \"I grabbed two girlies and a beer that's cold\"\n\nE40 used the beat to make \"Jump my bone\" in 1998.\n\nRapper Missy Elliott sampled the beat in a small portion of her song \"Funky Fresh Dressed\" (featuring Ms. Jade) on her 2002 album Under Construction.\n\nReferences\n\n1986 singles\nBeastie Boys songs\nSongs about horses\nSong recordings produced by Rick Rubin\nSongs written by Rick Rubin\nSongs written by Ad-Rock\nSongs written by Darryl McDaniels\nSongs written by Joseph Simmons\n1986 songs\nDef Jam Recordings singles"
] |
[
"Beastie Boys",
"2012-present: Deaths of Yauch and Berry",
"How did Yauch die and when?",
"On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer"
] | C_135bb6c0abb44071b79b28c1c5149a4a_0 | How and when did Berry die? | 2 | How and when did Berry of the Beastie Boys die? | Beastie Boys | On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer at the age of 47. On May 24, in an interview with Rolling Stone, Mike D said that the Beastie Boys recorded new music in late 2011 after the release of Hot Sauce Committee (Part 2), but he did not say if these recordings would be released. He also said that the Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock and that "Yauch would genuinely want us to try whatever crazy thing we wanted but never got around to." In April 2013 it was announced that the group has signed a deal to write an autobiography. The book was scheduled to be released in the fall of 2015. However, Horovitz stated that the autobiography is being delayed. According to Horovitz, "We've got pages!....How it's going to fit together, I don't know. But we've got some ideas. It's interesting. It's fun." On May 3, 2013 a children's playground in Brooklyn was renamed for Adam Yauch. In June 2014, Mike D stated that neither he nor Horovitz would perform under the Beastie Boys name again out of respect for Yauch. Founding Beastie Boys guitarist John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, after a decline of health for several years. He was credited with coming up with the Beastie Boys name, and played guitar on the first EP the Beastie Boys recorded. Before the Beastie Boys, he was also a part of Even Worse, Big Fat Love, Highway Stars, Bourbon Deluxe, and Idaho. The first Beastie Boys show took place at Berry's loft. CANNOTANSWER | John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, after a decline of health for several years. | Beastie Boys were an American hip hop group from New York City, formed in 1981. The group was composed of Michael "Mike D" Diamond (vocals, drums), Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (vocals, guitar, programming).
Beastie Boys were formed out of members of experimental hardcore punk band The Young Aborigines in 1978, with Diamond as vocalist, Jeremy Shatan on bass guitar, John Berry on guitar, and Kate Schellenbach on drums. When Shatan left in 1981, Yauch replaced him on bass and the band changed their name to Beastie Boys. Berry left shortly thereafter and was replaced by Horovitz.
After achieving local success with the 1983 comedy hip hop single "Cooky Puss", Beastie Boys made a full transition to hip hop, and Schellenbach left. They toured with Madonna in 1985 and a year later released their debut album, Licensed to Ill (1986), the first rap record to top the Billboard 200 chart. Their second album, Paul's Boutique (1989), composed almost entirely of samples, was a commercial failure, but later received critical acclaim. Check Your Head (1992) and Ill Communication (1994) found mainstream success, followed by Hello Nasty (1998), To the 5 Boroughs (2004), The Mix-Up (2007), and Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011).
Beastie Boys have sold 20 million records in the United States and had seven platinum-selling albums from 1986 to 2004. They are the biggest-selling rap group since Billboard began recording sales in 1991. In 2012, they became the third rap group to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In the same year, Yauch died of cancer and Beastie Boys disbanded. Since then, the remaining two members have released several retrospective works, including a book and documentary film detailing the history of the group as well as a career-spanning compilation album. Diamond has produced acts including Portugal. The Man, while Horovitz has taken small acting roles and continues to play music.
History
1981–1983: Formation and early years
Prior to forming Beastie Boys, Michael Diamond was part of a number of bands such as the Walden Jazz Band, BAN, and the Young Aborigines. Beastie Boys formed in July 1981 when the Young Aborigines bassist Jeremy Shatan left New York City for the summer and the remaining members Michael Diamond, John Berry and Kate Schellenbach formed a new hardcore punk band with Adam Yauch.
In a 2007 interview with Charlie Rose, Yauch recalled that it was Berry who suggested the name Beastie Boys. Although the band stated that "Beastie" is an acronym standing for "Boys Entering Anarchistic States Towards Inner Excellence", in the Charlie Rose interview, both Yauch and Diamond acknowledged that the acronym was an "afterthought" conceived after the name was chosen. The band supported Bad Brains, the Dead Kennedys, the Misfits and Reagan Youth at venues such as CBGB, A7, Trudy Hellers Place and Max's Kansas City, playing at the latter venue on its closing night. In November 1982, Beastie Boys recorded the 7-inch EP Polly Wog Stew at 171A studios, an early recorded example of New York hardcore.
On November 13, 1982, Beastie Boys played Philip Pucci's birthday for the purposes of his short concert film, Beastie. Pucci held the concert in Bard College's Preston Drama Dance Department Theatre. This performance marked Beastie Boys' first on screen appearance in a published motion picture. Pucci's concept for Beastie was to distribute a mixture of both a half dozen 16 mm Bell & Howell Filmo cameras, and 16 mm Bolex cameras to audience members and ask that they capture Beastie Boys performance from the audience's own point of view while a master sync sound camera filmed from the balcony of the abandoned theater where the performance was held. The opening band for that performance was The Young and the Useless, which featured Adam Horovitz as the lead singer. A one-minute clip of Beastie was subsequently excerpted and licensed by Beastie Boys for use in the "Egg Raid on Mojo" segment of the "Skills to Pay the Bills" long-form home video released by Capitol Records. "Skills to Pay the Bills" later went on to be certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Berry left the group in 1982 (later forming Thwig, Big Fat Love and Bourbon Deluxe) and was replaced by Horovitz, who had become close friends with Beastie Boys.
The band also recorded and then performed its first hip hop track, "Cooky Puss", based on a prank call by the group to a Carvel Ice Cream franchise in 1983. It was a part of the new lineup's first EP, also called Cooky Puss, which was the first piece of work that showed their incorporation of the underground rap phenomenon and the use of samples. It quickly became a hit in New York underground dance clubs and night clubs. "Beastie Revolution" was later sampled for a British Airways commercial. Beastie Boys threatened to sue them over the use of the song. British Airways immediately paid them $40,000 in royalties.
1984–1987: Def Jam years and Licensed to Ill
Following the success of "Cooky Puss", the band began to incorporate rap into their sets. They hired a DJ for their live shows, New York University student Rick Rubin, who began producing records soon thereafter. "I met Mike first," Rubin recalled. "I thought he was an arrogant asshole. Through spending time with the Beasties I grew to see that they had this great sense of humour. It wasn't that they were assholes, and even if it was, they were funny with it." Rubin formed Def Jam Recordings with fellow NYU student Russell Simmons, and approached the band about producing them for his new label. As the band was transitioning to hip hop, Schellenbach was fired in 1984, with Diamond taking over on drums. In their 2018 memoir, Ad-Rock expressed regret for firing Schellenbach, which he attributed to her not fitting with the "new tough-rapper-guy identity".
The band's 12-inch single "Rock Hard" (1984) was the second Def Jam record crediting Rubin as producer (the first was "It's Yours" by T La Rock and Jazzy Jay). On July 22, 1986, Beastie Boys opened for John Lydon's post-Sex Pistols band Public Image Ltd., and supported Madonna on her North American The Virgin Tour. Then headlining with Fishbone and Murphy's Law with DJ Hurricane and later in the year, the group was on the Raising Hell tour with Run-DMC, Whodini, LL Cool J, and the Timex Social Club. Thanks to this exposure, "Hold It Now, Hit It" charted on Billboards US R&B and dance charts. "She's on It" from the Krush Groove soundtrack continued in a rap/metal vein while a double A-side 12", "Paul Revere/The New Style", was released at the end of the year.
The band recorded Licensed to Ill in 1986 and released it on November 15, 1986. The album was favorably reviewed by Rolling Stone magazine. Licensed to Ill became one of the best-selling rap albums of the 1980s and the first rap album to go number 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, where it stayed for five weeks. It also reached number 2 on the Top R&B album chart. It was Def Jam's fastest selling debut record to date and sold over nine million copies. The fourth single, "(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)", reached number 7 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Although the group has sold over 26 million records in the US, this is their only single to peak in the US top ten or top twenty. The accompanying video (directed by Ric Menello and Adam Dubin) became an MTV staple. Another song from the album, "No Sleep till Brooklyn", peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart.
The band took the Licensed to Ill tour around the world the following year. The tour was troubled by lawsuits and arrests, with the band accused of provoking the crowd. This culminated in a notorious gig at the Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool, England, on May 30, 1987, that erupted into a riot approximately 10 minutes after the group hit the stage and the arrest of Adam Horovitz by Merseyside Police. He was charged with assault causing grievous bodily harm.
1988–1989: Move to Capitol Records and Paul's Boutique
In 1988, Beastie Boys appeared in Tougher Than Leather, a film directed by Rubin as a star vehicle for Run-D.M.C. and Def Jam Recordings. After Def Jam stopped paying them for work they'd already done and were owed money for, Beastie Boys left Def Jam and signed with Capitol Records.
The second Beastie Boys album, Paul's Boutique, was released on July 25, 1989. Produced by the Dust Brothers, it blends eclectic samples and has been described as an early work of experimental hip hop. It failed to match the sales of Licensed to Ill, peaking at number 14 on the US album charts, but later attracted wide acclaim; Rolling Stone ranked it number 156 on its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
1990–1996: Check Your Head and Ill Communication
Check Your Head was recorded in the band's G-Son studio in Atwater Village, California, and released on its Grand Royal record label. The band was influenced to play instruments on this album by Dutch group Urban Dance Squad; with Mike D on drums, Yauch on bass, Horovitz on guitar and Mark Ramos Nishita ("Keyboard Money Mark") on keyboards. Mario Caldato, Jr., who had helped in the production of Paul's Boutique, engineered the record and became a longtime collaborator. Check Your Head was released in 1992 and was certified double Platinum in the US and peaked at number 10 on the Billboard 200. The single "So What'cha Want" reached number 93 on the Billboard Hot 100 and charted on both the Rap and Modern Rock Chart, while the album's first single, "Pass the Mic", peaked at number 38 on the Hot Dance Music chart. The album also introduced a more experimental direction, with funk and jazz inspired songs including "Lighten Up" and "Something's Got to Give". The band returned to their hardcore punk roots for the song "Time for Livin'", a cover of a 1974 Sly and the Family Stone song. The addition of instruments and the harder rock sound of the album could be considered a precursor to the nu metal genre of music to come out in the later half of the 1990s.
Beastie Boys signed an eclectic roster of artists to their Grand Royal label, including Luscious Jackson, Sean Lennon, and Australian artist Ben Lee. The group owned Grand Royal Records until 2001. Grand Royal's first independent release was Luscious Jackson's album In Search of Manny in 1993. Also in 1993, the band contributed the track "It's the New Style" (with DJ Hurricane) to the AIDS benefit album No Alternative, produced by the Red Hot Organization.
Beastie Boys also published Grand Royal Magazine, with the first edition in 1993 featuring a cover story on Bruce Lee, artwork by George Clinton, and interviews with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and A Tribe Called Quest's MC Q-Tip. The 1995 issue of the magazine contained a memorable piece on the mullet. The Oxford English Dictionary cites this as the first published use of the term, along with the lyrics from the band's 1994 song, "Mullet Head". That term was not heard in the 1980s, even though that decade has retroactively been hailed as the mullet's peak in popularity. The OED says that the term was "apparently coined, and certainly popularized, by US hip-hop group Beastie Boys". Grand Royal Magazine is also responsible for giving British band Sneaker Pimps their name.
Ill Communication, released in 1994, saw Beastie Boys' return to the top of the charts when the album debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200 and peaked at number 2 on the R&B/hip hop album chart. The single "Sabotage" became a hit on the modern rock charts and the music video, directed by Spike Jonze, received extensive play on MTV. "Get It Together" reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. Also in 1994, the band released Some Old Bullshit, featuring the band's early independent material, which made it to number 46 on the Billboard Independent Albums chart.
Beastie Boys headlined at Lollapalooza—an American travelling music festival—in 1994, together with The Smashing Pumpkins. In addition, the band performed three concerts (in Los Angeles, New York City, and Washington, D.C.) to raise money for the Milarepa Fund and dedicated the royalties from "Shambala" and "Bodhisattva Vow" from the Ill Communication to the cause. The Milarepa Fund aims to raise awareness of Tibetan human rights issues and the exile of the Dalai Lama. In 1996, Yauch organized the largest rock benefit show since 1985's Live Aid – the Tibetan Freedom Concert, a two-day festival at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco that attracted over 100,000 attendees.
In 1995, the popularity of Beastie Boys was underlined when tickets for an arena tour went on sale in the US and Madison Square Garden and Chicago's Rosemont Horizon sold out within 30 minutes. One dollar from each ticket sold went through Milarepa to local charities in each city on the tour. Beastie Boys toured South America and Southeast Asia for the first time. The band also released Aglio e Olio, a collection of eight songs lasting just 11 minutes harking back to their punk roots, in 1995. The In Sound from Way Out!, a collection of previously released jazz/funk instrumentals, was released on Grand Royal in 1996 with the title and artwork a homage to an album by electronic pop music pioneers Perrey and Kingsley.
In 1992, Beastie Boys decided to sample portions of the sound recording of "Choir" by James Newton in various renditions of their song "Pass the Mic". The band did not obtain a license from Newton to use the composition. Pursuant to their license from ECM Records, Beastie Boys digitally sampled the opening six seconds of Newton's sound recording of "Choir", and repeated this six-second sample as a background element throughout their song. Newton brought suit, claiming that the band infringed his copyright in the underlying composition of "Choir". The district court granted Beastie Boys summary judgment. The district court said that no license was required because the three-note segment of "Choir" lacked the requisite originality and was therefore not copyrightable. The decision was affirmed on appeal.
1997–2001: Hello Nasty
Beastie Boys began work on the album Hello Nasty at the G-Son studios, Los Angeles in 1995, but continued to produce and record it in New York City after Yauch moved to Manhattan in 1996. The album displayed a substantial shift in musical feel, with the addition of Mix Master Mike. The album featured bombastic beats, rap samples, and experimental sounds. Released on July 14, 1998, Hello Nasty earned first week sales of 681,000 in the US and went straight to number 1 in the US, the UK, Germany, Australia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and Sweden. The album achieved number 2 rank on the charts in Canada and Japan, and reached top-ten chart positions in Austria, Switzerland, Ireland, Belgium, Finland, France and Israel.
Beastie Boys won two Grammy Awards in 1999, receiving the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album for Hello Nasty as well as the Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for "Intergalactic". This was the first and, as of 2008, only time that a band had won awards in both rap and alternative categories.
Also at the 1998 MTV Video Music Awards they won the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award for their contribution to music videos. The following year at the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards they also won the award for Best Hip Hop Video for their hit song "Intergalactic". Beastie Boys used both appearances at the Video Music Awards to make politically charged speeches of considerable length to the sizable MTV audiences. At the 1998 ceremony, Yauch addressed the issue of Muslim people being stereotyped as terrorists and that most people of the Muslim faith are not terrorists. These comments were made in the wake of the US Embassy bombings that had occurred in both Kenya and Tanzania only a month earlier. At the 1999 ceremony in the wake of the horror stories that were coming out of Woodstock 99, Adam Horovitz addressed the fact that there had been many cases of sexual assaults and rapes at the festival, suggesting the need for bands and festivals to pay much more attention to the security details at their concerts.
Beastie Boys started an arena tour in 1998. Through Ian C. Rogers, the band made live downloads of their performances available for their fans, but were temporarily thwarted when Capitol Records removed them from its website. Beastie Boys was one of the first bands who made MP3 downloads available on their website. The group got a high level of response and public awareness as a result including a published article in The Wall Street Journal on the band's efforts.
On September 28, 1999, Beastie Boys joined Elvis Costello to play "Radio Radio" on the 25th anniversary season of Saturday Night Live.
Beastie Boys released The Sounds of Science, a two-CD anthology of their works in 1999. This album reached number 19 on the Billboard 200, number 18 in Canada, and number 14 on the R&B/Hip Hop chart. The one new song, the single "Alive", reached number 11 on the Billboard Modern Rock chart.
In 2000, Beastie Boys had planned to co-headline the "Rhyme and Reason Tour" with Rage Against the Machine and Busta Rhymes, but the tour was canceled when drummer Mike D suffered a serious injury due to a bicycle accident. The official diagnosis was fifth-degree acromioclavicular joint dislocation; he needed surgery and extensive rehabilitation. By the time he recovered, Rage Against the Machine had disbanded, although they would reunite seven years later.
Under the name Country Mike, Mike D recorded an album, Country Mike's Greatest Hits, and gave it to friends and family for Christmas in 2000. Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz's side project BS 2000 released Simply Mortified in 2001.
In October 2001, after the September 11, 2001 attacks, Beastie Boys organized and headlined the New Yorkers Against Violence Concert at the Hammerstein Ballroom.
2002–2008: To the 5 Boroughs and The Mix-Up
In 2002, Adam Yauch started building a new studio facility, Oscilloscope Laboratories, in downtown Manhattan, New York and the band started work on a new album there. The band released a protest song, "In a World Gone Mad", against the 2003 Iraq war as a free download on several websites, including the Milarepa website, the MTV website, MoveOn.org, and Win Without War. The 19th and 20th Tibetan Freedom Concerts were held in Tokyo and Taipei, Beastie Boys' first Taiwan appearance. Beastie Boys also headlined the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.
Their single, "Ch-Check It Out", debuted on The O.C. in "The Vegas" episode from Season 1, which aired April 28, 2004.
To the 5 Boroughs was released worldwide on June 15, 2004. It was the first album the band produced themselves and reached number 1 on the Billboard albums chart, number 2 in the UK and Australia, and number 3 in Germany. The first single from the album, "Ch-Check It Out", reached number 1 in Canada and on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart.
The album was the cause of some controversy with allegations that it installed spyware when inserted into the CD drive of a computer. The band denied this allegation, defending that there is no copy protection software on the albums sold in the US and UK. While there is Macrovision CDS-200 copy protection software installed on European copies of the album, this is standard practice for all European releases on EMI/Capitol Records released in Europe, and it does not install spyware or any form of permanent software.
The band stated in mid-2006 that they were writing material for their next album and would be producing it themselves.
Speaking to British music weekly NME (April 26, 2007), Diamond revealed that a new album was to be called The Mix-Up. Despite initial confusion regarding whether the album would have lyrics as opposed to being purely instrumental, the Mic-To-Mic blog reported that Capitol Records had confirmed it would be strictly instrumental and erroneously reported a release date scheduled for July 10, 2007. (The album was eventually released June 26, as originally reported.) On May 1, 2007, this was further cemented by an e-mail sent to those on the band's mailing list – explicitly stating that the album would be all instrumental:
The band subsequently confirmed the new album and announced a short tour that focused on festivals as opposed to a traditional tour, including the likes of Sónar (Spain), Roskilde (Denmark), Hurricane/Southside (Germany), Bestival (Isle of Wight), Electric Picnic (Ireland) and Open'er Festival (Poland). Beastie Boys performed at the UK leg of Live Earth July 7, 2007 at Wembley Stadium, London with "Sabotage", "So What'cha Want", "Intergalactic", and "Sure Shot".
They worked with Reverb, a non-profit environmental organization, on their 2007 summer tour.
They headlined the Langerado Music Festival in South Florida on Friday, March 7, 2008.
They won a Grammy for The Mix-Up in the "Best Pop Instrumental Album" category at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards in 2008.
2009–2012: Hot Sauce Committee
In February 2009, Yauch revealed their forthcoming new album had taken the band's sound in a "bizarre" new direction, saying "It's a combination of playing and sampling stuff as we're playing, and also sampling pretty obscure records." The tentative title for the record was Tadlock's Glasses, of which Yauch explained the inspiration behind the title:
On May 25, 2009, it was announced during an interview on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon that the name of their new album would be Hot Sauce Committee and was set for release on September 15 (with the track listing of the album announced through their mailing list on June 23). The album included a collaboration with Santigold who co-wrote and sang with the band on the track "Don't Play No Game That I Can't Win".
In June, the group appeared at Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival and performed the new single from the album titled "Too Many Rappers" alongside rapper Nas who appears on the track. It would be the last live performance by Beastie Boys as a trio. The group would have toured the UK later in the year in support of the new record.
Speaking to Drowned in Sound, Beastie Boys revealed that Part 2 was done. Mike D also hinted it may be released via unusual means:
On July 20, Yauch announced on the band's official YouTube channel and through the fan mailing list, the cancellation of several tour dates and the postponement of the new album due to the discovery of a cancerous tumor in his parotid gland and a lymph node. The group also had to cancel their co-headlining gig at the Osheaga Festival in Montreal and also another headlining spot for the first night of the All Points West Festival in Jersey City, New Jersey.
In late October 2010, Beastie Boys sent out two emails regarding the status of Hot Sauce Committee Pts. 1 and 2 to their online mailing list. An email dated October 18 read: "Although we regret to inform you that Hot Sauce Committee Part 1 will continue to be delayed indefinitely, Hot Sauce Committee Part 2 will be released on time as originally planned in spring of 2011." One week later, a second email was sent out, reading as follows:
The official release dates were April 27, 2011, for Japan; April 29 in the UK and Europe, and May 3, 2011, in the US. The third single for the album "Make Some Noise" was made available for download on April 11, 2011, as well as a limited edition 7-inch vinyl single for Record Store Day five days later with a Passion Pit remix of the track as a b-side. The track was leaked online on April 6 and subsequently made available via their blog.
On April 22, Beastie Boys emailed out the cryptic message "This Sat, 10:35 am EST – Just listen, listen, listen to the beat box". A day later, they live streamed their album online via beatbox inside Madison Square Garden.
The band was announced as an inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in December 2011. They were inducted by Chuck D and LL Cool J on April 14, 2012. Yauch was too sick to attend the ceremony, having been admitted to NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital the same day, therefore the group didn't perform; instead Black Thought, Travie from Gym Class Heroes and Kid Rock performed a medley of their songs. Diamond and Horovitz accepted and read a speech that Yauch had written.
2012–present: Deaths of Yauch and Berry and disbandment
On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer at the age of 47. Mike D told Rolling Stone that Beastie Boys had recorded new music in late 2011, but did not say if these recordings would be released. He also said that Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock and that "Yauch would genuinely want us to try whatever crazy thing we wanted but never got around to". In June 2014, Mike D confirmed that he and Ad-Rock would not make music under the Beastie Boys name again.
Founding Beastie Boys guitarist John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, following several years of ill health. He was credited with naming the band Beastie Boys and played guitar on the first EP. The first Beastie Boys show took place at Berry's loft.
Yauch's will forbids the use of Beastie Boys music in advertisements. In June 2014, Beastie Boys won a lawsuit against Monster Energy for using their music in a commercial without permission. They were awarded $1.7 million in damages and $668,000 for legal fees. In October 2018, Michael Diamond and Adam Horovitz released a memoir, Beastie Boys Book. In 2020, they released a documentary, Beastie Boys Story, directed by Spike Jonze. The career-spanning book and documentary were complemented by the compilation album Beastie Boys Music in October 2020.
Tibetan Freedom Concert
In 1994, Yauch and activist Erin Potts organized the Tibetan Freedom Concert in order to raise awareness of humans rights abuses by the Chinese government on the Tibetan people. Yauch became aware of this after hiking in Nepal and speaking with Tibetan refugees. The events became annual, and shortly after went international with acts such as Live, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe of R.E.M., Rage Against the Machine, The Smashing Pumpkins, and U2.
Musical style, influences, and legacy
Originally a hardcore punk band, Beastie Boys had largely abandoned the genre in favor of hip hop and rap rock by the time work began on their debut studio album Licensed to Ill. The group mixed elements of hip hop, punk, funk, electro, jazz and Latin music into their music. They have also been described as alternative hip hop and .
Around the time of the release of their debut album, Licensed to Ill, Mike D started to appear on stage and in publicity photographs wearing a large Volkswagen emblem attached to a chain-link necklace. This started a rash of thefts of the emblem from vehicles around the world as fans tried to emulate him. A controversial concert in Columbus, Georgia in 1987 led to the passage of a lewdness ordinance in that city.
Beastie Boys are considered very influential in both the hip hop and rock music scenes, with artists such as Eminem, Rage Against the Machine, Hed PE, , Sublime, Mac Miller , Korn , Slipknot, and Blur citing them as an influence. Beastie Boys have had four albums reach the top of the Billboard album charts (Licensed to Ill, Ill Communication, Hello Nasty and To the 5 Boroughs) since 1986. In the November 2004 issue, Rolling Stone named "Sabotage" the 475th song on their 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list.
In their April 2005 issue, Rolling Stone ranked them number 77 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. VH1 ranked them number 89 on their list of their 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. On September 27, 2007, it was announced that Beastie Boys were one of the nine nominees for the 2008 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductions. In December 2011, they were announced to be official 2012 inductees.
Beastie Boys have many high-profile longtime fans, including UFC president Dana White, who has a hand-signed bass guitar signed by all three members in his office and a copy of the Beastie Boys book. Speaking on the death of Adam Yauch, White said, "I seriously haven't been impacted by a death in a long time like I was with the Beastie Boys". Actor Seth Rogen, who appeared in the video for "Make Some Noise", also said, "I'm a huge Beastie Boys fan and they just called and asked if I wanted to be a part of it, and I said yes without hesitation. I didn't need to hear anything. I didn't need to see anything, any concepts. I was just like, 'I will literally do anything you ask me to do". Ben Stiller was seen in the crowd for the DVD release Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! and featured Horovitz in his movie While We're Young, where he said, "I'm a huge Beastie Boys fan, so doing that, for me, was beyond anything". Eminem was highly influenced by the Beastie Boys and cited them alongside LL Cool J as being the reason he got into rap. During an interview with MTV after the death of Yauch, he said, "Adam Yauch brought a lot of positivity into the world and I think it's obvious to anyone how big of an influence the Beastie Boys were on me and so many others. They are trailblazers and pioneers and Adam will be sorely missed. My thoughts and prayers are with his family, Mike D., and Ad-Rock." His album cover for Kamikaze paid homage to Licensed to Ill and he also paid homage in his "Berzerk" video. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Beavis and Butt-Head creator Mike Judge acknowledged he was a fan of the band, citing his favorite song as "Fight for Your Right", as the Beastie Boys appeared on Beavis and Butt-Head on numerous occasions. Kid Rock wrote an in-depth tribute to Yauch after being influenced by the band, which said, "I thought I was the 4th member of Beastie Boys in 7th grade. You couldn't tell me I wasn't. The first time I ever saw them on stage was a very early show of theirs before Licensed to Ill came out, opening for Run DMC at Joe Louis Arena. My jaw dropped to the floor!".
In 2020, Spin Magazine ranked Beastie Boys as the 12th most influential artist of the previous 35 years.
Sampling lawsuit
In 2003, Beastie Boys were involved in the landmark sampling decision, Newton v. Diamond. In that case, a federal judge ruled that the band was not liable for sampling James Newton's "Choir" in their track, "Pass the Mic". The sample used is the six-second flute stab. In short, Beastie Boys cleared the sample but obtained only the rights to use the sound recording and not the composition rights to the song "Choir". In the decision, the judge found that:
Band members
Members
John Berry – guitars (1981–1982; died 2016)
Mike D – vocals, drums (1981–2012)
Kate Schellenbach – drums, percussion (1981–1984)
MCA – vocals, bass (1981–2012; died 2012)
Ad-Rock – vocals, guitars (1982–2012)
Touring musicians
DJ Double R – disc jockey (1984–1985)
Doctor Dré – disc jockey (1986)
DJ Hurricane – disc jockey (1986–1997)
Eric Bobo – percussion, drums (1992–1996)
Money Mark (Mark Ramos-Nishita) – keyboards, vocals (1992–2012)
Amery "AWOL" Smith – drums, backing vocals, percussion (1992–?)
Alfredo Ortiz – drums, percussion (1996–2012)
Mix Master Mike – disc jockey, backing vocals (1998–2012)
Timeline
Touring Members Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Licensed to Ill (1986)
Paul's Boutique (1989)
Check Your Head (1992)
Ill Communication (1994)
Hello Nasty (1998)
To the 5 Boroughs (2004)
The Mix-Up (2007)
Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011)
Tours
The Virgin Tour (1985) (supporting Madonna)
Raising Hell Tour (1986) (supporting Run-D.M.C.)
Licensed to Ill Tour (1987) (with Public Enemy)
Together Forever Tour (1987) (with Run-D.M.C.)
Check Your Head Tour (1992) (with Cypress Hill, Rollins Band, Firehose, and Basehead)
Ill Communication Tour (1994–1995)
In the Round Tour (1998–1999) (with A Tribe Called Quest and Money Mark)
To the 5 Boroughs Tour (2004)
The Mix-Up Tour (2007–2008)
Awards and nominations
Grammy Awards
|-
|1992
|Check Your Head
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|1995
|"Sabotage"
|Best Hard Rock Performance
|
|-
|Rowspan="2"|1999
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|Hello Nasty
|Best Alternative Music Album
|
|-
|2001
|"Alive"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2005
|"Ch-Check It Out"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|To The 5 Boroughs
|Best Rap Album
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2008
|"Off the Grid"
|Best Pop Instrumental Performance
|
|-
|The Mix-Up
|Best Contemporary Instrumental Album
|
|-
|2010
|"Too Many Rappers" (featuring Nas)
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|}
MTV Video Music Awards
|-
|rowspan="5"|1994
|rowspan="5"|"Sabotage"
|Video of the Year
|
|-
|Best Group Video
|
|-
|Breakthrough Video
|
|-
|Best Direction (Director: Spike Jonze)
|
|-
|Viewer's Choice
|
|-
|1998
|Beastie Boys
|Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award
|
|-
|1999
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Hip-Hop Video
|
|-
|2009
|"Sabotage"
|Best Video (That Should Have Won a Moonman)
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2011
|rowspan="2"|"Make Some Noise"
|Video of the Year
|
|-
|Best Direction (Director: Adam Yauch)
|
|}
MTV Europe Music Awards
|-
|1994
|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|rowspan="4"|1998
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Video
|
|-
|Hello Nasty
|Best Album
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|1999
|Beastie Boys
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2004
|rowspan="2"|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|2011
|"Make Some Noise"
|Best Video
|
|}
MTV Video Music Awards Japan
|-
|2005
|"Ch-Check It Out"
|Best Hip-Hop Video
|
|-
|2009
|Beastie Boys
|MTV Street Icon Award
|
|}
Filmography
Krush Groove (1985)
Tougher Than Leather (1988)
Futurama episode "Hell Is Other Robots" (1999)
Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! (2006)
Fight for Your Right Revisited (2011)
Beastie Boys Story (2020)
Notes
References
External links
Beastie Boys Lyrics Annotated – Beastie Boys lyrics laid out with annotated comments explaining popular culture and historical references as well as known samples.
Beastie Boys
1981 establishments in New York City
Alternative hip hop groups
Capitol Records artists
Def Jam Recordings artists
Grammy Award winners for rap music
Hardcore punk groups from New York (state)
Hip hop groups from New York City
Jewish hip hop groups
Jewish musical groups
Alternative rock groups from New York (state)
Musical groups established in 1981
Musical groups from New York City
Rap rock groups
Rapcore groups
ROIR artists
Musical groups disestablished in 2012
Jews in punk rock
Grand Royal artists
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Feminist musicians
Hardcore hip hop groups | false | [
"Walter Berry (8 April 1929 – 27 October 2000) was an Austrian lyric bass-baritone who enjoyed a prominent career in opera. He has been cited as one of several exemplary operatic bass-baritones of his era.\n\nProfessional career\nWalter Berry was born in Vienna. He studied voice at the Vienna Music Academy and made his stage debut with the Vienna State Opera in 1947. He became a permanent member of the company in 1950, remaining with that ensemble for his entire career, although he undertook frequent guest appearances elsewhere in Europe and in the UK. \n\nIn 1952, Berry made his first appearance at the Salzburg Festival, where he subsequently performed on a regular basis. While in Salzburg, he collaborated with Herbert von Karajan conducting the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra in a production of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's opera Don Giovanni with Leontyne Price and Elisabeth Schwarzkopf. While appearing in Vienna and Salzburg he interpreted an extensive operatic repertoire which included over one hundred roles. He received high praise for his interpretations of Franz Schubert's lieder as well as songs by Gustav Mahler. Included among his acclaimed renditions of sacred works were: Johann Sebastian Bach's \"Passions\" and Ludwig van Beethoven's Missa Solemnis.\n\nHe made many memorable appearances at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City during the 1960s and 1970s in such roles as Barak in Die Frau ohne Schatten, Telramund in Lohengrin, Wotan in Die Walküre, Baron Ochs in Der Rosenkavalier, Don Pizarro in Fidelio, Don Alfonso in Così fan tutte, the Music Master in Ariadne auf Naxos and Leporello in Don Giovanni. He sang his last Barak on 18 November 1984.\n\nBerry's other signature roles included: Papageno in Mozart's The Magic Flute, Figaro in Mozart's Marriage of Figaro and Bluebeard in Béla Bartók's Bluebeard's Castle. He was also a noted interpreter of lieder and was accompanied often at recitals by the German pianist Sebastian Peschko. Berry also appeared in choral works. Performing in light-hearted operettas, particularly Die Fledermaus, was one of his pleasures. Astonishingly, Berry never appeared in London in the role with which he perhaps became most closely linked, Papageno, despite an operatic career that spanned more than 40 years.\n\nWalter Berry married the leading mezzo-soprano Christa Ludwig in 1957 and collaborated with her both on stage and in several recordings. The couple were divorced in 1970.\n\nDeath\nWalter Berry died in 2000 at the age of 71 in Vienna following a heart attack. He was entombed in the Heiligenstädter Friedhof cemetery (Part A, Group 1, Number 263) in Vienna.\n\nRecordings\n\nBerry was a prolific recording artist and participated in many highly acclaimed opera recordings, including the classic Otto Klemperer recordings of The Magic Flute (as Papageno) and Fidelio (as Don Pizarro), both for EMI Records. He also recorded Johann Sebastian Bach's sacred oratorio St. Matthew Passion for Columbia Records with Otto Klemperer and the Philharmonia Orchestra in 1961 and years later for Deutsche Grammophon with Herbert von Karajan and the Berlin Philharmonic in 1972.\n\nAlso included among his recorded performances are: Béla Bartók's Bluebeard's Castle (London Records), Beethoven's Missa solemnis (Deutsche Grammophone), Joseph Haydn's The Creation (Deutsche Grammophon), Mozart's Cosi Fan Tutte and Marriage of Figaro (both EMI), and Mozart's Bastien und Bastienne (Philips).\n\nCritics at Billboard magazine noted that his collaboration with his wife Christa Ludwig in a recording of Bartók's Bluebeard's Castle was delivered with dramatic force and strength. In 1967, Billboard's critics also praised his recording with Ludwig of scenes from Richard Strauss's Elektra, Die Frau ohne Schatten and Der Rosenkavalier issued in the United States on the RCA Victrola label, as outstanding and worthy of Strauss' best traditions. Berry's definitive recordings have earned him the distinction of being cited as one of the truly exemplary bass baritones and basses in opera.\n\nBerry recorded on DVD as Don Pizarro, opposite Ludwig, James King, and Josef Greindl; and as Papageno with Pilar Lorengar as Pamina; also as Leporello opposite Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau in the title role and Josef Greindl, in a performance in German of Don Giovanni.\n\nDiscography \n\nA partial listing of Walter Berry's recordings includes:\n Don Giovanni (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart): Dimitri Mitropoulos conducting the Vienna Philharmonic with Fernando Corena and Cesare Siepi (1956) (Sony)\n Die Fledermaus (Johann Strauss II): Herbert von Karajan conducting the Vienna Philharmonic with Hilde Gueden (1960) (Decca)\n Requiem K. 546 (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart): Herbert von Karajan conducting the Berlin Philharmonic with Wilma Lipp (1962) (Deutsche Grammophon)\n Così fan Tutte (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart): Karl Böhm conducting the Philharmonia Orchestra with Elisabeth Schwarzkopf and Christa Ludwig (1962) (EMI) \n Symphony No. 9 (Ludwig van Beethoven): Herbert von Karajan conducting the Berlin Philharmonic with Gundula Janowitz (1963) (Deutsche Grammophon).\nDie Zauberflöte (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart): Otto Klemperer conducting the Philharmonia Orchestra with Gundula Janowitz and Nicolai Gedda (1964) (EMI) \n Bluebeard's Castle (Béla Bartók): István Kertész conducting the London Symphony Orchestra with Christa Ludwig (1966)(Decca). \n Wozzeck (Alban Berg): Pierre Boulez conducting the Orchestra of the National Paris Opera with Isabel Strauss and Fritz Uhl (1967) (Columbia Masterworks) \n The Creation (Joseph Haydn): Herbert von Karajan conducting the Berlin Philharmonic (1969) (Deutsche Grammophon)\n Die Zauberflöte (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart): Wolfgang Sawallisch conducting the Orchestra of the Bavarian State Opera Munich with Edda Moser and Peter Schreier (1973) (EMI)\n Die Frau ohne Schatten (Richard Strauss): Karl Böhm conducting the Vienna State Opera Orchestra with Birgit Nilsson and James King (1985) (Deutsche Grammophon)\n\nReferences \n Sources\n Peter Gammond: The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Recorded Opera. Salamander Books, 1979.\n Richard Miller: Securing Baritone, Bsss-Baritone and Bass Voices. Oxford University Press, New York, 2008.\n Dorottya Fabian: Bach Performance Practice 1945–1975 – A Comprehensive Review of Sound Recordings and Literature. Routledge, New York, 2017.\n\nNotes\n\nExternal links \n \n Discography (Capon's Lists of Opera Recordings)\n Interview with Walter Berry, 14 June 1985\n Berry singing Mozart Requiem with his wife (YouTube)\n As Papageno\n\n1929 births\n2000 deaths\nUniversity of Music and Performing Arts Vienna alumni\n20th-century Austrian male opera singers\nOperatic bass-baritones\nMusicians from Vienna",
"Jeff \"Beachbum\" Berry (born c. 1958) is an American restaurant owner, author, and historian of tiki culture, particularly the drinks associated with the tiki theme. In addition to researching and reconstructing lost recipes, he has invented and published his own cocktail recipes.\n\nCareer\n\nBerry describes himself as a \"professional bum\". He is a graduate of the UCLA film school, and he worked as a journalist and screenwriter in Hollywood for many years. He did several Disney rewrites and directed a TV movie starring Olympia Dukakis. But he came to realize that he \"liked making drinks more than making movies\" and decided to focus on his real passion: tropical drinks.\n\nBerry fell in love with tiki culture as a child in 1968, when his parents took him to a Chinese restaurant in the San Fernando Valley in the Los Angeles area. He loved its faux-Polynesian decor and was fascinated by the elaborate cocktails that were served. He later explained, \"It was this weird, mysterious adult thing that was a part of the whole exotic fantasy world.... drinks would come with all kinds of elaborate garnishes. It had a huge impression on me, and that became my favorite place to go.\"\n\nBy the 1970s the tiki craze, which had been launched by Donn Beach and Victor Bergeron in the 1930s, was fading; formerly popular with celebrities and trend-setters, tiki-themed restaurants forty years later were regarded as \"tacky\". As Berry explained in a 2010 interview, \"the fad entered middle-age, and became something your parents did.\" But as an adult Berry still loved the style, as did his wife Annene Kaye, a former bartender. He particularly wanted to know how to make the elaborate, exotic drinks associated with the theme. Owners and bartenders of the tiki era held their drink recipes as closely guarded secrets; Beach kept the actual recipes secret even from his bartenders, telling them to use one ounce from Bottle A and a quarter ounce from Bottle B. As a result, low-quality imitations of classic drinks like the Mai Tai and the Zombie had become common. Berry and Kaye set out to rediscover or reverse-engineer the original drinks that were served at now largely defunct icons like Trader Vic's and Don the Beachcomber as well as surviving tiki palaces like Mai Kai, Tiki Ti, Tonga Room and Bali Hai. He bought out-of-print drink recipe books and collected memorabilia like placemats, menus, and coasters. He searched out old-school bartenders and persuaded them to share their secret recipes with him.\n \n\nAt first Berry's research was just a hobby. He and fellow enthusiasts would gather at backyard luaus hosted by Otto Von Stroheim; the parties proved a strong influence in keeping tiki culture alive and helping to inspire the \"tiki renaissance\" of the early 21st century. Berry began to compile the recipes he found through his research into scrapbooks for friends. He published his first book, Beach Bum Berry's Grog Log, in 1998. The book has been called \"pivotal\" for popularizing the tiki theme as well as giving bartenders the recipes they needed to attract a new generation of customers. The Tonga Hut, Los Angeles's oldest tiki bar, offered customers a Grog Log Challenge: to drink, within a year, all 78 cocktails whose recipes are printed in the Grog Log.\n\nTwo years later Berry wrote the chapter on tropical drinks, called \"Mixologists and Concoctions\", in Sven Kirsten's influential The Book of Tiki. Tiki-themed bars and restaurants began to come back into style. Soon researching, writing, and giving talks about tropical drinks was his main activity. In 2015 he commented, \"All these neo-tiki bars were opening up all over the world... and between 75 and 90 percent of their menus were all recipes I had found.\"\n\nThe recipes in Berry's books are mostly for classic drinks, some of which had never been published before and required years of sleuthing to discover. They also include historical information about the originators of tiki such as Beach and Bergeron, as well as important early contributors to the tiki renaissance such as Von Stroheim and Kirsten. His fourth book, Beachbum Berry's Sippin' Safari (2007), includes what he believes to be Beach's original recipe for the Zombie, which had never been written down except in code. He spent a year and a half researching how to make the perfect Daiquiri. Some of his rediscovered classic drink mixes are marketed by Trader Tiki.\n\nIn 2014 he and Kaye opened a tiki-themed restaurant and bar, Beachbum Berry’s Latitude 29, in the French Quarter of New Orleans. He said operating the restaurant is \"the first time I've worked set hours since 1985.\"\n\nIn 2021, Jeff Berry partnered with Hamilton to release \"Beachbum Berry's Zombie Blend\" rum.\n\nImpact\nM. Carrie Allan of The Washington Post described Berry's work in researching and reconstructing lost recipes as that of a \"cocktail archeologist.\" Wayne Curtis, historian and author of And a Bottle of Rum: A History of the New World in Ten Cocktails, dubbed him \"the Indiana Jones of tiki drinks.\" Berry calls himself a \"tropical drink evangelist.\" Steven Kurutz of The New York Times said, \"Mr. Berry’s lasting contribution may be in salvaging tropical drinks from decades of bad bartending.\" The Australian Bartender noted, \"It's hard to overstate this guy’s importance for tiki bars: Jeff Berry literally wrote the books on tiki.\"\n\nPublications\n Beach Bum Berry's Grog Log – 1998, Diamond Comic Distributors, \n Beachbum Berry's Intoxica! – 2003, Slave Labor Graphics, \n Beach Bum Berry's Taboo Table – 2005, Slave Labor Graphics, \n Beachbum Berry's Sippin' Safari – 2007, Slave Labor Graphics, \n Beach Bum Berry Remixed – Slave Labor Graphics, 2010, \n Beachbum Berry's Potions of the Caribbean – Cocktail Kingdom, 2014, \n Beachbum Berry's Sippin' Safari (expanded 10th Anniversary) – Cocktail Kingdom, 2017,\n\nDrink creations\nAlthough Berry's books have primarily chronicled the sometimes \"lost\" recipes from historical bartenders of the past such as Beach, Bergeron, Tony Ramos, and Harry Yee, Berry has also invented and published some of his own cocktail recipes. Examples that have appeared in other bartender guides, drink apps, or tiki websites include the Ancient Mariner, Bum’s Rush, Castaway, Hai Karate, Restless Native, Sea of Cortez, Hula-Hula, and Von Tiki.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nLiving people\n1958 births\nAmerican bartenders\nAmerican non-fiction writers\nAmerican historians\nTiki culture\nUCLA Film School alumni"
] |
[
"Beastie Boys",
"2012-present: Deaths of Yauch and Berry",
"How did Yauch die and when?",
"On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer",
"How and when did Berry die?",
"John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, after a decline of health for several years."
] | C_135bb6c0abb44071b79b28c1c5149a4a_0 | What albums did the band release around 2012? | 3 | What albums did the Beastie Boys release around 2012? | Beastie Boys | On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer at the age of 47. On May 24, in an interview with Rolling Stone, Mike D said that the Beastie Boys recorded new music in late 2011 after the release of Hot Sauce Committee (Part 2), but he did not say if these recordings would be released. He also said that the Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock and that "Yauch would genuinely want us to try whatever crazy thing we wanted but never got around to." In April 2013 it was announced that the group has signed a deal to write an autobiography. The book was scheduled to be released in the fall of 2015. However, Horovitz stated that the autobiography is being delayed. According to Horovitz, "We've got pages!....How it's going to fit together, I don't know. But we've got some ideas. It's interesting. It's fun." On May 3, 2013 a children's playground in Brooklyn was renamed for Adam Yauch. In June 2014, Mike D stated that neither he nor Horovitz would perform under the Beastie Boys name again out of respect for Yauch. Founding Beastie Boys guitarist John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, after a decline of health for several years. He was credited with coming up with the Beastie Boys name, and played guitar on the first EP the Beastie Boys recorded. Before the Beastie Boys, he was also a part of Even Worse, Big Fat Love, Highway Stars, Bourbon Deluxe, and Idaho. The first Beastie Boys show took place at Berry's loft. CANNOTANSWER | the Beastie Boys recorded new music in late 2011 after the release of Hot Sauce Committee (Part 2), | Beastie Boys were an American hip hop group from New York City, formed in 1981. The group was composed of Michael "Mike D" Diamond (vocals, drums), Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (vocals, guitar, programming).
Beastie Boys were formed out of members of experimental hardcore punk band The Young Aborigines in 1978, with Diamond as vocalist, Jeremy Shatan on bass guitar, John Berry on guitar, and Kate Schellenbach on drums. When Shatan left in 1981, Yauch replaced him on bass and the band changed their name to Beastie Boys. Berry left shortly thereafter and was replaced by Horovitz.
After achieving local success with the 1983 comedy hip hop single "Cooky Puss", Beastie Boys made a full transition to hip hop, and Schellenbach left. They toured with Madonna in 1985 and a year later released their debut album, Licensed to Ill (1986), the first rap record to top the Billboard 200 chart. Their second album, Paul's Boutique (1989), composed almost entirely of samples, was a commercial failure, but later received critical acclaim. Check Your Head (1992) and Ill Communication (1994) found mainstream success, followed by Hello Nasty (1998), To the 5 Boroughs (2004), The Mix-Up (2007), and Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011).
Beastie Boys have sold 20 million records in the United States and had seven platinum-selling albums from 1986 to 2004. They are the biggest-selling rap group since Billboard began recording sales in 1991. In 2012, they became the third rap group to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In the same year, Yauch died of cancer and Beastie Boys disbanded. Since then, the remaining two members have released several retrospective works, including a book and documentary film detailing the history of the group as well as a career-spanning compilation album. Diamond has produced acts including Portugal. The Man, while Horovitz has taken small acting roles and continues to play music.
History
1981–1983: Formation and early years
Prior to forming Beastie Boys, Michael Diamond was part of a number of bands such as the Walden Jazz Band, BAN, and the Young Aborigines. Beastie Boys formed in July 1981 when the Young Aborigines bassist Jeremy Shatan left New York City for the summer and the remaining members Michael Diamond, John Berry and Kate Schellenbach formed a new hardcore punk band with Adam Yauch.
In a 2007 interview with Charlie Rose, Yauch recalled that it was Berry who suggested the name Beastie Boys. Although the band stated that "Beastie" is an acronym standing for "Boys Entering Anarchistic States Towards Inner Excellence", in the Charlie Rose interview, both Yauch and Diamond acknowledged that the acronym was an "afterthought" conceived after the name was chosen. The band supported Bad Brains, the Dead Kennedys, the Misfits and Reagan Youth at venues such as CBGB, A7, Trudy Hellers Place and Max's Kansas City, playing at the latter venue on its closing night. In November 1982, Beastie Boys recorded the 7-inch EP Polly Wog Stew at 171A studios, an early recorded example of New York hardcore.
On November 13, 1982, Beastie Boys played Philip Pucci's birthday for the purposes of his short concert film, Beastie. Pucci held the concert in Bard College's Preston Drama Dance Department Theatre. This performance marked Beastie Boys' first on screen appearance in a published motion picture. Pucci's concept for Beastie was to distribute a mixture of both a half dozen 16 mm Bell & Howell Filmo cameras, and 16 mm Bolex cameras to audience members and ask that they capture Beastie Boys performance from the audience's own point of view while a master sync sound camera filmed from the balcony of the abandoned theater where the performance was held. The opening band for that performance was The Young and the Useless, which featured Adam Horovitz as the lead singer. A one-minute clip of Beastie was subsequently excerpted and licensed by Beastie Boys for use in the "Egg Raid on Mojo" segment of the "Skills to Pay the Bills" long-form home video released by Capitol Records. "Skills to Pay the Bills" later went on to be certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Berry left the group in 1982 (later forming Thwig, Big Fat Love and Bourbon Deluxe) and was replaced by Horovitz, who had become close friends with Beastie Boys.
The band also recorded and then performed its first hip hop track, "Cooky Puss", based on a prank call by the group to a Carvel Ice Cream franchise in 1983. It was a part of the new lineup's first EP, also called Cooky Puss, which was the first piece of work that showed their incorporation of the underground rap phenomenon and the use of samples. It quickly became a hit in New York underground dance clubs and night clubs. "Beastie Revolution" was later sampled for a British Airways commercial. Beastie Boys threatened to sue them over the use of the song. British Airways immediately paid them $40,000 in royalties.
1984–1987: Def Jam years and Licensed to Ill
Following the success of "Cooky Puss", the band began to incorporate rap into their sets. They hired a DJ for their live shows, New York University student Rick Rubin, who began producing records soon thereafter. "I met Mike first," Rubin recalled. "I thought he was an arrogant asshole. Through spending time with the Beasties I grew to see that they had this great sense of humour. It wasn't that they were assholes, and even if it was, they were funny with it." Rubin formed Def Jam Recordings with fellow NYU student Russell Simmons, and approached the band about producing them for his new label. As the band was transitioning to hip hop, Schellenbach was fired in 1984, with Diamond taking over on drums. In their 2018 memoir, Ad-Rock expressed regret for firing Schellenbach, which he attributed to her not fitting with the "new tough-rapper-guy identity".
The band's 12-inch single "Rock Hard" (1984) was the second Def Jam record crediting Rubin as producer (the first was "It's Yours" by T La Rock and Jazzy Jay). On July 22, 1986, Beastie Boys opened for John Lydon's post-Sex Pistols band Public Image Ltd., and supported Madonna on her North American The Virgin Tour. Then headlining with Fishbone and Murphy's Law with DJ Hurricane and later in the year, the group was on the Raising Hell tour with Run-DMC, Whodini, LL Cool J, and the Timex Social Club. Thanks to this exposure, "Hold It Now, Hit It" charted on Billboards US R&B and dance charts. "She's on It" from the Krush Groove soundtrack continued in a rap/metal vein while a double A-side 12", "Paul Revere/The New Style", was released at the end of the year.
The band recorded Licensed to Ill in 1986 and released it on November 15, 1986. The album was favorably reviewed by Rolling Stone magazine. Licensed to Ill became one of the best-selling rap albums of the 1980s and the first rap album to go number 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, where it stayed for five weeks. It also reached number 2 on the Top R&B album chart. It was Def Jam's fastest selling debut record to date and sold over nine million copies. The fourth single, "(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)", reached number 7 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Although the group has sold over 26 million records in the US, this is their only single to peak in the US top ten or top twenty. The accompanying video (directed by Ric Menello and Adam Dubin) became an MTV staple. Another song from the album, "No Sleep till Brooklyn", peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart.
The band took the Licensed to Ill tour around the world the following year. The tour was troubled by lawsuits and arrests, with the band accused of provoking the crowd. This culminated in a notorious gig at the Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool, England, on May 30, 1987, that erupted into a riot approximately 10 minutes after the group hit the stage and the arrest of Adam Horovitz by Merseyside Police. He was charged with assault causing grievous bodily harm.
1988–1989: Move to Capitol Records and Paul's Boutique
In 1988, Beastie Boys appeared in Tougher Than Leather, a film directed by Rubin as a star vehicle for Run-D.M.C. and Def Jam Recordings. After Def Jam stopped paying them for work they'd already done and were owed money for, Beastie Boys left Def Jam and signed with Capitol Records.
The second Beastie Boys album, Paul's Boutique, was released on July 25, 1989. Produced by the Dust Brothers, it blends eclectic samples and has been described as an early work of experimental hip hop. It failed to match the sales of Licensed to Ill, peaking at number 14 on the US album charts, but later attracted wide acclaim; Rolling Stone ranked it number 156 on its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
1990–1996: Check Your Head and Ill Communication
Check Your Head was recorded in the band's G-Son studio in Atwater Village, California, and released on its Grand Royal record label. The band was influenced to play instruments on this album by Dutch group Urban Dance Squad; with Mike D on drums, Yauch on bass, Horovitz on guitar and Mark Ramos Nishita ("Keyboard Money Mark") on keyboards. Mario Caldato, Jr., who had helped in the production of Paul's Boutique, engineered the record and became a longtime collaborator. Check Your Head was released in 1992 and was certified double Platinum in the US and peaked at number 10 on the Billboard 200. The single "So What'cha Want" reached number 93 on the Billboard Hot 100 and charted on both the Rap and Modern Rock Chart, while the album's first single, "Pass the Mic", peaked at number 38 on the Hot Dance Music chart. The album also introduced a more experimental direction, with funk and jazz inspired songs including "Lighten Up" and "Something's Got to Give". The band returned to their hardcore punk roots for the song "Time for Livin'", a cover of a 1974 Sly and the Family Stone song. The addition of instruments and the harder rock sound of the album could be considered a precursor to the nu metal genre of music to come out in the later half of the 1990s.
Beastie Boys signed an eclectic roster of artists to their Grand Royal label, including Luscious Jackson, Sean Lennon, and Australian artist Ben Lee. The group owned Grand Royal Records until 2001. Grand Royal's first independent release was Luscious Jackson's album In Search of Manny in 1993. Also in 1993, the band contributed the track "It's the New Style" (with DJ Hurricane) to the AIDS benefit album No Alternative, produced by the Red Hot Organization.
Beastie Boys also published Grand Royal Magazine, with the first edition in 1993 featuring a cover story on Bruce Lee, artwork by George Clinton, and interviews with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and A Tribe Called Quest's MC Q-Tip. The 1995 issue of the magazine contained a memorable piece on the mullet. The Oxford English Dictionary cites this as the first published use of the term, along with the lyrics from the band's 1994 song, "Mullet Head". That term was not heard in the 1980s, even though that decade has retroactively been hailed as the mullet's peak in popularity. The OED says that the term was "apparently coined, and certainly popularized, by US hip-hop group Beastie Boys". Grand Royal Magazine is also responsible for giving British band Sneaker Pimps their name.
Ill Communication, released in 1994, saw Beastie Boys' return to the top of the charts when the album debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200 and peaked at number 2 on the R&B/hip hop album chart. The single "Sabotage" became a hit on the modern rock charts and the music video, directed by Spike Jonze, received extensive play on MTV. "Get It Together" reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. Also in 1994, the band released Some Old Bullshit, featuring the band's early independent material, which made it to number 46 on the Billboard Independent Albums chart.
Beastie Boys headlined at Lollapalooza—an American travelling music festival—in 1994, together with The Smashing Pumpkins. In addition, the band performed three concerts (in Los Angeles, New York City, and Washington, D.C.) to raise money for the Milarepa Fund and dedicated the royalties from "Shambala" and "Bodhisattva Vow" from the Ill Communication to the cause. The Milarepa Fund aims to raise awareness of Tibetan human rights issues and the exile of the Dalai Lama. In 1996, Yauch organized the largest rock benefit show since 1985's Live Aid – the Tibetan Freedom Concert, a two-day festival at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco that attracted over 100,000 attendees.
In 1995, the popularity of Beastie Boys was underlined when tickets for an arena tour went on sale in the US and Madison Square Garden and Chicago's Rosemont Horizon sold out within 30 minutes. One dollar from each ticket sold went through Milarepa to local charities in each city on the tour. Beastie Boys toured South America and Southeast Asia for the first time. The band also released Aglio e Olio, a collection of eight songs lasting just 11 minutes harking back to their punk roots, in 1995. The In Sound from Way Out!, a collection of previously released jazz/funk instrumentals, was released on Grand Royal in 1996 with the title and artwork a homage to an album by electronic pop music pioneers Perrey and Kingsley.
In 1992, Beastie Boys decided to sample portions of the sound recording of "Choir" by James Newton in various renditions of their song "Pass the Mic". The band did not obtain a license from Newton to use the composition. Pursuant to their license from ECM Records, Beastie Boys digitally sampled the opening six seconds of Newton's sound recording of "Choir", and repeated this six-second sample as a background element throughout their song. Newton brought suit, claiming that the band infringed his copyright in the underlying composition of "Choir". The district court granted Beastie Boys summary judgment. The district court said that no license was required because the three-note segment of "Choir" lacked the requisite originality and was therefore not copyrightable. The decision was affirmed on appeal.
1997–2001: Hello Nasty
Beastie Boys began work on the album Hello Nasty at the G-Son studios, Los Angeles in 1995, but continued to produce and record it in New York City after Yauch moved to Manhattan in 1996. The album displayed a substantial shift in musical feel, with the addition of Mix Master Mike. The album featured bombastic beats, rap samples, and experimental sounds. Released on July 14, 1998, Hello Nasty earned first week sales of 681,000 in the US and went straight to number 1 in the US, the UK, Germany, Australia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and Sweden. The album achieved number 2 rank on the charts in Canada and Japan, and reached top-ten chart positions in Austria, Switzerland, Ireland, Belgium, Finland, France and Israel.
Beastie Boys won two Grammy Awards in 1999, receiving the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album for Hello Nasty as well as the Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for "Intergalactic". This was the first and, as of 2008, only time that a band had won awards in both rap and alternative categories.
Also at the 1998 MTV Video Music Awards they won the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award for their contribution to music videos. The following year at the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards they also won the award for Best Hip Hop Video for their hit song "Intergalactic". Beastie Boys used both appearances at the Video Music Awards to make politically charged speeches of considerable length to the sizable MTV audiences. At the 1998 ceremony, Yauch addressed the issue of Muslim people being stereotyped as terrorists and that most people of the Muslim faith are not terrorists. These comments were made in the wake of the US Embassy bombings that had occurred in both Kenya and Tanzania only a month earlier. At the 1999 ceremony in the wake of the horror stories that were coming out of Woodstock 99, Adam Horovitz addressed the fact that there had been many cases of sexual assaults and rapes at the festival, suggesting the need for bands and festivals to pay much more attention to the security details at their concerts.
Beastie Boys started an arena tour in 1998. Through Ian C. Rogers, the band made live downloads of their performances available for their fans, but were temporarily thwarted when Capitol Records removed them from its website. Beastie Boys was one of the first bands who made MP3 downloads available on their website. The group got a high level of response and public awareness as a result including a published article in The Wall Street Journal on the band's efforts.
On September 28, 1999, Beastie Boys joined Elvis Costello to play "Radio Radio" on the 25th anniversary season of Saturday Night Live.
Beastie Boys released The Sounds of Science, a two-CD anthology of their works in 1999. This album reached number 19 on the Billboard 200, number 18 in Canada, and number 14 on the R&B/Hip Hop chart. The one new song, the single "Alive", reached number 11 on the Billboard Modern Rock chart.
In 2000, Beastie Boys had planned to co-headline the "Rhyme and Reason Tour" with Rage Against the Machine and Busta Rhymes, but the tour was canceled when drummer Mike D suffered a serious injury due to a bicycle accident. The official diagnosis was fifth-degree acromioclavicular joint dislocation; he needed surgery and extensive rehabilitation. By the time he recovered, Rage Against the Machine had disbanded, although they would reunite seven years later.
Under the name Country Mike, Mike D recorded an album, Country Mike's Greatest Hits, and gave it to friends and family for Christmas in 2000. Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz's side project BS 2000 released Simply Mortified in 2001.
In October 2001, after the September 11, 2001 attacks, Beastie Boys organized and headlined the New Yorkers Against Violence Concert at the Hammerstein Ballroom.
2002–2008: To the 5 Boroughs and The Mix-Up
In 2002, Adam Yauch started building a new studio facility, Oscilloscope Laboratories, in downtown Manhattan, New York and the band started work on a new album there. The band released a protest song, "In a World Gone Mad", against the 2003 Iraq war as a free download on several websites, including the Milarepa website, the MTV website, MoveOn.org, and Win Without War. The 19th and 20th Tibetan Freedom Concerts were held in Tokyo and Taipei, Beastie Boys' first Taiwan appearance. Beastie Boys also headlined the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.
Their single, "Ch-Check It Out", debuted on The O.C. in "The Vegas" episode from Season 1, which aired April 28, 2004.
To the 5 Boroughs was released worldwide on June 15, 2004. It was the first album the band produced themselves and reached number 1 on the Billboard albums chart, number 2 in the UK and Australia, and number 3 in Germany. The first single from the album, "Ch-Check It Out", reached number 1 in Canada and on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart.
The album was the cause of some controversy with allegations that it installed spyware when inserted into the CD drive of a computer. The band denied this allegation, defending that there is no copy protection software on the albums sold in the US and UK. While there is Macrovision CDS-200 copy protection software installed on European copies of the album, this is standard practice for all European releases on EMI/Capitol Records released in Europe, and it does not install spyware or any form of permanent software.
The band stated in mid-2006 that they were writing material for their next album and would be producing it themselves.
Speaking to British music weekly NME (April 26, 2007), Diamond revealed that a new album was to be called The Mix-Up. Despite initial confusion regarding whether the album would have lyrics as opposed to being purely instrumental, the Mic-To-Mic blog reported that Capitol Records had confirmed it would be strictly instrumental and erroneously reported a release date scheduled for July 10, 2007. (The album was eventually released June 26, as originally reported.) On May 1, 2007, this was further cemented by an e-mail sent to those on the band's mailing list – explicitly stating that the album would be all instrumental:
The band subsequently confirmed the new album and announced a short tour that focused on festivals as opposed to a traditional tour, including the likes of Sónar (Spain), Roskilde (Denmark), Hurricane/Southside (Germany), Bestival (Isle of Wight), Electric Picnic (Ireland) and Open'er Festival (Poland). Beastie Boys performed at the UK leg of Live Earth July 7, 2007 at Wembley Stadium, London with "Sabotage", "So What'cha Want", "Intergalactic", and "Sure Shot".
They worked with Reverb, a non-profit environmental organization, on their 2007 summer tour.
They headlined the Langerado Music Festival in South Florida on Friday, March 7, 2008.
They won a Grammy for The Mix-Up in the "Best Pop Instrumental Album" category at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards in 2008.
2009–2012: Hot Sauce Committee
In February 2009, Yauch revealed their forthcoming new album had taken the band's sound in a "bizarre" new direction, saying "It's a combination of playing and sampling stuff as we're playing, and also sampling pretty obscure records." The tentative title for the record was Tadlock's Glasses, of which Yauch explained the inspiration behind the title:
On May 25, 2009, it was announced during an interview on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon that the name of their new album would be Hot Sauce Committee and was set for release on September 15 (with the track listing of the album announced through their mailing list on June 23). The album included a collaboration with Santigold who co-wrote and sang with the band on the track "Don't Play No Game That I Can't Win".
In June, the group appeared at Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival and performed the new single from the album titled "Too Many Rappers" alongside rapper Nas who appears on the track. It would be the last live performance by Beastie Boys as a trio. The group would have toured the UK later in the year in support of the new record.
Speaking to Drowned in Sound, Beastie Boys revealed that Part 2 was done. Mike D also hinted it may be released via unusual means:
On July 20, Yauch announced on the band's official YouTube channel and through the fan mailing list, the cancellation of several tour dates and the postponement of the new album due to the discovery of a cancerous tumor in his parotid gland and a lymph node. The group also had to cancel their co-headlining gig at the Osheaga Festival in Montreal and also another headlining spot for the first night of the All Points West Festival in Jersey City, New Jersey.
In late October 2010, Beastie Boys sent out two emails regarding the status of Hot Sauce Committee Pts. 1 and 2 to their online mailing list. An email dated October 18 read: "Although we regret to inform you that Hot Sauce Committee Part 1 will continue to be delayed indefinitely, Hot Sauce Committee Part 2 will be released on time as originally planned in spring of 2011." One week later, a second email was sent out, reading as follows:
The official release dates were April 27, 2011, for Japan; April 29 in the UK and Europe, and May 3, 2011, in the US. The third single for the album "Make Some Noise" was made available for download on April 11, 2011, as well as a limited edition 7-inch vinyl single for Record Store Day five days later with a Passion Pit remix of the track as a b-side. The track was leaked online on April 6 and subsequently made available via their blog.
On April 22, Beastie Boys emailed out the cryptic message "This Sat, 10:35 am EST – Just listen, listen, listen to the beat box". A day later, they live streamed their album online via beatbox inside Madison Square Garden.
The band was announced as an inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in December 2011. They were inducted by Chuck D and LL Cool J on April 14, 2012. Yauch was too sick to attend the ceremony, having been admitted to NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital the same day, therefore the group didn't perform; instead Black Thought, Travie from Gym Class Heroes and Kid Rock performed a medley of their songs. Diamond and Horovitz accepted and read a speech that Yauch had written.
2012–present: Deaths of Yauch and Berry and disbandment
On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer at the age of 47. Mike D told Rolling Stone that Beastie Boys had recorded new music in late 2011, but did not say if these recordings would be released. He also said that Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock and that "Yauch would genuinely want us to try whatever crazy thing we wanted but never got around to". In June 2014, Mike D confirmed that he and Ad-Rock would not make music under the Beastie Boys name again.
Founding Beastie Boys guitarist John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, following several years of ill health. He was credited with naming the band Beastie Boys and played guitar on the first EP. The first Beastie Boys show took place at Berry's loft.
Yauch's will forbids the use of Beastie Boys music in advertisements. In June 2014, Beastie Boys won a lawsuit against Monster Energy for using their music in a commercial without permission. They were awarded $1.7 million in damages and $668,000 for legal fees. In October 2018, Michael Diamond and Adam Horovitz released a memoir, Beastie Boys Book. In 2020, they released a documentary, Beastie Boys Story, directed by Spike Jonze. The career-spanning book and documentary were complemented by the compilation album Beastie Boys Music in October 2020.
Tibetan Freedom Concert
In 1994, Yauch and activist Erin Potts organized the Tibetan Freedom Concert in order to raise awareness of humans rights abuses by the Chinese government on the Tibetan people. Yauch became aware of this after hiking in Nepal and speaking with Tibetan refugees. The events became annual, and shortly after went international with acts such as Live, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe of R.E.M., Rage Against the Machine, The Smashing Pumpkins, and U2.
Musical style, influences, and legacy
Originally a hardcore punk band, Beastie Boys had largely abandoned the genre in favor of hip hop and rap rock by the time work began on their debut studio album Licensed to Ill. The group mixed elements of hip hop, punk, funk, electro, jazz and Latin music into their music. They have also been described as alternative hip hop and .
Around the time of the release of their debut album, Licensed to Ill, Mike D started to appear on stage and in publicity photographs wearing a large Volkswagen emblem attached to a chain-link necklace. This started a rash of thefts of the emblem from vehicles around the world as fans tried to emulate him. A controversial concert in Columbus, Georgia in 1987 led to the passage of a lewdness ordinance in that city.
Beastie Boys are considered very influential in both the hip hop and rock music scenes, with artists such as Eminem, Rage Against the Machine, Hed PE, , Sublime, Mac Miller , Korn , Slipknot, and Blur citing them as an influence. Beastie Boys have had four albums reach the top of the Billboard album charts (Licensed to Ill, Ill Communication, Hello Nasty and To the 5 Boroughs) since 1986. In the November 2004 issue, Rolling Stone named "Sabotage" the 475th song on their 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list.
In their April 2005 issue, Rolling Stone ranked them number 77 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. VH1 ranked them number 89 on their list of their 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. On September 27, 2007, it was announced that Beastie Boys were one of the nine nominees for the 2008 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductions. In December 2011, they were announced to be official 2012 inductees.
Beastie Boys have many high-profile longtime fans, including UFC president Dana White, who has a hand-signed bass guitar signed by all three members in his office and a copy of the Beastie Boys book. Speaking on the death of Adam Yauch, White said, "I seriously haven't been impacted by a death in a long time like I was with the Beastie Boys". Actor Seth Rogen, who appeared in the video for "Make Some Noise", also said, "I'm a huge Beastie Boys fan and they just called and asked if I wanted to be a part of it, and I said yes without hesitation. I didn't need to hear anything. I didn't need to see anything, any concepts. I was just like, 'I will literally do anything you ask me to do". Ben Stiller was seen in the crowd for the DVD release Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! and featured Horovitz in his movie While We're Young, where he said, "I'm a huge Beastie Boys fan, so doing that, for me, was beyond anything". Eminem was highly influenced by the Beastie Boys and cited them alongside LL Cool J as being the reason he got into rap. During an interview with MTV after the death of Yauch, he said, "Adam Yauch brought a lot of positivity into the world and I think it's obvious to anyone how big of an influence the Beastie Boys were on me and so many others. They are trailblazers and pioneers and Adam will be sorely missed. My thoughts and prayers are with his family, Mike D., and Ad-Rock." His album cover for Kamikaze paid homage to Licensed to Ill and he also paid homage in his "Berzerk" video. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Beavis and Butt-Head creator Mike Judge acknowledged he was a fan of the band, citing his favorite song as "Fight for Your Right", as the Beastie Boys appeared on Beavis and Butt-Head on numerous occasions. Kid Rock wrote an in-depth tribute to Yauch after being influenced by the band, which said, "I thought I was the 4th member of Beastie Boys in 7th grade. You couldn't tell me I wasn't. The first time I ever saw them on stage was a very early show of theirs before Licensed to Ill came out, opening for Run DMC at Joe Louis Arena. My jaw dropped to the floor!".
In 2020, Spin Magazine ranked Beastie Boys as the 12th most influential artist of the previous 35 years.
Sampling lawsuit
In 2003, Beastie Boys were involved in the landmark sampling decision, Newton v. Diamond. In that case, a federal judge ruled that the band was not liable for sampling James Newton's "Choir" in their track, "Pass the Mic". The sample used is the six-second flute stab. In short, Beastie Boys cleared the sample but obtained only the rights to use the sound recording and not the composition rights to the song "Choir". In the decision, the judge found that:
Band members
Members
John Berry – guitars (1981–1982; died 2016)
Mike D – vocals, drums (1981–2012)
Kate Schellenbach – drums, percussion (1981–1984)
MCA – vocals, bass (1981–2012; died 2012)
Ad-Rock – vocals, guitars (1982–2012)
Touring musicians
DJ Double R – disc jockey (1984–1985)
Doctor Dré – disc jockey (1986)
DJ Hurricane – disc jockey (1986–1997)
Eric Bobo – percussion, drums (1992–1996)
Money Mark (Mark Ramos-Nishita) – keyboards, vocals (1992–2012)
Amery "AWOL" Smith – drums, backing vocals, percussion (1992–?)
Alfredo Ortiz – drums, percussion (1996–2012)
Mix Master Mike – disc jockey, backing vocals (1998–2012)
Timeline
Touring Members Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Licensed to Ill (1986)
Paul's Boutique (1989)
Check Your Head (1992)
Ill Communication (1994)
Hello Nasty (1998)
To the 5 Boroughs (2004)
The Mix-Up (2007)
Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011)
Tours
The Virgin Tour (1985) (supporting Madonna)
Raising Hell Tour (1986) (supporting Run-D.M.C.)
Licensed to Ill Tour (1987) (with Public Enemy)
Together Forever Tour (1987) (with Run-D.M.C.)
Check Your Head Tour (1992) (with Cypress Hill, Rollins Band, Firehose, and Basehead)
Ill Communication Tour (1994–1995)
In the Round Tour (1998–1999) (with A Tribe Called Quest and Money Mark)
To the 5 Boroughs Tour (2004)
The Mix-Up Tour (2007–2008)
Awards and nominations
Grammy Awards
|-
|1992
|Check Your Head
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|1995
|"Sabotage"
|Best Hard Rock Performance
|
|-
|Rowspan="2"|1999
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|Hello Nasty
|Best Alternative Music Album
|
|-
|2001
|"Alive"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2005
|"Ch-Check It Out"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|To The 5 Boroughs
|Best Rap Album
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2008
|"Off the Grid"
|Best Pop Instrumental Performance
|
|-
|The Mix-Up
|Best Contemporary Instrumental Album
|
|-
|2010
|"Too Many Rappers" (featuring Nas)
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|}
MTV Video Music Awards
|-
|rowspan="5"|1994
|rowspan="5"|"Sabotage"
|Video of the Year
|
|-
|Best Group Video
|
|-
|Breakthrough Video
|
|-
|Best Direction (Director: Spike Jonze)
|
|-
|Viewer's Choice
|
|-
|1998
|Beastie Boys
|Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award
|
|-
|1999
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Hip-Hop Video
|
|-
|2009
|"Sabotage"
|Best Video (That Should Have Won a Moonman)
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2011
|rowspan="2"|"Make Some Noise"
|Video of the Year
|
|-
|Best Direction (Director: Adam Yauch)
|
|}
MTV Europe Music Awards
|-
|1994
|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|rowspan="4"|1998
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Video
|
|-
|Hello Nasty
|Best Album
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|1999
|Beastie Boys
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2004
|rowspan="2"|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|2011
|"Make Some Noise"
|Best Video
|
|}
MTV Video Music Awards Japan
|-
|2005
|"Ch-Check It Out"
|Best Hip-Hop Video
|
|-
|2009
|Beastie Boys
|MTV Street Icon Award
|
|}
Filmography
Krush Groove (1985)
Tougher Than Leather (1988)
Futurama episode "Hell Is Other Robots" (1999)
Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! (2006)
Fight for Your Right Revisited (2011)
Beastie Boys Story (2020)
Notes
References
External links
Beastie Boys Lyrics Annotated – Beastie Boys lyrics laid out with annotated comments explaining popular culture and historical references as well as known samples.
Beastie Boys
1981 establishments in New York City
Alternative hip hop groups
Capitol Records artists
Def Jam Recordings artists
Grammy Award winners for rap music
Hardcore punk groups from New York (state)
Hip hop groups from New York City
Jewish hip hop groups
Jewish musical groups
Alternative rock groups from New York (state)
Musical groups established in 1981
Musical groups from New York City
Rap rock groups
Rapcore groups
ROIR artists
Musical groups disestablished in 2012
Jews in punk rock
Grand Royal artists
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Feminist musicians
Hardcore hip hop groups | false | [
"Sum and Substance is a compilation album released by the British rock band The Mission on 7 February 1994 through Vertigo/Phonogram Records. It contains all the singles released by the band as well as two new songs. The vinyl version on two LP's had a slightly different track-listing. A remix of \"Tower of Strength\" by Youth preceded the release, although it was not included on the compilation. A second single \"Afterglow\" appeared in March of the same year, but failed to chart. A VHS with all the music videos produced by the band bears the same title. The band did a short tour around the UK in support of the release.\n\nTrack listing\n\nReferences\n\n1994 compilation albums\nThe Mission (band) albums\nAlbums produced by Tim Palmer\nAlbums produced by Mark Saunders (record producer)",
"Maybe There's No Heaven is the forthcoming fourth studio album by Australian pop punk band Short Stack, and first through released through UNFD. The album was announced on 1 December 2021 and scheduled for release on 25 February 2022 but on 9 February, the band delayed the release until to 8 April 2022 citing \"a desire to tie its launch in to their forthcoming national tour\" in a press conference.\n\nAccording to the band, Maybe There's No Heaven is their most authentic. In December 2021, frontman Shaun Diviney said, \"There was a tension between the band that we wanted to be and the band that other people around us wanted to be\". Drummer Bradie Webb added the album \"isn't in any way what someone else told us we should be. [We] finally have our hands on the steering wheel.\"\n\nTrack listing\n\nReferences\n\n2022 albums\nShort Stack albums\nUNFD albums"
] |
[
"Beastie Boys",
"2012-present: Deaths of Yauch and Berry",
"How did Yauch die and when?",
"On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer",
"How and when did Berry die?",
"John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, after a decline of health for several years.",
"What albums did the band release around 2012?",
"the Beastie Boys recorded new music in late 2011 after the release of Hot Sauce Committee (Part 2),"
] | C_135bb6c0abb44071b79b28c1c5149a4a_0 | Were the sales of the album good? | 4 | Were the sales of the Beastie Boys Hot Sauce Committee (Part 2) album good? | Beastie Boys | On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer at the age of 47. On May 24, in an interview with Rolling Stone, Mike D said that the Beastie Boys recorded new music in late 2011 after the release of Hot Sauce Committee (Part 2), but he did not say if these recordings would be released. He also said that the Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock and that "Yauch would genuinely want us to try whatever crazy thing we wanted but never got around to." In April 2013 it was announced that the group has signed a deal to write an autobiography. The book was scheduled to be released in the fall of 2015. However, Horovitz stated that the autobiography is being delayed. According to Horovitz, "We've got pages!....How it's going to fit together, I don't know. But we've got some ideas. It's interesting. It's fun." On May 3, 2013 a children's playground in Brooklyn was renamed for Adam Yauch. In June 2014, Mike D stated that neither he nor Horovitz would perform under the Beastie Boys name again out of respect for Yauch. Founding Beastie Boys guitarist John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, after a decline of health for several years. He was credited with coming up with the Beastie Boys name, and played guitar on the first EP the Beastie Boys recorded. Before the Beastie Boys, he was also a part of Even Worse, Big Fat Love, Highway Stars, Bourbon Deluxe, and Idaho. The first Beastie Boys show took place at Berry's loft. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Beastie Boys were an American hip hop group from New York City, formed in 1981. The group was composed of Michael "Mike D" Diamond (vocals, drums), Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (vocals, guitar, programming).
Beastie Boys were formed out of members of experimental hardcore punk band The Young Aborigines in 1978, with Diamond as vocalist, Jeremy Shatan on bass guitar, John Berry on guitar, and Kate Schellenbach on drums. When Shatan left in 1981, Yauch replaced him on bass and the band changed their name to Beastie Boys. Berry left shortly thereafter and was replaced by Horovitz.
After achieving local success with the 1983 comedy hip hop single "Cooky Puss", Beastie Boys made a full transition to hip hop, and Schellenbach left. They toured with Madonna in 1985 and a year later released their debut album, Licensed to Ill (1986), the first rap record to top the Billboard 200 chart. Their second album, Paul's Boutique (1989), composed almost entirely of samples, was a commercial failure, but later received critical acclaim. Check Your Head (1992) and Ill Communication (1994) found mainstream success, followed by Hello Nasty (1998), To the 5 Boroughs (2004), The Mix-Up (2007), and Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011).
Beastie Boys have sold 20 million records in the United States and had seven platinum-selling albums from 1986 to 2004. They are the biggest-selling rap group since Billboard began recording sales in 1991. In 2012, they became the third rap group to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In the same year, Yauch died of cancer and Beastie Boys disbanded. Since then, the remaining two members have released several retrospective works, including a book and documentary film detailing the history of the group as well as a career-spanning compilation album. Diamond has produced acts including Portugal. The Man, while Horovitz has taken small acting roles and continues to play music.
History
1981–1983: Formation and early years
Prior to forming Beastie Boys, Michael Diamond was part of a number of bands such as the Walden Jazz Band, BAN, and the Young Aborigines. Beastie Boys formed in July 1981 when the Young Aborigines bassist Jeremy Shatan left New York City for the summer and the remaining members Michael Diamond, John Berry and Kate Schellenbach formed a new hardcore punk band with Adam Yauch.
In a 2007 interview with Charlie Rose, Yauch recalled that it was Berry who suggested the name Beastie Boys. Although the band stated that "Beastie" is an acronym standing for "Boys Entering Anarchistic States Towards Inner Excellence", in the Charlie Rose interview, both Yauch and Diamond acknowledged that the acronym was an "afterthought" conceived after the name was chosen. The band supported Bad Brains, the Dead Kennedys, the Misfits and Reagan Youth at venues such as CBGB, A7, Trudy Hellers Place and Max's Kansas City, playing at the latter venue on its closing night. In November 1982, Beastie Boys recorded the 7-inch EP Polly Wog Stew at 171A studios, an early recorded example of New York hardcore.
On November 13, 1982, Beastie Boys played Philip Pucci's birthday for the purposes of his short concert film, Beastie. Pucci held the concert in Bard College's Preston Drama Dance Department Theatre. This performance marked Beastie Boys' first on screen appearance in a published motion picture. Pucci's concept for Beastie was to distribute a mixture of both a half dozen 16 mm Bell & Howell Filmo cameras, and 16 mm Bolex cameras to audience members and ask that they capture Beastie Boys performance from the audience's own point of view while a master sync sound camera filmed from the balcony of the abandoned theater where the performance was held. The opening band for that performance was The Young and the Useless, which featured Adam Horovitz as the lead singer. A one-minute clip of Beastie was subsequently excerpted and licensed by Beastie Boys for use in the "Egg Raid on Mojo" segment of the "Skills to Pay the Bills" long-form home video released by Capitol Records. "Skills to Pay the Bills" later went on to be certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Berry left the group in 1982 (later forming Thwig, Big Fat Love and Bourbon Deluxe) and was replaced by Horovitz, who had become close friends with Beastie Boys.
The band also recorded and then performed its first hip hop track, "Cooky Puss", based on a prank call by the group to a Carvel Ice Cream franchise in 1983. It was a part of the new lineup's first EP, also called Cooky Puss, which was the first piece of work that showed their incorporation of the underground rap phenomenon and the use of samples. It quickly became a hit in New York underground dance clubs and night clubs. "Beastie Revolution" was later sampled for a British Airways commercial. Beastie Boys threatened to sue them over the use of the song. British Airways immediately paid them $40,000 in royalties.
1984–1987: Def Jam years and Licensed to Ill
Following the success of "Cooky Puss", the band began to incorporate rap into their sets. They hired a DJ for their live shows, New York University student Rick Rubin, who began producing records soon thereafter. "I met Mike first," Rubin recalled. "I thought he was an arrogant asshole. Through spending time with the Beasties I grew to see that they had this great sense of humour. It wasn't that they were assholes, and even if it was, they were funny with it." Rubin formed Def Jam Recordings with fellow NYU student Russell Simmons, and approached the band about producing them for his new label. As the band was transitioning to hip hop, Schellenbach was fired in 1984, with Diamond taking over on drums. In their 2018 memoir, Ad-Rock expressed regret for firing Schellenbach, which he attributed to her not fitting with the "new tough-rapper-guy identity".
The band's 12-inch single "Rock Hard" (1984) was the second Def Jam record crediting Rubin as producer (the first was "It's Yours" by T La Rock and Jazzy Jay). On July 22, 1986, Beastie Boys opened for John Lydon's post-Sex Pistols band Public Image Ltd., and supported Madonna on her North American The Virgin Tour. Then headlining with Fishbone and Murphy's Law with DJ Hurricane and later in the year, the group was on the Raising Hell tour with Run-DMC, Whodini, LL Cool J, and the Timex Social Club. Thanks to this exposure, "Hold It Now, Hit It" charted on Billboards US R&B and dance charts. "She's on It" from the Krush Groove soundtrack continued in a rap/metal vein while a double A-side 12", "Paul Revere/The New Style", was released at the end of the year.
The band recorded Licensed to Ill in 1986 and released it on November 15, 1986. The album was favorably reviewed by Rolling Stone magazine. Licensed to Ill became one of the best-selling rap albums of the 1980s and the first rap album to go number 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, where it stayed for five weeks. It also reached number 2 on the Top R&B album chart. It was Def Jam's fastest selling debut record to date and sold over nine million copies. The fourth single, "(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)", reached number 7 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Although the group has sold over 26 million records in the US, this is their only single to peak in the US top ten or top twenty. The accompanying video (directed by Ric Menello and Adam Dubin) became an MTV staple. Another song from the album, "No Sleep till Brooklyn", peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart.
The band took the Licensed to Ill tour around the world the following year. The tour was troubled by lawsuits and arrests, with the band accused of provoking the crowd. This culminated in a notorious gig at the Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool, England, on May 30, 1987, that erupted into a riot approximately 10 minutes after the group hit the stage and the arrest of Adam Horovitz by Merseyside Police. He was charged with assault causing grievous bodily harm.
1988–1989: Move to Capitol Records and Paul's Boutique
In 1988, Beastie Boys appeared in Tougher Than Leather, a film directed by Rubin as a star vehicle for Run-D.M.C. and Def Jam Recordings. After Def Jam stopped paying them for work they'd already done and were owed money for, Beastie Boys left Def Jam and signed with Capitol Records.
The second Beastie Boys album, Paul's Boutique, was released on July 25, 1989. Produced by the Dust Brothers, it blends eclectic samples and has been described as an early work of experimental hip hop. It failed to match the sales of Licensed to Ill, peaking at number 14 on the US album charts, but later attracted wide acclaim; Rolling Stone ranked it number 156 on its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
1990–1996: Check Your Head and Ill Communication
Check Your Head was recorded in the band's G-Son studio in Atwater Village, California, and released on its Grand Royal record label. The band was influenced to play instruments on this album by Dutch group Urban Dance Squad; with Mike D on drums, Yauch on bass, Horovitz on guitar and Mark Ramos Nishita ("Keyboard Money Mark") on keyboards. Mario Caldato, Jr., who had helped in the production of Paul's Boutique, engineered the record and became a longtime collaborator. Check Your Head was released in 1992 and was certified double Platinum in the US and peaked at number 10 on the Billboard 200. The single "So What'cha Want" reached number 93 on the Billboard Hot 100 and charted on both the Rap and Modern Rock Chart, while the album's first single, "Pass the Mic", peaked at number 38 on the Hot Dance Music chart. The album also introduced a more experimental direction, with funk and jazz inspired songs including "Lighten Up" and "Something's Got to Give". The band returned to their hardcore punk roots for the song "Time for Livin'", a cover of a 1974 Sly and the Family Stone song. The addition of instruments and the harder rock sound of the album could be considered a precursor to the nu metal genre of music to come out in the later half of the 1990s.
Beastie Boys signed an eclectic roster of artists to their Grand Royal label, including Luscious Jackson, Sean Lennon, and Australian artist Ben Lee. The group owned Grand Royal Records until 2001. Grand Royal's first independent release was Luscious Jackson's album In Search of Manny in 1993. Also in 1993, the band contributed the track "It's the New Style" (with DJ Hurricane) to the AIDS benefit album No Alternative, produced by the Red Hot Organization.
Beastie Boys also published Grand Royal Magazine, with the first edition in 1993 featuring a cover story on Bruce Lee, artwork by George Clinton, and interviews with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and A Tribe Called Quest's MC Q-Tip. The 1995 issue of the magazine contained a memorable piece on the mullet. The Oxford English Dictionary cites this as the first published use of the term, along with the lyrics from the band's 1994 song, "Mullet Head". That term was not heard in the 1980s, even though that decade has retroactively been hailed as the mullet's peak in popularity. The OED says that the term was "apparently coined, and certainly popularized, by US hip-hop group Beastie Boys". Grand Royal Magazine is also responsible for giving British band Sneaker Pimps their name.
Ill Communication, released in 1994, saw Beastie Boys' return to the top of the charts when the album debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200 and peaked at number 2 on the R&B/hip hop album chart. The single "Sabotage" became a hit on the modern rock charts and the music video, directed by Spike Jonze, received extensive play on MTV. "Get It Together" reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. Also in 1994, the band released Some Old Bullshit, featuring the band's early independent material, which made it to number 46 on the Billboard Independent Albums chart.
Beastie Boys headlined at Lollapalooza—an American travelling music festival—in 1994, together with The Smashing Pumpkins. In addition, the band performed three concerts (in Los Angeles, New York City, and Washington, D.C.) to raise money for the Milarepa Fund and dedicated the royalties from "Shambala" and "Bodhisattva Vow" from the Ill Communication to the cause. The Milarepa Fund aims to raise awareness of Tibetan human rights issues and the exile of the Dalai Lama. In 1996, Yauch organized the largest rock benefit show since 1985's Live Aid – the Tibetan Freedom Concert, a two-day festival at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco that attracted over 100,000 attendees.
In 1995, the popularity of Beastie Boys was underlined when tickets for an arena tour went on sale in the US and Madison Square Garden and Chicago's Rosemont Horizon sold out within 30 minutes. One dollar from each ticket sold went through Milarepa to local charities in each city on the tour. Beastie Boys toured South America and Southeast Asia for the first time. The band also released Aglio e Olio, a collection of eight songs lasting just 11 minutes harking back to their punk roots, in 1995. The In Sound from Way Out!, a collection of previously released jazz/funk instrumentals, was released on Grand Royal in 1996 with the title and artwork a homage to an album by electronic pop music pioneers Perrey and Kingsley.
In 1992, Beastie Boys decided to sample portions of the sound recording of "Choir" by James Newton in various renditions of their song "Pass the Mic". The band did not obtain a license from Newton to use the composition. Pursuant to their license from ECM Records, Beastie Boys digitally sampled the opening six seconds of Newton's sound recording of "Choir", and repeated this six-second sample as a background element throughout their song. Newton brought suit, claiming that the band infringed his copyright in the underlying composition of "Choir". The district court granted Beastie Boys summary judgment. The district court said that no license was required because the three-note segment of "Choir" lacked the requisite originality and was therefore not copyrightable. The decision was affirmed on appeal.
1997–2001: Hello Nasty
Beastie Boys began work on the album Hello Nasty at the G-Son studios, Los Angeles in 1995, but continued to produce and record it in New York City after Yauch moved to Manhattan in 1996. The album displayed a substantial shift in musical feel, with the addition of Mix Master Mike. The album featured bombastic beats, rap samples, and experimental sounds. Released on July 14, 1998, Hello Nasty earned first week sales of 681,000 in the US and went straight to number 1 in the US, the UK, Germany, Australia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and Sweden. The album achieved number 2 rank on the charts in Canada and Japan, and reached top-ten chart positions in Austria, Switzerland, Ireland, Belgium, Finland, France and Israel.
Beastie Boys won two Grammy Awards in 1999, receiving the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album for Hello Nasty as well as the Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for "Intergalactic". This was the first and, as of 2008, only time that a band had won awards in both rap and alternative categories.
Also at the 1998 MTV Video Music Awards they won the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award for their contribution to music videos. The following year at the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards they also won the award for Best Hip Hop Video for their hit song "Intergalactic". Beastie Boys used both appearances at the Video Music Awards to make politically charged speeches of considerable length to the sizable MTV audiences. At the 1998 ceremony, Yauch addressed the issue of Muslim people being stereotyped as terrorists and that most people of the Muslim faith are not terrorists. These comments were made in the wake of the US Embassy bombings that had occurred in both Kenya and Tanzania only a month earlier. At the 1999 ceremony in the wake of the horror stories that were coming out of Woodstock 99, Adam Horovitz addressed the fact that there had been many cases of sexual assaults and rapes at the festival, suggesting the need for bands and festivals to pay much more attention to the security details at their concerts.
Beastie Boys started an arena tour in 1998. Through Ian C. Rogers, the band made live downloads of their performances available for their fans, but were temporarily thwarted when Capitol Records removed them from its website. Beastie Boys was one of the first bands who made MP3 downloads available on their website. The group got a high level of response and public awareness as a result including a published article in The Wall Street Journal on the band's efforts.
On September 28, 1999, Beastie Boys joined Elvis Costello to play "Radio Radio" on the 25th anniversary season of Saturday Night Live.
Beastie Boys released The Sounds of Science, a two-CD anthology of their works in 1999. This album reached number 19 on the Billboard 200, number 18 in Canada, and number 14 on the R&B/Hip Hop chart. The one new song, the single "Alive", reached number 11 on the Billboard Modern Rock chart.
In 2000, Beastie Boys had planned to co-headline the "Rhyme and Reason Tour" with Rage Against the Machine and Busta Rhymes, but the tour was canceled when drummer Mike D suffered a serious injury due to a bicycle accident. The official diagnosis was fifth-degree acromioclavicular joint dislocation; he needed surgery and extensive rehabilitation. By the time he recovered, Rage Against the Machine had disbanded, although they would reunite seven years later.
Under the name Country Mike, Mike D recorded an album, Country Mike's Greatest Hits, and gave it to friends and family for Christmas in 2000. Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz's side project BS 2000 released Simply Mortified in 2001.
In October 2001, after the September 11, 2001 attacks, Beastie Boys organized and headlined the New Yorkers Against Violence Concert at the Hammerstein Ballroom.
2002–2008: To the 5 Boroughs and The Mix-Up
In 2002, Adam Yauch started building a new studio facility, Oscilloscope Laboratories, in downtown Manhattan, New York and the band started work on a new album there. The band released a protest song, "In a World Gone Mad", against the 2003 Iraq war as a free download on several websites, including the Milarepa website, the MTV website, MoveOn.org, and Win Without War. The 19th and 20th Tibetan Freedom Concerts were held in Tokyo and Taipei, Beastie Boys' first Taiwan appearance. Beastie Boys also headlined the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.
Their single, "Ch-Check It Out", debuted on The O.C. in "The Vegas" episode from Season 1, which aired April 28, 2004.
To the 5 Boroughs was released worldwide on June 15, 2004. It was the first album the band produced themselves and reached number 1 on the Billboard albums chart, number 2 in the UK and Australia, and number 3 in Germany. The first single from the album, "Ch-Check It Out", reached number 1 in Canada and on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart.
The album was the cause of some controversy with allegations that it installed spyware when inserted into the CD drive of a computer. The band denied this allegation, defending that there is no copy protection software on the albums sold in the US and UK. While there is Macrovision CDS-200 copy protection software installed on European copies of the album, this is standard practice for all European releases on EMI/Capitol Records released in Europe, and it does not install spyware or any form of permanent software.
The band stated in mid-2006 that they were writing material for their next album and would be producing it themselves.
Speaking to British music weekly NME (April 26, 2007), Diamond revealed that a new album was to be called The Mix-Up. Despite initial confusion regarding whether the album would have lyrics as opposed to being purely instrumental, the Mic-To-Mic blog reported that Capitol Records had confirmed it would be strictly instrumental and erroneously reported a release date scheduled for July 10, 2007. (The album was eventually released June 26, as originally reported.) On May 1, 2007, this was further cemented by an e-mail sent to those on the band's mailing list – explicitly stating that the album would be all instrumental:
The band subsequently confirmed the new album and announced a short tour that focused on festivals as opposed to a traditional tour, including the likes of Sónar (Spain), Roskilde (Denmark), Hurricane/Southside (Germany), Bestival (Isle of Wight), Electric Picnic (Ireland) and Open'er Festival (Poland). Beastie Boys performed at the UK leg of Live Earth July 7, 2007 at Wembley Stadium, London with "Sabotage", "So What'cha Want", "Intergalactic", and "Sure Shot".
They worked with Reverb, a non-profit environmental organization, on their 2007 summer tour.
They headlined the Langerado Music Festival in South Florida on Friday, March 7, 2008.
They won a Grammy for The Mix-Up in the "Best Pop Instrumental Album" category at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards in 2008.
2009–2012: Hot Sauce Committee
In February 2009, Yauch revealed their forthcoming new album had taken the band's sound in a "bizarre" new direction, saying "It's a combination of playing and sampling stuff as we're playing, and also sampling pretty obscure records." The tentative title for the record was Tadlock's Glasses, of which Yauch explained the inspiration behind the title:
On May 25, 2009, it was announced during an interview on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon that the name of their new album would be Hot Sauce Committee and was set for release on September 15 (with the track listing of the album announced through their mailing list on June 23). The album included a collaboration with Santigold who co-wrote and sang with the band on the track "Don't Play No Game That I Can't Win".
In June, the group appeared at Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival and performed the new single from the album titled "Too Many Rappers" alongside rapper Nas who appears on the track. It would be the last live performance by Beastie Boys as a trio. The group would have toured the UK later in the year in support of the new record.
Speaking to Drowned in Sound, Beastie Boys revealed that Part 2 was done. Mike D also hinted it may be released via unusual means:
On July 20, Yauch announced on the band's official YouTube channel and through the fan mailing list, the cancellation of several tour dates and the postponement of the new album due to the discovery of a cancerous tumor in his parotid gland and a lymph node. The group also had to cancel their co-headlining gig at the Osheaga Festival in Montreal and also another headlining spot for the first night of the All Points West Festival in Jersey City, New Jersey.
In late October 2010, Beastie Boys sent out two emails regarding the status of Hot Sauce Committee Pts. 1 and 2 to their online mailing list. An email dated October 18 read: "Although we regret to inform you that Hot Sauce Committee Part 1 will continue to be delayed indefinitely, Hot Sauce Committee Part 2 will be released on time as originally planned in spring of 2011." One week later, a second email was sent out, reading as follows:
The official release dates were April 27, 2011, for Japan; April 29 in the UK and Europe, and May 3, 2011, in the US. The third single for the album "Make Some Noise" was made available for download on April 11, 2011, as well as a limited edition 7-inch vinyl single for Record Store Day five days later with a Passion Pit remix of the track as a b-side. The track was leaked online on April 6 and subsequently made available via their blog.
On April 22, Beastie Boys emailed out the cryptic message "This Sat, 10:35 am EST – Just listen, listen, listen to the beat box". A day later, they live streamed their album online via beatbox inside Madison Square Garden.
The band was announced as an inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in December 2011. They were inducted by Chuck D and LL Cool J on April 14, 2012. Yauch was too sick to attend the ceremony, having been admitted to NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital the same day, therefore the group didn't perform; instead Black Thought, Travie from Gym Class Heroes and Kid Rock performed a medley of their songs. Diamond and Horovitz accepted and read a speech that Yauch had written.
2012–present: Deaths of Yauch and Berry and disbandment
On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer at the age of 47. Mike D told Rolling Stone that Beastie Boys had recorded new music in late 2011, but did not say if these recordings would be released. He also said that Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock and that "Yauch would genuinely want us to try whatever crazy thing we wanted but never got around to". In June 2014, Mike D confirmed that he and Ad-Rock would not make music under the Beastie Boys name again.
Founding Beastie Boys guitarist John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, following several years of ill health. He was credited with naming the band Beastie Boys and played guitar on the first EP. The first Beastie Boys show took place at Berry's loft.
Yauch's will forbids the use of Beastie Boys music in advertisements. In June 2014, Beastie Boys won a lawsuit against Monster Energy for using their music in a commercial without permission. They were awarded $1.7 million in damages and $668,000 for legal fees. In October 2018, Michael Diamond and Adam Horovitz released a memoir, Beastie Boys Book. In 2020, they released a documentary, Beastie Boys Story, directed by Spike Jonze. The career-spanning book and documentary were complemented by the compilation album Beastie Boys Music in October 2020.
Tibetan Freedom Concert
In 1994, Yauch and activist Erin Potts organized the Tibetan Freedom Concert in order to raise awareness of humans rights abuses by the Chinese government on the Tibetan people. Yauch became aware of this after hiking in Nepal and speaking with Tibetan refugees. The events became annual, and shortly after went international with acts such as Live, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe of R.E.M., Rage Against the Machine, The Smashing Pumpkins, and U2.
Musical style, influences, and legacy
Originally a hardcore punk band, Beastie Boys had largely abandoned the genre in favor of hip hop and rap rock by the time work began on their debut studio album Licensed to Ill. The group mixed elements of hip hop, punk, funk, electro, jazz and Latin music into their music. They have also been described as alternative hip hop and .
Around the time of the release of their debut album, Licensed to Ill, Mike D started to appear on stage and in publicity photographs wearing a large Volkswagen emblem attached to a chain-link necklace. This started a rash of thefts of the emblem from vehicles around the world as fans tried to emulate him. A controversial concert in Columbus, Georgia in 1987 led to the passage of a lewdness ordinance in that city.
Beastie Boys are considered very influential in both the hip hop and rock music scenes, with artists such as Eminem, Rage Against the Machine, Hed PE, , Sublime, Mac Miller , Korn , Slipknot, and Blur citing them as an influence. Beastie Boys have had four albums reach the top of the Billboard album charts (Licensed to Ill, Ill Communication, Hello Nasty and To the 5 Boroughs) since 1986. In the November 2004 issue, Rolling Stone named "Sabotage" the 475th song on their 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list.
In their April 2005 issue, Rolling Stone ranked them number 77 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. VH1 ranked them number 89 on their list of their 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. On September 27, 2007, it was announced that Beastie Boys were one of the nine nominees for the 2008 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductions. In December 2011, they were announced to be official 2012 inductees.
Beastie Boys have many high-profile longtime fans, including UFC president Dana White, who has a hand-signed bass guitar signed by all three members in his office and a copy of the Beastie Boys book. Speaking on the death of Adam Yauch, White said, "I seriously haven't been impacted by a death in a long time like I was with the Beastie Boys". Actor Seth Rogen, who appeared in the video for "Make Some Noise", also said, "I'm a huge Beastie Boys fan and they just called and asked if I wanted to be a part of it, and I said yes without hesitation. I didn't need to hear anything. I didn't need to see anything, any concepts. I was just like, 'I will literally do anything you ask me to do". Ben Stiller was seen in the crowd for the DVD release Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! and featured Horovitz in his movie While We're Young, where he said, "I'm a huge Beastie Boys fan, so doing that, for me, was beyond anything". Eminem was highly influenced by the Beastie Boys and cited them alongside LL Cool J as being the reason he got into rap. During an interview with MTV after the death of Yauch, he said, "Adam Yauch brought a lot of positivity into the world and I think it's obvious to anyone how big of an influence the Beastie Boys were on me and so many others. They are trailblazers and pioneers and Adam will be sorely missed. My thoughts and prayers are with his family, Mike D., and Ad-Rock." His album cover for Kamikaze paid homage to Licensed to Ill and he also paid homage in his "Berzerk" video. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Beavis and Butt-Head creator Mike Judge acknowledged he was a fan of the band, citing his favorite song as "Fight for Your Right", as the Beastie Boys appeared on Beavis and Butt-Head on numerous occasions. Kid Rock wrote an in-depth tribute to Yauch after being influenced by the band, which said, "I thought I was the 4th member of Beastie Boys in 7th grade. You couldn't tell me I wasn't. The first time I ever saw them on stage was a very early show of theirs before Licensed to Ill came out, opening for Run DMC at Joe Louis Arena. My jaw dropped to the floor!".
In 2020, Spin Magazine ranked Beastie Boys as the 12th most influential artist of the previous 35 years.
Sampling lawsuit
In 2003, Beastie Boys were involved in the landmark sampling decision, Newton v. Diamond. In that case, a federal judge ruled that the band was not liable for sampling James Newton's "Choir" in their track, "Pass the Mic". The sample used is the six-second flute stab. In short, Beastie Boys cleared the sample but obtained only the rights to use the sound recording and not the composition rights to the song "Choir". In the decision, the judge found that:
Band members
Members
John Berry – guitars (1981–1982; died 2016)
Mike D – vocals, drums (1981–2012)
Kate Schellenbach – drums, percussion (1981–1984)
MCA – vocals, bass (1981–2012; died 2012)
Ad-Rock – vocals, guitars (1982–2012)
Touring musicians
DJ Double R – disc jockey (1984–1985)
Doctor Dré – disc jockey (1986)
DJ Hurricane – disc jockey (1986–1997)
Eric Bobo – percussion, drums (1992–1996)
Money Mark (Mark Ramos-Nishita) – keyboards, vocals (1992–2012)
Amery "AWOL" Smith – drums, backing vocals, percussion (1992–?)
Alfredo Ortiz – drums, percussion (1996–2012)
Mix Master Mike – disc jockey, backing vocals (1998–2012)
Timeline
Touring Members Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Licensed to Ill (1986)
Paul's Boutique (1989)
Check Your Head (1992)
Ill Communication (1994)
Hello Nasty (1998)
To the 5 Boroughs (2004)
The Mix-Up (2007)
Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011)
Tours
The Virgin Tour (1985) (supporting Madonna)
Raising Hell Tour (1986) (supporting Run-D.M.C.)
Licensed to Ill Tour (1987) (with Public Enemy)
Together Forever Tour (1987) (with Run-D.M.C.)
Check Your Head Tour (1992) (with Cypress Hill, Rollins Band, Firehose, and Basehead)
Ill Communication Tour (1994–1995)
In the Round Tour (1998–1999) (with A Tribe Called Quest and Money Mark)
To the 5 Boroughs Tour (2004)
The Mix-Up Tour (2007–2008)
Awards and nominations
Grammy Awards
|-
|1992
|Check Your Head
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|1995
|"Sabotage"
|Best Hard Rock Performance
|
|-
|Rowspan="2"|1999
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|Hello Nasty
|Best Alternative Music Album
|
|-
|2001
|"Alive"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2005
|"Ch-Check It Out"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|To The 5 Boroughs
|Best Rap Album
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2008
|"Off the Grid"
|Best Pop Instrumental Performance
|
|-
|The Mix-Up
|Best Contemporary Instrumental Album
|
|-
|2010
|"Too Many Rappers" (featuring Nas)
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|}
MTV Video Music Awards
|-
|rowspan="5"|1994
|rowspan="5"|"Sabotage"
|Video of the Year
|
|-
|Best Group Video
|
|-
|Breakthrough Video
|
|-
|Best Direction (Director: Spike Jonze)
|
|-
|Viewer's Choice
|
|-
|1998
|Beastie Boys
|Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award
|
|-
|1999
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Hip-Hop Video
|
|-
|2009
|"Sabotage"
|Best Video (That Should Have Won a Moonman)
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2011
|rowspan="2"|"Make Some Noise"
|Video of the Year
|
|-
|Best Direction (Director: Adam Yauch)
|
|}
MTV Europe Music Awards
|-
|1994
|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|rowspan="4"|1998
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Video
|
|-
|Hello Nasty
|Best Album
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|1999
|Beastie Boys
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2004
|rowspan="2"|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|2011
|"Make Some Noise"
|Best Video
|
|}
MTV Video Music Awards Japan
|-
|2005
|"Ch-Check It Out"
|Best Hip-Hop Video
|
|-
|2009
|Beastie Boys
|MTV Street Icon Award
|
|}
Filmography
Krush Groove (1985)
Tougher Than Leather (1988)
Futurama episode "Hell Is Other Robots" (1999)
Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! (2006)
Fight for Your Right Revisited (2011)
Beastie Boys Story (2020)
Notes
References
External links
Beastie Boys Lyrics Annotated – Beastie Boys lyrics laid out with annotated comments explaining popular culture and historical references as well as known samples.
Beastie Boys
1981 establishments in New York City
Alternative hip hop groups
Capitol Records artists
Def Jam Recordings artists
Grammy Award winners for rap music
Hardcore punk groups from New York (state)
Hip hop groups from New York City
Jewish hip hop groups
Jewish musical groups
Alternative rock groups from New York (state)
Musical groups established in 1981
Musical groups from New York City
Rap rock groups
Rapcore groups
ROIR artists
Musical groups disestablished in 2012
Jews in punk rock
Grand Royal artists
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Feminist musicians
Hardcore hip hop groups | false | [
"The Good Life is the fourth studio album from Christian rap artist Trip Lee. The album was released in 2012, through Reach Records. The album includes features from Lecrae, Andy Mineo, KB, and Jimmy Needham, among others. Four singles were released for the album, \"One Sixteen (featuring Andy Mineo and KB)\", \"I'm Good (featuring Lecrae)\", \"Fallin' (featuring J. Paul)\", and \"Robot\". Three promotional music videos were released for the album for three of the four singles, \"I'm Good\", \"Fallin\", and \"One Sixteen\". It was released to critical acclaim, with critics praising Trip's flow, pop-style hooks, high-quality beats, moody electronics, and lyricism.\n\nAlbum concept\n\nThe album artwork shows Lee's face with a distinct orange line through it, signifying that he is \"no longer a robot\". The overall theme of \"no longer being a robot\" follows suit in all of the songs on the album, sending a message of freedom from sin through the gospel and not conforming to the ways of this world. It takes its idea from Romans 12:2, which reads, \"Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will\". Lee wanted to explore and redefine \"The Good Life,\" arguing that \"though the world, the flesh, and the devil lie to us about what the good life is, we don't have to be controlled by those lies. We don't have to be robots. We can choose life.\" Lee wanted to \"challenge the lies we've been told, and present a more glorious picture.\" It directly challenges and addresses such hot button issues like abortion, lust, the love of money, and excessive consumerism. Overall, Lee wanted to \"point his listeners to the grace found in the gospel\".\n\nSales\nThe Good Life debuted at No. 17 on the Billboard 200 with first-week sales of over 22,000 units, making it the sixth-highest charting Christian Hip Hop Album of all-time (tied with Tedashii's Below Paradise).\n\nBook and further promotional material\nTo further elaborate on his ideas, on September 20, 2012 Lee wrote and released a book with the same title to accompany the album. It has a foreword by Matt Chandler. To accompany the book, Lee released a remix of \"Robot\", and \"I'm Good,\" as well as a new song, \"Tell It\".\n\nTrack listing\n\nReferences\n\n2012 albums\nTrip Lee albums\nReach Records albums",
"Angu Mashoko is Ngonie's second studio album. Released and launched on 20 October (a day after Ngonie turned 21) at Cheers Night Club in Mabvuku, it is a 13-track album with 12 original tracks and one radio mix. Ngonie funded the whole production of this album on his own and released it on his own label 4RoomsOfLove, Highway Entertainment.\n\nTrack listing\n Shamwari (5.00) features Alexio Kawara\n Angela (5.39)\n Tsika (5.02)\n Nherera (4.44) features Diana Samkwange\n Dekadzo (4.11)\n Rudo neChido (5.04)\n Mazakwatira (3.49) with Leonard Mapuranga\n Pedyo Newe (6.02)\n Kuswera Newe (4.28)\n Jabulani (3.44) featuring Carmelita\n Shoko (4.38)\n Kundivenga (3.43)\n Zunza (Radio edit of Mazakwatira) (3.30)\n\nChart performance\n\nShamwari and Angela achieved the PowerFM top 100 status for the year 2006\n\nAlbum sales\n\nRecord Labels and/or music distribution companies in Zimbabwe do not release details of the sales of their artistes and so it is difficult to tell the extent to which the album was sold. However, the Zimbabwean Herald newspaper publishes a weekly poll of the sales performance for each of the main music companies in that country. According to some of these reports, sales of this album were quite good for a number of weeks at least.\n\nMusic videos\n\nA video was produced for the track \"Angela\". The video aired on the local ZTV station and was also distributed to most banking halls where it was also played.\n\nReferences\n\nOther sources\n Angu Mashoko CD - CD-TP-NK2/2 (p) 2004 @ Metro\n\nNgonie albums\n2004 albums"
] |
[
"Beastie Boys",
"2012-present: Deaths of Yauch and Berry",
"How did Yauch die and when?",
"On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer",
"How and when did Berry die?",
"John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, after a decline of health for several years.",
"What albums did the band release around 2012?",
"the Beastie Boys recorded new music in late 2011 after the release of Hot Sauce Committee (Part 2),",
"Were the sales of the album good?",
"I don't know."
] | C_135bb6c0abb44071b79b28c1c5149a4a_0 | what did you find intriguing about the band? | 5 | What did you find intriguing about the Beastie Boys? | Beastie Boys | On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer at the age of 47. On May 24, in an interview with Rolling Stone, Mike D said that the Beastie Boys recorded new music in late 2011 after the release of Hot Sauce Committee (Part 2), but he did not say if these recordings would be released. He also said that the Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock and that "Yauch would genuinely want us to try whatever crazy thing we wanted but never got around to." In April 2013 it was announced that the group has signed a deal to write an autobiography. The book was scheduled to be released in the fall of 2015. However, Horovitz stated that the autobiography is being delayed. According to Horovitz, "We've got pages!....How it's going to fit together, I don't know. But we've got some ideas. It's interesting. It's fun." On May 3, 2013 a children's playground in Brooklyn was renamed for Adam Yauch. In June 2014, Mike D stated that neither he nor Horovitz would perform under the Beastie Boys name again out of respect for Yauch. Founding Beastie Boys guitarist John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, after a decline of health for several years. He was credited with coming up with the Beastie Boys name, and played guitar on the first EP the Beastie Boys recorded. Before the Beastie Boys, he was also a part of Even Worse, Big Fat Love, Highway Stars, Bourbon Deluxe, and Idaho. The first Beastie Boys show took place at Berry's loft. CANNOTANSWER | In April 2013 it was announced that the group has signed a deal to write an autobiography. | Beastie Boys were an American hip hop group from New York City, formed in 1981. The group was composed of Michael "Mike D" Diamond (vocals, drums), Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (vocals, guitar, programming).
Beastie Boys were formed out of members of experimental hardcore punk band The Young Aborigines in 1978, with Diamond as vocalist, Jeremy Shatan on bass guitar, John Berry on guitar, and Kate Schellenbach on drums. When Shatan left in 1981, Yauch replaced him on bass and the band changed their name to Beastie Boys. Berry left shortly thereafter and was replaced by Horovitz.
After achieving local success with the 1983 comedy hip hop single "Cooky Puss", Beastie Boys made a full transition to hip hop, and Schellenbach left. They toured with Madonna in 1985 and a year later released their debut album, Licensed to Ill (1986), the first rap record to top the Billboard 200 chart. Their second album, Paul's Boutique (1989), composed almost entirely of samples, was a commercial failure, but later received critical acclaim. Check Your Head (1992) and Ill Communication (1994) found mainstream success, followed by Hello Nasty (1998), To the 5 Boroughs (2004), The Mix-Up (2007), and Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011).
Beastie Boys have sold 20 million records in the United States and had seven platinum-selling albums from 1986 to 2004. They are the biggest-selling rap group since Billboard began recording sales in 1991. In 2012, they became the third rap group to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In the same year, Yauch died of cancer and Beastie Boys disbanded. Since then, the remaining two members have released several retrospective works, including a book and documentary film detailing the history of the group as well as a career-spanning compilation album. Diamond has produced acts including Portugal. The Man, while Horovitz has taken small acting roles and continues to play music.
History
1981–1983: Formation and early years
Prior to forming Beastie Boys, Michael Diamond was part of a number of bands such as the Walden Jazz Band, BAN, and the Young Aborigines. Beastie Boys formed in July 1981 when the Young Aborigines bassist Jeremy Shatan left New York City for the summer and the remaining members Michael Diamond, John Berry and Kate Schellenbach formed a new hardcore punk band with Adam Yauch.
In a 2007 interview with Charlie Rose, Yauch recalled that it was Berry who suggested the name Beastie Boys. Although the band stated that "Beastie" is an acronym standing for "Boys Entering Anarchistic States Towards Inner Excellence", in the Charlie Rose interview, both Yauch and Diamond acknowledged that the acronym was an "afterthought" conceived after the name was chosen. The band supported Bad Brains, the Dead Kennedys, the Misfits and Reagan Youth at venues such as CBGB, A7, Trudy Hellers Place and Max's Kansas City, playing at the latter venue on its closing night. In November 1982, Beastie Boys recorded the 7-inch EP Polly Wog Stew at 171A studios, an early recorded example of New York hardcore.
On November 13, 1982, Beastie Boys played Philip Pucci's birthday for the purposes of his short concert film, Beastie. Pucci held the concert in Bard College's Preston Drama Dance Department Theatre. This performance marked Beastie Boys' first on screen appearance in a published motion picture. Pucci's concept for Beastie was to distribute a mixture of both a half dozen 16 mm Bell & Howell Filmo cameras, and 16 mm Bolex cameras to audience members and ask that they capture Beastie Boys performance from the audience's own point of view while a master sync sound camera filmed from the balcony of the abandoned theater where the performance was held. The opening band for that performance was The Young and the Useless, which featured Adam Horovitz as the lead singer. A one-minute clip of Beastie was subsequently excerpted and licensed by Beastie Boys for use in the "Egg Raid on Mojo" segment of the "Skills to Pay the Bills" long-form home video released by Capitol Records. "Skills to Pay the Bills" later went on to be certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Berry left the group in 1982 (later forming Thwig, Big Fat Love and Bourbon Deluxe) and was replaced by Horovitz, who had become close friends with Beastie Boys.
The band also recorded and then performed its first hip hop track, "Cooky Puss", based on a prank call by the group to a Carvel Ice Cream franchise in 1983. It was a part of the new lineup's first EP, also called Cooky Puss, which was the first piece of work that showed their incorporation of the underground rap phenomenon and the use of samples. It quickly became a hit in New York underground dance clubs and night clubs. "Beastie Revolution" was later sampled for a British Airways commercial. Beastie Boys threatened to sue them over the use of the song. British Airways immediately paid them $40,000 in royalties.
1984–1987: Def Jam years and Licensed to Ill
Following the success of "Cooky Puss", the band began to incorporate rap into their sets. They hired a DJ for their live shows, New York University student Rick Rubin, who began producing records soon thereafter. "I met Mike first," Rubin recalled. "I thought he was an arrogant asshole. Through spending time with the Beasties I grew to see that they had this great sense of humour. It wasn't that they were assholes, and even if it was, they were funny with it." Rubin formed Def Jam Recordings with fellow NYU student Russell Simmons, and approached the band about producing them for his new label. As the band was transitioning to hip hop, Schellenbach was fired in 1984, with Diamond taking over on drums. In their 2018 memoir, Ad-Rock expressed regret for firing Schellenbach, which he attributed to her not fitting with the "new tough-rapper-guy identity".
The band's 12-inch single "Rock Hard" (1984) was the second Def Jam record crediting Rubin as producer (the first was "It's Yours" by T La Rock and Jazzy Jay). On July 22, 1986, Beastie Boys opened for John Lydon's post-Sex Pistols band Public Image Ltd., and supported Madonna on her North American The Virgin Tour. Then headlining with Fishbone and Murphy's Law with DJ Hurricane and later in the year, the group was on the Raising Hell tour with Run-DMC, Whodini, LL Cool J, and the Timex Social Club. Thanks to this exposure, "Hold It Now, Hit It" charted on Billboards US R&B and dance charts. "She's on It" from the Krush Groove soundtrack continued in a rap/metal vein while a double A-side 12", "Paul Revere/The New Style", was released at the end of the year.
The band recorded Licensed to Ill in 1986 and released it on November 15, 1986. The album was favorably reviewed by Rolling Stone magazine. Licensed to Ill became one of the best-selling rap albums of the 1980s and the first rap album to go number 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, where it stayed for five weeks. It also reached number 2 on the Top R&B album chart. It was Def Jam's fastest selling debut record to date and sold over nine million copies. The fourth single, "(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)", reached number 7 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Although the group has sold over 26 million records in the US, this is their only single to peak in the US top ten or top twenty. The accompanying video (directed by Ric Menello and Adam Dubin) became an MTV staple. Another song from the album, "No Sleep till Brooklyn", peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart.
The band took the Licensed to Ill tour around the world the following year. The tour was troubled by lawsuits and arrests, with the band accused of provoking the crowd. This culminated in a notorious gig at the Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool, England, on May 30, 1987, that erupted into a riot approximately 10 minutes after the group hit the stage and the arrest of Adam Horovitz by Merseyside Police. He was charged with assault causing grievous bodily harm.
1988–1989: Move to Capitol Records and Paul's Boutique
In 1988, Beastie Boys appeared in Tougher Than Leather, a film directed by Rubin as a star vehicle for Run-D.M.C. and Def Jam Recordings. After Def Jam stopped paying them for work they'd already done and were owed money for, Beastie Boys left Def Jam and signed with Capitol Records.
The second Beastie Boys album, Paul's Boutique, was released on July 25, 1989. Produced by the Dust Brothers, it blends eclectic samples and has been described as an early work of experimental hip hop. It failed to match the sales of Licensed to Ill, peaking at number 14 on the US album charts, but later attracted wide acclaim; Rolling Stone ranked it number 156 on its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
1990–1996: Check Your Head and Ill Communication
Check Your Head was recorded in the band's G-Son studio in Atwater Village, California, and released on its Grand Royal record label. The band was influenced to play instruments on this album by Dutch group Urban Dance Squad; with Mike D on drums, Yauch on bass, Horovitz on guitar and Mark Ramos Nishita ("Keyboard Money Mark") on keyboards. Mario Caldato, Jr., who had helped in the production of Paul's Boutique, engineered the record and became a longtime collaborator. Check Your Head was released in 1992 and was certified double Platinum in the US and peaked at number 10 on the Billboard 200. The single "So What'cha Want" reached number 93 on the Billboard Hot 100 and charted on both the Rap and Modern Rock Chart, while the album's first single, "Pass the Mic", peaked at number 38 on the Hot Dance Music chart. The album also introduced a more experimental direction, with funk and jazz inspired songs including "Lighten Up" and "Something's Got to Give". The band returned to their hardcore punk roots for the song "Time for Livin'", a cover of a 1974 Sly and the Family Stone song. The addition of instruments and the harder rock sound of the album could be considered a precursor to the nu metal genre of music to come out in the later half of the 1990s.
Beastie Boys signed an eclectic roster of artists to their Grand Royal label, including Luscious Jackson, Sean Lennon, and Australian artist Ben Lee. The group owned Grand Royal Records until 2001. Grand Royal's first independent release was Luscious Jackson's album In Search of Manny in 1993. Also in 1993, the band contributed the track "It's the New Style" (with DJ Hurricane) to the AIDS benefit album No Alternative, produced by the Red Hot Organization.
Beastie Boys also published Grand Royal Magazine, with the first edition in 1993 featuring a cover story on Bruce Lee, artwork by George Clinton, and interviews with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and A Tribe Called Quest's MC Q-Tip. The 1995 issue of the magazine contained a memorable piece on the mullet. The Oxford English Dictionary cites this as the first published use of the term, along with the lyrics from the band's 1994 song, "Mullet Head". That term was not heard in the 1980s, even though that decade has retroactively been hailed as the mullet's peak in popularity. The OED says that the term was "apparently coined, and certainly popularized, by US hip-hop group Beastie Boys". Grand Royal Magazine is also responsible for giving British band Sneaker Pimps their name.
Ill Communication, released in 1994, saw Beastie Boys' return to the top of the charts when the album debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200 and peaked at number 2 on the R&B/hip hop album chart. The single "Sabotage" became a hit on the modern rock charts and the music video, directed by Spike Jonze, received extensive play on MTV. "Get It Together" reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. Also in 1994, the band released Some Old Bullshit, featuring the band's early independent material, which made it to number 46 on the Billboard Independent Albums chart.
Beastie Boys headlined at Lollapalooza—an American travelling music festival—in 1994, together with The Smashing Pumpkins. In addition, the band performed three concerts (in Los Angeles, New York City, and Washington, D.C.) to raise money for the Milarepa Fund and dedicated the royalties from "Shambala" and "Bodhisattva Vow" from the Ill Communication to the cause. The Milarepa Fund aims to raise awareness of Tibetan human rights issues and the exile of the Dalai Lama. In 1996, Yauch organized the largest rock benefit show since 1985's Live Aid – the Tibetan Freedom Concert, a two-day festival at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco that attracted over 100,000 attendees.
In 1995, the popularity of Beastie Boys was underlined when tickets for an arena tour went on sale in the US and Madison Square Garden and Chicago's Rosemont Horizon sold out within 30 minutes. One dollar from each ticket sold went through Milarepa to local charities in each city on the tour. Beastie Boys toured South America and Southeast Asia for the first time. The band also released Aglio e Olio, a collection of eight songs lasting just 11 minutes harking back to their punk roots, in 1995. The In Sound from Way Out!, a collection of previously released jazz/funk instrumentals, was released on Grand Royal in 1996 with the title and artwork a homage to an album by electronic pop music pioneers Perrey and Kingsley.
In 1992, Beastie Boys decided to sample portions of the sound recording of "Choir" by James Newton in various renditions of their song "Pass the Mic". The band did not obtain a license from Newton to use the composition. Pursuant to their license from ECM Records, Beastie Boys digitally sampled the opening six seconds of Newton's sound recording of "Choir", and repeated this six-second sample as a background element throughout their song. Newton brought suit, claiming that the band infringed his copyright in the underlying composition of "Choir". The district court granted Beastie Boys summary judgment. The district court said that no license was required because the three-note segment of "Choir" lacked the requisite originality and was therefore not copyrightable. The decision was affirmed on appeal.
1997–2001: Hello Nasty
Beastie Boys began work on the album Hello Nasty at the G-Son studios, Los Angeles in 1995, but continued to produce and record it in New York City after Yauch moved to Manhattan in 1996. The album displayed a substantial shift in musical feel, with the addition of Mix Master Mike. The album featured bombastic beats, rap samples, and experimental sounds. Released on July 14, 1998, Hello Nasty earned first week sales of 681,000 in the US and went straight to number 1 in the US, the UK, Germany, Australia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and Sweden. The album achieved number 2 rank on the charts in Canada and Japan, and reached top-ten chart positions in Austria, Switzerland, Ireland, Belgium, Finland, France and Israel.
Beastie Boys won two Grammy Awards in 1999, receiving the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album for Hello Nasty as well as the Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for "Intergalactic". This was the first and, as of 2008, only time that a band had won awards in both rap and alternative categories.
Also at the 1998 MTV Video Music Awards they won the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award for their contribution to music videos. The following year at the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards they also won the award for Best Hip Hop Video for their hit song "Intergalactic". Beastie Boys used both appearances at the Video Music Awards to make politically charged speeches of considerable length to the sizable MTV audiences. At the 1998 ceremony, Yauch addressed the issue of Muslim people being stereotyped as terrorists and that most people of the Muslim faith are not terrorists. These comments were made in the wake of the US Embassy bombings that had occurred in both Kenya and Tanzania only a month earlier. At the 1999 ceremony in the wake of the horror stories that were coming out of Woodstock 99, Adam Horovitz addressed the fact that there had been many cases of sexual assaults and rapes at the festival, suggesting the need for bands and festivals to pay much more attention to the security details at their concerts.
Beastie Boys started an arena tour in 1998. Through Ian C. Rogers, the band made live downloads of their performances available for their fans, but were temporarily thwarted when Capitol Records removed them from its website. Beastie Boys was one of the first bands who made MP3 downloads available on their website. The group got a high level of response and public awareness as a result including a published article in The Wall Street Journal on the band's efforts.
On September 28, 1999, Beastie Boys joined Elvis Costello to play "Radio Radio" on the 25th anniversary season of Saturday Night Live.
Beastie Boys released The Sounds of Science, a two-CD anthology of their works in 1999. This album reached number 19 on the Billboard 200, number 18 in Canada, and number 14 on the R&B/Hip Hop chart. The one new song, the single "Alive", reached number 11 on the Billboard Modern Rock chart.
In 2000, Beastie Boys had planned to co-headline the "Rhyme and Reason Tour" with Rage Against the Machine and Busta Rhymes, but the tour was canceled when drummer Mike D suffered a serious injury due to a bicycle accident. The official diagnosis was fifth-degree acromioclavicular joint dislocation; he needed surgery and extensive rehabilitation. By the time he recovered, Rage Against the Machine had disbanded, although they would reunite seven years later.
Under the name Country Mike, Mike D recorded an album, Country Mike's Greatest Hits, and gave it to friends and family for Christmas in 2000. Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz's side project BS 2000 released Simply Mortified in 2001.
In October 2001, after the September 11, 2001 attacks, Beastie Boys organized and headlined the New Yorkers Against Violence Concert at the Hammerstein Ballroom.
2002–2008: To the 5 Boroughs and The Mix-Up
In 2002, Adam Yauch started building a new studio facility, Oscilloscope Laboratories, in downtown Manhattan, New York and the band started work on a new album there. The band released a protest song, "In a World Gone Mad", against the 2003 Iraq war as a free download on several websites, including the Milarepa website, the MTV website, MoveOn.org, and Win Without War. The 19th and 20th Tibetan Freedom Concerts were held in Tokyo and Taipei, Beastie Boys' first Taiwan appearance. Beastie Boys also headlined the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.
Their single, "Ch-Check It Out", debuted on The O.C. in "The Vegas" episode from Season 1, which aired April 28, 2004.
To the 5 Boroughs was released worldwide on June 15, 2004. It was the first album the band produced themselves and reached number 1 on the Billboard albums chart, number 2 in the UK and Australia, and number 3 in Germany. The first single from the album, "Ch-Check It Out", reached number 1 in Canada and on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart.
The album was the cause of some controversy with allegations that it installed spyware when inserted into the CD drive of a computer. The band denied this allegation, defending that there is no copy protection software on the albums sold in the US and UK. While there is Macrovision CDS-200 copy protection software installed on European copies of the album, this is standard practice for all European releases on EMI/Capitol Records released in Europe, and it does not install spyware or any form of permanent software.
The band stated in mid-2006 that they were writing material for their next album and would be producing it themselves.
Speaking to British music weekly NME (April 26, 2007), Diamond revealed that a new album was to be called The Mix-Up. Despite initial confusion regarding whether the album would have lyrics as opposed to being purely instrumental, the Mic-To-Mic blog reported that Capitol Records had confirmed it would be strictly instrumental and erroneously reported a release date scheduled for July 10, 2007. (The album was eventually released June 26, as originally reported.) On May 1, 2007, this was further cemented by an e-mail sent to those on the band's mailing list – explicitly stating that the album would be all instrumental:
The band subsequently confirmed the new album and announced a short tour that focused on festivals as opposed to a traditional tour, including the likes of Sónar (Spain), Roskilde (Denmark), Hurricane/Southside (Germany), Bestival (Isle of Wight), Electric Picnic (Ireland) and Open'er Festival (Poland). Beastie Boys performed at the UK leg of Live Earth July 7, 2007 at Wembley Stadium, London with "Sabotage", "So What'cha Want", "Intergalactic", and "Sure Shot".
They worked with Reverb, a non-profit environmental organization, on their 2007 summer tour.
They headlined the Langerado Music Festival in South Florida on Friday, March 7, 2008.
They won a Grammy for The Mix-Up in the "Best Pop Instrumental Album" category at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards in 2008.
2009–2012: Hot Sauce Committee
In February 2009, Yauch revealed their forthcoming new album had taken the band's sound in a "bizarre" new direction, saying "It's a combination of playing and sampling stuff as we're playing, and also sampling pretty obscure records." The tentative title for the record was Tadlock's Glasses, of which Yauch explained the inspiration behind the title:
On May 25, 2009, it was announced during an interview on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon that the name of their new album would be Hot Sauce Committee and was set for release on September 15 (with the track listing of the album announced through their mailing list on June 23). The album included a collaboration with Santigold who co-wrote and sang with the band on the track "Don't Play No Game That I Can't Win".
In June, the group appeared at Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival and performed the new single from the album titled "Too Many Rappers" alongside rapper Nas who appears on the track. It would be the last live performance by Beastie Boys as a trio. The group would have toured the UK later in the year in support of the new record.
Speaking to Drowned in Sound, Beastie Boys revealed that Part 2 was done. Mike D also hinted it may be released via unusual means:
On July 20, Yauch announced on the band's official YouTube channel and through the fan mailing list, the cancellation of several tour dates and the postponement of the new album due to the discovery of a cancerous tumor in his parotid gland and a lymph node. The group also had to cancel their co-headlining gig at the Osheaga Festival in Montreal and also another headlining spot for the first night of the All Points West Festival in Jersey City, New Jersey.
In late October 2010, Beastie Boys sent out two emails regarding the status of Hot Sauce Committee Pts. 1 and 2 to their online mailing list. An email dated October 18 read: "Although we regret to inform you that Hot Sauce Committee Part 1 will continue to be delayed indefinitely, Hot Sauce Committee Part 2 will be released on time as originally planned in spring of 2011." One week later, a second email was sent out, reading as follows:
The official release dates were April 27, 2011, for Japan; April 29 in the UK and Europe, and May 3, 2011, in the US. The third single for the album "Make Some Noise" was made available for download on April 11, 2011, as well as a limited edition 7-inch vinyl single for Record Store Day five days later with a Passion Pit remix of the track as a b-side. The track was leaked online on April 6 and subsequently made available via their blog.
On April 22, Beastie Boys emailed out the cryptic message "This Sat, 10:35 am EST – Just listen, listen, listen to the beat box". A day later, they live streamed their album online via beatbox inside Madison Square Garden.
The band was announced as an inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in December 2011. They were inducted by Chuck D and LL Cool J on April 14, 2012. Yauch was too sick to attend the ceremony, having been admitted to NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital the same day, therefore the group didn't perform; instead Black Thought, Travie from Gym Class Heroes and Kid Rock performed a medley of their songs. Diamond and Horovitz accepted and read a speech that Yauch had written.
2012–present: Deaths of Yauch and Berry and disbandment
On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer at the age of 47. Mike D told Rolling Stone that Beastie Boys had recorded new music in late 2011, but did not say if these recordings would be released. He also said that Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock and that "Yauch would genuinely want us to try whatever crazy thing we wanted but never got around to". In June 2014, Mike D confirmed that he and Ad-Rock would not make music under the Beastie Boys name again.
Founding Beastie Boys guitarist John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, following several years of ill health. He was credited with naming the band Beastie Boys and played guitar on the first EP. The first Beastie Boys show took place at Berry's loft.
Yauch's will forbids the use of Beastie Boys music in advertisements. In June 2014, Beastie Boys won a lawsuit against Monster Energy for using their music in a commercial without permission. They were awarded $1.7 million in damages and $668,000 for legal fees. In October 2018, Michael Diamond and Adam Horovitz released a memoir, Beastie Boys Book. In 2020, they released a documentary, Beastie Boys Story, directed by Spike Jonze. The career-spanning book and documentary were complemented by the compilation album Beastie Boys Music in October 2020.
Tibetan Freedom Concert
In 1994, Yauch and activist Erin Potts organized the Tibetan Freedom Concert in order to raise awareness of humans rights abuses by the Chinese government on the Tibetan people. Yauch became aware of this after hiking in Nepal and speaking with Tibetan refugees. The events became annual, and shortly after went international with acts such as Live, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe of R.E.M., Rage Against the Machine, The Smashing Pumpkins, and U2.
Musical style, influences, and legacy
Originally a hardcore punk band, Beastie Boys had largely abandoned the genre in favor of hip hop and rap rock by the time work began on their debut studio album Licensed to Ill. The group mixed elements of hip hop, punk, funk, electro, jazz and Latin music into their music. They have also been described as alternative hip hop and .
Around the time of the release of their debut album, Licensed to Ill, Mike D started to appear on stage and in publicity photographs wearing a large Volkswagen emblem attached to a chain-link necklace. This started a rash of thefts of the emblem from vehicles around the world as fans tried to emulate him. A controversial concert in Columbus, Georgia in 1987 led to the passage of a lewdness ordinance in that city.
Beastie Boys are considered very influential in both the hip hop and rock music scenes, with artists such as Eminem, Rage Against the Machine, Hed PE, , Sublime, Mac Miller , Korn , Slipknot, and Blur citing them as an influence. Beastie Boys have had four albums reach the top of the Billboard album charts (Licensed to Ill, Ill Communication, Hello Nasty and To the 5 Boroughs) since 1986. In the November 2004 issue, Rolling Stone named "Sabotage" the 475th song on their 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list.
In their April 2005 issue, Rolling Stone ranked them number 77 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. VH1 ranked them number 89 on their list of their 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. On September 27, 2007, it was announced that Beastie Boys were one of the nine nominees for the 2008 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductions. In December 2011, they were announced to be official 2012 inductees.
Beastie Boys have many high-profile longtime fans, including UFC president Dana White, who has a hand-signed bass guitar signed by all three members in his office and a copy of the Beastie Boys book. Speaking on the death of Adam Yauch, White said, "I seriously haven't been impacted by a death in a long time like I was with the Beastie Boys". Actor Seth Rogen, who appeared in the video for "Make Some Noise", also said, "I'm a huge Beastie Boys fan and they just called and asked if I wanted to be a part of it, and I said yes without hesitation. I didn't need to hear anything. I didn't need to see anything, any concepts. I was just like, 'I will literally do anything you ask me to do". Ben Stiller was seen in the crowd for the DVD release Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! and featured Horovitz in his movie While We're Young, where he said, "I'm a huge Beastie Boys fan, so doing that, for me, was beyond anything". Eminem was highly influenced by the Beastie Boys and cited them alongside LL Cool J as being the reason he got into rap. During an interview with MTV after the death of Yauch, he said, "Adam Yauch brought a lot of positivity into the world and I think it's obvious to anyone how big of an influence the Beastie Boys were on me and so many others. They are trailblazers and pioneers and Adam will be sorely missed. My thoughts and prayers are with his family, Mike D., and Ad-Rock." His album cover for Kamikaze paid homage to Licensed to Ill and he also paid homage in his "Berzerk" video. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Beavis and Butt-Head creator Mike Judge acknowledged he was a fan of the band, citing his favorite song as "Fight for Your Right", as the Beastie Boys appeared on Beavis and Butt-Head on numerous occasions. Kid Rock wrote an in-depth tribute to Yauch after being influenced by the band, which said, "I thought I was the 4th member of Beastie Boys in 7th grade. You couldn't tell me I wasn't. The first time I ever saw them on stage was a very early show of theirs before Licensed to Ill came out, opening for Run DMC at Joe Louis Arena. My jaw dropped to the floor!".
In 2020, Spin Magazine ranked Beastie Boys as the 12th most influential artist of the previous 35 years.
Sampling lawsuit
In 2003, Beastie Boys were involved in the landmark sampling decision, Newton v. Diamond. In that case, a federal judge ruled that the band was not liable for sampling James Newton's "Choir" in their track, "Pass the Mic". The sample used is the six-second flute stab. In short, Beastie Boys cleared the sample but obtained only the rights to use the sound recording and not the composition rights to the song "Choir". In the decision, the judge found that:
Band members
Members
John Berry – guitars (1981–1982; died 2016)
Mike D – vocals, drums (1981–2012)
Kate Schellenbach – drums, percussion (1981–1984)
MCA – vocals, bass (1981–2012; died 2012)
Ad-Rock – vocals, guitars (1982–2012)
Touring musicians
DJ Double R – disc jockey (1984–1985)
Doctor Dré – disc jockey (1986)
DJ Hurricane – disc jockey (1986–1997)
Eric Bobo – percussion, drums (1992–1996)
Money Mark (Mark Ramos-Nishita) – keyboards, vocals (1992–2012)
Amery "AWOL" Smith – drums, backing vocals, percussion (1992–?)
Alfredo Ortiz – drums, percussion (1996–2012)
Mix Master Mike – disc jockey, backing vocals (1998–2012)
Timeline
Touring Members Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Licensed to Ill (1986)
Paul's Boutique (1989)
Check Your Head (1992)
Ill Communication (1994)
Hello Nasty (1998)
To the 5 Boroughs (2004)
The Mix-Up (2007)
Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011)
Tours
The Virgin Tour (1985) (supporting Madonna)
Raising Hell Tour (1986) (supporting Run-D.M.C.)
Licensed to Ill Tour (1987) (with Public Enemy)
Together Forever Tour (1987) (with Run-D.M.C.)
Check Your Head Tour (1992) (with Cypress Hill, Rollins Band, Firehose, and Basehead)
Ill Communication Tour (1994–1995)
In the Round Tour (1998–1999) (with A Tribe Called Quest and Money Mark)
To the 5 Boroughs Tour (2004)
The Mix-Up Tour (2007–2008)
Awards and nominations
Grammy Awards
|-
|1992
|Check Your Head
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|1995
|"Sabotage"
|Best Hard Rock Performance
|
|-
|Rowspan="2"|1999
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|Hello Nasty
|Best Alternative Music Album
|
|-
|2001
|"Alive"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2005
|"Ch-Check It Out"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|To The 5 Boroughs
|Best Rap Album
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2008
|"Off the Grid"
|Best Pop Instrumental Performance
|
|-
|The Mix-Up
|Best Contemporary Instrumental Album
|
|-
|2010
|"Too Many Rappers" (featuring Nas)
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|}
MTV Video Music Awards
|-
|rowspan="5"|1994
|rowspan="5"|"Sabotage"
|Video of the Year
|
|-
|Best Group Video
|
|-
|Breakthrough Video
|
|-
|Best Direction (Director: Spike Jonze)
|
|-
|Viewer's Choice
|
|-
|1998
|Beastie Boys
|Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award
|
|-
|1999
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Hip-Hop Video
|
|-
|2009
|"Sabotage"
|Best Video (That Should Have Won a Moonman)
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2011
|rowspan="2"|"Make Some Noise"
|Video of the Year
|
|-
|Best Direction (Director: Adam Yauch)
|
|}
MTV Europe Music Awards
|-
|1994
|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|rowspan="4"|1998
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Video
|
|-
|Hello Nasty
|Best Album
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|1999
|Beastie Boys
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2004
|rowspan="2"|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|2011
|"Make Some Noise"
|Best Video
|
|}
MTV Video Music Awards Japan
|-
|2005
|"Ch-Check It Out"
|Best Hip-Hop Video
|
|-
|2009
|Beastie Boys
|MTV Street Icon Award
|
|}
Filmography
Krush Groove (1985)
Tougher Than Leather (1988)
Futurama episode "Hell Is Other Robots" (1999)
Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! (2006)
Fight for Your Right Revisited (2011)
Beastie Boys Story (2020)
Notes
References
External links
Beastie Boys Lyrics Annotated – Beastie Boys lyrics laid out with annotated comments explaining popular culture and historical references as well as known samples.
Beastie Boys
1981 establishments in New York City
Alternative hip hop groups
Capitol Records artists
Def Jam Recordings artists
Grammy Award winners for rap music
Hardcore punk groups from New York (state)
Hip hop groups from New York City
Jewish hip hop groups
Jewish musical groups
Alternative rock groups from New York (state)
Musical groups established in 1981
Musical groups from New York City
Rap rock groups
Rapcore groups
ROIR artists
Musical groups disestablished in 2012
Jews in punk rock
Grand Royal artists
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Feminist musicians
Hardcore hip hop groups | false | [
"Failure is a song by the alternative metal band Sevendust from their fifth studio album Next. It was released as a single in 2006.\n\nSong meaning\nWhile everyone might think that the song's a downer, it's far from it. It actually conveys an enlightening message and encourages fans to look at the brighter side of life. \"The message in it is really positive,\" explains guitarist Sonny Mayo. \"It's about living life thinking you're gonna be a failure, and basing your whole existence on what other people or what another person told you about yourself, and finally coming out and realizing that it's all about inner strength and it doesn't matter what other people think about you. You could shed all the shame and all the guilt that you ever felt about things you did or things you didn't do, and you could truly find the positivity even if you always thought you were going to be a failure.\"\n\nChart Position\nThe song peaked #28 in the Mainstream Rock Chart Billboard 200.\n\nSingles \n\nBillboard (North America)\n\nTrack listing\n\nReferences\n\nSevendust songs\n2005 songs\n2006 singles\nSongs written by Lajon Witherspoon\nSongs written by John Connolly (musician)\nSongs written by Morgan Rose\nSongs written by Vinnie Hornsby",
"\"Faceless\" is a song by American Christian rock band Red. It was released as the first single from their third studio album Until We Have Faces. The song was also used in the compilation album WOW Hits 2012.\n\nBackground and meaning \nArmstrong expanded on the song to NewReleaseTuesday: \"It's basically the keystone of the whole record, the embodiment of what the whole record will be about finding identity. I think that this song is more about realization; you wake up one day and you find yourself be something that you never wanted to be. You find that the world has kind of gotten itself in your head and turned you into something that you were never really meant to be. This song is kind of about a person screaming out with that realization, I'm hollow and faceless. I need to do something about this.\"\n\nTrack listing\n\nCharts\n\nAwards\nThe song was nominated for \"Rock/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year\".\n\nReferences\n\n2010 songs\nRed (American band) songs\nEssential Records (Christian) singles\nSongs written by Jasen Rauch\nSongs written by Jason McArthur\nSongs written by Rob Graves"
] |
[
"Beastie Boys",
"2012-present: Deaths of Yauch and Berry",
"How did Yauch die and when?",
"On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer",
"How and when did Berry die?",
"John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, after a decline of health for several years.",
"What albums did the band release around 2012?",
"the Beastie Boys recorded new music in late 2011 after the release of Hot Sauce Committee (Part 2),",
"Were the sales of the album good?",
"I don't know.",
"what did you find intriguing about the band?",
"In April 2013 it was announced that the group has signed a deal to write an autobiography."
] | C_135bb6c0abb44071b79b28c1c5149a4a_0 | Did the autobiography sell well? | 6 | Did the Beastie Boys' autobiography sell well? | Beastie Boys | On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer at the age of 47. On May 24, in an interview with Rolling Stone, Mike D said that the Beastie Boys recorded new music in late 2011 after the release of Hot Sauce Committee (Part 2), but he did not say if these recordings would be released. He also said that the Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock and that "Yauch would genuinely want us to try whatever crazy thing we wanted but never got around to." In April 2013 it was announced that the group has signed a deal to write an autobiography. The book was scheduled to be released in the fall of 2015. However, Horovitz stated that the autobiography is being delayed. According to Horovitz, "We've got pages!....How it's going to fit together, I don't know. But we've got some ideas. It's interesting. It's fun." On May 3, 2013 a children's playground in Brooklyn was renamed for Adam Yauch. In June 2014, Mike D stated that neither he nor Horovitz would perform under the Beastie Boys name again out of respect for Yauch. Founding Beastie Boys guitarist John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, after a decline of health for several years. He was credited with coming up with the Beastie Boys name, and played guitar on the first EP the Beastie Boys recorded. Before the Beastie Boys, he was also a part of Even Worse, Big Fat Love, Highway Stars, Bourbon Deluxe, and Idaho. The first Beastie Boys show took place at Berry's loft. CANNOTANSWER | The book was scheduled to be released in the fall of 2015. However, Horovitz stated that the autobiography is being delayed. | Beastie Boys were an American hip hop group from New York City, formed in 1981. The group was composed of Michael "Mike D" Diamond (vocals, drums), Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (vocals, guitar, programming).
Beastie Boys were formed out of members of experimental hardcore punk band The Young Aborigines in 1978, with Diamond as vocalist, Jeremy Shatan on bass guitar, John Berry on guitar, and Kate Schellenbach on drums. When Shatan left in 1981, Yauch replaced him on bass and the band changed their name to Beastie Boys. Berry left shortly thereafter and was replaced by Horovitz.
After achieving local success with the 1983 comedy hip hop single "Cooky Puss", Beastie Boys made a full transition to hip hop, and Schellenbach left. They toured with Madonna in 1985 and a year later released their debut album, Licensed to Ill (1986), the first rap record to top the Billboard 200 chart. Their second album, Paul's Boutique (1989), composed almost entirely of samples, was a commercial failure, but later received critical acclaim. Check Your Head (1992) and Ill Communication (1994) found mainstream success, followed by Hello Nasty (1998), To the 5 Boroughs (2004), The Mix-Up (2007), and Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011).
Beastie Boys have sold 20 million records in the United States and had seven platinum-selling albums from 1986 to 2004. They are the biggest-selling rap group since Billboard began recording sales in 1991. In 2012, they became the third rap group to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In the same year, Yauch died of cancer and Beastie Boys disbanded. Since then, the remaining two members have released several retrospective works, including a book and documentary film detailing the history of the group as well as a career-spanning compilation album. Diamond has produced acts including Portugal. The Man, while Horovitz has taken small acting roles and continues to play music.
History
1981–1983: Formation and early years
Prior to forming Beastie Boys, Michael Diamond was part of a number of bands such as the Walden Jazz Band, BAN, and the Young Aborigines. Beastie Boys formed in July 1981 when the Young Aborigines bassist Jeremy Shatan left New York City for the summer and the remaining members Michael Diamond, John Berry and Kate Schellenbach formed a new hardcore punk band with Adam Yauch.
In a 2007 interview with Charlie Rose, Yauch recalled that it was Berry who suggested the name Beastie Boys. Although the band stated that "Beastie" is an acronym standing for "Boys Entering Anarchistic States Towards Inner Excellence", in the Charlie Rose interview, both Yauch and Diamond acknowledged that the acronym was an "afterthought" conceived after the name was chosen. The band supported Bad Brains, the Dead Kennedys, the Misfits and Reagan Youth at venues such as CBGB, A7, Trudy Hellers Place and Max's Kansas City, playing at the latter venue on its closing night. In November 1982, Beastie Boys recorded the 7-inch EP Polly Wog Stew at 171A studios, an early recorded example of New York hardcore.
On November 13, 1982, Beastie Boys played Philip Pucci's birthday for the purposes of his short concert film, Beastie. Pucci held the concert in Bard College's Preston Drama Dance Department Theatre. This performance marked Beastie Boys' first on screen appearance in a published motion picture. Pucci's concept for Beastie was to distribute a mixture of both a half dozen 16 mm Bell & Howell Filmo cameras, and 16 mm Bolex cameras to audience members and ask that they capture Beastie Boys performance from the audience's own point of view while a master sync sound camera filmed from the balcony of the abandoned theater where the performance was held. The opening band for that performance was The Young and the Useless, which featured Adam Horovitz as the lead singer. A one-minute clip of Beastie was subsequently excerpted and licensed by Beastie Boys for use in the "Egg Raid on Mojo" segment of the "Skills to Pay the Bills" long-form home video released by Capitol Records. "Skills to Pay the Bills" later went on to be certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Berry left the group in 1982 (later forming Thwig, Big Fat Love and Bourbon Deluxe) and was replaced by Horovitz, who had become close friends with Beastie Boys.
The band also recorded and then performed its first hip hop track, "Cooky Puss", based on a prank call by the group to a Carvel Ice Cream franchise in 1983. It was a part of the new lineup's first EP, also called Cooky Puss, which was the first piece of work that showed their incorporation of the underground rap phenomenon and the use of samples. It quickly became a hit in New York underground dance clubs and night clubs. "Beastie Revolution" was later sampled for a British Airways commercial. Beastie Boys threatened to sue them over the use of the song. British Airways immediately paid them $40,000 in royalties.
1984–1987: Def Jam years and Licensed to Ill
Following the success of "Cooky Puss", the band began to incorporate rap into their sets. They hired a DJ for their live shows, New York University student Rick Rubin, who began producing records soon thereafter. "I met Mike first," Rubin recalled. "I thought he was an arrogant asshole. Through spending time with the Beasties I grew to see that they had this great sense of humour. It wasn't that they were assholes, and even if it was, they were funny with it." Rubin formed Def Jam Recordings with fellow NYU student Russell Simmons, and approached the band about producing them for his new label. As the band was transitioning to hip hop, Schellenbach was fired in 1984, with Diamond taking over on drums. In their 2018 memoir, Ad-Rock expressed regret for firing Schellenbach, which he attributed to her not fitting with the "new tough-rapper-guy identity".
The band's 12-inch single "Rock Hard" (1984) was the second Def Jam record crediting Rubin as producer (the first was "It's Yours" by T La Rock and Jazzy Jay). On July 22, 1986, Beastie Boys opened for John Lydon's post-Sex Pistols band Public Image Ltd., and supported Madonna on her North American The Virgin Tour. Then headlining with Fishbone and Murphy's Law with DJ Hurricane and later in the year, the group was on the Raising Hell tour with Run-DMC, Whodini, LL Cool J, and the Timex Social Club. Thanks to this exposure, "Hold It Now, Hit It" charted on Billboards US R&B and dance charts. "She's on It" from the Krush Groove soundtrack continued in a rap/metal vein while a double A-side 12", "Paul Revere/The New Style", was released at the end of the year.
The band recorded Licensed to Ill in 1986 and released it on November 15, 1986. The album was favorably reviewed by Rolling Stone magazine. Licensed to Ill became one of the best-selling rap albums of the 1980s and the first rap album to go number 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, where it stayed for five weeks. It also reached number 2 on the Top R&B album chart. It was Def Jam's fastest selling debut record to date and sold over nine million copies. The fourth single, "(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)", reached number 7 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Although the group has sold over 26 million records in the US, this is their only single to peak in the US top ten or top twenty. The accompanying video (directed by Ric Menello and Adam Dubin) became an MTV staple. Another song from the album, "No Sleep till Brooklyn", peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart.
The band took the Licensed to Ill tour around the world the following year. The tour was troubled by lawsuits and arrests, with the band accused of provoking the crowd. This culminated in a notorious gig at the Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool, England, on May 30, 1987, that erupted into a riot approximately 10 minutes after the group hit the stage and the arrest of Adam Horovitz by Merseyside Police. He was charged with assault causing grievous bodily harm.
1988–1989: Move to Capitol Records and Paul's Boutique
In 1988, Beastie Boys appeared in Tougher Than Leather, a film directed by Rubin as a star vehicle for Run-D.M.C. and Def Jam Recordings. After Def Jam stopped paying them for work they'd already done and were owed money for, Beastie Boys left Def Jam and signed with Capitol Records.
The second Beastie Boys album, Paul's Boutique, was released on July 25, 1989. Produced by the Dust Brothers, it blends eclectic samples and has been described as an early work of experimental hip hop. It failed to match the sales of Licensed to Ill, peaking at number 14 on the US album charts, but later attracted wide acclaim; Rolling Stone ranked it number 156 on its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
1990–1996: Check Your Head and Ill Communication
Check Your Head was recorded in the band's G-Son studio in Atwater Village, California, and released on its Grand Royal record label. The band was influenced to play instruments on this album by Dutch group Urban Dance Squad; with Mike D on drums, Yauch on bass, Horovitz on guitar and Mark Ramos Nishita ("Keyboard Money Mark") on keyboards. Mario Caldato, Jr., who had helped in the production of Paul's Boutique, engineered the record and became a longtime collaborator. Check Your Head was released in 1992 and was certified double Platinum in the US and peaked at number 10 on the Billboard 200. The single "So What'cha Want" reached number 93 on the Billboard Hot 100 and charted on both the Rap and Modern Rock Chart, while the album's first single, "Pass the Mic", peaked at number 38 on the Hot Dance Music chart. The album also introduced a more experimental direction, with funk and jazz inspired songs including "Lighten Up" and "Something's Got to Give". The band returned to their hardcore punk roots for the song "Time for Livin'", a cover of a 1974 Sly and the Family Stone song. The addition of instruments and the harder rock sound of the album could be considered a precursor to the nu metal genre of music to come out in the later half of the 1990s.
Beastie Boys signed an eclectic roster of artists to their Grand Royal label, including Luscious Jackson, Sean Lennon, and Australian artist Ben Lee. The group owned Grand Royal Records until 2001. Grand Royal's first independent release was Luscious Jackson's album In Search of Manny in 1993. Also in 1993, the band contributed the track "It's the New Style" (with DJ Hurricane) to the AIDS benefit album No Alternative, produced by the Red Hot Organization.
Beastie Boys also published Grand Royal Magazine, with the first edition in 1993 featuring a cover story on Bruce Lee, artwork by George Clinton, and interviews with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and A Tribe Called Quest's MC Q-Tip. The 1995 issue of the magazine contained a memorable piece on the mullet. The Oxford English Dictionary cites this as the first published use of the term, along with the lyrics from the band's 1994 song, "Mullet Head". That term was not heard in the 1980s, even though that decade has retroactively been hailed as the mullet's peak in popularity. The OED says that the term was "apparently coined, and certainly popularized, by US hip-hop group Beastie Boys". Grand Royal Magazine is also responsible for giving British band Sneaker Pimps their name.
Ill Communication, released in 1994, saw Beastie Boys' return to the top of the charts when the album debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200 and peaked at number 2 on the R&B/hip hop album chart. The single "Sabotage" became a hit on the modern rock charts and the music video, directed by Spike Jonze, received extensive play on MTV. "Get It Together" reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. Also in 1994, the band released Some Old Bullshit, featuring the band's early independent material, which made it to number 46 on the Billboard Independent Albums chart.
Beastie Boys headlined at Lollapalooza—an American travelling music festival—in 1994, together with The Smashing Pumpkins. In addition, the band performed three concerts (in Los Angeles, New York City, and Washington, D.C.) to raise money for the Milarepa Fund and dedicated the royalties from "Shambala" and "Bodhisattva Vow" from the Ill Communication to the cause. The Milarepa Fund aims to raise awareness of Tibetan human rights issues and the exile of the Dalai Lama. In 1996, Yauch organized the largest rock benefit show since 1985's Live Aid – the Tibetan Freedom Concert, a two-day festival at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco that attracted over 100,000 attendees.
In 1995, the popularity of Beastie Boys was underlined when tickets for an arena tour went on sale in the US and Madison Square Garden and Chicago's Rosemont Horizon sold out within 30 minutes. One dollar from each ticket sold went through Milarepa to local charities in each city on the tour. Beastie Boys toured South America and Southeast Asia for the first time. The band also released Aglio e Olio, a collection of eight songs lasting just 11 minutes harking back to their punk roots, in 1995. The In Sound from Way Out!, a collection of previously released jazz/funk instrumentals, was released on Grand Royal in 1996 with the title and artwork a homage to an album by electronic pop music pioneers Perrey and Kingsley.
In 1992, Beastie Boys decided to sample portions of the sound recording of "Choir" by James Newton in various renditions of their song "Pass the Mic". The band did not obtain a license from Newton to use the composition. Pursuant to their license from ECM Records, Beastie Boys digitally sampled the opening six seconds of Newton's sound recording of "Choir", and repeated this six-second sample as a background element throughout their song. Newton brought suit, claiming that the band infringed his copyright in the underlying composition of "Choir". The district court granted Beastie Boys summary judgment. The district court said that no license was required because the three-note segment of "Choir" lacked the requisite originality and was therefore not copyrightable. The decision was affirmed on appeal.
1997–2001: Hello Nasty
Beastie Boys began work on the album Hello Nasty at the G-Son studios, Los Angeles in 1995, but continued to produce and record it in New York City after Yauch moved to Manhattan in 1996. The album displayed a substantial shift in musical feel, with the addition of Mix Master Mike. The album featured bombastic beats, rap samples, and experimental sounds. Released on July 14, 1998, Hello Nasty earned first week sales of 681,000 in the US and went straight to number 1 in the US, the UK, Germany, Australia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and Sweden. The album achieved number 2 rank on the charts in Canada and Japan, and reached top-ten chart positions in Austria, Switzerland, Ireland, Belgium, Finland, France and Israel.
Beastie Boys won two Grammy Awards in 1999, receiving the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album for Hello Nasty as well as the Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for "Intergalactic". This was the first and, as of 2008, only time that a band had won awards in both rap and alternative categories.
Also at the 1998 MTV Video Music Awards they won the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award for their contribution to music videos. The following year at the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards they also won the award for Best Hip Hop Video for their hit song "Intergalactic". Beastie Boys used both appearances at the Video Music Awards to make politically charged speeches of considerable length to the sizable MTV audiences. At the 1998 ceremony, Yauch addressed the issue of Muslim people being stereotyped as terrorists and that most people of the Muslim faith are not terrorists. These comments were made in the wake of the US Embassy bombings that had occurred in both Kenya and Tanzania only a month earlier. At the 1999 ceremony in the wake of the horror stories that were coming out of Woodstock 99, Adam Horovitz addressed the fact that there had been many cases of sexual assaults and rapes at the festival, suggesting the need for bands and festivals to pay much more attention to the security details at their concerts.
Beastie Boys started an arena tour in 1998. Through Ian C. Rogers, the band made live downloads of their performances available for their fans, but were temporarily thwarted when Capitol Records removed them from its website. Beastie Boys was one of the first bands who made MP3 downloads available on their website. The group got a high level of response and public awareness as a result including a published article in The Wall Street Journal on the band's efforts.
On September 28, 1999, Beastie Boys joined Elvis Costello to play "Radio Radio" on the 25th anniversary season of Saturday Night Live.
Beastie Boys released The Sounds of Science, a two-CD anthology of their works in 1999. This album reached number 19 on the Billboard 200, number 18 in Canada, and number 14 on the R&B/Hip Hop chart. The one new song, the single "Alive", reached number 11 on the Billboard Modern Rock chart.
In 2000, Beastie Boys had planned to co-headline the "Rhyme and Reason Tour" with Rage Against the Machine and Busta Rhymes, but the tour was canceled when drummer Mike D suffered a serious injury due to a bicycle accident. The official diagnosis was fifth-degree acromioclavicular joint dislocation; he needed surgery and extensive rehabilitation. By the time he recovered, Rage Against the Machine had disbanded, although they would reunite seven years later.
Under the name Country Mike, Mike D recorded an album, Country Mike's Greatest Hits, and gave it to friends and family for Christmas in 2000. Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz's side project BS 2000 released Simply Mortified in 2001.
In October 2001, after the September 11, 2001 attacks, Beastie Boys organized and headlined the New Yorkers Against Violence Concert at the Hammerstein Ballroom.
2002–2008: To the 5 Boroughs and The Mix-Up
In 2002, Adam Yauch started building a new studio facility, Oscilloscope Laboratories, in downtown Manhattan, New York and the band started work on a new album there. The band released a protest song, "In a World Gone Mad", against the 2003 Iraq war as a free download on several websites, including the Milarepa website, the MTV website, MoveOn.org, and Win Without War. The 19th and 20th Tibetan Freedom Concerts were held in Tokyo and Taipei, Beastie Boys' first Taiwan appearance. Beastie Boys also headlined the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.
Their single, "Ch-Check It Out", debuted on The O.C. in "The Vegas" episode from Season 1, which aired April 28, 2004.
To the 5 Boroughs was released worldwide on June 15, 2004. It was the first album the band produced themselves and reached number 1 on the Billboard albums chart, number 2 in the UK and Australia, and number 3 in Germany. The first single from the album, "Ch-Check It Out", reached number 1 in Canada and on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart.
The album was the cause of some controversy with allegations that it installed spyware when inserted into the CD drive of a computer. The band denied this allegation, defending that there is no copy protection software on the albums sold in the US and UK. While there is Macrovision CDS-200 copy protection software installed on European copies of the album, this is standard practice for all European releases on EMI/Capitol Records released in Europe, and it does not install spyware or any form of permanent software.
The band stated in mid-2006 that they were writing material for their next album and would be producing it themselves.
Speaking to British music weekly NME (April 26, 2007), Diamond revealed that a new album was to be called The Mix-Up. Despite initial confusion regarding whether the album would have lyrics as opposed to being purely instrumental, the Mic-To-Mic blog reported that Capitol Records had confirmed it would be strictly instrumental and erroneously reported a release date scheduled for July 10, 2007. (The album was eventually released June 26, as originally reported.) On May 1, 2007, this was further cemented by an e-mail sent to those on the band's mailing list – explicitly stating that the album would be all instrumental:
The band subsequently confirmed the new album and announced a short tour that focused on festivals as opposed to a traditional tour, including the likes of Sónar (Spain), Roskilde (Denmark), Hurricane/Southside (Germany), Bestival (Isle of Wight), Electric Picnic (Ireland) and Open'er Festival (Poland). Beastie Boys performed at the UK leg of Live Earth July 7, 2007 at Wembley Stadium, London with "Sabotage", "So What'cha Want", "Intergalactic", and "Sure Shot".
They worked with Reverb, a non-profit environmental organization, on their 2007 summer tour.
They headlined the Langerado Music Festival in South Florida on Friday, March 7, 2008.
They won a Grammy for The Mix-Up in the "Best Pop Instrumental Album" category at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards in 2008.
2009–2012: Hot Sauce Committee
In February 2009, Yauch revealed their forthcoming new album had taken the band's sound in a "bizarre" new direction, saying "It's a combination of playing and sampling stuff as we're playing, and also sampling pretty obscure records." The tentative title for the record was Tadlock's Glasses, of which Yauch explained the inspiration behind the title:
On May 25, 2009, it was announced during an interview on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon that the name of their new album would be Hot Sauce Committee and was set for release on September 15 (with the track listing of the album announced through their mailing list on June 23). The album included a collaboration with Santigold who co-wrote and sang with the band on the track "Don't Play No Game That I Can't Win".
In June, the group appeared at Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival and performed the new single from the album titled "Too Many Rappers" alongside rapper Nas who appears on the track. It would be the last live performance by Beastie Boys as a trio. The group would have toured the UK later in the year in support of the new record.
Speaking to Drowned in Sound, Beastie Boys revealed that Part 2 was done. Mike D also hinted it may be released via unusual means:
On July 20, Yauch announced on the band's official YouTube channel and through the fan mailing list, the cancellation of several tour dates and the postponement of the new album due to the discovery of a cancerous tumor in his parotid gland and a lymph node. The group also had to cancel their co-headlining gig at the Osheaga Festival in Montreal and also another headlining spot for the first night of the All Points West Festival in Jersey City, New Jersey.
In late October 2010, Beastie Boys sent out two emails regarding the status of Hot Sauce Committee Pts. 1 and 2 to their online mailing list. An email dated October 18 read: "Although we regret to inform you that Hot Sauce Committee Part 1 will continue to be delayed indefinitely, Hot Sauce Committee Part 2 will be released on time as originally planned in spring of 2011." One week later, a second email was sent out, reading as follows:
The official release dates were April 27, 2011, for Japan; April 29 in the UK and Europe, and May 3, 2011, in the US. The third single for the album "Make Some Noise" was made available for download on April 11, 2011, as well as a limited edition 7-inch vinyl single for Record Store Day five days later with a Passion Pit remix of the track as a b-side. The track was leaked online on April 6 and subsequently made available via their blog.
On April 22, Beastie Boys emailed out the cryptic message "This Sat, 10:35 am EST – Just listen, listen, listen to the beat box". A day later, they live streamed their album online via beatbox inside Madison Square Garden.
The band was announced as an inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in December 2011. They were inducted by Chuck D and LL Cool J on April 14, 2012. Yauch was too sick to attend the ceremony, having been admitted to NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital the same day, therefore the group didn't perform; instead Black Thought, Travie from Gym Class Heroes and Kid Rock performed a medley of their songs. Diamond and Horovitz accepted and read a speech that Yauch had written.
2012–present: Deaths of Yauch and Berry and disbandment
On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer at the age of 47. Mike D told Rolling Stone that Beastie Boys had recorded new music in late 2011, but did not say if these recordings would be released. He also said that Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock and that "Yauch would genuinely want us to try whatever crazy thing we wanted but never got around to". In June 2014, Mike D confirmed that he and Ad-Rock would not make music under the Beastie Boys name again.
Founding Beastie Boys guitarist John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, following several years of ill health. He was credited with naming the band Beastie Boys and played guitar on the first EP. The first Beastie Boys show took place at Berry's loft.
Yauch's will forbids the use of Beastie Boys music in advertisements. In June 2014, Beastie Boys won a lawsuit against Monster Energy for using their music in a commercial without permission. They were awarded $1.7 million in damages and $668,000 for legal fees. In October 2018, Michael Diamond and Adam Horovitz released a memoir, Beastie Boys Book. In 2020, they released a documentary, Beastie Boys Story, directed by Spike Jonze. The career-spanning book and documentary were complemented by the compilation album Beastie Boys Music in October 2020.
Tibetan Freedom Concert
In 1994, Yauch and activist Erin Potts organized the Tibetan Freedom Concert in order to raise awareness of humans rights abuses by the Chinese government on the Tibetan people. Yauch became aware of this after hiking in Nepal and speaking with Tibetan refugees. The events became annual, and shortly after went international with acts such as Live, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe of R.E.M., Rage Against the Machine, The Smashing Pumpkins, and U2.
Musical style, influences, and legacy
Originally a hardcore punk band, Beastie Boys had largely abandoned the genre in favor of hip hop and rap rock by the time work began on their debut studio album Licensed to Ill. The group mixed elements of hip hop, punk, funk, electro, jazz and Latin music into their music. They have also been described as alternative hip hop and .
Around the time of the release of their debut album, Licensed to Ill, Mike D started to appear on stage and in publicity photographs wearing a large Volkswagen emblem attached to a chain-link necklace. This started a rash of thefts of the emblem from vehicles around the world as fans tried to emulate him. A controversial concert in Columbus, Georgia in 1987 led to the passage of a lewdness ordinance in that city.
Beastie Boys are considered very influential in both the hip hop and rock music scenes, with artists such as Eminem, Rage Against the Machine, Hed PE, , Sublime, Mac Miller , Korn , Slipknot, and Blur citing them as an influence. Beastie Boys have had four albums reach the top of the Billboard album charts (Licensed to Ill, Ill Communication, Hello Nasty and To the 5 Boroughs) since 1986. In the November 2004 issue, Rolling Stone named "Sabotage" the 475th song on their 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list.
In their April 2005 issue, Rolling Stone ranked them number 77 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. VH1 ranked them number 89 on their list of their 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. On September 27, 2007, it was announced that Beastie Boys were one of the nine nominees for the 2008 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductions. In December 2011, they were announced to be official 2012 inductees.
Beastie Boys have many high-profile longtime fans, including UFC president Dana White, who has a hand-signed bass guitar signed by all three members in his office and a copy of the Beastie Boys book. Speaking on the death of Adam Yauch, White said, "I seriously haven't been impacted by a death in a long time like I was with the Beastie Boys". Actor Seth Rogen, who appeared in the video for "Make Some Noise", also said, "I'm a huge Beastie Boys fan and they just called and asked if I wanted to be a part of it, and I said yes without hesitation. I didn't need to hear anything. I didn't need to see anything, any concepts. I was just like, 'I will literally do anything you ask me to do". Ben Stiller was seen in the crowd for the DVD release Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! and featured Horovitz in his movie While We're Young, where he said, "I'm a huge Beastie Boys fan, so doing that, for me, was beyond anything". Eminem was highly influenced by the Beastie Boys and cited them alongside LL Cool J as being the reason he got into rap. During an interview with MTV after the death of Yauch, he said, "Adam Yauch brought a lot of positivity into the world and I think it's obvious to anyone how big of an influence the Beastie Boys were on me and so many others. They are trailblazers and pioneers and Adam will be sorely missed. My thoughts and prayers are with his family, Mike D., and Ad-Rock." His album cover for Kamikaze paid homage to Licensed to Ill and he also paid homage in his "Berzerk" video. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Beavis and Butt-Head creator Mike Judge acknowledged he was a fan of the band, citing his favorite song as "Fight for Your Right", as the Beastie Boys appeared on Beavis and Butt-Head on numerous occasions. Kid Rock wrote an in-depth tribute to Yauch after being influenced by the band, which said, "I thought I was the 4th member of Beastie Boys in 7th grade. You couldn't tell me I wasn't. The first time I ever saw them on stage was a very early show of theirs before Licensed to Ill came out, opening for Run DMC at Joe Louis Arena. My jaw dropped to the floor!".
In 2020, Spin Magazine ranked Beastie Boys as the 12th most influential artist of the previous 35 years.
Sampling lawsuit
In 2003, Beastie Boys were involved in the landmark sampling decision, Newton v. Diamond. In that case, a federal judge ruled that the band was not liable for sampling James Newton's "Choir" in their track, "Pass the Mic". The sample used is the six-second flute stab. In short, Beastie Boys cleared the sample but obtained only the rights to use the sound recording and not the composition rights to the song "Choir". In the decision, the judge found that:
Band members
Members
John Berry – guitars (1981–1982; died 2016)
Mike D – vocals, drums (1981–2012)
Kate Schellenbach – drums, percussion (1981–1984)
MCA – vocals, bass (1981–2012; died 2012)
Ad-Rock – vocals, guitars (1982–2012)
Touring musicians
DJ Double R – disc jockey (1984–1985)
Doctor Dré – disc jockey (1986)
DJ Hurricane – disc jockey (1986–1997)
Eric Bobo – percussion, drums (1992–1996)
Money Mark (Mark Ramos-Nishita) – keyboards, vocals (1992–2012)
Amery "AWOL" Smith – drums, backing vocals, percussion (1992–?)
Alfredo Ortiz – drums, percussion (1996–2012)
Mix Master Mike – disc jockey, backing vocals (1998–2012)
Timeline
Touring Members Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Licensed to Ill (1986)
Paul's Boutique (1989)
Check Your Head (1992)
Ill Communication (1994)
Hello Nasty (1998)
To the 5 Boroughs (2004)
The Mix-Up (2007)
Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011)
Tours
The Virgin Tour (1985) (supporting Madonna)
Raising Hell Tour (1986) (supporting Run-D.M.C.)
Licensed to Ill Tour (1987) (with Public Enemy)
Together Forever Tour (1987) (with Run-D.M.C.)
Check Your Head Tour (1992) (with Cypress Hill, Rollins Band, Firehose, and Basehead)
Ill Communication Tour (1994–1995)
In the Round Tour (1998–1999) (with A Tribe Called Quest and Money Mark)
To the 5 Boroughs Tour (2004)
The Mix-Up Tour (2007–2008)
Awards and nominations
Grammy Awards
|-
|1992
|Check Your Head
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|1995
|"Sabotage"
|Best Hard Rock Performance
|
|-
|Rowspan="2"|1999
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|Hello Nasty
|Best Alternative Music Album
|
|-
|2001
|"Alive"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2005
|"Ch-Check It Out"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|To The 5 Boroughs
|Best Rap Album
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2008
|"Off the Grid"
|Best Pop Instrumental Performance
|
|-
|The Mix-Up
|Best Contemporary Instrumental Album
|
|-
|2010
|"Too Many Rappers" (featuring Nas)
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|}
MTV Video Music Awards
|-
|rowspan="5"|1994
|rowspan="5"|"Sabotage"
|Video of the Year
|
|-
|Best Group Video
|
|-
|Breakthrough Video
|
|-
|Best Direction (Director: Spike Jonze)
|
|-
|Viewer's Choice
|
|-
|1998
|Beastie Boys
|Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award
|
|-
|1999
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Hip-Hop Video
|
|-
|2009
|"Sabotage"
|Best Video (That Should Have Won a Moonman)
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2011
|rowspan="2"|"Make Some Noise"
|Video of the Year
|
|-
|Best Direction (Director: Adam Yauch)
|
|}
MTV Europe Music Awards
|-
|1994
|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|rowspan="4"|1998
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Video
|
|-
|Hello Nasty
|Best Album
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|1999
|Beastie Boys
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2004
|rowspan="2"|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|2011
|"Make Some Noise"
|Best Video
|
|}
MTV Video Music Awards Japan
|-
|2005
|"Ch-Check It Out"
|Best Hip-Hop Video
|
|-
|2009
|Beastie Boys
|MTV Street Icon Award
|
|}
Filmography
Krush Groove (1985)
Tougher Than Leather (1988)
Futurama episode "Hell Is Other Robots" (1999)
Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! (2006)
Fight for Your Right Revisited (2011)
Beastie Boys Story (2020)
Notes
References
External links
Beastie Boys Lyrics Annotated – Beastie Boys lyrics laid out with annotated comments explaining popular culture and historical references as well as known samples.
Beastie Boys
1981 establishments in New York City
Alternative hip hop groups
Capitol Records artists
Def Jam Recordings artists
Grammy Award winners for rap music
Hardcore punk groups from New York (state)
Hip hop groups from New York City
Jewish hip hop groups
Jewish musical groups
Alternative rock groups from New York (state)
Musical groups established in 1981
Musical groups from New York City
Rap rock groups
Rapcore groups
ROIR artists
Musical groups disestablished in 2012
Jews in punk rock
Grand Royal artists
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Feminist musicians
Hardcore hip hop groups | false | [
"Frank Deli (October 10, 1886 – 1946) was a Chicago businessman. \n\nDeli was born in the Austro-Hungarian Empire and emigrated to the United States in 1903. \n\nIn the early 1920s, Deli helped found the Autopoint Company. He helped pioneer the use of plastics to make pencils. Apparently, Deli did not sell his share when the Bakelite Corporation took control of Autopoint. He worked for Autopoint until his death in 1946. At the time of this death he was also a member of the board of directors.\n\nDeli obtained many patents related to pencils and the manufacture of pencils.\n\nExternal links\n Autobiography of Frank Deli\n Resume of Frank C. Deli, 1933\n\n1886 births\n1946 deaths",
"Charles Shaw (1832 – 5 March 1906) was an English potter, born in Tunstall, Staffordshire.\n\nHe is notable for his autobiography (When I was a Child), published by Methuen in March 1903 under the name \"An Old Potter\". Shaw was a staunch Liberal and believer in free trade, who intended to warn of the dangers of protectionism. Fellow Liberal Robert Spence Watson wrote the book's introduction, calling it a reminder of the condition of child labour in the 1840s and as an inspiration to improve children's conditions. However, despite Watson financing 1500 copies, Shaw's autobiography did not sell well. The novelist Arnold Bennett used the book as a source for Clayhanger (1910) and it was republished in 1969, since when it has received more attention and is\n\n...now valued both as a moving firsthand account of child labour in the pottery industry, and as a narrative of his ‘pursuit of knowledge under difficulties’, inspired by the values of self-help and his religious faith, which enabled him to escape from a life of manual labour. The book vividly illuminates many aspects of Potteries social history, such as popular recreations, life in the workhouse, and the riots of 1842, in a way unequalled by any other source. The popularity of ‘history from below’, and academic interest in working-class autobiographies, have established When I was a Child as not only an essential source for Potteries history, but also a classic of its kind and a memorial to its otherwise obscure author.\n\nNotes\n\nExternal links\n Charles Shaw's Autobiography Online\n\nFurther reading\nW. H. Chaloner, ‘When I was a child by “An Old Potter” (1903)’, Proceedings of the Wesley Historical Society, 40 (1975–6).\nD. Stuart (ed.), People of the Potteries (1989).\n\n1832 births\n1906 deaths\nEnglish potters\nPeople from Tunstall, Staffordshire"
] |
[
"Beastie Boys",
"2012-present: Deaths of Yauch and Berry",
"How did Yauch die and when?",
"On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer",
"How and when did Berry die?",
"John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, after a decline of health for several years.",
"What albums did the band release around 2012?",
"the Beastie Boys recorded new music in late 2011 after the release of Hot Sauce Committee (Part 2),",
"Were the sales of the album good?",
"I don't know.",
"what did you find intriguing about the band?",
"In April 2013 it was announced that the group has signed a deal to write an autobiography.",
"Did the autobiography sell well?",
"The book was scheduled to be released in the fall of 2015. However, Horovitz stated that the autobiography is being delayed."
] | C_135bb6c0abb44071b79b28c1c5149a4a_0 | What does the band currently do? | 7 | What do Beastie Boys currently do? | Beastie Boys | On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer at the age of 47. On May 24, in an interview with Rolling Stone, Mike D said that the Beastie Boys recorded new music in late 2011 after the release of Hot Sauce Committee (Part 2), but he did not say if these recordings would be released. He also said that the Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock and that "Yauch would genuinely want us to try whatever crazy thing we wanted but never got around to." In April 2013 it was announced that the group has signed a deal to write an autobiography. The book was scheduled to be released in the fall of 2015. However, Horovitz stated that the autobiography is being delayed. According to Horovitz, "We've got pages!....How it's going to fit together, I don't know. But we've got some ideas. It's interesting. It's fun." On May 3, 2013 a children's playground in Brooklyn was renamed for Adam Yauch. In June 2014, Mike D stated that neither he nor Horovitz would perform under the Beastie Boys name again out of respect for Yauch. Founding Beastie Boys guitarist John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, after a decline of health for several years. He was credited with coming up with the Beastie Boys name, and played guitar on the first EP the Beastie Boys recorded. Before the Beastie Boys, he was also a part of Even Worse, Big Fat Love, Highway Stars, Bourbon Deluxe, and Idaho. The first Beastie Boys show took place at Berry's loft. CANNOTANSWER | the Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock | Beastie Boys were an American hip hop group from New York City, formed in 1981. The group was composed of Michael "Mike D" Diamond (vocals, drums), Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (vocals, guitar, programming).
Beastie Boys were formed out of members of experimental hardcore punk band The Young Aborigines in 1978, with Diamond as vocalist, Jeremy Shatan on bass guitar, John Berry on guitar, and Kate Schellenbach on drums. When Shatan left in 1981, Yauch replaced him on bass and the band changed their name to Beastie Boys. Berry left shortly thereafter and was replaced by Horovitz.
After achieving local success with the 1983 comedy hip hop single "Cooky Puss", Beastie Boys made a full transition to hip hop, and Schellenbach left. They toured with Madonna in 1985 and a year later released their debut album, Licensed to Ill (1986), the first rap record to top the Billboard 200 chart. Their second album, Paul's Boutique (1989), composed almost entirely of samples, was a commercial failure, but later received critical acclaim. Check Your Head (1992) and Ill Communication (1994) found mainstream success, followed by Hello Nasty (1998), To the 5 Boroughs (2004), The Mix-Up (2007), and Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011).
Beastie Boys have sold 20 million records in the United States and had seven platinum-selling albums from 1986 to 2004. They are the biggest-selling rap group since Billboard began recording sales in 1991. In 2012, they became the third rap group to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In the same year, Yauch died of cancer and Beastie Boys disbanded. Since then, the remaining two members have released several retrospective works, including a book and documentary film detailing the history of the group as well as a career-spanning compilation album. Diamond has produced acts including Portugal. The Man, while Horovitz has taken small acting roles and continues to play music.
History
1981–1983: Formation and early years
Prior to forming Beastie Boys, Michael Diamond was part of a number of bands such as the Walden Jazz Band, BAN, and the Young Aborigines. Beastie Boys formed in July 1981 when the Young Aborigines bassist Jeremy Shatan left New York City for the summer and the remaining members Michael Diamond, John Berry and Kate Schellenbach formed a new hardcore punk band with Adam Yauch.
In a 2007 interview with Charlie Rose, Yauch recalled that it was Berry who suggested the name Beastie Boys. Although the band stated that "Beastie" is an acronym standing for "Boys Entering Anarchistic States Towards Inner Excellence", in the Charlie Rose interview, both Yauch and Diamond acknowledged that the acronym was an "afterthought" conceived after the name was chosen. The band supported Bad Brains, the Dead Kennedys, the Misfits and Reagan Youth at venues such as CBGB, A7, Trudy Hellers Place and Max's Kansas City, playing at the latter venue on its closing night. In November 1982, Beastie Boys recorded the 7-inch EP Polly Wog Stew at 171A studios, an early recorded example of New York hardcore.
On November 13, 1982, Beastie Boys played Philip Pucci's birthday for the purposes of his short concert film, Beastie. Pucci held the concert in Bard College's Preston Drama Dance Department Theatre. This performance marked Beastie Boys' first on screen appearance in a published motion picture. Pucci's concept for Beastie was to distribute a mixture of both a half dozen 16 mm Bell & Howell Filmo cameras, and 16 mm Bolex cameras to audience members and ask that they capture Beastie Boys performance from the audience's own point of view while a master sync sound camera filmed from the balcony of the abandoned theater where the performance was held. The opening band for that performance was The Young and the Useless, which featured Adam Horovitz as the lead singer. A one-minute clip of Beastie was subsequently excerpted and licensed by Beastie Boys for use in the "Egg Raid on Mojo" segment of the "Skills to Pay the Bills" long-form home video released by Capitol Records. "Skills to Pay the Bills" later went on to be certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Berry left the group in 1982 (later forming Thwig, Big Fat Love and Bourbon Deluxe) and was replaced by Horovitz, who had become close friends with Beastie Boys.
The band also recorded and then performed its first hip hop track, "Cooky Puss", based on a prank call by the group to a Carvel Ice Cream franchise in 1983. It was a part of the new lineup's first EP, also called Cooky Puss, which was the first piece of work that showed their incorporation of the underground rap phenomenon and the use of samples. It quickly became a hit in New York underground dance clubs and night clubs. "Beastie Revolution" was later sampled for a British Airways commercial. Beastie Boys threatened to sue them over the use of the song. British Airways immediately paid them $40,000 in royalties.
1984–1987: Def Jam years and Licensed to Ill
Following the success of "Cooky Puss", the band began to incorporate rap into their sets. They hired a DJ for their live shows, New York University student Rick Rubin, who began producing records soon thereafter. "I met Mike first," Rubin recalled. "I thought he was an arrogant asshole. Through spending time with the Beasties I grew to see that they had this great sense of humour. It wasn't that they were assholes, and even if it was, they were funny with it." Rubin formed Def Jam Recordings with fellow NYU student Russell Simmons, and approached the band about producing them for his new label. As the band was transitioning to hip hop, Schellenbach was fired in 1984, with Diamond taking over on drums. In their 2018 memoir, Ad-Rock expressed regret for firing Schellenbach, which he attributed to her not fitting with the "new tough-rapper-guy identity".
The band's 12-inch single "Rock Hard" (1984) was the second Def Jam record crediting Rubin as producer (the first was "It's Yours" by T La Rock and Jazzy Jay). On July 22, 1986, Beastie Boys opened for John Lydon's post-Sex Pistols band Public Image Ltd., and supported Madonna on her North American The Virgin Tour. Then headlining with Fishbone and Murphy's Law with DJ Hurricane and later in the year, the group was on the Raising Hell tour with Run-DMC, Whodini, LL Cool J, and the Timex Social Club. Thanks to this exposure, "Hold It Now, Hit It" charted on Billboards US R&B and dance charts. "She's on It" from the Krush Groove soundtrack continued in a rap/metal vein while a double A-side 12", "Paul Revere/The New Style", was released at the end of the year.
The band recorded Licensed to Ill in 1986 and released it on November 15, 1986. The album was favorably reviewed by Rolling Stone magazine. Licensed to Ill became one of the best-selling rap albums of the 1980s and the first rap album to go number 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, where it stayed for five weeks. It also reached number 2 on the Top R&B album chart. It was Def Jam's fastest selling debut record to date and sold over nine million copies. The fourth single, "(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)", reached number 7 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Although the group has sold over 26 million records in the US, this is their only single to peak in the US top ten or top twenty. The accompanying video (directed by Ric Menello and Adam Dubin) became an MTV staple. Another song from the album, "No Sleep till Brooklyn", peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart.
The band took the Licensed to Ill tour around the world the following year. The tour was troubled by lawsuits and arrests, with the band accused of provoking the crowd. This culminated in a notorious gig at the Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool, England, on May 30, 1987, that erupted into a riot approximately 10 minutes after the group hit the stage and the arrest of Adam Horovitz by Merseyside Police. He was charged with assault causing grievous bodily harm.
1988–1989: Move to Capitol Records and Paul's Boutique
In 1988, Beastie Boys appeared in Tougher Than Leather, a film directed by Rubin as a star vehicle for Run-D.M.C. and Def Jam Recordings. After Def Jam stopped paying them for work they'd already done and were owed money for, Beastie Boys left Def Jam and signed with Capitol Records.
The second Beastie Boys album, Paul's Boutique, was released on July 25, 1989. Produced by the Dust Brothers, it blends eclectic samples and has been described as an early work of experimental hip hop. It failed to match the sales of Licensed to Ill, peaking at number 14 on the US album charts, but later attracted wide acclaim; Rolling Stone ranked it number 156 on its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
1990–1996: Check Your Head and Ill Communication
Check Your Head was recorded in the band's G-Son studio in Atwater Village, California, and released on its Grand Royal record label. The band was influenced to play instruments on this album by Dutch group Urban Dance Squad; with Mike D on drums, Yauch on bass, Horovitz on guitar and Mark Ramos Nishita ("Keyboard Money Mark") on keyboards. Mario Caldato, Jr., who had helped in the production of Paul's Boutique, engineered the record and became a longtime collaborator. Check Your Head was released in 1992 and was certified double Platinum in the US and peaked at number 10 on the Billboard 200. The single "So What'cha Want" reached number 93 on the Billboard Hot 100 and charted on both the Rap and Modern Rock Chart, while the album's first single, "Pass the Mic", peaked at number 38 on the Hot Dance Music chart. The album also introduced a more experimental direction, with funk and jazz inspired songs including "Lighten Up" and "Something's Got to Give". The band returned to their hardcore punk roots for the song "Time for Livin'", a cover of a 1974 Sly and the Family Stone song. The addition of instruments and the harder rock sound of the album could be considered a precursor to the nu metal genre of music to come out in the later half of the 1990s.
Beastie Boys signed an eclectic roster of artists to their Grand Royal label, including Luscious Jackson, Sean Lennon, and Australian artist Ben Lee. The group owned Grand Royal Records until 2001. Grand Royal's first independent release was Luscious Jackson's album In Search of Manny in 1993. Also in 1993, the band contributed the track "It's the New Style" (with DJ Hurricane) to the AIDS benefit album No Alternative, produced by the Red Hot Organization.
Beastie Boys also published Grand Royal Magazine, with the first edition in 1993 featuring a cover story on Bruce Lee, artwork by George Clinton, and interviews with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and A Tribe Called Quest's MC Q-Tip. The 1995 issue of the magazine contained a memorable piece on the mullet. The Oxford English Dictionary cites this as the first published use of the term, along with the lyrics from the band's 1994 song, "Mullet Head". That term was not heard in the 1980s, even though that decade has retroactively been hailed as the mullet's peak in popularity. The OED says that the term was "apparently coined, and certainly popularized, by US hip-hop group Beastie Boys". Grand Royal Magazine is also responsible for giving British band Sneaker Pimps their name.
Ill Communication, released in 1994, saw Beastie Boys' return to the top of the charts when the album debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200 and peaked at number 2 on the R&B/hip hop album chart. The single "Sabotage" became a hit on the modern rock charts and the music video, directed by Spike Jonze, received extensive play on MTV. "Get It Together" reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. Also in 1994, the band released Some Old Bullshit, featuring the band's early independent material, which made it to number 46 on the Billboard Independent Albums chart.
Beastie Boys headlined at Lollapalooza—an American travelling music festival—in 1994, together with The Smashing Pumpkins. In addition, the band performed three concerts (in Los Angeles, New York City, and Washington, D.C.) to raise money for the Milarepa Fund and dedicated the royalties from "Shambala" and "Bodhisattva Vow" from the Ill Communication to the cause. The Milarepa Fund aims to raise awareness of Tibetan human rights issues and the exile of the Dalai Lama. In 1996, Yauch organized the largest rock benefit show since 1985's Live Aid – the Tibetan Freedom Concert, a two-day festival at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco that attracted over 100,000 attendees.
In 1995, the popularity of Beastie Boys was underlined when tickets for an arena tour went on sale in the US and Madison Square Garden and Chicago's Rosemont Horizon sold out within 30 minutes. One dollar from each ticket sold went through Milarepa to local charities in each city on the tour. Beastie Boys toured South America and Southeast Asia for the first time. The band also released Aglio e Olio, a collection of eight songs lasting just 11 minutes harking back to their punk roots, in 1995. The In Sound from Way Out!, a collection of previously released jazz/funk instrumentals, was released on Grand Royal in 1996 with the title and artwork a homage to an album by electronic pop music pioneers Perrey and Kingsley.
In 1992, Beastie Boys decided to sample portions of the sound recording of "Choir" by James Newton in various renditions of their song "Pass the Mic". The band did not obtain a license from Newton to use the composition. Pursuant to their license from ECM Records, Beastie Boys digitally sampled the opening six seconds of Newton's sound recording of "Choir", and repeated this six-second sample as a background element throughout their song. Newton brought suit, claiming that the band infringed his copyright in the underlying composition of "Choir". The district court granted Beastie Boys summary judgment. The district court said that no license was required because the three-note segment of "Choir" lacked the requisite originality and was therefore not copyrightable. The decision was affirmed on appeal.
1997–2001: Hello Nasty
Beastie Boys began work on the album Hello Nasty at the G-Son studios, Los Angeles in 1995, but continued to produce and record it in New York City after Yauch moved to Manhattan in 1996. The album displayed a substantial shift in musical feel, with the addition of Mix Master Mike. The album featured bombastic beats, rap samples, and experimental sounds. Released on July 14, 1998, Hello Nasty earned first week sales of 681,000 in the US and went straight to number 1 in the US, the UK, Germany, Australia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and Sweden. The album achieved number 2 rank on the charts in Canada and Japan, and reached top-ten chart positions in Austria, Switzerland, Ireland, Belgium, Finland, France and Israel.
Beastie Boys won two Grammy Awards in 1999, receiving the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album for Hello Nasty as well as the Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for "Intergalactic". This was the first and, as of 2008, only time that a band had won awards in both rap and alternative categories.
Also at the 1998 MTV Video Music Awards they won the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award for their contribution to music videos. The following year at the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards they also won the award for Best Hip Hop Video for their hit song "Intergalactic". Beastie Boys used both appearances at the Video Music Awards to make politically charged speeches of considerable length to the sizable MTV audiences. At the 1998 ceremony, Yauch addressed the issue of Muslim people being stereotyped as terrorists and that most people of the Muslim faith are not terrorists. These comments were made in the wake of the US Embassy bombings that had occurred in both Kenya and Tanzania only a month earlier. At the 1999 ceremony in the wake of the horror stories that were coming out of Woodstock 99, Adam Horovitz addressed the fact that there had been many cases of sexual assaults and rapes at the festival, suggesting the need for bands and festivals to pay much more attention to the security details at their concerts.
Beastie Boys started an arena tour in 1998. Through Ian C. Rogers, the band made live downloads of their performances available for their fans, but were temporarily thwarted when Capitol Records removed them from its website. Beastie Boys was one of the first bands who made MP3 downloads available on their website. The group got a high level of response and public awareness as a result including a published article in The Wall Street Journal on the band's efforts.
On September 28, 1999, Beastie Boys joined Elvis Costello to play "Radio Radio" on the 25th anniversary season of Saturday Night Live.
Beastie Boys released The Sounds of Science, a two-CD anthology of their works in 1999. This album reached number 19 on the Billboard 200, number 18 in Canada, and number 14 on the R&B/Hip Hop chart. The one new song, the single "Alive", reached number 11 on the Billboard Modern Rock chart.
In 2000, Beastie Boys had planned to co-headline the "Rhyme and Reason Tour" with Rage Against the Machine and Busta Rhymes, but the tour was canceled when drummer Mike D suffered a serious injury due to a bicycle accident. The official diagnosis was fifth-degree acromioclavicular joint dislocation; he needed surgery and extensive rehabilitation. By the time he recovered, Rage Against the Machine had disbanded, although they would reunite seven years later.
Under the name Country Mike, Mike D recorded an album, Country Mike's Greatest Hits, and gave it to friends and family for Christmas in 2000. Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz's side project BS 2000 released Simply Mortified in 2001.
In October 2001, after the September 11, 2001 attacks, Beastie Boys organized and headlined the New Yorkers Against Violence Concert at the Hammerstein Ballroom.
2002–2008: To the 5 Boroughs and The Mix-Up
In 2002, Adam Yauch started building a new studio facility, Oscilloscope Laboratories, in downtown Manhattan, New York and the band started work on a new album there. The band released a protest song, "In a World Gone Mad", against the 2003 Iraq war as a free download on several websites, including the Milarepa website, the MTV website, MoveOn.org, and Win Without War. The 19th and 20th Tibetan Freedom Concerts were held in Tokyo and Taipei, Beastie Boys' first Taiwan appearance. Beastie Boys also headlined the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.
Their single, "Ch-Check It Out", debuted on The O.C. in "The Vegas" episode from Season 1, which aired April 28, 2004.
To the 5 Boroughs was released worldwide on June 15, 2004. It was the first album the band produced themselves and reached number 1 on the Billboard albums chart, number 2 in the UK and Australia, and number 3 in Germany. The first single from the album, "Ch-Check It Out", reached number 1 in Canada and on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart.
The album was the cause of some controversy with allegations that it installed spyware when inserted into the CD drive of a computer. The band denied this allegation, defending that there is no copy protection software on the albums sold in the US and UK. While there is Macrovision CDS-200 copy protection software installed on European copies of the album, this is standard practice for all European releases on EMI/Capitol Records released in Europe, and it does not install spyware or any form of permanent software.
The band stated in mid-2006 that they were writing material for their next album and would be producing it themselves.
Speaking to British music weekly NME (April 26, 2007), Diamond revealed that a new album was to be called The Mix-Up. Despite initial confusion regarding whether the album would have lyrics as opposed to being purely instrumental, the Mic-To-Mic blog reported that Capitol Records had confirmed it would be strictly instrumental and erroneously reported a release date scheduled for July 10, 2007. (The album was eventually released June 26, as originally reported.) On May 1, 2007, this was further cemented by an e-mail sent to those on the band's mailing list – explicitly stating that the album would be all instrumental:
The band subsequently confirmed the new album and announced a short tour that focused on festivals as opposed to a traditional tour, including the likes of Sónar (Spain), Roskilde (Denmark), Hurricane/Southside (Germany), Bestival (Isle of Wight), Electric Picnic (Ireland) and Open'er Festival (Poland). Beastie Boys performed at the UK leg of Live Earth July 7, 2007 at Wembley Stadium, London with "Sabotage", "So What'cha Want", "Intergalactic", and "Sure Shot".
They worked with Reverb, a non-profit environmental organization, on their 2007 summer tour.
They headlined the Langerado Music Festival in South Florida on Friday, March 7, 2008.
They won a Grammy for The Mix-Up in the "Best Pop Instrumental Album" category at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards in 2008.
2009–2012: Hot Sauce Committee
In February 2009, Yauch revealed their forthcoming new album had taken the band's sound in a "bizarre" new direction, saying "It's a combination of playing and sampling stuff as we're playing, and also sampling pretty obscure records." The tentative title for the record was Tadlock's Glasses, of which Yauch explained the inspiration behind the title:
On May 25, 2009, it was announced during an interview on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon that the name of their new album would be Hot Sauce Committee and was set for release on September 15 (with the track listing of the album announced through their mailing list on June 23). The album included a collaboration with Santigold who co-wrote and sang with the band on the track "Don't Play No Game That I Can't Win".
In June, the group appeared at Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival and performed the new single from the album titled "Too Many Rappers" alongside rapper Nas who appears on the track. It would be the last live performance by Beastie Boys as a trio. The group would have toured the UK later in the year in support of the new record.
Speaking to Drowned in Sound, Beastie Boys revealed that Part 2 was done. Mike D also hinted it may be released via unusual means:
On July 20, Yauch announced on the band's official YouTube channel and through the fan mailing list, the cancellation of several tour dates and the postponement of the new album due to the discovery of a cancerous tumor in his parotid gland and a lymph node. The group also had to cancel their co-headlining gig at the Osheaga Festival in Montreal and also another headlining spot for the first night of the All Points West Festival in Jersey City, New Jersey.
In late October 2010, Beastie Boys sent out two emails regarding the status of Hot Sauce Committee Pts. 1 and 2 to their online mailing list. An email dated October 18 read: "Although we regret to inform you that Hot Sauce Committee Part 1 will continue to be delayed indefinitely, Hot Sauce Committee Part 2 will be released on time as originally planned in spring of 2011." One week later, a second email was sent out, reading as follows:
The official release dates were April 27, 2011, for Japan; April 29 in the UK and Europe, and May 3, 2011, in the US. The third single for the album "Make Some Noise" was made available for download on April 11, 2011, as well as a limited edition 7-inch vinyl single for Record Store Day five days later with a Passion Pit remix of the track as a b-side. The track was leaked online on April 6 and subsequently made available via their blog.
On April 22, Beastie Boys emailed out the cryptic message "This Sat, 10:35 am EST – Just listen, listen, listen to the beat box". A day later, they live streamed their album online via beatbox inside Madison Square Garden.
The band was announced as an inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in December 2011. They were inducted by Chuck D and LL Cool J on April 14, 2012. Yauch was too sick to attend the ceremony, having been admitted to NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital the same day, therefore the group didn't perform; instead Black Thought, Travie from Gym Class Heroes and Kid Rock performed a medley of their songs. Diamond and Horovitz accepted and read a speech that Yauch had written.
2012–present: Deaths of Yauch and Berry and disbandment
On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer at the age of 47. Mike D told Rolling Stone that Beastie Boys had recorded new music in late 2011, but did not say if these recordings would be released. He also said that Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock and that "Yauch would genuinely want us to try whatever crazy thing we wanted but never got around to". In June 2014, Mike D confirmed that he and Ad-Rock would not make music under the Beastie Boys name again.
Founding Beastie Boys guitarist John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, following several years of ill health. He was credited with naming the band Beastie Boys and played guitar on the first EP. The first Beastie Boys show took place at Berry's loft.
Yauch's will forbids the use of Beastie Boys music in advertisements. In June 2014, Beastie Boys won a lawsuit against Monster Energy for using their music in a commercial without permission. They were awarded $1.7 million in damages and $668,000 for legal fees. In October 2018, Michael Diamond and Adam Horovitz released a memoir, Beastie Boys Book. In 2020, they released a documentary, Beastie Boys Story, directed by Spike Jonze. The career-spanning book and documentary were complemented by the compilation album Beastie Boys Music in October 2020.
Tibetan Freedom Concert
In 1994, Yauch and activist Erin Potts organized the Tibetan Freedom Concert in order to raise awareness of humans rights abuses by the Chinese government on the Tibetan people. Yauch became aware of this after hiking in Nepal and speaking with Tibetan refugees. The events became annual, and shortly after went international with acts such as Live, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe of R.E.M., Rage Against the Machine, The Smashing Pumpkins, and U2.
Musical style, influences, and legacy
Originally a hardcore punk band, Beastie Boys had largely abandoned the genre in favor of hip hop and rap rock by the time work began on their debut studio album Licensed to Ill. The group mixed elements of hip hop, punk, funk, electro, jazz and Latin music into their music. They have also been described as alternative hip hop and .
Around the time of the release of their debut album, Licensed to Ill, Mike D started to appear on stage and in publicity photographs wearing a large Volkswagen emblem attached to a chain-link necklace. This started a rash of thefts of the emblem from vehicles around the world as fans tried to emulate him. A controversial concert in Columbus, Georgia in 1987 led to the passage of a lewdness ordinance in that city.
Beastie Boys are considered very influential in both the hip hop and rock music scenes, with artists such as Eminem, Rage Against the Machine, Hed PE, , Sublime, Mac Miller , Korn , Slipknot, and Blur citing them as an influence. Beastie Boys have had four albums reach the top of the Billboard album charts (Licensed to Ill, Ill Communication, Hello Nasty and To the 5 Boroughs) since 1986. In the November 2004 issue, Rolling Stone named "Sabotage" the 475th song on their 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list.
In their April 2005 issue, Rolling Stone ranked them number 77 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. VH1 ranked them number 89 on their list of their 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. On September 27, 2007, it was announced that Beastie Boys were one of the nine nominees for the 2008 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductions. In December 2011, they were announced to be official 2012 inductees.
Beastie Boys have many high-profile longtime fans, including UFC president Dana White, who has a hand-signed bass guitar signed by all three members in his office and a copy of the Beastie Boys book. Speaking on the death of Adam Yauch, White said, "I seriously haven't been impacted by a death in a long time like I was with the Beastie Boys". Actor Seth Rogen, who appeared in the video for "Make Some Noise", also said, "I'm a huge Beastie Boys fan and they just called and asked if I wanted to be a part of it, and I said yes without hesitation. I didn't need to hear anything. I didn't need to see anything, any concepts. I was just like, 'I will literally do anything you ask me to do". Ben Stiller was seen in the crowd for the DVD release Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! and featured Horovitz in his movie While We're Young, where he said, "I'm a huge Beastie Boys fan, so doing that, for me, was beyond anything". Eminem was highly influenced by the Beastie Boys and cited them alongside LL Cool J as being the reason he got into rap. During an interview with MTV after the death of Yauch, he said, "Adam Yauch brought a lot of positivity into the world and I think it's obvious to anyone how big of an influence the Beastie Boys were on me and so many others. They are trailblazers and pioneers and Adam will be sorely missed. My thoughts and prayers are with his family, Mike D., and Ad-Rock." His album cover for Kamikaze paid homage to Licensed to Ill and he also paid homage in his "Berzerk" video. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Beavis and Butt-Head creator Mike Judge acknowledged he was a fan of the band, citing his favorite song as "Fight for Your Right", as the Beastie Boys appeared on Beavis and Butt-Head on numerous occasions. Kid Rock wrote an in-depth tribute to Yauch after being influenced by the band, which said, "I thought I was the 4th member of Beastie Boys in 7th grade. You couldn't tell me I wasn't. The first time I ever saw them on stage was a very early show of theirs before Licensed to Ill came out, opening for Run DMC at Joe Louis Arena. My jaw dropped to the floor!".
In 2020, Spin Magazine ranked Beastie Boys as the 12th most influential artist of the previous 35 years.
Sampling lawsuit
In 2003, Beastie Boys were involved in the landmark sampling decision, Newton v. Diamond. In that case, a federal judge ruled that the band was not liable for sampling James Newton's "Choir" in their track, "Pass the Mic". The sample used is the six-second flute stab. In short, Beastie Boys cleared the sample but obtained only the rights to use the sound recording and not the composition rights to the song "Choir". In the decision, the judge found that:
Band members
Members
John Berry – guitars (1981–1982; died 2016)
Mike D – vocals, drums (1981–2012)
Kate Schellenbach – drums, percussion (1981–1984)
MCA – vocals, bass (1981–2012; died 2012)
Ad-Rock – vocals, guitars (1982–2012)
Touring musicians
DJ Double R – disc jockey (1984–1985)
Doctor Dré – disc jockey (1986)
DJ Hurricane – disc jockey (1986–1997)
Eric Bobo – percussion, drums (1992–1996)
Money Mark (Mark Ramos-Nishita) – keyboards, vocals (1992–2012)
Amery "AWOL" Smith – drums, backing vocals, percussion (1992–?)
Alfredo Ortiz – drums, percussion (1996–2012)
Mix Master Mike – disc jockey, backing vocals (1998–2012)
Timeline
Touring Members Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Licensed to Ill (1986)
Paul's Boutique (1989)
Check Your Head (1992)
Ill Communication (1994)
Hello Nasty (1998)
To the 5 Boroughs (2004)
The Mix-Up (2007)
Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011)
Tours
The Virgin Tour (1985) (supporting Madonna)
Raising Hell Tour (1986) (supporting Run-D.M.C.)
Licensed to Ill Tour (1987) (with Public Enemy)
Together Forever Tour (1987) (with Run-D.M.C.)
Check Your Head Tour (1992) (with Cypress Hill, Rollins Band, Firehose, and Basehead)
Ill Communication Tour (1994–1995)
In the Round Tour (1998–1999) (with A Tribe Called Quest and Money Mark)
To the 5 Boroughs Tour (2004)
The Mix-Up Tour (2007–2008)
Awards and nominations
Grammy Awards
|-
|1992
|Check Your Head
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|1995
|"Sabotage"
|Best Hard Rock Performance
|
|-
|Rowspan="2"|1999
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|Hello Nasty
|Best Alternative Music Album
|
|-
|2001
|"Alive"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2005
|"Ch-Check It Out"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|To The 5 Boroughs
|Best Rap Album
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2008
|"Off the Grid"
|Best Pop Instrumental Performance
|
|-
|The Mix-Up
|Best Contemporary Instrumental Album
|
|-
|2010
|"Too Many Rappers" (featuring Nas)
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|}
MTV Video Music Awards
|-
|rowspan="5"|1994
|rowspan="5"|"Sabotage"
|Video of the Year
|
|-
|Best Group Video
|
|-
|Breakthrough Video
|
|-
|Best Direction (Director: Spike Jonze)
|
|-
|Viewer's Choice
|
|-
|1998
|Beastie Boys
|Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award
|
|-
|1999
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Hip-Hop Video
|
|-
|2009
|"Sabotage"
|Best Video (That Should Have Won a Moonman)
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2011
|rowspan="2"|"Make Some Noise"
|Video of the Year
|
|-
|Best Direction (Director: Adam Yauch)
|
|}
MTV Europe Music Awards
|-
|1994
|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|rowspan="4"|1998
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Video
|
|-
|Hello Nasty
|Best Album
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|1999
|Beastie Boys
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2004
|rowspan="2"|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|2011
|"Make Some Noise"
|Best Video
|
|}
MTV Video Music Awards Japan
|-
|2005
|"Ch-Check It Out"
|Best Hip-Hop Video
|
|-
|2009
|Beastie Boys
|MTV Street Icon Award
|
|}
Filmography
Krush Groove (1985)
Tougher Than Leather (1988)
Futurama episode "Hell Is Other Robots" (1999)
Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! (2006)
Fight for Your Right Revisited (2011)
Beastie Boys Story (2020)
Notes
References
External links
Beastie Boys Lyrics Annotated – Beastie Boys lyrics laid out with annotated comments explaining popular culture and historical references as well as known samples.
Beastie Boys
1981 establishments in New York City
Alternative hip hop groups
Capitol Records artists
Def Jam Recordings artists
Grammy Award winners for rap music
Hardcore punk groups from New York (state)
Hip hop groups from New York City
Jewish hip hop groups
Jewish musical groups
Alternative rock groups from New York (state)
Musical groups established in 1981
Musical groups from New York City
Rap rock groups
Rapcore groups
ROIR artists
Musical groups disestablished in 2012
Jews in punk rock
Grand Royal artists
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Feminist musicians
Hardcore hip hop groups | false | [
"Does may refer to:\n\n A form of the English verb do\n Deer, a ruminant mammal belonging to the family Cervidae\n plural of John Doe, a number of unnamed individuals\n Does (album), an album by rock/jazz band The Slip\n Does (band), a Japanese rock band",
"\"Why Does Love Do This to Me\" (alternatively spelt \"Why Does Love (Do This to Me)\") is a song by New Zealand pop band the Exponents. It was released in 1991 and is among the Exponents' most successful and best known songs.\n\nHistory\nHaving moved to London in 1987, the single was the band's first release upon returning to New Zealand and changing their name from the Dance Exponents to the Exponents. The song was written by Jordan Luck in London in 1989, with the group returning to New Zealand in November 1990 and signing to PolyGram Records New Zealand.\n\nThe song proved popular, peaking at number three on the New Zealand Singles Chart, charting for 29 weeks. Its singalong chorus made the single a hit and helped make the Exponents a popular live band in the 1990s. The single was also released in Australia in 1993 but did not chart.\n\nThe song's music video was directed by Kerry Brown. It features the band playing the song in several iconic New Zealand landscapes, including a steamy thermal area, a bush road and by a cliffside.\n\nIn 2001, the song was ranked at number 47 on the APRA Top 100 New Zealand Songs of All Time list, as voted by APRA's members. The song was included on Nature's Best 2, a compilation album of songs number 31 to number 65 from the list. At the 1992 New Zealand Music Awards, the track was awarded Single of the Year.\n\n\"Why Does Love Do This to Me\" is also known as a singalong anthem played during rugby games in New Zealand. Popularised during the 2005 British & Irish Lions tour to New Zealand, the song has become a stadium staple at New Zealand rugby events.\n\nThe track is on the Exponents' 1992 studio album Something Beginning with C and also gives its name to the band's 2011 greatest hits album Why Does Love Do This to Me: The Exponents Greatest Hits. The 2013 deluxe edition of Something Beginning with C includes the original UK demo version of the song.\n\nTrack listings\n\nNew Zealand 7-inch and cassette single (Mercury 868174-1/4)\n \"Why Does Love Do This to Me\" (3:25)\n \"Sadness\"\n\nAustralian CD single (Mercury 868177-2)\n \"Why Does Love Do This to Me\" (Craig Parteils remix)\n \"Nameless Girl\"\n \"Sometimes\"\n \"Why Does Love Do This to Me\" (Video Mix)\n\nPersonnel\n Jordan Luck – vocals\n Brian Jones – guitar\n David Gent – bass \n Michael \"Harry\" Harallambi – drums\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n The Exponents discography - official site\n \"Why Does Love Do This To Me\" at Discogs\n Lyrics and chords (PDF)\n \"Why Does Love Do This To Me\" music video\n\n1991 singles\nAPRA Award winners\nThe Exponents songs\n1991 songs\nPolyGram singles"
] |
[
"Beastie Boys",
"2012-present: Deaths of Yauch and Berry",
"How did Yauch die and when?",
"On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer",
"How and when did Berry die?",
"John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, after a decline of health for several years.",
"What albums did the band release around 2012?",
"the Beastie Boys recorded new music in late 2011 after the release of Hot Sauce Committee (Part 2),",
"Were the sales of the album good?",
"I don't know.",
"what did you find intriguing about the band?",
"In April 2013 it was announced that the group has signed a deal to write an autobiography.",
"Did the autobiography sell well?",
"The book was scheduled to be released in the fall of 2015. However, Horovitz stated that the autobiography is being delayed.",
"What does the band currently do?",
"the Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock"
] | C_135bb6c0abb44071b79b28c1c5149a4a_0 | Do any of the band members still perform? | 8 | Do any of the Beastie Boys members still perform? | Beastie Boys | On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer at the age of 47. On May 24, in an interview with Rolling Stone, Mike D said that the Beastie Boys recorded new music in late 2011 after the release of Hot Sauce Committee (Part 2), but he did not say if these recordings would be released. He also said that the Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock and that "Yauch would genuinely want us to try whatever crazy thing we wanted but never got around to." In April 2013 it was announced that the group has signed a deal to write an autobiography. The book was scheduled to be released in the fall of 2015. However, Horovitz stated that the autobiography is being delayed. According to Horovitz, "We've got pages!....How it's going to fit together, I don't know. But we've got some ideas. It's interesting. It's fun." On May 3, 2013 a children's playground in Brooklyn was renamed for Adam Yauch. In June 2014, Mike D stated that neither he nor Horovitz would perform under the Beastie Boys name again out of respect for Yauch. Founding Beastie Boys guitarist John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, after a decline of health for several years. He was credited with coming up with the Beastie Boys name, and played guitar on the first EP the Beastie Boys recorded. Before the Beastie Boys, he was also a part of Even Worse, Big Fat Love, Highway Stars, Bourbon Deluxe, and Idaho. The first Beastie Boys show took place at Berry's loft. CANNOTANSWER | Mike D stated that neither he nor Horovitz would perform under the Beastie Boys name again | Beastie Boys were an American hip hop group from New York City, formed in 1981. The group was composed of Michael "Mike D" Diamond (vocals, drums), Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (vocals, guitar, programming).
Beastie Boys were formed out of members of experimental hardcore punk band The Young Aborigines in 1978, with Diamond as vocalist, Jeremy Shatan on bass guitar, John Berry on guitar, and Kate Schellenbach on drums. When Shatan left in 1981, Yauch replaced him on bass and the band changed their name to Beastie Boys. Berry left shortly thereafter and was replaced by Horovitz.
After achieving local success with the 1983 comedy hip hop single "Cooky Puss", Beastie Boys made a full transition to hip hop, and Schellenbach left. They toured with Madonna in 1985 and a year later released their debut album, Licensed to Ill (1986), the first rap record to top the Billboard 200 chart. Their second album, Paul's Boutique (1989), composed almost entirely of samples, was a commercial failure, but later received critical acclaim. Check Your Head (1992) and Ill Communication (1994) found mainstream success, followed by Hello Nasty (1998), To the 5 Boroughs (2004), The Mix-Up (2007), and Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011).
Beastie Boys have sold 20 million records in the United States and had seven platinum-selling albums from 1986 to 2004. They are the biggest-selling rap group since Billboard began recording sales in 1991. In 2012, they became the third rap group to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In the same year, Yauch died of cancer and Beastie Boys disbanded. Since then, the remaining two members have released several retrospective works, including a book and documentary film detailing the history of the group as well as a career-spanning compilation album. Diamond has produced acts including Portugal. The Man, while Horovitz has taken small acting roles and continues to play music.
History
1981–1983: Formation and early years
Prior to forming Beastie Boys, Michael Diamond was part of a number of bands such as the Walden Jazz Band, BAN, and the Young Aborigines. Beastie Boys formed in July 1981 when the Young Aborigines bassist Jeremy Shatan left New York City for the summer and the remaining members Michael Diamond, John Berry and Kate Schellenbach formed a new hardcore punk band with Adam Yauch.
In a 2007 interview with Charlie Rose, Yauch recalled that it was Berry who suggested the name Beastie Boys. Although the band stated that "Beastie" is an acronym standing for "Boys Entering Anarchistic States Towards Inner Excellence", in the Charlie Rose interview, both Yauch and Diamond acknowledged that the acronym was an "afterthought" conceived after the name was chosen. The band supported Bad Brains, the Dead Kennedys, the Misfits and Reagan Youth at venues such as CBGB, A7, Trudy Hellers Place and Max's Kansas City, playing at the latter venue on its closing night. In November 1982, Beastie Boys recorded the 7-inch EP Polly Wog Stew at 171A studios, an early recorded example of New York hardcore.
On November 13, 1982, Beastie Boys played Philip Pucci's birthday for the purposes of his short concert film, Beastie. Pucci held the concert in Bard College's Preston Drama Dance Department Theatre. This performance marked Beastie Boys' first on screen appearance in a published motion picture. Pucci's concept for Beastie was to distribute a mixture of both a half dozen 16 mm Bell & Howell Filmo cameras, and 16 mm Bolex cameras to audience members and ask that they capture Beastie Boys performance from the audience's own point of view while a master sync sound camera filmed from the balcony of the abandoned theater where the performance was held. The opening band for that performance was The Young and the Useless, which featured Adam Horovitz as the lead singer. A one-minute clip of Beastie was subsequently excerpted and licensed by Beastie Boys for use in the "Egg Raid on Mojo" segment of the "Skills to Pay the Bills" long-form home video released by Capitol Records. "Skills to Pay the Bills" later went on to be certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Berry left the group in 1982 (later forming Thwig, Big Fat Love and Bourbon Deluxe) and was replaced by Horovitz, who had become close friends with Beastie Boys.
The band also recorded and then performed its first hip hop track, "Cooky Puss", based on a prank call by the group to a Carvel Ice Cream franchise in 1983. It was a part of the new lineup's first EP, also called Cooky Puss, which was the first piece of work that showed their incorporation of the underground rap phenomenon and the use of samples. It quickly became a hit in New York underground dance clubs and night clubs. "Beastie Revolution" was later sampled for a British Airways commercial. Beastie Boys threatened to sue them over the use of the song. British Airways immediately paid them $40,000 in royalties.
1984–1987: Def Jam years and Licensed to Ill
Following the success of "Cooky Puss", the band began to incorporate rap into their sets. They hired a DJ for their live shows, New York University student Rick Rubin, who began producing records soon thereafter. "I met Mike first," Rubin recalled. "I thought he was an arrogant asshole. Through spending time with the Beasties I grew to see that they had this great sense of humour. It wasn't that they were assholes, and even if it was, they were funny with it." Rubin formed Def Jam Recordings with fellow NYU student Russell Simmons, and approached the band about producing them for his new label. As the band was transitioning to hip hop, Schellenbach was fired in 1984, with Diamond taking over on drums. In their 2018 memoir, Ad-Rock expressed regret for firing Schellenbach, which he attributed to her not fitting with the "new tough-rapper-guy identity".
The band's 12-inch single "Rock Hard" (1984) was the second Def Jam record crediting Rubin as producer (the first was "It's Yours" by T La Rock and Jazzy Jay). On July 22, 1986, Beastie Boys opened for John Lydon's post-Sex Pistols band Public Image Ltd., and supported Madonna on her North American The Virgin Tour. Then headlining with Fishbone and Murphy's Law with DJ Hurricane and later in the year, the group was on the Raising Hell tour with Run-DMC, Whodini, LL Cool J, and the Timex Social Club. Thanks to this exposure, "Hold It Now, Hit It" charted on Billboards US R&B and dance charts. "She's on It" from the Krush Groove soundtrack continued in a rap/metal vein while a double A-side 12", "Paul Revere/The New Style", was released at the end of the year.
The band recorded Licensed to Ill in 1986 and released it on November 15, 1986. The album was favorably reviewed by Rolling Stone magazine. Licensed to Ill became one of the best-selling rap albums of the 1980s and the first rap album to go number 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, where it stayed for five weeks. It also reached number 2 on the Top R&B album chart. It was Def Jam's fastest selling debut record to date and sold over nine million copies. The fourth single, "(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)", reached number 7 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Although the group has sold over 26 million records in the US, this is their only single to peak in the US top ten or top twenty. The accompanying video (directed by Ric Menello and Adam Dubin) became an MTV staple. Another song from the album, "No Sleep till Brooklyn", peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart.
The band took the Licensed to Ill tour around the world the following year. The tour was troubled by lawsuits and arrests, with the band accused of provoking the crowd. This culminated in a notorious gig at the Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool, England, on May 30, 1987, that erupted into a riot approximately 10 minutes after the group hit the stage and the arrest of Adam Horovitz by Merseyside Police. He was charged with assault causing grievous bodily harm.
1988–1989: Move to Capitol Records and Paul's Boutique
In 1988, Beastie Boys appeared in Tougher Than Leather, a film directed by Rubin as a star vehicle for Run-D.M.C. and Def Jam Recordings. After Def Jam stopped paying them for work they'd already done and were owed money for, Beastie Boys left Def Jam and signed with Capitol Records.
The second Beastie Boys album, Paul's Boutique, was released on July 25, 1989. Produced by the Dust Brothers, it blends eclectic samples and has been described as an early work of experimental hip hop. It failed to match the sales of Licensed to Ill, peaking at number 14 on the US album charts, but later attracted wide acclaim; Rolling Stone ranked it number 156 on its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
1990–1996: Check Your Head and Ill Communication
Check Your Head was recorded in the band's G-Son studio in Atwater Village, California, and released on its Grand Royal record label. The band was influenced to play instruments on this album by Dutch group Urban Dance Squad; with Mike D on drums, Yauch on bass, Horovitz on guitar and Mark Ramos Nishita ("Keyboard Money Mark") on keyboards. Mario Caldato, Jr., who had helped in the production of Paul's Boutique, engineered the record and became a longtime collaborator. Check Your Head was released in 1992 and was certified double Platinum in the US and peaked at number 10 on the Billboard 200. The single "So What'cha Want" reached number 93 on the Billboard Hot 100 and charted on both the Rap and Modern Rock Chart, while the album's first single, "Pass the Mic", peaked at number 38 on the Hot Dance Music chart. The album also introduced a more experimental direction, with funk and jazz inspired songs including "Lighten Up" and "Something's Got to Give". The band returned to their hardcore punk roots for the song "Time for Livin'", a cover of a 1974 Sly and the Family Stone song. The addition of instruments and the harder rock sound of the album could be considered a precursor to the nu metal genre of music to come out in the later half of the 1990s.
Beastie Boys signed an eclectic roster of artists to their Grand Royal label, including Luscious Jackson, Sean Lennon, and Australian artist Ben Lee. The group owned Grand Royal Records until 2001. Grand Royal's first independent release was Luscious Jackson's album In Search of Manny in 1993. Also in 1993, the band contributed the track "It's the New Style" (with DJ Hurricane) to the AIDS benefit album No Alternative, produced by the Red Hot Organization.
Beastie Boys also published Grand Royal Magazine, with the first edition in 1993 featuring a cover story on Bruce Lee, artwork by George Clinton, and interviews with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and A Tribe Called Quest's MC Q-Tip. The 1995 issue of the magazine contained a memorable piece on the mullet. The Oxford English Dictionary cites this as the first published use of the term, along with the lyrics from the band's 1994 song, "Mullet Head". That term was not heard in the 1980s, even though that decade has retroactively been hailed as the mullet's peak in popularity. The OED says that the term was "apparently coined, and certainly popularized, by US hip-hop group Beastie Boys". Grand Royal Magazine is also responsible for giving British band Sneaker Pimps their name.
Ill Communication, released in 1994, saw Beastie Boys' return to the top of the charts when the album debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200 and peaked at number 2 on the R&B/hip hop album chart. The single "Sabotage" became a hit on the modern rock charts and the music video, directed by Spike Jonze, received extensive play on MTV. "Get It Together" reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. Also in 1994, the band released Some Old Bullshit, featuring the band's early independent material, which made it to number 46 on the Billboard Independent Albums chart.
Beastie Boys headlined at Lollapalooza—an American travelling music festival—in 1994, together with The Smashing Pumpkins. In addition, the band performed three concerts (in Los Angeles, New York City, and Washington, D.C.) to raise money for the Milarepa Fund and dedicated the royalties from "Shambala" and "Bodhisattva Vow" from the Ill Communication to the cause. The Milarepa Fund aims to raise awareness of Tibetan human rights issues and the exile of the Dalai Lama. In 1996, Yauch organized the largest rock benefit show since 1985's Live Aid – the Tibetan Freedom Concert, a two-day festival at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco that attracted over 100,000 attendees.
In 1995, the popularity of Beastie Boys was underlined when tickets for an arena tour went on sale in the US and Madison Square Garden and Chicago's Rosemont Horizon sold out within 30 minutes. One dollar from each ticket sold went through Milarepa to local charities in each city on the tour. Beastie Boys toured South America and Southeast Asia for the first time. The band also released Aglio e Olio, a collection of eight songs lasting just 11 minutes harking back to their punk roots, in 1995. The In Sound from Way Out!, a collection of previously released jazz/funk instrumentals, was released on Grand Royal in 1996 with the title and artwork a homage to an album by electronic pop music pioneers Perrey and Kingsley.
In 1992, Beastie Boys decided to sample portions of the sound recording of "Choir" by James Newton in various renditions of their song "Pass the Mic". The band did not obtain a license from Newton to use the composition. Pursuant to their license from ECM Records, Beastie Boys digitally sampled the opening six seconds of Newton's sound recording of "Choir", and repeated this six-second sample as a background element throughout their song. Newton brought suit, claiming that the band infringed his copyright in the underlying composition of "Choir". The district court granted Beastie Boys summary judgment. The district court said that no license was required because the three-note segment of "Choir" lacked the requisite originality and was therefore not copyrightable. The decision was affirmed on appeal.
1997–2001: Hello Nasty
Beastie Boys began work on the album Hello Nasty at the G-Son studios, Los Angeles in 1995, but continued to produce and record it in New York City after Yauch moved to Manhattan in 1996. The album displayed a substantial shift in musical feel, with the addition of Mix Master Mike. The album featured bombastic beats, rap samples, and experimental sounds. Released on July 14, 1998, Hello Nasty earned first week sales of 681,000 in the US and went straight to number 1 in the US, the UK, Germany, Australia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and Sweden. The album achieved number 2 rank on the charts in Canada and Japan, and reached top-ten chart positions in Austria, Switzerland, Ireland, Belgium, Finland, France and Israel.
Beastie Boys won two Grammy Awards in 1999, receiving the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album for Hello Nasty as well as the Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for "Intergalactic". This was the first and, as of 2008, only time that a band had won awards in both rap and alternative categories.
Also at the 1998 MTV Video Music Awards they won the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award for their contribution to music videos. The following year at the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards they also won the award for Best Hip Hop Video for their hit song "Intergalactic". Beastie Boys used both appearances at the Video Music Awards to make politically charged speeches of considerable length to the sizable MTV audiences. At the 1998 ceremony, Yauch addressed the issue of Muslim people being stereotyped as terrorists and that most people of the Muslim faith are not terrorists. These comments were made in the wake of the US Embassy bombings that had occurred in both Kenya and Tanzania only a month earlier. At the 1999 ceremony in the wake of the horror stories that were coming out of Woodstock 99, Adam Horovitz addressed the fact that there had been many cases of sexual assaults and rapes at the festival, suggesting the need for bands and festivals to pay much more attention to the security details at their concerts.
Beastie Boys started an arena tour in 1998. Through Ian C. Rogers, the band made live downloads of their performances available for their fans, but were temporarily thwarted when Capitol Records removed them from its website. Beastie Boys was one of the first bands who made MP3 downloads available on their website. The group got a high level of response and public awareness as a result including a published article in The Wall Street Journal on the band's efforts.
On September 28, 1999, Beastie Boys joined Elvis Costello to play "Radio Radio" on the 25th anniversary season of Saturday Night Live.
Beastie Boys released The Sounds of Science, a two-CD anthology of their works in 1999. This album reached number 19 on the Billboard 200, number 18 in Canada, and number 14 on the R&B/Hip Hop chart. The one new song, the single "Alive", reached number 11 on the Billboard Modern Rock chart.
In 2000, Beastie Boys had planned to co-headline the "Rhyme and Reason Tour" with Rage Against the Machine and Busta Rhymes, but the tour was canceled when drummer Mike D suffered a serious injury due to a bicycle accident. The official diagnosis was fifth-degree acromioclavicular joint dislocation; he needed surgery and extensive rehabilitation. By the time he recovered, Rage Against the Machine had disbanded, although they would reunite seven years later.
Under the name Country Mike, Mike D recorded an album, Country Mike's Greatest Hits, and gave it to friends and family for Christmas in 2000. Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz's side project BS 2000 released Simply Mortified in 2001.
In October 2001, after the September 11, 2001 attacks, Beastie Boys organized and headlined the New Yorkers Against Violence Concert at the Hammerstein Ballroom.
2002–2008: To the 5 Boroughs and The Mix-Up
In 2002, Adam Yauch started building a new studio facility, Oscilloscope Laboratories, in downtown Manhattan, New York and the band started work on a new album there. The band released a protest song, "In a World Gone Mad", against the 2003 Iraq war as a free download on several websites, including the Milarepa website, the MTV website, MoveOn.org, and Win Without War. The 19th and 20th Tibetan Freedom Concerts were held in Tokyo and Taipei, Beastie Boys' first Taiwan appearance. Beastie Boys also headlined the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.
Their single, "Ch-Check It Out", debuted on The O.C. in "The Vegas" episode from Season 1, which aired April 28, 2004.
To the 5 Boroughs was released worldwide on June 15, 2004. It was the first album the band produced themselves and reached number 1 on the Billboard albums chart, number 2 in the UK and Australia, and number 3 in Germany. The first single from the album, "Ch-Check It Out", reached number 1 in Canada and on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart.
The album was the cause of some controversy with allegations that it installed spyware when inserted into the CD drive of a computer. The band denied this allegation, defending that there is no copy protection software on the albums sold in the US and UK. While there is Macrovision CDS-200 copy protection software installed on European copies of the album, this is standard practice for all European releases on EMI/Capitol Records released in Europe, and it does not install spyware or any form of permanent software.
The band stated in mid-2006 that they were writing material for their next album and would be producing it themselves.
Speaking to British music weekly NME (April 26, 2007), Diamond revealed that a new album was to be called The Mix-Up. Despite initial confusion regarding whether the album would have lyrics as opposed to being purely instrumental, the Mic-To-Mic blog reported that Capitol Records had confirmed it would be strictly instrumental and erroneously reported a release date scheduled for July 10, 2007. (The album was eventually released June 26, as originally reported.) On May 1, 2007, this was further cemented by an e-mail sent to those on the band's mailing list – explicitly stating that the album would be all instrumental:
The band subsequently confirmed the new album and announced a short tour that focused on festivals as opposed to a traditional tour, including the likes of Sónar (Spain), Roskilde (Denmark), Hurricane/Southside (Germany), Bestival (Isle of Wight), Electric Picnic (Ireland) and Open'er Festival (Poland). Beastie Boys performed at the UK leg of Live Earth July 7, 2007 at Wembley Stadium, London with "Sabotage", "So What'cha Want", "Intergalactic", and "Sure Shot".
They worked with Reverb, a non-profit environmental organization, on their 2007 summer tour.
They headlined the Langerado Music Festival in South Florida on Friday, March 7, 2008.
They won a Grammy for The Mix-Up in the "Best Pop Instrumental Album" category at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards in 2008.
2009–2012: Hot Sauce Committee
In February 2009, Yauch revealed their forthcoming new album had taken the band's sound in a "bizarre" new direction, saying "It's a combination of playing and sampling stuff as we're playing, and also sampling pretty obscure records." The tentative title for the record was Tadlock's Glasses, of which Yauch explained the inspiration behind the title:
On May 25, 2009, it was announced during an interview on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon that the name of their new album would be Hot Sauce Committee and was set for release on September 15 (with the track listing of the album announced through their mailing list on June 23). The album included a collaboration with Santigold who co-wrote and sang with the band on the track "Don't Play No Game That I Can't Win".
In June, the group appeared at Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival and performed the new single from the album titled "Too Many Rappers" alongside rapper Nas who appears on the track. It would be the last live performance by Beastie Boys as a trio. The group would have toured the UK later in the year in support of the new record.
Speaking to Drowned in Sound, Beastie Boys revealed that Part 2 was done. Mike D also hinted it may be released via unusual means:
On July 20, Yauch announced on the band's official YouTube channel and through the fan mailing list, the cancellation of several tour dates and the postponement of the new album due to the discovery of a cancerous tumor in his parotid gland and a lymph node. The group also had to cancel their co-headlining gig at the Osheaga Festival in Montreal and also another headlining spot for the first night of the All Points West Festival in Jersey City, New Jersey.
In late October 2010, Beastie Boys sent out two emails regarding the status of Hot Sauce Committee Pts. 1 and 2 to their online mailing list. An email dated October 18 read: "Although we regret to inform you that Hot Sauce Committee Part 1 will continue to be delayed indefinitely, Hot Sauce Committee Part 2 will be released on time as originally planned in spring of 2011." One week later, a second email was sent out, reading as follows:
The official release dates were April 27, 2011, for Japan; April 29 in the UK and Europe, and May 3, 2011, in the US. The third single for the album "Make Some Noise" was made available for download on April 11, 2011, as well as a limited edition 7-inch vinyl single for Record Store Day five days later with a Passion Pit remix of the track as a b-side. The track was leaked online on April 6 and subsequently made available via their blog.
On April 22, Beastie Boys emailed out the cryptic message "This Sat, 10:35 am EST – Just listen, listen, listen to the beat box". A day later, they live streamed their album online via beatbox inside Madison Square Garden.
The band was announced as an inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in December 2011. They were inducted by Chuck D and LL Cool J on April 14, 2012. Yauch was too sick to attend the ceremony, having been admitted to NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital the same day, therefore the group didn't perform; instead Black Thought, Travie from Gym Class Heroes and Kid Rock performed a medley of their songs. Diamond and Horovitz accepted and read a speech that Yauch had written.
2012–present: Deaths of Yauch and Berry and disbandment
On May 4, 2012, Yauch died from cancer at the age of 47. Mike D told Rolling Stone that Beastie Boys had recorded new music in late 2011, but did not say if these recordings would be released. He also said that Beastie Boys would likely disband due to the death of MCA, though he was open to making new music with Ad-Rock and that "Yauch would genuinely want us to try whatever crazy thing we wanted but never got around to". In June 2014, Mike D confirmed that he and Ad-Rock would not make music under the Beastie Boys name again.
Founding Beastie Boys guitarist John Berry died on May 19, 2016, aged 52, as a result of frontotemporal dementia, following several years of ill health. He was credited with naming the band Beastie Boys and played guitar on the first EP. The first Beastie Boys show took place at Berry's loft.
Yauch's will forbids the use of Beastie Boys music in advertisements. In June 2014, Beastie Boys won a lawsuit against Monster Energy for using their music in a commercial without permission. They were awarded $1.7 million in damages and $668,000 for legal fees. In October 2018, Michael Diamond and Adam Horovitz released a memoir, Beastie Boys Book. In 2020, they released a documentary, Beastie Boys Story, directed by Spike Jonze. The career-spanning book and documentary were complemented by the compilation album Beastie Boys Music in October 2020.
Tibetan Freedom Concert
In 1994, Yauch and activist Erin Potts organized the Tibetan Freedom Concert in order to raise awareness of humans rights abuses by the Chinese government on the Tibetan people. Yauch became aware of this after hiking in Nepal and speaking with Tibetan refugees. The events became annual, and shortly after went international with acts such as Live, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe of R.E.M., Rage Against the Machine, The Smashing Pumpkins, and U2.
Musical style, influences, and legacy
Originally a hardcore punk band, Beastie Boys had largely abandoned the genre in favor of hip hop and rap rock by the time work began on their debut studio album Licensed to Ill. The group mixed elements of hip hop, punk, funk, electro, jazz and Latin music into their music. They have also been described as alternative hip hop and .
Around the time of the release of their debut album, Licensed to Ill, Mike D started to appear on stage and in publicity photographs wearing a large Volkswagen emblem attached to a chain-link necklace. This started a rash of thefts of the emblem from vehicles around the world as fans tried to emulate him. A controversial concert in Columbus, Georgia in 1987 led to the passage of a lewdness ordinance in that city.
Beastie Boys are considered very influential in both the hip hop and rock music scenes, with artists such as Eminem, Rage Against the Machine, Hed PE, , Sublime, Mac Miller , Korn , Slipknot, and Blur citing them as an influence. Beastie Boys have had four albums reach the top of the Billboard album charts (Licensed to Ill, Ill Communication, Hello Nasty and To the 5 Boroughs) since 1986. In the November 2004 issue, Rolling Stone named "Sabotage" the 475th song on their 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list.
In their April 2005 issue, Rolling Stone ranked them number 77 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. VH1 ranked them number 89 on their list of their 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. On September 27, 2007, it was announced that Beastie Boys were one of the nine nominees for the 2008 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductions. In December 2011, they were announced to be official 2012 inductees.
Beastie Boys have many high-profile longtime fans, including UFC president Dana White, who has a hand-signed bass guitar signed by all three members in his office and a copy of the Beastie Boys book. Speaking on the death of Adam Yauch, White said, "I seriously haven't been impacted by a death in a long time like I was with the Beastie Boys". Actor Seth Rogen, who appeared in the video for "Make Some Noise", also said, "I'm a huge Beastie Boys fan and they just called and asked if I wanted to be a part of it, and I said yes without hesitation. I didn't need to hear anything. I didn't need to see anything, any concepts. I was just like, 'I will literally do anything you ask me to do". Ben Stiller was seen in the crowd for the DVD release Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! and featured Horovitz in his movie While We're Young, where he said, "I'm a huge Beastie Boys fan, so doing that, for me, was beyond anything". Eminem was highly influenced by the Beastie Boys and cited them alongside LL Cool J as being the reason he got into rap. During an interview with MTV after the death of Yauch, he said, "Adam Yauch brought a lot of positivity into the world and I think it's obvious to anyone how big of an influence the Beastie Boys were on me and so many others. They are trailblazers and pioneers and Adam will be sorely missed. My thoughts and prayers are with his family, Mike D., and Ad-Rock." His album cover for Kamikaze paid homage to Licensed to Ill and he also paid homage in his "Berzerk" video. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Beavis and Butt-Head creator Mike Judge acknowledged he was a fan of the band, citing his favorite song as "Fight for Your Right", as the Beastie Boys appeared on Beavis and Butt-Head on numerous occasions. Kid Rock wrote an in-depth tribute to Yauch after being influenced by the band, which said, "I thought I was the 4th member of Beastie Boys in 7th grade. You couldn't tell me I wasn't. The first time I ever saw them on stage was a very early show of theirs before Licensed to Ill came out, opening for Run DMC at Joe Louis Arena. My jaw dropped to the floor!".
In 2020, Spin Magazine ranked Beastie Boys as the 12th most influential artist of the previous 35 years.
Sampling lawsuit
In 2003, Beastie Boys were involved in the landmark sampling decision, Newton v. Diamond. In that case, a federal judge ruled that the band was not liable for sampling James Newton's "Choir" in their track, "Pass the Mic". The sample used is the six-second flute stab. In short, Beastie Boys cleared the sample but obtained only the rights to use the sound recording and not the composition rights to the song "Choir". In the decision, the judge found that:
Band members
Members
John Berry – guitars (1981–1982; died 2016)
Mike D – vocals, drums (1981–2012)
Kate Schellenbach – drums, percussion (1981–1984)
MCA – vocals, bass (1981–2012; died 2012)
Ad-Rock – vocals, guitars (1982–2012)
Touring musicians
DJ Double R – disc jockey (1984–1985)
Doctor Dré – disc jockey (1986)
DJ Hurricane – disc jockey (1986–1997)
Eric Bobo – percussion, drums (1992–1996)
Money Mark (Mark Ramos-Nishita) – keyboards, vocals (1992–2012)
Amery "AWOL" Smith – drums, backing vocals, percussion (1992–?)
Alfredo Ortiz – drums, percussion (1996–2012)
Mix Master Mike – disc jockey, backing vocals (1998–2012)
Timeline
Touring Members Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Licensed to Ill (1986)
Paul's Boutique (1989)
Check Your Head (1992)
Ill Communication (1994)
Hello Nasty (1998)
To the 5 Boroughs (2004)
The Mix-Up (2007)
Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011)
Tours
The Virgin Tour (1985) (supporting Madonna)
Raising Hell Tour (1986) (supporting Run-D.M.C.)
Licensed to Ill Tour (1987) (with Public Enemy)
Together Forever Tour (1987) (with Run-D.M.C.)
Check Your Head Tour (1992) (with Cypress Hill, Rollins Band, Firehose, and Basehead)
Ill Communication Tour (1994–1995)
In the Round Tour (1998–1999) (with A Tribe Called Quest and Money Mark)
To the 5 Boroughs Tour (2004)
The Mix-Up Tour (2007–2008)
Awards and nominations
Grammy Awards
|-
|1992
|Check Your Head
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|1995
|"Sabotage"
|Best Hard Rock Performance
|
|-
|Rowspan="2"|1999
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|Hello Nasty
|Best Alternative Music Album
|
|-
|2001
|"Alive"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2005
|"Ch-Check It Out"
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|-
|To The 5 Boroughs
|Best Rap Album
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2008
|"Off the Grid"
|Best Pop Instrumental Performance
|
|-
|The Mix-Up
|Best Contemporary Instrumental Album
|
|-
|2010
|"Too Many Rappers" (featuring Nas)
|Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
|
|}
MTV Video Music Awards
|-
|rowspan="5"|1994
|rowspan="5"|"Sabotage"
|Video of the Year
|
|-
|Best Group Video
|
|-
|Breakthrough Video
|
|-
|Best Direction (Director: Spike Jonze)
|
|-
|Viewer's Choice
|
|-
|1998
|Beastie Boys
|Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award
|
|-
|1999
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Hip-Hop Video
|
|-
|2009
|"Sabotage"
|Best Video (That Should Have Won a Moonman)
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2011
|rowspan="2"|"Make Some Noise"
|Video of the Year
|
|-
|Best Direction (Director: Adam Yauch)
|
|}
MTV Europe Music Awards
|-
|1994
|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|rowspan="4"|1998
|"Intergalactic"
|Best Video
|
|-
|Hello Nasty
|Best Album
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|1999
|Beastie Boys
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|2004
|rowspan="2"|Beastie Boys
|Best Group
|
|-
|Best Hip-Hop
|
|-
|2011
|"Make Some Noise"
|Best Video
|
|}
MTV Video Music Awards Japan
|-
|2005
|"Ch-Check It Out"
|Best Hip-Hop Video
|
|-
|2009
|Beastie Boys
|MTV Street Icon Award
|
|}
Filmography
Krush Groove (1985)
Tougher Than Leather (1988)
Futurama episode "Hell Is Other Robots" (1999)
Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That! (2006)
Fight for Your Right Revisited (2011)
Beastie Boys Story (2020)
Notes
References
External links
Beastie Boys Lyrics Annotated – Beastie Boys lyrics laid out with annotated comments explaining popular culture and historical references as well as known samples.
Beastie Boys
1981 establishments in New York City
Alternative hip hop groups
Capitol Records artists
Def Jam Recordings artists
Grammy Award winners for rap music
Hardcore punk groups from New York (state)
Hip hop groups from New York City
Jewish hip hop groups
Jewish musical groups
Alternative rock groups from New York (state)
Musical groups established in 1981
Musical groups from New York City
Rap rock groups
Rapcore groups
ROIR artists
Musical groups disestablished in 2012
Jews in punk rock
Grand Royal artists
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Feminist musicians
Hardcore hip hop groups | false | [
"The Escorts (later The Do's & Don'ts) are a 1950s and 1960s Rock and roll band from Iowa, United States. The Iowa Rock 'N Roll Music Association's Hall of Fame inducted this band in the year that the Hall of Fame was started, 1997. They were one of the first bands in Iowa to play Rock and Roll music, starting in 1959. They released more 45 rpm records than any other Iowa band in the 1960s. They performed in ballrooms all over Iowa and traveled out-of-state as well. They are one of the few bands to perform for over 45 years. See related article The Escorts / The Do's & The Don'ts (album).\n\nMembers of The Escorts included Dennis Shryack, who later became a successful screenwriter on such films as Code of Silence (1985), Pale Rider (1985) and Turner & Hooch (1989).\n\nSuggested reading\nIowa Rocked! The 1960s (2nd edition) By Tom Tourville\n(Midwest Publications, 56 pages saddlestitched; 1996)\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nThe Escorts / Do's & Don'ts\nThe Do's and Don'ts on Facebook\nThe Iowa Rock 'N Roll Music Association\nFan videos\n\nEscorts",
"Backworth Colliery Band are a traditional British Brass Band based in Backworth, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England. The band consist of 27 senior members and 15 junior members, all of whom play brass or percussion instruments fitting the traditional brass band instrumentation.\n\nHistory of the Band\n\nThe early history of the band is something which is by no means clear. The date of around 1886 for the formation of the band has been deduced from Durham League material. It was set up around the same time as what is now Backworth club was built. It started life as a military band, but the band became wholly brass in 1920. The problems stem from the records of the early minutes of the band being missing, possibly lost when they moved rehearsal rooms, as they originally rehearsed in a drinking establishment which is now just across the road from their present base. The band was definitely formed out of the workforce from the surrounding pits, and sponsorship was won from the National Union of Mineworkers before the nationalisation of the coal companies in 1947.\n\nThe band has continued to perform at local concerts throughout its life. Of note too are the number of competitions the band has participated in, both locally and nationally. The band has performed as such events as the Whit Fridays, Durham Miner's Gala, CISWO Mineworkers Contest and the National Brass Band Finals.\n\nThe band changed name in 2000 to Five Rivers Brass due to a sponsorship with the Five Rivers Group. However the sponsorship only lasted for one year, and the band has reverted to being Backworth Colliery Band.\n\nMembership of the Band\n\nThe bands draw their membership from a variety of sources throughout the community. Although the band has a core membership from Backworth, Shiremoor and nearby towns such as Whitley Bay and North Shields, the bands also attract members from further afield such as Jarrow, Durham and Northumberland.\n\nMembership is open to any player with the desire and ability to play a brass or percussion instrument. The band supplies most instruments on a loan basis and the band also provides tuition to any member requiring such assistance. The main instruments of a brass band are cornet, tenor horn, baritone horn, euphonium, trombone, tuba (bass) and percussion.\n\nThe band operates a strict Child Protection policy and Equal Opportunities policy. The band is run by a committee and is a volunteer-led, self funding organisation.\n\nTraining Band\n\nThe training band was formed in 2003 as an independent body to the senior band. Backworth Colliery Training Band is a committee-led organisation, which provides the opportunity for people of all ages in the area to learn and perform brass band music.\n\nThe band is divided into two sections; a band for the more proficient players, and individuals who are just starting to learn instruments and require one-on-one tuition.\n\nMany of the training band members also play with the senior band, and are often heard playing at the same events as the senior band.\n\nOther Ensembles\n\nAs well as performing as a traditional 27-strong brass band, the band sometimes performs as a smaller group when the occasion demands. The band also perform as a marching band for parades.\n\nConcerts and Contests\nThe band performs at many concerts and contests throughout the North East.\n\nBritish brass bands"
] |
[
"Nikki Gil",
"Acting career and TV hosting"
] | C_e0ddada6341f4a8dab5919e5faca3a73_0 | What happened to Nikki after the 2005 Coca-Cola commercial? | 1 | Did Nikki Gil do any more acting or tv hosting after the 2005 Coca-Cola commercial? | Nikki Gil | In 2005, Gil was given a VJ stint for ABS-CBN's music channel subsidiary, MYX until she left MYX in January 2016. She was also picked to host the now-defunct talk show MRS on ABS-CBN and morning show Breakfast on Studio 23. She later would join the cast of the weekly variety show ASAP Mania. In 2006, she was joined by Toni Gonzaga, Bianca Gonzalez and Sam Milby as a host for the first season of Pinoy Dream Academy, a singing reality show from Endemol. In 2007, she became part of an anime-inspired fantasy series "Rounin" and as an extended cast for the drama series "Pangarap na Bituin". In 2008, she was again chosen to be the host for the season 2 of Pinoy Dream Academy with Toni Gonzaga and Billy Crawford. In 2009, she appeared in "Pieta", an afternoon teleserye with Ryan Agoncillo, and also appeared in the teleserye "Florinda" with Maricel Soriano. Nikki Gil is one of the mainstay on ABS-CBN with ASAP XV. In 2010, she started hosting E-Live along with Luis Manzano and Ogie Diaz. She also did a fair share of hosting occasionally on Showtime replacing Anne Curtis. In 2007, Gil did her first movie appearance by doing a cameo role as John Lloyd Cruz's best friend for One More Chance. In 2009, she appeared along with Bea Alonzo, Sam Milby, Derek Ramsay for a Star Cinema movie entitled And I Love You So. In 2010, she was the lead actress in a romance film entitled The Red Shoes produced by Unitel Pictures with Marvin Agustin, which won the Best Picture in the 27th Bogota International Film Festival. In 2012, Gil became part of the TV remake of the Salvador Royales film Mundo Man ay Magunaw as Jennifer la Pena. In 2013, she played a special participation role in Apoy Sa Dagat as young Odessa, and later became a star antagonist in the remake of Maria Mercedes as Misty. The same year, Nikki Gil won as Best Single Performance By An Actress for her role in "MMK" in the recent 2013 PMPC Star Awards For TV. In 2014, she was a member of the cast of Hawak-Kamay, playing Meann. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Monica Pauline "Nikki" Santos Gil-Albert (born August 23, 1987) is a Filipina former actress, singer, host, model, and video jockey. She is known for being part of the afternoon remake of Carlo J. Caparas' Pieta (2008–2009) and, in 2009, for portraying Princess Punzalan in the afternoon drama Nagsimula sa Puso (2009–2010). She is also well known for her lead portrayal as Jennifer "Jenny" La Peña in the 2012 remake of the 1990 radio serial of Salvador Royales' Mundo Man ay Magunaw, originally played by Jennifer Sevilla in the film version produced by SEIKO Films.
Biography
Monica Pauline Gil (aka Nikki Gil) was born in Manila to Dino and Julie Gil. She is of Filipino, Spanish and German descent. Born to a father who plays the piano and a mom who sang in a church choir, Nikki showed early signs of musical talent. At the age of four years, Nikki was already singing and doing voiceovers for commercials. She graduated from Shekinah Christian Training Center in March 2005 as valedictorian. In 2009, she graduated from Ateneo de Manila University, majoring in English literature.
Career
Music
Gil first rose to prominence when she was 17 years old after appearing in a 2005 Coca-Cola commercial. After that, she went on to released her first self-titled album, Nikki Gil, that same year under EMI Philippines with "Sakayan ng Jeep" as the carrier single. In 2006, it was repackaged and rereleased with and additional song, "Glowing Inside". In July 2006, EMI Philippines and Walt Disney Records hired Nikki along with other Asian artists (Vince Chong of Malaysia and Alicia Pan of Singapore) to sing and to star in the music video of "High School Musical", a Disney Channel production. Nikki also sang "Breaking Free" and "Gotta Go My Own Way" in the production's album.
In 2008, Gil released her second music album, Hear My Heart, with "Hear My Heart" as the carrier single. She co-wrote the song with her younger sister, Dani. During the same year, Disney hired her to sing and star in the music video of the pop version of "It's a Small World After All". In addition, she was asked to sing the Tagalog version of the song at the grand opening of "It's a Small World" in Hong Kong Disneyland.
In 2010, Gil released her third music album, Somebody to Love, with "Somebody to Love" as the carrier single, a song written by her younger sister, Dani. Gil played the character of Elle Woods in the Manila production of the musical Legally Blonde which is based on the 2001 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer motion picture Legally Blonde and the novel by Amanda Brown.
In 2014, Nikki moved to her new recording company Universal Records.
Acting career and TV hosting
In 2005, Gil was given a VJ stint for ABS-CBN's music channel subsidiary, MYX until she left MYX in January 2016. She was also picked to host the now-defunct talk show MRS on ABS-CBN and morning show Breakfast on Studio 23. She later would join the cast of the weekly variety show ASAP Mania. In 2006, she was joined by Toni Gonzaga, Bianca Gonzalez and Sam Milby as a host for the first season of Pinoy Dream Academy, a singing reality show from Endemol. In 2007, she became part of an anime-inspired fantasy series "Rounin" and as an extended cast for the drama series "Pangarap na Bituin". In 2008, she was again chosen to be the host for the season 2 of Pinoy Dream Academy with Toni Gonzaga and Billy Crawford. In 2009, she appeared in "Pieta", an afternoon teleserye with Ryan Agoncillo, and also appeared in the teleserye "Florinda" with Maricel Soriano. Nikki Gil is one of the mainstay on ABS-CBN with ASAP XV. In 2010, she started hosting E-Live along with Luis Manzano and Ogie Diaz. She also did a fair share of hosting occasionally on Showtime replacing Anne Curtis.
In 2007, Gil did her first movie appearance by doing a cameo role as John Lloyd Cruz's best friend for One More Chance. In 2009, she appeared along with Bea Alonzo, Sam Milby and Derek Ramsay for a Star Cinema movie entitled And I Love You So. In 2010, she was the lead actress in a romance film entitled The Red Shoes produced by Unitel Pictures with Marvin Agustin, which won the Best Picture in the 27th Bogota International Film Festival.
In 2012, Gil became part of the TV remake of the Salvador Royales film Mundo Man ay Magunaw as Jennifer la Pena.
In 2013, she played a special participation role in Apoy Sa Dagat as young Odessa, and later became a star antagonist in the remake of Maria Mercedes as Misty. The same year, Nikki Gil won as Best Single Performance By An Actress for her role in "MMK" in the recent 2013 PMPC Star Awards For TV.
In 2014, she was a member of the cast of Hawak-Kamay, playing Meann.
She is expected to return to showbiz through a musical play from Repertory Philippines entitled 'Carousel'.
Personal life
She has a sister, Dani Gil, who also sings and plays the piano. Dani helped Nikki compose her songs, too. Nikki first performed in front of an audience in church as a worship leader before entering the entertainment business.
In 2008, Gil began dating Billy Crawford, and their relationship ended in 2013. According to Gil, the breakup was caused by Crawford's infidelity while she chose to remain celibate until marriage: "The scary thing, knowing what I know now, is I would have said yes to his insincere offers of marriage!" she said. "I was made to believe I was making up these things in my head—I thought we were just plateau-ing." Gil married BJ Albert (nephew of singer-actress Joey Albert) on November 21, 2015. In November 2017, Gil gave birth to her first child, a boy. She is now retired from showbiz to focus on her family life.
Theater
2007: Seussical the Musical - The Cat
2010: Legally Blonde: The Musical - Elle Woods
2011: Sweet Charity - Charity Hope Valentine
2013: They're Playing Our Song - Sonia Walsk
2014: The Last 5 Years - Cathy Hyatt
Filmography
Movies
Television
Discography
Albums
Singles
Other appearances
Awards and nominations
References
External links
1987 births
Living people
Ateneo de Manila University alumni
Star Magic Batch 11
21st-century Filipino women singers
Filipino television actresses
Filipino television personalities
Filipino people of German descent
Filipino people of Spanish descent
21st-century Filipino actresses
VJs (media personalities)
Filipino musical theatre actresses
PolyEast Records artists
Universal Records (Philippines) artists | false | [
"Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by The Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton and was bought out by businessman Asa Griggs Candler, whose marketing tactics led Coca-Cola to its dominance of the world soft-drink market throughout the 20th century. The drink's name refers to two of its original ingredients: coca leaves, and kola nuts (a source of caffeine). The current formula of Coca-Cola remains a trade secret; however, a variety of reported recipes and experimental recreations have been published. The drink has inspired imitators and created a whole classification of soft drink: colas.\n\nThe Coca-Cola Company produces concentrate, which is then sold to licensed Coca-Cola bottlers throughout the world. The bottlers, who hold exclusive territory contracts with the company, produce the finished product in cans and bottles from the concentrate, in combination with filtered water and sweeteners. A typical can contains of sugar (usually in the form of high-fructose corn syrup in North America). The bottlers then sell, distribute, and merchandise Coca-Cola to retail stores, restaurants, and vending machines throughout the world. The Coca-Cola Company also sells concentrate for soda fountains of major restaurants and foodservice distributors.\n\nThe Coca-Cola Company has on occasion introduced other cola drinks under the Coke name. The most common of these is Diet Coke, along with others including Caffeine-Free Coca-Cola, Diet Coke Caffeine-Free, Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, Coca-Cola Cherry, Coca-Cola Vanilla, and special versions with lemon, lime, and coffee. Coca-Cola was called Coca-Cola Classic from July 1985 to 2009, to distinguish it from \"New Coke\". Based on Interbrand's \"best global brand\" study of 2020, Coca-Cola was the world's sixth most valuable brand. In 2013, Coke products were sold in over 200 countries worldwide, with consumers drinking more than 1.8 billion company beverage servings each day. Coca-Cola ranked No. 87 in the 2018 Fortune 500 list of the largest United States corporations by total revenue.\n\nHistory\n\n19th century historical origins\n\nConfederate Colonel John Pemberton, wounded in the American Civil War and addicted to morphine, also had a medical degree and began a quest to find a substitute for the problematic drug. In 1885 at Pemberton's Eagle Drug and Chemical House, his drugstore in Columbus, Georgia, he registered Pemberton's French Wine Coca nerve tonic. Pemberton's tonic may have been inspired by the formidable success of Vin Mariani, a French-Corsican coca wine, but his recipe additionally included the African kola nut, the beverage's source of caffeine.\n\nIt is also worth noting that a Spanish drink called \"Kola Coca\" was presented at a contest in Philadelphia in 1885, a year before the official birth of Coca-Cola. The rights for this Spanish drink were bought by Coca-Cola in 1953.\n\nIn 1886, when Atlanta and Fulton County passed prohibition legislation, Pemberton responded by developing Coca-Cola, a nonalcoholic version of Pemberton's French Wine Coca. It was marketed as \"Coca-Cola: The temperance drink\", which appealed to many people as the temperance movement enjoyed wide support during this time. The first sales were at Jacob's Pharmacy in Atlanta, Georgia, on May 8, 1886, where it initially sold for five cents a glass. Drugstore soda fountains were popular in the United States at the time due to the belief that carbonated water was good for the health, and Pemberton's new drink was marketed and sold as a patent medicine, Pemberton claiming it a cure for many diseases, including morphine addiction, indigestion, nerve disorders, headaches, and impotence. Pemberton ran the first advertisement for the beverage on May 29 of the same year in the Atlanta Journal.\n\nBy 1888, three versions of Coca-Cola – sold by three separate businesses – were on the market. A co-partnership had been formed on January 14, 1888, between Pemberton and four Atlanta businessmen: J.C. Mayfield, A.O. Murphey, C.O. Mullahy, and E.H. Bloodworth. Not codified by any signed document, a verbal statement given by Asa Candler years later asserted under testimony that he had acquired a stake in Pemberton's company as early as 1887. John Pemberton declared that the name \"Coca-Cola\" belonged to his son, Charley, but the other two manufacturers could continue to use the formula.\n\nCharley Pemberton's record of control over the \"Coca-Cola\" name was the underlying factor that allowed for him to participate as a major shareholder in the March 1888 Coca-Cola Company incorporation filing made in his father's place. Charley's exclusive control over the \"Coca-Cola\" name became a continual thorn in Asa Candler's side. Candler's oldest son, Charles Howard Candler, authored a book in 1950 published by Emory University. In this definitive biography about his father, Candler specifically states: \" on April 14, 1888, the young druggist Asa Griggs Candler purchased a one-third interest in the formula of an almost completely unknown proprietary elixir known as Coca-Cola.\" The deal was actually between John Pemberton's son Charley and Walker, Candler & Co. – with John Pemberton acting as cosigner for his son. For $50 down and $500 in 30 days, Walker, Candler & Co. obtained all of the one-third interest in the Coca-Cola Company that Charley held, all while Charley still held on to the name. After the April 14 deal, on April 17, 1888, one-half of the Walker/Dozier interest shares were acquired by Candler for an additional $750.\n\nCompany\nIn 1892, Candler set out to incorporate a second company: \"The Coca-Cola Company\" (the current corporation). When Candler had the earliest records of the \"Coca-Cola Company\" destroyed in 1910, the action was claimed to have been made during a move to new corporation offices around this time.\n\nAfter Candler had gained a better foothold on Coca-Cola in April 1888, he nevertheless was forced to sell the beverage he produced with the recipe he had under the names \"Yum Yum\" and \"Koke\". This was while Charley Pemberton was selling the elixir, although a cruder mixture, under the name \"Coca-Cola\", all with his father's blessing. After both names failed to catch on for Candler, by the middle of 1888, the Atlanta pharmacist was quite anxious to establish a firmer legal claim to Coca-Cola, and hoped he could force his two competitors, Walker and Dozier, completely out of the business, as well.\n\nJohn Pemberton died suddenly on August 16, 1888. Asa Candler then decided to move swiftly forward to attain full control of the entire Coca-Cola operation.\n\nCharley Pemberton, an alcoholic and opium addict, unnerved Asa Candler more than anyone else. Candler is said to have quickly maneuvered to purchase the exclusive rights to the name \"Coca-Cola\" from Pemberton's son Charley immediately after he learned of Dr. Pemberton's death. One of several stories states that Candler approached Charley's mother at John Pemberton's funeral and offered her $300 in cash for the title to the name. Charley Pemberton was found on June 23, 1894, unconscious, with a stick of opium by his side. Ten days later, Charley died at Atlanta's Grady Hospital at the age of 40.\n\nIn Charles Howard Candler's 1950 book about his father, he stated: \"On August 30 [1888], he Asa Candler became the sole proprietor of Coca-Cola, a fact which was stated on letterheads, invoice blanks and advertising copy.\"\n\nWith this action on August 30, 1888, Candler's sole control became technically all true. Candler had negotiated with Margaret Dozier and her brother Woolfolk Walker a full payment amounting to $1,000, which all agreed Candler could pay off with a series of notes over a specified time span. By May 1, 1889, Candler was now claiming full ownership of the Coca-Cola beverage, with a total investment outlay by Candler for the drink enterprise over the years amounting to $2,300.\n\nIn 1914, Margaret Dozier, as co-owner of the original Coca-Cola Company in 1888, came forward to claim that her signature on the 1888 Coca-Cola Company bill of sale had been forged. Subsequent analysis of other similar transfer documents had also indicated John Pemberton's signature had most likely been forged as well, which some accounts claim was precipitated by his son Charley.\n\nOn September 12, 1919, Coca-Cola Co. was purchased by a group of investors for $25 million and reincorporated in Delaware. The company publicly offered 500,000 shares of the company for $40 a share.\n\nIn 1986, The Coca-Cola Company merged with two of their bottling operators (owned by JTL Corporation and BCI Holding Corporation) to form Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. (CCE).\n\nIn December 1991, Coca-Cola Enterprises merged with the Johnston Coca-Cola Bottling Group, Inc.\n\nOrigins of bottling\n\nThe first bottling of Coca-Cola occurred in Vicksburg, Mississippi, at the Biedenharn Candy Company on March 12, 1894. The proprietor of the bottling works was Joseph A. Biedenharn. The original bottles were Hutchinson bottles, very different from the much later hobble-skirt design of 1915 now so familiar.\n\nA few years later two entrepreneurs from Chattanooga, Tennessee, namely Benjamin F. Thomas and Joseph B. Whitehead, proposed the idea of bottling and were so persuasive that Candler signed a contract giving them control of the procedure for only one dollar. Candler later realized that he had made a grave mistake. Candler never collected his dollar, but in 1899, Chattanooga became the site of the first Coca-Cola bottling company. Candler remained very content just selling his company's syrup. The loosely termed contract proved to be problematic for The Coca-Cola Company for decades to come. Legal matters were not helped by the decision of the bottlers to subcontract to other companies, effectively becoming parent bottlers. This contract specified that bottles would be sold at 5¢ each and had no fixed duration, leading to the fixed price of Coca-Cola from 1886 to 1959.\n\n20th century\nThe first outdoor wall advertisement that promoted the Coca-Cola drink was painted in 1894 in Cartersville, Georgia. Cola syrup was sold as an over-the-counter dietary supplement for upset stomach. By the time of its 50th anniversary, the soft drink had reached the status of a national icon in the US. In 1935, it was certified kosher by Atlanta rabbi Tobias Geffen. With the help of Harold Hirsch, Geffen was the first person outside the company to see the top-secret ingredients list after Coke faced scrutiny from the American Jewish population regarding the drink's kosher status. Consequently, the company made minor changes in the sourcing of some ingredients so it could continue to be consumed by America's Jewish population, including during Passover.\n\nThe longest running commercial Coca-Cola soda fountain anywhere was Atlanta's Fleeman's Pharmacy, which first opened its doors in 1914. Jack Fleeman took over the pharmacy from his father and ran it until 1995; closing it after 81 years. On July 12, 1944, the one-billionth gallon of Coca-Cola syrup was manufactured by The Coca-Cola Company. Cans of Coke first appeared in 1955.\n\nNew Coke\n\nOn April 23, 1985, Coca-Cola, amid much publicity, attempted to change the formula of the drink with \"New Coke\". Follow-up taste tests revealed most consumers preferred the taste of New Coke to both Coke and Pepsi but Coca-Cola management was unprepared for the public's nostalgia for the old drink, leading to a backlash. The company gave in to protests and returned to the old formula under the name Coca-Cola Classic, on July 10, 1985. \"New Coke\" remained available and was renamed Coke II in 1992; it was discontinued in 2002.\n\n21st century\nOn July 5, 2005, it was revealed that Coca-Cola would resume operations in Iraq for the first time since the Arab League boycotted the company in 1968.\n\nIn April 2007, in Canada, the name \"Coca-Cola Classic\" was changed back to \"Coca-Cola\". The word \"Classic\" was removed because \"New Coke\" was no longer in production, eliminating the need to differentiate between the two. The formula remained unchanged. In January 2009, Coca-Cola stopped printing the word \"Classic\" on the labels of bottles sold in parts of the southeastern United States. The change was part of a larger strategy to rejuvenate the product's image. The word \"Classic\" was removed from all Coca-Cola products by 2011.\n\nIn November 2009, due to a dispute over wholesale prices of Coca-Cola products, Costco stopped restocking its shelves with Coke and Diet Coke for two months; a separate pouring rights deal in 2013 saw Coke products removed from Costco food courts in favor of Pepsi. Some Costco locations (such as the ones in Tucson, Arizona) additionally sell imported Coca-Cola from Mexico with cane sugar instead of corn syrup from separate distributors. Coca-Cola introduced the 7.5-ounce mini-can in 2009, and on September 22, 2011, the company announced price reductions, asking retailers to sell eight-packs for $2.99. That same day, Coca-Cola announced the 12.5-ounce bottle, to sell for 89 cents. A 16-ounce bottle has sold well at 99 cents since being re-introduced, but the price was going up to $1.19.\n\nIn 2012, Coca-Cola resumed business in Myanmar after 60 years of absence due to U.S.-imposed investment sanctions against the country. Coca-Cola's bottling plant is located in Yangon and is part of the company's five-year plan and $200 million investment in Myanmar. Coca-Cola with its partners is to invest US$5 billion in its operations in India by 2020.\n\nIn February 2021, as a plan to combat plastic waste, Coca-Cola said that it would start selling its sodas in bottles made from 100% recycled plastic material in the United States, and by 2030 planned to recycle one bottle or can for each one it sold. Coca-Cola started by selling 2000 paper bottles to see if they held up due to the risk of safety and of changing the taste of the drink.\n\nProduction\n\nListed ingredients\n Carbonated water\n Sugar (sucrose or high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) depending on country of origin)\n Caffeine\n Phosphoric acid\n Caramel color (E150d)\n Natural flavorings\nA typical can of Coca-Cola (12 fl ounces/355 ml) contains 38 grams of sugar, 50 mg of sodium, 0 grams fat, 0 grams potassium, and 140 calories. On May 5, 2014, Coca-Cola said it is working to remove a controversial ingredient, brominated vegetable oil, from all of its drinks.\n\nFormula of natural flavorings\n\nThe exact formula of Coca-Cola's natural flavorings (but not its other ingredients, which are listed on the side of the bottle or can) is a trade secret. The original copy of the formula was held in SunTrust Bank's main vault in Atlanta for 86 years. Its predecessor, the Trust Company, was the underwriter for the Coca-Cola Company's initial public offering in 1919. On December 8, 2011, the original secret formula was moved from the vault at SunTrust Banks to a new vault containing the formula which will be on display for visitors to its World of Coca-Cola museum in downtown Atlanta.\n\nAccording to Snopes, a popular myth states that only two executives have access to the formula, with each executive having only half the formula. However, several sources state that while Coca-Cola does have a rule restricting access to only two executives, each knows the entire formula and others, in addition to the prescribed duo, have known the formulation process.\n\nOn February 11, 2011, Ira Glass said on his PRI radio show, This American Life, that TAL staffers had found a recipe in \"Everett Beal's Recipe Book\", reproduced in the February 28, 1979, issue of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, that they believed was either Pemberton's original formula for Coca-Cola, or a version that he made either before or after the product hit the market in 1886. The formula basically matched the one found in Pemberton's diary. Coca-Cola archivist Phil Mooney acknowledged that the recipe \"could be a precursor\" to the formula used in the original 1886 product, but emphasized that Pemberton's original formula is not the same as the one used in the current product.\n\nUse of stimulants in formula\n\nWhen launched, Coca-Cola's two key ingredients were cocaine and caffeine. The cocaine was derived from the coca leaf and the caffeine from kola nut (also spelled \"cola nut\" at the time), leading to the name Coca-Cola.\n\nCoca leaf \nPemberton called for five ounces of coca leaf per gallon of syrup (approximately 37 g/L), a significant dose; in 1891, Candler claimed his formula (altered extensively from Pemberton's original) contained only a tenth of this amount. Coca-Cola once contained an estimated nine milligrams of cocaine per glass. (For comparison, a typical dose or \"line\" of cocaine is 50–75 mg.) In 1903, it was removed.\n\nAfter 1904, instead of using fresh leaves, Coca-Cola started using \"spent\" leaves – the leftovers of the cocaine-extraction process with trace levels of cocaine. Since then, Coca-Cola has used a cocaine-free coca leaf extract. Today, that extract is prepared at a Stepan Company plant in Maywood, New Jersey, the only manufacturing plant authorized by the federal government to import and process coca leaves, which it obtains from Peru and Bolivia. Stepan Company extracts cocaine from the coca leaves, which it then sells to Mallinckrodt, the only company in the United States licensed to purify cocaine for medicinal use.\n\nLong after the syrup had ceased to contain any significant amount of cocaine, in North Carolina \"dope\" remained a common colloquialism for Coca-Cola, and \"dope-wagons\" were trucks that transported it.\n\nKola nuts for caffeine\nThe kola nut acts as a flavoring and the original source of caffeine in Coca-Cola. It contains about 2.0 to 3.5% caffeine, and has a bitter flavor.\n\nIn 1911, the U.S. government sued in United States v. Forty Barrels and Twenty Kegs of Coca-Cola, hoping to force the Coca-Cola Company to remove caffeine from its formula. The court found that the syrup, when diluted as directed, would result in a beverage containing 1.21 grains (or 78.4 mg) of caffeine per serving. The case was decided in favor of the Coca-Cola Company at the district court, but subsequently in 1912, the U.S. Pure Food and Drug Act was amended, adding caffeine to the list of \"habit-forming\" and \"deleterious\" substances which must be listed on a product's label. In 1913 the case was appealed to the Sixth Circuit in Cincinnati, where the ruling was affirmed, but then appealed again in 1916 to the Supreme Court, where the government effectively won as a new trial was ordered. The company then voluntarily reduced the amount of caffeine in its product, and offered to pay the government's legal costs to settle and avoid further litigation.\n\nCoca-Cola contains 34 mg of caffeine per 12 fluid ounces (9.8 mg per 100 ml).\n\nFranchised production model\nThe actual production and distribution of Coca-Cola follows a franchising model. The Coca-Cola Company only produces a syrup concentrate, which it sells to bottlers throughout the world, who hold Coca-Cola franchises for one or more geographical areas. The bottlers produce the final drink by mixing the syrup with filtered water and sweeteners, putting the mixture into cans and bottles, and carbonating it, which the bottlers then sell and distribute to retail stores, vending machines, restaurants, and foodservice distributors.\n\nThe Coca-Cola Company owns minority shares in some of its largest franchises, such as Coca-Cola Enterprises, Coca-Cola Amatil, Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company, and Coca-Cola FEMSA, as well as some smaller ones, such as Coca-Cola Bottlers Uzbekistan, but fully independent bottlers produce almost half of the volume sold in the world.\nIndependent bottlers are allowed to sweeten the drink according to local tastes.\n\nThe bottling plant in Skopje, Macedonia, received the 2009 award for \"Best Bottling Company\".\n\nGeographic spread\nSince it announced its intention to begin distribution in Myanmar in June 2012, Coca-Cola has been officially available in every country in the world except Cuba and North Korea. However, it is reported to be available in both countries as a grey import.\n\nCoca-Cola has been a point of legal discussion in the Middle East. In the early 20th century, a fatwa was created in Egypt to discuss the question of \"whether Muslims were permitted to drink Coca-Cola and Pepsi cola.\" The fatwa states: \"According to the Muslim Hanefite, Shafi'ite, etc., the rule in Islamic law of forbidding or allowing foods and beverages is based on the presumption that such things are permitted unless it can be shown that they are forbidden on the basis of the Qur'an.\" The Muslim jurists stated that, unless the Qu'ran specifically prohibits the consumption of a particular product, it is permissible to consume. Another clause was discussed, whereby the same rules apply if a person is unaware of the condition or ingredients of the item in question.\n\nBrand portfolio\nThis is a list of variants of Coca-Cola introduced around the world. In addition to the caffeine-free version of the original, additional fruit flavors have been included over the years. Not included here are versions of Diet Coke and Coca-Cola Zero Sugar; variant versions of those no-calorie colas can be found at their respective articles.\n Caffeine-Free Coca-Cola (1983–present) – Coca-Cola without the caffeine.\n Coca-Cola Cherry (1985–present) – Coca-Cola with a cherry flavor. Was available in Canada starting in 1996. Originally marketed as Cherry Coke (Cherry Coca-Cola) in North America until 2006.\n New Coke / Coca-Cola II (1985–2002) – An unpopular formula change, remained after the original formula quickly returned and was later rebranded as Coca-Cola II until its full discontinuation in 2002. In 2019, New Coke was re-introduced to the market to promote the third season of the Netflix original series, Stranger Things.\n Golden Coca-Cola (2001) was a limited edition produced by Beijing Coca-Cola company to celebrate Beijing's successful bid to host the Olympics.\n Coca-Cola with Lemon (2001–2005) – Coca-Cola with a lemon flavor. Available in: Australia, American Samoa, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, China, Denmark, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Iceland, Korea, Luxembourg, Macau, Malaysia, Mongolia, Netherlands, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Réunion, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tunisia, United Kingdom, United States and West Bank-Gaza\n Coca-Cola Vanilla (2002–2005; 2007–present) – Coca-Cola with a vanilla flavor. Available in: Austria, Australia, China, Czech Republic, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Malaysia, Slovakia, South-Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom and United States. It was reintroduced in June 2007 by popular demand.\n Coca-Cola with Lime (2005–present) – Coca-Cola with a lime flavor. Available in Belgium, Lithuania, Netherlands, Singapore, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States.\n Coca-Cola Raspberry (2005; 2009–present) – Coca-Cola with a raspberry flavor. Originally only available in New Zealand. Available in: Australia, United States, and the United Kingdom in Coca-Cola Freestyle fountain since 2009.\n Coca-Cola Black Cherry Vanilla (2006–2007) – Coca-Cola with a combination of black cherry and vanilla flavor. It replaced and was replaced by Vanilla Coke in June 2007.\n Coca-Cola Blāk (2006–2008) – Coca-Cola with a rich coffee flavor, formula depends on the country. Only available in the United States, France, Canada, Czech Republic, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria and Lithuania\n Coca-Cola Citra (2005–present) – Coca-Cola with a citrus flavor. Only available in Bosnia and Herzegovina, New Zealand, and Japan.\n Coca-Cola Orange (2007) – Coca-Cola with an orange flavor. Was available in the United Kingdom and Gibraltar for a limited time. In Germany, Austria, and Switzerland it is sold under the label Mezzo Mix. Currently available in Coca-Cola Freestyle fountain outlets in the United States since 2009 and in the United Kingdom since 2014.\n Coca-Cola Life (2013–2020) – A version of Coca-Cola with stevia and sugar as sweeteners rather than simply sugar.\n Coca-Cola Ginger (2016–present) – A version that mixes in the taste of ginger beer. Available in Australia, New Zealand, and as a limited edition in Vietnam.\n Coca-Cola Orange Vanilla (2019–2021) – Coca-Cola with an orange vanilla flavor (intended to imitate the flavor of an orange Creamsicle). Made available nationwide in the United States on February 25, 2019.\n Coca-Cola Energy (2019–present) – An energy drink with a flavor similar to standard Coca-Cola, with guarana, vitamin B3 (niacinamide), vitamin B6 (pyridoxine hydrochloride), and extra caffeine. Introduced in 2019 in the United Kingdom, and released in the United States and Canada in January 2020. Also available in zero-sugar, cherry, and zero-sugar + cherry variants. In May 2021, the company announced they would discontinue the product in North America but it will remain available in other places and it will focus on its traditional beverages.\n Coca-Cola Cinnamon (2019–2020) – Coca-Cola with cinnamon flavor. Released in October 2019 in the United States as a limited release for the 2019 holiday season. Made available again in 2020 for the holiday season.\n\n Coca-Cola Cherry Vanilla (2020–present) – Coca-Cola with cherry vanilla flavor. Released in the United States on February 10, 2020.\nCoca-Cola with Coffee (2019–present) – Coca-Cola, with coffee. Introduced in 2019 in various European markets, and released in the United States and Canada in January 2021. Available in dark blend, vanilla and caramel versions, and also in zero-sugar dark blend and vanilla variants.\n\nLogo design\nThe Coca-Cola logo was created by John Pemberton's bookkeeper, Frank Mason Robinson, in 1885. Robinson came up with the name and chose the logo's distinctive cursive script. The writing style used, known as Spencerian Script, was developed in the mid-19th century and was the dominant form of formal handwriting in the United States during that period.\n\nRobinson also played a significant role in early Coca-Cola advertising. His promotional suggestions to Pemberton included giving away thousands of free drink coupons and plastering the city of Atlanta with publicity banners and streetcar signs.\n\nCoca-Cola came under scrutiny in Egypt in 1951 because of a conspiracy theory that the Coca-Cola logo, when reflected in a mirror, spells out \"No Mohammed no Mecca\" in Arabic.\n\nContour bottle design\n\nThe Coca-Cola bottle, called the \"contour bottle\" within the company, was created by bottle designer Earl R. Dean and Coca-Cola's general counsel, Harold Hirsch. In 1915, The Coca-Cola Company was represented by their general counsel to launch a competition among its bottle suppliers as well as any competition entrants to create a new bottle for their beverage that would distinguish it from other beverage bottles, \"a bottle which a person could recognize even if they felt it in the dark, and so shaped that, even if broken, a person could tell at a glance what it was.\"\n\nChapman J. Root, president of the Root Glass Company of Terre Haute, Indiana, turned the project over to members of his supervisory staff, including company auditor T. Clyde Edwards, plant superintendent Alexander Samuelsson, and Earl R. Dean, bottle designer and supervisor of the bottle molding room. Root and his subordinates decided to base the bottle's design on one of the soda's two ingredients, the coca leaf or the kola nut, but were unaware of what either ingredient looked like. Dean and Edwards went to the Emeline Fairbanks Memorial Library and were unable to find any information about coca or kola. Instead, Dean was inspired by a picture of the gourd-shaped cocoa pod in the Encyclopædia Britannica. Dean made a rough sketch of the pod and returned to the plant to show Root. He explained to Root how he could transform the shape of the pod into a bottle. Root gave Dean his approval.\n\nFaced with the upcoming scheduled maintenance of the mold-making machinery, over the next 24 hours Dean sketched out a concept drawing which was approved by Root the next morning. Chapman Root approved the prototype bottle and a design patent was issued on the bottle in November 1915. The prototype never made it to production since its middle diameter was larger than its base, making it unstable on conveyor belts. Dean resolved this issue by decreasing the bottle's middle diameter. During the 1916 bottler's convention, Dean's contour bottle was chosen over other entries and was on the market the same year. By 1920, the contour bottle became the standard for The Coca-Cola Company. A revised version was also patented in 1923. Because the Patent Office releases the Patent Gazette on Tuesday, the bottle was patented on December 25, 1923, and was nicknamed the \"Christmas bottle.\" Today, the contour Coca-Cola bottle is one of the most recognized packages on the planet...\"even in the dark!\".\n\nAs a reward for his efforts, Dean was offered a choice between a $500 bonus or a lifetime job at the Root Glass Company. He chose the lifetime job and kept it until the Owens-Illinois Glass Company bought out the Root Glass Company in the mid-1930s. Dean went on to work in other Midwestern glass factories.\n\nRaymond Loewy updated the design in 1955 to accommodate larger formats.\n\nOthers have attributed inspiration for the design not to the cocoa pod, but to a Victorian hooped dress.\n\nIn 1944, Associate Justice Roger J. Traynor of the Supreme Court of California took advantage of a case involving a waitress injured by an exploding Coca-Cola bottle to articulate the doctrine of strict liability for defective products. Traynor's concurring opinion in Escola v. Coca-Cola Bottling Co. is widely recognized as a landmark case in U.S. law today.\n\nExamples\n\nDesigner bottles\n\nKarl Lagerfeld is the latest designer to have created a collection of aluminum bottles for Coca-Cola. Lagerfeld is not the first fashion designer to create a special version of the famous Coca-Cola Contour bottle. A number of other limited edition bottles by fashion designers for Coca-Cola Light soda have been created in the last few years, including Jean Paul Gaultier.\n\nIn 2009, in Italy, Coca-Cola Light had a Tribute to Fashion to celebrate 100 years of the recognizable contour bottle. Well known Italian designers Alberta Ferretti, Blumarine, Etro, Fendi, Marni, Missoni, Moschino, and Versace each designed limited edition bottles.\n\nIn 2019, Coca-Cola shared the first beverage bottle made with ocean plastic.\n\nCompetitors\nPepsi, the flagship product of PepsiCo, The Coca-Cola Company's main rival in the soft drink industry, is usually second to Coke in sales, and outsells Coca-Cola in some markets. RC Cola, now owned by the Dr Pepper Snapple Group, the third-largest soft drink manufacturer, is also widely available.\n\nAround the world, many local brands compete with Coke. In South and Central America Kola Real, also known as Big Cola, is a growing competitor to Coca-Cola. On the French island of Corsica, Corsica Cola, made by brewers of the local Pietra beer, is a growing competitor to Coca-Cola. In the French region of Brittany, Breizh Cola is available. In Peru, Inca Kola outsells Coca-Cola, which led The Coca-Cola Company to purchase the brand in 1999. In Sweden, Julmust outsells Coca-Cola during the Christmas season. In Scotland, the locally produced Irn-Bru was more popular than Coca-Cola until 2005, when Coca-Cola and Diet Coke began to outpace its sales. In the former East Germany, Vita Cola, invented during Communist rule, is gaining popularity.\n\nIn India, Coca-Cola ranked third behind the leader, Pepsi-Cola, and local drink Thums Up. The Coca-Cola Company purchased Thums Up in 1993. , Coca-Cola held a 60.9% market-share in India. Tropicola, a domestic drink, is served in Cuba instead of Coca-Cola, due to a United States embargo. French brand Mecca Cola and British brand Qibla Cola are competitors to Coca-Cola in the Middle East.\n\nIn Turkey, Cola Turka, in Iran and the Middle East, Zamzam Cola and Parsi Cola, in some parts of China, China Cola, in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, Kofola, in Slovenia, Cockta, and the inexpensive Mercator Cola, sold only in the country's biggest supermarket chain, Mercator, are some of the brand's competitors. Classiko Cola, made by Tiko Group, the largest manufacturing company in Madagascar, is a competitor to Coca-Cola in many regions.\n\nIn 2021, Coca-Cola petitioned to cancel registrations for the marks Thums Up and Limca issued to Meenaxi Enterprise, Inc. based on misrepresentation of source. The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board concluded that \"Meenaxi engaged in blatant misuse in a manner calculated to trade on the goodwill and reputation of Coca-Cola in an attempt to confuse consumers in the United States that its Thums Up and Limca marks were licensed or produced by the source of the same types of cola and lemon-lime soda sold under these marks for decades in India.\"\n\nAdvertising\n\nCoca-Cola's advertising has significantly affected American culture, and it is frequently credited with inventing the modern image of Santa Claus as an old man in a red-and-white suit. Although the company did start using the red-and-white Santa image in the 1930s, with its winter advertising campaigns illustrated by Haddon Sundblom, the motif was already common. Coca-Cola was not even the first soft drink company to use the modern image of Santa Claus in its advertising: White Rock Beverages used Santa in advertisements for its ginger ale in 1923, after first using him to sell mineral water in 1915. Before Santa Claus, Coca-Cola relied on images of smartly dressed young women to sell its beverages. Coca-Cola's first such advertisement appeared in 1895, featuring the young Bostonian actress Hilda Clark as its spokeswoman.\n\n1941 saw the first use of the nickname \"Coke\" as an official trademark for the product, with a series of advertisements informing consumers that \"Coke means Coca-Cola\". In 1971, a song from a Coca-Cola commercial called \"I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing\", produced by Billy Davis, became a hit single. During the 1950s the term \"cola wars\" emerged, describing the on-going battle between Coca-Cola and Pepsi for supremacy in the soft drink industry. Coca-Cola and Pepsi were competing with new products, global expansion, US marketing initiatives and sport sponsorships.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=McKelvey|first=Steve M.|date=2006|title=Coca-Cola vs. PepsiCo — A \"Super Battleground for the Cola Wars?|url=http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.392.5206&rep=rep1&type=pdf|journal=Sport MarHeting Quarterly|volume=15|pages=114–123|citeseerx=10.1.1.392.5206|via=CiteSeerX}}</ref>\n\nCoke's advertising is pervasive, as one of Woodruff's stated goals was to ensure that everyone on Earth drank Coca-Cola as their preferred beverage. This is especially true in southern areas of the United States, such as Atlanta, where Coke was born.\n\nSome Coca-Cola television commercials between 1960 through 1986 were written and produced by former Atlanta radio veteran Don Naylor (WGST 1936–1950, WAGA 1951–1959) during his career as a producer for the McCann Erickson advertising agency. Many of these early television commercials for Coca-Cola featured movie stars, sports heroes, and popular singers.\n\nDuring the 1980s, Pepsi-Cola ran a series of television advertisements showing people participating in taste tests demonstrating that, according to the commercials, \"fifty percent of the participants who said they preferred Coke actually chose the Pepsi.\" Statisticians pointed out the problematic nature of a 50/50 result: most likely, the taste tests showed that in blind tests, most people cannot tell the difference between Pepsi and Coke. Coca-Cola ran ads to combat Pepsi's ads in an incident sometimes referred to as the cola wars; one of Coke's ads compared the so-called Pepsi challenge to two chimpanzees deciding which tennis ball was furrier. Thereafter, Coca-Cola regained its leadership in the market.\n\nSelena was a spokesperson for Coca-Cola from 1989 until the time of her death. She filmed three commercials for the company. During 1994, to commemorate her five years with the company, Coca-Cola issued special Selena coke bottles.\n\nThe Coca-Cola Company purchased Columbia Pictures in 1982, and began inserting Coke-product images into many of its films. After a few early successes during Coca-Cola's ownership, Columbia began to underperform, and the studio was sold to Sony in 1989.\n\nCoca-Cola has gone through a number of different advertising slogans in its long history, including \"The pause that refreshes\", \"I'd like to buy the world a Coke\", and \"Coke is it\".\n\nIn 1999, The Coca-Cola Company introduced the Coke Card, a loyalty program that offered deals on items like clothes, entertainment and food when the cardholder purchased a Coca-Cola Classic. The scheme was cancelled after three years, with a Coca-Cola spokesperson declining to state why.\n\nThe company then introduced another loyalty campaign in 2006, My Coke Rewards. This allows consumers to earn points by entering codes from specially marked packages of Coca-Cola products into a website. These points can be redeemed for various prizes or sweepstakes entries.\n\nIn Australia in 2011, Coca-Cola began the \"share a Coke\" campaign, where the Coca-Cola logo was replaced on the bottles and replaced with first names. Coca-Cola used the 150 most popular names in Australia to print on the bottles. The campaign was paired with a website page, Facebook page, and an online \"share a virtual Coke\". The same campaign was introduced to Coca-Cola, Diet Coke & Coke Zero bottles and cans in the UK in 2013.\n\nCoca-Cola has also advertised its product to be consumed as a breakfast beverage, instead of coffee or tea for the morning caffeine.\n\n5 cents\n\nFrom 1886 to 1959, the price of Coca-Cola was fixed at five cents, in part due to an advertising campaign.\n\nHoliday campaigns\nThroughout the years, Coca-Cola has released limited-time collector bottles for Christmas.\n\nThe \"Holidays are coming!\" advertisement features a train of red delivery trucks, emblazoned with the Coca-Cola name and decorated with Christmas lights, driving through a snowy landscape and causing everything that they pass to light up and people to watch as they pass through.\n\nThe advertisement fell into disuse in 2001, as the Coca-Cola company restructured its advertising campaigns so that advertising around the world was produced locally in each country, rather than centrally in the company's headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. In 2007, the company brought back the campaign after, according to the company, many consumers telephoned its information center saying that they considered it to mark the beginning of Christmas. The advertisement was created by U.S. advertising agency Doner, and has been part of the company's global advertising campaign for many years.\n\nKeith Law, a producer and writer of commercials for Belfast CityBeat, was not convinced by Coca-Cola's reintroduction of the advertisement in 2007, saying that \"I do not think there's anything Christmassy about HGVs and the commercial is too generic.\"\n\nIn 2001, singer Melanie Thornton recorded the campaign's advertising jingle as a single, \"Wonderful Dream (Holidays are Coming)\", which entered the pop-music charts in Germany at no. 9. In 2005, Coca-Cola expanded the advertising campaign to radio, employing several variations of the jingle.\n\nIn 2011, Coca-Cola launched a campaign for the Indian holiday Diwali. The campaign included commercials, a song, and an integration with Shah Rukh Khan's film Ra.One.\n\nSports sponsorship\nCoca-Cola was the first commercial sponsor of the Olympic Games, at the 1928 games in Amsterdam, and has been an Olympics sponsor ever since. This corporate sponsorship included the 1996 Summer Olympics hosted in Atlanta, which allowed Coca-Cola to spotlight its hometown. Most recently, Coca-Cola has released localized commercials for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver; one Canadian commercial referred to Canada's hockey heritage and was modified after Canada won the gold medal game on February 28, 2010, by changing the ending line of the commercial to say \"Now they know whose game they're playing\".\n\nSince 1978, Coca-Cola has sponsored the FIFA World Cup, and other competitions organized by FIFA. One FIFA tournament trophy, the FIFA World Youth Championship from Tunisia in 1977 to Malaysia in 1997, was called \"FIFA – Coca-Cola Cup\". In addition, Coca-Cola sponsors NASCAR's annual Coca-Cola 600 and Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina and Daytona International Speedway in Daytona, Florida; since 2020, Coca-Cola has served as a premier partner of the NASCAR Cup Series, which includes holding the naming rights to the series' regular season championship trophy.\n\nCoca-Cola has a long history of sports marketing relationships, which over the years have included Major League Baseball, the National Football League, the National Basketball Association, and the National Hockey League, as well as with many teams within those leagues. Coca-Cola has had a longtime relationship with the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers, due in part to the now-famous 1979 television commercial featuring \"Mean Joe\" Greene, leading to the two opening the Coca-Cola Great Hall at Heinz Field in 2001 and a more recent Coca-Cola Zero commercial featuring Troy Polamalu.\n\nCoca-Cola is the official soft drink of many collegiate football teams throughout the nation, partly due to Coca-Cola providing those schools with upgraded athletic facilities in exchange for Coca-Cola's sponsorship. This is especially prevalent at the high school level, which is more dependent on such contracts due to tighter budgets.\n\nCoca-Cola was one of the official sponsors of the 1996 Cricket World Cup held on the Indian subcontinent. Coca-Cola is also one of the associate sponsors of Delhi Daredevils in the Indian Premier League.\n\nIn England, Coca-Cola was the main sponsor of The Football League between 2004 and 2010, a name given to the three professional divisions below the Premier League in soccer (football). In 2005, Coca-Cola launched a competition for the 72 clubs of The Football League – it was called \"Win a Player\". This allowed fans to place one vote per day for their favorite club, with one entry being chosen at random earning £250,000 for the club; this was repeated in 2006. The \"Win A Player\" competition was very controversial, as at the end of the 2 competitions, Leeds United A.F.C. had the most votes by more than double, yet they did not win any money to spend on a new player for the club. In 2007, the competition changed to \"Buy a Player\". This competition allowed fans to buy a bottle of Coca-Cola or Coca-Cola Zero and submit the code on the wrapper on the Coca-Cola website. This code could then earn anything from 50p to £100,000 for a club of their choice. This competition was favored over the old \"Win a Player\" competition, as it allowed all clubs to win some money. Between 1992 and 1998, Coca-Cola was the title sponsor of the Football League Cup (Coca-Cola Cup), the secondary cup tournament of England. Starting in 2019–20 season, Drinks giant Coca-Cola has agreed its biggest UK sponsorship deal by becoming Premier League football's seventh and final commercial partner for the UK and Ireland, China, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Egyptian and the West African markets.\n\nBetween 1994 and 1997, Coca-Cola was also the title sponsor of the Scottish League Cup, renaming it to the Coca-Cola Cup like its English counterpart. From 1998 to 2001, the company was the title sponsor of the Irish League Cup in Northern Ireland, where it was named the Coca-Cola League Cup.\n\nCoca-Cola is the presenting sponsor of the Tour Championship, the final event of the PGA Tour held each year at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, GA.\n\nIntroduced March 1, 2010, in Canada, to celebrate the 2010 Winter Olympics, Coca-Cola sold gold colored cans in packs of 12 each, in select stores.\n\nCoca-Cola which has been a partner with UEFA since 1988.\n\n In mass media \n\nCoca-Cola has been prominently featured in many films and television programs. It was a major plot element in films such as One, Two, Three, The Coca-Cola Kid, and The Gods Must Be Crazy, among many others. In music, in the Beatles' song, \"Come Together\", the lyrics say, \"He shoot Coca-Cola\", he say.... The Beach Boys also referenced Coca-Cola in their 1964 song \"All Summer Long\" (i.e. Member when you spilled Coke all over your blouse?)\n\nThe best selling solo artist of all time Elvis Presley, promoted Coca-Cola during his last tour of 1977. The Coca-Cola Company used Elvis' image to promote the product. For example, the company used a song performed by Presley, A Little Less Conversation, in a Japanese Coca-Cola commercial.\n\nOther artists that promoted Coca-Cola include David Bowie, George Michael, Elton John, and Whitney Houston, who appeared in the Diet Coke commercial, among many others.\n\nNot all musical references to Coca-Cola went well. A line in \"Lola\" by the Kinks was originally recorded as \"You drink champagne and it tastes just like Coca-Cola.\" When the British Broadcasting Corporation refused to play the song because of the commercial reference, lead singer Ray Davies re-recorded the lyric as \"it tastes just like cherry cola\" to get airplay for the song.\n\nPolitical cartoonist Michel Kichka satirized a famous Coca-Cola billboard in his 1982 poster \"And I Love New York.\" On the billboard, the Coca-Cola wave is accompanied by the words \"Enjoy Coke.\" In Kichka's poster, the lettering and script above the Coca-Cola wave instead read \"Enjoy Cocaine.\"\n\nUse as political and corporate symbol\n\nCoca-Cola has a high degree of identification with the United States, being considered by some an \"American Brand\" or as an item representing America, criticized as Cocacolonization. After World War II, this gave rise to the brief production of White Coke by the request of and for Soviet Marshal Georgy Zhukov, who did not want to be seen drinking a symbol of American imperialism. The bottles were given by the President Eisenhower during a conference, and Marshal Zhukov enjoyed the drink. The bottles were disguised as vodka bottles, with the cap having a red star design, to avoid suspicion of Soviet officials. The drink is also often a metonym for the Coca-Cola Company.\n\nCoca-Cola was introduced to China in 1927, and was very popular until 1949. After the Chinese Civil War ended in 1949, the beverage was no longer imported into China, as it was perceived to be a symbol of decadent Western culture and the capitalist lifestyle. Importation and sales of the beverage resumed in 1979, after diplomatic relations between the United States and China were restored.\n\nThere are some consumer boycotts of Coca-Cola in Arab countries due to Coke's early investment in Israel during the Arab League boycott of Israel (its competitor Pepsi stayed out of Israel). Mecca-Cola and Pepsi are popular alternatives in the Middle East.\n\nA Coca-Cola fountain dispenser (officially a Fluids Generic Bioprocessing Apparatus or FGBA) was developed for use on the Space Shuttle as a test bed to determine if carbonated beverages can be produced from separately stored carbon dioxide, water, and flavored syrups and determine if the resulting fluids can be made available for consumption without bubble nucleation and resulting foam formation. FGBA-1 flew on STS-63 in 1995 and dispensed pre-mixed beverages, followed by FGBA-2 on STS-77 the next year. The latter mixed CO₂, water, and syrup to make beverages. It supplied 1.65 liters each of Coca-Cola and Diet Coke.\n\n Medicinal application \nCoca-Cola is sometimes used for the treatment of gastric phytobezoars. In about 50% of cases studied, Coca-Cola alone was found to be effective in gastric phytobezoar dissolution. Unfortunately, this treatment can result in the potential of developing small bowel obstruction in a minority of cases, necessitating surgical intervention.\n\nCriticism\n\nCriticism of Coca-Cola has arisen from various groups around the world, concerning a variety of issues, including health effects, environmental issues, and business practices. The drink's coca flavoring, and the nickname \"Coke\", remain a common theme of criticism due to the relationship with the illegal drug cocaine. In 1911, the US government seized 40 barrels and 20 kegs of Coca-Cola syrup in Chattanooga, Tennessee, alleging the caffeine in its drink was \"injurious to health\", leading to amended food safety legislation.\n\nBeginning in the 1940s, Pepsi started marketing their drinks to African Americans, a niche market that was largely ignored by white-owned manufacturers in the US, and was able to use its anti-racism stance as a selling point, attacking Coke's reluctance to hire blacks and support by the chairman of The Coca-Cola Company for segregationist Governor of Georgia Herman Talmadge. As a result of this campaign, Pepsi's market share as compared to Coca-Cola's shot up dramatically in the 1950s with African American soft-drink consumers three times more likely to purchase Pepsi over Coke.\n\nThe Coca-Cola Company, its subsidiaries and products have been subject to sustained criticism by consumer groups, environmentalists, and watchdogs, particularly since the early 2000s. In 2019, BreakFreeFromPlastic named Coca-Cola the single biggest plastic polluter in the world. After 72,541 volunteers collected 476,423 pieces of plastic waste from around where they lived, a total of 11,732 pieces were found to be labeled with a Coca-Cola brand (including the Dasani, Sprite, and Fanta brands) in 37 countries across four continents. At the 2020 World Economic Forum in Davos, Coca-Cola's Head of Sustainability, Bea Perez, said customers like them because they reseal and are lightweight, and \"business won't be in business if we don't accommodate consumers.\" In February 2022, Cocal-Cola announced that it will aim to make 25 percent of its packaging reusable by 2030.\n\nCoca-Cola Classic is rich in sugars, especially sucrose, which causes dental caries when consumed regularly. Besides this, the high caloric value of the sugars themselves can contribute to obesity. Both are major health issues in the developed world.\n\nIn February 2021, Coca-Cola received criticism after a video of a training session, which told employees to \"try to be less white\", was leaked by an employee. The session also said in order to be \"less white\" employees had to be less \"arrogant\" and \"defensive\".\n\nColombian death-squad allegations\n\nIn July 2001, the Coca-Cola company was sued over its alleged use of political far-right wing death squads (the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia) to kidnap, torture, and kill Colombian bottler workers that were linked with trade union activity. Coca-Cola was sued in a US federal court in Miami by the Colombian food and drink union Sinaltrainal. The suit alleged that Coca-Cola was indirectly responsible for having \"contracted with or otherwise directed paramilitary security forces that utilized extreme violence and murdered, tortured, unlawfully detained or otherwise silenced trade union leaders\". This sparked campaigns to boycott Coca-Cola in the UK, US, Germany, Italy, and Australia. Javier Correa, the president of Sinaltrainal, said the campaign aimed to put pressure on Coca-Cola \"to mitigate the pain and suffering\" that union members had suffered.\n\nSpeaking from the Coca-Cola company's headquarters in Atlanta, company spokesperson Rafael Fernandez Quiros said \"Coca-Cola denies any connection to any human-rights violation of this type\" and added \"We do not own or operate the plants\".\n\nSee also\n\n Coca-Cola HBC AG\n Coca-Cola treatment of phytobezoars\n Colalife\n Fanta\n List of Coca-Cola brands\n List of soft drink flavors\n Mexican Coke\n Neiman Marcus\n OpenCola (drink)\n Premix and postmix\n\nReferences\n\nFurther reading\n Allen, Frederick. Secret Formula: How Brilliant Marketing and Relentless Salesmanship Made Coca-Cola the Best-Known Product in the World. New York: Harper Business, 1994.\n Blanding, Michael. The Coke Machine: The Dirty Truth Behind the World's Favorite Soft Drink. New York: Avery, 2010.\n Elmore, Bartow J. \"Citizen Coke: An Environmental and Political History of the Coca-Cola Company,\" Enterprise & Society (2013) 14#4 pp 717–731 online.\n \n \n Hays, Constance L. The Real Thing: Truth and Power at the Coca-Cola Company. New York: Random House, 2004.\n Kahn, Ely J., Jr. The Big Drink: The Story of Coca-Cola. New York: Random House, 1960.\n Louis, Jill Chen and Harvey Z. Yazijian. The Cola Wars. New York: Everest House Publishers, 1980.\n Oliver, Thomas. The Real Coke, The Real Story. New York: Random House, 1986.\n Pendergrast, Mark. For God, Country, and Coca-Cola: The Unauthorized History of the Great American Soft Drink And the Company That Makes It. New York: Basic Books, 2000.\n\nPrimary sources\n Isdell, Neville. Inside Coca-Cola: A CEO's Life Story of Building the World's Most Popular Brand. With the assistance of David Beasley. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2011.\n\nExternal links\n\n \n Kinescope of a live 1954 TV commercial for Coca-Cola (Internet Archive)\n Coca-Cola Advertising History\n The Contour Bottle\n Coca-Cola: Refreshing Memories – slideshow by Life magazine''\nChina Advisory: Avoiding the Wax Tadpole – Effective Chinese Language Trademark Strategy Chinese language trademark for Coca-Cola\n\n1886 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state)\nAmerican drinks\nAmerican inventions\n \nCoca-Cola brands\nCola brands\nKosher drinks\nPatent medicines\nProducts introduced in 1886\nCaffeinated soft drinks",
"Coca-Cola Life was a reduced-calorie version of Coca-Cola, made using stevia and sugar as sweeteners. It was first released in Argentina and Chile after five years of research together in these countries. The formulation varied by market location, and in some areas the original formulation had been phased out in favor of a zero-calorie version sweetened with stevia only. The drink was discontinued in 2020 as part of The Coca-Cola Company discontinuing underperforming brands, and could still be found in some stores following discontinuation.\n\nIngredients\nThe drink contains stevia leaf extract, the first branded Coke product to use it. However, it is not the first product owned by the Coca-Cola Company to use stevia. Over 45 products distributed by Coca-Cola use stevia extract, including Vitamin Water and Seagram's Ginger Ale.\n\nCoca-Cola Life contains sugar, but uses less sugar than traditional Coca-Cola. An serving contains around 60 calories, 17 grams of carbohydrates of which 17 grams is sugar (equals 1/3 less sugar than traditional Coca-Cola).\n\nPackaging\nThe drink was available in glass bottles, plastic bottles, and aluminum cans. The logo is a small green leaf. In 2018, a red disc was added behind the name for greater brand identification, as part of Coca-Cola's new \"global packaging\" scheme. The plastic bottle is fully recyclable (like normal PET bottles) and 30 percent plant-based, with fossil-fuel plastic accounting for the remaining 70 percent of the bottle.\n\nDistribution\nCoca-Cola Life was launched in Argentina in June 2013, in Chile in November of that year, in Sweden in June 2014 and in the UK in September 2014. It has subsequently been launched in many other countries. Coca-Cola Life tried to co-exist with Diet Coke and Coca-Cola Zero in the Argentine and Chilean market, but it has been slowly removed from those markets due to its low reception from customers. Due to decrease in sales, and increase of Coca-Cola Zero Sugar sales, Coca-Cola Life was discontinued in the UK in June 2017.\n\nCoca-Cola Life has been available in:\n\n Argentina\n Armenia \n Australia (branded as 'Coca-Cola with Stevia')\n Austria\n Belgium\n Brazil (called Coca-Cola com Stevia)\nBulgaria\n Canada (2015-2019)\n Chile\n Colombia\nCosta Rica\nCroatia\nCyprus\nCzech Republic\n Denmark (2016-2019)\n Ecuador\n Estonia\n France\n Germany\n Greece\n Hong Kong\n Italy\n Ireland\n Japan, 2015\n Latvia\n Lithuania\n Luxembourg\n Malta\n Malaysia\n Namibia\n Netherlands\n New Zealand\n Norway (2015-2017)\n Philippines\n Poland\n Romania\n Russia\n Singapore\n Slovakia\n South Africa\n South Korea\n Sweden (2014-2017)\n Switzerland\n Ukraine (since 2017)\n United Arab Emirates\n United Kingdom\n United States\n\nAustralia \nCoca-Cola Life was introduced into Australia in March 2015. In early 2017, the brand was dropped due to poor sales and replaced with 'Coca-Cola with Stevia', which contains less sugar than Coca-Cola Life.\n\nBelgium & Luxembourg \nCoca-Cola Life was introduced in Belgium and Luxembourg in early 2015. Distribution was stopped in September 2018.\n\nCanada \nThe roll-out of Coca-Cola Life in Canada began in the fall of 2016. In Canada, the product is sweetened from natural sources and contains 50% fewer calories than regular colas. The nutrition data on the Canadian version of product shows 25g carbohydrates (25g sugar), 100 calories and 70 mg sodium and 15 mg potassium per 500ml. By early 2020, the product was replaced with \"Coca-Cola Stevia\", a zero-calorie drink which is sweetened with stevia only; the \"Coca-Cola Life\" logo remains on the back of packaging for continuity.\n\nIngredients (sugar/stevia formulation): Carbonated water, sugar, caramel colour, natural flavour, phosphoric acid, sodium phosphate, sodium benzoate, stevia extract, caffeine, and citric acid.\n\nNew Zealand \nIn May 2018, Coca-Cola Life was replaced in New Zealand by Coca-Cola Stevia No Sugar.\n\nSwitzerland \nCoca-Cola Life was introduced in Switzerland in 2015 and withdrawn in March 2018.\n\nUnited States\nCoca-Cola Life was released in limited areas in the summer of 2014 with the product being sold at a number of locations of The Fresh Market grocery store. Nationwide distribution began on November 4, 2014. The release of Coca-Cola Life is the first Coca-Cola product launch in the U.S. since 2006. The nutrition data on the US version of product shows 24g carbohydrates (24g sugar), 90 calories and 35 mg sodium. The can label indicates 28 mg caffeine per 12 fl.oz.\n\nBefore the full-scale national launch, the market research firm Haynes & Co. said that early research findings showed a positive view by consumers toward the drink. The company plans to host 4,000 events at stores where people can sample the drink for free. To help with its advertising and public marketing campaign, the company hired Fitzgerald and Company to develop strategy and promote the product on social media.\n\nUnited Kingdom\n\nCoca-Cola began offering the drink to U.K. customers in September 2014. The offering was the first new Coca-Cola product introduced in the U.K. in eight years. In 2016, it was reformulated and now contains even less sugar than regular Coke (45% less). On April 5, 2017, it was announced that due to a decrease in sales, and increase in Coca-Cola Zero Sugar sales, that Life would no longer be sold and it was discontinued in June 2017. The list of ingredients is carbonated water, cane sugar, caramel color, caffeine, phosphoric acid, and stevia.\n\nTo promote the drink, at one event the company hired British model and actress Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, who promoted the drink at a launch party in London in September.\n\nIn August, The Telegraph sent a correspondent, Harry Wallop, and a film crew onto the streets of Victoria to conduct a taste test of random people. In a video news segment produced from the taste test, Wallop says that most people could tell the difference in taste between Coca-Cola classic and Coca-Cola Life, although many people told him they preferred the taste of Life.\n\nIn the United Kingdom, the Coca-Cola company has led several health initiatives, and it considers the introduction of Coca-Cola Life as a vital component to its initiatives. Specifically, the company promoted lower obesity rates and more active lifestyles among British people. The company insisted in connecting the roll-out of Life with its stance on promoting health.\n\nThe Grocer magazine in the U.K. conducted a blind taste test among seven of its staff members in June. According to The Grocer, all seven tasters preferred the taste of Life to the other products. (The article in The Grocer did not specify which products Life was tested against.) However, all seven tasters said that they thought they had been tasting Coca-Cola Classic.\n\nArgentina\nIn Argentina, the launch of Coca-Cola Life placed an emphasis on the recyclable bottle. The drink is distributed in Coca-Cola's \"PlantBottle\", which is made up of recyclable petroleum-based material plus around 30 percent plant-based material.\n\nCoca-Cola released a television ad in Argentina called \"Parents\" to promote Coca-Cola Life. Marketing in Argentina was focused, much like in the U.K., around healthy lifestyles. \"Parents\" is a humorous commercial featuring a young married couple receiving news about their first pregnancy. The commercial shows the parents going through common hardships of young parenthood, such as getting little sleep, having a toddler make a mess in the house, etc. Toward the end of the commercial, the father closes his eyes and takes a long drink from a Coca-Cola Life bottle. He opens his eyes, and while still drinking, his wife shows him a \"positive\" pregnancy test result. What appears to be a look of horror on the father's face (his eyes widen) turns into a look of joy and excitement.\n\nArmenia\nIn Armenia, Coca-Cola Life is exclusively available in SAS supermarket. One can of 330ml costs around one US dollar.\n\nMalaysia\n\nIntroduced January 2018, it is only available in 500ml quantities (as of January 2018). The product is sold for RM2 or roughly 0.50 USD per bottle at 7Eleven.\n\nCriticism\nCritics denoted Coca-Cola Life as simply a marketing gimmick or \"greenwashing\" of its outdated image with the original Coca-Cola drink.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \n\nProducts introduced in 2013\nCoca-Cola brands\nCola brands\nCaffeinated soft drinks"
] |
[
"Nikki Gil",
"Acting career and TV hosting",
"What happened to Nikki after the 2005 Coca-Cola commercial?",
"I don't know."
] | C_e0ddada6341f4a8dab5919e5faca3a73_0 | What family member helped Nikki Gil to write songs? | 2 | What family member helped Nikki Gil to write songs? | Nikki Gil | In 2005, Gil was given a VJ stint for ABS-CBN's music channel subsidiary, MYX until she left MYX in January 2016. She was also picked to host the now-defunct talk show MRS on ABS-CBN and morning show Breakfast on Studio 23. She later would join the cast of the weekly variety show ASAP Mania. In 2006, she was joined by Toni Gonzaga, Bianca Gonzalez and Sam Milby as a host for the first season of Pinoy Dream Academy, a singing reality show from Endemol. In 2007, she became part of an anime-inspired fantasy series "Rounin" and as an extended cast for the drama series "Pangarap na Bituin". In 2008, she was again chosen to be the host for the season 2 of Pinoy Dream Academy with Toni Gonzaga and Billy Crawford. In 2009, she appeared in "Pieta", an afternoon teleserye with Ryan Agoncillo, and also appeared in the teleserye "Florinda" with Maricel Soriano. Nikki Gil is one of the mainstay on ABS-CBN with ASAP XV. In 2010, she started hosting E-Live along with Luis Manzano and Ogie Diaz. She also did a fair share of hosting occasionally on Showtime replacing Anne Curtis. In 2007, Gil did her first movie appearance by doing a cameo role as John Lloyd Cruz's best friend for One More Chance. In 2009, she appeared along with Bea Alonzo, Sam Milby, Derek Ramsay for a Star Cinema movie entitled And I Love You So. In 2010, she was the lead actress in a romance film entitled The Red Shoes produced by Unitel Pictures with Marvin Agustin, which won the Best Picture in the 27th Bogota International Film Festival. In 2012, Gil became part of the TV remake of the Salvador Royales film Mundo Man ay Magunaw as Jennifer la Pena. In 2013, she played a special participation role in Apoy Sa Dagat as young Odessa, and later became a star antagonist in the remake of Maria Mercedes as Misty. The same year, Nikki Gil won as Best Single Performance By An Actress for her role in "MMK" in the recent 2013 PMPC Star Awards For TV. In 2014, she was a member of the cast of Hawak-Kamay, playing Meann. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Monica Pauline "Nikki" Santos Gil-Albert (born August 23, 1987) is a Filipina former actress, singer, host, model, and video jockey. She is known for being part of the afternoon remake of Carlo J. Caparas' Pieta (2008–2009) and, in 2009, for portraying Princess Punzalan in the afternoon drama Nagsimula sa Puso (2009–2010). She is also well known for her lead portrayal as Jennifer "Jenny" La Peña in the 2012 remake of the 1990 radio serial of Salvador Royales' Mundo Man ay Magunaw, originally played by Jennifer Sevilla in the film version produced by SEIKO Films.
Biography
Monica Pauline Gil (aka Nikki Gil) was born in Manila to Dino and Julie Gil. She is of Filipino, Spanish and German descent. Born to a father who plays the piano and a mom who sang in a church choir, Nikki showed early signs of musical talent. At the age of four years, Nikki was already singing and doing voiceovers for commercials. She graduated from Shekinah Christian Training Center in March 2005 as valedictorian. In 2009, she graduated from Ateneo de Manila University, majoring in English literature.
Career
Music
Gil first rose to prominence when she was 17 years old after appearing in a 2005 Coca-Cola commercial. After that, she went on to released her first self-titled album, Nikki Gil, that same year under EMI Philippines with "Sakayan ng Jeep" as the carrier single. In 2006, it was repackaged and rereleased with and additional song, "Glowing Inside". In July 2006, EMI Philippines and Walt Disney Records hired Nikki along with other Asian artists (Vince Chong of Malaysia and Alicia Pan of Singapore) to sing and to star in the music video of "High School Musical", a Disney Channel production. Nikki also sang "Breaking Free" and "Gotta Go My Own Way" in the production's album.
In 2008, Gil released her second music album, Hear My Heart, with "Hear My Heart" as the carrier single. She co-wrote the song with her younger sister, Dani. During the same year, Disney hired her to sing and star in the music video of the pop version of "It's a Small World After All". In addition, she was asked to sing the Tagalog version of the song at the grand opening of "It's a Small World" in Hong Kong Disneyland.
In 2010, Gil released her third music album, Somebody to Love, with "Somebody to Love" as the carrier single, a song written by her younger sister, Dani. Gil played the character of Elle Woods in the Manila production of the musical Legally Blonde which is based on the 2001 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer motion picture Legally Blonde and the novel by Amanda Brown.
In 2014, Nikki moved to her new recording company Universal Records.
Acting career and TV hosting
In 2005, Gil was given a VJ stint for ABS-CBN's music channel subsidiary, MYX until she left MYX in January 2016. She was also picked to host the now-defunct talk show MRS on ABS-CBN and morning show Breakfast on Studio 23. She later would join the cast of the weekly variety show ASAP Mania. In 2006, she was joined by Toni Gonzaga, Bianca Gonzalez and Sam Milby as a host for the first season of Pinoy Dream Academy, a singing reality show from Endemol. In 2007, she became part of an anime-inspired fantasy series "Rounin" and as an extended cast for the drama series "Pangarap na Bituin". In 2008, she was again chosen to be the host for the season 2 of Pinoy Dream Academy with Toni Gonzaga and Billy Crawford. In 2009, she appeared in "Pieta", an afternoon teleserye with Ryan Agoncillo, and also appeared in the teleserye "Florinda" with Maricel Soriano. Nikki Gil is one of the mainstay on ABS-CBN with ASAP XV. In 2010, she started hosting E-Live along with Luis Manzano and Ogie Diaz. She also did a fair share of hosting occasionally on Showtime replacing Anne Curtis.
In 2007, Gil did her first movie appearance by doing a cameo role as John Lloyd Cruz's best friend for One More Chance. In 2009, she appeared along with Bea Alonzo, Sam Milby and Derek Ramsay for a Star Cinema movie entitled And I Love You So. In 2010, she was the lead actress in a romance film entitled The Red Shoes produced by Unitel Pictures with Marvin Agustin, which won the Best Picture in the 27th Bogota International Film Festival.
In 2012, Gil became part of the TV remake of the Salvador Royales film Mundo Man ay Magunaw as Jennifer la Pena.
In 2013, she played a special participation role in Apoy Sa Dagat as young Odessa, and later became a star antagonist in the remake of Maria Mercedes as Misty. The same year, Nikki Gil won as Best Single Performance By An Actress for her role in "MMK" in the recent 2013 PMPC Star Awards For TV.
In 2014, she was a member of the cast of Hawak-Kamay, playing Meann.
She is expected to return to showbiz through a musical play from Repertory Philippines entitled 'Carousel'.
Personal life
She has a sister, Dani Gil, who also sings and plays the piano. Dani helped Nikki compose her songs, too. Nikki first performed in front of an audience in church as a worship leader before entering the entertainment business.
In 2008, Gil began dating Billy Crawford, and their relationship ended in 2013. According to Gil, the breakup was caused by Crawford's infidelity while she chose to remain celibate until marriage: "The scary thing, knowing what I know now, is I would have said yes to his insincere offers of marriage!" she said. "I was made to believe I was making up these things in my head—I thought we were just plateau-ing." Gil married BJ Albert (nephew of singer-actress Joey Albert) on November 21, 2015. In November 2017, Gil gave birth to her first child, a boy. She is now retired from showbiz to focus on her family life.
Theater
2007: Seussical the Musical - The Cat
2010: Legally Blonde: The Musical - Elle Woods
2011: Sweet Charity - Charity Hope Valentine
2013: They're Playing Our Song - Sonia Walsk
2014: The Last 5 Years - Cathy Hyatt
Filmography
Movies
Television
Discography
Albums
Singles
Other appearances
Awards and nominations
References
External links
1987 births
Living people
Ateneo de Manila University alumni
Star Magic Batch 11
21st-century Filipino women singers
Filipino television actresses
Filipino television personalities
Filipino people of German descent
Filipino people of Spanish descent
21st-century Filipino actresses
VJs (media personalities)
Filipino musical theatre actresses
PolyEast Records artists
Universal Records (Philippines) artists | false | [
"Monica Pauline \"Nikki\" Santos Gil-Albert (born August 23, 1987) is a Filipina former actress, singer, host, model, and video jockey. She is known for being part of the afternoon remake of Carlo J. Caparas' Pieta (2008–2009) and, in 2009, for portraying Princess Punzalan in the afternoon drama Nagsimula sa Puso (2009–2010). She is also well known for her lead portrayal as Jennifer \"Jenny\" La Peña in the 2012 remake of the 1990 radio serial of Salvador Royales' Mundo Man ay Magunaw, originally played by Jennifer Sevilla in the film version produced by SEIKO Films.\n\nBiography\nMonica Pauline Gil (aka Nikki Gil) was born in Manila to Dino and Julie Gil. She is of Filipino, Spanish and German descent. Born to a father who plays the piano and a mom who sang in a church choir, Nikki showed early signs of musical talent. At the age of four years, Nikki was already singing and doing voiceovers for commercials. She graduated from Shekinah Christian Training Center in March 2005 as valedictorian. In 2009, she graduated from Ateneo de Manila University, majoring in English literature.\n\nCareer\n\nMusic\nGil first rose to prominence when she was 17 years old after appearing in a 2005 Coca-Cola commercial. After that, she went on to released her first self-titled album, Nikki Gil, that same year under EMI Philippines with \"Sakayan ng Jeep\" as the carrier single. In 2006, it was repackaged and rereleased with and additional song, \"Glowing Inside\". In July 2006, EMI Philippines and Walt Disney Records hired Nikki along with other Asian artists (Vince Chong of Malaysia and Alicia Pan of Singapore) to sing and to star in the music video of \"High School Musical\", a Disney Channel production. Nikki also sang \"Breaking Free\" and \"Gotta Go My Own Way\" in the production's album.\n\nIn 2008, Gil released her second music album, Hear My Heart, with \"Hear My Heart\" as the carrier single. She co-wrote the song with her younger sister, Dani. During the same year, Disney hired her to sing and star in the music video of the pop version of \"It's a Small World After All\". In addition, she was asked to sing the Tagalog version of the song at the grand opening of \"It's a Small World\" in Hong Kong Disneyland.\n\nIn 2010, Gil released her third music album, Somebody to Love, with \"Somebody to Love\" as the carrier single, a song written by her younger sister, Dani. Gil played the character of Elle Woods in the Manila production of the musical Legally Blonde which is based on the 2001 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer motion picture Legally Blonde and the novel by Amanda Brown.\n\nIn 2014, Nikki moved to her new recording company Universal Records.\n\nActing career and TV hosting\nIn 2005, Gil was given a VJ stint for ABS-CBN's music channel subsidiary, MYX until she left MYX in January 2016. She was also picked to host the now-defunct talk show MRS on ABS-CBN and morning show Breakfast on Studio 23. She later would join the cast of the weekly variety show ASAP Mania. In 2006, she was joined by Toni Gonzaga, Bianca Gonzalez and Sam Milby as a host for the first season of Pinoy Dream Academy, a singing reality show from Endemol. In 2007, she became part of an anime-inspired fantasy series \"Rounin\" and as an extended cast for the drama series \"Pangarap na Bituin\". In 2008, she was again chosen to be the host for the season 2 of Pinoy Dream Academy with Toni Gonzaga and Billy Crawford. In 2009, she appeared in \"Pieta\", an afternoon teleserye with Ryan Agoncillo, and also appeared in the teleserye \"Florinda\" with Maricel Soriano. Nikki Gil is one of the mainstay on ABS-CBN with ASAP XV. In 2010, she started hosting E-Live along with Luis Manzano and Ogie Diaz. She also did a fair share of hosting occasionally on Showtime replacing Anne Curtis.\n\nIn 2007, Gil did her first movie appearance by doing a cameo role as John Lloyd Cruz's best friend for One More Chance. In 2009, she appeared along with Bea Alonzo, Sam Milby and Derek Ramsay for a Star Cinema movie entitled And I Love You So. In 2010, she was the lead actress in a romance film entitled The Red Shoes produced by Unitel Pictures with Marvin Agustin, which won the Best Picture in the 27th Bogota International Film Festival.\n\nIn 2012, Gil became part of the TV remake of the Salvador Royales film Mundo Man ay Magunaw as Jennifer la Pena.\n\nIn 2013, she played a special participation role in Apoy Sa Dagat as young Odessa, and later became a star antagonist in the remake of Maria Mercedes as Misty. The same year, Nikki Gil won as Best Single Performance By An Actress for her role in \"MMK\" in the recent 2013 PMPC Star Awards For TV.\n\nIn 2014, she was a member of the cast of Hawak-Kamay, playing Meann.\n\nShe is expected to return to showbiz through a musical play from Repertory Philippines entitled 'Carousel'.\n\nPersonal life\nShe has a sister, Dani Gil, who also sings and plays the piano. Dani helped Nikki compose her songs, too. Nikki first performed in front of an audience in church as a worship leader before entering the entertainment business.\n\nIn 2008, Gil began dating Billy Crawford, and their relationship ended in 2013. According to Gil, the breakup was caused by Crawford's infidelity while she chose to remain celibate until marriage: \"The scary thing, knowing what I know now, is I would have said yes to his insincere offers of marriage!\" she said. \"I was made to believe I was making up these things in my head—I thought we were just plateau-ing.\" Gil married BJ Albert (nephew of singer-actress Joey Albert) on November 21, 2015. In November 2017, Gil gave birth to her first child, a boy. She is now retired from showbiz to focus on her family life.\n\nTheater\n 2007: Seussical the Musical - The Cat\n 2010: Legally Blonde: The Musical - Elle Woods\n 2011: Sweet Charity - Charity Hope Valentine\n 2013: They're Playing Our Song - Sonia Walsk\n 2014: The Last 5 Years - Cathy Hyatt\n\nFilmography\n\nMovies\n\nTelevision\n\nDiscography\n\nAlbums\n\nSingles\n\nOther appearances\n\nAwards and nominations\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \n\n1987 births\nLiving people\nAteneo de Manila University alumni\nStar Magic Batch 11\n21st-century Filipino women singers\nFilipino television actresses\nFilipino television personalities\nFilipino people of German descent\nFilipino people of Spanish descent\n21st-century Filipino actresses\nVJs (media personalities)\nFilipino musical theatre actresses\nPolyEast Records artists\nUniversal Records (Philippines) artists",
"\"Man of Steel\" is a song by American Rock singer Meat Loaf and features Pearl Aday, Meat Loaf's adoptive daughter. It was released as the third single from his 2003 album Couldn't Have Said It Better. \"Man of Steel\" was written by James Michael and Nikki Sixx. The single was released by Mercury on 23 November 2003.\n\nSpeaking with Paul Stenning upon the album's release, Meat Loaf explained the background behind the song, saying:\n\n\"My daughter Pearl was out on tour with Motley Crue and people said to me 'you let your daughter go on tour with Motley Crue!?’ I said ‘she's a big girl’, 26 at the time; ‘she can make up her own mind’. But I did scare Nikki Sixx when I went to see the show.\" He explains, \"I approached him in my best bad guy movie role after he'd just come off stage. I said, 'Let's go in this other room cause me and you are going to talk about what you have my daughter wearing. Right now!' He went white, like an English suntan. He started stuttering at me trying to explain she picked it out and he had nothing to do with it and then I just grinned at him.\n\"He kept saying to Pearl she should do a duet with me. He decided as a surprise, he called James Michael who was writing already for this record (he'd also worked with Nikki on the last Motley Crue record) and said let's write a song for Pearl and her dad to sing together. That was Man of Steel and they sent it to me and everybody got really mad at me because I wouldn't listen to it for nine or ten weeks. I didn’t know what the album was going to be, I was waiting on James Michael to give me the first piece. After so many discussions I wanted to hear where it was going.\"\n\nTrack listing \n \"Man Of Steel\" (Radio Edit)\n \"Tear Me Down\" (Live)\n \"Love You Out Loud\" (Live)\n\nReferences \n\nMeat Loaf songs\nSongs written by James Michael\nSongs written by Nikki Sixx\n2003 singles\n2003 songs\nMercury Records singles"
] |
[
"Nikki Gil",
"Acting career and TV hosting",
"What happened to Nikki after the 2005 Coca-Cola commercial?",
"I don't know.",
"What family member helped Nikki Gil to write songs?",
"I don't know."
] | C_e0ddada6341f4a8dab5919e5faca3a73_0 | Where did Nikki Gil get started | 3 | Where did Nikki Gil get started in her acting and tv hosting career? | Nikki Gil | In 2005, Gil was given a VJ stint for ABS-CBN's music channel subsidiary, MYX until she left MYX in January 2016. She was also picked to host the now-defunct talk show MRS on ABS-CBN and morning show Breakfast on Studio 23. She later would join the cast of the weekly variety show ASAP Mania. In 2006, she was joined by Toni Gonzaga, Bianca Gonzalez and Sam Milby as a host for the first season of Pinoy Dream Academy, a singing reality show from Endemol. In 2007, she became part of an anime-inspired fantasy series "Rounin" and as an extended cast for the drama series "Pangarap na Bituin". In 2008, she was again chosen to be the host for the season 2 of Pinoy Dream Academy with Toni Gonzaga and Billy Crawford. In 2009, she appeared in "Pieta", an afternoon teleserye with Ryan Agoncillo, and also appeared in the teleserye "Florinda" with Maricel Soriano. Nikki Gil is one of the mainstay on ABS-CBN with ASAP XV. In 2010, she started hosting E-Live along with Luis Manzano and Ogie Diaz. She also did a fair share of hosting occasionally on Showtime replacing Anne Curtis. In 2007, Gil did her first movie appearance by doing a cameo role as John Lloyd Cruz's best friend for One More Chance. In 2009, she appeared along with Bea Alonzo, Sam Milby, Derek Ramsay for a Star Cinema movie entitled And I Love You So. In 2010, she was the lead actress in a romance film entitled The Red Shoes produced by Unitel Pictures with Marvin Agustin, which won the Best Picture in the 27th Bogota International Film Festival. In 2012, Gil became part of the TV remake of the Salvador Royales film Mundo Man ay Magunaw as Jennifer la Pena. In 2013, she played a special participation role in Apoy Sa Dagat as young Odessa, and later became a star antagonist in the remake of Maria Mercedes as Misty. The same year, Nikki Gil won as Best Single Performance By An Actress for her role in "MMK" in the recent 2013 PMPC Star Awards For TV. In 2014, she was a member of the cast of Hawak-Kamay, playing Meann. CANNOTANSWER | In 2005, Gil was given a VJ stint for ABS-CBN's music channel subsidiary, MYX until she left MYX in January 2016. | Monica Pauline "Nikki" Santos Gil-Albert (born August 23, 1987) is a Filipina former actress, singer, host, model, and video jockey. She is known for being part of the afternoon remake of Carlo J. Caparas' Pieta (2008–2009) and, in 2009, for portraying Princess Punzalan in the afternoon drama Nagsimula sa Puso (2009–2010). She is also well known for her lead portrayal as Jennifer "Jenny" La Peña in the 2012 remake of the 1990 radio serial of Salvador Royales' Mundo Man ay Magunaw, originally played by Jennifer Sevilla in the film version produced by SEIKO Films.
Biography
Monica Pauline Gil (aka Nikki Gil) was born in Manila to Dino and Julie Gil. She is of Filipino, Spanish and German descent. Born to a father who plays the piano and a mom who sang in a church choir, Nikki showed early signs of musical talent. At the age of four years, Nikki was already singing and doing voiceovers for commercials. She graduated from Shekinah Christian Training Center in March 2005 as valedictorian. In 2009, she graduated from Ateneo de Manila University, majoring in English literature.
Career
Music
Gil first rose to prominence when she was 17 years old after appearing in a 2005 Coca-Cola commercial. After that, she went on to released her first self-titled album, Nikki Gil, that same year under EMI Philippines with "Sakayan ng Jeep" as the carrier single. In 2006, it was repackaged and rereleased with and additional song, "Glowing Inside". In July 2006, EMI Philippines and Walt Disney Records hired Nikki along with other Asian artists (Vince Chong of Malaysia and Alicia Pan of Singapore) to sing and to star in the music video of "High School Musical", a Disney Channel production. Nikki also sang "Breaking Free" and "Gotta Go My Own Way" in the production's album.
In 2008, Gil released her second music album, Hear My Heart, with "Hear My Heart" as the carrier single. She co-wrote the song with her younger sister, Dani. During the same year, Disney hired her to sing and star in the music video of the pop version of "It's a Small World After All". In addition, she was asked to sing the Tagalog version of the song at the grand opening of "It's a Small World" in Hong Kong Disneyland.
In 2010, Gil released her third music album, Somebody to Love, with "Somebody to Love" as the carrier single, a song written by her younger sister, Dani. Gil played the character of Elle Woods in the Manila production of the musical Legally Blonde which is based on the 2001 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer motion picture Legally Blonde and the novel by Amanda Brown.
In 2014, Nikki moved to her new recording company Universal Records.
Acting career and TV hosting
In 2005, Gil was given a VJ stint for ABS-CBN's music channel subsidiary, MYX until she left MYX in January 2016. She was also picked to host the now-defunct talk show MRS on ABS-CBN and morning show Breakfast on Studio 23. She later would join the cast of the weekly variety show ASAP Mania. In 2006, she was joined by Toni Gonzaga, Bianca Gonzalez and Sam Milby as a host for the first season of Pinoy Dream Academy, a singing reality show from Endemol. In 2007, she became part of an anime-inspired fantasy series "Rounin" and as an extended cast for the drama series "Pangarap na Bituin". In 2008, she was again chosen to be the host for the season 2 of Pinoy Dream Academy with Toni Gonzaga and Billy Crawford. In 2009, she appeared in "Pieta", an afternoon teleserye with Ryan Agoncillo, and also appeared in the teleserye "Florinda" with Maricel Soriano. Nikki Gil is one of the mainstay on ABS-CBN with ASAP XV. In 2010, she started hosting E-Live along with Luis Manzano and Ogie Diaz. She also did a fair share of hosting occasionally on Showtime replacing Anne Curtis.
In 2007, Gil did her first movie appearance by doing a cameo role as John Lloyd Cruz's best friend for One More Chance. In 2009, she appeared along with Bea Alonzo, Sam Milby and Derek Ramsay for a Star Cinema movie entitled And I Love You So. In 2010, she was the lead actress in a romance film entitled The Red Shoes produced by Unitel Pictures with Marvin Agustin, which won the Best Picture in the 27th Bogota International Film Festival.
In 2012, Gil became part of the TV remake of the Salvador Royales film Mundo Man ay Magunaw as Jennifer la Pena.
In 2013, she played a special participation role in Apoy Sa Dagat as young Odessa, and later became a star antagonist in the remake of Maria Mercedes as Misty. The same year, Nikki Gil won as Best Single Performance By An Actress for her role in "MMK" in the recent 2013 PMPC Star Awards For TV.
In 2014, she was a member of the cast of Hawak-Kamay, playing Meann.
She is expected to return to showbiz through a musical play from Repertory Philippines entitled 'Carousel'.
Personal life
She has a sister, Dani Gil, who also sings and plays the piano. Dani helped Nikki compose her songs, too. Nikki first performed in front of an audience in church as a worship leader before entering the entertainment business.
In 2008, Gil began dating Billy Crawford, and their relationship ended in 2013. According to Gil, the breakup was caused by Crawford's infidelity while she chose to remain celibate until marriage: "The scary thing, knowing what I know now, is I would have said yes to his insincere offers of marriage!" she said. "I was made to believe I was making up these things in my head—I thought we were just plateau-ing." Gil married BJ Albert (nephew of singer-actress Joey Albert) on November 21, 2015. In November 2017, Gil gave birth to her first child, a boy. She is now retired from showbiz to focus on her family life.
Theater
2007: Seussical the Musical - The Cat
2010: Legally Blonde: The Musical - Elle Woods
2011: Sweet Charity - Charity Hope Valentine
2013: They're Playing Our Song - Sonia Walsk
2014: The Last 5 Years - Cathy Hyatt
Filmography
Movies
Television
Discography
Albums
Singles
Other appearances
Awards and nominations
References
External links
1987 births
Living people
Ateneo de Manila University alumni
Star Magic Batch 11
21st-century Filipino women singers
Filipino television actresses
Filipino television personalities
Filipino people of German descent
Filipino people of Spanish descent
21st-century Filipino actresses
VJs (media personalities)
Filipino musical theatre actresses
PolyEast Records artists
Universal Records (Philippines) artists | true | [
"Hear My Heart is the second album of the Filipino singer, actress, host, model and Myx VJ Nikki Gil.\n\nTrack listing\nAll tracks were produced by Francis Guevarra.\n\nAlbum credits\n\n Christopher Sy – executive producer\n Estela Paz Cachapero – domestic label manager\n Francis Guevarra – producer\n Efren San Pedro & Ramil Bahandi – vocals recorded\n Arnie Mendaros – vocal arrangements\n Nikki Gil – back ups\n Arnie Mendaros – back ups\n Ferdie Marquez – mixed & mastered\n Willie A. Manzon – creative Consultant\n Patrick Uy – styling\n Ken & Roman – hair & make-up\n Mark Nicdao – photography\n Abi Goy – album design & illustration\n\nReferences\n\n2008 albums\nNikki Gil albums",
"Groove is the fifth studio album by Filipino-American singer Billy Crawford. The album was released on iTunes on May 1, 2009. It was also made available in physical form that year. The album contains covers of classic hits from the 1970s and 1980s.\n\nTrack listing\n\"Steal Away\" (originally popularized by Robbie Dupree)\n\"Sexy Eyes\" (originally popularized by Dr. Hook)\n\"Rock with You\" (originally popularized by Michael Jackson)\n\"Let’s Groove\" (originally popularized by Earth, Wind & Fire)\n\"Could It Be I’m Fallin’ in Love\" (originally popularized by The Spinners)\n\"Lovely Day\" (originally popularized by Bill Withers)\n\"You’ve Got a Friend\" (feat. Nikki Gil) (originally popularized by James Taylor)\n\"How Sweet It Is\" (originally popularized by James Taylor)\n\"Never Let Her Slip Away\" (originally popularized by Andrew Gold)\n\"Human Nature\" (originally popularized by Michael Jackson)\n\"One Last Cry\" (originally popularized by Brian McKnight)\n\"Someone\" (originally popularized by El DeBarge)\n\"Mercy, Mercy Me\" (originally popularized by Marvin Gaye)\n\"Human Nature\" (Acoustic Version)\n\"You’ve Got a Friend\" (feat. Nikki Gil) (Acoustic Version)\n\"Steal Away\" (Silverfilter Remix)\n\nSingles/videos\n\"Steal Away\"\n\"Human Nature\"\n\"You've Got a Friend (feat. Nikki Gil)\"\n\nReferences\n\n2009 albums\nBilly Crawford albums\nCovers albums"
] |
[
"Nikki Gil",
"Acting career and TV hosting",
"What happened to Nikki after the 2005 Coca-Cola commercial?",
"I don't know.",
"What family member helped Nikki Gil to write songs?",
"I don't know.",
"Where did Nikki Gil get started",
"In 2005, Gil was given a VJ stint for ABS-CBN's music channel subsidiary, MYX until she left MYX in January 2016."
] | C_e0ddada6341f4a8dab5919e5faca3a73_0 | Was she still young when she gained fame? | 4 | How old was Nikki Gil when she gained fame? | Nikki Gil | In 2005, Gil was given a VJ stint for ABS-CBN's music channel subsidiary, MYX until she left MYX in January 2016. She was also picked to host the now-defunct talk show MRS on ABS-CBN and morning show Breakfast on Studio 23. She later would join the cast of the weekly variety show ASAP Mania. In 2006, she was joined by Toni Gonzaga, Bianca Gonzalez and Sam Milby as a host for the first season of Pinoy Dream Academy, a singing reality show from Endemol. In 2007, she became part of an anime-inspired fantasy series "Rounin" and as an extended cast for the drama series "Pangarap na Bituin". In 2008, she was again chosen to be the host for the season 2 of Pinoy Dream Academy with Toni Gonzaga and Billy Crawford. In 2009, she appeared in "Pieta", an afternoon teleserye with Ryan Agoncillo, and also appeared in the teleserye "Florinda" with Maricel Soriano. Nikki Gil is one of the mainstay on ABS-CBN with ASAP XV. In 2010, she started hosting E-Live along with Luis Manzano and Ogie Diaz. She also did a fair share of hosting occasionally on Showtime replacing Anne Curtis. In 2007, Gil did her first movie appearance by doing a cameo role as John Lloyd Cruz's best friend for One More Chance. In 2009, she appeared along with Bea Alonzo, Sam Milby, Derek Ramsay for a Star Cinema movie entitled And I Love You So. In 2010, she was the lead actress in a romance film entitled The Red Shoes produced by Unitel Pictures with Marvin Agustin, which won the Best Picture in the 27th Bogota International Film Festival. In 2012, Gil became part of the TV remake of the Salvador Royales film Mundo Man ay Magunaw as Jennifer la Pena. In 2013, she played a special participation role in Apoy Sa Dagat as young Odessa, and later became a star antagonist in the remake of Maria Mercedes as Misty. The same year, Nikki Gil won as Best Single Performance By An Actress for her role in "MMK" in the recent 2013 PMPC Star Awards For TV. In 2014, she was a member of the cast of Hawak-Kamay, playing Meann. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Monica Pauline "Nikki" Santos Gil-Albert (born August 23, 1987) is a Filipina former actress, singer, host, model, and video jockey. She is known for being part of the afternoon remake of Carlo J. Caparas' Pieta (2008–2009) and, in 2009, for portraying Princess Punzalan in the afternoon drama Nagsimula sa Puso (2009–2010). She is also well known for her lead portrayal as Jennifer "Jenny" La Peña in the 2012 remake of the 1990 radio serial of Salvador Royales' Mundo Man ay Magunaw, originally played by Jennifer Sevilla in the film version produced by SEIKO Films.
Biography
Monica Pauline Gil (aka Nikki Gil) was born in Manila to Dino and Julie Gil. She is of Filipino, Spanish and German descent. Born to a father who plays the piano and a mom who sang in a church choir, Nikki showed early signs of musical talent. At the age of four years, Nikki was already singing and doing voiceovers for commercials. She graduated from Shekinah Christian Training Center in March 2005 as valedictorian. In 2009, she graduated from Ateneo de Manila University, majoring in English literature.
Career
Music
Gil first rose to prominence when she was 17 years old after appearing in a 2005 Coca-Cola commercial. After that, she went on to released her first self-titled album, Nikki Gil, that same year under EMI Philippines with "Sakayan ng Jeep" as the carrier single. In 2006, it was repackaged and rereleased with and additional song, "Glowing Inside". In July 2006, EMI Philippines and Walt Disney Records hired Nikki along with other Asian artists (Vince Chong of Malaysia and Alicia Pan of Singapore) to sing and to star in the music video of "High School Musical", a Disney Channel production. Nikki also sang "Breaking Free" and "Gotta Go My Own Way" in the production's album.
In 2008, Gil released her second music album, Hear My Heart, with "Hear My Heart" as the carrier single. She co-wrote the song with her younger sister, Dani. During the same year, Disney hired her to sing and star in the music video of the pop version of "It's a Small World After All". In addition, she was asked to sing the Tagalog version of the song at the grand opening of "It's a Small World" in Hong Kong Disneyland.
In 2010, Gil released her third music album, Somebody to Love, with "Somebody to Love" as the carrier single, a song written by her younger sister, Dani. Gil played the character of Elle Woods in the Manila production of the musical Legally Blonde which is based on the 2001 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer motion picture Legally Blonde and the novel by Amanda Brown.
In 2014, Nikki moved to her new recording company Universal Records.
Acting career and TV hosting
In 2005, Gil was given a VJ stint for ABS-CBN's music channel subsidiary, MYX until she left MYX in January 2016. She was also picked to host the now-defunct talk show MRS on ABS-CBN and morning show Breakfast on Studio 23. She later would join the cast of the weekly variety show ASAP Mania. In 2006, she was joined by Toni Gonzaga, Bianca Gonzalez and Sam Milby as a host for the first season of Pinoy Dream Academy, a singing reality show from Endemol. In 2007, she became part of an anime-inspired fantasy series "Rounin" and as an extended cast for the drama series "Pangarap na Bituin". In 2008, she was again chosen to be the host for the season 2 of Pinoy Dream Academy with Toni Gonzaga and Billy Crawford. In 2009, she appeared in "Pieta", an afternoon teleserye with Ryan Agoncillo, and also appeared in the teleserye "Florinda" with Maricel Soriano. Nikki Gil is one of the mainstay on ABS-CBN with ASAP XV. In 2010, she started hosting E-Live along with Luis Manzano and Ogie Diaz. She also did a fair share of hosting occasionally on Showtime replacing Anne Curtis.
In 2007, Gil did her first movie appearance by doing a cameo role as John Lloyd Cruz's best friend for One More Chance. In 2009, she appeared along with Bea Alonzo, Sam Milby and Derek Ramsay for a Star Cinema movie entitled And I Love You So. In 2010, she was the lead actress in a romance film entitled The Red Shoes produced by Unitel Pictures with Marvin Agustin, which won the Best Picture in the 27th Bogota International Film Festival.
In 2012, Gil became part of the TV remake of the Salvador Royales film Mundo Man ay Magunaw as Jennifer la Pena.
In 2013, she played a special participation role in Apoy Sa Dagat as young Odessa, and later became a star antagonist in the remake of Maria Mercedes as Misty. The same year, Nikki Gil won as Best Single Performance By An Actress for her role in "MMK" in the recent 2013 PMPC Star Awards For TV.
In 2014, she was a member of the cast of Hawak-Kamay, playing Meann.
She is expected to return to showbiz through a musical play from Repertory Philippines entitled 'Carousel'.
Personal life
She has a sister, Dani Gil, who also sings and plays the piano. Dani helped Nikki compose her songs, too. Nikki first performed in front of an audience in church as a worship leader before entering the entertainment business.
In 2008, Gil began dating Billy Crawford, and their relationship ended in 2013. According to Gil, the breakup was caused by Crawford's infidelity while she chose to remain celibate until marriage: "The scary thing, knowing what I know now, is I would have said yes to his insincere offers of marriage!" she said. "I was made to believe I was making up these things in my head—I thought we were just plateau-ing." Gil married BJ Albert (nephew of singer-actress Joey Albert) on November 21, 2015. In November 2017, Gil gave birth to her first child, a boy. She is now retired from showbiz to focus on her family life.
Theater
2007: Seussical the Musical - The Cat
2010: Legally Blonde: The Musical - Elle Woods
2011: Sweet Charity - Charity Hope Valentine
2013: They're Playing Our Song - Sonia Walsk
2014: The Last 5 Years - Cathy Hyatt
Filmography
Movies
Television
Discography
Albums
Singles
Other appearances
Awards and nominations
References
External links
1987 births
Living people
Ateneo de Manila University alumni
Star Magic Batch 11
21st-century Filipino women singers
Filipino television actresses
Filipino television personalities
Filipino people of German descent
Filipino people of Spanish descent
21st-century Filipino actresses
VJs (media personalities)
Filipino musical theatre actresses
PolyEast Records artists
Universal Records (Philippines) artists | false | [
"Filomena Almarinez (July 6, 1913 – August 13, 1938) was a Filipino woman who gained her fame as a folk saint after her body was discovered in a state of Incorruptibility when her grave was exhumed for her father's body.\n\nAlmarinez was born on July 6, 1913, to a poor farming family. According to locals, she was a prayerful woman and was prone to introspection. She allegedly died on August 13, 1938 due to emotional stress, because her parents were against her lover.\n\nWhen her father died in 1947, her body was exhumed, and workers found her body well preserved, immediately, the locals proclaimed her a saint and a number of miracles were attributed to her (e.g. Candles melted on her tomb to form the face of Jesus). The cult of \"Santa Filomena\" persisted until the early 1950s. Her body still rests in the Santa Filomena Cemetery in Biñan, Laguna. There is a chapel dedicated to her in Biñan, but the chapel is in a state of disrepair.\n\nFolk saints\nPeople from Biñan\n1913 births\n1938 deaths",
"Arleene Johnson [Noga] (January 1, 1924 – March 14, 2017) was a Canadian infielder who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). Listed at 5 feet 4 inches, 137 lb., she batted and threw right-handed. Johnson was one of the 57 players born in Canada to join the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League in its twelve-year history.\n\nEarly life\nBorn in Ogema, Saskatchewan, Johnson grew up on a farm and graduated at Ogema High School before moving to Regina, capital city of Saskatchewan, in search of stable employment. She joined the workforce in 1944 while playing in the Ladies Intercity Softball Senior A League.\n\nBaseball and softball career\nJohnson entered the AAGPBL in 1945 with the Fort Wayne Daisies, playing for them one year before joining the Muskegon Lassies for two and a half years (1946–1948) and returning to Fort Wayne (1948). She divided her playing time between third base and shortstop, and made three trips to the playoffs.\n\nBest known for her fielding abilities, Johnson was the top fielder at third base for three consecutive years, compiling a .928 fielding average in 1946, .942 in 1947 to set a single-season record, and .933 in 1948. Her .942 mark was still intact until 1952, when Ernestine Petras of the Battle Creek Belles recorded a .965 average.\n\nFollowing her AAGPBL career, Johnson played organized softball in Regina from 1949 to 1979. In that period, she was member of nine provincial softball championship teams and helped them win five Western Canada championship titles. She also was named Most Valuable Player twice, was the league batting champion twice, and made the first All-Star team. In addition, she served as player-coach, assistant coach, and coach in latter years of participation.\n\nPersonal life\nJohnson married Ron Noga in 1963. The couple raised two children, Carol Lee and Robert, and had six grandchildren. She was widowed in 1994.\n\nA vigorous grandmother, she served twelve years on the Board of Directors of the AAGPBL Players Association, and was involved in baseball clinics for girls with the Saskatchewan Baseball Association (1998–1999) and for Major League Baseball in the City of Halifax (1999).\n\nJohnson has been widely recognized for her playing and coaching skills and by opening doors for women in sports. She is part of Women in Baseball, a permanent display based at the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, New York which was unveiled in 1988 to honor the entire AAGPBL rather than individual baseball personalities. Since then, the Hall of Fame has organized a series of special programs and events to honor the historic role of women in baseball.\n\nLater life\nIn 1988, she gained induction into the Saskatchewan Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum and was inducted in the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame and Museum in 1989. In addition, she was honoured in her home town of Ogema, when the Sports Complex of the city was declared a municipal heritage property and the historical grandstand in the fairgrounds was dedicated as the Arleene Jobnson-Noga Grandstand.\n\nIn 1998, Johnson and all Canadian AAGPBL players gained honorary induction into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame. She also was inducted in the Regina Sports Hall of Fame in 2004 as a member of the 1954 Regina Govins. The same year, she was recognized by SASK Baseball for her dedication in building and promoting amateur baseball in Saskatchewan.\n\nJohnson died on March 14, 2017 at the age of 93.\n\nCareer statistics\nBatting\n\nFielding\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n1924 births\n2017 deaths\nAll-American Girls Professional Baseball League players\nFort Wayne Daisies players\nMuskegon Lassies players\nCanadian baseball players\nCanadian sportswomen\nBaseball people from Saskatchewan\n21st-century American women"
] |
[
"Good Vibrations",
"Modular approach"
] | C_3511c60eb57b41c2bebf1299ed0caeeb_1 | What was the approach used to creating Good Vibrations? | 1 | What was the modular approach used to creating Good Vibrations? | Good Vibrations | "Good Vibrations" established a new method of operation for Wilson. Instead of working on whole songs with clear large-scale syntactical structures, Wilson limited himself to recording short interchangeable fragments (or "modules"). Through the method of tape splicing, each fragment could then be assembled into a linear sequence, allowing any number of larger structures and divergent moods to be produced at a later time. This was the same modular approach used during the sessions for Smile and Smiley Smile. To mask each tape edit, vast reverb decays were added at the mixing and sub-mixing stages. For instrumentation, Wilson employed the services of "the Wrecking Crew", the nickname for a conglomerate of session musicians active in Los Angeles at that time. Production for "Good Vibrations" spanned more than a dozen recording sessions at four different Hollywood studios, at a time when most pop singles were typically recorded in a day or two. It was reported to have used over 90 hours of magnetic recording tape, with an eventual budget estimated between $50,000 and $75,000 (equivalent to $380,000 and $570,000 in 2017), at that time the largest sum spent on a single. In comparison, the whole of Pet Sounds had cost $70,000 ($530,000), itself an unusually high cost for an album. It is said that Wilson was so puzzled by "Good Vibrations" that he would often arrive at a session, consider a few possibilities, and then leave without recording anything, which exacerbated costs. In 2018, Wilson disputed the $50,000 figure for "Good Vibrations", saying that the overall expenses were closer to $25,000 ($190,000). When asked in a 2005 interview if it was true that the Electro-Theremin work alone cost $100,000, he responded "No. $15,000." CANNOTANSWER | Instead of working on whole songs with clear large-scale syntactical structures, | "Good Vibrations" is a song by the American rock band the Beach Boys that was composed by Brian Wilson with lyrics by Mike Love. It was released as a single on October 10, 1966 and was an immediate critical and commercial hit, topping record charts in several countries including the United States and the United Kingdom. Characterized by its complex soundscapes, episodic structure and subversions of pop music formula, it was the most expensive single ever recorded. "Good Vibrations" later became widely acclaimed as one of the finest and most important works of the rock era.
Also produced by Wilson, the title derived from his fascination with cosmic vibrations, as his mother would tell him as a child that dogs sometimes bark at people in response to their "bad vibrations". He used the concept to suggest extrasensory perception, while Love's lyrics were inspired by the nascent Flower Power movement. The song was written as it was recorded and in a similar fashion to other compositions from Wilson's Smile period. It was issued as a standalone single, backed with "Let's Go Away for Awhile", and was to be included on the never-finished album Smile. Instead, the track appeared on the September 1967 release Smiley Smile.
The making of "Good Vibrations" was unprecedented for any kind of recording. Building on his approach for Pet Sounds, Wilson recorded a surplus of short, interchangeable musical fragments with his bandmates and a host of session musicians at four different Hollywood studios from February to September 1966, a process reflected in the song's several dramatic shifts in key, texture, instrumentation and mood. Over 90 hours of tape was consumed in the sessions, with the total cost of production estimated to be in the tens of thousands of dollars. Band publicist Derek Taylor dubbed the unusual work a "pocket symphony". It helped develop the use of the studio as an instrument and heralded a wave of pop experimentation and the onset of psychedelic and progressive rock. The track featured a novel mix of instruments, including jaw harp and Electro-Theremin, and although the latter is not a true theremin, the song's success led to a renewed interest and sales of theremins and synthesizers.
"Good Vibrations" received a Grammy nomination for Best Vocal Group performance in 1966 and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1994. The song was voted number one in Mojos "Top 100 Records of All Time" and number six on Rolling Stones "500 Greatest Songs of All Time", and it was included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's "500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll". In later years, the song has been cited as a forerunner to the Beatles' "A Day in the Life" (1967) and Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" (1975). A 1976 cover version by Todd Rundgren peaked at number 34 on the Billboard Hot 100. The Beach Boys followed up "Good Vibrations" with another single pieced from sections, "Heroes and Villains" (1967), but it was less successful.
Inspiration and writing
Concept and early lyrics
The Beach Boys' leader, Brian Wilson, was responsible for the musical composition and virtually all of the arrangement for "Good Vibrations". Most of the song's structure and arrangement was written as it was recorded. During the recording sessions for the 1966 album Pet Sounds, Wilson began changing his writing process. For "Good Vibrations", Wilson said, "I had a lot of unfinished ideas, fragments of music I called 'feels.' Each feel represented a mood or an emotion I'd felt, and I planned to fit them together like a mosaic." Engineer Chuck Britz is quoted saying that Wilson considered the song to be "his whole life performance in one track". Wilson stated: "I was an energetic 23-year-old. ... I said: 'This is going to be better than [the Phil Spector production] "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'.
Wilson said that "Good Vibrations" was inspired by his mother: "[She] used to tell me about vibrations. I didn't really understand too much of what it meant when I was just a boy. It scared me, the word 'vibrations.' She told me about dogs that would bark at people and then not bark at others, that a dog would pick up vibrations from these people that you can't see, but you can feel." Brian first enlisted Pet Sounds lyricist Tony Asher for help in putting words to the idea. When Brian presented the song on piano, Asher thought that it had an interesting premise with the potential for hit status, but could not fathom the end result due to Brian's primitive piano playing style. Asher remembered:
Wilson wanted to call the song "Good Vibes", but Asher advised that it was "lightweight use of the language", and suggested that "Good Vibrations" would sound less "trendy". The two proceeded to write lyrics for the verses that were ultimately discarded.
Theremin and cello
From the start, Wilson envisioned a theremin for the track. AllMusic reviewer John Bush pointed out: "Radio listeners could easily pick up the link between the title and the obviously electronic riffs sounding in the background of the chorus, but Wilson's use of the theremin added another delicious parallel—between the single's theme and its use of an instrument the player never even touched."
"Good Vibrations" does not technically feature a theremin, but rather an Electro-Theremin, which is physically controlled by a knob on the side of the instrument. It was dubbed a "theremin" simply for convenience. At that time, theremins were most often associated with the 1945 Alfred Hitchcock film Spellbound, but their most common presence was in the theme music for the television sitcom My Favorite Martian, which ran from 1963 to 1966. Britz speculates: "He just walked in and said, 'I have this new sound for you.' I think he must have heard the sound somewhere and loved it, and built a song around it." It is unclear whether Wilson knew that the instrument was not a real theremin.
Brian credited his brother and bandmate Carl for suggesting the use of a cello on the track. He further stated that its triplet beat on the chorus was his own idea and that it was based on the Crystals' "Da Doo Ron Ron" (1963), produced by Spector. Conversely, arranger and session musician Van Dyke Parks said that it was himself who suggested having the cellist play triplets to Brian. Parks believed that having Brian exploit the cello "to such a hyperbolic degree" was what encouraged the duo to immediately collaborate on the never-finished album Smile. At some point, Wilson asked Parks to pen lyrics for "Good Vibrations", although Parks declined.
Influences and final lyrics
Wilson's cousin and bandmate Mike Love submitted the final lyrics for "Good Vibrations" and contributed its bass-baritone vocals in the chorus. He recalled that when he heard the unfinished backing track: "[It] was already so avant-garde, especially with the theremin, I wondered how our fans were going to relate to it. How's this going to go over in the Midwest or Birmingham? It was such a departure from 'Surfin' U.S.A.' or 'Help Me, Rhonda.'"
Love said that he wrote the words while on the drive to the studio. Feeling that the song could be "the Beach Boys' psychedelic anthem or flower power offering," he based the lyrics on the burgeoning psychedelic music and Flower Power movements occurring in San Francisco and some parts of the Los Angeles area. He described the lyrics as "just a flowery poem. Kind of almost like 'If you’re going to San Francisco be sure to wear flowers in your hair.'" Writing in his 1975 book The Beach Boys: Southern California Pastoral, Bruce Golden observed:
Capitol Records executives were worried that the lyrics contained psychedelic overtones, and Brian was accused of having based the song's production on his LSD experiences. Brian clarified that the song was written under the influence of marijuana, not LSD. He explained: "I made ‘Good Vibrations’ on drugs; I used drugs to make that. ... I learned how to function behind drugs, and it improved my brain ... it made me more rooted in my sanity." In Steven Gaines's 1986 biography, Wilson is quoted on the lyrics: "We talked about good vibrations with the song and the idea, and we decided on one hand that you could say ... those are sensual things. And then you'd say, 'I'm picking up good vibrations,' which is a contrast against the sensual, the extrasensory perception that we have. That's what we're really talking about."
Wilson said in 2012 that the song's "gotta keep those good vibrations" bridge was inspired by Stephen Foster. Bandmate Al Jardine compared that section to Foster and the Negro spiritual "Down by the Riverside". According to Love, the lyric "'she goes with me to a blossom world' was originally meant to be followed by the words 'we find'", but Wilson elected to cut off the line to highlight the bass track linking into the chorus.
Recording and production
Modular approach
"Good Vibrations" established a new method of operation for Wilson. Instead of working on whole songs with clear large-scale syntactical structures, Wilson limited himself to recording short interchangeable fragments (or "modules"). Through the method of tape splicing, each fragment could then be assembled into a linear sequence, allowing any number of larger structures and divergent moods to be produced at a later time. This was the same modular approach used during the sessions for Smile and Smiley Smile. To mask each tape edit, vast reverb decays were added at the mixing and sub-mixing stages.
For instrumentation, Wilson employed the services of "the Wrecking Crew", the nickname for a conglomerate of session musicians active in Los Angeles at that time. Production for "Good Vibrations" spanned more than a dozen recording sessions at four different Hollywood studios, at a time when most pop singles were typically recorded in a day or two. It was reported to have used over 90 hours of magnetic recording tape, with an eventual budget estimated in the tens of thousands, making it the costliest single recorded to that date. Biographer Peter Ames Carlin wrote that Wilson was so puzzled by the arranging of "Good Vibrations" that he would often arrive at a session, consider a few possibilities, and then leave without recording anything, which exacerbated costs.
One estimate of the overall production expenses is between $50,000 and $75,000 (equivalent to $ and $ in ), By comparison, the whole of Pet Sounds had cost $70,000 ($), itself an unusually high cost for an album. In 2018, Wilson disputed the $50,000 figure for "Good Vibrations", saying that the overall expenses were closer to $25,000.
Contemporary advertisements reported $10,000 ($) as the track's total production costs. Domenic Priore wrote that the track cost between $10,000 and $15,000 ($). When asked in a 2005 interview if it was true that the Electro-Theremin work alone cost $100,000, Wilson replied "No. $15,000."
Development
The instrumental of the first version of the song was recorded on February 17, 1966, at Gold Star Studios and was logged as a Pet Sounds session. On that day's session log, it was given the name "#1 Untitled" or "Good, Good, Good Vibrations", but on its master tape, Wilson distinctly states: "'Good Vibrations' ... take one." After twenty-six takes, a rough mono mix completed the session. Some additional instruments and rough guide vocals were overdubbed on February 23. Brian and Carl shared vocals for this mix.
The original version of "Good Vibrations" contained the characteristics of a "funky rhythm and blues number" and would not yet resemble a "pocket symphony". There was no cello at this juncture, but the Electro-Theremin was present, played by its inventor, Paul Tanner. It was Brian's second ever recorded use of the instrument, just three days after the Pet Sounds track "I Just Wasn't Made for These Times". Brian then placed "Good Vibrations" on hold in order to devote attention to the Pet Sounds album, which saw release on May 16. More instrumental sections for "Good Vibrations" were recorded between April and June. Brian then forwent additional instrumental tracking until early September, when it was decided to revisit the song's bridge section and apply Electro-Theremin overdubs.
According to Brian's then-new friend David Anderle, during an early stage, Brian considered giving "Good Vibrations" to one of the black R&B groups signed with Warner Bros. Records such as Wilson Pickett, and then at Anderle's suggestion to singer Danny Hutton. He thought about abandoning the track, but after receiving encouragement from Anderle, eventually decided on it as the next Beach Boys single. In the meantime, he worked on writing and recording material for the group's forthcoming album, Smile.
The first Beach Boy to hear "Good Vibrations" in a semi-completed form, other than Brian, was Carl. Following a performance with the touring group in North Dakota, he remembered: "I came back up into my hotel room one night and the phone rang. It was Brian on the other end. He called me from the recording studio and played this really bizarre sounding music over the phone. There were drums smashing, that kind of stuff, and then it refined itself and got into the cello. It was a real funky track." In 1976, Brian revealed that before the final mixdown, he had been confronted with resistance by members of the group, whom Brian declined to name. The subject of their worries and complaints was the song's length and "modern" sound: "I said no, it's not going to be too long a record, it's going to be just right. ... They didn't quite understand what this jumping from studio to studio was all about. And they couldn't conceive of the record as I did. I saw the record as a totality piece."
The vocals for "Good Vibrations" were recorded at CBS Columbia Square, starting on August 24 and continuing sporadically until the very last day of assembly on September 21. The episodic structure of the composition was continuously revised as the group experimented with different ideas. Brian remembers that he began recording the "bop bop good vibrations" parts first, and that he came up with "the high parts" a week later. Mike Love recalled: "I can remember doing 25–30 vocal overdubs of the same part, and when I mean the same part, I mean same section of a record, maybe no more than two, three, four, five seconds long." Dennis Wilson was to have sung the lead vocal, but due to a bout of laryngitis, Carl replaced him at the last minute. In early September, the master tapes for "Good Vibrations" were stolen. Mysteriously, they reappeared inside Brian's home two days later.
On September 21, Brian completed the track after Tanner added a final Electro-Theremin overdub. In 1976 he elaborated on the event: "It was at Columbia. I remember I had it right in the sack. I could just feel it when I dubbed it down, made the final mix from the 16-track down to mono. It was a feeling of power, it was a rush. A feeling of exaltation. Artistic beauty. It was everything ... I remember saying, 'Oh my God. Sit back and listen to this!'"
Composition and analysis
Genre and dynamics
There are six unique sections to the piece. Music theorist Daniel Harrison refers to these sections individually as the verse, the refrain (or chorus), the "first episodic digression", the "second episodic digression", the "retro-refrain", and the coda. Each has a distinct musical texture, partly due to the nature of the song's recording. The track's instrumentation changes radically from section to section, and for the AM radio standards of late 1966, the song's final runtime (3 minutes 35 seconds) was considered a "very long" duration. Wilson is quoted in 1979:
He characterized the song as "advanced rhythm and blues". Tom Roland of American Songwriter described the piece, "with its interlocking segments—a sort of pop version of the classical sonata, consisting of a series of musical movements". New York Magazine compared it to "a fugue with a rhythmic beat". John Bush compared the track's fragmented cut-and-paste style to 1960s experimentalists such as William S. Burroughs. Music journal Sound on Sound argued that the song "has as many dramatic changes in mood as a piece of serious classical music lasting more than half an hour". It explained that the song subverts pop forms to a considerable degree:
According to historian Lorenzo Candelaria, "Good Vibrations" has since been marketed as pop music "possibly because it comes across relatively innocent compared with the hard-edged rock we have since come to know." Uncut called the song "three minutes and thirty-six seconds of avant-garde pop". Mixdown described it as a "masterpiece of avant-pop". The theremin and cello has been called the song's "psychedelic ingredient". In his book discussing music of the counterculture era, James Perrone stated that the song represented a type of impressionistic psychedelia, in particular for its cello playing repeated bass notes and its theremin. Professor of American history John Robert Greene named "Good Vibrations" among examples of psychedelic or acid rock. Stebbins wrote that the song was "replete with sunshine [and] psychedelia". Steve Valdez says that, like Pet Sounds, Brian was attempting a more experimental rock style.
Comparing "Good Vibrations" to Wilson's previous work Pet Sounds, biographer Andrew Hickey said that the "best way of thinking about [the song] is that it's taking the lowest common denominator of 'Here Today' and 'God Only Knows' and turned the result into an R&B track. We have the same minor-key change between verse and chorus we've seen throughout Pet Sounds, the same descending scalar chord sequences, the same mobile bass parts, but here, rather than to express melancholy, these things are used in a way that's as close as Brian Wilson ever got to funky." Author Jon Stebbins adds that "unlike Pet Sounds the chorus of 'Good Vibrations' projects a definite 'rock and roll' energy and feel."
According to academic Rikky Rooksby, "Good Vibrations" is an example of Brian Wilson's growing interest in musical development within a composition, something antithetical to popular music of the time. Suppressing tonic strength and cadential drive, the song makes use of descending harmonic motions through scale degrees controlled by a single tonic and "radical disjunctions" in key, texture, instrumentation, and mood while refusing to develop into a predictable formal pattern. It instead develops "under its own power" and "luxuriates in harmonic variety" exemplified by beginning and ending not only in different keys but also in different modes.
Verses and refrains (0:00–1:40)
"Good Vibrations" begins without introduction in a traditional verse/refrain format, opening with Carl Wilson singing the word "I", a triplet eighth note before the downbeat. The sparse first verse contains a repetition of chords played on a Hammond organ filtered through a Leslie speaker; underneath is a two-bar Fender bass melody. This sequence repeats once (0:15), but with the addition of two piccolos sustaining over a falling flute line. For percussion, bongo drums double the bass rhythm and every fourth-beat is struck by either a tambourine or a bass-drum-and-snare combination, in alternation. The beat projects a triplet feel despite being in time; this is sometimes called a "shuffle beat" or "threes over fours". The chord progression used is i–VII–VI–V, also called an Andalusian cadence. Although the verses begin in the minor mode of E, the mode is not used to express sadness or drudgery. Occurring at the very end of these verses is a passing chord, D.
The refrain (0:25) begins in the newly tonicized relative major G, which suggests III. Providing a backdrop to the Electro-Theremin is a cello and string bass playing a bowed tremolo triplet, a feature that was an exceedingly rare effect in pop music. The Fender bass is steady at one note per beat while tom drums and tambourine provide a backbeat. This time, the rhythm is stable, and is split into four 4-bar sections which gradually build its vocals. The first section consists of only the couplet "I'm picking up good vibrations/she's giving me the excitation" sung by Mike Love in his bass-baritone register; the second repeats the lines and adds an "ooo bop bop" figure, sung in multiple-part harmony; the third time also adds a "good, good, good, good vibrations" in yet a higher harmony. This type of polyphony (counterpoint) is also rare in contemporary popular styles. Each repeat of the vocal lines also transposes up by a whole step, ascending from G to A and then B. It then returns to the verse, thus making a perfect cadence back into E minor. The verse and refrain then repeat without any changes to the patterns of its instrumentation and harmony. This is unusual, in that normally, a song's arrangement adds something once it reaches the second verse.
Episodic digressions
First episode (1:41–2:13)
The first episode (1:41+) begins disjunctively with an abrupt tape splice. The refrain's B, which had received a dominant (V) charge, is now maintained as a tonic (I). There is harmonic ambiguity, in that the chord progression may be either interpreted as I–IV–I (in B) or V–I–V (in E). Stebbins says that this section "might be called a bridge under normal circumstances, but the song's structure takes such an abstract route that traditional labels don't really apply." A new sound is created by tack piano, jaw harp, and bass relegated to strong beats which is subsequently (1:55) augmented by a new electric organ, bass harmonica, and sleigh bells shaken on every beat. The lone line of vocals (aside from non-lexical harmonies) is "I don't know where, but she sends me there" sung in Mike Love's upper-register baritone. This section lasts for ten measures (6 + 2 + 2), which is unexpectedly long in light of previous patterns.
Second episode (2:13–2:56)
Another tape splice occurs at 2:13, transitioning to an electric organ playing sustained chords set in the key of F accompanied by a maraca shaken on every beat. Sound on Sound highlights this change as the "most savage edit in the track ... most people would go straight into a big splash hook-line section. Brian Wilson decided to slow the track even further, moving into a 23-bar section of church organ ... Most arrangers would steer clear of this kind of drop in pace, on the grounds that it would be chart suicide, but not Brian." Harrison says:
The slowed pace is complemented by the lyric ("Gotta keep those loving good vibrations a-happening with her"), sung once first as a solo voice, with the melody repeated an octave higher the second time with an accompanying harmony. This two-part vocal fades as a solo harmonica plays a melody on top of the persistent quarter-note bass line and maraca that maintain the only rhythm throughout Episode 2. The section ends with a five-part harmony vocalizing a whole-note chord that is sustained by reverb for a further four beats. Lambert calls it the song's "wake-up chord at the end of the meditation that transports the concept into a whole new realm: it's an iconic moment among iconic moments. As it rouses us from a blissful dream and echoes into the silence leading into the chorus, it seems to capture every sound and message the song has to say."
Retro-refrain and coda (2:57–3:35)
A brief break at the end of the second musical digression creates tension which leads into the final sequence of the song. The refrain reappears for an additional five measures, marching through a transpositional structure that begins in B, repeats at A, and then ends at G for an unexpectedly short single measure. The section uses a descending progression, which mirrors the ascending progression of the previous two refrains. There follows a short section of vocalizing in three-part counterpoint that references the original refrain by reproducing upward transposition. However, this time it settles on A, the concluding key of the song. By the end of "Good Vibrations," all seven scale degrees of the opening E-minor tonic are activated on some level.
Release and promotion
In a July 1966 advertisement for Pet Sounds in Billboard magazine, the band thanked the music industry for the sales of their album, and said that "We're moved over the fact that our Pet Sounds brought on nothing but Good Vibrations." This was the first public hint of the new single. Later in the year, Brian told journalist Tom Nolan that the new Beach Boys single was "about a guy who picks up good vibrations from a girl" and that it would be a "monster". He then suggested: "It's still sticking pretty close to that same boy-girl thing, you know, but with a difference. And it's a start, it's definitely a start." Derek Taylor, who had recently been engaged as the band's publicist, is credited for coining the term a "pocket symphony" to describe the song. In a press release for the single, he stated: "Wilson's instinctive talents for mixing sounds could most nearly equate to those of the old painters whose special secret was in the blending of their oils. And what is most amazing about all outstanding creative artists is that they are using only those basic materials which are freely available to everyone else."
To promote the single, four different music videos were shot. The first of these—which had Caleb Deschanel as cameraman—features the group at a fire station, sliding down its pole, and roaming the streets of Los Angeles in a fashion comparable to The Monkees. The second features the group during vocal rehearsals at United Western Recorders. The third contains footage recorded during the making of The Beach Boys in London, a documentary by Peter Whitehead of their concert performances. The fourth clip is an alternative edit of the third. Brian also made a rare television appearance on local station KHJ-TV for its Teen Rock and Roll Dance Program, introducing the song to the show's in-studio audience and presenting an exclusive preview of the completed record.
On October 15, 1966, Billboard predicted that the single would reach the top 20 in the Billboard Hot 100 chart. "Good Vibrations" was the Beach Boys' third US number one hit, after "I Get Around" and "Help Me, Rhonda", reaching the top of the Hot 100 in December. It was also their first number one in Britain. The single sold over 230,000 copies in the US within four days of its release and entered the Cash Box chart at number 61 on October 22. In the UK, the song sold over 50,000 copies in the first 15 days of its release. "Good Vibrations" quickly became the Beach Boys' first million-selling single. In December 1966, the record was their first single certified gold by the RIAA for sales of one million copies. On March 30, 2016, the digital single was certified platinum by the RIAA for the same sales level.
In the US, Cash Box said that it is a "catchy, easy-driving ditty loaded with the Boys’ money-making sound." In Britain, the single received favorable reviews from the New Musical Express and Melody Maker. Soon after, the Beach Boys were voted the number one band in the world in the NME readers' poll, ahead of the Beatles, the Walker Brothers, the Rolling Stones, and the Four Tops. Billboard said that this result was probably influenced by the success of "Good Vibrations" when the votes were cast, together with the band's recent tour, whereas the Beatles had neither a recent single nor had they toured the UK throughout 1966; the reporter added that "The sensational success of the Beach Boys, however, is being taken as a portent that the popularity of the top British groups of the last three years is past its peak." In a readers' poll conducted by a Danish newspaper, Brian Wilson won the "best foreign-produced recording award", marking the first time that an American had won in that category.
The single achieved sales of over 50,000 copies in Australia, being eligible for the award of a Gold Disc.
Influence and legacy
Historical reception
Virtually every pop music critic recognizes "Good Vibrations" as one of the most important compositions and recordings of the entire rock era. It is a regular fixture on "greatest of all-time" song lists and is frequently hailed as one of the finest pop productions of all time. In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked "Good Vibrations" at number 6 in "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time", the highest position of seven Beach Boys songs cited in the list. In 2001, the song was voted 24th in the RIAA and NEA's Songs of the Century list. As of 2016, "Good Vibrations" is ranked as the number four song of all time in an aggregation of critics' lists at Acclaimed Music.
The song served as an anthem for the counterculture of the 1960s. According to Noel Murray of The A.V. Club, it also helped turn around the initially poor perception of Pet Sounds in the US, where the album's "un-hip orchestrations and pervasive sadness [had] baffled some longtime fans, who didn't immediately get what Wilson was trying to do." Encouraged by the single's success, Wilson continued working on Smile, intending it as an entire album incorporating the writing and production techniques he had devised for "Good Vibrations". "Heroes and Villains", the Beach Boys' follow-up single, continued his modular recording practices, spanning nearly thirty recording sessions held between May 1966 and June 1967.
In contrast to the acclaim lavished on the song, some of Wilson's pop and rock contemporaries have been tempered in their praise of "Good Vibrations". When asked about the song in 1990, Paul McCartney responded: "I thought it was a great record. It didn't quite have the emotional thing that Pet Sounds had for me. I've often played Pet Sounds and cried. It's that kind of an album for me." Pete Townshend of the Who was quoted in the 1960s as saying, "'Good Vibrations' was probably a good record but who's to know? You had to play it about 90 bloody times to even hear what they were singing about." Townshend feared that the single would lead to a trend of overproduction. In a 1966 issue of Arts Magazine, Jonathan King said: "With justification, comments are being passed that 'Good Vibrations' is an inhuman work of art. Computerized pop, mechanized music. Take a machine, feed in various musical instruments, add a catch phrase, stir well, and press seven buttons. It is long and split. ... impressive, fantastic, commercial—yes. Emotional, soul-destroying, shattering—no." In the 2000s, record producer Phil Spector criticized the single for depending too much on tape manipulation, negatively referring to it as an "edit record ... It's like Psycho is a great film, but it's an 'edit film.' Without edits, it's not a film; with edits, it's a great film. But it's not Rebecca ... it's not a beautiful story."
Advancements
Recording and popular music
"Good Vibrations" is credited for having further developed the use of recording studios as a musical instrument. Author Domenic Priore commented that the song's making was "unlike anything previous in the realms of classical, jazz, international, soundtrack, or any other kind of recording". A milestone in the development of rock music, the song, together with the Beatles' Revolver, was a prime proponent in rock's transformation from live concert performances to studio productions that could only exist on record. Musicologist Charlie Gillett called it "one of the first records to flaunt studio production as a quality in its own right, rather than as a means of presenting a performance". In a 1968 editorial for Jazz & Pop, Gene Sculatti predicted:
Writing for Popmatters in 2015, Scott Interrante stated: "'Good Vibrations' changed the way a pop record could be made, the way a pop record could sound, and the lyrics a pop record could have." The recording contains previously untried mixes of instruments, and it was the first pop hit to have cellos in a juddering rhythm. Microtonal composer Frank Oteri said that it "sounds like no other pop song recorded up to that point". According to Stebbins: "This signature sound would be duplicated, cloned, commercialized, and re-fabricated in songs, commercials, TV shows, movies, and elevators to the point of completely diluting the genius of the original. But 'Good Vibrations' was probably the quintessential 'sunshine pop' recording of the century." He added that the single "vaulted nearly every other rock act in their delivery of a Flower Power classic. It was just strange enough to be taken seriously, but still vibrant, happy, accessibly Beach Boys-esque pop." John Bush wrote that the single "announced the coming era of pop experimentation with a rush of riff changes, echo-chamber effects, and intricate harmonies". Gillett noted: "For the rest of the sixties, countless musicians and groups attempted to represent an equivalently blissful state, but none of them ever applied the intense discipline and concentration that Wilson had devoted to the recording."
Priore says that the song was a forerunner to works such as Marvin Gaye's What's Going On (1971) and Isaac Hayes' Shaft (1971) which presented soul music in a similar, multi-textured context imbued with ethereal sonic landscapes. In his appraisal for American Songwriter, Roland cites the song's "format" as the model for recordings by Wings ("Band on the Run"), the Beatles ("A Day in the Life"), and Elton John ("Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding"). The song's approach was repeated in Queen's 1975 single "Bohemian Rhapsody", which was similarly pieced together using different sections. Wilson praised Queen's effort, calling it "the most competitive thing that's come along in ages" and "a fulfillment and an answer to a teenage prayer—of artistic music".
Psychedelic and progressive rock
With "Good Vibrations", the Beach Boys ended 1966 as the only band besides the Beatles to have had a high-charting psychedelic rock song, at a time when the genre was still in its formative stages. Writing in 2009, Barney Hoskyns deemed it to be the era's "ultimate psychedelic pop record" from Los Angeles. Interrante adds: "Its influence on the ensuing psychedelic and progressive rock movements can’t be overstated, but its legacy as a pop hit is impressive as well." Former Atlantic Records executive Phillip Rauls recalled: "I was in the music business at the time, and my very first recognition of acid rock—we didn't call it progressive rock then—was, of all people, the Beach Boys and the song 'Good Vibrations' ... That [theremin] sent so many musicians back to the studio to create this music on acid." Author Bill Martin suggested that the Beach Boys were clearing a pathway toward the development of progressive rock, writing: "The fact is, the same reasons why much progressive rock is difficult to dance to apply just as much to 'Good Vibrations' and 'A Day in the Life.'"
Use of theremin
Although the song does not technically contain a theremin, "Good Vibrations" is the most frequently cited example of the instrument's use in pop music. Upon release, the single prompted an unexpected revival in theremins and increased the awareness of analog synthesizers. The notion that "Good Vibrations" features a theremin has been erroneously repeated in books, CD liner notes, and quotes from the recording's participants. While having a similar sound, a theremin is an aerial-controlled instrument, unlike the Electro-Theremin.
When the Beach Boys needed to reproduce its sound onstage, Wilson first requested that Tanner play the Electro-Theremin live with the group, but he declined due to commitments. Tanner recalls saying to Wilson, "I've got the wrong sort of hair to be on stage with you fellas", to which Wilson replied: "We'll give you a Prince Valiant wig." The Beach Boys then requested the services of Walter Sear, who asked Bob Moog to design a ribbon controller, since the group was used to playing the fretboards of a guitar. Sear remembers marking fretboard-like lines on the ribbon "so they could play the damn thing." Moog began manufacturing his own models of theremins. He later noted: "The pop record scene cleaned us out of our stock which we expected to last through Christmas."
In Steven M. Martin's 1993 documentary Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey, in which Wilson makes an appearance, it was revealed that the attention being paid to the theremin due to "Good Vibrations" caused Russian authorities to exile its inventor, Leon Theremin.
Cover versions
The song has been covered by artists such as Groove Holmes, the Troggs, Charlie McCoy, and Psychic TV. John Bush commented: "'Good Vibrations' was rarely reprised by other acts, even during the cover-happy '60s. Its fragmented style made it essentially cover-proof." In 1976, a nearly identical cover version was released as a single by Todd Rundgren for his album Faithful. When asked for his opinion, Brian said: "Oh, he did a marvelous job, he did a great job. I was very proud of his version." Rundgren's single peaked at number 34 on the Billboard Hot 100. Rundgren explained: "I used to like the sound of the Beach Boys, but it wasn't until they began to compete with the Beatles that I felt that what they were doing was really interesting—like around Pet Sounds and 'Good Vibrations' ... when they started to shed that whole surf music kind of burden and start to branch out into something that was a little more universal. ... I tried to do [the song] as literally as I could because in the intervening 10 years, radio had changed so much. Radio had become so formatted and so structured that that whole experience was already gone."
In 2004, Wilson re-recorded the song as a solo artist for his album Brian Wilson Presents Smile. It was sequenced as the album's closing track, following "In Blue Hawaii". In this version, "Good Vibrations" was the project's only track that eschewed the modular recording method. The song's verses and chorus were recorded as part of one whole take, and were not spliced together.
In 2012, Wilson Phillips, a trio consisting of Wilson's daughters Carnie and Wendy, and John Phillips' daughter Chynna, released an album containing covers of songs by the Beach Boys and the Mamas & the Papas titled Dedicated. Their version of "Good Vibrations", with Carnie Wilson on lead vocals, was released as a single from the album and peaked at number 25 on Billboards A/C chart.
In popular culture
The song's parody is used for the jingle of the Australian consumer electronics retailer The Good Guys.
In 1996, experimental rock group His Name Is Alive released an homage titled "Universal Frequencies" on their album Stars on E.S.P. Warren Defever reportedly listened to "Good Vibrations" repeatedly for a week before deciding that the song "needed a sequel"; he added: "'Good Vibrations' is one of the first pop hits where you can actually hear the tape edits and I think that's wonderful."
In 1997, the movie Vegas Vacation used the song for the opening credits, with Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) singing the song.
The song's lyrics "I'm picking up good vibrations" are quoted in Cyndi Lauper's 1984 single "She Bop".
A live version of the song, from the album Live in London, appears as a playable track in the 2010 video game Rock Band 3.
In 2019, the song was used prominently in a scene for Jordan Peele's psychological horror thriller film Us.
In 2018, The song was featured in the animated film Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation.
Release history
In early 2011, the single was remastered and reissued as a four-sided 78 rpm vinyl for Record Store Day, as a teaser for the forthcoming The Smile Sessions box set. It contained "Heroes and Villains" as a B-side, along with previously released alternate takes and mixes.
Stereo version
Due to the loss of the original multi-track tape, there had never been an official true stereo release of the final track until the 2012 remastered version of Smiley Smile. The stereo mix was made possible through the invention of new digital technology by Derry Fitzgerald, and received the blessing of Brian Wilson and Mark Linett. Fitzgerald's software extracted individual instrumental and vocal stems from the original mono master—as the multi-track vocals remained missing—to construct the stereo version that appears on the 2012 reissue of Smiley Smile.
40th Anniversary Edition
In celebration of its 40th year, the Good Vibrations: 40th Anniversary Edition EP was released. The EP includes "Good Vibrations", four alternate versions of the song, and the stereo mix of "Let's Go Away for Awhile". The EP artwork recreates that of the original 7-inch single sleeve. In 2016, the EP was reissued as a 12" record for the single's 50th anniversary.
Personnel
The following people are identified as players on the "Good Vibrations" single.
The Beach Boys
Mike Love – lead vocals in chorus
Brian Wilson – vocals, tack piano, tambourine, production, mixing
Carl Wilson – lead vocals in verses, guitar, shaker
Dennis Wilson – Hammond organ during 2:13–2:56
Additional musicians and production staff
Hal Blaine – drums, timpani, other percussion
Al De Lory – piano, harpsichord
Jesse Ehrlich – cello
Larry Knechtel – organ in verses and choruses
Tommy Morgan – harmonica
Al Casey – guitar
Ray Pohlman – electric bass
Lyle Ritz – double bass
Jim Horn – piccolo
Paul Tanner – Electro-Theremin
Bassist Carol Kaye played on several of the "Good Vibrations" sessions, and has been identified as a prominent contributor to the track. However, analysis by Beach Boys archivist Craig Slowinski indicates that none of those recordings made the final edit as released on the single.
Charts
Weekly charts
Original release
1976 reissue
Todd Rundgren version (1976)
Year-end charts
Certifications
Awards and accolades
Footnotes
References
Bibliography
External links
Greg Panfile's Musical Analysis of "Good Vibrations"
1966 singles
1966 songs
2004 singles
2011 singles
Brian Wilson songs
Psychic TV songs
The Beach Boys songs
Todd Rundgren songs
Capitol Records singles
Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles
Cashbox number-one singles
Number-one singles in Australia
Number-one singles in New Zealand
UK Singles Chart number-one singles
Songs written by Brian Wilson
Songs written by Mike Love
Songs written by Tony Asher
Song recordings produced by Brian Wilson
Song recordings with Wall of Sound arrangements
Art pop songs
Avant-pop songs
Psychedelic pop songs
American psychedelic rock songs
Songs used as jingles
Songs composed in E-flat minor | true | [
"Born in 1937, Joani Blank studied public health at the University of North Carolina [4]. After earning her degree, she moved to San Francisco, where she worked for Planned Parenthood as well as San Francisco Sex Information, before becoming a sex therapist [4]. In 1975, she founded Down There Press, an independent feminist publishing company [4]. Through her publishing company, Joani Blank released several sex-positive books. These books, including Playbook for Women about Sex and Playbook for Kids about Sex, focused on eliminating inhibition, ignorance, and taboo regarding sex [4].\n\nIn 1977, she would create an innovation that aligned with her previous efforts - a women-friendly vibrator shop [3]. The store, called Good Vibrations, was based on sex education, feminism, and sexual exploration [3]. While Eve's Garden in Manhattan was the first feminist vibrator store, it did not let men enter unless they were with a woman [1]. Journalist and former employee of Good Vibrations Laura Miller states that \"[Eve's Garden] was about the idea that women needed to be protected from men when they were exploring their sexuality. Our market was women, but we welcomed men into the store\" [1]. The pain point that Blank addressed was that both men and women felt that traditional sex stores were seedy, sleazy, and not very informational [2]. Good vibrations offered an alternative to male-dominated sex stores [2]. Summarizing this, Blank stated that \"The places to get [vibrators] were pretty icky\" [1]. In terms of sales approach, \"The model was always to treat every question or concern that customers had, and everything they were interested in, as perfectly normal and wholesome, and to give them plenty of information,\" says Miller [1]. No hokey gimmicks, air quotes, or euphemisms about \"massage\" [1]. Joani Blank sought to promote quality, education, and awareness regarding sexual education.\n\nJoani Blank sold Good Vibrations to her employees in 1992 [4]. Then, in 2007, GVA-TWN executive Joel Kaminsky bought the company and since then is now operating eight stores across the U.S [2]. Blank's contribution to sex education, however, does not begin and end with Good Vibrations. Her entire life, whether it be through her sex therapy, mentorship with other sex-positive entrepreneurs, or authoring educational books, has been dedicated to addressing the same pain point as Good Vibrations [4]. Regarding Blank's impact, sex educator and writer Tristan Taormino writes \"everything we know and love about vibrators, the new sex toy technologies, the proliferation of feminist- and queer-run sex-positive stores around the country—all of them have a piece of Joani’s vision, attitude, and spirit in them...Her legacy in the sex-positive world—and beyond—is huge and undeniable\" [3].\n\nEven today, the original and many other Good Vibrations stores still stand today [2]. The stores, paired with Joani's efforts, have helped advance sexual education and feminism greatly since 1977. Undoubtedly, Blank's impact is not only felt in the continuation of the franchise but through the advancement of women's rights. The goal of an entrepreneur is not self-centered; one must innovate not for financial gain, but to make the world a better place. In every sense of the word, Joani Blank is a successful entrepreneur and innovator.\n\nAnderson, L. (2016, August 15). Good vibrations founder Joani Blank, feminist pioneer and ... San Francisco Magazine. Retrieved December 7, 2021, from https://sanfran.com/good-vibrations-founder-joani-blank-feminist-pioneer-and-vibrator-designer-has-d.\n\nBarros, J. R. (2016, August 10). Founder of Good Vibrations Sex Store Dies. Mission Local. Retrieved December 7, 2021, from https://missionlocal.org/2016/08/founder-of-good-vibrations-sex-store-dies/.\n\nComella, L. (2016, August 12). Remembering good vibrations founder Joani Blank, 1937 - 2016. Bitch Media. Retrieved December 7, 2021, from https://www.bitchmedia.org/article/remembering-good-vibrations-founder-joani-blank-1937-2016.\n\nJWA Staff. (2016, August 6). Joani Blank. Jewish Women's Archive. Retrieved December 7, 2021, from https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/blank-joani.\n\n1937 births\n2016 deaths",
"\"Good Vibrations\" is a song by American group Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch. It was released in July 1991 as the lead single from their debut album, Music for the People (1991). The song became a number-one hit in the United States, Denmark, Sweden and Switzerland. The single spent twenty weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, its last week rising 40 positions to number 27, but dropped out the following week.\n\nBackground\n\"Good Vibrations\" was co-written by Amir Shakir (credited on the release as \"Spice\"), with his good friends Donnie and Mark Wahlberg. Amir also wrote and produced \"Wildside\" and three other songs for Mark Wahlberg's debut album, as well as four songs on Wahlberg's second LP. \"Good Vibrations\" features a sample of Loleatta Holloway singing \"Love Sensation\", written by Dan Hartman, and Hartman was given co-writer credits on later releases of Wahlberg's song. Holloway made an appearance performing the chorus in the music video.\n\nCritical reception\nBill Lamb from About.com said Mark Wahlberg had a history of scrapes with the law as a teenager, \"but his ready-for-video buffed body and good looks, combined with energetic dance beats and Loleatta Holloway's diva-esque vocals, made for a smash pop hit.\" AllMusic editor Steve Huey noted that the rapper's \"aggressively delivered raps were fairly simplistic, but not comical; one of the main hooks was a simple piano sample that ascended, descended, and reascended.\" He added that \"Good Vibrations\" \"was easily the most infectious song Marky Mark ever recorded\". Billboard magazine picked it as one of the \"pick tracks\" from the Music for the People album, noting that it features \"canny sampling\", and adding that Marky Mark \"enters Vanilla Ice territory with a lightweight pop/rap track.\" \n\nDave Sholin from the Gavin Report wrote that \"bustin' out of Boston\", Donnie Wahlberg's younger brother \"is kickin' it and makin' one serious debut! The Wahlberg Brothers wrote and produced this hot track—something they deserve to point to with pride. Credit Loleatta Holloway with takin' it up more than a few notches on a chorus nothing short of incredible.\" A reviewer from Music Week commented, \"Sampling is also an art form dear to Marky Mark & the Funky Bunch. But, to their credit, their debut single acknowledges their debut to Loleatta Holloway's now-familiar \"It's such a good vibration\". This may not be a big hit, but with 20-year-old Marky's rhythmic rapping, good looks and bad-boy image, it's chartbound.\" Johnny Dee from Smash Hits said \"it sounds uncannily like 'Ride On Time' by Black Box with a couple of raps over the top. But! As Marky puts it, this is \"designed to make your behind move\" and it does.\"\n\nMusic video\nA black and white music video was made to accompany the song. It featured a 20-year-old Marky Mark working out and boxing barechested, and making out with a girl on a bed. Boxer Micky Ward is credited for helping with the boxing technique and training used for this video. Mark Wahlberg first met Micky Ward when he was 18 and later played him on the big screen in the 2010 film The Fighter. The music video was produced by David Horgan and directed by Scott Kalvert.\n\nImpact and legacy\nIn 2017, BuzzFeed ranked \"Good Vibrations\" number 43 in their list of \"The 101 Greatest Dance Songs of the '90s\". In 2021, it was ranked number 35 in their list of \"The 50 Best '90s Songs of Summer\".-\n\nTrack listings\n 7\" single\n \"Good Vibrations\" — 4:29\n \"So What Chu Sayin\" — 4:41\n\n CD maxi\n \"Good Vibrations\" (club dub) — 5:22\n \"Good Vibrations\" — 4:29\n \"Good Vibrations\" (instrumental dub) — 5:02\n \"So What Chu Sayin\" — 4:41\n\nCharts and certifications\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nCertifications\n\nReferences\n\n1991 debut singles\n1991 songs\nMarky Mark and the Funky Bunch songs\nLoleatta Holloway songs\nInterscope Records singles\nBillboard Hot 100 number-one singles\nNumber-one singles in Denmark\nNumber-one singles in Sweden\nNumber-one singles in Switzerland\nSongs written by Dan Hartman\nSongs written by Mark Wahlberg\nBlack-and-white music videos"
] |
[
"Good Vibrations",
"Modular approach",
"What was the approach used to creating Good Vibrations?",
"Instead of working on whole songs with clear large-scale syntactical structures,"
] | C_3511c60eb57b41c2bebf1299ed0caeeb_1 | What alternative was used instead of working on a whole song? | 2 | What alternative was used creating Good Vibrations instead of working on a whole song? | Good Vibrations | "Good Vibrations" established a new method of operation for Wilson. Instead of working on whole songs with clear large-scale syntactical structures, Wilson limited himself to recording short interchangeable fragments (or "modules"). Through the method of tape splicing, each fragment could then be assembled into a linear sequence, allowing any number of larger structures and divergent moods to be produced at a later time. This was the same modular approach used during the sessions for Smile and Smiley Smile. To mask each tape edit, vast reverb decays were added at the mixing and sub-mixing stages. For instrumentation, Wilson employed the services of "the Wrecking Crew", the nickname for a conglomerate of session musicians active in Los Angeles at that time. Production for "Good Vibrations" spanned more than a dozen recording sessions at four different Hollywood studios, at a time when most pop singles were typically recorded in a day or two. It was reported to have used over 90 hours of magnetic recording tape, with an eventual budget estimated between $50,000 and $75,000 (equivalent to $380,000 and $570,000 in 2017), at that time the largest sum spent on a single. In comparison, the whole of Pet Sounds had cost $70,000 ($530,000), itself an unusually high cost for an album. It is said that Wilson was so puzzled by "Good Vibrations" that he would often arrive at a session, consider a few possibilities, and then leave without recording anything, which exacerbated costs. In 2018, Wilson disputed the $50,000 figure for "Good Vibrations", saying that the overall expenses were closer to $25,000 ($190,000). When asked in a 2005 interview if it was true that the Electro-Theremin work alone cost $100,000, he responded "No. $15,000." CANNOTANSWER | Wilson limited himself to recording short interchangeable fragments (or "modules"). Through the method of tape splicing, | "Good Vibrations" is a song by the American rock band the Beach Boys that was composed by Brian Wilson with lyrics by Mike Love. It was released as a single on October 10, 1966 and was an immediate critical and commercial hit, topping record charts in several countries including the United States and the United Kingdom. Characterized by its complex soundscapes, episodic structure and subversions of pop music formula, it was the most expensive single ever recorded. "Good Vibrations" later became widely acclaimed as one of the finest and most important works of the rock era.
Also produced by Wilson, the title derived from his fascination with cosmic vibrations, as his mother would tell him as a child that dogs sometimes bark at people in response to their "bad vibrations". He used the concept to suggest extrasensory perception, while Love's lyrics were inspired by the nascent Flower Power movement. The song was written as it was recorded and in a similar fashion to other compositions from Wilson's Smile period. It was issued as a standalone single, backed with "Let's Go Away for Awhile", and was to be included on the never-finished album Smile. Instead, the track appeared on the September 1967 release Smiley Smile.
The making of "Good Vibrations" was unprecedented for any kind of recording. Building on his approach for Pet Sounds, Wilson recorded a surplus of short, interchangeable musical fragments with his bandmates and a host of session musicians at four different Hollywood studios from February to September 1966, a process reflected in the song's several dramatic shifts in key, texture, instrumentation and mood. Over 90 hours of tape was consumed in the sessions, with the total cost of production estimated to be in the tens of thousands of dollars. Band publicist Derek Taylor dubbed the unusual work a "pocket symphony". It helped develop the use of the studio as an instrument and heralded a wave of pop experimentation and the onset of psychedelic and progressive rock. The track featured a novel mix of instruments, including jaw harp and Electro-Theremin, and although the latter is not a true theremin, the song's success led to a renewed interest and sales of theremins and synthesizers.
"Good Vibrations" received a Grammy nomination for Best Vocal Group performance in 1966 and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1994. The song was voted number one in Mojos "Top 100 Records of All Time" and number six on Rolling Stones "500 Greatest Songs of All Time", and it was included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's "500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll". In later years, the song has been cited as a forerunner to the Beatles' "A Day in the Life" (1967) and Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" (1975). A 1976 cover version by Todd Rundgren peaked at number 34 on the Billboard Hot 100. The Beach Boys followed up "Good Vibrations" with another single pieced from sections, "Heroes and Villains" (1967), but it was less successful.
Inspiration and writing
Concept and early lyrics
The Beach Boys' leader, Brian Wilson, was responsible for the musical composition and virtually all of the arrangement for "Good Vibrations". Most of the song's structure and arrangement was written as it was recorded. During the recording sessions for the 1966 album Pet Sounds, Wilson began changing his writing process. For "Good Vibrations", Wilson said, "I had a lot of unfinished ideas, fragments of music I called 'feels.' Each feel represented a mood or an emotion I'd felt, and I planned to fit them together like a mosaic." Engineer Chuck Britz is quoted saying that Wilson considered the song to be "his whole life performance in one track". Wilson stated: "I was an energetic 23-year-old. ... I said: 'This is going to be better than [the Phil Spector production] "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'.
Wilson said that "Good Vibrations" was inspired by his mother: "[She] used to tell me about vibrations. I didn't really understand too much of what it meant when I was just a boy. It scared me, the word 'vibrations.' She told me about dogs that would bark at people and then not bark at others, that a dog would pick up vibrations from these people that you can't see, but you can feel." Brian first enlisted Pet Sounds lyricist Tony Asher for help in putting words to the idea. When Brian presented the song on piano, Asher thought that it had an interesting premise with the potential for hit status, but could not fathom the end result due to Brian's primitive piano playing style. Asher remembered:
Wilson wanted to call the song "Good Vibes", but Asher advised that it was "lightweight use of the language", and suggested that "Good Vibrations" would sound less "trendy". The two proceeded to write lyrics for the verses that were ultimately discarded.
Theremin and cello
From the start, Wilson envisioned a theremin for the track. AllMusic reviewer John Bush pointed out: "Radio listeners could easily pick up the link between the title and the obviously electronic riffs sounding in the background of the chorus, but Wilson's use of the theremin added another delicious parallel—between the single's theme and its use of an instrument the player never even touched."
"Good Vibrations" does not technically feature a theremin, but rather an Electro-Theremin, which is physically controlled by a knob on the side of the instrument. It was dubbed a "theremin" simply for convenience. At that time, theremins were most often associated with the 1945 Alfred Hitchcock film Spellbound, but their most common presence was in the theme music for the television sitcom My Favorite Martian, which ran from 1963 to 1966. Britz speculates: "He just walked in and said, 'I have this new sound for you.' I think he must have heard the sound somewhere and loved it, and built a song around it." It is unclear whether Wilson knew that the instrument was not a real theremin.
Brian credited his brother and bandmate Carl for suggesting the use of a cello on the track. He further stated that its triplet beat on the chorus was his own idea and that it was based on the Crystals' "Da Doo Ron Ron" (1963), produced by Spector. Conversely, arranger and session musician Van Dyke Parks said that it was himself who suggested having the cellist play triplets to Brian. Parks believed that having Brian exploit the cello "to such a hyperbolic degree" was what encouraged the duo to immediately collaborate on the never-finished album Smile. At some point, Wilson asked Parks to pen lyrics for "Good Vibrations", although Parks declined.
Influences and final lyrics
Wilson's cousin and bandmate Mike Love submitted the final lyrics for "Good Vibrations" and contributed its bass-baritone vocals in the chorus. He recalled that when he heard the unfinished backing track: "[It] was already so avant-garde, especially with the theremin, I wondered how our fans were going to relate to it. How's this going to go over in the Midwest or Birmingham? It was such a departure from 'Surfin' U.S.A.' or 'Help Me, Rhonda.'"
Love said that he wrote the words while on the drive to the studio. Feeling that the song could be "the Beach Boys' psychedelic anthem or flower power offering," he based the lyrics on the burgeoning psychedelic music and Flower Power movements occurring in San Francisco and some parts of the Los Angeles area. He described the lyrics as "just a flowery poem. Kind of almost like 'If you’re going to San Francisco be sure to wear flowers in your hair.'" Writing in his 1975 book The Beach Boys: Southern California Pastoral, Bruce Golden observed:
Capitol Records executives were worried that the lyrics contained psychedelic overtones, and Brian was accused of having based the song's production on his LSD experiences. Brian clarified that the song was written under the influence of marijuana, not LSD. He explained: "I made ‘Good Vibrations’ on drugs; I used drugs to make that. ... I learned how to function behind drugs, and it improved my brain ... it made me more rooted in my sanity." In Steven Gaines's 1986 biography, Wilson is quoted on the lyrics: "We talked about good vibrations with the song and the idea, and we decided on one hand that you could say ... those are sensual things. And then you'd say, 'I'm picking up good vibrations,' which is a contrast against the sensual, the extrasensory perception that we have. That's what we're really talking about."
Wilson said in 2012 that the song's "gotta keep those good vibrations" bridge was inspired by Stephen Foster. Bandmate Al Jardine compared that section to Foster and the Negro spiritual "Down by the Riverside". According to Love, the lyric "'she goes with me to a blossom world' was originally meant to be followed by the words 'we find'", but Wilson elected to cut off the line to highlight the bass track linking into the chorus.
Recording and production
Modular approach
"Good Vibrations" established a new method of operation for Wilson. Instead of working on whole songs with clear large-scale syntactical structures, Wilson limited himself to recording short interchangeable fragments (or "modules"). Through the method of tape splicing, each fragment could then be assembled into a linear sequence, allowing any number of larger structures and divergent moods to be produced at a later time. This was the same modular approach used during the sessions for Smile and Smiley Smile. To mask each tape edit, vast reverb decays were added at the mixing and sub-mixing stages.
For instrumentation, Wilson employed the services of "the Wrecking Crew", the nickname for a conglomerate of session musicians active in Los Angeles at that time. Production for "Good Vibrations" spanned more than a dozen recording sessions at four different Hollywood studios, at a time when most pop singles were typically recorded in a day or two. It was reported to have used over 90 hours of magnetic recording tape, with an eventual budget estimated in the tens of thousands, making it the costliest single recorded to that date. Biographer Peter Ames Carlin wrote that Wilson was so puzzled by the arranging of "Good Vibrations" that he would often arrive at a session, consider a few possibilities, and then leave without recording anything, which exacerbated costs.
One estimate of the overall production expenses is between $50,000 and $75,000 (equivalent to $ and $ in ), By comparison, the whole of Pet Sounds had cost $70,000 ($), itself an unusually high cost for an album. In 2018, Wilson disputed the $50,000 figure for "Good Vibrations", saying that the overall expenses were closer to $25,000.
Contemporary advertisements reported $10,000 ($) as the track's total production costs. Domenic Priore wrote that the track cost between $10,000 and $15,000 ($). When asked in a 2005 interview if it was true that the Electro-Theremin work alone cost $100,000, Wilson replied "No. $15,000."
Development
The instrumental of the first version of the song was recorded on February 17, 1966, at Gold Star Studios and was logged as a Pet Sounds session. On that day's session log, it was given the name "#1 Untitled" or "Good, Good, Good Vibrations", but on its master tape, Wilson distinctly states: "'Good Vibrations' ... take one." After twenty-six takes, a rough mono mix completed the session. Some additional instruments and rough guide vocals were overdubbed on February 23. Brian and Carl shared vocals for this mix.
The original version of "Good Vibrations" contained the characteristics of a "funky rhythm and blues number" and would not yet resemble a "pocket symphony". There was no cello at this juncture, but the Electro-Theremin was present, played by its inventor, Paul Tanner. It was Brian's second ever recorded use of the instrument, just three days after the Pet Sounds track "I Just Wasn't Made for These Times". Brian then placed "Good Vibrations" on hold in order to devote attention to the Pet Sounds album, which saw release on May 16. More instrumental sections for "Good Vibrations" were recorded between April and June. Brian then forwent additional instrumental tracking until early September, when it was decided to revisit the song's bridge section and apply Electro-Theremin overdubs.
According to Brian's then-new friend David Anderle, during an early stage, Brian considered giving "Good Vibrations" to one of the black R&B groups signed with Warner Bros. Records such as Wilson Pickett, and then at Anderle's suggestion to singer Danny Hutton. He thought about abandoning the track, but after receiving encouragement from Anderle, eventually decided on it as the next Beach Boys single. In the meantime, he worked on writing and recording material for the group's forthcoming album, Smile.
The first Beach Boy to hear "Good Vibrations" in a semi-completed form, other than Brian, was Carl. Following a performance with the touring group in North Dakota, he remembered: "I came back up into my hotel room one night and the phone rang. It was Brian on the other end. He called me from the recording studio and played this really bizarre sounding music over the phone. There were drums smashing, that kind of stuff, and then it refined itself and got into the cello. It was a real funky track." In 1976, Brian revealed that before the final mixdown, he had been confronted with resistance by members of the group, whom Brian declined to name. The subject of their worries and complaints was the song's length and "modern" sound: "I said no, it's not going to be too long a record, it's going to be just right. ... They didn't quite understand what this jumping from studio to studio was all about. And they couldn't conceive of the record as I did. I saw the record as a totality piece."
The vocals for "Good Vibrations" were recorded at CBS Columbia Square, starting on August 24 and continuing sporadically until the very last day of assembly on September 21. The episodic structure of the composition was continuously revised as the group experimented with different ideas. Brian remembers that he began recording the "bop bop good vibrations" parts first, and that he came up with "the high parts" a week later. Mike Love recalled: "I can remember doing 25–30 vocal overdubs of the same part, and when I mean the same part, I mean same section of a record, maybe no more than two, three, four, five seconds long." Dennis Wilson was to have sung the lead vocal, but due to a bout of laryngitis, Carl replaced him at the last minute. In early September, the master tapes for "Good Vibrations" were stolen. Mysteriously, they reappeared inside Brian's home two days later.
On September 21, Brian completed the track after Tanner added a final Electro-Theremin overdub. In 1976 he elaborated on the event: "It was at Columbia. I remember I had it right in the sack. I could just feel it when I dubbed it down, made the final mix from the 16-track down to mono. It was a feeling of power, it was a rush. A feeling of exaltation. Artistic beauty. It was everything ... I remember saying, 'Oh my God. Sit back and listen to this!'"
Composition and analysis
Genre and dynamics
There are six unique sections to the piece. Music theorist Daniel Harrison refers to these sections individually as the verse, the refrain (or chorus), the "first episodic digression", the "second episodic digression", the "retro-refrain", and the coda. Each has a distinct musical texture, partly due to the nature of the song's recording. The track's instrumentation changes radically from section to section, and for the AM radio standards of late 1966, the song's final runtime (3 minutes 35 seconds) was considered a "very long" duration. Wilson is quoted in 1979:
He characterized the song as "advanced rhythm and blues". Tom Roland of American Songwriter described the piece, "with its interlocking segments—a sort of pop version of the classical sonata, consisting of a series of musical movements". New York Magazine compared it to "a fugue with a rhythmic beat". John Bush compared the track's fragmented cut-and-paste style to 1960s experimentalists such as William S. Burroughs. Music journal Sound on Sound argued that the song "has as many dramatic changes in mood as a piece of serious classical music lasting more than half an hour". It explained that the song subverts pop forms to a considerable degree:
According to historian Lorenzo Candelaria, "Good Vibrations" has since been marketed as pop music "possibly because it comes across relatively innocent compared with the hard-edged rock we have since come to know." Uncut called the song "three minutes and thirty-six seconds of avant-garde pop". Mixdown described it as a "masterpiece of avant-pop". The theremin and cello has been called the song's "psychedelic ingredient". In his book discussing music of the counterculture era, James Perrone stated that the song represented a type of impressionistic psychedelia, in particular for its cello playing repeated bass notes and its theremin. Professor of American history John Robert Greene named "Good Vibrations" among examples of psychedelic or acid rock. Stebbins wrote that the song was "replete with sunshine [and] psychedelia". Steve Valdez says that, like Pet Sounds, Brian was attempting a more experimental rock style.
Comparing "Good Vibrations" to Wilson's previous work Pet Sounds, biographer Andrew Hickey said that the "best way of thinking about [the song] is that it's taking the lowest common denominator of 'Here Today' and 'God Only Knows' and turned the result into an R&B track. We have the same minor-key change between verse and chorus we've seen throughout Pet Sounds, the same descending scalar chord sequences, the same mobile bass parts, but here, rather than to express melancholy, these things are used in a way that's as close as Brian Wilson ever got to funky." Author Jon Stebbins adds that "unlike Pet Sounds the chorus of 'Good Vibrations' projects a definite 'rock and roll' energy and feel."
According to academic Rikky Rooksby, "Good Vibrations" is an example of Brian Wilson's growing interest in musical development within a composition, something antithetical to popular music of the time. Suppressing tonic strength and cadential drive, the song makes use of descending harmonic motions through scale degrees controlled by a single tonic and "radical disjunctions" in key, texture, instrumentation, and mood while refusing to develop into a predictable formal pattern. It instead develops "under its own power" and "luxuriates in harmonic variety" exemplified by beginning and ending not only in different keys but also in different modes.
Verses and refrains (0:00–1:40)
"Good Vibrations" begins without introduction in a traditional verse/refrain format, opening with Carl Wilson singing the word "I", a triplet eighth note before the downbeat. The sparse first verse contains a repetition of chords played on a Hammond organ filtered through a Leslie speaker; underneath is a two-bar Fender bass melody. This sequence repeats once (0:15), but with the addition of two piccolos sustaining over a falling flute line. For percussion, bongo drums double the bass rhythm and every fourth-beat is struck by either a tambourine or a bass-drum-and-snare combination, in alternation. The beat projects a triplet feel despite being in time; this is sometimes called a "shuffle beat" or "threes over fours". The chord progression used is i–VII–VI–V, also called an Andalusian cadence. Although the verses begin in the minor mode of E, the mode is not used to express sadness or drudgery. Occurring at the very end of these verses is a passing chord, D.
The refrain (0:25) begins in the newly tonicized relative major G, which suggests III. Providing a backdrop to the Electro-Theremin is a cello and string bass playing a bowed tremolo triplet, a feature that was an exceedingly rare effect in pop music. The Fender bass is steady at one note per beat while tom drums and tambourine provide a backbeat. This time, the rhythm is stable, and is split into four 4-bar sections which gradually build its vocals. The first section consists of only the couplet "I'm picking up good vibrations/she's giving me the excitation" sung by Mike Love in his bass-baritone register; the second repeats the lines and adds an "ooo bop bop" figure, sung in multiple-part harmony; the third time also adds a "good, good, good, good vibrations" in yet a higher harmony. This type of polyphony (counterpoint) is also rare in contemporary popular styles. Each repeat of the vocal lines also transposes up by a whole step, ascending from G to A and then B. It then returns to the verse, thus making a perfect cadence back into E minor. The verse and refrain then repeat without any changes to the patterns of its instrumentation and harmony. This is unusual, in that normally, a song's arrangement adds something once it reaches the second verse.
Episodic digressions
First episode (1:41–2:13)
The first episode (1:41+) begins disjunctively with an abrupt tape splice. The refrain's B, which had received a dominant (V) charge, is now maintained as a tonic (I). There is harmonic ambiguity, in that the chord progression may be either interpreted as I–IV–I (in B) or V–I–V (in E). Stebbins says that this section "might be called a bridge under normal circumstances, but the song's structure takes such an abstract route that traditional labels don't really apply." A new sound is created by tack piano, jaw harp, and bass relegated to strong beats which is subsequently (1:55) augmented by a new electric organ, bass harmonica, and sleigh bells shaken on every beat. The lone line of vocals (aside from non-lexical harmonies) is "I don't know where, but she sends me there" sung in Mike Love's upper-register baritone. This section lasts for ten measures (6 + 2 + 2), which is unexpectedly long in light of previous patterns.
Second episode (2:13–2:56)
Another tape splice occurs at 2:13, transitioning to an electric organ playing sustained chords set in the key of F accompanied by a maraca shaken on every beat. Sound on Sound highlights this change as the "most savage edit in the track ... most people would go straight into a big splash hook-line section. Brian Wilson decided to slow the track even further, moving into a 23-bar section of church organ ... Most arrangers would steer clear of this kind of drop in pace, on the grounds that it would be chart suicide, but not Brian." Harrison says:
The slowed pace is complemented by the lyric ("Gotta keep those loving good vibrations a-happening with her"), sung once first as a solo voice, with the melody repeated an octave higher the second time with an accompanying harmony. This two-part vocal fades as a solo harmonica plays a melody on top of the persistent quarter-note bass line and maraca that maintain the only rhythm throughout Episode 2. The section ends with a five-part harmony vocalizing a whole-note chord that is sustained by reverb for a further four beats. Lambert calls it the song's "wake-up chord at the end of the meditation that transports the concept into a whole new realm: it's an iconic moment among iconic moments. As it rouses us from a blissful dream and echoes into the silence leading into the chorus, it seems to capture every sound and message the song has to say."
Retro-refrain and coda (2:57–3:35)
A brief break at the end of the second musical digression creates tension which leads into the final sequence of the song. The refrain reappears for an additional five measures, marching through a transpositional structure that begins in B, repeats at A, and then ends at G for an unexpectedly short single measure. The section uses a descending progression, which mirrors the ascending progression of the previous two refrains. There follows a short section of vocalizing in three-part counterpoint that references the original refrain by reproducing upward transposition. However, this time it settles on A, the concluding key of the song. By the end of "Good Vibrations," all seven scale degrees of the opening E-minor tonic are activated on some level.
Release and promotion
In a July 1966 advertisement for Pet Sounds in Billboard magazine, the band thanked the music industry for the sales of their album, and said that "We're moved over the fact that our Pet Sounds brought on nothing but Good Vibrations." This was the first public hint of the new single. Later in the year, Brian told journalist Tom Nolan that the new Beach Boys single was "about a guy who picks up good vibrations from a girl" and that it would be a "monster". He then suggested: "It's still sticking pretty close to that same boy-girl thing, you know, but with a difference. And it's a start, it's definitely a start." Derek Taylor, who had recently been engaged as the band's publicist, is credited for coining the term a "pocket symphony" to describe the song. In a press release for the single, he stated: "Wilson's instinctive talents for mixing sounds could most nearly equate to those of the old painters whose special secret was in the blending of their oils. And what is most amazing about all outstanding creative artists is that they are using only those basic materials which are freely available to everyone else."
To promote the single, four different music videos were shot. The first of these—which had Caleb Deschanel as cameraman—features the group at a fire station, sliding down its pole, and roaming the streets of Los Angeles in a fashion comparable to The Monkees. The second features the group during vocal rehearsals at United Western Recorders. The third contains footage recorded during the making of The Beach Boys in London, a documentary by Peter Whitehead of their concert performances. The fourth clip is an alternative edit of the third. Brian also made a rare television appearance on local station KHJ-TV for its Teen Rock and Roll Dance Program, introducing the song to the show's in-studio audience and presenting an exclusive preview of the completed record.
On October 15, 1966, Billboard predicted that the single would reach the top 20 in the Billboard Hot 100 chart. "Good Vibrations" was the Beach Boys' third US number one hit, after "I Get Around" and "Help Me, Rhonda", reaching the top of the Hot 100 in December. It was also their first number one in Britain. The single sold over 230,000 copies in the US within four days of its release and entered the Cash Box chart at number 61 on October 22. In the UK, the song sold over 50,000 copies in the first 15 days of its release. "Good Vibrations" quickly became the Beach Boys' first million-selling single. In December 1966, the record was their first single certified gold by the RIAA for sales of one million copies. On March 30, 2016, the digital single was certified platinum by the RIAA for the same sales level.
In the US, Cash Box said that it is a "catchy, easy-driving ditty loaded with the Boys’ money-making sound." In Britain, the single received favorable reviews from the New Musical Express and Melody Maker. Soon after, the Beach Boys were voted the number one band in the world in the NME readers' poll, ahead of the Beatles, the Walker Brothers, the Rolling Stones, and the Four Tops. Billboard said that this result was probably influenced by the success of "Good Vibrations" when the votes were cast, together with the band's recent tour, whereas the Beatles had neither a recent single nor had they toured the UK throughout 1966; the reporter added that "The sensational success of the Beach Boys, however, is being taken as a portent that the popularity of the top British groups of the last three years is past its peak." In a readers' poll conducted by a Danish newspaper, Brian Wilson won the "best foreign-produced recording award", marking the first time that an American had won in that category.
The single achieved sales of over 50,000 copies in Australia, being eligible for the award of a Gold Disc.
Influence and legacy
Historical reception
Virtually every pop music critic recognizes "Good Vibrations" as one of the most important compositions and recordings of the entire rock era. It is a regular fixture on "greatest of all-time" song lists and is frequently hailed as one of the finest pop productions of all time. In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked "Good Vibrations" at number 6 in "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time", the highest position of seven Beach Boys songs cited in the list. In 2001, the song was voted 24th in the RIAA and NEA's Songs of the Century list. As of 2016, "Good Vibrations" is ranked as the number four song of all time in an aggregation of critics' lists at Acclaimed Music.
The song served as an anthem for the counterculture of the 1960s. According to Noel Murray of The A.V. Club, it also helped turn around the initially poor perception of Pet Sounds in the US, where the album's "un-hip orchestrations and pervasive sadness [had] baffled some longtime fans, who didn't immediately get what Wilson was trying to do." Encouraged by the single's success, Wilson continued working on Smile, intending it as an entire album incorporating the writing and production techniques he had devised for "Good Vibrations". "Heroes and Villains", the Beach Boys' follow-up single, continued his modular recording practices, spanning nearly thirty recording sessions held between May 1966 and June 1967.
In contrast to the acclaim lavished on the song, some of Wilson's pop and rock contemporaries have been tempered in their praise of "Good Vibrations". When asked about the song in 1990, Paul McCartney responded: "I thought it was a great record. It didn't quite have the emotional thing that Pet Sounds had for me. I've often played Pet Sounds and cried. It's that kind of an album for me." Pete Townshend of the Who was quoted in the 1960s as saying, "'Good Vibrations' was probably a good record but who's to know? You had to play it about 90 bloody times to even hear what they were singing about." Townshend feared that the single would lead to a trend of overproduction. In a 1966 issue of Arts Magazine, Jonathan King said: "With justification, comments are being passed that 'Good Vibrations' is an inhuman work of art. Computerized pop, mechanized music. Take a machine, feed in various musical instruments, add a catch phrase, stir well, and press seven buttons. It is long and split. ... impressive, fantastic, commercial—yes. Emotional, soul-destroying, shattering—no." In the 2000s, record producer Phil Spector criticized the single for depending too much on tape manipulation, negatively referring to it as an "edit record ... It's like Psycho is a great film, but it's an 'edit film.' Without edits, it's not a film; with edits, it's a great film. But it's not Rebecca ... it's not a beautiful story."
Advancements
Recording and popular music
"Good Vibrations" is credited for having further developed the use of recording studios as a musical instrument. Author Domenic Priore commented that the song's making was "unlike anything previous in the realms of classical, jazz, international, soundtrack, or any other kind of recording". A milestone in the development of rock music, the song, together with the Beatles' Revolver, was a prime proponent in rock's transformation from live concert performances to studio productions that could only exist on record. Musicologist Charlie Gillett called it "one of the first records to flaunt studio production as a quality in its own right, rather than as a means of presenting a performance". In a 1968 editorial for Jazz & Pop, Gene Sculatti predicted:
Writing for Popmatters in 2015, Scott Interrante stated: "'Good Vibrations' changed the way a pop record could be made, the way a pop record could sound, and the lyrics a pop record could have." The recording contains previously untried mixes of instruments, and it was the first pop hit to have cellos in a juddering rhythm. Microtonal composer Frank Oteri said that it "sounds like no other pop song recorded up to that point". According to Stebbins: "This signature sound would be duplicated, cloned, commercialized, and re-fabricated in songs, commercials, TV shows, movies, and elevators to the point of completely diluting the genius of the original. But 'Good Vibrations' was probably the quintessential 'sunshine pop' recording of the century." He added that the single "vaulted nearly every other rock act in their delivery of a Flower Power classic. It was just strange enough to be taken seriously, but still vibrant, happy, accessibly Beach Boys-esque pop." John Bush wrote that the single "announced the coming era of pop experimentation with a rush of riff changes, echo-chamber effects, and intricate harmonies". Gillett noted: "For the rest of the sixties, countless musicians and groups attempted to represent an equivalently blissful state, but none of them ever applied the intense discipline and concentration that Wilson had devoted to the recording."
Priore says that the song was a forerunner to works such as Marvin Gaye's What's Going On (1971) and Isaac Hayes' Shaft (1971) which presented soul music in a similar, multi-textured context imbued with ethereal sonic landscapes. In his appraisal for American Songwriter, Roland cites the song's "format" as the model for recordings by Wings ("Band on the Run"), the Beatles ("A Day in the Life"), and Elton John ("Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding"). The song's approach was repeated in Queen's 1975 single "Bohemian Rhapsody", which was similarly pieced together using different sections. Wilson praised Queen's effort, calling it "the most competitive thing that's come along in ages" and "a fulfillment and an answer to a teenage prayer—of artistic music".
Psychedelic and progressive rock
With "Good Vibrations", the Beach Boys ended 1966 as the only band besides the Beatles to have had a high-charting psychedelic rock song, at a time when the genre was still in its formative stages. Writing in 2009, Barney Hoskyns deemed it to be the era's "ultimate psychedelic pop record" from Los Angeles. Interrante adds: "Its influence on the ensuing psychedelic and progressive rock movements can’t be overstated, but its legacy as a pop hit is impressive as well." Former Atlantic Records executive Phillip Rauls recalled: "I was in the music business at the time, and my very first recognition of acid rock—we didn't call it progressive rock then—was, of all people, the Beach Boys and the song 'Good Vibrations' ... That [theremin] sent so many musicians back to the studio to create this music on acid." Author Bill Martin suggested that the Beach Boys were clearing a pathway toward the development of progressive rock, writing: "The fact is, the same reasons why much progressive rock is difficult to dance to apply just as much to 'Good Vibrations' and 'A Day in the Life.'"
Use of theremin
Although the song does not technically contain a theremin, "Good Vibrations" is the most frequently cited example of the instrument's use in pop music. Upon release, the single prompted an unexpected revival in theremins and increased the awareness of analog synthesizers. The notion that "Good Vibrations" features a theremin has been erroneously repeated in books, CD liner notes, and quotes from the recording's participants. While having a similar sound, a theremin is an aerial-controlled instrument, unlike the Electro-Theremin.
When the Beach Boys needed to reproduce its sound onstage, Wilson first requested that Tanner play the Electro-Theremin live with the group, but he declined due to commitments. Tanner recalls saying to Wilson, "I've got the wrong sort of hair to be on stage with you fellas", to which Wilson replied: "We'll give you a Prince Valiant wig." The Beach Boys then requested the services of Walter Sear, who asked Bob Moog to design a ribbon controller, since the group was used to playing the fretboards of a guitar. Sear remembers marking fretboard-like lines on the ribbon "so they could play the damn thing." Moog began manufacturing his own models of theremins. He later noted: "The pop record scene cleaned us out of our stock which we expected to last through Christmas."
In Steven M. Martin's 1993 documentary Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey, in which Wilson makes an appearance, it was revealed that the attention being paid to the theremin due to "Good Vibrations" caused Russian authorities to exile its inventor, Leon Theremin.
Cover versions
The song has been covered by artists such as Groove Holmes, the Troggs, Charlie McCoy, and Psychic TV. John Bush commented: "'Good Vibrations' was rarely reprised by other acts, even during the cover-happy '60s. Its fragmented style made it essentially cover-proof." In 1976, a nearly identical cover version was released as a single by Todd Rundgren for his album Faithful. When asked for his opinion, Brian said: "Oh, he did a marvelous job, he did a great job. I was very proud of his version." Rundgren's single peaked at number 34 on the Billboard Hot 100. Rundgren explained: "I used to like the sound of the Beach Boys, but it wasn't until they began to compete with the Beatles that I felt that what they were doing was really interesting—like around Pet Sounds and 'Good Vibrations' ... when they started to shed that whole surf music kind of burden and start to branch out into something that was a little more universal. ... I tried to do [the song] as literally as I could because in the intervening 10 years, radio had changed so much. Radio had become so formatted and so structured that that whole experience was already gone."
In 2004, Wilson re-recorded the song as a solo artist for his album Brian Wilson Presents Smile. It was sequenced as the album's closing track, following "In Blue Hawaii". In this version, "Good Vibrations" was the project's only track that eschewed the modular recording method. The song's verses and chorus were recorded as part of one whole take, and were not spliced together.
In 2012, Wilson Phillips, a trio consisting of Wilson's daughters Carnie and Wendy, and John Phillips' daughter Chynna, released an album containing covers of songs by the Beach Boys and the Mamas & the Papas titled Dedicated. Their version of "Good Vibrations", with Carnie Wilson on lead vocals, was released as a single from the album and peaked at number 25 on Billboards A/C chart.
In popular culture
The song's parody is used for the jingle of the Australian consumer electronics retailer The Good Guys.
In 1996, experimental rock group His Name Is Alive released an homage titled "Universal Frequencies" on their album Stars on E.S.P. Warren Defever reportedly listened to "Good Vibrations" repeatedly for a week before deciding that the song "needed a sequel"; he added: "'Good Vibrations' is one of the first pop hits where you can actually hear the tape edits and I think that's wonderful."
In 1997, the movie Vegas Vacation used the song for the opening credits, with Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) singing the song.
The song's lyrics "I'm picking up good vibrations" are quoted in Cyndi Lauper's 1984 single "She Bop".
A live version of the song, from the album Live in London, appears as a playable track in the 2010 video game Rock Band 3.
In 2019, the song was used prominently in a scene for Jordan Peele's psychological horror thriller film Us.
In 2018, The song was featured in the animated film Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation.
Release history
In early 2011, the single was remastered and reissued as a four-sided 78 rpm vinyl for Record Store Day, as a teaser for the forthcoming The Smile Sessions box set. It contained "Heroes and Villains" as a B-side, along with previously released alternate takes and mixes.
Stereo version
Due to the loss of the original multi-track tape, there had never been an official true stereo release of the final track until the 2012 remastered version of Smiley Smile. The stereo mix was made possible through the invention of new digital technology by Derry Fitzgerald, and received the blessing of Brian Wilson and Mark Linett. Fitzgerald's software extracted individual instrumental and vocal stems from the original mono master—as the multi-track vocals remained missing—to construct the stereo version that appears on the 2012 reissue of Smiley Smile.
40th Anniversary Edition
In celebration of its 40th year, the Good Vibrations: 40th Anniversary Edition EP was released. The EP includes "Good Vibrations", four alternate versions of the song, and the stereo mix of "Let's Go Away for Awhile". The EP artwork recreates that of the original 7-inch single sleeve. In 2016, the EP was reissued as a 12" record for the single's 50th anniversary.
Personnel
The following people are identified as players on the "Good Vibrations" single.
The Beach Boys
Mike Love – lead vocals in chorus
Brian Wilson – vocals, tack piano, tambourine, production, mixing
Carl Wilson – lead vocals in verses, guitar, shaker
Dennis Wilson – Hammond organ during 2:13–2:56
Additional musicians and production staff
Hal Blaine – drums, timpani, other percussion
Al De Lory – piano, harpsichord
Jesse Ehrlich – cello
Larry Knechtel – organ in verses and choruses
Tommy Morgan – harmonica
Al Casey – guitar
Ray Pohlman – electric bass
Lyle Ritz – double bass
Jim Horn – piccolo
Paul Tanner – Electro-Theremin
Bassist Carol Kaye played on several of the "Good Vibrations" sessions, and has been identified as a prominent contributor to the track. However, analysis by Beach Boys archivist Craig Slowinski indicates that none of those recordings made the final edit as released on the single.
Charts
Weekly charts
Original release
1976 reissue
Todd Rundgren version (1976)
Year-end charts
Certifications
Awards and accolades
Footnotes
References
Bibliography
External links
Greg Panfile's Musical Analysis of "Good Vibrations"
1966 singles
1966 songs
2004 singles
2011 singles
Brian Wilson songs
Psychic TV songs
The Beach Boys songs
Todd Rundgren songs
Capitol Records singles
Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles
Cashbox number-one singles
Number-one singles in Australia
Number-one singles in New Zealand
UK Singles Chart number-one singles
Songs written by Brian Wilson
Songs written by Mike Love
Songs written by Tony Asher
Song recordings produced by Brian Wilson
Song recordings with Wall of Sound arrangements
Art pop songs
Avant-pop songs
Psychedelic pop songs
American psychedelic rock songs
Songs used as jingles
Songs composed in E-flat minor | true | [
"\"Losing a Whole Year\" is a song by American rock band Third Eye Blind from their eponymous debut studio album (1997). It was released to radio as the fourth single from the album in March, 1998, by Elektra Records. Frontman Stephan Jenkins and guitarist Kevin Cadogan are credited as writers of the song. Production on the song was helmed by Jenkins and Eric Valentine. According to Jenkins, the song is about lamenting the end of a relationship.\n\nThe song was recorded in and around San Francisco at Toast Studios, Skywalker Ranch, and H.O.S. by Valentine. Tom Lord-Alge was responsible for the mixing of the track, which was made at South Beach Studios in Miami Beach. An alternative rock song, the song's concept was quickly developed after a band member jokingly used the phrase \"losing a whole beer.\" The instrumentation used in the song includes guitars, drums, and percussion. Third Eye Blind initially planned to release the song as their debut single, although they opted for \"Semi-Charmed Life\" at the suggestion of Elektra Records.\n\nBackground\n\n\"Losing a Whole Year\" was written by Stephen Jenkins and Kevin Cadogan. The song originated from a guitar riff that Cadogan had written, with Jenkins commenting that \"the words were how that riff made me feel\". Jenkins further discussed the meaning of the song, stating that it is about \"a rich girl from Bernal Heights\" and that it is \"just lamenting the end of a relationship and all of its wasted time\".\n\nThe band intended to release \"Losing a Whole Year\" as the lead single from Third Eye Blind (1997), although \"Semi-Charmed Life\" was released instead at the suggestion of Elektra Records.\n\nComposition\n\n\"Losing a Whole Year\" is an alternative rock song. According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Alfred Publishing, the song is written in the key of E major and is set at a tempo of 108 beats per minute with a time signature of for most of the song except for two measures of before the guitar solo and four during the ending. Jenkin's vocal range spans one octave, from F#4 to A5.\n\nCritical reception\n\"Losing a Whole Year\" was released as a single from Third Eye Blind's 1997 self-titled album. The song received a positive reaction from music critics. Chuck Eddy of Spin magazine called it one of the band's \"catchiest\" songs. Allmusic's Mike DeGagne agreed, writing that \"its pop-friendly makeup of frolicking guitar and a welcoming tempo make it one of the band's most catchiest tunes.\"\n\nChart performance\n\"Losing a Whole Year\" stayed on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart for 14 weeks and peaked at number 13 on May 2, 1998. The song also appeared on the Mainstream Rock chart in 1998, peaking at number 36.\n\nMusic video\nThird Eye Blind planned to make two music videos for \"Losing a Whole Year\", but ultimately only one was released. The video features the band performing the song in front of an audience of three laughing women. At the end of the video, two cars crash into each other right in front of the band members.\n\nCover versions\nIn 2009, American post-hardcore band A Lot Like Birds, on their album Plan B, included a cover of \"Losing A Whole Year\" at the end of their song \"Sesame Street is No Place for Vengeance\" as a hidden track.\n\nTrack listings and formats\nJapanese CD single, German CD 1\n\"Losing a Whole Year\" (LP Version) – 3:21\n\"Horror Show\" – 4:02\n\"Graduate\" (Remix) – 3:26\n\nAustralian CD single, German CD 2\n\"Losing a Whole Year\" (Remix - Strings Up) – 3:01\n\"Losing a Whole Year\" (Radio Mix) – 3:18\n\"Losing a Whole Year\" (Remix) – 3:12\n\nCredits and personnel\nCredits and personnel are adapted from the Third Eye Blind album liner notes.\nStephan Jenkins – vocals, percussion, producer\nKevin Cadogan – guitar, vocals\nArion Salazar – bass\nMichael Urbano – drums\nEric Valentine – engineer, producer\n\nCharts\n\nRelease history\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n1997 songs\n1998 singles\nThird Eye Blind songs\nMusic videos directed by Francis Lawrence\nSongs written by Stephan Jenkins\nSongs written by Kevin Cadogan\nSong recordings produced by Eric Valentine",
"\"TKO\" is a song by American pop punk band Motion City Soundtrack. The song was released on June 16, 2015, and was announced the day before its release. The song is the lead single to the band's sixth album, Panic Stations, released in September 2015.\n\nMusic\nThe song, and the album, were recorded in live sessions, instead of recording all the instruments at different times. On the recording of the album and the song itself, Pierre said \"A lot of these songs were done in a single take; we’d just pick the best ones. We’d do a take where the drums were great, but the guitar was not, then we’d just redo the guitar, as opposed to everything. It was a whole new approach, and I gotta say that I loved it, especially coming from making records where you’re sitting in the control booth by yourself playing your part over and over and everybody falling asleep.\"\n\nReferences\n\nSharp, Tyler. \"Alternative Press.\" Alternative Press, 16 June 2015. Web. 22 June 2015 \nPettigrew, Jason. \"Alternative Press.\" Alternative Press, 24 September 2014. Web. 22 June 2015. \n\nMotion City Soundtrack songs\n2015 songs\nSongs written by Joshua Cain\nSongs written by Justin Pierre"
] |
[
"Good Vibrations",
"Modular approach",
"What was the approach used to creating Good Vibrations?",
"Instead of working on whole songs with clear large-scale syntactical structures,",
"What alternative was used instead of working on a whole song?",
"Wilson limited himself to recording short interchangeable fragments (or \"modules\"). Through the method of tape splicing,"
] | C_3511c60eb57b41c2bebf1299ed0caeeb_1 | Had this approach ever been used before? | 3 | Had Wilson limited himself to recording short interchangeable fragments approach ever been used before? | Good Vibrations | "Good Vibrations" established a new method of operation for Wilson. Instead of working on whole songs with clear large-scale syntactical structures, Wilson limited himself to recording short interchangeable fragments (or "modules"). Through the method of tape splicing, each fragment could then be assembled into a linear sequence, allowing any number of larger structures and divergent moods to be produced at a later time. This was the same modular approach used during the sessions for Smile and Smiley Smile. To mask each tape edit, vast reverb decays were added at the mixing and sub-mixing stages. For instrumentation, Wilson employed the services of "the Wrecking Crew", the nickname for a conglomerate of session musicians active in Los Angeles at that time. Production for "Good Vibrations" spanned more than a dozen recording sessions at four different Hollywood studios, at a time when most pop singles were typically recorded in a day or two. It was reported to have used over 90 hours of magnetic recording tape, with an eventual budget estimated between $50,000 and $75,000 (equivalent to $380,000 and $570,000 in 2017), at that time the largest sum spent on a single. In comparison, the whole of Pet Sounds had cost $70,000 ($530,000), itself an unusually high cost for an album. It is said that Wilson was so puzzled by "Good Vibrations" that he would often arrive at a session, consider a few possibilities, and then leave without recording anything, which exacerbated costs. In 2018, Wilson disputed the $50,000 figure for "Good Vibrations", saying that the overall expenses were closer to $25,000 ($190,000). When asked in a 2005 interview if it was true that the Electro-Theremin work alone cost $100,000, he responded "No. $15,000." CANNOTANSWER | This was the same modular approach used during the sessions for Smile and Smiley Smile. | "Good Vibrations" is a song by the American rock band the Beach Boys that was composed by Brian Wilson with lyrics by Mike Love. It was released as a single on October 10, 1966 and was an immediate critical and commercial hit, topping record charts in several countries including the United States and the United Kingdom. Characterized by its complex soundscapes, episodic structure and subversions of pop music formula, it was the most expensive single ever recorded. "Good Vibrations" later became widely acclaimed as one of the finest and most important works of the rock era.
Also produced by Wilson, the title derived from his fascination with cosmic vibrations, as his mother would tell him as a child that dogs sometimes bark at people in response to their "bad vibrations". He used the concept to suggest extrasensory perception, while Love's lyrics were inspired by the nascent Flower Power movement. The song was written as it was recorded and in a similar fashion to other compositions from Wilson's Smile period. It was issued as a standalone single, backed with "Let's Go Away for Awhile", and was to be included on the never-finished album Smile. Instead, the track appeared on the September 1967 release Smiley Smile.
The making of "Good Vibrations" was unprecedented for any kind of recording. Building on his approach for Pet Sounds, Wilson recorded a surplus of short, interchangeable musical fragments with his bandmates and a host of session musicians at four different Hollywood studios from February to September 1966, a process reflected in the song's several dramatic shifts in key, texture, instrumentation and mood. Over 90 hours of tape was consumed in the sessions, with the total cost of production estimated to be in the tens of thousands of dollars. Band publicist Derek Taylor dubbed the unusual work a "pocket symphony". It helped develop the use of the studio as an instrument and heralded a wave of pop experimentation and the onset of psychedelic and progressive rock. The track featured a novel mix of instruments, including jaw harp and Electro-Theremin, and although the latter is not a true theremin, the song's success led to a renewed interest and sales of theremins and synthesizers.
"Good Vibrations" received a Grammy nomination for Best Vocal Group performance in 1966 and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1994. The song was voted number one in Mojos "Top 100 Records of All Time" and number six on Rolling Stones "500 Greatest Songs of All Time", and it was included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's "500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll". In later years, the song has been cited as a forerunner to the Beatles' "A Day in the Life" (1967) and Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" (1975). A 1976 cover version by Todd Rundgren peaked at number 34 on the Billboard Hot 100. The Beach Boys followed up "Good Vibrations" with another single pieced from sections, "Heroes and Villains" (1967), but it was less successful.
Inspiration and writing
Concept and early lyrics
The Beach Boys' leader, Brian Wilson, was responsible for the musical composition and virtually all of the arrangement for "Good Vibrations". Most of the song's structure and arrangement was written as it was recorded. During the recording sessions for the 1966 album Pet Sounds, Wilson began changing his writing process. For "Good Vibrations", Wilson said, "I had a lot of unfinished ideas, fragments of music I called 'feels.' Each feel represented a mood or an emotion I'd felt, and I planned to fit them together like a mosaic." Engineer Chuck Britz is quoted saying that Wilson considered the song to be "his whole life performance in one track". Wilson stated: "I was an energetic 23-year-old. ... I said: 'This is going to be better than [the Phil Spector production] "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'.
Wilson said that "Good Vibrations" was inspired by his mother: "[She] used to tell me about vibrations. I didn't really understand too much of what it meant when I was just a boy. It scared me, the word 'vibrations.' She told me about dogs that would bark at people and then not bark at others, that a dog would pick up vibrations from these people that you can't see, but you can feel." Brian first enlisted Pet Sounds lyricist Tony Asher for help in putting words to the idea. When Brian presented the song on piano, Asher thought that it had an interesting premise with the potential for hit status, but could not fathom the end result due to Brian's primitive piano playing style. Asher remembered:
Wilson wanted to call the song "Good Vibes", but Asher advised that it was "lightweight use of the language", and suggested that "Good Vibrations" would sound less "trendy". The two proceeded to write lyrics for the verses that were ultimately discarded.
Theremin and cello
From the start, Wilson envisioned a theremin for the track. AllMusic reviewer John Bush pointed out: "Radio listeners could easily pick up the link between the title and the obviously electronic riffs sounding in the background of the chorus, but Wilson's use of the theremin added another delicious parallel—between the single's theme and its use of an instrument the player never even touched."
"Good Vibrations" does not technically feature a theremin, but rather an Electro-Theremin, which is physically controlled by a knob on the side of the instrument. It was dubbed a "theremin" simply for convenience. At that time, theremins were most often associated with the 1945 Alfred Hitchcock film Spellbound, but their most common presence was in the theme music for the television sitcom My Favorite Martian, which ran from 1963 to 1966. Britz speculates: "He just walked in and said, 'I have this new sound for you.' I think he must have heard the sound somewhere and loved it, and built a song around it." It is unclear whether Wilson knew that the instrument was not a real theremin.
Brian credited his brother and bandmate Carl for suggesting the use of a cello on the track. He further stated that its triplet beat on the chorus was his own idea and that it was based on the Crystals' "Da Doo Ron Ron" (1963), produced by Spector. Conversely, arranger and session musician Van Dyke Parks said that it was himself who suggested having the cellist play triplets to Brian. Parks believed that having Brian exploit the cello "to such a hyperbolic degree" was what encouraged the duo to immediately collaborate on the never-finished album Smile. At some point, Wilson asked Parks to pen lyrics for "Good Vibrations", although Parks declined.
Influences and final lyrics
Wilson's cousin and bandmate Mike Love submitted the final lyrics for "Good Vibrations" and contributed its bass-baritone vocals in the chorus. He recalled that when he heard the unfinished backing track: "[It] was already so avant-garde, especially with the theremin, I wondered how our fans were going to relate to it. How's this going to go over in the Midwest or Birmingham? It was such a departure from 'Surfin' U.S.A.' or 'Help Me, Rhonda.'"
Love said that he wrote the words while on the drive to the studio. Feeling that the song could be "the Beach Boys' psychedelic anthem or flower power offering," he based the lyrics on the burgeoning psychedelic music and Flower Power movements occurring in San Francisco and some parts of the Los Angeles area. He described the lyrics as "just a flowery poem. Kind of almost like 'If you’re going to San Francisco be sure to wear flowers in your hair.'" Writing in his 1975 book The Beach Boys: Southern California Pastoral, Bruce Golden observed:
Capitol Records executives were worried that the lyrics contained psychedelic overtones, and Brian was accused of having based the song's production on his LSD experiences. Brian clarified that the song was written under the influence of marijuana, not LSD. He explained: "I made ‘Good Vibrations’ on drugs; I used drugs to make that. ... I learned how to function behind drugs, and it improved my brain ... it made me more rooted in my sanity." In Steven Gaines's 1986 biography, Wilson is quoted on the lyrics: "We talked about good vibrations with the song and the idea, and we decided on one hand that you could say ... those are sensual things. And then you'd say, 'I'm picking up good vibrations,' which is a contrast against the sensual, the extrasensory perception that we have. That's what we're really talking about."
Wilson said in 2012 that the song's "gotta keep those good vibrations" bridge was inspired by Stephen Foster. Bandmate Al Jardine compared that section to Foster and the Negro spiritual "Down by the Riverside". According to Love, the lyric "'she goes with me to a blossom world' was originally meant to be followed by the words 'we find'", but Wilson elected to cut off the line to highlight the bass track linking into the chorus.
Recording and production
Modular approach
"Good Vibrations" established a new method of operation for Wilson. Instead of working on whole songs with clear large-scale syntactical structures, Wilson limited himself to recording short interchangeable fragments (or "modules"). Through the method of tape splicing, each fragment could then be assembled into a linear sequence, allowing any number of larger structures and divergent moods to be produced at a later time. This was the same modular approach used during the sessions for Smile and Smiley Smile. To mask each tape edit, vast reverb decays were added at the mixing and sub-mixing stages.
For instrumentation, Wilson employed the services of "the Wrecking Crew", the nickname for a conglomerate of session musicians active in Los Angeles at that time. Production for "Good Vibrations" spanned more than a dozen recording sessions at four different Hollywood studios, at a time when most pop singles were typically recorded in a day or two. It was reported to have used over 90 hours of magnetic recording tape, with an eventual budget estimated in the tens of thousands, making it the costliest single recorded to that date. Biographer Peter Ames Carlin wrote that Wilson was so puzzled by the arranging of "Good Vibrations" that he would often arrive at a session, consider a few possibilities, and then leave without recording anything, which exacerbated costs.
One estimate of the overall production expenses is between $50,000 and $75,000 (equivalent to $ and $ in ), By comparison, the whole of Pet Sounds had cost $70,000 ($), itself an unusually high cost for an album. In 2018, Wilson disputed the $50,000 figure for "Good Vibrations", saying that the overall expenses were closer to $25,000.
Contemporary advertisements reported $10,000 ($) as the track's total production costs. Domenic Priore wrote that the track cost between $10,000 and $15,000 ($). When asked in a 2005 interview if it was true that the Electro-Theremin work alone cost $100,000, Wilson replied "No. $15,000."
Development
The instrumental of the first version of the song was recorded on February 17, 1966, at Gold Star Studios and was logged as a Pet Sounds session. On that day's session log, it was given the name "#1 Untitled" or "Good, Good, Good Vibrations", but on its master tape, Wilson distinctly states: "'Good Vibrations' ... take one." After twenty-six takes, a rough mono mix completed the session. Some additional instruments and rough guide vocals were overdubbed on February 23. Brian and Carl shared vocals for this mix.
The original version of "Good Vibrations" contained the characteristics of a "funky rhythm and blues number" and would not yet resemble a "pocket symphony". There was no cello at this juncture, but the Electro-Theremin was present, played by its inventor, Paul Tanner. It was Brian's second ever recorded use of the instrument, just three days after the Pet Sounds track "I Just Wasn't Made for These Times". Brian then placed "Good Vibrations" on hold in order to devote attention to the Pet Sounds album, which saw release on May 16. More instrumental sections for "Good Vibrations" were recorded between April and June. Brian then forwent additional instrumental tracking until early September, when it was decided to revisit the song's bridge section and apply Electro-Theremin overdubs.
According to Brian's then-new friend David Anderle, during an early stage, Brian considered giving "Good Vibrations" to one of the black R&B groups signed with Warner Bros. Records such as Wilson Pickett, and then at Anderle's suggestion to singer Danny Hutton. He thought about abandoning the track, but after receiving encouragement from Anderle, eventually decided on it as the next Beach Boys single. In the meantime, he worked on writing and recording material for the group's forthcoming album, Smile.
The first Beach Boy to hear "Good Vibrations" in a semi-completed form, other than Brian, was Carl. Following a performance with the touring group in North Dakota, he remembered: "I came back up into my hotel room one night and the phone rang. It was Brian on the other end. He called me from the recording studio and played this really bizarre sounding music over the phone. There were drums smashing, that kind of stuff, and then it refined itself and got into the cello. It was a real funky track." In 1976, Brian revealed that before the final mixdown, he had been confronted with resistance by members of the group, whom Brian declined to name. The subject of their worries and complaints was the song's length and "modern" sound: "I said no, it's not going to be too long a record, it's going to be just right. ... They didn't quite understand what this jumping from studio to studio was all about. And they couldn't conceive of the record as I did. I saw the record as a totality piece."
The vocals for "Good Vibrations" were recorded at CBS Columbia Square, starting on August 24 and continuing sporadically until the very last day of assembly on September 21. The episodic structure of the composition was continuously revised as the group experimented with different ideas. Brian remembers that he began recording the "bop bop good vibrations" parts first, and that he came up with "the high parts" a week later. Mike Love recalled: "I can remember doing 25–30 vocal overdubs of the same part, and when I mean the same part, I mean same section of a record, maybe no more than two, three, four, five seconds long." Dennis Wilson was to have sung the lead vocal, but due to a bout of laryngitis, Carl replaced him at the last minute. In early September, the master tapes for "Good Vibrations" were stolen. Mysteriously, they reappeared inside Brian's home two days later.
On September 21, Brian completed the track after Tanner added a final Electro-Theremin overdub. In 1976 he elaborated on the event: "It was at Columbia. I remember I had it right in the sack. I could just feel it when I dubbed it down, made the final mix from the 16-track down to mono. It was a feeling of power, it was a rush. A feeling of exaltation. Artistic beauty. It was everything ... I remember saying, 'Oh my God. Sit back and listen to this!'"
Composition and analysis
Genre and dynamics
There are six unique sections to the piece. Music theorist Daniel Harrison refers to these sections individually as the verse, the refrain (or chorus), the "first episodic digression", the "second episodic digression", the "retro-refrain", and the coda. Each has a distinct musical texture, partly due to the nature of the song's recording. The track's instrumentation changes radically from section to section, and for the AM radio standards of late 1966, the song's final runtime (3 minutes 35 seconds) was considered a "very long" duration. Wilson is quoted in 1979:
He characterized the song as "advanced rhythm and blues". Tom Roland of American Songwriter described the piece, "with its interlocking segments—a sort of pop version of the classical sonata, consisting of a series of musical movements". New York Magazine compared it to "a fugue with a rhythmic beat". John Bush compared the track's fragmented cut-and-paste style to 1960s experimentalists such as William S. Burroughs. Music journal Sound on Sound argued that the song "has as many dramatic changes in mood as a piece of serious classical music lasting more than half an hour". It explained that the song subverts pop forms to a considerable degree:
According to historian Lorenzo Candelaria, "Good Vibrations" has since been marketed as pop music "possibly because it comes across relatively innocent compared with the hard-edged rock we have since come to know." Uncut called the song "three minutes and thirty-six seconds of avant-garde pop". Mixdown described it as a "masterpiece of avant-pop". The theremin and cello has been called the song's "psychedelic ingredient". In his book discussing music of the counterculture era, James Perrone stated that the song represented a type of impressionistic psychedelia, in particular for its cello playing repeated bass notes and its theremin. Professor of American history John Robert Greene named "Good Vibrations" among examples of psychedelic or acid rock. Stebbins wrote that the song was "replete with sunshine [and] psychedelia". Steve Valdez says that, like Pet Sounds, Brian was attempting a more experimental rock style.
Comparing "Good Vibrations" to Wilson's previous work Pet Sounds, biographer Andrew Hickey said that the "best way of thinking about [the song] is that it's taking the lowest common denominator of 'Here Today' and 'God Only Knows' and turned the result into an R&B track. We have the same minor-key change between verse and chorus we've seen throughout Pet Sounds, the same descending scalar chord sequences, the same mobile bass parts, but here, rather than to express melancholy, these things are used in a way that's as close as Brian Wilson ever got to funky." Author Jon Stebbins adds that "unlike Pet Sounds the chorus of 'Good Vibrations' projects a definite 'rock and roll' energy and feel."
According to academic Rikky Rooksby, "Good Vibrations" is an example of Brian Wilson's growing interest in musical development within a composition, something antithetical to popular music of the time. Suppressing tonic strength and cadential drive, the song makes use of descending harmonic motions through scale degrees controlled by a single tonic and "radical disjunctions" in key, texture, instrumentation, and mood while refusing to develop into a predictable formal pattern. It instead develops "under its own power" and "luxuriates in harmonic variety" exemplified by beginning and ending not only in different keys but also in different modes.
Verses and refrains (0:00–1:40)
"Good Vibrations" begins without introduction in a traditional verse/refrain format, opening with Carl Wilson singing the word "I", a triplet eighth note before the downbeat. The sparse first verse contains a repetition of chords played on a Hammond organ filtered through a Leslie speaker; underneath is a two-bar Fender bass melody. This sequence repeats once (0:15), but with the addition of two piccolos sustaining over a falling flute line. For percussion, bongo drums double the bass rhythm and every fourth-beat is struck by either a tambourine or a bass-drum-and-snare combination, in alternation. The beat projects a triplet feel despite being in time; this is sometimes called a "shuffle beat" or "threes over fours". The chord progression used is i–VII–VI–V, also called an Andalusian cadence. Although the verses begin in the minor mode of E, the mode is not used to express sadness or drudgery. Occurring at the very end of these verses is a passing chord, D.
The refrain (0:25) begins in the newly tonicized relative major G, which suggests III. Providing a backdrop to the Electro-Theremin is a cello and string bass playing a bowed tremolo triplet, a feature that was an exceedingly rare effect in pop music. The Fender bass is steady at one note per beat while tom drums and tambourine provide a backbeat. This time, the rhythm is stable, and is split into four 4-bar sections which gradually build its vocals. The first section consists of only the couplet "I'm picking up good vibrations/she's giving me the excitation" sung by Mike Love in his bass-baritone register; the second repeats the lines and adds an "ooo bop bop" figure, sung in multiple-part harmony; the third time also adds a "good, good, good, good vibrations" in yet a higher harmony. This type of polyphony (counterpoint) is also rare in contemporary popular styles. Each repeat of the vocal lines also transposes up by a whole step, ascending from G to A and then B. It then returns to the verse, thus making a perfect cadence back into E minor. The verse and refrain then repeat without any changes to the patterns of its instrumentation and harmony. This is unusual, in that normally, a song's arrangement adds something once it reaches the second verse.
Episodic digressions
First episode (1:41–2:13)
The first episode (1:41+) begins disjunctively with an abrupt tape splice. The refrain's B, which had received a dominant (V) charge, is now maintained as a tonic (I). There is harmonic ambiguity, in that the chord progression may be either interpreted as I–IV–I (in B) or V–I–V (in E). Stebbins says that this section "might be called a bridge under normal circumstances, but the song's structure takes such an abstract route that traditional labels don't really apply." A new sound is created by tack piano, jaw harp, and bass relegated to strong beats which is subsequently (1:55) augmented by a new electric organ, bass harmonica, and sleigh bells shaken on every beat. The lone line of vocals (aside from non-lexical harmonies) is "I don't know where, but she sends me there" sung in Mike Love's upper-register baritone. This section lasts for ten measures (6 + 2 + 2), which is unexpectedly long in light of previous patterns.
Second episode (2:13–2:56)
Another tape splice occurs at 2:13, transitioning to an electric organ playing sustained chords set in the key of F accompanied by a maraca shaken on every beat. Sound on Sound highlights this change as the "most savage edit in the track ... most people would go straight into a big splash hook-line section. Brian Wilson decided to slow the track even further, moving into a 23-bar section of church organ ... Most arrangers would steer clear of this kind of drop in pace, on the grounds that it would be chart suicide, but not Brian." Harrison says:
The slowed pace is complemented by the lyric ("Gotta keep those loving good vibrations a-happening with her"), sung once first as a solo voice, with the melody repeated an octave higher the second time with an accompanying harmony. This two-part vocal fades as a solo harmonica plays a melody on top of the persistent quarter-note bass line and maraca that maintain the only rhythm throughout Episode 2. The section ends with a five-part harmony vocalizing a whole-note chord that is sustained by reverb for a further four beats. Lambert calls it the song's "wake-up chord at the end of the meditation that transports the concept into a whole new realm: it's an iconic moment among iconic moments. As it rouses us from a blissful dream and echoes into the silence leading into the chorus, it seems to capture every sound and message the song has to say."
Retro-refrain and coda (2:57–3:35)
A brief break at the end of the second musical digression creates tension which leads into the final sequence of the song. The refrain reappears for an additional five measures, marching through a transpositional structure that begins in B, repeats at A, and then ends at G for an unexpectedly short single measure. The section uses a descending progression, which mirrors the ascending progression of the previous two refrains. There follows a short section of vocalizing in three-part counterpoint that references the original refrain by reproducing upward transposition. However, this time it settles on A, the concluding key of the song. By the end of "Good Vibrations," all seven scale degrees of the opening E-minor tonic are activated on some level.
Release and promotion
In a July 1966 advertisement for Pet Sounds in Billboard magazine, the band thanked the music industry for the sales of their album, and said that "We're moved over the fact that our Pet Sounds brought on nothing but Good Vibrations." This was the first public hint of the new single. Later in the year, Brian told journalist Tom Nolan that the new Beach Boys single was "about a guy who picks up good vibrations from a girl" and that it would be a "monster". He then suggested: "It's still sticking pretty close to that same boy-girl thing, you know, but with a difference. And it's a start, it's definitely a start." Derek Taylor, who had recently been engaged as the band's publicist, is credited for coining the term a "pocket symphony" to describe the song. In a press release for the single, he stated: "Wilson's instinctive talents for mixing sounds could most nearly equate to those of the old painters whose special secret was in the blending of their oils. And what is most amazing about all outstanding creative artists is that they are using only those basic materials which are freely available to everyone else."
To promote the single, four different music videos were shot. The first of these—which had Caleb Deschanel as cameraman—features the group at a fire station, sliding down its pole, and roaming the streets of Los Angeles in a fashion comparable to The Monkees. The second features the group during vocal rehearsals at United Western Recorders. The third contains footage recorded during the making of The Beach Boys in London, a documentary by Peter Whitehead of their concert performances. The fourth clip is an alternative edit of the third. Brian also made a rare television appearance on local station KHJ-TV for its Teen Rock and Roll Dance Program, introducing the song to the show's in-studio audience and presenting an exclusive preview of the completed record.
On October 15, 1966, Billboard predicted that the single would reach the top 20 in the Billboard Hot 100 chart. "Good Vibrations" was the Beach Boys' third US number one hit, after "I Get Around" and "Help Me, Rhonda", reaching the top of the Hot 100 in December. It was also their first number one in Britain. The single sold over 230,000 copies in the US within four days of its release and entered the Cash Box chart at number 61 on October 22. In the UK, the song sold over 50,000 copies in the first 15 days of its release. "Good Vibrations" quickly became the Beach Boys' first million-selling single. In December 1966, the record was their first single certified gold by the RIAA for sales of one million copies. On March 30, 2016, the digital single was certified platinum by the RIAA for the same sales level.
In the US, Cash Box said that it is a "catchy, easy-driving ditty loaded with the Boys’ money-making sound." In Britain, the single received favorable reviews from the New Musical Express and Melody Maker. Soon after, the Beach Boys were voted the number one band in the world in the NME readers' poll, ahead of the Beatles, the Walker Brothers, the Rolling Stones, and the Four Tops. Billboard said that this result was probably influenced by the success of "Good Vibrations" when the votes were cast, together with the band's recent tour, whereas the Beatles had neither a recent single nor had they toured the UK throughout 1966; the reporter added that "The sensational success of the Beach Boys, however, is being taken as a portent that the popularity of the top British groups of the last three years is past its peak." In a readers' poll conducted by a Danish newspaper, Brian Wilson won the "best foreign-produced recording award", marking the first time that an American had won in that category.
The single achieved sales of over 50,000 copies in Australia, being eligible for the award of a Gold Disc.
Influence and legacy
Historical reception
Virtually every pop music critic recognizes "Good Vibrations" as one of the most important compositions and recordings of the entire rock era. It is a regular fixture on "greatest of all-time" song lists and is frequently hailed as one of the finest pop productions of all time. In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked "Good Vibrations" at number 6 in "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time", the highest position of seven Beach Boys songs cited in the list. In 2001, the song was voted 24th in the RIAA and NEA's Songs of the Century list. As of 2016, "Good Vibrations" is ranked as the number four song of all time in an aggregation of critics' lists at Acclaimed Music.
The song served as an anthem for the counterculture of the 1960s. According to Noel Murray of The A.V. Club, it also helped turn around the initially poor perception of Pet Sounds in the US, where the album's "un-hip orchestrations and pervasive sadness [had] baffled some longtime fans, who didn't immediately get what Wilson was trying to do." Encouraged by the single's success, Wilson continued working on Smile, intending it as an entire album incorporating the writing and production techniques he had devised for "Good Vibrations". "Heroes and Villains", the Beach Boys' follow-up single, continued his modular recording practices, spanning nearly thirty recording sessions held between May 1966 and June 1967.
In contrast to the acclaim lavished on the song, some of Wilson's pop and rock contemporaries have been tempered in their praise of "Good Vibrations". When asked about the song in 1990, Paul McCartney responded: "I thought it was a great record. It didn't quite have the emotional thing that Pet Sounds had for me. I've often played Pet Sounds and cried. It's that kind of an album for me." Pete Townshend of the Who was quoted in the 1960s as saying, "'Good Vibrations' was probably a good record but who's to know? You had to play it about 90 bloody times to even hear what they were singing about." Townshend feared that the single would lead to a trend of overproduction. In a 1966 issue of Arts Magazine, Jonathan King said: "With justification, comments are being passed that 'Good Vibrations' is an inhuman work of art. Computerized pop, mechanized music. Take a machine, feed in various musical instruments, add a catch phrase, stir well, and press seven buttons. It is long and split. ... impressive, fantastic, commercial—yes. Emotional, soul-destroying, shattering—no." In the 2000s, record producer Phil Spector criticized the single for depending too much on tape manipulation, negatively referring to it as an "edit record ... It's like Psycho is a great film, but it's an 'edit film.' Without edits, it's not a film; with edits, it's a great film. But it's not Rebecca ... it's not a beautiful story."
Advancements
Recording and popular music
"Good Vibrations" is credited for having further developed the use of recording studios as a musical instrument. Author Domenic Priore commented that the song's making was "unlike anything previous in the realms of classical, jazz, international, soundtrack, or any other kind of recording". A milestone in the development of rock music, the song, together with the Beatles' Revolver, was a prime proponent in rock's transformation from live concert performances to studio productions that could only exist on record. Musicologist Charlie Gillett called it "one of the first records to flaunt studio production as a quality in its own right, rather than as a means of presenting a performance". In a 1968 editorial for Jazz & Pop, Gene Sculatti predicted:
Writing for Popmatters in 2015, Scott Interrante stated: "'Good Vibrations' changed the way a pop record could be made, the way a pop record could sound, and the lyrics a pop record could have." The recording contains previously untried mixes of instruments, and it was the first pop hit to have cellos in a juddering rhythm. Microtonal composer Frank Oteri said that it "sounds like no other pop song recorded up to that point". According to Stebbins: "This signature sound would be duplicated, cloned, commercialized, and re-fabricated in songs, commercials, TV shows, movies, and elevators to the point of completely diluting the genius of the original. But 'Good Vibrations' was probably the quintessential 'sunshine pop' recording of the century." He added that the single "vaulted nearly every other rock act in their delivery of a Flower Power classic. It was just strange enough to be taken seriously, but still vibrant, happy, accessibly Beach Boys-esque pop." John Bush wrote that the single "announced the coming era of pop experimentation with a rush of riff changes, echo-chamber effects, and intricate harmonies". Gillett noted: "For the rest of the sixties, countless musicians and groups attempted to represent an equivalently blissful state, but none of them ever applied the intense discipline and concentration that Wilson had devoted to the recording."
Priore says that the song was a forerunner to works such as Marvin Gaye's What's Going On (1971) and Isaac Hayes' Shaft (1971) which presented soul music in a similar, multi-textured context imbued with ethereal sonic landscapes. In his appraisal for American Songwriter, Roland cites the song's "format" as the model for recordings by Wings ("Band on the Run"), the Beatles ("A Day in the Life"), and Elton John ("Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding"). The song's approach was repeated in Queen's 1975 single "Bohemian Rhapsody", which was similarly pieced together using different sections. Wilson praised Queen's effort, calling it "the most competitive thing that's come along in ages" and "a fulfillment and an answer to a teenage prayer—of artistic music".
Psychedelic and progressive rock
With "Good Vibrations", the Beach Boys ended 1966 as the only band besides the Beatles to have had a high-charting psychedelic rock song, at a time when the genre was still in its formative stages. Writing in 2009, Barney Hoskyns deemed it to be the era's "ultimate psychedelic pop record" from Los Angeles. Interrante adds: "Its influence on the ensuing psychedelic and progressive rock movements can’t be overstated, but its legacy as a pop hit is impressive as well." Former Atlantic Records executive Phillip Rauls recalled: "I was in the music business at the time, and my very first recognition of acid rock—we didn't call it progressive rock then—was, of all people, the Beach Boys and the song 'Good Vibrations' ... That [theremin] sent so many musicians back to the studio to create this music on acid." Author Bill Martin suggested that the Beach Boys were clearing a pathway toward the development of progressive rock, writing: "The fact is, the same reasons why much progressive rock is difficult to dance to apply just as much to 'Good Vibrations' and 'A Day in the Life.'"
Use of theremin
Although the song does not technically contain a theremin, "Good Vibrations" is the most frequently cited example of the instrument's use in pop music. Upon release, the single prompted an unexpected revival in theremins and increased the awareness of analog synthesizers. The notion that "Good Vibrations" features a theremin has been erroneously repeated in books, CD liner notes, and quotes from the recording's participants. While having a similar sound, a theremin is an aerial-controlled instrument, unlike the Electro-Theremin.
When the Beach Boys needed to reproduce its sound onstage, Wilson first requested that Tanner play the Electro-Theremin live with the group, but he declined due to commitments. Tanner recalls saying to Wilson, "I've got the wrong sort of hair to be on stage with you fellas", to which Wilson replied: "We'll give you a Prince Valiant wig." The Beach Boys then requested the services of Walter Sear, who asked Bob Moog to design a ribbon controller, since the group was used to playing the fretboards of a guitar. Sear remembers marking fretboard-like lines on the ribbon "so they could play the damn thing." Moog began manufacturing his own models of theremins. He later noted: "The pop record scene cleaned us out of our stock which we expected to last through Christmas."
In Steven M. Martin's 1993 documentary Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey, in which Wilson makes an appearance, it was revealed that the attention being paid to the theremin due to "Good Vibrations" caused Russian authorities to exile its inventor, Leon Theremin.
Cover versions
The song has been covered by artists such as Groove Holmes, the Troggs, Charlie McCoy, and Psychic TV. John Bush commented: "'Good Vibrations' was rarely reprised by other acts, even during the cover-happy '60s. Its fragmented style made it essentially cover-proof." In 1976, a nearly identical cover version was released as a single by Todd Rundgren for his album Faithful. When asked for his opinion, Brian said: "Oh, he did a marvelous job, he did a great job. I was very proud of his version." Rundgren's single peaked at number 34 on the Billboard Hot 100. Rundgren explained: "I used to like the sound of the Beach Boys, but it wasn't until they began to compete with the Beatles that I felt that what they were doing was really interesting—like around Pet Sounds and 'Good Vibrations' ... when they started to shed that whole surf music kind of burden and start to branch out into something that was a little more universal. ... I tried to do [the song] as literally as I could because in the intervening 10 years, radio had changed so much. Radio had become so formatted and so structured that that whole experience was already gone."
In 2004, Wilson re-recorded the song as a solo artist for his album Brian Wilson Presents Smile. It was sequenced as the album's closing track, following "In Blue Hawaii". In this version, "Good Vibrations" was the project's only track that eschewed the modular recording method. The song's verses and chorus were recorded as part of one whole take, and were not spliced together.
In 2012, Wilson Phillips, a trio consisting of Wilson's daughters Carnie and Wendy, and John Phillips' daughter Chynna, released an album containing covers of songs by the Beach Boys and the Mamas & the Papas titled Dedicated. Their version of "Good Vibrations", with Carnie Wilson on lead vocals, was released as a single from the album and peaked at number 25 on Billboards A/C chart.
In popular culture
The song's parody is used for the jingle of the Australian consumer electronics retailer The Good Guys.
In 1996, experimental rock group His Name Is Alive released an homage titled "Universal Frequencies" on their album Stars on E.S.P. Warren Defever reportedly listened to "Good Vibrations" repeatedly for a week before deciding that the song "needed a sequel"; he added: "'Good Vibrations' is one of the first pop hits where you can actually hear the tape edits and I think that's wonderful."
In 1997, the movie Vegas Vacation used the song for the opening credits, with Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) singing the song.
The song's lyrics "I'm picking up good vibrations" are quoted in Cyndi Lauper's 1984 single "She Bop".
A live version of the song, from the album Live in London, appears as a playable track in the 2010 video game Rock Band 3.
In 2019, the song was used prominently in a scene for Jordan Peele's psychological horror thriller film Us.
In 2018, The song was featured in the animated film Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation.
Release history
In early 2011, the single was remastered and reissued as a four-sided 78 rpm vinyl for Record Store Day, as a teaser for the forthcoming The Smile Sessions box set. It contained "Heroes and Villains" as a B-side, along with previously released alternate takes and mixes.
Stereo version
Due to the loss of the original multi-track tape, there had never been an official true stereo release of the final track until the 2012 remastered version of Smiley Smile. The stereo mix was made possible through the invention of new digital technology by Derry Fitzgerald, and received the blessing of Brian Wilson and Mark Linett. Fitzgerald's software extracted individual instrumental and vocal stems from the original mono master—as the multi-track vocals remained missing—to construct the stereo version that appears on the 2012 reissue of Smiley Smile.
40th Anniversary Edition
In celebration of its 40th year, the Good Vibrations: 40th Anniversary Edition EP was released. The EP includes "Good Vibrations", four alternate versions of the song, and the stereo mix of "Let's Go Away for Awhile". The EP artwork recreates that of the original 7-inch single sleeve. In 2016, the EP was reissued as a 12" record for the single's 50th anniversary.
Personnel
The following people are identified as players on the "Good Vibrations" single.
The Beach Boys
Mike Love – lead vocals in chorus
Brian Wilson – vocals, tack piano, tambourine, production, mixing
Carl Wilson – lead vocals in verses, guitar, shaker
Dennis Wilson – Hammond organ during 2:13–2:56
Additional musicians and production staff
Hal Blaine – drums, timpani, other percussion
Al De Lory – piano, harpsichord
Jesse Ehrlich – cello
Larry Knechtel – organ in verses and choruses
Tommy Morgan – harmonica
Al Casey – guitar
Ray Pohlman – electric bass
Lyle Ritz – double bass
Jim Horn – piccolo
Paul Tanner – Electro-Theremin
Bassist Carol Kaye played on several of the "Good Vibrations" sessions, and has been identified as a prominent contributor to the track. However, analysis by Beach Boys archivist Craig Slowinski indicates that none of those recordings made the final edit as released on the single.
Charts
Weekly charts
Original release
1976 reissue
Todd Rundgren version (1976)
Year-end charts
Certifications
Awards and accolades
Footnotes
References
Bibliography
External links
Greg Panfile's Musical Analysis of "Good Vibrations"
1966 singles
1966 songs
2004 singles
2011 singles
Brian Wilson songs
Psychic TV songs
The Beach Boys songs
Todd Rundgren songs
Capitol Records singles
Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles
Cashbox number-one singles
Number-one singles in Australia
Number-one singles in New Zealand
UK Singles Chart number-one singles
Songs written by Brian Wilson
Songs written by Mike Love
Songs written by Tony Asher
Song recordings produced by Brian Wilson
Song recordings with Wall of Sound arrangements
Art pop songs
Avant-pop songs
Psychedelic pop songs
American psychedelic rock songs
Songs used as jingles
Songs composed in E-flat minor | true | [
"The ADRI approach to evaluation of an organization's effectiveness considers the following:\n\n Approach: what processes, strategies, and structures have been developed and reasons why they have been selected;\n Deployment: how these processes, strategies, and structures have been implemented;\n Results: what trends are indicated by the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and how this is assessed; and\n Improvement: what process is used for reviewing the appropriateness and effectiveness of the Approach and Deployment above.\n\nThe approach is used to improve quality in a cyclical manner at many universities. It is also used for independent reviews of organizations.\n\nThe ADRI approach originated in Australia is used by the Oman Academic Accreditation Authority. The approach has been used in programming courses too.\n\nSee also\n Evaluation\n Quality management\n Review\n Strategic management\n\nReferences\n\nEvaluation methods\nQuality management\nStrategic management",
"Integrated topside design is a design approach used by military ship and ship equipment designers to overcome the challenges of effectively operating shipboard antenna systems and equipment susceptible to electromagnetic fields in the high electromagnetic environment of a warship's topside. The approach primarily uses the well-understood physics of electromagnetism to simulate the topside environment before the equipment is tested for real.\n\nAdvances in ship design to accommodate ever more high power antenna systems, numbers of parasitic re-radiating metallic structures (such as cranes and masts) and a requirement to have more sensitive sensors for littoral operations has led to a need for greater consideration of the operation of equipment prior to ship build or prior to equipment deployment. Whilst this can be done post-deployment using measurement teams, using a modelling and simulation approach early in the ship design is more cost-effective than making corrections after the ship is built, and so is the preferred option for several of the world's advanced navies.\n\nReferences\n Lubben, J, \"MilCis Integrated Top Side Design\". October 2007\n Stanley, J, \"Warship Electromagnetic Modelling\". June 2010\n\nShip design"
] |
[
"Good Vibrations",
"Modular approach",
"What was the approach used to creating Good Vibrations?",
"Instead of working on whole songs with clear large-scale syntactical structures,",
"What alternative was used instead of working on a whole song?",
"Wilson limited himself to recording short interchangeable fragments (or \"modules\"). Through the method of tape splicing,",
"Had this approach ever been used before?",
"This was the same modular approach used during the sessions for Smile and Smiley Smile."
] | C_3511c60eb57b41c2bebf1299ed0caeeb_1 | Is there anything interesting about the modular approach? | 4 | Is there anything interesting about the Good Vibrations modular approach? | Good Vibrations | "Good Vibrations" established a new method of operation for Wilson. Instead of working on whole songs with clear large-scale syntactical structures, Wilson limited himself to recording short interchangeable fragments (or "modules"). Through the method of tape splicing, each fragment could then be assembled into a linear sequence, allowing any number of larger structures and divergent moods to be produced at a later time. This was the same modular approach used during the sessions for Smile and Smiley Smile. To mask each tape edit, vast reverb decays were added at the mixing and sub-mixing stages. For instrumentation, Wilson employed the services of "the Wrecking Crew", the nickname for a conglomerate of session musicians active in Los Angeles at that time. Production for "Good Vibrations" spanned more than a dozen recording sessions at four different Hollywood studios, at a time when most pop singles were typically recorded in a day or two. It was reported to have used over 90 hours of magnetic recording tape, with an eventual budget estimated between $50,000 and $75,000 (equivalent to $380,000 and $570,000 in 2017), at that time the largest sum spent on a single. In comparison, the whole of Pet Sounds had cost $70,000 ($530,000), itself an unusually high cost for an album. It is said that Wilson was so puzzled by "Good Vibrations" that he would often arrive at a session, consider a few possibilities, and then leave without recording anything, which exacerbated costs. In 2018, Wilson disputed the $50,000 figure for "Good Vibrations", saying that the overall expenses were closer to $25,000 ($190,000). When asked in a 2005 interview if it was true that the Electro-Theremin work alone cost $100,000, he responded "No. $15,000." CANNOTANSWER | Production for "Good Vibrations" spanned more than a dozen recording sessions at four different Hollywood studios, at a time when | "Good Vibrations" is a song by the American rock band the Beach Boys that was composed by Brian Wilson with lyrics by Mike Love. It was released as a single on October 10, 1966 and was an immediate critical and commercial hit, topping record charts in several countries including the United States and the United Kingdom. Characterized by its complex soundscapes, episodic structure and subversions of pop music formula, it was the most expensive single ever recorded. "Good Vibrations" later became widely acclaimed as one of the finest and most important works of the rock era.
Also produced by Wilson, the title derived from his fascination with cosmic vibrations, as his mother would tell him as a child that dogs sometimes bark at people in response to their "bad vibrations". He used the concept to suggest extrasensory perception, while Love's lyrics were inspired by the nascent Flower Power movement. The song was written as it was recorded and in a similar fashion to other compositions from Wilson's Smile period. It was issued as a standalone single, backed with "Let's Go Away for Awhile", and was to be included on the never-finished album Smile. Instead, the track appeared on the September 1967 release Smiley Smile.
The making of "Good Vibrations" was unprecedented for any kind of recording. Building on his approach for Pet Sounds, Wilson recorded a surplus of short, interchangeable musical fragments with his bandmates and a host of session musicians at four different Hollywood studios from February to September 1966, a process reflected in the song's several dramatic shifts in key, texture, instrumentation and mood. Over 90 hours of tape was consumed in the sessions, with the total cost of production estimated to be in the tens of thousands of dollars. Band publicist Derek Taylor dubbed the unusual work a "pocket symphony". It helped develop the use of the studio as an instrument and heralded a wave of pop experimentation and the onset of psychedelic and progressive rock. The track featured a novel mix of instruments, including jaw harp and Electro-Theremin, and although the latter is not a true theremin, the song's success led to a renewed interest and sales of theremins and synthesizers.
"Good Vibrations" received a Grammy nomination for Best Vocal Group performance in 1966 and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1994. The song was voted number one in Mojos "Top 100 Records of All Time" and number six on Rolling Stones "500 Greatest Songs of All Time", and it was included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's "500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll". In later years, the song has been cited as a forerunner to the Beatles' "A Day in the Life" (1967) and Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" (1975). A 1976 cover version by Todd Rundgren peaked at number 34 on the Billboard Hot 100. The Beach Boys followed up "Good Vibrations" with another single pieced from sections, "Heroes and Villains" (1967), but it was less successful.
Inspiration and writing
Concept and early lyrics
The Beach Boys' leader, Brian Wilson, was responsible for the musical composition and virtually all of the arrangement for "Good Vibrations". Most of the song's structure and arrangement was written as it was recorded. During the recording sessions for the 1966 album Pet Sounds, Wilson began changing his writing process. For "Good Vibrations", Wilson said, "I had a lot of unfinished ideas, fragments of music I called 'feels.' Each feel represented a mood or an emotion I'd felt, and I planned to fit them together like a mosaic." Engineer Chuck Britz is quoted saying that Wilson considered the song to be "his whole life performance in one track". Wilson stated: "I was an energetic 23-year-old. ... I said: 'This is going to be better than [the Phil Spector production] "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'.
Wilson said that "Good Vibrations" was inspired by his mother: "[She] used to tell me about vibrations. I didn't really understand too much of what it meant when I was just a boy. It scared me, the word 'vibrations.' She told me about dogs that would bark at people and then not bark at others, that a dog would pick up vibrations from these people that you can't see, but you can feel." Brian first enlisted Pet Sounds lyricist Tony Asher for help in putting words to the idea. When Brian presented the song on piano, Asher thought that it had an interesting premise with the potential for hit status, but could not fathom the end result due to Brian's primitive piano playing style. Asher remembered:
Wilson wanted to call the song "Good Vibes", but Asher advised that it was "lightweight use of the language", and suggested that "Good Vibrations" would sound less "trendy". The two proceeded to write lyrics for the verses that were ultimately discarded.
Theremin and cello
From the start, Wilson envisioned a theremin for the track. AllMusic reviewer John Bush pointed out: "Radio listeners could easily pick up the link between the title and the obviously electronic riffs sounding in the background of the chorus, but Wilson's use of the theremin added another delicious parallel—between the single's theme and its use of an instrument the player never even touched."
"Good Vibrations" does not technically feature a theremin, but rather an Electro-Theremin, which is physically controlled by a knob on the side of the instrument. It was dubbed a "theremin" simply for convenience. At that time, theremins were most often associated with the 1945 Alfred Hitchcock film Spellbound, but their most common presence was in the theme music for the television sitcom My Favorite Martian, which ran from 1963 to 1966. Britz speculates: "He just walked in and said, 'I have this new sound for you.' I think he must have heard the sound somewhere and loved it, and built a song around it." It is unclear whether Wilson knew that the instrument was not a real theremin.
Brian credited his brother and bandmate Carl for suggesting the use of a cello on the track. He further stated that its triplet beat on the chorus was his own idea and that it was based on the Crystals' "Da Doo Ron Ron" (1963), produced by Spector. Conversely, arranger and session musician Van Dyke Parks said that it was himself who suggested having the cellist play triplets to Brian. Parks believed that having Brian exploit the cello "to such a hyperbolic degree" was what encouraged the duo to immediately collaborate on the never-finished album Smile. At some point, Wilson asked Parks to pen lyrics for "Good Vibrations", although Parks declined.
Influences and final lyrics
Wilson's cousin and bandmate Mike Love submitted the final lyrics for "Good Vibrations" and contributed its bass-baritone vocals in the chorus. He recalled that when he heard the unfinished backing track: "[It] was already so avant-garde, especially with the theremin, I wondered how our fans were going to relate to it. How's this going to go over in the Midwest or Birmingham? It was such a departure from 'Surfin' U.S.A.' or 'Help Me, Rhonda.'"
Love said that he wrote the words while on the drive to the studio. Feeling that the song could be "the Beach Boys' psychedelic anthem or flower power offering," he based the lyrics on the burgeoning psychedelic music and Flower Power movements occurring in San Francisco and some parts of the Los Angeles area. He described the lyrics as "just a flowery poem. Kind of almost like 'If you’re going to San Francisco be sure to wear flowers in your hair.'" Writing in his 1975 book The Beach Boys: Southern California Pastoral, Bruce Golden observed:
Capitol Records executives were worried that the lyrics contained psychedelic overtones, and Brian was accused of having based the song's production on his LSD experiences. Brian clarified that the song was written under the influence of marijuana, not LSD. He explained: "I made ‘Good Vibrations’ on drugs; I used drugs to make that. ... I learned how to function behind drugs, and it improved my brain ... it made me more rooted in my sanity." In Steven Gaines's 1986 biography, Wilson is quoted on the lyrics: "We talked about good vibrations with the song and the idea, and we decided on one hand that you could say ... those are sensual things. And then you'd say, 'I'm picking up good vibrations,' which is a contrast against the sensual, the extrasensory perception that we have. That's what we're really talking about."
Wilson said in 2012 that the song's "gotta keep those good vibrations" bridge was inspired by Stephen Foster. Bandmate Al Jardine compared that section to Foster and the Negro spiritual "Down by the Riverside". According to Love, the lyric "'she goes with me to a blossom world' was originally meant to be followed by the words 'we find'", but Wilson elected to cut off the line to highlight the bass track linking into the chorus.
Recording and production
Modular approach
"Good Vibrations" established a new method of operation for Wilson. Instead of working on whole songs with clear large-scale syntactical structures, Wilson limited himself to recording short interchangeable fragments (or "modules"). Through the method of tape splicing, each fragment could then be assembled into a linear sequence, allowing any number of larger structures and divergent moods to be produced at a later time. This was the same modular approach used during the sessions for Smile and Smiley Smile. To mask each tape edit, vast reverb decays were added at the mixing and sub-mixing stages.
For instrumentation, Wilson employed the services of "the Wrecking Crew", the nickname for a conglomerate of session musicians active in Los Angeles at that time. Production for "Good Vibrations" spanned more than a dozen recording sessions at four different Hollywood studios, at a time when most pop singles were typically recorded in a day or two. It was reported to have used over 90 hours of magnetic recording tape, with an eventual budget estimated in the tens of thousands, making it the costliest single recorded to that date. Biographer Peter Ames Carlin wrote that Wilson was so puzzled by the arranging of "Good Vibrations" that he would often arrive at a session, consider a few possibilities, and then leave without recording anything, which exacerbated costs.
One estimate of the overall production expenses is between $50,000 and $75,000 (equivalent to $ and $ in ), By comparison, the whole of Pet Sounds had cost $70,000 ($), itself an unusually high cost for an album. In 2018, Wilson disputed the $50,000 figure for "Good Vibrations", saying that the overall expenses were closer to $25,000.
Contemporary advertisements reported $10,000 ($) as the track's total production costs. Domenic Priore wrote that the track cost between $10,000 and $15,000 ($). When asked in a 2005 interview if it was true that the Electro-Theremin work alone cost $100,000, Wilson replied "No. $15,000."
Development
The instrumental of the first version of the song was recorded on February 17, 1966, at Gold Star Studios and was logged as a Pet Sounds session. On that day's session log, it was given the name "#1 Untitled" or "Good, Good, Good Vibrations", but on its master tape, Wilson distinctly states: "'Good Vibrations' ... take one." After twenty-six takes, a rough mono mix completed the session. Some additional instruments and rough guide vocals were overdubbed on February 23. Brian and Carl shared vocals for this mix.
The original version of "Good Vibrations" contained the characteristics of a "funky rhythm and blues number" and would not yet resemble a "pocket symphony". There was no cello at this juncture, but the Electro-Theremin was present, played by its inventor, Paul Tanner. It was Brian's second ever recorded use of the instrument, just three days after the Pet Sounds track "I Just Wasn't Made for These Times". Brian then placed "Good Vibrations" on hold in order to devote attention to the Pet Sounds album, which saw release on May 16. More instrumental sections for "Good Vibrations" were recorded between April and June. Brian then forwent additional instrumental tracking until early September, when it was decided to revisit the song's bridge section and apply Electro-Theremin overdubs.
According to Brian's then-new friend David Anderle, during an early stage, Brian considered giving "Good Vibrations" to one of the black R&B groups signed with Warner Bros. Records such as Wilson Pickett, and then at Anderle's suggestion to singer Danny Hutton. He thought about abandoning the track, but after receiving encouragement from Anderle, eventually decided on it as the next Beach Boys single. In the meantime, he worked on writing and recording material for the group's forthcoming album, Smile.
The first Beach Boy to hear "Good Vibrations" in a semi-completed form, other than Brian, was Carl. Following a performance with the touring group in North Dakota, he remembered: "I came back up into my hotel room one night and the phone rang. It was Brian on the other end. He called me from the recording studio and played this really bizarre sounding music over the phone. There were drums smashing, that kind of stuff, and then it refined itself and got into the cello. It was a real funky track." In 1976, Brian revealed that before the final mixdown, he had been confronted with resistance by members of the group, whom Brian declined to name. The subject of their worries and complaints was the song's length and "modern" sound: "I said no, it's not going to be too long a record, it's going to be just right. ... They didn't quite understand what this jumping from studio to studio was all about. And they couldn't conceive of the record as I did. I saw the record as a totality piece."
The vocals for "Good Vibrations" were recorded at CBS Columbia Square, starting on August 24 and continuing sporadically until the very last day of assembly on September 21. The episodic structure of the composition was continuously revised as the group experimented with different ideas. Brian remembers that he began recording the "bop bop good vibrations" parts first, and that he came up with "the high parts" a week later. Mike Love recalled: "I can remember doing 25–30 vocal overdubs of the same part, and when I mean the same part, I mean same section of a record, maybe no more than two, three, four, five seconds long." Dennis Wilson was to have sung the lead vocal, but due to a bout of laryngitis, Carl replaced him at the last minute. In early September, the master tapes for "Good Vibrations" were stolen. Mysteriously, they reappeared inside Brian's home two days later.
On September 21, Brian completed the track after Tanner added a final Electro-Theremin overdub. In 1976 he elaborated on the event: "It was at Columbia. I remember I had it right in the sack. I could just feel it when I dubbed it down, made the final mix from the 16-track down to mono. It was a feeling of power, it was a rush. A feeling of exaltation. Artistic beauty. It was everything ... I remember saying, 'Oh my God. Sit back and listen to this!'"
Composition and analysis
Genre and dynamics
There are six unique sections to the piece. Music theorist Daniel Harrison refers to these sections individually as the verse, the refrain (or chorus), the "first episodic digression", the "second episodic digression", the "retro-refrain", and the coda. Each has a distinct musical texture, partly due to the nature of the song's recording. The track's instrumentation changes radically from section to section, and for the AM radio standards of late 1966, the song's final runtime (3 minutes 35 seconds) was considered a "very long" duration. Wilson is quoted in 1979:
He characterized the song as "advanced rhythm and blues". Tom Roland of American Songwriter described the piece, "with its interlocking segments—a sort of pop version of the classical sonata, consisting of a series of musical movements". New York Magazine compared it to "a fugue with a rhythmic beat". John Bush compared the track's fragmented cut-and-paste style to 1960s experimentalists such as William S. Burroughs. Music journal Sound on Sound argued that the song "has as many dramatic changes in mood as a piece of serious classical music lasting more than half an hour". It explained that the song subverts pop forms to a considerable degree:
According to historian Lorenzo Candelaria, "Good Vibrations" has since been marketed as pop music "possibly because it comes across relatively innocent compared with the hard-edged rock we have since come to know." Uncut called the song "three minutes and thirty-six seconds of avant-garde pop". Mixdown described it as a "masterpiece of avant-pop". The theremin and cello has been called the song's "psychedelic ingredient". In his book discussing music of the counterculture era, James Perrone stated that the song represented a type of impressionistic psychedelia, in particular for its cello playing repeated bass notes and its theremin. Professor of American history John Robert Greene named "Good Vibrations" among examples of psychedelic or acid rock. Stebbins wrote that the song was "replete with sunshine [and] psychedelia". Steve Valdez says that, like Pet Sounds, Brian was attempting a more experimental rock style.
Comparing "Good Vibrations" to Wilson's previous work Pet Sounds, biographer Andrew Hickey said that the "best way of thinking about [the song] is that it's taking the lowest common denominator of 'Here Today' and 'God Only Knows' and turned the result into an R&B track. We have the same minor-key change between verse and chorus we've seen throughout Pet Sounds, the same descending scalar chord sequences, the same mobile bass parts, but here, rather than to express melancholy, these things are used in a way that's as close as Brian Wilson ever got to funky." Author Jon Stebbins adds that "unlike Pet Sounds the chorus of 'Good Vibrations' projects a definite 'rock and roll' energy and feel."
According to academic Rikky Rooksby, "Good Vibrations" is an example of Brian Wilson's growing interest in musical development within a composition, something antithetical to popular music of the time. Suppressing tonic strength and cadential drive, the song makes use of descending harmonic motions through scale degrees controlled by a single tonic and "radical disjunctions" in key, texture, instrumentation, and mood while refusing to develop into a predictable formal pattern. It instead develops "under its own power" and "luxuriates in harmonic variety" exemplified by beginning and ending not only in different keys but also in different modes.
Verses and refrains (0:00–1:40)
"Good Vibrations" begins without introduction in a traditional verse/refrain format, opening with Carl Wilson singing the word "I", a triplet eighth note before the downbeat. The sparse first verse contains a repetition of chords played on a Hammond organ filtered through a Leslie speaker; underneath is a two-bar Fender bass melody. This sequence repeats once (0:15), but with the addition of two piccolos sustaining over a falling flute line. For percussion, bongo drums double the bass rhythm and every fourth-beat is struck by either a tambourine or a bass-drum-and-snare combination, in alternation. The beat projects a triplet feel despite being in time; this is sometimes called a "shuffle beat" or "threes over fours". The chord progression used is i–VII–VI–V, also called an Andalusian cadence. Although the verses begin in the minor mode of E, the mode is not used to express sadness or drudgery. Occurring at the very end of these verses is a passing chord, D.
The refrain (0:25) begins in the newly tonicized relative major G, which suggests III. Providing a backdrop to the Electro-Theremin is a cello and string bass playing a bowed tremolo triplet, a feature that was an exceedingly rare effect in pop music. The Fender bass is steady at one note per beat while tom drums and tambourine provide a backbeat. This time, the rhythm is stable, and is split into four 4-bar sections which gradually build its vocals. The first section consists of only the couplet "I'm picking up good vibrations/she's giving me the excitation" sung by Mike Love in his bass-baritone register; the second repeats the lines and adds an "ooo bop bop" figure, sung in multiple-part harmony; the third time also adds a "good, good, good, good vibrations" in yet a higher harmony. This type of polyphony (counterpoint) is also rare in contemporary popular styles. Each repeat of the vocal lines also transposes up by a whole step, ascending from G to A and then B. It then returns to the verse, thus making a perfect cadence back into E minor. The verse and refrain then repeat without any changes to the patterns of its instrumentation and harmony. This is unusual, in that normally, a song's arrangement adds something once it reaches the second verse.
Episodic digressions
First episode (1:41–2:13)
The first episode (1:41+) begins disjunctively with an abrupt tape splice. The refrain's B, which had received a dominant (V) charge, is now maintained as a tonic (I). There is harmonic ambiguity, in that the chord progression may be either interpreted as I–IV–I (in B) or V–I–V (in E). Stebbins says that this section "might be called a bridge under normal circumstances, but the song's structure takes such an abstract route that traditional labels don't really apply." A new sound is created by tack piano, jaw harp, and bass relegated to strong beats which is subsequently (1:55) augmented by a new electric organ, bass harmonica, and sleigh bells shaken on every beat. The lone line of vocals (aside from non-lexical harmonies) is "I don't know where, but she sends me there" sung in Mike Love's upper-register baritone. This section lasts for ten measures (6 + 2 + 2), which is unexpectedly long in light of previous patterns.
Second episode (2:13–2:56)
Another tape splice occurs at 2:13, transitioning to an electric organ playing sustained chords set in the key of F accompanied by a maraca shaken on every beat. Sound on Sound highlights this change as the "most savage edit in the track ... most people would go straight into a big splash hook-line section. Brian Wilson decided to slow the track even further, moving into a 23-bar section of church organ ... Most arrangers would steer clear of this kind of drop in pace, on the grounds that it would be chart suicide, but not Brian." Harrison says:
The slowed pace is complemented by the lyric ("Gotta keep those loving good vibrations a-happening with her"), sung once first as a solo voice, with the melody repeated an octave higher the second time with an accompanying harmony. This two-part vocal fades as a solo harmonica plays a melody on top of the persistent quarter-note bass line and maraca that maintain the only rhythm throughout Episode 2. The section ends with a five-part harmony vocalizing a whole-note chord that is sustained by reverb for a further four beats. Lambert calls it the song's "wake-up chord at the end of the meditation that transports the concept into a whole new realm: it's an iconic moment among iconic moments. As it rouses us from a blissful dream and echoes into the silence leading into the chorus, it seems to capture every sound and message the song has to say."
Retro-refrain and coda (2:57–3:35)
A brief break at the end of the second musical digression creates tension which leads into the final sequence of the song. The refrain reappears for an additional five measures, marching through a transpositional structure that begins in B, repeats at A, and then ends at G for an unexpectedly short single measure. The section uses a descending progression, which mirrors the ascending progression of the previous two refrains. There follows a short section of vocalizing in three-part counterpoint that references the original refrain by reproducing upward transposition. However, this time it settles on A, the concluding key of the song. By the end of "Good Vibrations," all seven scale degrees of the opening E-minor tonic are activated on some level.
Release and promotion
In a July 1966 advertisement for Pet Sounds in Billboard magazine, the band thanked the music industry for the sales of their album, and said that "We're moved over the fact that our Pet Sounds brought on nothing but Good Vibrations." This was the first public hint of the new single. Later in the year, Brian told journalist Tom Nolan that the new Beach Boys single was "about a guy who picks up good vibrations from a girl" and that it would be a "monster". He then suggested: "It's still sticking pretty close to that same boy-girl thing, you know, but with a difference. And it's a start, it's definitely a start." Derek Taylor, who had recently been engaged as the band's publicist, is credited for coining the term a "pocket symphony" to describe the song. In a press release for the single, he stated: "Wilson's instinctive talents for mixing sounds could most nearly equate to those of the old painters whose special secret was in the blending of their oils. And what is most amazing about all outstanding creative artists is that they are using only those basic materials which are freely available to everyone else."
To promote the single, four different music videos were shot. The first of these—which had Caleb Deschanel as cameraman—features the group at a fire station, sliding down its pole, and roaming the streets of Los Angeles in a fashion comparable to The Monkees. The second features the group during vocal rehearsals at United Western Recorders. The third contains footage recorded during the making of The Beach Boys in London, a documentary by Peter Whitehead of their concert performances. The fourth clip is an alternative edit of the third. Brian also made a rare television appearance on local station KHJ-TV for its Teen Rock and Roll Dance Program, introducing the song to the show's in-studio audience and presenting an exclusive preview of the completed record.
On October 15, 1966, Billboard predicted that the single would reach the top 20 in the Billboard Hot 100 chart. "Good Vibrations" was the Beach Boys' third US number one hit, after "I Get Around" and "Help Me, Rhonda", reaching the top of the Hot 100 in December. It was also their first number one in Britain. The single sold over 230,000 copies in the US within four days of its release and entered the Cash Box chart at number 61 on October 22. In the UK, the song sold over 50,000 copies in the first 15 days of its release. "Good Vibrations" quickly became the Beach Boys' first million-selling single. In December 1966, the record was their first single certified gold by the RIAA for sales of one million copies. On March 30, 2016, the digital single was certified platinum by the RIAA for the same sales level.
In the US, Cash Box said that it is a "catchy, easy-driving ditty loaded with the Boys’ money-making sound." In Britain, the single received favorable reviews from the New Musical Express and Melody Maker. Soon after, the Beach Boys were voted the number one band in the world in the NME readers' poll, ahead of the Beatles, the Walker Brothers, the Rolling Stones, and the Four Tops. Billboard said that this result was probably influenced by the success of "Good Vibrations" when the votes were cast, together with the band's recent tour, whereas the Beatles had neither a recent single nor had they toured the UK throughout 1966; the reporter added that "The sensational success of the Beach Boys, however, is being taken as a portent that the popularity of the top British groups of the last three years is past its peak." In a readers' poll conducted by a Danish newspaper, Brian Wilson won the "best foreign-produced recording award", marking the first time that an American had won in that category.
The single achieved sales of over 50,000 copies in Australia, being eligible for the award of a Gold Disc.
Influence and legacy
Historical reception
Virtually every pop music critic recognizes "Good Vibrations" as one of the most important compositions and recordings of the entire rock era. It is a regular fixture on "greatest of all-time" song lists and is frequently hailed as one of the finest pop productions of all time. In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked "Good Vibrations" at number 6 in "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time", the highest position of seven Beach Boys songs cited in the list. In 2001, the song was voted 24th in the RIAA and NEA's Songs of the Century list. As of 2016, "Good Vibrations" is ranked as the number four song of all time in an aggregation of critics' lists at Acclaimed Music.
The song served as an anthem for the counterculture of the 1960s. According to Noel Murray of The A.V. Club, it also helped turn around the initially poor perception of Pet Sounds in the US, where the album's "un-hip orchestrations and pervasive sadness [had] baffled some longtime fans, who didn't immediately get what Wilson was trying to do." Encouraged by the single's success, Wilson continued working on Smile, intending it as an entire album incorporating the writing and production techniques he had devised for "Good Vibrations". "Heroes and Villains", the Beach Boys' follow-up single, continued his modular recording practices, spanning nearly thirty recording sessions held between May 1966 and June 1967.
In contrast to the acclaim lavished on the song, some of Wilson's pop and rock contemporaries have been tempered in their praise of "Good Vibrations". When asked about the song in 1990, Paul McCartney responded: "I thought it was a great record. It didn't quite have the emotional thing that Pet Sounds had for me. I've often played Pet Sounds and cried. It's that kind of an album for me." Pete Townshend of the Who was quoted in the 1960s as saying, "'Good Vibrations' was probably a good record but who's to know? You had to play it about 90 bloody times to even hear what they were singing about." Townshend feared that the single would lead to a trend of overproduction. In a 1966 issue of Arts Magazine, Jonathan King said: "With justification, comments are being passed that 'Good Vibrations' is an inhuman work of art. Computerized pop, mechanized music. Take a machine, feed in various musical instruments, add a catch phrase, stir well, and press seven buttons. It is long and split. ... impressive, fantastic, commercial—yes. Emotional, soul-destroying, shattering—no." In the 2000s, record producer Phil Spector criticized the single for depending too much on tape manipulation, negatively referring to it as an "edit record ... It's like Psycho is a great film, but it's an 'edit film.' Without edits, it's not a film; with edits, it's a great film. But it's not Rebecca ... it's not a beautiful story."
Advancements
Recording and popular music
"Good Vibrations" is credited for having further developed the use of recording studios as a musical instrument. Author Domenic Priore commented that the song's making was "unlike anything previous in the realms of classical, jazz, international, soundtrack, or any other kind of recording". A milestone in the development of rock music, the song, together with the Beatles' Revolver, was a prime proponent in rock's transformation from live concert performances to studio productions that could only exist on record. Musicologist Charlie Gillett called it "one of the first records to flaunt studio production as a quality in its own right, rather than as a means of presenting a performance". In a 1968 editorial for Jazz & Pop, Gene Sculatti predicted:
Writing for Popmatters in 2015, Scott Interrante stated: "'Good Vibrations' changed the way a pop record could be made, the way a pop record could sound, and the lyrics a pop record could have." The recording contains previously untried mixes of instruments, and it was the first pop hit to have cellos in a juddering rhythm. Microtonal composer Frank Oteri said that it "sounds like no other pop song recorded up to that point". According to Stebbins: "This signature sound would be duplicated, cloned, commercialized, and re-fabricated in songs, commercials, TV shows, movies, and elevators to the point of completely diluting the genius of the original. But 'Good Vibrations' was probably the quintessential 'sunshine pop' recording of the century." He added that the single "vaulted nearly every other rock act in their delivery of a Flower Power classic. It was just strange enough to be taken seriously, but still vibrant, happy, accessibly Beach Boys-esque pop." John Bush wrote that the single "announced the coming era of pop experimentation with a rush of riff changes, echo-chamber effects, and intricate harmonies". Gillett noted: "For the rest of the sixties, countless musicians and groups attempted to represent an equivalently blissful state, but none of them ever applied the intense discipline and concentration that Wilson had devoted to the recording."
Priore says that the song was a forerunner to works such as Marvin Gaye's What's Going On (1971) and Isaac Hayes' Shaft (1971) which presented soul music in a similar, multi-textured context imbued with ethereal sonic landscapes. In his appraisal for American Songwriter, Roland cites the song's "format" as the model for recordings by Wings ("Band on the Run"), the Beatles ("A Day in the Life"), and Elton John ("Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding"). The song's approach was repeated in Queen's 1975 single "Bohemian Rhapsody", which was similarly pieced together using different sections. Wilson praised Queen's effort, calling it "the most competitive thing that's come along in ages" and "a fulfillment and an answer to a teenage prayer—of artistic music".
Psychedelic and progressive rock
With "Good Vibrations", the Beach Boys ended 1966 as the only band besides the Beatles to have had a high-charting psychedelic rock song, at a time when the genre was still in its formative stages. Writing in 2009, Barney Hoskyns deemed it to be the era's "ultimate psychedelic pop record" from Los Angeles. Interrante adds: "Its influence on the ensuing psychedelic and progressive rock movements can’t be overstated, but its legacy as a pop hit is impressive as well." Former Atlantic Records executive Phillip Rauls recalled: "I was in the music business at the time, and my very first recognition of acid rock—we didn't call it progressive rock then—was, of all people, the Beach Boys and the song 'Good Vibrations' ... That [theremin] sent so many musicians back to the studio to create this music on acid." Author Bill Martin suggested that the Beach Boys were clearing a pathway toward the development of progressive rock, writing: "The fact is, the same reasons why much progressive rock is difficult to dance to apply just as much to 'Good Vibrations' and 'A Day in the Life.'"
Use of theremin
Although the song does not technically contain a theremin, "Good Vibrations" is the most frequently cited example of the instrument's use in pop music. Upon release, the single prompted an unexpected revival in theremins and increased the awareness of analog synthesizers. The notion that "Good Vibrations" features a theremin has been erroneously repeated in books, CD liner notes, and quotes from the recording's participants. While having a similar sound, a theremin is an aerial-controlled instrument, unlike the Electro-Theremin.
When the Beach Boys needed to reproduce its sound onstage, Wilson first requested that Tanner play the Electro-Theremin live with the group, but he declined due to commitments. Tanner recalls saying to Wilson, "I've got the wrong sort of hair to be on stage with you fellas", to which Wilson replied: "We'll give you a Prince Valiant wig." The Beach Boys then requested the services of Walter Sear, who asked Bob Moog to design a ribbon controller, since the group was used to playing the fretboards of a guitar. Sear remembers marking fretboard-like lines on the ribbon "so they could play the damn thing." Moog began manufacturing his own models of theremins. He later noted: "The pop record scene cleaned us out of our stock which we expected to last through Christmas."
In Steven M. Martin's 1993 documentary Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey, in which Wilson makes an appearance, it was revealed that the attention being paid to the theremin due to "Good Vibrations" caused Russian authorities to exile its inventor, Leon Theremin.
Cover versions
The song has been covered by artists such as Groove Holmes, the Troggs, Charlie McCoy, and Psychic TV. John Bush commented: "'Good Vibrations' was rarely reprised by other acts, even during the cover-happy '60s. Its fragmented style made it essentially cover-proof." In 1976, a nearly identical cover version was released as a single by Todd Rundgren for his album Faithful. When asked for his opinion, Brian said: "Oh, he did a marvelous job, he did a great job. I was very proud of his version." Rundgren's single peaked at number 34 on the Billboard Hot 100. Rundgren explained: "I used to like the sound of the Beach Boys, but it wasn't until they began to compete with the Beatles that I felt that what they were doing was really interesting—like around Pet Sounds and 'Good Vibrations' ... when they started to shed that whole surf music kind of burden and start to branch out into something that was a little more universal. ... I tried to do [the song] as literally as I could because in the intervening 10 years, radio had changed so much. Radio had become so formatted and so structured that that whole experience was already gone."
In 2004, Wilson re-recorded the song as a solo artist for his album Brian Wilson Presents Smile. It was sequenced as the album's closing track, following "In Blue Hawaii". In this version, "Good Vibrations" was the project's only track that eschewed the modular recording method. The song's verses and chorus were recorded as part of one whole take, and were not spliced together.
In 2012, Wilson Phillips, a trio consisting of Wilson's daughters Carnie and Wendy, and John Phillips' daughter Chynna, released an album containing covers of songs by the Beach Boys and the Mamas & the Papas titled Dedicated. Their version of "Good Vibrations", with Carnie Wilson on lead vocals, was released as a single from the album and peaked at number 25 on Billboards A/C chart.
In popular culture
The song's parody is used for the jingle of the Australian consumer electronics retailer The Good Guys.
In 1996, experimental rock group His Name Is Alive released an homage titled "Universal Frequencies" on their album Stars on E.S.P. Warren Defever reportedly listened to "Good Vibrations" repeatedly for a week before deciding that the song "needed a sequel"; he added: "'Good Vibrations' is one of the first pop hits where you can actually hear the tape edits and I think that's wonderful."
In 1997, the movie Vegas Vacation used the song for the opening credits, with Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) singing the song.
The song's lyrics "I'm picking up good vibrations" are quoted in Cyndi Lauper's 1984 single "She Bop".
A live version of the song, from the album Live in London, appears as a playable track in the 2010 video game Rock Band 3.
In 2019, the song was used prominently in a scene for Jordan Peele's psychological horror thriller film Us.
In 2018, The song was featured in the animated film Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation.
Release history
In early 2011, the single was remastered and reissued as a four-sided 78 rpm vinyl for Record Store Day, as a teaser for the forthcoming The Smile Sessions box set. It contained "Heroes and Villains" as a B-side, along with previously released alternate takes and mixes.
Stereo version
Due to the loss of the original multi-track tape, there had never been an official true stereo release of the final track until the 2012 remastered version of Smiley Smile. The stereo mix was made possible through the invention of new digital technology by Derry Fitzgerald, and received the blessing of Brian Wilson and Mark Linett. Fitzgerald's software extracted individual instrumental and vocal stems from the original mono master—as the multi-track vocals remained missing—to construct the stereo version that appears on the 2012 reissue of Smiley Smile.
40th Anniversary Edition
In celebration of its 40th year, the Good Vibrations: 40th Anniversary Edition EP was released. The EP includes "Good Vibrations", four alternate versions of the song, and the stereo mix of "Let's Go Away for Awhile". The EP artwork recreates that of the original 7-inch single sleeve. In 2016, the EP was reissued as a 12" record for the single's 50th anniversary.
Personnel
The following people are identified as players on the "Good Vibrations" single.
The Beach Boys
Mike Love – lead vocals in chorus
Brian Wilson – vocals, tack piano, tambourine, production, mixing
Carl Wilson – lead vocals in verses, guitar, shaker
Dennis Wilson – Hammond organ during 2:13–2:56
Additional musicians and production staff
Hal Blaine – drums, timpani, other percussion
Al De Lory – piano, harpsichord
Jesse Ehrlich – cello
Larry Knechtel – organ in verses and choruses
Tommy Morgan – harmonica
Al Casey – guitar
Ray Pohlman – electric bass
Lyle Ritz – double bass
Jim Horn – piccolo
Paul Tanner – Electro-Theremin
Bassist Carol Kaye played on several of the "Good Vibrations" sessions, and has been identified as a prominent contributor to the track. However, analysis by Beach Boys archivist Craig Slowinski indicates that none of those recordings made the final edit as released on the single.
Charts
Weekly charts
Original release
1976 reissue
Todd Rundgren version (1976)
Year-end charts
Certifications
Awards and accolades
Footnotes
References
Bibliography
External links
Greg Panfile's Musical Analysis of "Good Vibrations"
1966 singles
1966 songs
2004 singles
2011 singles
Brian Wilson songs
Psychic TV songs
The Beach Boys songs
Todd Rundgren songs
Capitol Records singles
Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles
Cashbox number-one singles
Number-one singles in Australia
Number-one singles in New Zealand
UK Singles Chart number-one singles
Songs written by Brian Wilson
Songs written by Mike Love
Songs written by Tony Asher
Song recordings produced by Brian Wilson
Song recordings with Wall of Sound arrangements
Art pop songs
Avant-pop songs
Psychedelic pop songs
American psychedelic rock songs
Songs used as jingles
Songs composed in E-flat minor | true | [
"In mathematics, modular forms are particular complex analytic functions on the upper half-plane of interest in complex analysis and number theory. When reduced modulo a prime p, there is an analogous theory to the classical theory of complex modular forms and the p-adic theory of modular forms.\n\nReduction of modular forms modulo 2\n\nConditions to reduce modulo 2\nModular forms are analytic functions, so they admit a Fourier series. As modular forms also satisfy a certain kind of functional equation with respect to the group action of the modular group, this Fourier series may be expressed in terms of .\nSo if is a modular form, then there are coefficients such that .\nTo reduce modulo 2, consider the subspace of modular forms with coefficients of the -series being all integers (since complex numbers, in general, may not be reduced modulo 2).\nIt is then possible to reduce all coefficients modulo 2, which will give a modular form modulo 2.\n\nBasis for modular forms modulo 2\nModular forms are generated by and :..\nIt is then possible to normalize and to and , having integers coefficients in their -series.\nThis gives generators for modular forms, which may be reduced modulo 2.\nNote the Miller basis has some interesting properties \nOnce reduced modulo 2, and are just . That is, a trivial reduction.\nTo get a non-trivial reduction, mathematicians use the modular discriminant . It is introduced as a \"priority\" generator before and .\nThus, modular forms are seen as polynomials of , and (over the complex in general, but seen over integers for reduction), once reduced modulo 2, they become just polynomials of over .\n\nThe modular discriminant modulo 2\nThe modular discriminant is defined by an infinite product:\n \nThe coefficients that matches are usually denoted , and correspond to the Ramanujan tau function.\nResults from Kolberg and Jean-Pierre Serre allows to show that modulo 2, we have:\n i.e., the -series of modulo 2 consists of to powers of odd squares.\n\nHecke operators modulo 2\nHecke operators are commonly considered as the most important operators acting on modular forms.\nIt is therefore justified to try to reduce them modulo 2.\n\nThe Hecke operators for a modular form are defined as follows\n\nwith .\n\nHecke operators may be defined on the -series as follows:\nif , \nthen \nwith\n\nSince modular forms were reduced using the -series, it makes sense to use the -series definition. The sum simplifies a lot for Hecke operators of primes (i.e. when is prime): there are only two summands. This is very nice for reduction modulo 2, as the formula simplifies a lot.\nWith more than two summands, there would be many cancellations modulo 2, and the legitimacy of the process would be doubtable. Thus, Hecke operators modulo 2 are usually defined only for primes numbers.\n\nWith a modular form modulo 2 with -representation , the Hecke operator on is defined by where\n \n\nIt is important to note that Hecke operators modulo 2 have the interesting property of being nilpotent.\nFinding their order of nilpotency is a problem solved by Jean-Pierre Serre and Jean-Louis Nicolas in a paper published in 2012:.\n\nThe Hecke algebra modulo 2\nThe Hecke algebra may also be reduced modulo 2.\nIt is defined to be the algebra generated by Hecke operators modulo 2, over .\n\nFollowing Serre and Nicolas's notations from\n, i.e. .\nWriting so that , define as the -subalgebra of given by and .\n\nThat is, if is a sub-vector-space of , we get .\n\nFinally, define the Hecke algebra as follows:\nSince , one can restrict elements of to to obtain an element of .\nWhen considering the map as the restriction to , then is a homomorphism.\nAs is either identity or zero, .\nTherefore, the following chain is obtained:\n.\nThen, define the Hecke algebra to be the projective limit of the above as .\nExplicitly, this means\n.\n\nThe main property of the Hecke algebra is that it is generated by series of and .\nThat is:\n.\n\nSo for any prime , it is possible to find coefficients such that:\n\nReferences \n\nModular forms\nAlgebraic number theory",
"In mathematics, a Hilbert modular surface or Hilbert–Blumenthal surface is an algebraic surface obtained by taking a quotient of a product of two copies of the upper half-plane by a Hilbert modular group. More generally, a Hilbert modular variety is an algebraic variety obtained by taking a quotient of a product of multiple copies of the upper half-plane by a Hilbert modular group.\n\nHilbert modular surfaces were first described by using some unpublished notes written by David Hilbert about 10 years before.\n\nDefinitions\nIf R is the ring of integers of a real quadratic field, then \nthe Hilbert modular group SL2(R) acts on the product H×H of two copies of the upper half plane H.\nThere are several birationally equivalent surfaces related to this action, any of which may be called Hilbert modular surfaces:\nThe surface X is the quotient of H×H by SL2(R); it is not compact and usually has quotient singularities coming from points with non-trivial isotropy groups. \nThe surface X* is obtained from X by adding a finite number of points corresponding to the cusps of the action. It is compact, and has not only the quotient singularities of X, but also singularities at its cusps. \nThe surface Y is obtained from X* by resolving the singularities in a minimal way. It is a compact smooth algebraic surface, but is not in general minimal. \nThe surface Y0 is obtained from Y by blowing down certain exceptional −1-curves. It is smooth and compact, and is often (but not always) minimal.\n\nThere are several variations of this construction:\nThe Hilbert modular group may be replaced by some subgroup of finite index, such as a congruence subgroup. \nOne can extend the Hilbert modular group by a group of order 2, acting on the Hilbert modular group via the Galois action, and exchanging the two copies of the upper half plane.\n\nSingularities\n showed how to resolve the quotient singularities, and showed how to resolve their cusp singularities.\n\nClassification of surfaces\nThe papers , and identified their type in the classification of algebraic surfaces. Most of them are surfaces of general type, but several are rational surfaces or blown up K3 surfaces or elliptic surfaces.\n\nExamples\n gives a long table of examples.\n\nThe Clebsch surface blown up at its 10 Eckardt points is a Hilbert modular surface.\n\nAssociated to a quadratic field extension \nGiven a quadratic field extension for there is an associated Hilbert modular variety obtained from compactifying a certain quotient variety and resolving it's singularities. Let denote the upper half plane and let act on viawhere the are the Galois conjugates. The associated quotient variety is denotedand can be compactified to a variety , called the cusps, which are in bijection with the ideal classes in . Resolving its singularities gives the variety called the Hilbert modular variety of the field extension. From the Bailey-Borel compactification theorem, there is an embedding of this surface into a projective space.\n\nSee also\n\n Hilbert modular form\n Picard modular surface\n Siegel modular variety\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nAlgebraic surfaces\nComplex surfaces"
] |
[
"Good Vibrations",
"Modular approach",
"What was the approach used to creating Good Vibrations?",
"Instead of working on whole songs with clear large-scale syntactical structures,",
"What alternative was used instead of working on a whole song?",
"Wilson limited himself to recording short interchangeable fragments (or \"modules\"). Through the method of tape splicing,",
"Had this approach ever been used before?",
"This was the same modular approach used during the sessions for Smile and Smiley Smile.",
"Is there anything interesting about the modular approach?",
"Production for \"Good Vibrations\" spanned more than a dozen recording sessions at four different Hollywood studios, at a time when"
] | C_3511c60eb57b41c2bebf1299ed0caeeb_1 | How long did the recording session take? | 5 | How long did the Good Vibrations recording session take? | Good Vibrations | "Good Vibrations" established a new method of operation for Wilson. Instead of working on whole songs with clear large-scale syntactical structures, Wilson limited himself to recording short interchangeable fragments (or "modules"). Through the method of tape splicing, each fragment could then be assembled into a linear sequence, allowing any number of larger structures and divergent moods to be produced at a later time. This was the same modular approach used during the sessions for Smile and Smiley Smile. To mask each tape edit, vast reverb decays were added at the mixing and sub-mixing stages. For instrumentation, Wilson employed the services of "the Wrecking Crew", the nickname for a conglomerate of session musicians active in Los Angeles at that time. Production for "Good Vibrations" spanned more than a dozen recording sessions at four different Hollywood studios, at a time when most pop singles were typically recorded in a day or two. It was reported to have used over 90 hours of magnetic recording tape, with an eventual budget estimated between $50,000 and $75,000 (equivalent to $380,000 and $570,000 in 2017), at that time the largest sum spent on a single. In comparison, the whole of Pet Sounds had cost $70,000 ($530,000), itself an unusually high cost for an album. It is said that Wilson was so puzzled by "Good Vibrations" that he would often arrive at a session, consider a few possibilities, and then leave without recording anything, which exacerbated costs. In 2018, Wilson disputed the $50,000 figure for "Good Vibrations", saying that the overall expenses were closer to $25,000 ($190,000). When asked in a 2005 interview if it was true that the Electro-Theremin work alone cost $100,000, he responded "No. $15,000." CANNOTANSWER | It was reported to have used over 90 hours of magnetic recording tape, with an eventual budget estimated between $50,000 and $75,000 | "Good Vibrations" is a song by the American rock band the Beach Boys that was composed by Brian Wilson with lyrics by Mike Love. It was released as a single on October 10, 1966 and was an immediate critical and commercial hit, topping record charts in several countries including the United States and the United Kingdom. Characterized by its complex soundscapes, episodic structure and subversions of pop music formula, it was the most expensive single ever recorded. "Good Vibrations" later became widely acclaimed as one of the finest and most important works of the rock era.
Also produced by Wilson, the title derived from his fascination with cosmic vibrations, as his mother would tell him as a child that dogs sometimes bark at people in response to their "bad vibrations". He used the concept to suggest extrasensory perception, while Love's lyrics were inspired by the nascent Flower Power movement. The song was written as it was recorded and in a similar fashion to other compositions from Wilson's Smile period. It was issued as a standalone single, backed with "Let's Go Away for Awhile", and was to be included on the never-finished album Smile. Instead, the track appeared on the September 1967 release Smiley Smile.
The making of "Good Vibrations" was unprecedented for any kind of recording. Building on his approach for Pet Sounds, Wilson recorded a surplus of short, interchangeable musical fragments with his bandmates and a host of session musicians at four different Hollywood studios from February to September 1966, a process reflected in the song's several dramatic shifts in key, texture, instrumentation and mood. Over 90 hours of tape was consumed in the sessions, with the total cost of production estimated to be in the tens of thousands of dollars. Band publicist Derek Taylor dubbed the unusual work a "pocket symphony". It helped develop the use of the studio as an instrument and heralded a wave of pop experimentation and the onset of psychedelic and progressive rock. The track featured a novel mix of instruments, including jaw harp and Electro-Theremin, and although the latter is not a true theremin, the song's success led to a renewed interest and sales of theremins and synthesizers.
"Good Vibrations" received a Grammy nomination for Best Vocal Group performance in 1966 and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1994. The song was voted number one in Mojos "Top 100 Records of All Time" and number six on Rolling Stones "500 Greatest Songs of All Time", and it was included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's "500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll". In later years, the song has been cited as a forerunner to the Beatles' "A Day in the Life" (1967) and Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" (1975). A 1976 cover version by Todd Rundgren peaked at number 34 on the Billboard Hot 100. The Beach Boys followed up "Good Vibrations" with another single pieced from sections, "Heroes and Villains" (1967), but it was less successful.
Inspiration and writing
Concept and early lyrics
The Beach Boys' leader, Brian Wilson, was responsible for the musical composition and virtually all of the arrangement for "Good Vibrations". Most of the song's structure and arrangement was written as it was recorded. During the recording sessions for the 1966 album Pet Sounds, Wilson began changing his writing process. For "Good Vibrations", Wilson said, "I had a lot of unfinished ideas, fragments of music I called 'feels.' Each feel represented a mood or an emotion I'd felt, and I planned to fit them together like a mosaic." Engineer Chuck Britz is quoted saying that Wilson considered the song to be "his whole life performance in one track". Wilson stated: "I was an energetic 23-year-old. ... I said: 'This is going to be better than [the Phil Spector production] "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'.
Wilson said that "Good Vibrations" was inspired by his mother: "[She] used to tell me about vibrations. I didn't really understand too much of what it meant when I was just a boy. It scared me, the word 'vibrations.' She told me about dogs that would bark at people and then not bark at others, that a dog would pick up vibrations from these people that you can't see, but you can feel." Brian first enlisted Pet Sounds lyricist Tony Asher for help in putting words to the idea. When Brian presented the song on piano, Asher thought that it had an interesting premise with the potential for hit status, but could not fathom the end result due to Brian's primitive piano playing style. Asher remembered:
Wilson wanted to call the song "Good Vibes", but Asher advised that it was "lightweight use of the language", and suggested that "Good Vibrations" would sound less "trendy". The two proceeded to write lyrics for the verses that were ultimately discarded.
Theremin and cello
From the start, Wilson envisioned a theremin for the track. AllMusic reviewer John Bush pointed out: "Radio listeners could easily pick up the link between the title and the obviously electronic riffs sounding in the background of the chorus, but Wilson's use of the theremin added another delicious parallel—between the single's theme and its use of an instrument the player never even touched."
"Good Vibrations" does not technically feature a theremin, but rather an Electro-Theremin, which is physically controlled by a knob on the side of the instrument. It was dubbed a "theremin" simply for convenience. At that time, theremins were most often associated with the 1945 Alfred Hitchcock film Spellbound, but their most common presence was in the theme music for the television sitcom My Favorite Martian, which ran from 1963 to 1966. Britz speculates: "He just walked in and said, 'I have this new sound for you.' I think he must have heard the sound somewhere and loved it, and built a song around it." It is unclear whether Wilson knew that the instrument was not a real theremin.
Brian credited his brother and bandmate Carl for suggesting the use of a cello on the track. He further stated that its triplet beat on the chorus was his own idea and that it was based on the Crystals' "Da Doo Ron Ron" (1963), produced by Spector. Conversely, arranger and session musician Van Dyke Parks said that it was himself who suggested having the cellist play triplets to Brian. Parks believed that having Brian exploit the cello "to such a hyperbolic degree" was what encouraged the duo to immediately collaborate on the never-finished album Smile. At some point, Wilson asked Parks to pen lyrics for "Good Vibrations", although Parks declined.
Influences and final lyrics
Wilson's cousin and bandmate Mike Love submitted the final lyrics for "Good Vibrations" and contributed its bass-baritone vocals in the chorus. He recalled that when he heard the unfinished backing track: "[It] was already so avant-garde, especially with the theremin, I wondered how our fans were going to relate to it. How's this going to go over in the Midwest or Birmingham? It was such a departure from 'Surfin' U.S.A.' or 'Help Me, Rhonda.'"
Love said that he wrote the words while on the drive to the studio. Feeling that the song could be "the Beach Boys' psychedelic anthem or flower power offering," he based the lyrics on the burgeoning psychedelic music and Flower Power movements occurring in San Francisco and some parts of the Los Angeles area. He described the lyrics as "just a flowery poem. Kind of almost like 'If you’re going to San Francisco be sure to wear flowers in your hair.'" Writing in his 1975 book The Beach Boys: Southern California Pastoral, Bruce Golden observed:
Capitol Records executives were worried that the lyrics contained psychedelic overtones, and Brian was accused of having based the song's production on his LSD experiences. Brian clarified that the song was written under the influence of marijuana, not LSD. He explained: "I made ‘Good Vibrations’ on drugs; I used drugs to make that. ... I learned how to function behind drugs, and it improved my brain ... it made me more rooted in my sanity." In Steven Gaines's 1986 biography, Wilson is quoted on the lyrics: "We talked about good vibrations with the song and the idea, and we decided on one hand that you could say ... those are sensual things. And then you'd say, 'I'm picking up good vibrations,' which is a contrast against the sensual, the extrasensory perception that we have. That's what we're really talking about."
Wilson said in 2012 that the song's "gotta keep those good vibrations" bridge was inspired by Stephen Foster. Bandmate Al Jardine compared that section to Foster and the Negro spiritual "Down by the Riverside". According to Love, the lyric "'she goes with me to a blossom world' was originally meant to be followed by the words 'we find'", but Wilson elected to cut off the line to highlight the bass track linking into the chorus.
Recording and production
Modular approach
"Good Vibrations" established a new method of operation for Wilson. Instead of working on whole songs with clear large-scale syntactical structures, Wilson limited himself to recording short interchangeable fragments (or "modules"). Through the method of tape splicing, each fragment could then be assembled into a linear sequence, allowing any number of larger structures and divergent moods to be produced at a later time. This was the same modular approach used during the sessions for Smile and Smiley Smile. To mask each tape edit, vast reverb decays were added at the mixing and sub-mixing stages.
For instrumentation, Wilson employed the services of "the Wrecking Crew", the nickname for a conglomerate of session musicians active in Los Angeles at that time. Production for "Good Vibrations" spanned more than a dozen recording sessions at four different Hollywood studios, at a time when most pop singles were typically recorded in a day or two. It was reported to have used over 90 hours of magnetic recording tape, with an eventual budget estimated in the tens of thousands, making it the costliest single recorded to that date. Biographer Peter Ames Carlin wrote that Wilson was so puzzled by the arranging of "Good Vibrations" that he would often arrive at a session, consider a few possibilities, and then leave without recording anything, which exacerbated costs.
One estimate of the overall production expenses is between $50,000 and $75,000 (equivalent to $ and $ in ), By comparison, the whole of Pet Sounds had cost $70,000 ($), itself an unusually high cost for an album. In 2018, Wilson disputed the $50,000 figure for "Good Vibrations", saying that the overall expenses were closer to $25,000.
Contemporary advertisements reported $10,000 ($) as the track's total production costs. Domenic Priore wrote that the track cost between $10,000 and $15,000 ($). When asked in a 2005 interview if it was true that the Electro-Theremin work alone cost $100,000, Wilson replied "No. $15,000."
Development
The instrumental of the first version of the song was recorded on February 17, 1966, at Gold Star Studios and was logged as a Pet Sounds session. On that day's session log, it was given the name "#1 Untitled" or "Good, Good, Good Vibrations", but on its master tape, Wilson distinctly states: "'Good Vibrations' ... take one." After twenty-six takes, a rough mono mix completed the session. Some additional instruments and rough guide vocals were overdubbed on February 23. Brian and Carl shared vocals for this mix.
The original version of "Good Vibrations" contained the characteristics of a "funky rhythm and blues number" and would not yet resemble a "pocket symphony". There was no cello at this juncture, but the Electro-Theremin was present, played by its inventor, Paul Tanner. It was Brian's second ever recorded use of the instrument, just three days after the Pet Sounds track "I Just Wasn't Made for These Times". Brian then placed "Good Vibrations" on hold in order to devote attention to the Pet Sounds album, which saw release on May 16. More instrumental sections for "Good Vibrations" were recorded between April and June. Brian then forwent additional instrumental tracking until early September, when it was decided to revisit the song's bridge section and apply Electro-Theremin overdubs.
According to Brian's then-new friend David Anderle, during an early stage, Brian considered giving "Good Vibrations" to one of the black R&B groups signed with Warner Bros. Records such as Wilson Pickett, and then at Anderle's suggestion to singer Danny Hutton. He thought about abandoning the track, but after receiving encouragement from Anderle, eventually decided on it as the next Beach Boys single. In the meantime, he worked on writing and recording material for the group's forthcoming album, Smile.
The first Beach Boy to hear "Good Vibrations" in a semi-completed form, other than Brian, was Carl. Following a performance with the touring group in North Dakota, he remembered: "I came back up into my hotel room one night and the phone rang. It was Brian on the other end. He called me from the recording studio and played this really bizarre sounding music over the phone. There were drums smashing, that kind of stuff, and then it refined itself and got into the cello. It was a real funky track." In 1976, Brian revealed that before the final mixdown, he had been confronted with resistance by members of the group, whom Brian declined to name. The subject of their worries and complaints was the song's length and "modern" sound: "I said no, it's not going to be too long a record, it's going to be just right. ... They didn't quite understand what this jumping from studio to studio was all about. And they couldn't conceive of the record as I did. I saw the record as a totality piece."
The vocals for "Good Vibrations" were recorded at CBS Columbia Square, starting on August 24 and continuing sporadically until the very last day of assembly on September 21. The episodic structure of the composition was continuously revised as the group experimented with different ideas. Brian remembers that he began recording the "bop bop good vibrations" parts first, and that he came up with "the high parts" a week later. Mike Love recalled: "I can remember doing 25–30 vocal overdubs of the same part, and when I mean the same part, I mean same section of a record, maybe no more than two, three, four, five seconds long." Dennis Wilson was to have sung the lead vocal, but due to a bout of laryngitis, Carl replaced him at the last minute. In early September, the master tapes for "Good Vibrations" were stolen. Mysteriously, they reappeared inside Brian's home two days later.
On September 21, Brian completed the track after Tanner added a final Electro-Theremin overdub. In 1976 he elaborated on the event: "It was at Columbia. I remember I had it right in the sack. I could just feel it when I dubbed it down, made the final mix from the 16-track down to mono. It was a feeling of power, it was a rush. A feeling of exaltation. Artistic beauty. It was everything ... I remember saying, 'Oh my God. Sit back and listen to this!'"
Composition and analysis
Genre and dynamics
There are six unique sections to the piece. Music theorist Daniel Harrison refers to these sections individually as the verse, the refrain (or chorus), the "first episodic digression", the "second episodic digression", the "retro-refrain", and the coda. Each has a distinct musical texture, partly due to the nature of the song's recording. The track's instrumentation changes radically from section to section, and for the AM radio standards of late 1966, the song's final runtime (3 minutes 35 seconds) was considered a "very long" duration. Wilson is quoted in 1979:
He characterized the song as "advanced rhythm and blues". Tom Roland of American Songwriter described the piece, "with its interlocking segments—a sort of pop version of the classical sonata, consisting of a series of musical movements". New York Magazine compared it to "a fugue with a rhythmic beat". John Bush compared the track's fragmented cut-and-paste style to 1960s experimentalists such as William S. Burroughs. Music journal Sound on Sound argued that the song "has as many dramatic changes in mood as a piece of serious classical music lasting more than half an hour". It explained that the song subverts pop forms to a considerable degree:
According to historian Lorenzo Candelaria, "Good Vibrations" has since been marketed as pop music "possibly because it comes across relatively innocent compared with the hard-edged rock we have since come to know." Uncut called the song "three minutes and thirty-six seconds of avant-garde pop". Mixdown described it as a "masterpiece of avant-pop". The theremin and cello has been called the song's "psychedelic ingredient". In his book discussing music of the counterculture era, James Perrone stated that the song represented a type of impressionistic psychedelia, in particular for its cello playing repeated bass notes and its theremin. Professor of American history John Robert Greene named "Good Vibrations" among examples of psychedelic or acid rock. Stebbins wrote that the song was "replete with sunshine [and] psychedelia". Steve Valdez says that, like Pet Sounds, Brian was attempting a more experimental rock style.
Comparing "Good Vibrations" to Wilson's previous work Pet Sounds, biographer Andrew Hickey said that the "best way of thinking about [the song] is that it's taking the lowest common denominator of 'Here Today' and 'God Only Knows' and turned the result into an R&B track. We have the same minor-key change between verse and chorus we've seen throughout Pet Sounds, the same descending scalar chord sequences, the same mobile bass parts, but here, rather than to express melancholy, these things are used in a way that's as close as Brian Wilson ever got to funky." Author Jon Stebbins adds that "unlike Pet Sounds the chorus of 'Good Vibrations' projects a definite 'rock and roll' energy and feel."
According to academic Rikky Rooksby, "Good Vibrations" is an example of Brian Wilson's growing interest in musical development within a composition, something antithetical to popular music of the time. Suppressing tonic strength and cadential drive, the song makes use of descending harmonic motions through scale degrees controlled by a single tonic and "radical disjunctions" in key, texture, instrumentation, and mood while refusing to develop into a predictable formal pattern. It instead develops "under its own power" and "luxuriates in harmonic variety" exemplified by beginning and ending not only in different keys but also in different modes.
Verses and refrains (0:00–1:40)
"Good Vibrations" begins without introduction in a traditional verse/refrain format, opening with Carl Wilson singing the word "I", a triplet eighth note before the downbeat. The sparse first verse contains a repetition of chords played on a Hammond organ filtered through a Leslie speaker; underneath is a two-bar Fender bass melody. This sequence repeats once (0:15), but with the addition of two piccolos sustaining over a falling flute line. For percussion, bongo drums double the bass rhythm and every fourth-beat is struck by either a tambourine or a bass-drum-and-snare combination, in alternation. The beat projects a triplet feel despite being in time; this is sometimes called a "shuffle beat" or "threes over fours". The chord progression used is i–VII–VI–V, also called an Andalusian cadence. Although the verses begin in the minor mode of E, the mode is not used to express sadness or drudgery. Occurring at the very end of these verses is a passing chord, D.
The refrain (0:25) begins in the newly tonicized relative major G, which suggests III. Providing a backdrop to the Electro-Theremin is a cello and string bass playing a bowed tremolo triplet, a feature that was an exceedingly rare effect in pop music. The Fender bass is steady at one note per beat while tom drums and tambourine provide a backbeat. This time, the rhythm is stable, and is split into four 4-bar sections which gradually build its vocals. The first section consists of only the couplet "I'm picking up good vibrations/she's giving me the excitation" sung by Mike Love in his bass-baritone register; the second repeats the lines and adds an "ooo bop bop" figure, sung in multiple-part harmony; the third time also adds a "good, good, good, good vibrations" in yet a higher harmony. This type of polyphony (counterpoint) is also rare in contemporary popular styles. Each repeat of the vocal lines also transposes up by a whole step, ascending from G to A and then B. It then returns to the verse, thus making a perfect cadence back into E minor. The verse and refrain then repeat without any changes to the patterns of its instrumentation and harmony. This is unusual, in that normally, a song's arrangement adds something once it reaches the second verse.
Episodic digressions
First episode (1:41–2:13)
The first episode (1:41+) begins disjunctively with an abrupt tape splice. The refrain's B, which had received a dominant (V) charge, is now maintained as a tonic (I). There is harmonic ambiguity, in that the chord progression may be either interpreted as I–IV–I (in B) or V–I–V (in E). Stebbins says that this section "might be called a bridge under normal circumstances, but the song's structure takes such an abstract route that traditional labels don't really apply." A new sound is created by tack piano, jaw harp, and bass relegated to strong beats which is subsequently (1:55) augmented by a new electric organ, bass harmonica, and sleigh bells shaken on every beat. The lone line of vocals (aside from non-lexical harmonies) is "I don't know where, but she sends me there" sung in Mike Love's upper-register baritone. This section lasts for ten measures (6 + 2 + 2), which is unexpectedly long in light of previous patterns.
Second episode (2:13–2:56)
Another tape splice occurs at 2:13, transitioning to an electric organ playing sustained chords set in the key of F accompanied by a maraca shaken on every beat. Sound on Sound highlights this change as the "most savage edit in the track ... most people would go straight into a big splash hook-line section. Brian Wilson decided to slow the track even further, moving into a 23-bar section of church organ ... Most arrangers would steer clear of this kind of drop in pace, on the grounds that it would be chart suicide, but not Brian." Harrison says:
The slowed pace is complemented by the lyric ("Gotta keep those loving good vibrations a-happening with her"), sung once first as a solo voice, with the melody repeated an octave higher the second time with an accompanying harmony. This two-part vocal fades as a solo harmonica plays a melody on top of the persistent quarter-note bass line and maraca that maintain the only rhythm throughout Episode 2. The section ends with a five-part harmony vocalizing a whole-note chord that is sustained by reverb for a further four beats. Lambert calls it the song's "wake-up chord at the end of the meditation that transports the concept into a whole new realm: it's an iconic moment among iconic moments. As it rouses us from a blissful dream and echoes into the silence leading into the chorus, it seems to capture every sound and message the song has to say."
Retro-refrain and coda (2:57–3:35)
A brief break at the end of the second musical digression creates tension which leads into the final sequence of the song. The refrain reappears for an additional five measures, marching through a transpositional structure that begins in B, repeats at A, and then ends at G for an unexpectedly short single measure. The section uses a descending progression, which mirrors the ascending progression of the previous two refrains. There follows a short section of vocalizing in three-part counterpoint that references the original refrain by reproducing upward transposition. However, this time it settles on A, the concluding key of the song. By the end of "Good Vibrations," all seven scale degrees of the opening E-minor tonic are activated on some level.
Release and promotion
In a July 1966 advertisement for Pet Sounds in Billboard magazine, the band thanked the music industry for the sales of their album, and said that "We're moved over the fact that our Pet Sounds brought on nothing but Good Vibrations." This was the first public hint of the new single. Later in the year, Brian told journalist Tom Nolan that the new Beach Boys single was "about a guy who picks up good vibrations from a girl" and that it would be a "monster". He then suggested: "It's still sticking pretty close to that same boy-girl thing, you know, but with a difference. And it's a start, it's definitely a start." Derek Taylor, who had recently been engaged as the band's publicist, is credited for coining the term a "pocket symphony" to describe the song. In a press release for the single, he stated: "Wilson's instinctive talents for mixing sounds could most nearly equate to those of the old painters whose special secret was in the blending of their oils. And what is most amazing about all outstanding creative artists is that they are using only those basic materials which are freely available to everyone else."
To promote the single, four different music videos were shot. The first of these—which had Caleb Deschanel as cameraman—features the group at a fire station, sliding down its pole, and roaming the streets of Los Angeles in a fashion comparable to The Monkees. The second features the group during vocal rehearsals at United Western Recorders. The third contains footage recorded during the making of The Beach Boys in London, a documentary by Peter Whitehead of their concert performances. The fourth clip is an alternative edit of the third. Brian also made a rare television appearance on local station KHJ-TV for its Teen Rock and Roll Dance Program, introducing the song to the show's in-studio audience and presenting an exclusive preview of the completed record.
On October 15, 1966, Billboard predicted that the single would reach the top 20 in the Billboard Hot 100 chart. "Good Vibrations" was the Beach Boys' third US number one hit, after "I Get Around" and "Help Me, Rhonda", reaching the top of the Hot 100 in December. It was also their first number one in Britain. The single sold over 230,000 copies in the US within four days of its release and entered the Cash Box chart at number 61 on October 22. In the UK, the song sold over 50,000 copies in the first 15 days of its release. "Good Vibrations" quickly became the Beach Boys' first million-selling single. In December 1966, the record was their first single certified gold by the RIAA for sales of one million copies. On March 30, 2016, the digital single was certified platinum by the RIAA for the same sales level.
In the US, Cash Box said that it is a "catchy, easy-driving ditty loaded with the Boys’ money-making sound." In Britain, the single received favorable reviews from the New Musical Express and Melody Maker. Soon after, the Beach Boys were voted the number one band in the world in the NME readers' poll, ahead of the Beatles, the Walker Brothers, the Rolling Stones, and the Four Tops. Billboard said that this result was probably influenced by the success of "Good Vibrations" when the votes were cast, together with the band's recent tour, whereas the Beatles had neither a recent single nor had they toured the UK throughout 1966; the reporter added that "The sensational success of the Beach Boys, however, is being taken as a portent that the popularity of the top British groups of the last three years is past its peak." In a readers' poll conducted by a Danish newspaper, Brian Wilson won the "best foreign-produced recording award", marking the first time that an American had won in that category.
The single achieved sales of over 50,000 copies in Australia, being eligible for the award of a Gold Disc.
Influence and legacy
Historical reception
Virtually every pop music critic recognizes "Good Vibrations" as one of the most important compositions and recordings of the entire rock era. It is a regular fixture on "greatest of all-time" song lists and is frequently hailed as one of the finest pop productions of all time. In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked "Good Vibrations" at number 6 in "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time", the highest position of seven Beach Boys songs cited in the list. In 2001, the song was voted 24th in the RIAA and NEA's Songs of the Century list. As of 2016, "Good Vibrations" is ranked as the number four song of all time in an aggregation of critics' lists at Acclaimed Music.
The song served as an anthem for the counterculture of the 1960s. According to Noel Murray of The A.V. Club, it also helped turn around the initially poor perception of Pet Sounds in the US, where the album's "un-hip orchestrations and pervasive sadness [had] baffled some longtime fans, who didn't immediately get what Wilson was trying to do." Encouraged by the single's success, Wilson continued working on Smile, intending it as an entire album incorporating the writing and production techniques he had devised for "Good Vibrations". "Heroes and Villains", the Beach Boys' follow-up single, continued his modular recording practices, spanning nearly thirty recording sessions held between May 1966 and June 1967.
In contrast to the acclaim lavished on the song, some of Wilson's pop and rock contemporaries have been tempered in their praise of "Good Vibrations". When asked about the song in 1990, Paul McCartney responded: "I thought it was a great record. It didn't quite have the emotional thing that Pet Sounds had for me. I've often played Pet Sounds and cried. It's that kind of an album for me." Pete Townshend of the Who was quoted in the 1960s as saying, "'Good Vibrations' was probably a good record but who's to know? You had to play it about 90 bloody times to even hear what they were singing about." Townshend feared that the single would lead to a trend of overproduction. In a 1966 issue of Arts Magazine, Jonathan King said: "With justification, comments are being passed that 'Good Vibrations' is an inhuman work of art. Computerized pop, mechanized music. Take a machine, feed in various musical instruments, add a catch phrase, stir well, and press seven buttons. It is long and split. ... impressive, fantastic, commercial—yes. Emotional, soul-destroying, shattering—no." In the 2000s, record producer Phil Spector criticized the single for depending too much on tape manipulation, negatively referring to it as an "edit record ... It's like Psycho is a great film, but it's an 'edit film.' Without edits, it's not a film; with edits, it's a great film. But it's not Rebecca ... it's not a beautiful story."
Advancements
Recording and popular music
"Good Vibrations" is credited for having further developed the use of recording studios as a musical instrument. Author Domenic Priore commented that the song's making was "unlike anything previous in the realms of classical, jazz, international, soundtrack, or any other kind of recording". A milestone in the development of rock music, the song, together with the Beatles' Revolver, was a prime proponent in rock's transformation from live concert performances to studio productions that could only exist on record. Musicologist Charlie Gillett called it "one of the first records to flaunt studio production as a quality in its own right, rather than as a means of presenting a performance". In a 1968 editorial for Jazz & Pop, Gene Sculatti predicted:
Writing for Popmatters in 2015, Scott Interrante stated: "'Good Vibrations' changed the way a pop record could be made, the way a pop record could sound, and the lyrics a pop record could have." The recording contains previously untried mixes of instruments, and it was the first pop hit to have cellos in a juddering rhythm. Microtonal composer Frank Oteri said that it "sounds like no other pop song recorded up to that point". According to Stebbins: "This signature sound would be duplicated, cloned, commercialized, and re-fabricated in songs, commercials, TV shows, movies, and elevators to the point of completely diluting the genius of the original. But 'Good Vibrations' was probably the quintessential 'sunshine pop' recording of the century." He added that the single "vaulted nearly every other rock act in their delivery of a Flower Power classic. It was just strange enough to be taken seriously, but still vibrant, happy, accessibly Beach Boys-esque pop." John Bush wrote that the single "announced the coming era of pop experimentation with a rush of riff changes, echo-chamber effects, and intricate harmonies". Gillett noted: "For the rest of the sixties, countless musicians and groups attempted to represent an equivalently blissful state, but none of them ever applied the intense discipline and concentration that Wilson had devoted to the recording."
Priore says that the song was a forerunner to works such as Marvin Gaye's What's Going On (1971) and Isaac Hayes' Shaft (1971) which presented soul music in a similar, multi-textured context imbued with ethereal sonic landscapes. In his appraisal for American Songwriter, Roland cites the song's "format" as the model for recordings by Wings ("Band on the Run"), the Beatles ("A Day in the Life"), and Elton John ("Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding"). The song's approach was repeated in Queen's 1975 single "Bohemian Rhapsody", which was similarly pieced together using different sections. Wilson praised Queen's effort, calling it "the most competitive thing that's come along in ages" and "a fulfillment and an answer to a teenage prayer—of artistic music".
Psychedelic and progressive rock
With "Good Vibrations", the Beach Boys ended 1966 as the only band besides the Beatles to have had a high-charting psychedelic rock song, at a time when the genre was still in its formative stages. Writing in 2009, Barney Hoskyns deemed it to be the era's "ultimate psychedelic pop record" from Los Angeles. Interrante adds: "Its influence on the ensuing psychedelic and progressive rock movements can’t be overstated, but its legacy as a pop hit is impressive as well." Former Atlantic Records executive Phillip Rauls recalled: "I was in the music business at the time, and my very first recognition of acid rock—we didn't call it progressive rock then—was, of all people, the Beach Boys and the song 'Good Vibrations' ... That [theremin] sent so many musicians back to the studio to create this music on acid." Author Bill Martin suggested that the Beach Boys were clearing a pathway toward the development of progressive rock, writing: "The fact is, the same reasons why much progressive rock is difficult to dance to apply just as much to 'Good Vibrations' and 'A Day in the Life.'"
Use of theremin
Although the song does not technically contain a theremin, "Good Vibrations" is the most frequently cited example of the instrument's use in pop music. Upon release, the single prompted an unexpected revival in theremins and increased the awareness of analog synthesizers. The notion that "Good Vibrations" features a theremin has been erroneously repeated in books, CD liner notes, and quotes from the recording's participants. While having a similar sound, a theremin is an aerial-controlled instrument, unlike the Electro-Theremin.
When the Beach Boys needed to reproduce its sound onstage, Wilson first requested that Tanner play the Electro-Theremin live with the group, but he declined due to commitments. Tanner recalls saying to Wilson, "I've got the wrong sort of hair to be on stage with you fellas", to which Wilson replied: "We'll give you a Prince Valiant wig." The Beach Boys then requested the services of Walter Sear, who asked Bob Moog to design a ribbon controller, since the group was used to playing the fretboards of a guitar. Sear remembers marking fretboard-like lines on the ribbon "so they could play the damn thing." Moog began manufacturing his own models of theremins. He later noted: "The pop record scene cleaned us out of our stock which we expected to last through Christmas."
In Steven M. Martin's 1993 documentary Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey, in which Wilson makes an appearance, it was revealed that the attention being paid to the theremin due to "Good Vibrations" caused Russian authorities to exile its inventor, Leon Theremin.
Cover versions
The song has been covered by artists such as Groove Holmes, the Troggs, Charlie McCoy, and Psychic TV. John Bush commented: "'Good Vibrations' was rarely reprised by other acts, even during the cover-happy '60s. Its fragmented style made it essentially cover-proof." In 1976, a nearly identical cover version was released as a single by Todd Rundgren for his album Faithful. When asked for his opinion, Brian said: "Oh, he did a marvelous job, he did a great job. I was very proud of his version." Rundgren's single peaked at number 34 on the Billboard Hot 100. Rundgren explained: "I used to like the sound of the Beach Boys, but it wasn't until they began to compete with the Beatles that I felt that what they were doing was really interesting—like around Pet Sounds and 'Good Vibrations' ... when they started to shed that whole surf music kind of burden and start to branch out into something that was a little more universal. ... I tried to do [the song] as literally as I could because in the intervening 10 years, radio had changed so much. Radio had become so formatted and so structured that that whole experience was already gone."
In 2004, Wilson re-recorded the song as a solo artist for his album Brian Wilson Presents Smile. It was sequenced as the album's closing track, following "In Blue Hawaii". In this version, "Good Vibrations" was the project's only track that eschewed the modular recording method. The song's verses and chorus were recorded as part of one whole take, and were not spliced together.
In 2012, Wilson Phillips, a trio consisting of Wilson's daughters Carnie and Wendy, and John Phillips' daughter Chynna, released an album containing covers of songs by the Beach Boys and the Mamas & the Papas titled Dedicated. Their version of "Good Vibrations", with Carnie Wilson on lead vocals, was released as a single from the album and peaked at number 25 on Billboards A/C chart.
In popular culture
The song's parody is used for the jingle of the Australian consumer electronics retailer The Good Guys.
In 1996, experimental rock group His Name Is Alive released an homage titled "Universal Frequencies" on their album Stars on E.S.P. Warren Defever reportedly listened to "Good Vibrations" repeatedly for a week before deciding that the song "needed a sequel"; he added: "'Good Vibrations' is one of the first pop hits where you can actually hear the tape edits and I think that's wonderful."
In 1997, the movie Vegas Vacation used the song for the opening credits, with Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) singing the song.
The song's lyrics "I'm picking up good vibrations" are quoted in Cyndi Lauper's 1984 single "She Bop".
A live version of the song, from the album Live in London, appears as a playable track in the 2010 video game Rock Band 3.
In 2019, the song was used prominently in a scene for Jordan Peele's psychological horror thriller film Us.
In 2018, The song was featured in the animated film Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation.
Release history
In early 2011, the single was remastered and reissued as a four-sided 78 rpm vinyl for Record Store Day, as a teaser for the forthcoming The Smile Sessions box set. It contained "Heroes and Villains" as a B-side, along with previously released alternate takes and mixes.
Stereo version
Due to the loss of the original multi-track tape, there had never been an official true stereo release of the final track until the 2012 remastered version of Smiley Smile. The stereo mix was made possible through the invention of new digital technology by Derry Fitzgerald, and received the blessing of Brian Wilson and Mark Linett. Fitzgerald's software extracted individual instrumental and vocal stems from the original mono master—as the multi-track vocals remained missing—to construct the stereo version that appears on the 2012 reissue of Smiley Smile.
40th Anniversary Edition
In celebration of its 40th year, the Good Vibrations: 40th Anniversary Edition EP was released. The EP includes "Good Vibrations", four alternate versions of the song, and the stereo mix of "Let's Go Away for Awhile". The EP artwork recreates that of the original 7-inch single sleeve. In 2016, the EP was reissued as a 12" record for the single's 50th anniversary.
Personnel
The following people are identified as players on the "Good Vibrations" single.
The Beach Boys
Mike Love – lead vocals in chorus
Brian Wilson – vocals, tack piano, tambourine, production, mixing
Carl Wilson – lead vocals in verses, guitar, shaker
Dennis Wilson – Hammond organ during 2:13–2:56
Additional musicians and production staff
Hal Blaine – drums, timpani, other percussion
Al De Lory – piano, harpsichord
Jesse Ehrlich – cello
Larry Knechtel – organ in verses and choruses
Tommy Morgan – harmonica
Al Casey – guitar
Ray Pohlman – electric bass
Lyle Ritz – double bass
Jim Horn – piccolo
Paul Tanner – Electro-Theremin
Bassist Carol Kaye played on several of the "Good Vibrations" sessions, and has been identified as a prominent contributor to the track. However, analysis by Beach Boys archivist Craig Slowinski indicates that none of those recordings made the final edit as released on the single.
Charts
Weekly charts
Original release
1976 reissue
Todd Rundgren version (1976)
Year-end charts
Certifications
Awards and accolades
Footnotes
References
Bibliography
External links
Greg Panfile's Musical Analysis of "Good Vibrations"
1966 singles
1966 songs
2004 singles
2011 singles
Brian Wilson songs
Psychic TV songs
The Beach Boys songs
Todd Rundgren songs
Capitol Records singles
Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles
Cashbox number-one singles
Number-one singles in Australia
Number-one singles in New Zealand
UK Singles Chart number-one singles
Songs written by Brian Wilson
Songs written by Mike Love
Songs written by Tony Asher
Song recordings produced by Brian Wilson
Song recordings with Wall of Sound arrangements
Art pop songs
Avant-pop songs
Psychedelic pop songs
American psychedelic rock songs
Songs used as jingles
Songs composed in E-flat minor | false | [
"Luke Haines is Dead is a three-disc boxed set containing various rarities, remixes, b-sides, unreleased material and classic tracks from The Auteurs, Baader Meinhof and Haines' solo work.\n\nTrack listing\n\nDisc one\n \"Das Capital Overture\" – 4:33\n \"Bailed Out (Unreleased single)\" – 4:16\n \"Showgirl\" – 3:03\n \"Glad to Be Gone (B-Side)\" – 2:16\n \"Staying Power (B-Side)\" – 3:32\n \"Junk Shop Clothes (BBC session)\" – 3:09\n \"She Might Take a Train (Limited edition single)\" – 2:26\n \"Subculture (Limited edition single)\" – 2:46\n \"Government Bookstore (BBC session)\" – 5:02\n \"Housebreaker (Acoustic version)\" – 3:50\n \"Valet Parking (Acoustic version)\" – 3:34\n \"How Could I be Wrong\" (Single version) – 4:33\n \"Starstruck (Live acoustic)\" – 4:16\n \"Home Again Live acoustic)\" – 3:03\n \"American Guitars\" – 2:16\n \"Wedding Day (B-Side)\" – 3:32\n \"High Diving Horses (B-Side)\" – 3:09\n \"Lenny Valentino (Single recording)\" – 2:26\n \"Disneyworld (B-Side)\" – 2:46\n \"I'm a Rich Man's Toy\" – 5:02\n\nDisc two\n \"The Upper Classes (BBC session)\" – 4:33\n \"Everything You Say Will Destroy You (BBC session)\" – 4:16\n \"A Sister Like You\" – 3:03\n \"Underground Movies (Alternate recording/French single)\" – 2:16\n \"Brainchild (Alternate recording/French single)\" – 3:32\n \"Chinese Bakery (BBC session)\" – 3:09\n \"Modern History (B-Side)\" – 2:26\n \"New French Girlfriend (BBC session)\" – 2:46\n \"Light Aircraft On Fire (Single recording)\" – 5:02\n \"Carcrash (B-Side)\" – 3:50\n \"X Boogie Man (B-Side)\" – 3:34\n \"New Brat In Town (Unreleased version) – 4:33\n \"Tombstone (Unreleased version)\" – 4:16\n \"Back With The Killer Again (EP track)\" – 3:03\n \"Unsolved Child Murder\" – 2:16\n \"Former Fan (EP Track)\" – 3:32\n \"Kenneth Anger's Bad Dream (EP track)\" – 3:09\n \"Kids' Issue (BBC session/EP track)\" – 2:46\n \"A New Life, A New Family (BBC session/EP track)\" – 5:02\n \"Buddha (BBC session/EP track)\" – 2:46\n \"After Murder Park (BBC session/EP track)\" – 5:02\n\nDisc three\n \"Baader Meinhof\" – 4:33\n \"Meet Me At The Airport\" – 4:16\n \"I've Been A Fool For You (Ltd Edition)\" – 3:03\n \"Accident (Fuse remix)\" – 2:16\n \"Mogadishu (Dalai Lama remix)\" – 3:32\n \"ESP Kids (Unreleased)\" – 3:09\n \"Future Generation (Unreleased version)\" – 2:26\n \"Politic (Unreleased)\" – 2:46\n \"Johnny and The Hurricanes (Bootboys out-take/Unreleased)\" – 5:02\n \"The Rubettes\" – 3:50\n \"Breaking Up Is Hard To Do (B-Side)\" – 3:34\n \"Get Wrecked At Home (B-Side)\" – 4:33\n \"Essex Bootboys (Bootboys Out-Take/Unreleased)\" – 4:16\n \"Discomania (Alternate version/Unreleased)\" – 3:03\n \"Couple Dancing (Unreleased)\" – 2:16\n \"How To Hate The Working Classes\" – 3:32\n \"The Oliver Twist Manifesto (Unreleased version)\" – 3:09\n \"Never Work\" – 2:26\n \"Skin Tight (From Film Showboy/Unreleased)\" – 2:46\n \"Satan Wants Me\" – 5:02\n \"The Mitford Sisters\" – 2:46\n \"Bugger Bognor\" – 5:02\n\nLuke Haines albums\nAlbums produced by Phil Vinall\n2005 compilation albums",
"Eagle Seagull (sometimes stylized as Eagle*Seagull) was an American indie rock band from Lincoln, Nebraska, United States that singer/songwriter Eli Mardock formed in 2004.\n\nHistory\nThey released their debut album, Eagle*Seagull, in 2006 and released an EP, called I Hate EP's in March 2008.\n\nIn 2007, they did a Take-Away Show video session shot by Vincent Moon. In August 2008, Eagle Seagull contributed their track \"I'm Sorry But I'm Beginning to Hate Your Face\" to the indie compilation, Indiecater Vol. 2.\n\nTheir long delayed second album, The Year of the How-To Book, was released on March 29, 2010 on PIAS Recordings in Europe. Recorded in 2007 and 2008, the album's release was delayed for two years due to a conflict with their record label at that time. The album was released in North America in the fall of 2010 digitally only. The album was produced by Ryan Hadlock (of The Gossip, Blonde Redhead, and Stephen Malkmus) and recorded at Bear Creek Studio in Seattle, WA.\n\nThe band broke up shortly following their spring 2010 European tour, when band members Carrie Butler and Austin Skiles divorced in September 2010. Former frontman Eli Mardock, now married to Carrie Butler, is currently recording his debut solo album with a planned 2012 release. Former members J.J. Idt and Michael Overfield now play in the Nebraska indie band Conduits.\n\nDiscography\nEagle*Seagull (2006, Paper Garden Records) (2006, Lado)\n I Hate EP's (EP) (2008) Regal Beagle\nThe Year of the How-To Book (March 29, 2010) PIAS Recordings\n\nReferences\n\nOther sources\nYou Ain't No Picasso\nRadio Free Chicago\nSpin\nFocus\nIntro\nVisions\n\nExternal links\nAcoustic session with 'They Shoot Music - Don't They'\n\nIndie rock musical groups from Nebraska\nPIAS Recordings artists"
] |
[
"Gulbuddin Hekmatyar",
"Post-DRA civil war"
] | C_1de7a81f466b4d4bb18532d17a9f852d_1 | what does DRA stand for? | 1 | what does DRA stand for? | Gulbuddin Hekmatyar | A highly controversial commander, Hekmatyar has been dubbed the "Butcher of Kabul", accused of being responsible for the destruction and civilian deaths Kabul experienced in the early 1990s. According to the U.S. Special Envoy to Afghanistan in 1989-1992, Peter Tomsen, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar was hired in 1990 by the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to conquer and rule Afghanistan in the benefit of Pakistani interests, which plan was delayed until 1992 due to US pressure to cancel that plan. In April 1992, as the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan began to collapse, government officials joined the mujahideen, choosing different parties according to their ethnic and political affinities. For the most part, the members of the khalq faction of the PDPA, who were predominantly Pashtuns, joined with Hekmatyar. With their help, he began on 24 April to infiltrate troops into Kabul, and announced that he had seized the city, and that should any other leaders try to fly into Kabul, he would shoot their plane down. The new leader of the "Islamic Interim Government of Afghanistan", Sibghatullah Mojaddedi, appointed Ahmad Shah Massoud as defense minister, and urged him to take action. This he did, taking the offensive on 25 April, and after two days heavy fighting, the Hezb-i Islami and its allies were expelled from Kabul. A peace agreement was signed with Massoud on 25 May 1992, which made Hekmatyar Prime Minister. However, the agreement fell apart when he was blamed for a rocket attack on President Mojaddedi's plane. The following day, fighting resumed between Burhanuddin Rabbani's and Ahmed Shah Massoud's Jamiat, Abdul Rashid Dostum's Jumbish forces and Hekmatyar's Hezb-i Islami forces. From 1992 to 1996, the warring factions destroyed most of Kabul and killed thousands of people, most of them civilians, during the Afghan civil war. All the different parties participated in the destruction, but Hekmatyar's group was responsible for most of the damage, because of his practice of deliberately targeting civilian areas. Hekmatyar is thought to have bombarded Kabul in retaliation for what he considered its inhabitants' collaboration with the Soviets, and out of religious conviction. He once told a New York Times journalist that Afghanistan "already had one and a half million martyrs. We are ready to offer as many to establish a true Islamic Republic." His attacks also had a political objective: to undermine the Rabbani government by proving that Rabbani and Massoud were unable to protect the population. In 1994 Hekmatyar would shift alliances, joining with Dostum as well as Hizb-e-Wahdat, a Hazara Shi'a party, to form the Shura-i Hamahangi ("Council of coordination"). Together they laid Siege of Kabul, unleashing massive barrages of artillery and rockets that led to the evacuation of U.N. personnel from Kabul, and caused several government members to abandon their posts. However the new alliance did not spell victory for Hekmatyar, and in June 1994, Massoud had driven Dostum's troops from the capital. CANNOTANSWER | the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan | Gulbuddin Hekmatyar (; born 1 August 1949) is an Afghan politician, former mujahideen leader and drug trafficker. He is the founder and current leader of the Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin political party, so called after Mohammad Yunus Khalis split from Hezbi Islami in 1979 to found Hezb-i Islami Khalis. He has twice served as Prime Minister during the 1990s.
Hekmatyar joined the Muslim Youth organization as a student in the early 1970s, where he was known for his Islamic radicalism rejected by much of the organization. He spent time in Pakistan before returning to Afghanistan when the Soviet–Afghan War began in 1979, at which time the CIA began funding his rapidly growing Hezb-e Islami organization through the Pakistani intelligence service, ISI, one of the largest of the Afghan mujahideen. He received more CIA funding than any other mujahideen leader during the Soviet-Afghan War.
In the late 1980s, Hekmatyar and his organization started trafficking opium and later moved into manufacturing heroin. He established himself and his group amongst the leading heroin suppliers in the middle east. Given the CIA's earlier supplying him with weapons and funding, this became a subject of diplomatic embarrassment for the US foreign service. Following the ouster of Soviet-backed Afghan President Mohammad Najibullah in 1992, Hekmatyar declined to form part of the new government and, with other warlords, engaged in the Afghan civil war, leading to the death of around 50,000 civilians in Kabul alone. Hekmatyar was accused of bearing the most responsibility for the rocket attacks on the city. In the meantime, as part of the peace and power-sharing efforts led by Ahmad Shah Massoud, Hekmatyar became Prime Minister of Afghanistan from 1993 to 1994 and again briefly in 1996, before the Taliban takeover of Kabul forced him to flee to Iran's capital Tehran.
Sometime after the Taliban's fall in 2001 he went to Pakistan, leading his paramilitary forces into an unsuccessful armed campaign against Hamid Karzai's government and the international coalition in Afghanistan. In 2016, he signed a peace deal with the Afghan government and was allowed to return to Afghanistan after almost 20 years in exile.
Following the collapse of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, on 17 August 2021, Hekmatyar met with both Hamid Karzai, former President of Afghanistan, and Abdullah Abdullah, former Chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation and former Chief Executive, in Doha seeking to form a government.
Early life
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar was born in 1949 in Imam Saheb, Kunduz province, in the north of what was then the Kingdom of Afghanistan, a member of the Kharoti tribe of Ghilji Pashtuns. His father, Ghulam Qader, who migrated to Kunduz, is originally from the Ghazni province. Afghan businessman and Kharoti tribal leader Gholam Serwar Nasher deemed Hekmatyar to be a bright young man and sent him to the Mahtab Qala military academy in 1968, but he was expelled due to his political views two years later. From 1969 to 1972, Hekmatyar attended Kabul University's engineering department. During his first year at the university he wrote a 149-page book entitled The Priority of Sense Over Matter, where he refutes communists denying the existence of God by quoting European philosophers and scientists like Hegel or Francesco Redi. Though he did not complete his degree, his followers still address him as "Engineer Hekmatyar".
During his years in university, Hekmatyar joined the Sazman-i Jawanan-i Musulman ("Organization of Muslim Youth") which was gaining influence because of its opposition to the Soviet influence in Afghanistan increasing through the PDPA elements in Daoud's government. He was one of the foundational members of the organization. He may have also been influenced by the ideological teachings of Muslim Brotherhood member Sayyid Qutb. By his own account he became an Islamist when he heard of Qutb's death in 1966, on radio, and also contradicts that he was a communist during his youth. Although some believe that Hekmatyar threw acid at multiple female students, others have attributed this claim to the Soviet KGB's black propaganda. Hekmatyar's radicalism put him in confrontation with elements in the Muslim Youth surrounding Ahmad Shah Massoud, also an engineering student at Kabul University. In 1975, trying to assassinate a rival for the second time in three years, Hekmatyar with Pakistani help tried to assassinate Massoud, then 22 years old, but failed. In 1975, the "Islamic Society" split between supporters of Massoud and Burhanuddin Rabbani, who led the Jamiat-e Islami, and elements surrounding Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, who then founded the Hezb-i Islami. Akbarzadeh and Yasmeen describe Hekmatyar's approach as "radical" and antagonistic as opposed to an "inclusive" and "moderate" strategy by Rabbani.
Exile in Pakistan
The arrival of Afghan opposition militants in Peshawar coincided with a period of diplomatic tension between Pakistan and Afghanistan, due to Daoud's revival of the Pashtunistan issue. Under the patronage of Pakistani General Naseerullah Babar, then governor of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and with the blessing of Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, camps were set up to train Hekmatyar and other anti-Daoud Islamists. The Islamist movement had two main tendencies: the Jamiat-e islami ("Islamic society") led by Burhanuddin Rabbani, that advocated a gradualist strategy to gain power, through infiltration of society and the state apparatus. Rabbani advocated for the "building of a widely based movement that would create popular support". The other movement, called Hezb-i Islami ("Islamic Party"), was led by Hekmatyar, who favored a radical approach in the form of violent armed conflict. Pakistani support largely went to Hekmatyar's group, who, in October 1975, undertook to instigate an uprising against the government. Without popular support, the rebellion ended in complete failure, and hundreds of militants were arrested.
Hekmatyar's Hezb-e-Islami was formed as an elitist avant-garde based on a strictly disciplined Islamist ideology within a homogeneous organization that Olivier Roy described as "Leninist", and employed the rhetoric of the Iranian Revolution. It had its operational base in the Nasir Bagh, Worsak and Shamshatoo refugee camps in Pakistan. In these camps, Hezb-i Islami formed a social and political network and operated everything from schools to prisons, with the support of the Pakistani government and their Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). From 1976–1977 Afghan President Daoud made overtures to Pakistan which led to reconciliation with Pakistani leader Bhutto. Bhutto's support to Hekmatyar, however, continued and when Bhutto was removed from power in Pakistan by Zia-ul-Haq in 1977, Zia continued supporting Hekmatyar.
Soviet war in Afghanistan
During the Soviet–Afghan War, Hekmatyar received large amounts of aid from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and the United States. Hekmatyar also gained the support of the British MI6 and even met Margaret Thatcher in Downing Street. According to the ISI, their decision to allocate the highest percentage of covert aid to Hekmatyar was based on his record as an effective anti-Soviet military commander in Afghanistan. Others describe his position as the result of having "almost no grassroots support and no military base inside Afghanistan", and thus being the much more "dependent on Pakistani President Zia-ul-Haq's protection and financial largesse" than other mujahideen factions. Author Peter Bergen states that "by the most conservative estimates, $600 million" in American aid through Pakistan "went to the Hizb party ... Hekmatyar's party had the dubious distinction of never winning a significant battle during the war, training a variety of militant Islamists from around the world, killing significant numbers of mujahideen from other parties, and taking a virulently anti-Western line. In addition to hundreds of millions of dollars of American aid, Hekmatyar also received the lion's share of aid from the Saudis." Hekmatyar's constant scheming against all of the mujahideen factions led Pakistani general and leader Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq to warn Hekmatyar that it was Pakistan that made him an Afghan leader and that Pakistan could and would destroy him if he resisted operational control by ISI.
Involvement in heroin production
As the Soviet-Afghan War was coming to its end, Hekmatyar used the funds and weapons provided to him by the CIA and ISI to establish his organization as one of the leading heroin producers in the Middle East. Hekmatyar first became involved in the narcotics trade in the summer of 1988, as it became apparent that the Soviets were intending to withdraw. Initially becoming involved in trafficking opium, Hekmatyar's was the first of the mujahideen groups to establish and operate heroin production factories in the region. Hekmatyar's involvement in the production and distribution of illegal narcotics became a subject of diplomatic embarrassment for the United States' foreign service. The CIA officer with responsibility for its operations in Afghanistan at the time, Charles Cogan, said "Every situation has its fallout...There was fallout in terms of drugs, yes. But the main objective was accomplished."
Warfare with other Afghan groups
Hezb-e-Islami distinguished itself among the mujahideen by its practice of takfir, or pronouncing apostasy against other Muslims. On that basis it regularly attacked other mujahideen factions as well as the Soviet occupation. Hekmatyar's conflict with Jamiat-e Islami and its commander Ahmad Shah Massoud was particularly contentious. Massoud was arrested in Pakistan for espionage in 1976 with Hekmatyar's cooperation. Later Massoud and Hekmatyar agreed to stage a takeover operation in the Panjshir valley. Hekmatyar at the last minute refused to engage his part of the offensive, leaving Massoud open and vulnerable. Massoud's forces barely escaped with their lives. In July 1989 Hezb-e-Islami commander Sayyed Jamal ambushed and killed 30 commanders of Massoud's Shura-ye-Nazar at Farkhar in Takhar province. The attack was typical of Hekmatyar's strategy of trying to cripple rival factions, and incurred widespread condemnation among the mujahideen.
Hekmatyar's faction also attacked non-combatants such as British cameraman Andy Skrzypkowiak, who was killed in 1987 while carrying footage of Massoud's successes to the West. Despite protests from British representatives, Hekmatyar did not punish the culprits, and instead rewarded them with gifts. The same year Médecins Sans Frontières reported that Hekmatyar's guerrillas hijacked a 96-horse caravan bringing aid into northern Afghanistan, stealing a year's supply of medicine and cash that was to be distributed to villagers. This would have allowed the villagers to buy food. French relief officials also asserted that Thierry Niquet, an aid coordinator bringing cash to Afghan villagers, was killed by one of Hekmatyar's commanders in 1986. It is thought that two American journalists traveling with Hekmatyar in 1987, Lee Shapiro and Jim Lindelof, were killed not by the Soviets, as Hekmatyar's men claimed, but during a firefight initiated by Hekmatyar's forces against another mujahideen group.
Hekmatyar made an unlikely alliance with hardline communist and Minister of Defence Shahnawaz Tanai who launched a failed coup attempt in March 1990 against President Najibullah. Many senior members of his party resigned in protest of the coalition, and other Mujahideen groups ridiculed Hekmatyar for uniting with Khalqists to oust the Parcham government. In addition, there were frequent reports throughout the war of Hekmatyar's commanders negotiating and dealing with pro-Communist local militias in northern Afghanistan.
Overall, Hekmatyar has been accused of spending "more time fighting other Mujahideen than killing Soviets." Through the anti-Soviet war and beyond, he remained a controversial yet persistently influential figure whom the New York Times described as "perhaps the most brutal of a generally brutal group".
Post-DRA civil war
A highly controversial commander, Hekmatyar has been dubbed the "Butcher of Kabul", accused of being responsible for the destruction and civilian deaths Kabul experienced in the early 1990s.
According to the U.S. Special Envoy to Afghanistan in 1989–1992, Peter Tomsen, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar was hired in 1990 by the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to conquer and rule Afghanistan in the benefit of Pakistani interests. The plan was delayed until 1992 due to US pressure to cancel that plan.
In April 1992, as the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan began to collapse, government officials joined the mujahideen, choosing different parties according to their ethnic and political affinities. For the most part, the members of the khalq faction of the PDPA, who were predominantly Pashtuns, joined with Hekmatyar. With their help, he began on 24 April to infiltrate troops into Kabul, and announced that he had seized the city, and that should any other leaders try to fly into Kabul, he would shoot their plane down. The new leader of the "Islamic Interim Government of Afghanistan", Sibghatullah Mojaddedi, appointed Ahmad Shah Massoud as defense minister, and urged him to take action. This he did, taking the offensive on 25 April, and after two days heavy fighting, the Hezb-i Islami and its allies were expelled from Kabul. A peace agreement was signed with Massoud on 25 May 1992, which made Hekmatyar Prime Minister. However, the agreement fell apart when he was blamed for a rocket attack on President Mojaddedi's plane. The following day, fighting resumed between Burhanuddin Rabbani's and Ahmed Shah Massoud's Jamiat, Abdul Rashid Dostum's Jumbish forces and Hekmatyar's Hezb-i Islami forces.
From 1992 to 1996, the warring factions destroyed most of Kabul and killed thousands, many of them civilians, during the Afghan civil war. All the different parties participated in the destruction, but Hekmatyar's group was responsible for most of the damage, because of his practice of deliberately targeting civilian areas. Hekmatyar is thought to have bombarded Kabul in retaliation for what he considered its inhabitants' collaboration with the Soviets, and out of religious conviction. He once told a New York Times journalist that Afghanistan "already had one and a half million martyrs. We are ready to offer as many to establish a true Islamic Republic." His attacks also had a political objective: to undermine the Rabbani government by proving that Rabbani and Massoud were unable to protect the population. In 1994 Hekmatyar would shift alliances, joining with Dostum as well as Hizb-e-Wahdat, a Hazara Shi'a party, to form the Shura-i Hamahangi ("Council of coordination"). Together they laid Siege on Kabul, unleashing massive barrages of artillery and rockets that led to the evacuation of U.N. personnel from Kabul, and caused several government members to abandon their posts. However the new alliance did not spell victory for Hekmatyar, and in June 1994, Massoud had driven Dostum's troops from the capital.
Relations with the Taliban
The Pakistani military had supported Hekmatyar until then in the hope of installing a Pashtun-dominated government in Kabul, which would be friendly to their interests. By 1994, it had become clear that Hekmatyar would never achieve this, and that his extremism had antagonised most Pashtuns, so the Pakistanis began turning towards the predominantly Pashtun Taliban. After capturing Kandahar in November 1994, the Taliban made rapid progress towards Kabul, making inroads into Hezb-e Islami positions. They captured Wardak on 2 February 1995, and moved on to Maidan Shahr on 10 February and Mohammed Agha the next day. Very soon, Hekmatyar found himself caught between the advancing Taliban and the government forces, and the morale of his men collapsed. On 14 February, he was forced to abandon his headquarters at Charasiab, from where rockets were fired at Kabul, and flee in disorder to Surobi.
Nonetheless, in May 1996, Rabbani and Hekmatyar finally formed a power-sharing government in which Hekmatyar was made prime minister. Rabbani was anxious to enhance the legitimacy of his government by enlisting the support of Pashtun leaders. However, the Mahipar agreement did not bring any such benefits to him as Hekmatyar had little grassroots support, but did have many adverse effects: it caused outrage among Jamiat supporters, and among the population of Kabul, who had endured Hekmatyar's attacks for the last four years. Moreover, the agreement was clearly not what the Pakistanis wanted, and convinced them of Hekmatyar's weakness, and that they should shift their aid entirely over to the Taliban. Hekmatyar took office on 26 June, and immediately started issuing severe decrees on women's dress that struck a sharp contrast with the relatively liberal policy that Massoud had followed until then. The Taliban responded to the agreement with a further spate of rocket attacks on the capital. The Rabbani/Hekmatyar regime lasted only a few months before the Taliban took control of Kabul in September 1996. Many of the Hezb-e Islami local commanders joined the Taliban, "both out of ideological sympathy and for reason of tribal solidarity." Those that did not were expelled by the Taliban. In Pakistan, Hezb-e Islami training camps "were taken over by the Taliban and handed over" to Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) groups such as the Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP).
Hekmatyar then fled to Massoud's stronghold in Panjshir who, despite Hekmatyar's history of animosity towards him, helped him flee to Iran in 1997, where he is said to have resided for almost six years. Isolated from Afghanistan he is reported to have "lost ... his power base back home" to defections or inactivity of former members. He was also distrusted by the Iranian Government, who found him too unpredictable, unreliable, and an unnecessary liability, considering its tense relations at the time with the Taliban and the Pakistani government. Despite his pleas, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards refused to establish a proxy through any of his organizations or assist him in any way. Allegedly, they even cut his phone lines and turned away anyone who wished to see him in his villa in North Tehran.
Activities in the Islamic Republic
After the 9/11 attacks in the United States Hekmatyar, who had allegedly "worked closely" with bin Laden in early 1990s, declared his opposition to the US campaign in Afghanistan and criticized Pakistan for assisting the United States. After the U.S. entry into the anti-Taliban alliance and the fall of the Taliban, Hekmatyar rejected the U.N.-brokered accord of 5 December 2001 negotiated in Germany as a post-Taliban interim government for Afghanistan. As a result of pressure by the U.S. and the Karzai administration, on 10 February 2002 all the offices of Hezb-e-Islami were closed in Iran and Hekmatyar was expelled by his Iranian hosts.
The United States accused Hekmatyar of urging Taliban fighters to re-form and fight against Coalition troops in Afghanistan. He was also accused of offering bounties for those who kill U.S. troops. He has been labeled a war criminal by members of the U.S.-backed President Hamid Karzai's government. ISAF identified Hekmatyar in 2002 as the number one security threat, ahead of the Taliban or al-Qaeda. He was also a suspect behind the 5 September 2002 assassination attempt on Karzai in Kandahar and a bomb the same day that killed more than a dozen people in Kabul. That same month, he released newsletters and tape messages calling for jihad against the United States. One of his commanders commented that there "will be suicide attacks [...] against soldiers". On 25 December 2002, news broke that American spy organizations had discovered Hekmatyar attempting to join al-Qaeda. According to the news, he had said that he was available to aid them. However, in a video released by Hekmatyar 1 September 2003, he denied forming alliances with the Taliban or al-Qaeda, but praised attacks against U.S. and international forces.
On 10 February 2003, the Afghan government reported that Hekmatyar was planning an alliance with Taliban and al-Qaeda factions. His group was involved in an intense battle with the U.S. army near Spin Boldak. On February 19, 2003 the United States State Department and the United States Treasury Department jointly designated Hekmatyar a "global terrorist." This designation meant that any assets Hekmatyar held in the U.S., or held through companies based in the U.S., would be frozen. The U.S. also requested the United Nations Committee on Terrorism to follow suit, and designate Hekmatyar an associate of Osama bin Laden. In October 2003, he declared a ceasefire with local commanders in Jalalabad, Kunar, Logar and Surobi, and stated that they should only fight foreigners.
In May 2006, he released a video to Al Jazeera in which he accused Iran of backing the U.S. in the Afghan conflict and said he was ready to fight alongside Osama bin Laden and blamed the ongoing conflicts in Palestine, Iraq and Afghanistan on U.S. interference. In an audiotape released the same month, he called for revolt against U.S. forces and Karzai's "puppet government", and directly threatened to kill Lt. General Karl Eikenberry. In September 2006, he was reported as captured, but the report was later retracted. In December 2006, a video was released in Pakistan, where Gulbuddin Hekmatyar claimed "the fate Soviet Union faced is awaiting America as well." In January 2007 CNN reported that Hekmatyar claimed "that his fighters helped Osama bin Laden escape from the mountains of Tora Bora five years ago." BBC news reported a quote from a December 2006 interview broadcast on GEO TV, "We helped them [bin Laden and Zawahiri] get out of the caves and led them to a safe place."
2008 resurgence
In May 2008, the Jamestown Foundation reported that after being "sidelined from Afghan politics" since the mid-1990s, Gulbuddin's HIG group had "recently reemerged as an aggressive militant group, claiming responsibility for many bloody attacks against Coalition forces at the time, primarily the International Security Assistance Force and the administration of President Hamid Karzai." The re-emergence of him as an "experienced guerrilla strategist" came at a propitious time for insurgency, following the killing of Taliban commander Mullah Dadullah, when some elements of the Taliban were becoming "disorganized and frustrated." HIG claimed responsibility for and is thought to have at least assisted in a 27 April 2008 attempt on the life of President Karzai in Kabul that killed three Afghan citizens, including a member of parliament. Other attacks for which it was thought to be responsible included the 2 January 2008 shooting down in Laghman province of a helicopter containing foreign troops; the shooting and forcing down of a U.S. military helicopter in Sarubi district of Kabul on 22 January; and blowing up a Kabul police vehicle in March 2008, killing 10 soldiers.
In interviews he demanded "all foreign forces to leave immediately unconditionally." Offers by President Hamid Karzai to open talks with "opponents of the government" and hints that they would be offered official posts "such as deputy minister or head of department", were thought to be directed at Hekmatyar. It was reported in 2008 that Hekmatyar lived in an unknown location in southeastern Afghanistan, close to the Pakistani border. In 2008, he denied any links with the Taliban or al-Qaeda and was even considered for prime minister. At the time, Hekmatyar was believed to shuttle between hideouts in Pakistan's mountainous tribal areas and northeast Afghanistan.
In January 2010, he was still considered one of the three main leaders of the Afghan insurgency. By then, he held out the possibility of negotiations with President Karzai and outlined a roadmap for political reconciliation. This contrasted with the views of Taliban leader Mullah Omar and allied insurgent chief Sirajuddin Haqqani, who refused any talks with Kabul as long as foreign troops remained in the country, Hekmatyar appeared less reluctant.
On 10 February 2014, Gulbuddin's HIG group executed an attack which killed two US civilians, Paul Goins and Michael Hughes, and wounded two other Americans and seven Afghan nationals. HIG was also responsible for a 16 May 2013 suicide VBIED attack in Kabul, which destroyed a US armored SUV and killed two US soldiers, four US civilian contractors, eight Afghans—including two children—and wounded at least 37 others. The attack marked the deadliest incident against US personnel in Kabul in 2013.
2016 peace deal and pardon
On 22 September 2016, Hekmatyar was pardoned by the Afghan government as part of a peace deal between Hezb-i-Islami and the government. The deal also allowed for the release of Hezb-i-Islami prisoners and the return of Hekmatyar to public life. The deal led a group of young activists to organise a protest against the pardoning less than a mile away from the signing ceremony. Human Rights Watch called the deal "an affront to victims of grave abuses". Hezb-i-Islami agreed to cease hostilities, cut ties to extremist groups and respect the Afghan Constitution in exchange for government recognition of the group and support for the removal of United Nations and American sanctions against Hekmatyar, who was also promised an honorary post in the government.
The agreement was formalised on 29 September 2016 with both Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Hekmatyar, who appeared via a video link in the presidential palace, signing the agreement. UN sanctions on him were formally lifted on 3 February 2017. On 4 May 2017, he returned to Kabul along with his fighters to meet President Ghani after spending two decades in hiding.
He has then called on the Taliban to end their insurgency and lay down arms. Hekmatyar ran in the 2019 Afghan presidential election and finished a distant third.
During and after U.S. withdrawal
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and his organization are reported to have joined the Council of Reconciliation formed by the Taliban.
Relatives
Some of Gulbuddin's relatives have served or are suspected of serving as his deputies.
Books
Having been described as a "prolific writer" who, "despite rarely ceasing to fight, has authored more than 60 (reportedly 79) books on linguistics, Pashto grammar, comparative religion and political analysis", some of his publications include :
Buḥrān-i mushkīlāt-i rāhhā-yi ḥal, 2000, 194 p. Politics and government in Afghanistan during 1989 to 1998, when Taliban extended their control to most parts of Afghanistan.
Shiʻr va ʻirfān dar miḥak-i Qurʼān va shaqāyiq-i adabī, 2001, 104 p. On good and bad poetry and mysticism in light of the teachings of the Qur'an.
Būdā az sharm furūʹnarīkht, takhrīb shud : dar pāsukh-i Makhmalbāf, 2003, 196 p. Critical study of "Būdā dar Afghānistān takhrīb nashud, az sharm furūʹrīkht" a book by prominent Iranian writer Mohsen Makhmalbaf on the history, jihad and Afghan refugees and other articles on Afghanistan.
Tawhīd aw shirk, 2004, 254 p. On the Oneness of God and polytheism as interpreted in Qur'an.
Da Qurʼān palwashe, 2006-2011, 8 volumes. Translation into Pashto and commentary of the Qur'an.
Bāʼībal da Qurʼān pah raṇā ke, 2006, 871 p. Analytical study of Bible in the light of Qur'an.
Islāmī taḥrīk : Nādirī k̲h̲ānadān ko iqtidār men̲ lāne se Rūsiyon̲ ke ink̲h̲ilāʼ tak, 2008-, multiple volumes. Historical study of Afghanistan from King Mohammed Nadir Shah regime of 1929 up to Russian withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1989.
Rātlūnkay Islāmī niẓām bah ṡangah wī? mashar bah ʼī ṡok wī? ṡangah bah ghwarah kīẓhī?, 2009, 167 p. Government and politics according to Islamic teachings.
References
Further reading
Coll, Steve. Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to 10 September 2001 Penguin Press, 2004. .
External links
1949 births
Living people
Prime Ministers of Afghanistan
Afghan Sunni Muslims
Afghan expatriates in Iran
Afghan expatriates in Pakistan
Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin politicians
Afghan Muslim Brotherhood members
Mujahideen members of the Soviet–Afghan War
Pashtun people
People from Kunduz Province
Quran translators
Individuals related to Iran Sanctions
CIA and Islamism | true | [
"Dra'k'ne Station is a 1979 role-playing game adventure for Traveller published by Judges Guild.\n\nPlot summary\nDra'k'ne Station is an adventure which involves an alien research station built in the middle of an asteroid.\n\nPublication history\nDra'k'ne Station was written by Bill Paley, with art by Kevin Siembieda and was published in 1979 by Judges Guild as a 64-page book.\n\nReception\nBob McWilliams reviewed Dra'k'ne Station for White Dwarf #18, giving it an overall rating of 8 out of 10, and stated that \"a good effort in a new field, and I look forward to seeing further adventures from the JG stable.\"\n\nWilliam A. Barton reviewed Dra'k'ne Station in The Space Gamer No. 32. Barton commented that \"I recommend Dra'k'ne Station as well worth the investment for any Traveller afficionado who wants a challenging adventure and who doesn't mind the possibility of losing a character or two in the process.\"\n\nReferences\n\nJudges Guild publications\nTraveller (role-playing game) adventures",
"This is the list of the star names in the constellation Draco.\n\nα Dra \n\n Thuban:\n < (ar) ثعبان thu'bān, serpent, the last part of Ra's al-Thu'bān. (See β Dra.)\n Adib:\n < (ar) الذئبة al-Dhi'b, the Wolf. (See θ Dra.)\n the Dragon's Tail:\n called among seamen.\n Yu Choo:\n < (zh) 右枢, the Right-hand Pivot.\n\nβ Dra \n\n Rastaban:\n < (ar) س الثعبان Ra's al-Thu'bān the Head of the Serpent, transferred from γ Dra. (See γ Dra.)\n Alwaid:\n < (ar) al-‘Awā'idh the Old Mother( Camel)s, for β, γ, ξ, and ν Dra.\n < (ar) al-‘Awwād the Lute-player. (See μ Dra.)\n Asuia:\n < (ar) al-Shujā‘ the Sea-serpent.\n\nγ Dra \n\n Eltanin (Etamin, Etanin):\n < (ar) راس التنين Ra's al-Tinnīn the Head of the Dragon.\n Rastaben (Rasaben, Rastaban):\n < mistransliterated form of Ra's al-Tinnīn.\n the Zenith-star:\n\nSee also \n List of stars in Draco\n List of star names\n\nNotes\n\nReferences \n \n \n \n\nStar names\nDraco"
] |
[
"Gulbuddin Hekmatyar",
"Post-DRA civil war",
"what does DRA stand for?",
"the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan"
] | C_1de7a81f466b4d4bb18532d17a9f852d_1 | what happened after their Civil War? | 2 | What happened after the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan's Civil War? | Gulbuddin Hekmatyar | A highly controversial commander, Hekmatyar has been dubbed the "Butcher of Kabul", accused of being responsible for the destruction and civilian deaths Kabul experienced in the early 1990s. According to the U.S. Special Envoy to Afghanistan in 1989-1992, Peter Tomsen, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar was hired in 1990 by the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to conquer and rule Afghanistan in the benefit of Pakistani interests, which plan was delayed until 1992 due to US pressure to cancel that plan. In April 1992, as the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan began to collapse, government officials joined the mujahideen, choosing different parties according to their ethnic and political affinities. For the most part, the members of the khalq faction of the PDPA, who were predominantly Pashtuns, joined with Hekmatyar. With their help, he began on 24 April to infiltrate troops into Kabul, and announced that he had seized the city, and that should any other leaders try to fly into Kabul, he would shoot their plane down. The new leader of the "Islamic Interim Government of Afghanistan", Sibghatullah Mojaddedi, appointed Ahmad Shah Massoud as defense minister, and urged him to take action. This he did, taking the offensive on 25 April, and after two days heavy fighting, the Hezb-i Islami and its allies were expelled from Kabul. A peace agreement was signed with Massoud on 25 May 1992, which made Hekmatyar Prime Minister. However, the agreement fell apart when he was blamed for a rocket attack on President Mojaddedi's plane. The following day, fighting resumed between Burhanuddin Rabbani's and Ahmed Shah Massoud's Jamiat, Abdul Rashid Dostum's Jumbish forces and Hekmatyar's Hezb-i Islami forces. From 1992 to 1996, the warring factions destroyed most of Kabul and killed thousands of people, most of them civilians, during the Afghan civil war. All the different parties participated in the destruction, but Hekmatyar's group was responsible for most of the damage, because of his practice of deliberately targeting civilian areas. Hekmatyar is thought to have bombarded Kabul in retaliation for what he considered its inhabitants' collaboration with the Soviets, and out of religious conviction. He once told a New York Times journalist that Afghanistan "already had one and a half million martyrs. We are ready to offer as many to establish a true Islamic Republic." His attacks also had a political objective: to undermine the Rabbani government by proving that Rabbani and Massoud were unable to protect the population. In 1994 Hekmatyar would shift alliances, joining with Dostum as well as Hizb-e-Wahdat, a Hazara Shi'a party, to form the Shura-i Hamahangi ("Council of coordination"). Together they laid Siege of Kabul, unleashing massive barrages of artillery and rockets that led to the evacuation of U.N. personnel from Kabul, and caused several government members to abandon their posts. However the new alliance did not spell victory for Hekmatyar, and in June 1994, Massoud had driven Dostum's troops from the capital. CANNOTANSWER | Gulbuddin Hekmatyar was hired in 1990 by the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to conquer and rule Afghanistan in the benefit of Pakistani | Gulbuddin Hekmatyar (; born 1 August 1949) is an Afghan politician, former mujahideen leader and drug trafficker. He is the founder and current leader of the Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin political party, so called after Mohammad Yunus Khalis split from Hezbi Islami in 1979 to found Hezb-i Islami Khalis. He has twice served as Prime Minister during the 1990s.
Hekmatyar joined the Muslim Youth organization as a student in the early 1970s, where he was known for his Islamic radicalism rejected by much of the organization. He spent time in Pakistan before returning to Afghanistan when the Soviet–Afghan War began in 1979, at which time the CIA began funding his rapidly growing Hezb-e Islami organization through the Pakistani intelligence service, ISI, one of the largest of the Afghan mujahideen. He received more CIA funding than any other mujahideen leader during the Soviet-Afghan War.
In the late 1980s, Hekmatyar and his organization started trafficking opium and later moved into manufacturing heroin. He established himself and his group amongst the leading heroin suppliers in the middle east. Given the CIA's earlier supplying him with weapons and funding, this became a subject of diplomatic embarrassment for the US foreign service. Following the ouster of Soviet-backed Afghan President Mohammad Najibullah in 1992, Hekmatyar declined to form part of the new government and, with other warlords, engaged in the Afghan civil war, leading to the death of around 50,000 civilians in Kabul alone. Hekmatyar was accused of bearing the most responsibility for the rocket attacks on the city. In the meantime, as part of the peace and power-sharing efforts led by Ahmad Shah Massoud, Hekmatyar became Prime Minister of Afghanistan from 1993 to 1994 and again briefly in 1996, before the Taliban takeover of Kabul forced him to flee to Iran's capital Tehran.
Sometime after the Taliban's fall in 2001 he went to Pakistan, leading his paramilitary forces into an unsuccessful armed campaign against Hamid Karzai's government and the international coalition in Afghanistan. In 2016, he signed a peace deal with the Afghan government and was allowed to return to Afghanistan after almost 20 years in exile.
Following the collapse of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, on 17 August 2021, Hekmatyar met with both Hamid Karzai, former President of Afghanistan, and Abdullah Abdullah, former Chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation and former Chief Executive, in Doha seeking to form a government.
Early life
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar was born in 1949 in Imam Saheb, Kunduz province, in the north of what was then the Kingdom of Afghanistan, a member of the Kharoti tribe of Ghilji Pashtuns. His father, Ghulam Qader, who migrated to Kunduz, is originally from the Ghazni province. Afghan businessman and Kharoti tribal leader Gholam Serwar Nasher deemed Hekmatyar to be a bright young man and sent him to the Mahtab Qala military academy in 1968, but he was expelled due to his political views two years later. From 1969 to 1972, Hekmatyar attended Kabul University's engineering department. During his first year at the university he wrote a 149-page book entitled The Priority of Sense Over Matter, where he refutes communists denying the existence of God by quoting European philosophers and scientists like Hegel or Francesco Redi. Though he did not complete his degree, his followers still address him as "Engineer Hekmatyar".
During his years in university, Hekmatyar joined the Sazman-i Jawanan-i Musulman ("Organization of Muslim Youth") which was gaining influence because of its opposition to the Soviet influence in Afghanistan increasing through the PDPA elements in Daoud's government. He was one of the foundational members of the organization. He may have also been influenced by the ideological teachings of Muslim Brotherhood member Sayyid Qutb. By his own account he became an Islamist when he heard of Qutb's death in 1966, on radio, and also contradicts that he was a communist during his youth. Although some believe that Hekmatyar threw acid at multiple female students, others have attributed this claim to the Soviet KGB's black propaganda. Hekmatyar's radicalism put him in confrontation with elements in the Muslim Youth surrounding Ahmad Shah Massoud, also an engineering student at Kabul University. In 1975, trying to assassinate a rival for the second time in three years, Hekmatyar with Pakistani help tried to assassinate Massoud, then 22 years old, but failed. In 1975, the "Islamic Society" split between supporters of Massoud and Burhanuddin Rabbani, who led the Jamiat-e Islami, and elements surrounding Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, who then founded the Hezb-i Islami. Akbarzadeh and Yasmeen describe Hekmatyar's approach as "radical" and antagonistic as opposed to an "inclusive" and "moderate" strategy by Rabbani.
Exile in Pakistan
The arrival of Afghan opposition militants in Peshawar coincided with a period of diplomatic tension between Pakistan and Afghanistan, due to Daoud's revival of the Pashtunistan issue. Under the patronage of Pakistani General Naseerullah Babar, then governor of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and with the blessing of Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, camps were set up to train Hekmatyar and other anti-Daoud Islamists. The Islamist movement had two main tendencies: the Jamiat-e islami ("Islamic society") led by Burhanuddin Rabbani, that advocated a gradualist strategy to gain power, through infiltration of society and the state apparatus. Rabbani advocated for the "building of a widely based movement that would create popular support". The other movement, called Hezb-i Islami ("Islamic Party"), was led by Hekmatyar, who favored a radical approach in the form of violent armed conflict. Pakistani support largely went to Hekmatyar's group, who, in October 1975, undertook to instigate an uprising against the government. Without popular support, the rebellion ended in complete failure, and hundreds of militants were arrested.
Hekmatyar's Hezb-e-Islami was formed as an elitist avant-garde based on a strictly disciplined Islamist ideology within a homogeneous organization that Olivier Roy described as "Leninist", and employed the rhetoric of the Iranian Revolution. It had its operational base in the Nasir Bagh, Worsak and Shamshatoo refugee camps in Pakistan. In these camps, Hezb-i Islami formed a social and political network and operated everything from schools to prisons, with the support of the Pakistani government and their Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). From 1976–1977 Afghan President Daoud made overtures to Pakistan which led to reconciliation with Pakistani leader Bhutto. Bhutto's support to Hekmatyar, however, continued and when Bhutto was removed from power in Pakistan by Zia-ul-Haq in 1977, Zia continued supporting Hekmatyar.
Soviet war in Afghanistan
During the Soviet–Afghan War, Hekmatyar received large amounts of aid from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and the United States. Hekmatyar also gained the support of the British MI6 and even met Margaret Thatcher in Downing Street. According to the ISI, their decision to allocate the highest percentage of covert aid to Hekmatyar was based on his record as an effective anti-Soviet military commander in Afghanistan. Others describe his position as the result of having "almost no grassroots support and no military base inside Afghanistan", and thus being the much more "dependent on Pakistani President Zia-ul-Haq's protection and financial largesse" than other mujahideen factions. Author Peter Bergen states that "by the most conservative estimates, $600 million" in American aid through Pakistan "went to the Hizb party ... Hekmatyar's party had the dubious distinction of never winning a significant battle during the war, training a variety of militant Islamists from around the world, killing significant numbers of mujahideen from other parties, and taking a virulently anti-Western line. In addition to hundreds of millions of dollars of American aid, Hekmatyar also received the lion's share of aid from the Saudis." Hekmatyar's constant scheming against all of the mujahideen factions led Pakistani general and leader Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq to warn Hekmatyar that it was Pakistan that made him an Afghan leader and that Pakistan could and would destroy him if he resisted operational control by ISI.
Involvement in heroin production
As the Soviet-Afghan War was coming to its end, Hekmatyar used the funds and weapons provided to him by the CIA and ISI to establish his organization as one of the leading heroin producers in the Middle East. Hekmatyar first became involved in the narcotics trade in the summer of 1988, as it became apparent that the Soviets were intending to withdraw. Initially becoming involved in trafficking opium, Hekmatyar's was the first of the mujahideen groups to establish and operate heroin production factories in the region. Hekmatyar's involvement in the production and distribution of illegal narcotics became a subject of diplomatic embarrassment for the United States' foreign service. The CIA officer with responsibility for its operations in Afghanistan at the time, Charles Cogan, said "Every situation has its fallout...There was fallout in terms of drugs, yes. But the main objective was accomplished."
Warfare with other Afghan groups
Hezb-e-Islami distinguished itself among the mujahideen by its practice of takfir, or pronouncing apostasy against other Muslims. On that basis it regularly attacked other mujahideen factions as well as the Soviet occupation. Hekmatyar's conflict with Jamiat-e Islami and its commander Ahmad Shah Massoud was particularly contentious. Massoud was arrested in Pakistan for espionage in 1976 with Hekmatyar's cooperation. Later Massoud and Hekmatyar agreed to stage a takeover operation in the Panjshir valley. Hekmatyar at the last minute refused to engage his part of the offensive, leaving Massoud open and vulnerable. Massoud's forces barely escaped with their lives. In July 1989 Hezb-e-Islami commander Sayyed Jamal ambushed and killed 30 commanders of Massoud's Shura-ye-Nazar at Farkhar in Takhar province. The attack was typical of Hekmatyar's strategy of trying to cripple rival factions, and incurred widespread condemnation among the mujahideen.
Hekmatyar's faction also attacked non-combatants such as British cameraman Andy Skrzypkowiak, who was killed in 1987 while carrying footage of Massoud's successes to the West. Despite protests from British representatives, Hekmatyar did not punish the culprits, and instead rewarded them with gifts. The same year Médecins Sans Frontières reported that Hekmatyar's guerrillas hijacked a 96-horse caravan bringing aid into northern Afghanistan, stealing a year's supply of medicine and cash that was to be distributed to villagers. This would have allowed the villagers to buy food. French relief officials also asserted that Thierry Niquet, an aid coordinator bringing cash to Afghan villagers, was killed by one of Hekmatyar's commanders in 1986. It is thought that two American journalists traveling with Hekmatyar in 1987, Lee Shapiro and Jim Lindelof, were killed not by the Soviets, as Hekmatyar's men claimed, but during a firefight initiated by Hekmatyar's forces against another mujahideen group.
Hekmatyar made an unlikely alliance with hardline communist and Minister of Defence Shahnawaz Tanai who launched a failed coup attempt in March 1990 against President Najibullah. Many senior members of his party resigned in protest of the coalition, and other Mujahideen groups ridiculed Hekmatyar for uniting with Khalqists to oust the Parcham government. In addition, there were frequent reports throughout the war of Hekmatyar's commanders negotiating and dealing with pro-Communist local militias in northern Afghanistan.
Overall, Hekmatyar has been accused of spending "more time fighting other Mujahideen than killing Soviets." Through the anti-Soviet war and beyond, he remained a controversial yet persistently influential figure whom the New York Times described as "perhaps the most brutal of a generally brutal group".
Post-DRA civil war
A highly controversial commander, Hekmatyar has been dubbed the "Butcher of Kabul", accused of being responsible for the destruction and civilian deaths Kabul experienced in the early 1990s.
According to the U.S. Special Envoy to Afghanistan in 1989–1992, Peter Tomsen, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar was hired in 1990 by the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to conquer and rule Afghanistan in the benefit of Pakistani interests. The plan was delayed until 1992 due to US pressure to cancel that plan.
In April 1992, as the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan began to collapse, government officials joined the mujahideen, choosing different parties according to their ethnic and political affinities. For the most part, the members of the khalq faction of the PDPA, who were predominantly Pashtuns, joined with Hekmatyar. With their help, he began on 24 April to infiltrate troops into Kabul, and announced that he had seized the city, and that should any other leaders try to fly into Kabul, he would shoot their plane down. The new leader of the "Islamic Interim Government of Afghanistan", Sibghatullah Mojaddedi, appointed Ahmad Shah Massoud as defense minister, and urged him to take action. This he did, taking the offensive on 25 April, and after two days heavy fighting, the Hezb-i Islami and its allies were expelled from Kabul. A peace agreement was signed with Massoud on 25 May 1992, which made Hekmatyar Prime Minister. However, the agreement fell apart when he was blamed for a rocket attack on President Mojaddedi's plane. The following day, fighting resumed between Burhanuddin Rabbani's and Ahmed Shah Massoud's Jamiat, Abdul Rashid Dostum's Jumbish forces and Hekmatyar's Hezb-i Islami forces.
From 1992 to 1996, the warring factions destroyed most of Kabul and killed thousands, many of them civilians, during the Afghan civil war. All the different parties participated in the destruction, but Hekmatyar's group was responsible for most of the damage, because of his practice of deliberately targeting civilian areas. Hekmatyar is thought to have bombarded Kabul in retaliation for what he considered its inhabitants' collaboration with the Soviets, and out of religious conviction. He once told a New York Times journalist that Afghanistan "already had one and a half million martyrs. We are ready to offer as many to establish a true Islamic Republic." His attacks also had a political objective: to undermine the Rabbani government by proving that Rabbani and Massoud were unable to protect the population. In 1994 Hekmatyar would shift alliances, joining with Dostum as well as Hizb-e-Wahdat, a Hazara Shi'a party, to form the Shura-i Hamahangi ("Council of coordination"). Together they laid Siege on Kabul, unleashing massive barrages of artillery and rockets that led to the evacuation of U.N. personnel from Kabul, and caused several government members to abandon their posts. However the new alliance did not spell victory for Hekmatyar, and in June 1994, Massoud had driven Dostum's troops from the capital.
Relations with the Taliban
The Pakistani military had supported Hekmatyar until then in the hope of installing a Pashtun-dominated government in Kabul, which would be friendly to their interests. By 1994, it had become clear that Hekmatyar would never achieve this, and that his extremism had antagonised most Pashtuns, so the Pakistanis began turning towards the predominantly Pashtun Taliban. After capturing Kandahar in November 1994, the Taliban made rapid progress towards Kabul, making inroads into Hezb-e Islami positions. They captured Wardak on 2 February 1995, and moved on to Maidan Shahr on 10 February and Mohammed Agha the next day. Very soon, Hekmatyar found himself caught between the advancing Taliban and the government forces, and the morale of his men collapsed. On 14 February, he was forced to abandon his headquarters at Charasiab, from where rockets were fired at Kabul, and flee in disorder to Surobi.
Nonetheless, in May 1996, Rabbani and Hekmatyar finally formed a power-sharing government in which Hekmatyar was made prime minister. Rabbani was anxious to enhance the legitimacy of his government by enlisting the support of Pashtun leaders. However, the Mahipar agreement did not bring any such benefits to him as Hekmatyar had little grassroots support, but did have many adverse effects: it caused outrage among Jamiat supporters, and among the population of Kabul, who had endured Hekmatyar's attacks for the last four years. Moreover, the agreement was clearly not what the Pakistanis wanted, and convinced them of Hekmatyar's weakness, and that they should shift their aid entirely over to the Taliban. Hekmatyar took office on 26 June, and immediately started issuing severe decrees on women's dress that struck a sharp contrast with the relatively liberal policy that Massoud had followed until then. The Taliban responded to the agreement with a further spate of rocket attacks on the capital. The Rabbani/Hekmatyar regime lasted only a few months before the Taliban took control of Kabul in September 1996. Many of the Hezb-e Islami local commanders joined the Taliban, "both out of ideological sympathy and for reason of tribal solidarity." Those that did not were expelled by the Taliban. In Pakistan, Hezb-e Islami training camps "were taken over by the Taliban and handed over" to Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) groups such as the Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP).
Hekmatyar then fled to Massoud's stronghold in Panjshir who, despite Hekmatyar's history of animosity towards him, helped him flee to Iran in 1997, where he is said to have resided for almost six years. Isolated from Afghanistan he is reported to have "lost ... his power base back home" to defections or inactivity of former members. He was also distrusted by the Iranian Government, who found him too unpredictable, unreliable, and an unnecessary liability, considering its tense relations at the time with the Taliban and the Pakistani government. Despite his pleas, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards refused to establish a proxy through any of his organizations or assist him in any way. Allegedly, they even cut his phone lines and turned away anyone who wished to see him in his villa in North Tehran.
Activities in the Islamic Republic
After the 9/11 attacks in the United States Hekmatyar, who had allegedly "worked closely" with bin Laden in early 1990s, declared his opposition to the US campaign in Afghanistan and criticized Pakistan for assisting the United States. After the U.S. entry into the anti-Taliban alliance and the fall of the Taliban, Hekmatyar rejected the U.N.-brokered accord of 5 December 2001 negotiated in Germany as a post-Taliban interim government for Afghanistan. As a result of pressure by the U.S. and the Karzai administration, on 10 February 2002 all the offices of Hezb-e-Islami were closed in Iran and Hekmatyar was expelled by his Iranian hosts.
The United States accused Hekmatyar of urging Taliban fighters to re-form and fight against Coalition troops in Afghanistan. He was also accused of offering bounties for those who kill U.S. troops. He has been labeled a war criminal by members of the U.S.-backed President Hamid Karzai's government. ISAF identified Hekmatyar in 2002 as the number one security threat, ahead of the Taliban or al-Qaeda. He was also a suspect behind the 5 September 2002 assassination attempt on Karzai in Kandahar and a bomb the same day that killed more than a dozen people in Kabul. That same month, he released newsletters and tape messages calling for jihad against the United States. One of his commanders commented that there "will be suicide attacks [...] against soldiers". On 25 December 2002, news broke that American spy organizations had discovered Hekmatyar attempting to join al-Qaeda. According to the news, he had said that he was available to aid them. However, in a video released by Hekmatyar 1 September 2003, he denied forming alliances with the Taliban or al-Qaeda, but praised attacks against U.S. and international forces.
On 10 February 2003, the Afghan government reported that Hekmatyar was planning an alliance with Taliban and al-Qaeda factions. His group was involved in an intense battle with the U.S. army near Spin Boldak. On February 19, 2003 the United States State Department and the United States Treasury Department jointly designated Hekmatyar a "global terrorist." This designation meant that any assets Hekmatyar held in the U.S., or held through companies based in the U.S., would be frozen. The U.S. also requested the United Nations Committee on Terrorism to follow suit, and designate Hekmatyar an associate of Osama bin Laden. In October 2003, he declared a ceasefire with local commanders in Jalalabad, Kunar, Logar and Surobi, and stated that they should only fight foreigners.
In May 2006, he released a video to Al Jazeera in which he accused Iran of backing the U.S. in the Afghan conflict and said he was ready to fight alongside Osama bin Laden and blamed the ongoing conflicts in Palestine, Iraq and Afghanistan on U.S. interference. In an audiotape released the same month, he called for revolt against U.S. forces and Karzai's "puppet government", and directly threatened to kill Lt. General Karl Eikenberry. In September 2006, he was reported as captured, but the report was later retracted. In December 2006, a video was released in Pakistan, where Gulbuddin Hekmatyar claimed "the fate Soviet Union faced is awaiting America as well." In January 2007 CNN reported that Hekmatyar claimed "that his fighters helped Osama bin Laden escape from the mountains of Tora Bora five years ago." BBC news reported a quote from a December 2006 interview broadcast on GEO TV, "We helped them [bin Laden and Zawahiri] get out of the caves and led them to a safe place."
2008 resurgence
In May 2008, the Jamestown Foundation reported that after being "sidelined from Afghan politics" since the mid-1990s, Gulbuddin's HIG group had "recently reemerged as an aggressive militant group, claiming responsibility for many bloody attacks against Coalition forces at the time, primarily the International Security Assistance Force and the administration of President Hamid Karzai." The re-emergence of him as an "experienced guerrilla strategist" came at a propitious time for insurgency, following the killing of Taliban commander Mullah Dadullah, when some elements of the Taliban were becoming "disorganized and frustrated." HIG claimed responsibility for and is thought to have at least assisted in a 27 April 2008 attempt on the life of President Karzai in Kabul that killed three Afghan citizens, including a member of parliament. Other attacks for which it was thought to be responsible included the 2 January 2008 shooting down in Laghman province of a helicopter containing foreign troops; the shooting and forcing down of a U.S. military helicopter in Sarubi district of Kabul on 22 January; and blowing up a Kabul police vehicle in March 2008, killing 10 soldiers.
In interviews he demanded "all foreign forces to leave immediately unconditionally." Offers by President Hamid Karzai to open talks with "opponents of the government" and hints that they would be offered official posts "such as deputy minister or head of department", were thought to be directed at Hekmatyar. It was reported in 2008 that Hekmatyar lived in an unknown location in southeastern Afghanistan, close to the Pakistani border. In 2008, he denied any links with the Taliban or al-Qaeda and was even considered for prime minister. At the time, Hekmatyar was believed to shuttle between hideouts in Pakistan's mountainous tribal areas and northeast Afghanistan.
In January 2010, he was still considered one of the three main leaders of the Afghan insurgency. By then, he held out the possibility of negotiations with President Karzai and outlined a roadmap for political reconciliation. This contrasted with the views of Taliban leader Mullah Omar and allied insurgent chief Sirajuddin Haqqani, who refused any talks with Kabul as long as foreign troops remained in the country, Hekmatyar appeared less reluctant.
On 10 February 2014, Gulbuddin's HIG group executed an attack which killed two US civilians, Paul Goins and Michael Hughes, and wounded two other Americans and seven Afghan nationals. HIG was also responsible for a 16 May 2013 suicide VBIED attack in Kabul, which destroyed a US armored SUV and killed two US soldiers, four US civilian contractors, eight Afghans—including two children—and wounded at least 37 others. The attack marked the deadliest incident against US personnel in Kabul in 2013.
2016 peace deal and pardon
On 22 September 2016, Hekmatyar was pardoned by the Afghan government as part of a peace deal between Hezb-i-Islami and the government. The deal also allowed for the release of Hezb-i-Islami prisoners and the return of Hekmatyar to public life. The deal led a group of young activists to organise a protest against the pardoning less than a mile away from the signing ceremony. Human Rights Watch called the deal "an affront to victims of grave abuses". Hezb-i-Islami agreed to cease hostilities, cut ties to extremist groups and respect the Afghan Constitution in exchange for government recognition of the group and support for the removal of United Nations and American sanctions against Hekmatyar, who was also promised an honorary post in the government.
The agreement was formalised on 29 September 2016 with both Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Hekmatyar, who appeared via a video link in the presidential palace, signing the agreement. UN sanctions on him were formally lifted on 3 February 2017. On 4 May 2017, he returned to Kabul along with his fighters to meet President Ghani after spending two decades in hiding.
He has then called on the Taliban to end their insurgency and lay down arms. Hekmatyar ran in the 2019 Afghan presidential election and finished a distant third.
During and after U.S. withdrawal
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and his organization are reported to have joined the Council of Reconciliation formed by the Taliban.
Relatives
Some of Gulbuddin's relatives have served or are suspected of serving as his deputies.
Books
Having been described as a "prolific writer" who, "despite rarely ceasing to fight, has authored more than 60 (reportedly 79) books on linguistics, Pashto grammar, comparative religion and political analysis", some of his publications include :
Buḥrān-i mushkīlāt-i rāhhā-yi ḥal, 2000, 194 p. Politics and government in Afghanistan during 1989 to 1998, when Taliban extended their control to most parts of Afghanistan.
Shiʻr va ʻirfān dar miḥak-i Qurʼān va shaqāyiq-i adabī, 2001, 104 p. On good and bad poetry and mysticism in light of the teachings of the Qur'an.
Būdā az sharm furūʹnarīkht, takhrīb shud : dar pāsukh-i Makhmalbāf, 2003, 196 p. Critical study of "Būdā dar Afghānistān takhrīb nashud, az sharm furūʹrīkht" a book by prominent Iranian writer Mohsen Makhmalbaf on the history, jihad and Afghan refugees and other articles on Afghanistan.
Tawhīd aw shirk, 2004, 254 p. On the Oneness of God and polytheism as interpreted in Qur'an.
Da Qurʼān palwashe, 2006-2011, 8 volumes. Translation into Pashto and commentary of the Qur'an.
Bāʼībal da Qurʼān pah raṇā ke, 2006, 871 p. Analytical study of Bible in the light of Qur'an.
Islāmī taḥrīk : Nādirī k̲h̲ānadān ko iqtidār men̲ lāne se Rūsiyon̲ ke ink̲h̲ilāʼ tak, 2008-, multiple volumes. Historical study of Afghanistan from King Mohammed Nadir Shah regime of 1929 up to Russian withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1989.
Rātlūnkay Islāmī niẓām bah ṡangah wī? mashar bah ʼī ṡok wī? ṡangah bah ghwarah kīẓhī?, 2009, 167 p. Government and politics according to Islamic teachings.
References
Further reading
Coll, Steve. Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to 10 September 2001 Penguin Press, 2004. .
External links
1949 births
Living people
Prime Ministers of Afghanistan
Afghan Sunni Muslims
Afghan expatriates in Iran
Afghan expatriates in Pakistan
Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin politicians
Afghan Muslim Brotherhood members
Mujahideen members of the Soviet–Afghan War
Pashtun people
People from Kunduz Province
Quran translators
Individuals related to Iran Sanctions
CIA and Islamism | true | [
"Gandhi Under Cross Examination is a 2009 book written by G. B. Singh and Dr. Tim Watson evaluating the iconization of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi as a civil rights protagonist. \n\nIn 1893, Gandhi went to South Africa where, by his own account, he was thrown off a train on racial grounds. In their scrutiny of the incident and Gandhi's statements thereafter, the authors claim that Gandhi gave divergent accounts of what happened on his journey to Pretoria. Gandhi Under Cross-examination catalogs the incidents that happened around that time and attempts to prove that the train incident never occurred. The authors have claimed that Gandhi lied about the train incident.\n\nSee also\nGandhi Behind the Mask of Divinity\nZulu War of 1906\nGandhi's role in Zulu War\n\nReferences \n\n2009 non-fiction books\nBooks about Mahatma Gandhi",
"The Stars and Stripes Trilogy is a collection of three alternate history novels written by Harry Harrison.\n\nSetting\nAll three novels involve the point of divergence of British involvement in the American Civil War after the Trent Affair. This happens when Prince Albert dies prematurely rather than playing his historic role in resolving the crisis. Queen Victoria blames the Americans for his death. She authorizes her ministers to do anything necessary to ensure that they pay for it.\n\nWhile 1861 is the relevant point of departure, there is another unexplained difference—the Duke of Wellington is still alive in 1862, though he remarks he has been \"living on borrowed time\" since his illness in 1852 (his death date in our world). This seems to date the initial point of divergence to 1852, without the butterfly effect changing intermediate occurrences, such as the course of the Crimean War.\n\nNovels\n Stars and Stripes Forever (1998)\n Stars and Stripes in Peril (2000)\n Stars and Stripes Triumphant (2002)\n\nSee also\n\n American Civil War alternate histories\n\nExternal links\n \n \"A Naval Review\"—another criticism of the book, at Ironclads and Blockade Runners Of the American Civil War\n —a look at what would have really happened if fought \n The Contest in America by John Stuart Mill—a small download\n\nAlternate history book series\nAmerican Civil War alternate histories\nNovels set during the American Civil War\nNovels by Harry Harrison\nScience fiction book series\nSteampunk novels"
] |
[
"Gulbuddin Hekmatyar",
"Post-DRA civil war",
"what does DRA stand for?",
"the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan",
"what happened after their Civil War?",
"Gulbuddin Hekmatyar was hired in 1990 by the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to conquer and rule Afghanistan in the benefit of Pakistani"
] | C_1de7a81f466b4d4bb18532d17a9f852d_1 | did they conquer Afghanistan? | 3 | Did the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence conquer Afghanistan? | Gulbuddin Hekmatyar | A highly controversial commander, Hekmatyar has been dubbed the "Butcher of Kabul", accused of being responsible for the destruction and civilian deaths Kabul experienced in the early 1990s. According to the U.S. Special Envoy to Afghanistan in 1989-1992, Peter Tomsen, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar was hired in 1990 by the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to conquer and rule Afghanistan in the benefit of Pakistani interests, which plan was delayed until 1992 due to US pressure to cancel that plan. In April 1992, as the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan began to collapse, government officials joined the mujahideen, choosing different parties according to their ethnic and political affinities. For the most part, the members of the khalq faction of the PDPA, who were predominantly Pashtuns, joined with Hekmatyar. With their help, he began on 24 April to infiltrate troops into Kabul, and announced that he had seized the city, and that should any other leaders try to fly into Kabul, he would shoot their plane down. The new leader of the "Islamic Interim Government of Afghanistan", Sibghatullah Mojaddedi, appointed Ahmad Shah Massoud as defense minister, and urged him to take action. This he did, taking the offensive on 25 April, and after two days heavy fighting, the Hezb-i Islami and its allies were expelled from Kabul. A peace agreement was signed with Massoud on 25 May 1992, which made Hekmatyar Prime Minister. However, the agreement fell apart when he was blamed for a rocket attack on President Mojaddedi's plane. The following day, fighting resumed between Burhanuddin Rabbani's and Ahmed Shah Massoud's Jamiat, Abdul Rashid Dostum's Jumbish forces and Hekmatyar's Hezb-i Islami forces. From 1992 to 1996, the warring factions destroyed most of Kabul and killed thousands of people, most of them civilians, during the Afghan civil war. All the different parties participated in the destruction, but Hekmatyar's group was responsible for most of the damage, because of his practice of deliberately targeting civilian areas. Hekmatyar is thought to have bombarded Kabul in retaliation for what he considered its inhabitants' collaboration with the Soviets, and out of religious conviction. He once told a New York Times journalist that Afghanistan "already had one and a half million martyrs. We are ready to offer as many to establish a true Islamic Republic." His attacks also had a political objective: to undermine the Rabbani government by proving that Rabbani and Massoud were unable to protect the population. In 1994 Hekmatyar would shift alliances, joining with Dostum as well as Hizb-e-Wahdat, a Hazara Shi'a party, to form the Shura-i Hamahangi ("Council of coordination"). Together they laid Siege of Kabul, unleashing massive barrages of artillery and rockets that led to the evacuation of U.N. personnel from Kabul, and caused several government members to abandon their posts. However the new alliance did not spell victory for Hekmatyar, and in June 1994, Massoud had driven Dostum's troops from the capital. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Gulbuddin Hekmatyar (; born 1 August 1949) is an Afghan politician, former mujahideen leader and drug trafficker. He is the founder and current leader of the Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin political party, so called after Mohammad Yunus Khalis split from Hezbi Islami in 1979 to found Hezb-i Islami Khalis. He has twice served as Prime Minister during the 1990s.
Hekmatyar joined the Muslim Youth organization as a student in the early 1970s, where he was known for his Islamic radicalism rejected by much of the organization. He spent time in Pakistan before returning to Afghanistan when the Soviet–Afghan War began in 1979, at which time the CIA began funding his rapidly growing Hezb-e Islami organization through the Pakistani intelligence service, ISI, one of the largest of the Afghan mujahideen. He received more CIA funding than any other mujahideen leader during the Soviet-Afghan War.
In the late 1980s, Hekmatyar and his organization started trafficking opium and later moved into manufacturing heroin. He established himself and his group amongst the leading heroin suppliers in the middle east. Given the CIA's earlier supplying him with weapons and funding, this became a subject of diplomatic embarrassment for the US foreign service. Following the ouster of Soviet-backed Afghan President Mohammad Najibullah in 1992, Hekmatyar declined to form part of the new government and, with other warlords, engaged in the Afghan civil war, leading to the death of around 50,000 civilians in Kabul alone. Hekmatyar was accused of bearing the most responsibility for the rocket attacks on the city. In the meantime, as part of the peace and power-sharing efforts led by Ahmad Shah Massoud, Hekmatyar became Prime Minister of Afghanistan from 1993 to 1994 and again briefly in 1996, before the Taliban takeover of Kabul forced him to flee to Iran's capital Tehran.
Sometime after the Taliban's fall in 2001 he went to Pakistan, leading his paramilitary forces into an unsuccessful armed campaign against Hamid Karzai's government and the international coalition in Afghanistan. In 2016, he signed a peace deal with the Afghan government and was allowed to return to Afghanistan after almost 20 years in exile.
Following the collapse of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, on 17 August 2021, Hekmatyar met with both Hamid Karzai, former President of Afghanistan, and Abdullah Abdullah, former Chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation and former Chief Executive, in Doha seeking to form a government.
Early life
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar was born in 1949 in Imam Saheb, Kunduz province, in the north of what was then the Kingdom of Afghanistan, a member of the Kharoti tribe of Ghilji Pashtuns. His father, Ghulam Qader, who migrated to Kunduz, is originally from the Ghazni province. Afghan businessman and Kharoti tribal leader Gholam Serwar Nasher deemed Hekmatyar to be a bright young man and sent him to the Mahtab Qala military academy in 1968, but he was expelled due to his political views two years later. From 1969 to 1972, Hekmatyar attended Kabul University's engineering department. During his first year at the university he wrote a 149-page book entitled The Priority of Sense Over Matter, where he refutes communists denying the existence of God by quoting European philosophers and scientists like Hegel or Francesco Redi. Though he did not complete his degree, his followers still address him as "Engineer Hekmatyar".
During his years in university, Hekmatyar joined the Sazman-i Jawanan-i Musulman ("Organization of Muslim Youth") which was gaining influence because of its opposition to the Soviet influence in Afghanistan increasing through the PDPA elements in Daoud's government. He was one of the foundational members of the organization. He may have also been influenced by the ideological teachings of Muslim Brotherhood member Sayyid Qutb. By his own account he became an Islamist when he heard of Qutb's death in 1966, on radio, and also contradicts that he was a communist during his youth. Although some believe that Hekmatyar threw acid at multiple female students, others have attributed this claim to the Soviet KGB's black propaganda. Hekmatyar's radicalism put him in confrontation with elements in the Muslim Youth surrounding Ahmad Shah Massoud, also an engineering student at Kabul University. In 1975, trying to assassinate a rival for the second time in three years, Hekmatyar with Pakistani help tried to assassinate Massoud, then 22 years old, but failed. In 1975, the "Islamic Society" split between supporters of Massoud and Burhanuddin Rabbani, who led the Jamiat-e Islami, and elements surrounding Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, who then founded the Hezb-i Islami. Akbarzadeh and Yasmeen describe Hekmatyar's approach as "radical" and antagonistic as opposed to an "inclusive" and "moderate" strategy by Rabbani.
Exile in Pakistan
The arrival of Afghan opposition militants in Peshawar coincided with a period of diplomatic tension between Pakistan and Afghanistan, due to Daoud's revival of the Pashtunistan issue. Under the patronage of Pakistani General Naseerullah Babar, then governor of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and with the blessing of Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, camps were set up to train Hekmatyar and other anti-Daoud Islamists. The Islamist movement had two main tendencies: the Jamiat-e islami ("Islamic society") led by Burhanuddin Rabbani, that advocated a gradualist strategy to gain power, through infiltration of society and the state apparatus. Rabbani advocated for the "building of a widely based movement that would create popular support". The other movement, called Hezb-i Islami ("Islamic Party"), was led by Hekmatyar, who favored a radical approach in the form of violent armed conflict. Pakistani support largely went to Hekmatyar's group, who, in October 1975, undertook to instigate an uprising against the government. Without popular support, the rebellion ended in complete failure, and hundreds of militants were arrested.
Hekmatyar's Hezb-e-Islami was formed as an elitist avant-garde based on a strictly disciplined Islamist ideology within a homogeneous organization that Olivier Roy described as "Leninist", and employed the rhetoric of the Iranian Revolution. It had its operational base in the Nasir Bagh, Worsak and Shamshatoo refugee camps in Pakistan. In these camps, Hezb-i Islami formed a social and political network and operated everything from schools to prisons, with the support of the Pakistani government and their Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). From 1976–1977 Afghan President Daoud made overtures to Pakistan which led to reconciliation with Pakistani leader Bhutto. Bhutto's support to Hekmatyar, however, continued and when Bhutto was removed from power in Pakistan by Zia-ul-Haq in 1977, Zia continued supporting Hekmatyar.
Soviet war in Afghanistan
During the Soviet–Afghan War, Hekmatyar received large amounts of aid from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and the United States. Hekmatyar also gained the support of the British MI6 and even met Margaret Thatcher in Downing Street. According to the ISI, their decision to allocate the highest percentage of covert aid to Hekmatyar was based on his record as an effective anti-Soviet military commander in Afghanistan. Others describe his position as the result of having "almost no grassroots support and no military base inside Afghanistan", and thus being the much more "dependent on Pakistani President Zia-ul-Haq's protection and financial largesse" than other mujahideen factions. Author Peter Bergen states that "by the most conservative estimates, $600 million" in American aid through Pakistan "went to the Hizb party ... Hekmatyar's party had the dubious distinction of never winning a significant battle during the war, training a variety of militant Islamists from around the world, killing significant numbers of mujahideen from other parties, and taking a virulently anti-Western line. In addition to hundreds of millions of dollars of American aid, Hekmatyar also received the lion's share of aid from the Saudis." Hekmatyar's constant scheming against all of the mujahideen factions led Pakistani general and leader Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq to warn Hekmatyar that it was Pakistan that made him an Afghan leader and that Pakistan could and would destroy him if he resisted operational control by ISI.
Involvement in heroin production
As the Soviet-Afghan War was coming to its end, Hekmatyar used the funds and weapons provided to him by the CIA and ISI to establish his organization as one of the leading heroin producers in the Middle East. Hekmatyar first became involved in the narcotics trade in the summer of 1988, as it became apparent that the Soviets were intending to withdraw. Initially becoming involved in trafficking opium, Hekmatyar's was the first of the mujahideen groups to establish and operate heroin production factories in the region. Hekmatyar's involvement in the production and distribution of illegal narcotics became a subject of diplomatic embarrassment for the United States' foreign service. The CIA officer with responsibility for its operations in Afghanistan at the time, Charles Cogan, said "Every situation has its fallout...There was fallout in terms of drugs, yes. But the main objective was accomplished."
Warfare with other Afghan groups
Hezb-e-Islami distinguished itself among the mujahideen by its practice of takfir, or pronouncing apostasy against other Muslims. On that basis it regularly attacked other mujahideen factions as well as the Soviet occupation. Hekmatyar's conflict with Jamiat-e Islami and its commander Ahmad Shah Massoud was particularly contentious. Massoud was arrested in Pakistan for espionage in 1976 with Hekmatyar's cooperation. Later Massoud and Hekmatyar agreed to stage a takeover operation in the Panjshir valley. Hekmatyar at the last minute refused to engage his part of the offensive, leaving Massoud open and vulnerable. Massoud's forces barely escaped with their lives. In July 1989 Hezb-e-Islami commander Sayyed Jamal ambushed and killed 30 commanders of Massoud's Shura-ye-Nazar at Farkhar in Takhar province. The attack was typical of Hekmatyar's strategy of trying to cripple rival factions, and incurred widespread condemnation among the mujahideen.
Hekmatyar's faction also attacked non-combatants such as British cameraman Andy Skrzypkowiak, who was killed in 1987 while carrying footage of Massoud's successes to the West. Despite protests from British representatives, Hekmatyar did not punish the culprits, and instead rewarded them with gifts. The same year Médecins Sans Frontières reported that Hekmatyar's guerrillas hijacked a 96-horse caravan bringing aid into northern Afghanistan, stealing a year's supply of medicine and cash that was to be distributed to villagers. This would have allowed the villagers to buy food. French relief officials also asserted that Thierry Niquet, an aid coordinator bringing cash to Afghan villagers, was killed by one of Hekmatyar's commanders in 1986. It is thought that two American journalists traveling with Hekmatyar in 1987, Lee Shapiro and Jim Lindelof, were killed not by the Soviets, as Hekmatyar's men claimed, but during a firefight initiated by Hekmatyar's forces against another mujahideen group.
Hekmatyar made an unlikely alliance with hardline communist and Minister of Defence Shahnawaz Tanai who launched a failed coup attempt in March 1990 against President Najibullah. Many senior members of his party resigned in protest of the coalition, and other Mujahideen groups ridiculed Hekmatyar for uniting with Khalqists to oust the Parcham government. In addition, there were frequent reports throughout the war of Hekmatyar's commanders negotiating and dealing with pro-Communist local militias in northern Afghanistan.
Overall, Hekmatyar has been accused of spending "more time fighting other Mujahideen than killing Soviets." Through the anti-Soviet war and beyond, he remained a controversial yet persistently influential figure whom the New York Times described as "perhaps the most brutal of a generally brutal group".
Post-DRA civil war
A highly controversial commander, Hekmatyar has been dubbed the "Butcher of Kabul", accused of being responsible for the destruction and civilian deaths Kabul experienced in the early 1990s.
According to the U.S. Special Envoy to Afghanistan in 1989–1992, Peter Tomsen, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar was hired in 1990 by the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to conquer and rule Afghanistan in the benefit of Pakistani interests. The plan was delayed until 1992 due to US pressure to cancel that plan.
In April 1992, as the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan began to collapse, government officials joined the mujahideen, choosing different parties according to their ethnic and political affinities. For the most part, the members of the khalq faction of the PDPA, who were predominantly Pashtuns, joined with Hekmatyar. With their help, he began on 24 April to infiltrate troops into Kabul, and announced that he had seized the city, and that should any other leaders try to fly into Kabul, he would shoot their plane down. The new leader of the "Islamic Interim Government of Afghanistan", Sibghatullah Mojaddedi, appointed Ahmad Shah Massoud as defense minister, and urged him to take action. This he did, taking the offensive on 25 April, and after two days heavy fighting, the Hezb-i Islami and its allies were expelled from Kabul. A peace agreement was signed with Massoud on 25 May 1992, which made Hekmatyar Prime Minister. However, the agreement fell apart when he was blamed for a rocket attack on President Mojaddedi's plane. The following day, fighting resumed between Burhanuddin Rabbani's and Ahmed Shah Massoud's Jamiat, Abdul Rashid Dostum's Jumbish forces and Hekmatyar's Hezb-i Islami forces.
From 1992 to 1996, the warring factions destroyed most of Kabul and killed thousands, many of them civilians, during the Afghan civil war. All the different parties participated in the destruction, but Hekmatyar's group was responsible for most of the damage, because of his practice of deliberately targeting civilian areas. Hekmatyar is thought to have bombarded Kabul in retaliation for what he considered its inhabitants' collaboration with the Soviets, and out of religious conviction. He once told a New York Times journalist that Afghanistan "already had one and a half million martyrs. We are ready to offer as many to establish a true Islamic Republic." His attacks also had a political objective: to undermine the Rabbani government by proving that Rabbani and Massoud were unable to protect the population. In 1994 Hekmatyar would shift alliances, joining with Dostum as well as Hizb-e-Wahdat, a Hazara Shi'a party, to form the Shura-i Hamahangi ("Council of coordination"). Together they laid Siege on Kabul, unleashing massive barrages of artillery and rockets that led to the evacuation of U.N. personnel from Kabul, and caused several government members to abandon their posts. However the new alliance did not spell victory for Hekmatyar, and in June 1994, Massoud had driven Dostum's troops from the capital.
Relations with the Taliban
The Pakistani military had supported Hekmatyar until then in the hope of installing a Pashtun-dominated government in Kabul, which would be friendly to their interests. By 1994, it had become clear that Hekmatyar would never achieve this, and that his extremism had antagonised most Pashtuns, so the Pakistanis began turning towards the predominantly Pashtun Taliban. After capturing Kandahar in November 1994, the Taliban made rapid progress towards Kabul, making inroads into Hezb-e Islami positions. They captured Wardak on 2 February 1995, and moved on to Maidan Shahr on 10 February and Mohammed Agha the next day. Very soon, Hekmatyar found himself caught between the advancing Taliban and the government forces, and the morale of his men collapsed. On 14 February, he was forced to abandon his headquarters at Charasiab, from where rockets were fired at Kabul, and flee in disorder to Surobi.
Nonetheless, in May 1996, Rabbani and Hekmatyar finally formed a power-sharing government in which Hekmatyar was made prime minister. Rabbani was anxious to enhance the legitimacy of his government by enlisting the support of Pashtun leaders. However, the Mahipar agreement did not bring any such benefits to him as Hekmatyar had little grassroots support, but did have many adverse effects: it caused outrage among Jamiat supporters, and among the population of Kabul, who had endured Hekmatyar's attacks for the last four years. Moreover, the agreement was clearly not what the Pakistanis wanted, and convinced them of Hekmatyar's weakness, and that they should shift their aid entirely over to the Taliban. Hekmatyar took office on 26 June, and immediately started issuing severe decrees on women's dress that struck a sharp contrast with the relatively liberal policy that Massoud had followed until then. The Taliban responded to the agreement with a further spate of rocket attacks on the capital. The Rabbani/Hekmatyar regime lasted only a few months before the Taliban took control of Kabul in September 1996. Many of the Hezb-e Islami local commanders joined the Taliban, "both out of ideological sympathy and for reason of tribal solidarity." Those that did not were expelled by the Taliban. In Pakistan, Hezb-e Islami training camps "were taken over by the Taliban and handed over" to Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) groups such as the Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP).
Hekmatyar then fled to Massoud's stronghold in Panjshir who, despite Hekmatyar's history of animosity towards him, helped him flee to Iran in 1997, where he is said to have resided for almost six years. Isolated from Afghanistan he is reported to have "lost ... his power base back home" to defections or inactivity of former members. He was also distrusted by the Iranian Government, who found him too unpredictable, unreliable, and an unnecessary liability, considering its tense relations at the time with the Taliban and the Pakistani government. Despite his pleas, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards refused to establish a proxy through any of his organizations or assist him in any way. Allegedly, they even cut his phone lines and turned away anyone who wished to see him in his villa in North Tehran.
Activities in the Islamic Republic
After the 9/11 attacks in the United States Hekmatyar, who had allegedly "worked closely" with bin Laden in early 1990s, declared his opposition to the US campaign in Afghanistan and criticized Pakistan for assisting the United States. After the U.S. entry into the anti-Taliban alliance and the fall of the Taliban, Hekmatyar rejected the U.N.-brokered accord of 5 December 2001 negotiated in Germany as a post-Taliban interim government for Afghanistan. As a result of pressure by the U.S. and the Karzai administration, on 10 February 2002 all the offices of Hezb-e-Islami were closed in Iran and Hekmatyar was expelled by his Iranian hosts.
The United States accused Hekmatyar of urging Taliban fighters to re-form and fight against Coalition troops in Afghanistan. He was also accused of offering bounties for those who kill U.S. troops. He has been labeled a war criminal by members of the U.S.-backed President Hamid Karzai's government. ISAF identified Hekmatyar in 2002 as the number one security threat, ahead of the Taliban or al-Qaeda. He was also a suspect behind the 5 September 2002 assassination attempt on Karzai in Kandahar and a bomb the same day that killed more than a dozen people in Kabul. That same month, he released newsletters and tape messages calling for jihad against the United States. One of his commanders commented that there "will be suicide attacks [...] against soldiers". On 25 December 2002, news broke that American spy organizations had discovered Hekmatyar attempting to join al-Qaeda. According to the news, he had said that he was available to aid them. However, in a video released by Hekmatyar 1 September 2003, he denied forming alliances with the Taliban or al-Qaeda, but praised attacks against U.S. and international forces.
On 10 February 2003, the Afghan government reported that Hekmatyar was planning an alliance with Taliban and al-Qaeda factions. His group was involved in an intense battle with the U.S. army near Spin Boldak. On February 19, 2003 the United States State Department and the United States Treasury Department jointly designated Hekmatyar a "global terrorist." This designation meant that any assets Hekmatyar held in the U.S., or held through companies based in the U.S., would be frozen. The U.S. also requested the United Nations Committee on Terrorism to follow suit, and designate Hekmatyar an associate of Osama bin Laden. In October 2003, he declared a ceasefire with local commanders in Jalalabad, Kunar, Logar and Surobi, and stated that they should only fight foreigners.
In May 2006, he released a video to Al Jazeera in which he accused Iran of backing the U.S. in the Afghan conflict and said he was ready to fight alongside Osama bin Laden and blamed the ongoing conflicts in Palestine, Iraq and Afghanistan on U.S. interference. In an audiotape released the same month, he called for revolt against U.S. forces and Karzai's "puppet government", and directly threatened to kill Lt. General Karl Eikenberry. In September 2006, he was reported as captured, but the report was later retracted. In December 2006, a video was released in Pakistan, where Gulbuddin Hekmatyar claimed "the fate Soviet Union faced is awaiting America as well." In January 2007 CNN reported that Hekmatyar claimed "that his fighters helped Osama bin Laden escape from the mountains of Tora Bora five years ago." BBC news reported a quote from a December 2006 interview broadcast on GEO TV, "We helped them [bin Laden and Zawahiri] get out of the caves and led them to a safe place."
2008 resurgence
In May 2008, the Jamestown Foundation reported that after being "sidelined from Afghan politics" since the mid-1990s, Gulbuddin's HIG group had "recently reemerged as an aggressive militant group, claiming responsibility for many bloody attacks against Coalition forces at the time, primarily the International Security Assistance Force and the administration of President Hamid Karzai." The re-emergence of him as an "experienced guerrilla strategist" came at a propitious time for insurgency, following the killing of Taliban commander Mullah Dadullah, when some elements of the Taliban were becoming "disorganized and frustrated." HIG claimed responsibility for and is thought to have at least assisted in a 27 April 2008 attempt on the life of President Karzai in Kabul that killed three Afghan citizens, including a member of parliament. Other attacks for which it was thought to be responsible included the 2 January 2008 shooting down in Laghman province of a helicopter containing foreign troops; the shooting and forcing down of a U.S. military helicopter in Sarubi district of Kabul on 22 January; and blowing up a Kabul police vehicle in March 2008, killing 10 soldiers.
In interviews he demanded "all foreign forces to leave immediately unconditionally." Offers by President Hamid Karzai to open talks with "opponents of the government" and hints that they would be offered official posts "such as deputy minister or head of department", were thought to be directed at Hekmatyar. It was reported in 2008 that Hekmatyar lived in an unknown location in southeastern Afghanistan, close to the Pakistani border. In 2008, he denied any links with the Taliban or al-Qaeda and was even considered for prime minister. At the time, Hekmatyar was believed to shuttle between hideouts in Pakistan's mountainous tribal areas and northeast Afghanistan.
In January 2010, he was still considered one of the three main leaders of the Afghan insurgency. By then, he held out the possibility of negotiations with President Karzai and outlined a roadmap for political reconciliation. This contrasted with the views of Taliban leader Mullah Omar and allied insurgent chief Sirajuddin Haqqani, who refused any talks with Kabul as long as foreign troops remained in the country, Hekmatyar appeared less reluctant.
On 10 February 2014, Gulbuddin's HIG group executed an attack which killed two US civilians, Paul Goins and Michael Hughes, and wounded two other Americans and seven Afghan nationals. HIG was also responsible for a 16 May 2013 suicide VBIED attack in Kabul, which destroyed a US armored SUV and killed two US soldiers, four US civilian contractors, eight Afghans—including two children—and wounded at least 37 others. The attack marked the deadliest incident against US personnel in Kabul in 2013.
2016 peace deal and pardon
On 22 September 2016, Hekmatyar was pardoned by the Afghan government as part of a peace deal between Hezb-i-Islami and the government. The deal also allowed for the release of Hezb-i-Islami prisoners and the return of Hekmatyar to public life. The deal led a group of young activists to organise a protest against the pardoning less than a mile away from the signing ceremony. Human Rights Watch called the deal "an affront to victims of grave abuses". Hezb-i-Islami agreed to cease hostilities, cut ties to extremist groups and respect the Afghan Constitution in exchange for government recognition of the group and support for the removal of United Nations and American sanctions against Hekmatyar, who was also promised an honorary post in the government.
The agreement was formalised on 29 September 2016 with both Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Hekmatyar, who appeared via a video link in the presidential palace, signing the agreement. UN sanctions on him were formally lifted on 3 February 2017. On 4 May 2017, he returned to Kabul along with his fighters to meet President Ghani after spending two decades in hiding.
He has then called on the Taliban to end their insurgency and lay down arms. Hekmatyar ran in the 2019 Afghan presidential election and finished a distant third.
During and after U.S. withdrawal
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and his organization are reported to have joined the Council of Reconciliation formed by the Taliban.
Relatives
Some of Gulbuddin's relatives have served or are suspected of serving as his deputies.
Books
Having been described as a "prolific writer" who, "despite rarely ceasing to fight, has authored more than 60 (reportedly 79) books on linguistics, Pashto grammar, comparative religion and political analysis", some of his publications include :
Buḥrān-i mushkīlāt-i rāhhā-yi ḥal, 2000, 194 p. Politics and government in Afghanistan during 1989 to 1998, when Taliban extended their control to most parts of Afghanistan.
Shiʻr va ʻirfān dar miḥak-i Qurʼān va shaqāyiq-i adabī, 2001, 104 p. On good and bad poetry and mysticism in light of the teachings of the Qur'an.
Būdā az sharm furūʹnarīkht, takhrīb shud : dar pāsukh-i Makhmalbāf, 2003, 196 p. Critical study of "Būdā dar Afghānistān takhrīb nashud, az sharm furūʹrīkht" a book by prominent Iranian writer Mohsen Makhmalbaf on the history, jihad and Afghan refugees and other articles on Afghanistan.
Tawhīd aw shirk, 2004, 254 p. On the Oneness of God and polytheism as interpreted in Qur'an.
Da Qurʼān palwashe, 2006-2011, 8 volumes. Translation into Pashto and commentary of the Qur'an.
Bāʼībal da Qurʼān pah raṇā ke, 2006, 871 p. Analytical study of Bible in the light of Qur'an.
Islāmī taḥrīk : Nādirī k̲h̲ānadān ko iqtidār men̲ lāne se Rūsiyon̲ ke ink̲h̲ilāʼ tak, 2008-, multiple volumes. Historical study of Afghanistan from King Mohammed Nadir Shah regime of 1929 up to Russian withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1989.
Rātlūnkay Islāmī niẓām bah ṡangah wī? mashar bah ʼī ṡok wī? ṡangah bah ghwarah kīẓhī?, 2009, 167 p. Government and politics according to Islamic teachings.
References
Further reading
Coll, Steve. Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to 10 September 2001 Penguin Press, 2004. .
External links
1949 births
Living people
Prime Ministers of Afghanistan
Afghan Sunni Muslims
Afghan expatriates in Iran
Afghan expatriates in Pakistan
Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin politicians
Afghan Muslim Brotherhood members
Mujahideen members of the Soviet–Afghan War
Pashtun people
People from Kunduz Province
Quran translators
Individuals related to Iran Sanctions
CIA and Islamism | false | [
"The Islamic State of Afghanistan (, Dawlat-i Islāmī-yi Afghānistan, , Da Afghanistan Islami Dowlat) was the government of Afghanistan, established by the Peshawar Accords on 26 April 1992 by many, but not all, Afghan mujahideen parties, after the fall of the communist government. Its power was limited due to civil war. When the Taliban took power of Kabul in 1996, it transitioned to a government in exile and led the Northern Alliance against the partially recognized Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. In the aftermath of the 2001 United States-led invasion of Afghanistan and victory by the Northern Alliance, the Islamic State briefly regained control of the country. In 2002, it was formally succeeded by the Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan.\n\nBackground \n\nIn March 1992, President Mohammad Najibullah, having lost the Russian support that upheld his government, agreed to resign and make way for a neutral, interim government. Several mujahideen parties started negotiations to form a national coalition government. But one group, the Hezb-e Islami led by Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, presumably supported and directed by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), did not join the negotiations and announced its intent to conquer Kabul alone. Hekmatyar moved his troops to Kabul, and was allowed into the town soon after 17 April. This left the other mujahideen groups no choice but to enter Kabul, on 24 April, to prevent Hekmatyar from taking over national government.This ignited a civil war between five or six rival armies, (nearly) all backed by foreign states. Several mujahideen groups proclaimed an 'interim government' on 26 April 1992 but this never attained real authority over Afghanistan.\n\nHistory\n\nRabbani and Hekmatyar \n\nNajibullah of the formerly communist Republic of Afghanistan was forced to resign on 15 April 1992. The Peshawar Accord of 25 April 1992, which established a power-sharing interim government to take control of Kabul, was signed by six of the seven major Afghan anti-Soviet resistance parties (notably excluding the Hezb-e Islami [\"Islamic Party\"] faction of Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, a Pashtun, who refused to sign the Accord), and supported by some remnants of the Najibullah administration. An Islamic state was proclaimed, Islamic law introduced, bars were closed, and women were ordered to wear the hijab. In June, Burhanuddin Rabbani, leader of the Tajik-dominated Jamiat-e Islami (\"Islamic Association\") faction, was made interim-president of the new Islamic State of Afghanistan, and on 30 December 1992 he was elected head of the 7-member Government Council for a two-year term. However, Hekmatyar's Hezb-e Islami rebel faction (which had split from Jamiat-e Islami in 1976) demanded a share in power as well, and started clashing with Rabbani's troops. After months of fighting, they signed an agreement in March 1993 making Hekmatyar the Prime Minister of Afghanistan in June, and shortening Rabbani's presidency from 2 years to 1.5 year. Fighting between different rebel factions continued, however, and Kabul was largely destroyed.\n\nRise of the Taliban \n\nIn late 1994, a new Pashtun-dominated Islamic fundamentalist militia called the Taliban () managed to conquer large parts of southern Afghanistan with the support of Pakistan. Making steady gains throughout 1995 and 1996, the Taliban were able to seize control of the capital city of Kabul in September 1996, driving the Rabbani government and other factions northward, and by the end of the year occupying two-thirds of Afghanistan. Former president Najibullah was arrested and executed in public by hanging on 27 September 1996.\n\nThe Taliban renamed the country the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, and imposed an even more strict version of Sharia and purdah on the population they controlled. This especially negatively impacted women, who were forced to wear a burqa, stay indoors and banned from working outside the house with rare exceptions. Almost all girls lost access to education, increasing illiteracy rates. Movie theaters, soccer stadiums, and television stations were now closed as well.\n\nThe Northern Alliance \n\nThe ousted Rabbani government formed a political coalition with Uzbek warlord Abdul Rashid Dostum, Tajik leader Ahmed Shah Massoud and the Shia Hizb-i-Wahdat faction (dominated by Hazaras) of Karim Khalili. Its formal name was United Islamic Front for the Salvation of Afghanistan, known in the Western Hemisphere as the Northern Alliance, and its goal was to take back the country from the Taliban. The Islamic State remained the internationally recognized representative of Afghanistan at the United Nations until 2001, when the Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan was created and an Afghan Interim Administration took control of Afghanistan with U.S. and NATO assistance, following the overthrow of the Taliban government.\n\nBy the end of May 1997, the Taliban offensive came to a halt due to a number of strategic victories by the Northern Alliance. International pressure forced both sides to negotiate, but the demands posed by either party were so high that the differences were irreconcilable, and a political impasse ensued. The country was in a dire state according to a 1997 United Nations report, which found that the infant mortality rate was 25%, numerous civil casualties due to landmines, economic blockades imposed by the militias causing hunger, and international humanitarian organisations being unable to carry out their work. A February 1998 earthquake in northeastern Afghanistan killed 4,500 people.\n\nIn the first half of 1998, the negotiations appeared to reach a peace settlement, but then the Northern Alliance fell apart. Taking advantage of the resistance factions' disunity the Taliban launched a campaign, rapidly conquering the provincial capital cities of Maimana, Sheberghan, and finally Mazar-i-Sharif (8 August 1998). Taliban fighters committed a massacre amongst the Shia population of the last city, also killing eight Iranian journalists and diplomats. This aroused international outrage, and brought the Taliban regime on the brink of war with Iran.\n\nThe Northern Alliance drove the Taliban away in December 2001, following the United States invasion of Afghanistan. The Islamic State of Afghanistan was succeeded by the interim Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan in 2002.\n\nGallery\n\nReferences\n\nBibliography\n \n\n \nFormer political entities in Afghanistan\nHistory of Islam in Afghanistan\n1990s in Afghanistan\n2000s in Afghanistan\nAfghanistan, Islamic State\nAfghanistan, Islamic State\nHistory of Afghanistan (1992–present)\nStates and territories established in 1992\nStates and territories disestablished in 2002\n1992 establishments in Afghanistan\n2002 disestablishments in Afghanistan\nAfghanistan conflict (1978–present)",
"The 1995 attack on the Pakistan Embassy in Kabul occurred on 6 September 1995 when up to 5,000 protestors attacked and sacked the embassy of Pakistan in Kabul, Afghanistan, after the Taliban militia had captured Herat from the internationally recognised Islamic State of Afghanistan. One person was killed and twenty six others, including the Pakistani ambassador, were injured. The attack occurred due to the Afghan peoples belief that Pakistan had helped the Taliban to take the city.\n\nBackground\nThe attack against the Pakistani embassy by pro-government protestors in Kabul took place a day after the Taliban militia had successfully established control over Herat. When the Taliban took control of Herat, they arrested hundreds of its citizens, closed down all the schools and \"forcibly implement[ed] their social bans and Sharia law, even more fiercely than in Kandahar\". The Taliban imposed as rulers over the city and region extremist Taliban officials \"many of whom\" did not even speak the local regional language Persian.\n\nKamal Matinuddin, Lt. General of the Pakistan army and former member of Pakistan's diplomatic corps, alleges the Afghan government sacked the embassy in \"retaliation for the capture of Herat\" because they \"felt\" the Taliban could have only done so with Pakistan's help. But according to William Maley, the Director of the Asia-Pacific College of Diplomacy, the attack by angry protestors against the Pakistan embassy was due to \"bitter resentment towards Pakistan which had built up among the victims of Pakistan's strategy\" first using Gulbuddin Hekmatyar in a destructive bombardment campaign against Kabul and then the Taliban to install a client in Afghanistan. \n \nDe facto, scholars such as Pakistani analyst Ahmed Rashid, write:\n\n\"[T]he Taliban had spent the summer [of 1995] rebuilding their forces with arms, ammunition and vehicles provided by Pakistan and Saudi Arabia and a new command structure created with the help of ISI advisers. The ISI also helped broker an agreement, never made public, between the Taliban and General Rashid Dostum ... to repair Mig fighters and helicopters the Taliban had captured a year earlier in Kandahar, thereby creating the Taliban's first airpower. ... the Taliban quickly mobilised some 25,000 men, many of them fresh volunteers from Pakistan.\"\n\nAccording to \"Pakistan and the Taliban\" by Ahmed Rashid, also published in April 1998 as a column in The Nation, Pakistan furthermore directly provided limited \"military support\" in the Taliban's September 1995 offensive against Herat which led to the capture of the city and the subsequent anti-Pakistan protests in Kabul.\n\nRizwan Hussein in \"Pakistan and the emergence of Islamic militancy in Afghanistan\" summarises: \"As has now been established by several scholarly and journalistic works, the Pakistan military establishment directly assisted the Taliban's rise and subsequent capture of this region [Herat] in Afghanistan between 1995 and 1996.\" The Pakistan Institute of International Affairs describes Pakistan's support to the Taliban as \"at its height\" in 1995. The Pakistani ambassador to Kabul, Qazi Humayun, himself alongside Pakistan's Consul General in Herat, Colonel Imam, later attended Taliban meetings in Kandahar. These meetings discussed how the Taliban could best conquer Afghanistan militarily and how \"best to impose Sharia law\" over Afghanistan.\n\nPakistani politicians during that time repeatedly denied supporting the Taliban, which has been described by reliable sources as an explicit 'policy of denial'.\n\nSee also\n\n Afghanistan–Pakistan relations\n2003 attack on the Embassy of Pakistan in Kabul, Afghanistan\n\nReferences\n\nAttacks on diplomatic missions in Afghanistan\nAttacks on diplomatic missions of Pakistan\nTerrorist incidents in Kabul\nTerrorist incidents in Afghanistan in 1995\n20th century in Kabul\nAfghan Civil War (1992–1996)\nIslamic State of Afghanistan\n1995 in international relations\n1995 murders in Asia\n1990s murders in Afghanistan\n1995 crimes in Afghanistan\nSeptember 1995 events in Asia\n1995 in Pakistan\nGovernment of Benazir Bhutto\nAnti-Pakistan sentiment\nAfghanistan–Pakistan relations"
] |
[
"Gulbuddin Hekmatyar",
"Post-DRA civil war",
"what does DRA stand for?",
"the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan",
"what happened after their Civil War?",
"Gulbuddin Hekmatyar was hired in 1990 by the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to conquer and rule Afghanistan in the benefit of Pakistani",
"did they conquer Afghanistan?",
"I don't know."
] | C_1de7a81f466b4d4bb18532d17a9f852d_1 | who was the head of the ISI? | 4 | who was the head of the ISI in 1990? | Gulbuddin Hekmatyar | A highly controversial commander, Hekmatyar has been dubbed the "Butcher of Kabul", accused of being responsible for the destruction and civilian deaths Kabul experienced in the early 1990s. According to the U.S. Special Envoy to Afghanistan in 1989-1992, Peter Tomsen, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar was hired in 1990 by the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to conquer and rule Afghanistan in the benefit of Pakistani interests, which plan was delayed until 1992 due to US pressure to cancel that plan. In April 1992, as the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan began to collapse, government officials joined the mujahideen, choosing different parties according to their ethnic and political affinities. For the most part, the members of the khalq faction of the PDPA, who were predominantly Pashtuns, joined with Hekmatyar. With their help, he began on 24 April to infiltrate troops into Kabul, and announced that he had seized the city, and that should any other leaders try to fly into Kabul, he would shoot their plane down. The new leader of the "Islamic Interim Government of Afghanistan", Sibghatullah Mojaddedi, appointed Ahmad Shah Massoud as defense minister, and urged him to take action. This he did, taking the offensive on 25 April, and after two days heavy fighting, the Hezb-i Islami and its allies were expelled from Kabul. A peace agreement was signed with Massoud on 25 May 1992, which made Hekmatyar Prime Minister. However, the agreement fell apart when he was blamed for a rocket attack on President Mojaddedi's plane. The following day, fighting resumed between Burhanuddin Rabbani's and Ahmed Shah Massoud's Jamiat, Abdul Rashid Dostum's Jumbish forces and Hekmatyar's Hezb-i Islami forces. From 1992 to 1996, the warring factions destroyed most of Kabul and killed thousands of people, most of them civilians, during the Afghan civil war. All the different parties participated in the destruction, but Hekmatyar's group was responsible for most of the damage, because of his practice of deliberately targeting civilian areas. Hekmatyar is thought to have bombarded Kabul in retaliation for what he considered its inhabitants' collaboration with the Soviets, and out of religious conviction. He once told a New York Times journalist that Afghanistan "already had one and a half million martyrs. We are ready to offer as many to establish a true Islamic Republic." His attacks also had a political objective: to undermine the Rabbani government by proving that Rabbani and Massoud were unable to protect the population. In 1994 Hekmatyar would shift alliances, joining with Dostum as well as Hizb-e-Wahdat, a Hazara Shi'a party, to form the Shura-i Hamahangi ("Council of coordination"). Together they laid Siege of Kabul, unleashing massive barrages of artillery and rockets that led to the evacuation of U.N. personnel from Kabul, and caused several government members to abandon their posts. However the new alliance did not spell victory for Hekmatyar, and in June 1994, Massoud had driven Dostum's troops from the capital. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Gulbuddin Hekmatyar (; born 1 August 1949) is an Afghan politician, former mujahideen leader and drug trafficker. He is the founder and current leader of the Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin political party, so called after Mohammad Yunus Khalis split from Hezbi Islami in 1979 to found Hezb-i Islami Khalis. He has twice served as Prime Minister during the 1990s.
Hekmatyar joined the Muslim Youth organization as a student in the early 1970s, where he was known for his Islamic radicalism rejected by much of the organization. He spent time in Pakistan before returning to Afghanistan when the Soviet–Afghan War began in 1979, at which time the CIA began funding his rapidly growing Hezb-e Islami organization through the Pakistani intelligence service, ISI, one of the largest of the Afghan mujahideen. He received more CIA funding than any other mujahideen leader during the Soviet-Afghan War.
In the late 1980s, Hekmatyar and his organization started trafficking opium and later moved into manufacturing heroin. He established himself and his group amongst the leading heroin suppliers in the middle east. Given the CIA's earlier supplying him with weapons and funding, this became a subject of diplomatic embarrassment for the US foreign service. Following the ouster of Soviet-backed Afghan President Mohammad Najibullah in 1992, Hekmatyar declined to form part of the new government and, with other warlords, engaged in the Afghan civil war, leading to the death of around 50,000 civilians in Kabul alone. Hekmatyar was accused of bearing the most responsibility for the rocket attacks on the city. In the meantime, as part of the peace and power-sharing efforts led by Ahmad Shah Massoud, Hekmatyar became Prime Minister of Afghanistan from 1993 to 1994 and again briefly in 1996, before the Taliban takeover of Kabul forced him to flee to Iran's capital Tehran.
Sometime after the Taliban's fall in 2001 he went to Pakistan, leading his paramilitary forces into an unsuccessful armed campaign against Hamid Karzai's government and the international coalition in Afghanistan. In 2016, he signed a peace deal with the Afghan government and was allowed to return to Afghanistan after almost 20 years in exile.
Following the collapse of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, on 17 August 2021, Hekmatyar met with both Hamid Karzai, former President of Afghanistan, and Abdullah Abdullah, former Chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation and former Chief Executive, in Doha seeking to form a government.
Early life
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar was born in 1949 in Imam Saheb, Kunduz province, in the north of what was then the Kingdom of Afghanistan, a member of the Kharoti tribe of Ghilji Pashtuns. His father, Ghulam Qader, who migrated to Kunduz, is originally from the Ghazni province. Afghan businessman and Kharoti tribal leader Gholam Serwar Nasher deemed Hekmatyar to be a bright young man and sent him to the Mahtab Qala military academy in 1968, but he was expelled due to his political views two years later. From 1969 to 1972, Hekmatyar attended Kabul University's engineering department. During his first year at the university he wrote a 149-page book entitled The Priority of Sense Over Matter, where he refutes communists denying the existence of God by quoting European philosophers and scientists like Hegel or Francesco Redi. Though he did not complete his degree, his followers still address him as "Engineer Hekmatyar".
During his years in university, Hekmatyar joined the Sazman-i Jawanan-i Musulman ("Organization of Muslim Youth") which was gaining influence because of its opposition to the Soviet influence in Afghanistan increasing through the PDPA elements in Daoud's government. He was one of the foundational members of the organization. He may have also been influenced by the ideological teachings of Muslim Brotherhood member Sayyid Qutb. By his own account he became an Islamist when he heard of Qutb's death in 1966, on radio, and also contradicts that he was a communist during his youth. Although some believe that Hekmatyar threw acid at multiple female students, others have attributed this claim to the Soviet KGB's black propaganda. Hekmatyar's radicalism put him in confrontation with elements in the Muslim Youth surrounding Ahmad Shah Massoud, also an engineering student at Kabul University. In 1975, trying to assassinate a rival for the second time in three years, Hekmatyar with Pakistani help tried to assassinate Massoud, then 22 years old, but failed. In 1975, the "Islamic Society" split between supporters of Massoud and Burhanuddin Rabbani, who led the Jamiat-e Islami, and elements surrounding Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, who then founded the Hezb-i Islami. Akbarzadeh and Yasmeen describe Hekmatyar's approach as "radical" and antagonistic as opposed to an "inclusive" and "moderate" strategy by Rabbani.
Exile in Pakistan
The arrival of Afghan opposition militants in Peshawar coincided with a period of diplomatic tension between Pakistan and Afghanistan, due to Daoud's revival of the Pashtunistan issue. Under the patronage of Pakistani General Naseerullah Babar, then governor of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and with the blessing of Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, camps were set up to train Hekmatyar and other anti-Daoud Islamists. The Islamist movement had two main tendencies: the Jamiat-e islami ("Islamic society") led by Burhanuddin Rabbani, that advocated a gradualist strategy to gain power, through infiltration of society and the state apparatus. Rabbani advocated for the "building of a widely based movement that would create popular support". The other movement, called Hezb-i Islami ("Islamic Party"), was led by Hekmatyar, who favored a radical approach in the form of violent armed conflict. Pakistani support largely went to Hekmatyar's group, who, in October 1975, undertook to instigate an uprising against the government. Without popular support, the rebellion ended in complete failure, and hundreds of militants were arrested.
Hekmatyar's Hezb-e-Islami was formed as an elitist avant-garde based on a strictly disciplined Islamist ideology within a homogeneous organization that Olivier Roy described as "Leninist", and employed the rhetoric of the Iranian Revolution. It had its operational base in the Nasir Bagh, Worsak and Shamshatoo refugee camps in Pakistan. In these camps, Hezb-i Islami formed a social and political network and operated everything from schools to prisons, with the support of the Pakistani government and their Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). From 1976–1977 Afghan President Daoud made overtures to Pakistan which led to reconciliation with Pakistani leader Bhutto. Bhutto's support to Hekmatyar, however, continued and when Bhutto was removed from power in Pakistan by Zia-ul-Haq in 1977, Zia continued supporting Hekmatyar.
Soviet war in Afghanistan
During the Soviet–Afghan War, Hekmatyar received large amounts of aid from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and the United States. Hekmatyar also gained the support of the British MI6 and even met Margaret Thatcher in Downing Street. According to the ISI, their decision to allocate the highest percentage of covert aid to Hekmatyar was based on his record as an effective anti-Soviet military commander in Afghanistan. Others describe his position as the result of having "almost no grassroots support and no military base inside Afghanistan", and thus being the much more "dependent on Pakistani President Zia-ul-Haq's protection and financial largesse" than other mujahideen factions. Author Peter Bergen states that "by the most conservative estimates, $600 million" in American aid through Pakistan "went to the Hizb party ... Hekmatyar's party had the dubious distinction of never winning a significant battle during the war, training a variety of militant Islamists from around the world, killing significant numbers of mujahideen from other parties, and taking a virulently anti-Western line. In addition to hundreds of millions of dollars of American aid, Hekmatyar also received the lion's share of aid from the Saudis." Hekmatyar's constant scheming against all of the mujahideen factions led Pakistani general and leader Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq to warn Hekmatyar that it was Pakistan that made him an Afghan leader and that Pakistan could and would destroy him if he resisted operational control by ISI.
Involvement in heroin production
As the Soviet-Afghan War was coming to its end, Hekmatyar used the funds and weapons provided to him by the CIA and ISI to establish his organization as one of the leading heroin producers in the Middle East. Hekmatyar first became involved in the narcotics trade in the summer of 1988, as it became apparent that the Soviets were intending to withdraw. Initially becoming involved in trafficking opium, Hekmatyar's was the first of the mujahideen groups to establish and operate heroin production factories in the region. Hekmatyar's involvement in the production and distribution of illegal narcotics became a subject of diplomatic embarrassment for the United States' foreign service. The CIA officer with responsibility for its operations in Afghanistan at the time, Charles Cogan, said "Every situation has its fallout...There was fallout in terms of drugs, yes. But the main objective was accomplished."
Warfare with other Afghan groups
Hezb-e-Islami distinguished itself among the mujahideen by its practice of takfir, or pronouncing apostasy against other Muslims. On that basis it regularly attacked other mujahideen factions as well as the Soviet occupation. Hekmatyar's conflict with Jamiat-e Islami and its commander Ahmad Shah Massoud was particularly contentious. Massoud was arrested in Pakistan for espionage in 1976 with Hekmatyar's cooperation. Later Massoud and Hekmatyar agreed to stage a takeover operation in the Panjshir valley. Hekmatyar at the last minute refused to engage his part of the offensive, leaving Massoud open and vulnerable. Massoud's forces barely escaped with their lives. In July 1989 Hezb-e-Islami commander Sayyed Jamal ambushed and killed 30 commanders of Massoud's Shura-ye-Nazar at Farkhar in Takhar province. The attack was typical of Hekmatyar's strategy of trying to cripple rival factions, and incurred widespread condemnation among the mujahideen.
Hekmatyar's faction also attacked non-combatants such as British cameraman Andy Skrzypkowiak, who was killed in 1987 while carrying footage of Massoud's successes to the West. Despite protests from British representatives, Hekmatyar did not punish the culprits, and instead rewarded them with gifts. The same year Médecins Sans Frontières reported that Hekmatyar's guerrillas hijacked a 96-horse caravan bringing aid into northern Afghanistan, stealing a year's supply of medicine and cash that was to be distributed to villagers. This would have allowed the villagers to buy food. French relief officials also asserted that Thierry Niquet, an aid coordinator bringing cash to Afghan villagers, was killed by one of Hekmatyar's commanders in 1986. It is thought that two American journalists traveling with Hekmatyar in 1987, Lee Shapiro and Jim Lindelof, were killed not by the Soviets, as Hekmatyar's men claimed, but during a firefight initiated by Hekmatyar's forces against another mujahideen group.
Hekmatyar made an unlikely alliance with hardline communist and Minister of Defence Shahnawaz Tanai who launched a failed coup attempt in March 1990 against President Najibullah. Many senior members of his party resigned in protest of the coalition, and other Mujahideen groups ridiculed Hekmatyar for uniting with Khalqists to oust the Parcham government. In addition, there were frequent reports throughout the war of Hekmatyar's commanders negotiating and dealing with pro-Communist local militias in northern Afghanistan.
Overall, Hekmatyar has been accused of spending "more time fighting other Mujahideen than killing Soviets." Through the anti-Soviet war and beyond, he remained a controversial yet persistently influential figure whom the New York Times described as "perhaps the most brutal of a generally brutal group".
Post-DRA civil war
A highly controversial commander, Hekmatyar has been dubbed the "Butcher of Kabul", accused of being responsible for the destruction and civilian deaths Kabul experienced in the early 1990s.
According to the U.S. Special Envoy to Afghanistan in 1989–1992, Peter Tomsen, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar was hired in 1990 by the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to conquer and rule Afghanistan in the benefit of Pakistani interests. The plan was delayed until 1992 due to US pressure to cancel that plan.
In April 1992, as the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan began to collapse, government officials joined the mujahideen, choosing different parties according to their ethnic and political affinities. For the most part, the members of the khalq faction of the PDPA, who were predominantly Pashtuns, joined with Hekmatyar. With their help, he began on 24 April to infiltrate troops into Kabul, and announced that he had seized the city, and that should any other leaders try to fly into Kabul, he would shoot their plane down. The new leader of the "Islamic Interim Government of Afghanistan", Sibghatullah Mojaddedi, appointed Ahmad Shah Massoud as defense minister, and urged him to take action. This he did, taking the offensive on 25 April, and after two days heavy fighting, the Hezb-i Islami and its allies were expelled from Kabul. A peace agreement was signed with Massoud on 25 May 1992, which made Hekmatyar Prime Minister. However, the agreement fell apart when he was blamed for a rocket attack on President Mojaddedi's plane. The following day, fighting resumed between Burhanuddin Rabbani's and Ahmed Shah Massoud's Jamiat, Abdul Rashid Dostum's Jumbish forces and Hekmatyar's Hezb-i Islami forces.
From 1992 to 1996, the warring factions destroyed most of Kabul and killed thousands, many of them civilians, during the Afghan civil war. All the different parties participated in the destruction, but Hekmatyar's group was responsible for most of the damage, because of his practice of deliberately targeting civilian areas. Hekmatyar is thought to have bombarded Kabul in retaliation for what he considered its inhabitants' collaboration with the Soviets, and out of religious conviction. He once told a New York Times journalist that Afghanistan "already had one and a half million martyrs. We are ready to offer as many to establish a true Islamic Republic." His attacks also had a political objective: to undermine the Rabbani government by proving that Rabbani and Massoud were unable to protect the population. In 1994 Hekmatyar would shift alliances, joining with Dostum as well as Hizb-e-Wahdat, a Hazara Shi'a party, to form the Shura-i Hamahangi ("Council of coordination"). Together they laid Siege on Kabul, unleashing massive barrages of artillery and rockets that led to the evacuation of U.N. personnel from Kabul, and caused several government members to abandon their posts. However the new alliance did not spell victory for Hekmatyar, and in June 1994, Massoud had driven Dostum's troops from the capital.
Relations with the Taliban
The Pakistani military had supported Hekmatyar until then in the hope of installing a Pashtun-dominated government in Kabul, which would be friendly to their interests. By 1994, it had become clear that Hekmatyar would never achieve this, and that his extremism had antagonised most Pashtuns, so the Pakistanis began turning towards the predominantly Pashtun Taliban. After capturing Kandahar in November 1994, the Taliban made rapid progress towards Kabul, making inroads into Hezb-e Islami positions. They captured Wardak on 2 February 1995, and moved on to Maidan Shahr on 10 February and Mohammed Agha the next day. Very soon, Hekmatyar found himself caught between the advancing Taliban and the government forces, and the morale of his men collapsed. On 14 February, he was forced to abandon his headquarters at Charasiab, from where rockets were fired at Kabul, and flee in disorder to Surobi.
Nonetheless, in May 1996, Rabbani and Hekmatyar finally formed a power-sharing government in which Hekmatyar was made prime minister. Rabbani was anxious to enhance the legitimacy of his government by enlisting the support of Pashtun leaders. However, the Mahipar agreement did not bring any such benefits to him as Hekmatyar had little grassroots support, but did have many adverse effects: it caused outrage among Jamiat supporters, and among the population of Kabul, who had endured Hekmatyar's attacks for the last four years. Moreover, the agreement was clearly not what the Pakistanis wanted, and convinced them of Hekmatyar's weakness, and that they should shift their aid entirely over to the Taliban. Hekmatyar took office on 26 June, and immediately started issuing severe decrees on women's dress that struck a sharp contrast with the relatively liberal policy that Massoud had followed until then. The Taliban responded to the agreement with a further spate of rocket attacks on the capital. The Rabbani/Hekmatyar regime lasted only a few months before the Taliban took control of Kabul in September 1996. Many of the Hezb-e Islami local commanders joined the Taliban, "both out of ideological sympathy and for reason of tribal solidarity." Those that did not were expelled by the Taliban. In Pakistan, Hezb-e Islami training camps "were taken over by the Taliban and handed over" to Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) groups such as the Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP).
Hekmatyar then fled to Massoud's stronghold in Panjshir who, despite Hekmatyar's history of animosity towards him, helped him flee to Iran in 1997, where he is said to have resided for almost six years. Isolated from Afghanistan he is reported to have "lost ... his power base back home" to defections or inactivity of former members. He was also distrusted by the Iranian Government, who found him too unpredictable, unreliable, and an unnecessary liability, considering its tense relations at the time with the Taliban and the Pakistani government. Despite his pleas, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards refused to establish a proxy through any of his organizations or assist him in any way. Allegedly, they even cut his phone lines and turned away anyone who wished to see him in his villa in North Tehran.
Activities in the Islamic Republic
After the 9/11 attacks in the United States Hekmatyar, who had allegedly "worked closely" with bin Laden in early 1990s, declared his opposition to the US campaign in Afghanistan and criticized Pakistan for assisting the United States. After the U.S. entry into the anti-Taliban alliance and the fall of the Taliban, Hekmatyar rejected the U.N.-brokered accord of 5 December 2001 negotiated in Germany as a post-Taliban interim government for Afghanistan. As a result of pressure by the U.S. and the Karzai administration, on 10 February 2002 all the offices of Hezb-e-Islami were closed in Iran and Hekmatyar was expelled by his Iranian hosts.
The United States accused Hekmatyar of urging Taliban fighters to re-form and fight against Coalition troops in Afghanistan. He was also accused of offering bounties for those who kill U.S. troops. He has been labeled a war criminal by members of the U.S.-backed President Hamid Karzai's government. ISAF identified Hekmatyar in 2002 as the number one security threat, ahead of the Taliban or al-Qaeda. He was also a suspect behind the 5 September 2002 assassination attempt on Karzai in Kandahar and a bomb the same day that killed more than a dozen people in Kabul. That same month, he released newsletters and tape messages calling for jihad against the United States. One of his commanders commented that there "will be suicide attacks [...] against soldiers". On 25 December 2002, news broke that American spy organizations had discovered Hekmatyar attempting to join al-Qaeda. According to the news, he had said that he was available to aid them. However, in a video released by Hekmatyar 1 September 2003, he denied forming alliances with the Taliban or al-Qaeda, but praised attacks against U.S. and international forces.
On 10 February 2003, the Afghan government reported that Hekmatyar was planning an alliance with Taliban and al-Qaeda factions. His group was involved in an intense battle with the U.S. army near Spin Boldak. On February 19, 2003 the United States State Department and the United States Treasury Department jointly designated Hekmatyar a "global terrorist." This designation meant that any assets Hekmatyar held in the U.S., or held through companies based in the U.S., would be frozen. The U.S. also requested the United Nations Committee on Terrorism to follow suit, and designate Hekmatyar an associate of Osama bin Laden. In October 2003, he declared a ceasefire with local commanders in Jalalabad, Kunar, Logar and Surobi, and stated that they should only fight foreigners.
In May 2006, he released a video to Al Jazeera in which he accused Iran of backing the U.S. in the Afghan conflict and said he was ready to fight alongside Osama bin Laden and blamed the ongoing conflicts in Palestine, Iraq and Afghanistan on U.S. interference. In an audiotape released the same month, he called for revolt against U.S. forces and Karzai's "puppet government", and directly threatened to kill Lt. General Karl Eikenberry. In September 2006, he was reported as captured, but the report was later retracted. In December 2006, a video was released in Pakistan, where Gulbuddin Hekmatyar claimed "the fate Soviet Union faced is awaiting America as well." In January 2007 CNN reported that Hekmatyar claimed "that his fighters helped Osama bin Laden escape from the mountains of Tora Bora five years ago." BBC news reported a quote from a December 2006 interview broadcast on GEO TV, "We helped them [bin Laden and Zawahiri] get out of the caves and led them to a safe place."
2008 resurgence
In May 2008, the Jamestown Foundation reported that after being "sidelined from Afghan politics" since the mid-1990s, Gulbuddin's HIG group had "recently reemerged as an aggressive militant group, claiming responsibility for many bloody attacks against Coalition forces at the time, primarily the International Security Assistance Force and the administration of President Hamid Karzai." The re-emergence of him as an "experienced guerrilla strategist" came at a propitious time for insurgency, following the killing of Taliban commander Mullah Dadullah, when some elements of the Taliban were becoming "disorganized and frustrated." HIG claimed responsibility for and is thought to have at least assisted in a 27 April 2008 attempt on the life of President Karzai in Kabul that killed three Afghan citizens, including a member of parliament. Other attacks for which it was thought to be responsible included the 2 January 2008 shooting down in Laghman province of a helicopter containing foreign troops; the shooting and forcing down of a U.S. military helicopter in Sarubi district of Kabul on 22 January; and blowing up a Kabul police vehicle in March 2008, killing 10 soldiers.
In interviews he demanded "all foreign forces to leave immediately unconditionally." Offers by President Hamid Karzai to open talks with "opponents of the government" and hints that they would be offered official posts "such as deputy minister or head of department", were thought to be directed at Hekmatyar. It was reported in 2008 that Hekmatyar lived in an unknown location in southeastern Afghanistan, close to the Pakistani border. In 2008, he denied any links with the Taliban or al-Qaeda and was even considered for prime minister. At the time, Hekmatyar was believed to shuttle between hideouts in Pakistan's mountainous tribal areas and northeast Afghanistan.
In January 2010, he was still considered one of the three main leaders of the Afghan insurgency. By then, he held out the possibility of negotiations with President Karzai and outlined a roadmap for political reconciliation. This contrasted with the views of Taliban leader Mullah Omar and allied insurgent chief Sirajuddin Haqqani, who refused any talks with Kabul as long as foreign troops remained in the country, Hekmatyar appeared less reluctant.
On 10 February 2014, Gulbuddin's HIG group executed an attack which killed two US civilians, Paul Goins and Michael Hughes, and wounded two other Americans and seven Afghan nationals. HIG was also responsible for a 16 May 2013 suicide VBIED attack in Kabul, which destroyed a US armored SUV and killed two US soldiers, four US civilian contractors, eight Afghans—including two children—and wounded at least 37 others. The attack marked the deadliest incident against US personnel in Kabul in 2013.
2016 peace deal and pardon
On 22 September 2016, Hekmatyar was pardoned by the Afghan government as part of a peace deal between Hezb-i-Islami and the government. The deal also allowed for the release of Hezb-i-Islami prisoners and the return of Hekmatyar to public life. The deal led a group of young activists to organise a protest against the pardoning less than a mile away from the signing ceremony. Human Rights Watch called the deal "an affront to victims of grave abuses". Hezb-i-Islami agreed to cease hostilities, cut ties to extremist groups and respect the Afghan Constitution in exchange for government recognition of the group and support for the removal of United Nations and American sanctions against Hekmatyar, who was also promised an honorary post in the government.
The agreement was formalised on 29 September 2016 with both Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Hekmatyar, who appeared via a video link in the presidential palace, signing the agreement. UN sanctions on him were formally lifted on 3 February 2017. On 4 May 2017, he returned to Kabul along with his fighters to meet President Ghani after spending two decades in hiding.
He has then called on the Taliban to end their insurgency and lay down arms. Hekmatyar ran in the 2019 Afghan presidential election and finished a distant third.
During and after U.S. withdrawal
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and his organization are reported to have joined the Council of Reconciliation formed by the Taliban.
Relatives
Some of Gulbuddin's relatives have served or are suspected of serving as his deputies.
Books
Having been described as a "prolific writer" who, "despite rarely ceasing to fight, has authored more than 60 (reportedly 79) books on linguistics, Pashto grammar, comparative religion and political analysis", some of his publications include :
Buḥrān-i mushkīlāt-i rāhhā-yi ḥal, 2000, 194 p. Politics and government in Afghanistan during 1989 to 1998, when Taliban extended their control to most parts of Afghanistan.
Shiʻr va ʻirfān dar miḥak-i Qurʼān va shaqāyiq-i adabī, 2001, 104 p. On good and bad poetry and mysticism in light of the teachings of the Qur'an.
Būdā az sharm furūʹnarīkht, takhrīb shud : dar pāsukh-i Makhmalbāf, 2003, 196 p. Critical study of "Būdā dar Afghānistān takhrīb nashud, az sharm furūʹrīkht" a book by prominent Iranian writer Mohsen Makhmalbaf on the history, jihad and Afghan refugees and other articles on Afghanistan.
Tawhīd aw shirk, 2004, 254 p. On the Oneness of God and polytheism as interpreted in Qur'an.
Da Qurʼān palwashe, 2006-2011, 8 volumes. Translation into Pashto and commentary of the Qur'an.
Bāʼībal da Qurʼān pah raṇā ke, 2006, 871 p. Analytical study of Bible in the light of Qur'an.
Islāmī taḥrīk : Nādirī k̲h̲ānadān ko iqtidār men̲ lāne se Rūsiyon̲ ke ink̲h̲ilāʼ tak, 2008-, multiple volumes. Historical study of Afghanistan from King Mohammed Nadir Shah regime of 1929 up to Russian withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1989.
Rātlūnkay Islāmī niẓām bah ṡangah wī? mashar bah ʼī ṡok wī? ṡangah bah ghwarah kīẓhī?, 2009, 167 p. Government and politics according to Islamic teachings.
References
Further reading
Coll, Steve. Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to 10 September 2001 Penguin Press, 2004. .
External links
1949 births
Living people
Prime Ministers of Afghanistan
Afghan Sunni Muslims
Afghan expatriates in Iran
Afghan expatriates in Pakistan
Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin politicians
Afghan Muslim Brotherhood members
Mujahideen members of the Soviet–Afghan War
Pashtun people
People from Kunduz Province
Quran translators
Individuals related to Iran Sanctions
CIA and Islamism | false | [
"Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) is a higher education and Research institute which is recognized as an Institute of National Importance by the 1959 act of the Indian parliament. It grew out of the Statistical Laboratory set up by Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis in Presidency College, Kolkata. Established in 1931, this unique institution of India is one of the oldest institutions focused on statistics, and its early reputation led it to being adopted as a model for the first US institute of Statistics set up at the Research Triangle, North Carolina by Gertrude Mary Cox.\n\nMahalanobis, the founder of ISI, was deeply influenced by wisdom and guidance of Rabindranath Tagore and Brajendranath Seal. Under his leadership, the institute initiated and promoted the interaction of Statistics with natural and social sciences to advance the role of Statistics as a key technology by explicating the twin aspectsits general applicability and its dependence on other disciplines for its own development. The institute is now considered one of the foremost centres in the world for training and research in Computer science, Statistics, Quantitative Economics and related sciences.\n\nISI has its headquarters in Bonhooghly (Baranagar), West Bengal. It has four subsidiary centres focused in academics at Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai and Tezpur, and a branch at Giridih. In addition, the Institute has a network of units of Statistical Quality Control and Operations Research at Vadodara, Coimbatore, Giridih, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Pune engaged in guiding the industries, within and outside India, in developing the most up–to–date quality management systems and solving critical problems of quality, reliability and productivity.\n\nPrimary activities of ISI are research and training of Statistics, development of theoretical Statistics and its applications in various natural and social sciences. Originally affiliated with the University of Calcutta, the institute was declared an institute of national importance in 1959, through an act of Indian parliament, Indian Statistical Institute act, 1959. ISI functions under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MOSPI) of the Government of India.\n\nKey areas of expertise of ISI are Statistics, Computer Science, Mathematics, Mathematical Economics, Operations Research and Information Science and it is one of the few research oriented Indian schools offering courses at both the undergraduate and graduate level.\n\nHistory \nISI's origin can be traced back to the Statistical Laboratory in Presidency College, Kolkata set up by Mahalanobis, who worked in the Physics Department of the college in the 1920s. During 1913–15, he did his Tripos in Mathematics and Physics at University of Cambridge, where he came across Biometrika, a journal of Statistics founded by Karl Pearson. Since 1915, he taught Physics at Presidency College, but his interest in Statistics grew under the guidance of polymath Brajendranath Seal. Many colleagues of Mahalanobis took an interest in Statistics and the group grew in the Statistical Laboratory. Considering the extensive application of Statistics in solving various problems in real life such as analyzing multivariate anthropometric data, applying sample surveys as a method of data collection, analyzing meteorological data, estimating crop yield etc., this group, particularly, Mahalanobis and his younger colleagues S. S. Bose and H. C. Sinha felt the necessity of forming a specialized institute to facilitate research and learning of Statistics.\n\nOn 17 December 1931, Mahalonobis held a meeting with Pramatha Nath Banerji (Minto Professor of Economics), Nikhil Ranjan Sen (Khaira Professor of Applied Mathematics) and Sir R. N. Mukherjee. This meeting led to the establishment of the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI), which was formally registered on 28 April 1932, as a non-profit distributing learned society under the Societies Registration Act XXI of 1860. Later, the institute was registered under the West Bengal Societies Registration Act XXVI of 1961 amended in 1964. Mukherjee accepted the role of the president of ISI and held this position until his death in 1936. In 1953, ISI was relocated to a property owned by Professor Mahalanobis, named \"Amrapali\", in Baranagar, which is now a municipality at the northern outskirts of Kolkata.\n\nIn 1931, Mahalanobis was the only person working at ISI, and he managed it with an annual expenditure of Rs.250. It gradually grew with the pioneering work of a group of his colleagues including S. S. Bose, Samarendra Kumar Mitra (Head of the Computing Machines and Electronics Laboratory and designer of India's first computer), J. M. Sengupta, Raj Chandra Bose, Samarendra Nath Roy, K. R. Nair, R. R. Bahadur, Gopinath Kallianpur, D. B. Lahiri, and Anil Kumar Gain. Pitamber Pant, who had received training in Statistics at the institute, went on to become a secretary to the first Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, and was a great source of help and support to the institute.\n\nThe institute started a training section in 1938. In due course, many of the early workers left the ISI for careers in the USA or for positions in public/private sector in India. By the 1940s, the ISI was internationally known and was taken as a model when the first institute of Statistics was set up in the United States by Gertrude Coxperhaps the only time an institute in a developing country was used as a model in a developed country.\n\nAs asked by the Government of India, in 1950, ISI designed and planned a comprehensive socio–economic national sample survey covering rural India. The organisation named National Sample Survey (NSS) was founded in 1950 for conducting this survey. The field work was performed by the Directorate of NSS, functioning under the Ministry of Finance, whereas the other tasks such as planning of the survey, training of field workers, review, data processing and tabulation were executed by ISI. In 1961, the Directorate of NSS started functioning under the Department of Statistics of Government of India, and later in 1971, the design and analysis wing of NSS was shifted from ISI to the Department of Statistics forming the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO).\n\nJ. B. S. Haldane joined the ISI as a research professor from August 1957, and stayed on until February 1961, when he had a falling out with ISI Director P.C. Mahalanobis over Haldane's going on a much-publicized hunger strike to protest the United States pressuring U.S. National Science Fair winners Gary Botting and Susan Brown from attending an ISI banquet to which many prominent Indian scientists had been invited. Haldane helped the ISI grow in biometrics. Haldane also played a key role in developing the structure and content of the courses offered by ISI.\n\nUntil 1959, ISI was associated with the University of Calcutta. By 'The Indian Statistical Institute Act 1959' of the Parliament of India, amended in 1995, ISI was declared an institute of national importance, and was authorised to hold examinations and to grant degrees and diplomas in Statistics, Mathematics, Computer Science, Quantitative Economics, and in any other subject related to Statistics as identified by the Institute from time to time. ISI is a public university, as the same act also states that ISI would be funded by the Central Government of India.\n\nISI had by the 1960s started establishing special service units in New Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore, Mumbai and Hyderabad to provide consultancy services to business, industry and governmental public service organisations in the areas of Statistical Process Control, Operations Research and Industrial Engineering. Additionally, Bangalore had a Documentation Research and Training Centre (DRTC). In the early 1970s, the Delhi and Bangalore units were converted to teaching centres. In 2008, ISI Chennai was upgraded to a teaching centre. In 2011, ISI added a new centre in Tezpur.\n\nInstitutes \nThe major objectives of the ISI are to facilitate research and training of Statistics, to indulge in development of statistical theory and in application of statistical techniquesin the scenarios of planning at national level and in theoretical development of natural and social sciences, to participate in the process of data collection and analysis, to operate related projects in planning and improvement of efficiency of management and production.\n\nThe Sanskrit phrase भिन्नेष्वैक्यस्य दर्शणम् (Bhinneswaykyasya Darshanam), which literally means the philosophy of unity in diversity, is incorporated in the logo of the institute, and is the motto of ISI. ISI Kolkata is the headquarter with centres at New Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai . Tezpur, the 4th centre of ISI was inaugurated in 2011.\n\nISI, Kolkata \n\nISI Kolkata has a campus consisting of six addresses at 201 through 206 Barrackpore Trunk Road, Bonhooghly (Baranagar). These include a house, which was an erstwhile office of the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) of India.\n\nISI Kolkata campus is eco-friendly, as conceived by Mahalanobis. Hollow bricks that protect from heat and noise were used with minimum use of reinforced concrete, to avoid radiation. There was no use of bitumen-basalt combination at the roads inside ISI campuses. This helps in reduction of radiation and preservation of rain water to maintain equilibrium in ground-water level.\n\nThe Kolkata campus offers bachelors level degree course in Statistics (B. Stat), master's degree course in Statistics (M.Stat), Mathematics (M.Math), Computer Science (MTech), Cryptology & Security (MTech), Quality Reliability and Operations Research (MTech) and Quantitative Economics (M.S.). Major divisions and units are: Statistics and Mathematics Unit (SMU), Human Genetics Unit (HGU), Physics and Applied Mathematics Unit (PAMU), Geological Studies Unit (GSU), Advanced Computation and MicroElectronics Unit (ACMU), Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Unit (CVPRU), Machine Intelligence Unit (MIU), Electronics and Communication Sciences Unit (ECSU), Applied Statistics Unit (ASU), Economic Research Unit (ERU), Linguistic Research Unit (LRU), Sociology Research Unit (SRU), Psychometry Research Unit (PRU) and Population Studies Unit (PSU).\n\nThe Kolkata campus houses the International Statistical Education Centre (ISEC), which opened in 1950. This Centre provides training in statistics to sponsored students mainly from the Middle East, South and South East Asia, the Far East and the Commonwealth Countries of Africa. The Centre also offers various short-term courses in statistics and related subjects.\n\nThe Center for Soft Computing Research: A National Facility, an associate institute of Indian Statistical Institute and established in Kolkata in 2005, is unique in the country. Apart from conducting basic research, it offers a 3-month course and promotes less endowed institutes by providing fellowships and research grants.\n\nThe Central Library of ISI is located at Kolkata with branches at the other facilities. The library has over 200,000 volumes of books and journals with a special emphasis on the field of statistics and related studies. The main branch also has a collection of official reports, reprints, maps, and microfilms. The library receives over a thousand new technical and scientific journals every year. The Library has databases on CD-ROM and is working on further digitization of the collection. The library has a separate collection of works on the topics of mathematics and statistics called the Eastern Regional Centre of NBHM collection, funded by grants from the National Board for Higher Mathematics. It also looks to set up research unit in artificial intelligence\n\nISI, Delhi \n\nThe ISI campus at New Delhi was established in 1974 and was shifted to the present campus in 1975.\n\nThe Delhi campus offers two master level courses Master of Statistics (M. Stat) and Master of Science (M. S.) in Quantitative Economics, and doctoral programs.\n\nISI, Bangalore \n\nThe Bengaluru centre of ISI started with a Statistical Quality Control and Operations Research (SQC & OR) unit in 1954. The Documentation Research and Training Centre (DRTC) here became operational from 1962 with honorary professor S. R. Ranganathan as the head. Prof. Mahalanobis planned of starting a full-fledged centre of ISI here around the mid-sixties. In 1966, the then Government of Karnataka granted ISI 30 acres of forest land full of eucalyptus trees, next to the upcoming campus of the Bangalore University, located on the Mysore Road on the outskirts of the city.\n\nHowever, after death of Prof. Mahalanobis in 1972, the project of establishing Bengaluru centre got temporarily shelved. The project was again revived during 1976–78. Concrete proposals were made to the Government of India to get grants for the development of the land already in possession of ISI, along with the construction of an academic block with a library and offices.\n\nIn the meantime, a building was rented on Church Street, in Bengaluru downtown, and various activities of the Bengaluru centre started in September 1978. The Economic Analysis Unit (EAU) and the Statistics and Mathematics Unit (SMU) were established. The SQC&OR Unit and the DRTC unit, which were functioning from other rented buildings at that time, joined this new Centre.\n\nAs construction of the administrative block at the new campus got completed, the various units moved to the new campus in May 1985. The sprawling green wooded Campus has Residential Facility for students, faculty and staff.\n\nThe Bengaluru centre was formally declared as a centre of ISI in September 1996.\n\nThe Systems Science and Informatics Unit (SSIU) was established in 2009\n\nThe Bengaluru centre has by now became an institution well known for its academic activities in Mathematics, Statistics, Computer Science, SQC and Operations Research, Library and Information Science, and Quantitative Economics.\n\nThe Bengaluru campus offers bachelor level course Bachelor of Mathematics (B. Math), master level courses Master of Mathematics (M. Math), Master of Science (M. S.) in Library and Information Science and Master of Science (M. S.) in Quality Management Science, and doctoral programs.\n\nISI, Tezpur\n\nAcademics \n\nTraditionally, ISI offers fewer programs (and admits fewer students) than most other degree granting academic institutions. Following the empowerment for granting degrees in the subject of Statistics as per the ISI Act 1959, in 1960, ISI initiated bachelor level degree program Bachelor of Statistics and master level degree course Master of Statistics, and also began awarding research level degrees such as PhD and DSc. Later, ISI started offering Master of Technology (MTech) courses in Computer Science and in Quality, Reliability & Operations Research (QR&OR); these courses got recognition from All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE). As ISI Act of 1959 was amended by the Parliament of India in 1995, ISI was empowered to confer degrees and diplomas in subjects such as Mathematics, Quantitative Economics, Computer Science, and other subjects related to Statistics and Operations Research as determined by ISI from time to time. Apart from the degree courses, ISI offers few diploma and certificate courses, special diploma courses for international students via ISEC, and special courses in collaboration with CSO for training probationary officers of Indian Statistical Service (ISS).\n\nDegree courses \nISI offers two undergraduate programs, viz. Bachelor of Statistics (Honours) (B.Stat) and Bachelor of Mathematics (Honours) (B. Math), seven graduate programs, viz. Master of Statistics (M. Stat), Master of Mathematics (M. Math), Master of Science in Quantitative Economics (MSQE), Master of Science in Library and Information Science (MSLIS), Master of Science in Quality Management Science (MSQMS), Master of Technology in Computer Science (MTech–CS), Master of Technology in Cryptology & Security (MTech-CrS) and Master of Technology in Quality, Reliability and Operations Research (MTech–QROR).\n\nISI also offers three PG Diploma programs, viz. Post Graduate Diploma in Computer Applications (PGDCA), Post Graduate Diploma in Business Analytics (PGDBA), and P.G. Diploma in Statistical Methods and Analytics. It also offers research fellowships towards obtaining a PhD degree. The Post Graduate Diploma in Business Analytics (PGDBA) is a unique, tri-institute program being held in collaboration with IIM Calcutta and IIT Kharagpur, with an aim to nurture and develop highly skilled business analytical professionals. It has been ranked 340th worldwide, according to 2019 QS World Universities Rankings.\n\nUndergraduate courses are of 3 years duration, whereas the graduate level courses of 2 years of duration. For all undergraduate and graduate level courses, the academic year is divided in two semesters. Except for sponsored candidates of MTech courses, ISI students are not required to pay any tuition fees. Conditional to performance beyond a threshold, all students and research fellows receive stipends, fellowships and contingency/book grants. Students demonstrating outstanding performances are rewarded at the end of the semesters. ISI campuses provide hostel accommodations with recreational facilities and limited medical facilities available free of cost.\n\nAdmissions \nApplicants of all degree courses are required to go through written admission tests and interviews. ISI conducts the written tests at various examination centres across India. Only in few cases, candidates may get called for the interview directly, viz. applicants of MTech Computer Science course having a GATE score above a threshold. Candidates applying to doctoral research programmes who have been awarded (or qualified for) a Junior Research Fellowship by UGC / CSIR / NBHM etc are also required to clear the ISI admission test or an equivalent separate test and interview conducted by the relevant JRF selection committee of the institute if they wish to obtain a Ph.D from Indian Statistical Institute.\n\nInternational Statistical Education Centre \nIn 1950, ISI, in collaboration with International Statistical Institute, UNESCO and Government of India, had set up International Statistical Education Centre (ISEC) to impart knowledge of theoretical and applied statistics to participants from Middle East, East and South-East Asia, the Far East and Commonwealth countries of Africa. The main training course offered by ISEC is meant for international students, preferably graduates with proficiency in English and Mathematics. ISEC, located in Kolkata campus of ISI, functions with support from the Ministry of External Affairs and the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation of the Government of India.\n\nPublications \nSankhya, the statistical journal published by ISI, was founded in 1933, along the lines of Karl Pearson's Biometrika. Mahalanobis was the founder editor. Each volume of Sankhya consists of four issues; two of them are in Series A, containing articles on theoretical statistics, probability theory and stochastic processes, and the other two issues form the Series B, containing articles on applied statistics, i.e. applied probability, applied stochastic processes, econometrics and statistical computing.\n\nRankings \nAccording to India Education Review, no Indian university is in the world's top 200 universities, as of 2012. The ascribed ranking of ISI is 186. The web ranking of this institute, according to 4ICU (4 International Colleges and Universities), is 1693. According to the web ranking published by Webometrics Ranking of World Universities, ISI currently holds the world rank of 1352. In the subject-wise academic world ranking of Computer Science, Indian Statistical Institute features in 101—150 category. The Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata is ranked 2nd in Computer Science research by mean citation rate, p-Index, h-index among all universities in India.\n\nStudent life\n\nStudent Fest \n\nIntegration is the annual techno-cultural fest of Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata usually held during the first and second weekend of January each year. It is one of the biggest student fests in Kolkata, and attracts participation from all over the world. Also the performances of great artists are always a center of attraction for all.\n\nChaos is the annual techno-cultural fest of Indian Statistical Institute, Bangalore usually held during the last weekend of March each year. It is one of the biggest student fests in Bangalore, and attracts participation from all over the world. Limit, an International Mathematics Olympiad is a part of Chaos. A lot of Students throughout the World take part in Limit. Also various other Events are held during Chaos which includes Gaming, Cultural Programmes, Quiz, Debate and much more.\n\nPlacement \nAlumni of ISIincluding recipients of PhD degreeare employed in government and semi–government departments, industrial establishments, research institutions, in India and other countries. There is a placement cell in ISI Kolkata that organizes campus interviews by prospective employers in various campuses of ISI. Since recent past, a high percentage of ISI alumni gets absorbed into jobs in analytics, banking, finance and software industry.\n\nStatistical Quality Control (SQC) and Operations Research (OR) units \nSince mid-forties, ISI pioneered in research and application of Statistical Quality Control (SQC) in India. Walter A. Shewhart, the statistician known as the father of SQC, and other experts of this field visited ISI over the years. The first Statistical Quality Control and Operations Research (SQC & OR) unit of ISI was set up in Mumbai in 1953, followed by Bangalore and Kolkata units in 1954. In 1976, this unit was transformed into the SQC & OR Division, which now operates eight units, located at various industrial centres in IndiaKolkata, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Pune, Mumbai, Coimbatore and Vadodara. These units partake in technical consultancy with public and private organisations, in addition with performing research and training activities. The branch at Giridih was set up in 1931 and it has two operational units, viz. the Sociological Research Unit and the Agricultural Research Unit.\n\nAchievements \nOver the years, researchers of ISI made fundamental contributions in various fields of Statistics such as Design of Experiments, Sample Survey, Multivariate statistics and Computer Science. Mahalanobis introduced the measure Mahalanobis distance which is used in multivariate statistics and other related fields. Raj Chandra Bose, who is known for his contributions in coding theory, worked on Design of Experiments during his tenure at ISI, and was one of the three mathematicians, who disproved Euler's conjecture on orthogonal Latin squares. Anil Kumar Bhattacharya is credited with introduction of the measures Bhattacharyya distance and Bhattacharya coefficient. Samarendra Nath Roy is known for his pioneering contributions in multivariate statistics. Among colleagues of Mahalanobis, other notable contributors were K. R. Nair in Design of experiments, Jitendra Mohan Sengupta in Sample Survey, Ajit Dasgupta in Demography and Ramkrishna Mukherjea in Quantitative Sociology. C. R. Rao's contributions during his association with ISI include two theorems of Statistical Inference known as Cramér–Rao inequality and Rao-Blackwell Theorem, and introduction of orthogonal arrays in Design of Experiments. Anil Kumar Gain is known for his contributions to the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient with his colleague Sir Ronald Fisher at the University of Cambridge.\n\nIn 1953, India's first indigenous computer was designed by Samarendra Kumar Mitra who headed the Computing Machines and Electronics Laboratory at ISI Calcutta. The Indian Statistical Institute was also hosted the first two digital computers in South Asia; the HEC-2M from England in 1956, and the URAL from the Soviet Union in 1959. These were also among the earliest digital computers in Asia (outside Japan).\n\nDuring 1953 - 1956 distinguished scientists, like Ronald Fisher, Norbert Wiener and Yuri Linnik visited ISI. Norbert Wiener collaborated with Gopinath Kallianpur on topics including ergodic theory, prediction theory and generalized harmonic analysis. In 1962, during his month-long visit to ISI, Soviet mathematician Andrey Kolmogorov wrote his notable paper on Kolmogorov complexity, which was published in Sankhya, 1963. Other distinguished scientists including Jerzy Neyman, Walter A. Shewhart, W. Edwards Deming and Abraham Wald have visited ISI during the tenure of P. C. Mahalanobis.\n\nPlanning Commission \nThe second five-year plan of India was a brainchild of Mahalanobis. The plan followed the Mahalanobis model, an economic development model developed by Mahalanobis in 1953. The plan attempted to determine the optimal allocation of investment between productive sectors in order to maximise long-run economic growth . It used the prevalent state of art techniques of operations research and optimisation as well as the novel applications of statistical models developed at ISI. This second five-year plan shifted the focus from agriculture to industrialisation, with an objective of attaining self-reliance by economy of India. Domestic production of industrial products was encouraged in this plan, particularly in the development of the public sector. The two-pronged strategy devised in this plan targeted rapid growth of the heavy industry, keeping emphasis on growth of small and cottage industries.\n\nB. S. Minhas and K. S. Parikh, both from the Planning Unit of ISI Delhi, played key roles in the Planning Commission of the Government of India. Minhas, who joined the Planning Unit in 1962 and retired as a distinguished scientist in 1989, was a member of the Planning Commission during 1971–74. Parikh, who was a member of the Planning Commission during 2004–09, chaired Integrated Energy Policy Committee of the commission, was a member of the Economic Advisory Council of India during the tenure of five prime ministers, also played a role in the Department of Atomic Energy establishment, and was a key advisor to the government on energy issues.\n\nComputer science \nIn India, the first analog computer was designed by Samarendra Kumar Mitra and built by Ashish Kumar Maity at ISI in 1953, for use in computation of numerical solutions of simultaneous linear equations using a modified version of Gauss-Siedel iteration. In 1955, the first digital computer of India was procured by ISI. This machine was of a model named HEC-2M, manufactured by British Tabulating Machine Company (BTM). As per the agreement with BTM, ISI had to take care of the installation work and maintenance of it, before it became operational in 1956. Though this HEC-2M machine and the URAL-1 machine, which was bought in 1959 from Russia, were operational till 1963, ISI began development of the first second-generation digital computer of India in collaboration with Jadavpur University (JU). This joint collaboration led by the head of the Computing Machines and Electronics Laboratory at ISI, Samarendra Kumar Mitra, produced the transistor-driven machine ISIJU-1, which became operational in 1964. The first annual convention of the Computer Society of India (CSI) was hosted by ISI in 1965. The Computer and Communication Sciences division of ISI produced many eminent scientists such as Samarendra Kumar Mitra (its original founder), Dwijesh Dutta Majumdar, Sankar Kumar Pal, Bidyut Baran Chaudhuri, Nikhil R. Pal, Bhabani P. Sinha, Bhargab B. Bhattacharya, Malay K. Kundu, Sushmita Mitra, Bhabatosh Chanda, C. A. Murthy, Sanghamitra Bandyopadhyay and many. ISI is regarded as one of the top most centres for research in computer science in India and attracts some of the best students in the country.\n\nThe Knowledge-based Computer Systems project (KBCS), funded jointly by Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DoE), Government of India and UNDP since 1986, has a nodal centre at ISI Kolkata. This unit is responsible for research in the area of image processing, pattern recognition, computer vision and artificial intelligence.\n\nSocial sciences \nR. L. Brahmachari, known for his work in many fields like agricultural sciences, zoology, botany, biometrics, did much of his work at ISI.\n\nThe institute has done some pioneering work and research in anthropology and palaeontology. A trove of dinosaur fossils was discovered by a team led by ISI researchers in the early 1960s. The scattered fossils were recovered and the partial skeleton was reconstructed at ISI's Baranagar campus. It turned out to be a unique species and was named the Barapasaurus tagorei (Dinosauria: Sauropoda), after Rabindranath Tagore and was mounted in the Geology Museum at the Kolkata Campus of the Institute.\n\nThe Linguistic Research Unit (LRU) of ISI was involved in the study of speech pathology. Đorđe Kostić of this laboratory was a distinguished scientist. He invented a unique hearing aid, called SAFA (Selective Auditory Frequency Amplifier) that simulates frequency-range according to the need of the particular hearing impaired person.\n\nAlumni \n\nMany students and research scholars of ISI pursued a career in academics, and have excelled in the fields of statistics, mathematics, probability theory, computer science and economics. In statistics alumni of ISI who have been elected a Fellow of the American Statistical Association include P. V. Sukhatme (1950) and K. R. Nair (1951). There are many other notable ones including Samarendra Kumar Mitra, S. R. S. Varadhan, Debabrata Basu, K. R. Parthasarathy, Jayanta Kumar Ghosh, Bimal K. Roy, Sankar Kumar Pal, B. L. S. Prakasa Rao, G. Jogesh Babu, Thiruvenkatachari Parthasarathy, Gopinath Kallianpur, Rajeeva Karandikar, Ravindra Khattree, Sanghamitra Bandyopadhyay, Palash Sarkar, J. S. Rao, Kesar Singh, Ranajit Chakraborty, Partha Pratim Majumder, Probal Chaudhuri, Arup Bose, Debashish Goswami, Ritabrata Munshi, Sourav Chatterjee, Jean Drèze, Sucharit Sarkar. ISI alumni notable for non-academic career include politicians Subramanian Swamy and Dipankar Bhattacharya.\n\nAdministration \nISI functions as an autonomous institute under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MOSPI), which is the nodal ministry of the Government of India that ensures the functioning of ISI in accordance with The Indian Statistical Institute Act 1959. ISI Council is the highest policy–making body of the institute. Members of this council include the president of ISI, the chairman of ISI, representatives of the Government of India including one representative of RBI, scientists not employed in ISI including one representative from the Planning Commission of India and one representative of the UGC, representatives of scientific and non-scientific workers of ISI, and representative from academic staff of ISI, including the Director of ISI and the Dean of Studies of ISI. Bimal Kumar Roy was the Director until 10 June 2015; in a move unique in the history of the Institute, he was removed from his post via a notice posted on the web site of the Ministry of Statistics and Planning. He was sacked over financial and administrative irregularities The list is the following:\n\nVisits by Heads of states \nSoviet premier Nikita Khrushchev visited ISI during his visit to India in 1955. Zhou Enlai, the Prime Minister of China, and Ho Chi Minh, the President of Vietnam, during their visit to India specifically visited ISI respectively on 9 September 1956 and 13 February 1958.\n\nCitations\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n\n \n \n\n \nAcademic institutions associated with the Bengal Renaissance\nStatistical organisations in India\nUniversities and colleges in Bangalore\nUniversities and colleges in Kolkata\nResearch institutes in Kolkata\nResearch institutes in West Bengal\nResearch institutes in Bangalore\nPublic universities in India\nIndian mathematics\nMathematical institutes\nResearch institutes in Hyderabad, India\nUniversities and colleges in Delhi\nUniversities in Chennai\n1931 establishments in India\nBaranagar",
"The Director-General (DG) is head of the Inter-Services Intelligence, Pakistan's premier intelligence service, operationally responsible for providing critical national security and intelligence assessment to the Government of Pakistan. Colonel Shahid Hamid had conceived the idea of ISI. He was later promoted to a two-star rank of a Major General and become the first Director-General of the ISI. Major General Robert Cawthome became instrumental in expanding the ISI and has been the longest serving Director-General.\n\nThe current DG of ISI is Lt. General Nadeem Ahmed Anjum since 20th November 2021.\n\nList of Directors-General\n\nNotes \n\n 1.Later promoted to Major General in-office.\n 2.Later promoted to Lieutenant General in-office.\n\nReferences\n\n \nPakistani military appointments"
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"Vince Lombardi",
"Religion"
] | C_e8df54bbfca040499812d483f0c591b6_0 | what where his influences | 1 | What where Vince Lombardi influences? | Vince Lombardi | The three constants throughout Lombardi's life were sports--particularly football--family and religion. His father was a daily Communicant throughout his life and his mother's favorite picture of Vince as a child was on his Confirmation. When Lombardi was 12, while serving as an altar boy on Easter Sunday, "... amid the color and pageantry scarlet and white vestments, golden cross, scepters, the wafers and wine, body and blood ... that the inspiration came to him that he should become a priest ...",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged about her son's plan to her neighbors. Lombardi attended Mass on a daily basis throughout his life. During his tenure at St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ..." his wife's drinking. When Lombardi became head coach of football in 1942, he would lead his team to Sunday Mass before each home game. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi shared an office with Father Tim Moore wherein it was not unusual for Lombardi to interrupt a conversation and request to go to Confession and which Father Tim would oblige him right in the office. During his stay at Green Bay, Lombardi once emerged from his office and appeared before his secretary, Ruth McKloskey, wearing "... all these priest robes on, and he had a miter with a tassel, everything." Each day on his way to work for the Green Bay Packers, Lombardi would stop at St. Willebrord Church and "offer a prayer in case of unexpected death: 'My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this Communion as my viaticum ...'". He regularly attended Sunday Mass at Resurrection Church in the Allouez neighborhood of Green Bay's southeast side, always sitting with his wife in the middle of the ninth pew. On the morning of the dedication of Lombardi Avenue, Lombardi remarked to his 37-member entourage that he was pleased to have gotten them all up to attend morning Mass. Lombardi was also a 4th degree in the Knights of Columbus. CANNOTANSWER | three constants throughout Lombardi's life were sports--particularly football--family and religion. | Vincent Thomas Lombardi (June 11, 1913 – September 3, 1970) was an American football coach and executive in the National Football League (NFL). He is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight and five total NFL Championships in seven years, in addition to winning the first two Super Bowls at the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 NFL seasons.
Lombardi began his coaching career as an assistant and later as a head coach at St. Cecilia High School in Englewood, New Jersey. He was an assistant coach at Fordham, the United States Military Academy and the New York Giants before becoming head coach of the Green Bay Packers from 1959 to 1967 and the Washington Redskins in 1969.
He never had a losing season as head coach in the NFL, compiling a regular-season winning percentage of 73.8% (96–34–6), and 90% (9–1) in the postseason for an overall record of 105 wins, 35 losses and 6 ties in the NFL.
Lombardi is considered by many to be the greatest coach in football history, and he is recognized as one of the greatest coaches and leaders in the history of all American sports.
The year after his sudden death from cancer in 1970, he was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the NFL Super Bowl trophy was named in his honor.
Early years
Lombardi was born on June 11, 1913, in the Sheepshead Bay neighborhood of Brooklyn to Enrico "Harry" Lombardi (1889–1971) and Matilda "Mattie" Izzo (1891–1972). Harry's mother and father, Vincenzo and Michelina, emigrated from Salerno, Italy. Mattie's father and mother, Anthony and Loretta, emigrated from Vietri di Potenza, Basilicata. Harry had three siblings, and Matilda had twelve. Vince was the oldest of five children, including Madeleine, Harold, Claire, and Joe. Both the Lombardi and Izzo clans settled entirely in Sheepshead Bay.
Matilda's father, Anthony, opened up a barber shop in Sheepshead Bay before the turn of the century. At about the time of Lombardi's birth, Harry, and his brother, Eddie, opened a butcher shop in the Meatpacking District of Manhattan. Throughout the Great Depression, Harry's shop did well, and his family prospered. Lombardi grew up in an ethnically diverse, middle-class neighborhood.
Church attendance was mandatory for the Lombardis on Sundays. Mass would be followed with an equally compulsory few hours of dinner with extended family members, friends, and local clergy. Lombardi himself was an altar boy at St. Mark's Catholic Church. Outside their local neighborhood, the Lombardi children were subject to the rampant ethnic discrimination that existed at the time against Italian immigrants and their descendants. As a child, Lombardi helped his father at his meat cutting business, but grew to hate it. At the age of 12 he started playing in an uncoached but organized football league in Sheepshead Bay.
High school
Lombardi graduated from the eighth grade at P.S. 206 at age 15 in 1928. He then enrolled in the Cathedral Preparatory Seminary, a division of Cathedral College of the Immaculate Conception in Brooklyn, a six-year secondary program to become a Catholic priest. At Cathedral, he played on the school's baseball and basketball teams, but his performance was hindered by his poor athleticism and eyesight. Against school rules, he continued to play football off-campus throughout his studies at Cathedral. After completing four years at Cathedral he decided not to pursue the priesthood. He enrolled at St. Francis Preparatory high school for the fall of 1932. There he became a Charter Member of Omega Gamma Delta fraternity. His performance as a fullback on the Terriers' football team earned him a position on the virtual All-City football team.
Fordham University
In 1933, Lombardi received a football scholarship to Fordham University in the Bronx to play for the Fordham Rams and Coach Jim Crowley, who was one of the Four Horsemen of Notre Dame in the 1920s. During his freshman year, Lombardi proved to be an aggressive and spirited player on the football field. Prior to the beginning of his sophomore year, Lombardi was projected to start games at the tackle position. Lombardi was only 5'8" and about 180 pounds and was classified as undersized for the position.
In his senior year of 1936, he was the right guard in the Seven Blocks of Granite, a nickname given by a Fordham University publicist to the Fordham University football team's offensive front line. In a game against Pitt, he suffered a severe gash inside his mouth and had several teeth knocked out. He missed most of the remainder of the game, until he was called in on defense for a successful goal-line stand that preserved a scoreless tie. The Rams were 5–0–2 before losing in the final game of the season, 7–6, to NYU. The loss destroyed all hopes of Fordham playing in the Rose Bowl and taught Lombardi a lesson he would never forget — never to underestimate your opponent.
Early career
Lombardi graduated from Fordham University on June 16, 1937. The nation was still plagued by the Great Depression, so there were few career opportunities for the young Lombardi, and for the next two years, he showed no discernible career path or ambition. He tried to play semi-professional football with the Wilmington Clippers of the American Association and worked as a debt collector for a collection agency, but those efforts very quickly proved to be failures. With his father's strong support, he enrolled in Fordham Law School in September 1938. Although he did not fail any classes, he believed his grades were so poor that he dropped out after one semester. Later in life, he would explain to others that he was close to graduating, but his desire to start and support a family forced him to leave law school and get a job. He also joined the Brooklyn Eagles.
Coaching career
St. Cecilia High School
In 1939, Lombardi wanted to marry his girlfriend, Marie Planitz, but he deferred at his father's insistence because he needed a steady job to support himself and a family; he married Marie the following year. In 1939, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching job at St. Cecilia's, a Catholic high school in Englewood, New Jersey. He was offered the position by the school's new head coach, Lombardi's former Fordham teammate, quarterback Andy Palau. Palau had just inherited the head coaching position from another Fordham teammate, Nat Pierce (left guard), who had accepted an assistant coach's job back at Fordham. In addition to coaching, Lombardi, age 26, taught Latin, chemistry, and physics for an annual salary of under $1,000.
In 1942, Andy Palau left St. Cecilia's for another position at Fordham, and Lombardi became the head coach at St. Cecilia's. He stayed a total of eight years, five as head coach. In 1943, St. Cecilia's was recognized as the top high school football team in the nation, in large part because of their victory over Brooklyn Prep, a Jesuit school considered one of the best teams in the eastern United States. Brooklyn Prep that season was led by senior Joe Paterno, who, like Lombardi, was to rise to legendary status in football. Lombardi won six state private school championships (NJISAA - New Jersey Independent Schools Athletic Association), and became the president of the Bergen County Coaches' Association.
Fordham
In 1947, Lombardi became the coach of freshman teams in football and basketball at his alma mater, Fordham University. The following year, he was an assistant coach for the varsity football team under head coach Ed Danowski, but he was arguably the de facto head coach.
West Point
Following the 1948 season, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching job at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, a position that greatly influenced his future philosophy and system of coaching. He was offensive line coach under head coach Earl "Colonel Red" Blaik. "As integral as religion was to [Lombardi's] sense of self, it was not until he reached West Point and combined his spiritual discipline with Blaik's military discipline that his coaching persona began to take its mature form." Blaik's emphasis on execution became a trademark of Lombardi's coaching style. Lombardi coached at West Point for five seasons, with varying results. The 1949 and 1950 seasons were successful, but the 1951 and 1952 seasons were not, due to the aftermath of a cadet cribbing scandal (a violation of the Cadet Honor Code) which was revealed in spring 1951. By order of the Superintendent, 43 of the 45 members of the varsity football team were discharged from the Academy as a result of the scandal. "Decades later, looking back on his rise, Lombardi came to regard ..." Blaik's decision not to resign "... as a pivotal moment in his [own] career" — it taught him perseverance. After the 1951 and 1952 seasons not much was expected from the 1953 team as it had also lost six players due to academic failure. The 1953 team, however, did achieve a 7–1–1 record, as Lombardi had a bigger role than ever in coaching the team. Following these five seasons at Army, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching position with the New York Giants.
New York Giants
At age 41 in 1954, Lombardi began his NFL career with the New York Giants. He accepted a job that later became known as the offensive coordinator position under new head coach Jim Lee Howell. The Giants had finished the previous season under 23-year coach Steve Owen with a 3–9 record. By his third season in 1956, Lombardi, along with the defensive coordinator, former All-Pro cornerback turned coach Tom Landry, turned the squad into a championship team, defeating the Chicago Bears 47–7 for the league title. "Howell readily acknowledged the talents of Lombardi and Landry, and joked self-deprecatingly, that his main function was to make sure the footballs had air in them." At points in his tenure as an assistant coach at West Point, and as an assistant coach with the Giants, Lombardi worried that he was unable to land a head coaching job due to prejudice against his Italian heritage, especially with respect to Southern colleges. Howell wrote numerous recommendations for Lombardi to aid him in obtaining a head coaching position. Lombardi applied for head coaching positions at Wake Forest, Notre Dame, and other universities and, in some cases, never received a reply. In New York, Lombardi introduced the strategy of rule blocking to the NFL. In rule blocking, the offensive lineman would block an area, and not necessarily a particular defensive player, as was the norm up to that time. The running back was then expected to run towards any hole that was created. Lombardi referred to this as running to daylight.
Green Bay Packers
1959
The Green Bay Packers, with six future Hall of Famers on the roster in 1958, finished at 1–10–1 under head coach Ray McLean, the worst record in Packer history. The players were dispirited, the Packer shareholders were disheartened, and the Green Bay community was enraged. The angst in Green Bay extended to the NFL as a whole, as the financial viability and the very existence of the Green Bay Packer franchise were in jeopardy. On February 2, 1959, Lombardi accepted the position of head coach and general manager of the Packers. He demanded and gained full control over the football operations of the community-owned franchise, leaving no doubt of this when he told the franchise's executive committee, "I want it understood that I am in complete command here."
Lombardi's assertion of "complete command" applied to the players as well. For his first training camp, he instituted harsh regimens and demanded absolute dedication and effort from his players. The Packers immediately improved in 1959 to 7–5, and rookie head coach Lombardi was named Coach of the Year. The fans appreciated what Lombardi was trying to do and responded by purchasing all the tickets for every home game during the 1960 season. Every Packers home game—preseason, regular season and playoffs—has been sold out ever since then.
1960–1966
In Lombardi's second year in 1960, Green Bay won the NFL Western Conference for the first time since 1944. This victory, along with his well-known religious convictions, led the Green Bay community to anoint Lombardi with the nickname "The Pope". Lombardi led the Packers to the Championship Game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Before the championship game, Lombardi met with Wellington Mara and advised him that he would not take the Giants' head coaching job, which was initially offered after the end of the 1959 season. In the final play of the game, in a drive that would have won it, the Packers were stopped a few yards from the goal line. Lombardi had suffered his first and only championship game loss. After the game, and after the press corps had left the locker room, Lombardi told his team, "This will never happen again. You will never lose another championship." In later years as coach of the Packers, Lombardi made it a point to admonish his running backs that if they failed to score from one yard out, he would consider it a personal affront to him and he would seek retribution. He coached the Packers to win their next nine post-season games, a record streak not matched or broken until Bill Belichick won ten straight from 2002 to 2006 with New England. The Packers defeated the Giants for the NFL title in 1961 (37–0 in Green Bay) and 1962 (16–7 at Yankee Stadium), marking the first two of their five titles in Lombardi's seven years. After the 1962 championship victory, President John F. Kennedy called Lombardi and asked him if he would "come back to Army and coach again". Kennedy received Lombardi's tacit refusal of the request. His only other post-season loss occurred to the St. Louis Cardinals in the third-place Playoff Bowl after the 1964 season (officially classified as an exhibition game).
Including postseason but excluding exhibition games, Lombardi compiled a 105–35–6 (.740) record as head coach, and never suffered a losing season. He led the Packers to three consecutive NFL championships — in 1965, 1966, and 1967 — a feat accomplished only once before in the history of the league, by Curly Lambeau, co-founder of the Packers, who coached the team to their first three straight NFL Championships in 1929, 1930, and 1931. At the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 seasons, Lombardi's Packers won the first two Super Bowls, for championships in five of seven seasons.
Packers Sweep
As coach of the Packers, Lombardi converted Notre Dame quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Paul Hornung to a full-time halfback. Lombardi also designed a play for fullback Jim Taylor: both guards, Jerry Kramer and Fuzzy Thurston, pulled to the outside and blocked downfield while Taylor would "run to daylight" — i.e., wherever the defenders weren't. This was a play that he had originally developed with the Giants for Frank Gifford. It soon became known as the Packers sweep (or Lombardi sweep), though Lombardi openly admitted it was based on an old single wing concept.
Ice Bowl
In 1967, Lombardi's Packers hosted the Dallas Cowboys in Green Bay on December 31 in the NFL Championship Game, a rematch of the previous season. This became known as the "Ice Bowl" because of the game-time temperature. Lombardi had a heating coil underneath the field but on this day it was not functioning. Some people believe that he turned it off on purpose. With 16 seconds left in the game and down by three points, the Packers called their final time-out. It was 3rd and goal on the Dallas two-foot line. In the huddle, with the game on the line, Quarterback Bart Starr asked Kramer whether he could get enough traction on the icy turf for a wedge play and Kramer responded with an unequivocal yes. Starr came over to Lombardi on the sidelines to discuss the last play and told him he wanted to run a 31 wedge, but with him keeping the ball. Lombardi, having had enough of the bitter cold, told Starr to 'Run it! And let's get the hell out of here!' Lombardi was asked by Pat Peppler what play Starr would call, to which Lombardi replied, 'Damned if I know.' Starr returned to the huddle and called a Brown right 31 Wedge, but with him keeping the ball. Kramer blocked Jethro Pugh low and Ken Bowman hit Pugh high as Starr followed them into the end zone for the Packer lead and assured victory.
Washington Redskins
Shortly after the victory in Super Bowl II, Lombardi resigned as head coach of the Packers on February 1, 1968, continuing as general manager. He handed the head coaching position to Phil Bengtson, a longtime assistant, but the Packers finished at 6–7–1 in the 1968 season and were out of the four-team NFL playoffs. In February , Lombardi became head coach and general manager of the Washington Redskins. The Redskins finished at 7–5–2, their first winning record since the 1955 season. Lombardi died the following year, but he was credited with having "truly changed the culture in that one unforgettable season in 1969," laying the foundation for Washington's early 1970s success under another future Hall of Fame coach, George Allen.
Personal life
Family
In the fall of 1934, Lombardi's roommate Jim Lawlor introduced him to his cousin's relative, Marie Planitz. When Marie announced her ardent desire to marry Lombardi, her status-conscious stockbroker father did not like the idea of his daughter marrying the son of an Italian butcher from Brooklyn, a prejudice he would face more than once in his life. Lombardi and Marie wed, nonetheless, on August 31, 1940.
Marie's first pregnancy resulted in a miscarriage. This had a terrible effect on Marie and caused her to turn to heavy drinking, a problem she would encounter on more than one occasion in her life. Their son, Vincent Henry Lombardi (Vince Jr.), was born in 1942, and their daughter Susan followed five years later in 1947.
Lombardi's perfectionism, authoritarian nature and temper, instilled in his wife a masterful ability to verbally assault and demean Lombardi when he verbally abused her. His children were not immune from his yelling. When Lombardi had not lost his temper, he would often be reticent and aloof.
Lombardi's grandson, Joe Lombardi, was named the offensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions in January 2014. He was relieved of this position midway through the 2015 season. Lombardi was previously quarterbacks coach for the New Orleans Saints. In the 2009 season, he helped lead the Saints to win the trophy bearing his grandfather's name, and Drew Brees to win a Super Bowl MVP award. He is now the offensive coordinator of the Los Angeles Chargers, under new head coach Brandon Staley.
World War II deferments
Though he was 28 years old when the United States entered World War II, Lombardi did not serve in the war. He obtained a series of deferments: his first was a 2-A due to his teaching occupation; in 1943, he obtained a second deferment due to parenthood (3-A); and his final deferment was labelled a 4-A and given in 1944.
Religion
The three constants throughout Lombardi's life were his Roman Catholic faith, his family, and football. His father was a daily Communicant throughout his life and his mother's favorite picture of Vince as a child was on his Confirmation. When Lombardi was 12, while serving as an altar boy on Easter Sunday, "... amid the color and pageantry scarlet and white vestments, golden cross, scepters, the wafers and wine, body and blood ... the inspiration came to him that he should become a priest ...",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged about her son's plan to her neighbors. Lombardi attended Mass on a daily basis throughout his life.
During his tenure at St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ... his wife's drinking". When Lombardi became head coach of football in 1942, he led his team to Sunday Mass before each home game. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi shared an office with Father Tim Moore wherein it was not unusual for Lombardi to interrupt a conversation and request to go to Confession and for which Father Tim obliged him right in the office.
During his stay at Green Bay, Lombardi once emerged from his office and appeared before his secretary, Ruth McKloskey, wearing "... all these priest robes on, and he had a miter with a tassel, everything". Each day on his way to work for the Green Bay Packers, Lombardi would stop at St. Willebrord Church and "offer a prayer in case of unexpected death: 'My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this Communion as my viaticum ... '". He regularly attended Sunday Mass at Resurrection Church in the Allouez neighborhood of Green Bay's southeast side, always sitting with his wife in the middle of the ninth pew.
On the morning of the dedication of Lombardi Avenue, Lombardi remarked to his 37-member entourage that he was pleased to have gotten them all up to attend morning Mass. Lombardi was a Fourth Degree in the Knights of Columbus.
Anti-discrimination philosophy
In 1960, a color barrier still existed on at least one team in the NFL, but Jack Vainisi, the Scouting Director for the Packers, and Lombardi were determined "to ignore the prejudices then prevalent in most NFL front offices in their search for the most talented players". Lombardi explained his views by saying that he "... viewed his players as neither black nor white, but Packer green".
Among professional football head coaches, in the midst of the civil rights movement, Lombardi's anti-discrimination views were unusual. When Lombardi joined the Packers, they only had one black player, Nate Borden. During his time as coach the team became fully integrated: by 1967 they had 13 black players, including All-Pros Willie Davis, Willie Wood, Dave Robinson, Herb Adderley and Bob Jeter.
During his first training camp in Green Bay, Lombardi was notified by Packer veterans that an interracial relationship existed between one of the Packer rookies and a young woman. The next day at training camp, Lombardi—who was vehemently opposed to Jim Crow discrimination and had a zero-tolerance policy towards racism—responded by warning his team that if any player exhibited prejudice in any manner, that specific player would be thrown off the team.
Lombardi let it be known to all Green Bay establishments that if they did not accommodate his black and white players equally well, then that business would be off-limits to the entire team. Before the start of the 1960 regular season, he instituted a policy that the Packers would only lodge in places that accepted all his players. Lombardi also refused to assign hotel rooms to players based on their race: by 1967 the Packers were the only NFL team with such a policy.
Lombardi was a member of the all-white Oneida Golf and Riding Country club in Green Bay, and he demanded that he should be allowed to choose a Native American caddie, even if white caddies were available. Lombardi's view on racial matters was a result of his religious faith and the ethnic prejudice that he had experienced as an Italian-American.
Lombardi was known to be volatile and terse with players during practices and games, and he insisted on unconditional respect for everyone in his organization. Lombardi demanded "Nothing But Acceptance" from players and coaches toward all people, and he would immediately terminate a coach or release a player if that particular person insulted the sexual orientation of gay players and front office staff. According to Lombardi biographer and Pulitzer Prize-winning writer David Maraniss, if he caught a coach "discriminating against a player thought to be gay, he'd be fired". Richard Nicholls, the lifelong partner of Lombardi's younger brother, Hal, stated, "Vin was always fair in how he treated everybody ... a great man who accepted people at face value for what they were, and didn't judge anybody. He just wanted you to do the job."
In Washington, Lombardi's assistant general manager David Slatterly was gay, as was PR director Joe Blair, who was described as Lombardi's "right-hand man". According to son Vince Lombardi, Jr., "He saw everyone as equals, and I think having a gay brother (Hal) was a big factor in his approach ... I think my father would've felt, 'I hope I've created an atmosphere in the locker room where this would not be an issue at all. And if you do have an issue, the problem will be yours because my locker room will tolerate nothing but acceptance.'"
Upon his arrival in Washington, Lombardi was aware of tight end Jerry Smith's sexual orientation. "Lombardi protected and loved Jerry," said former teammate Dave Kopay. Lombardi brought Smith into his office and told him that his sexual orientation would never be an issue as long as he was coaching the Redskins; Smith would be judged solely on his on-the-field performance and contribution to the team's success. Under Lombardi's leadership Smith flourished, becoming an integral part of Lombardi's offense, and was voted a First Team All-Pro for the first time in his career, which was also Lombardi's only season as the Redskins head coach.
Lombardi invited other gay players to training camp and would privately hope they would prove they could earn a spot on the team. At the Washington Redskins training camp in 1969, Ray McDonald was a gay player, with sub-par skills, who was trying to make the Redskins roster again, but this time with Lombardi as the Redskins' new head coach. True to his word, Lombardi told running back coach, George Dickson, 'I want you to get on McDonald and work on him and work on him – and if I hear one of you people make reference to his manhood, you'll be out of here before your ass hits the ground.'
Politics
Although his wife was a Republican, Lombardi was a lifelong Democrat with liberal views on civil rights: he supported John F. Kennedy in the 1960 presidential election, Robert F. Kennedy in the 1968 primaries, and was also a supporter of Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson. Despite this, during the 1960s he became uncomfortable with the burgeoning youth protest movements associated with the emerging counterculture, such as the New Left and the Anti-war movement. In a speech that he first delivered in February 1967 to the American Management Association, he suggested that "everything has been done to strengthen the rights of the individual and at the same time weaken the rights of the church, weaken the rights of the state, and weaken the rights of all authority". Due to Lombardi's popularity, Richard Nixon once considered him as a possible running mate in the 1968 presidential election but dropped the idea upon learning about Lombardi's support for the Democratic Party.
Illness and death
Lombardi had suffered from digestive tract problems as early as 1967, and he had refused his doctor's request to undergo a proctoscopic exam. On June 24, 1970, Lombardi was admitted to Georgetown University Hospital, and tests "revealed anaplastic carcinoma in the rectal area of his colon, a fast-growing malignant cancer in which the cells barely resemble their normal appearance". On July 27, Lombardi was readmitted to Georgetown and exploratory surgery found that the cancer was terminal. Lombardi and Marie received family, friends, clergy, players, and former players at his hospital bedside. He received a phone call from President Nixon telling Lombardi that all of the U.S. was behind him, to which Lombardi replied that he would never give up his fight against his illness. On his deathbed, Lombardi told Father Tim that he was not afraid to die, but that he regretted he could not have accomplished more in his life. Lombardi died in Washington, D.C. at 7:12 a.m. on Thursday, September 3, 1970, surrounded by his wife, parents, two children, and six grandchildren. He was 57.
The funeral was held on September 7 at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan. Approximately 1,500 people lined Fifth Avenue, and the avenue was closed to traffic between 39th and 50th Street. Terence Cardinal Cooke delivered the eulogy. In attendance were team owners, Commissioner Pete Rozelle, past and present members of the Packers, Redskins, and Giants, former students from Saints, colleagues and players from West Point, and classmates from Fordham University, including the remaining Seven Blocks of Granite. Lombardi was interred in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Middletown Township, New Jersey.
In popular culture
In 1968, Lombardi starred in a half-hour motivational film titled Second Effort, that has been called "The best-selling training film of all time".
On December 14, 1973, ABC aired Legend in Granite starring Ernest Borgnine as Vince. The biographical TV drama focused mostly on his first two years as Packers head coach (1959–1960).
A service area on the New Jersey Turnpike dedicated to and named after Lombardi opened in 1974.
The high school in the 1979 movie Rock 'n' Roll High School is named "Vince Lombardi High School".
In 1986, CHCH aired the TV movie Lombardi: I Am Not a Legend starring Robert Knuckle in the title role that depicted Lombardi's life up until the NFL.
In 1996, Nike aired several commercials featuring Jerry Stiller as the ghost of Lombardi.
ESPN produced the 2005 TV movie Code Breakers that depicted the West Point cheating scandal and its effect on the football program. Richard Zeppieri played then-Assistant Coach Lombardi.
A play titled Lombardi opened on Broadway at the Circle in the Square Theatre in New York City in October 2010, following an out-of-town tryout at the Mahaiwe Theater in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. The production starred Dan Lauria as Lombardi and Judith Light as his wife, Marie. The play received positive reviews, as did Lauria's performance.
NFL Films and HBO produced a film about Lombardi that debuted Saturday, December 11, 2010.
Honors
In May 1967, Lombardi "... received Fordham's highest honor, the Insignis Medal ... for being a great teacher"
On January 13, 1969, he was inducted into the Knights of Malta at St. Patrick's.
Inducted into the Fordham University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1971
As part of the Lambeau Field renovation in 2003, a 14-foot statue of Lombardi (along with one for Curly Lambeau) now stands on a plaza outside the stadium
In 1968, Highland Avenue in Green Bay, home to the Packers' Lambeau Field, was renamed Lombardi Avenue.
In 1969, the Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) awarded Lombardi with the Jack Mara sportsman of the year.
The Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University is named in his honor.
One of the Green Bay School District's public middle schools is named the Lombardi Middle School.
The football field at Old Bridge High School in Old Bridge, New Jersey, is named Lombardi Field. The football field in Palisades Park is also known as Lombardi Field.
A plaque dedication installed in 1974 in the sidewalk on a square (unofficially called Vince Lombardi Square) near Sheepshead Bay Road and East 14th Street in Brooklyn, New York.
There are two places in the Bensonhurst area, which are, or were, dedicated to Lombardi at one time: P.S. 204 Vince Lombardi Elementary School, and the entire Bensonhurst stretch of 16th Avenue was once dedicated by the City of New York as "Vince Lombardi Boulevard"
The Vince Lombardi Service Area and park-and-ride is the northernmost rest area on the New Jersey Turnpike, at mileposts 116E on the Eastern Spur and 115.5W on the Western Spur. Outside the gift shop is a plaque about his life, which notes that he is buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery, Middletown, New Jersey.
The Vincent T. Lombardi Council, No. 6552, Knights of Columbus, in Middletown, NJ is named for him.
The Vince Lombardi Cancer clinic at Aurora Health Care is named after him.
The Vincent T. Lombardi Center at Fordham University was named for the coach.
In 1970 the NFL's Super Bowl Trophy was renamed the Vince Lombardi Trophy
In 1970, the Rotary Club of Houston created the Lombardi Award, which is given annually to the best college football offensive, or defensive, lineman or linebacker.
In 1969, Lombardi received the Silver Buffalo Award, the highest adult award given by the Boy Scouts of America.
Lombardi was enshrined in the NFL's Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971.
Lombardi was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1976.
Lombardi is a member of the Ring of Fame of the Washington Commanders (formerly known as the Redskins).
Induction into the American Football Association's Semi Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1988
In 2008, Lombardi is inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame
Lombardi appeared on a U.S. Postage stamp first issued on July 25, 1997.
Head coaching record
The Packers played in the third-place Playoff Bowl in Miami after the 1963 and 1964 seasons;these are categorized as exhibition games.
Books
Run to Daylight! by Vince Lombardi with W. C. Heinz
Books written about him
Instant Replay, the Green Bay Diary of Jerry Kramer by Jerry Kramer and Dick Schaap
Football's Greatest Coach: Vince Lombardi by Gene Schoor
The Lombardi Legacy: Thirty People who were Touched by Greatness by Royce Boyles and Dave Robinson
Coach: A Season With Lombardi by Tom Dowling
When Pride Still Mattered : A Life Of Vince Lombardi by David Maraniss
Vince by Michael O'Brien
Run to Win: Vince Lombardi on Coaching and Leadership by Donald T. Phillips
See also
List of Knights of Columbus
List of National Football League head coach wins leaders
List of National Football League head coaches by playoff record
List of Super Bowl head coaches
Notes
References
Sources
Further reading
Cavanaugh, Jack (2008), Giants Among Men. New York: Random House. .
Gifford, Frank and Richmond, Peter (2008), The Glory Game: How the 1958 NFL Championship Changed Football Forever. New York: Harper Collins. .
Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2001), What It Takes to Be #1: Vince Lombardi on Leadership. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2003), The Lombardi Rules: 26 Lessons from Vince Lombardi: The World's Greatest Coach. New York: McGraw-Hill.
External links
Vince Lombardi on American Catholic History
1913 births
1970 deaths
American football offensive linemen
American people of Italian descent
American sportspeople of Italian descent
Army Black Knights football coaches
Fordham Rams football players
Green Bay Packers general managers
Green Bay Packers head coaches
New York Giants coaches
Washington Redskins coaches
Washington Redskins executives
National Football League offensive coordinators
National Football League general managers
High school football coaches in New Jersey
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Knights of Malta
St. Francis Preparatory School alumni
People from Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn
Deaths from cancer in Washington, D.C.
Deaths from colorectal cancer
Burials in New Jersey
Sportspeople from Brooklyn
Players of American football from New Jersey
Coaches of American football from New Jersey
Players of American football from New York (state)
Coaches of American football from New York (state)
Super Bowl-winning head coaches
Catholics from New York (state)
New York (state) Democrats
Writers from Brooklyn
LGBT rights activists from the United States
Wilmington Clippers players | false | [
"Chris Velan is a Montreal-based singer-songwriter and guitarist.\n\nCareer\nWhile in college, he studied law. After passing the bar, he traveled to West Africa where he was the music producer of a documentary film about a group of refugee musicians from Sierra Leone.\n\nIn 2003 Velan returned from West Africa, releasing his debut solo album It's Not What You Think, which incorporated a mix of his old and new influences ranging from folk, pop and rock to world music and reggae.\n\nLive, Velan uses a loop pedal which thickens and layers the music, as he performs live as a one-man band. His last album Solidago was released on NewSong Recordings. This is his third solo album and some of the artists featured on this album include San Francisco artists The Mother Hips, Animal Liberation Orchestra, Jackie Greene and Adam Topol (Culver City Dub Collective, Jack Johnson (musician).\n\nInfluences \nVelan's influences include Neil young, Cat Stevens, Robbie Robertson, Van Morrison and Mark Knopfler\n\nVelan has been compared to artists including Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, and Jack Johnson. Due to his use of the loop pedal at his live performances, he has also been compared to KT Tunstall.\n\nExperience \nVelan has performed with well-known acts across North America including:\n\nDiscography \nSolo\nAmateur Hour – 14 September 2018\nGlow – 2 March 2016\nThe Long Goodbye – 23 July 2013\nFables for Fighters – 7 June 2011\nSolidago – Released 7 April 2009\nTwitter, Buzz, Howl – 8 January 2007\nIt's Not What You Think – 25 November 2003\n\nWith Equalizer\nRise (1998) – Peter UnPlugged\n\nAs Producer\nSierra Leone's Refugee All Stars -\"Living Like a Refugee\" (2006) – Anti- Records\n\nReferences\n\nCanadian male singer-songwriters\nCanadian singer-songwriters\nMusicians from Montreal\nLiving people\nYear of birth missing (living people)\nPlace of birth missing (living people)",
"In mass communication, the Hierarchy of Influences, formally known as the Hierarchical Influences Model, is an organized theoretical framework introduced by Pamela Shoemaker & Stephen D. Reese. It comprises five levels of influence on media content from the macro to micro levels: social systems, social institutions, media organizations, routine practices, and individuals. This framework was introduced in their book Mediating the Message: Theories of Influences on Mass Media Content.\n\nFive levels of Hierarchy of Influences \n\nThe framework was proposed in response to what the scholars believed was an over-emphasis on media processes and effects research. The HOI model instead made the content produced by news media the dependent variable in research studies, influenced by factors located within the hierarchical framework. From a media sociology perspective, the framework \"takes into account the multiple forces that simultaneously impinge on media and suggests how influence at one level may interact with that at another.\" Whereas most media effects study treat media content as independent variable to understand how audience use media content and how they are influenced by media content, \"Hierarchy of Influences\" framework treats media content as dependent variable and five levels of influences as potential independent variables.\n\nOverall, the framework provides a way to understand the \"media and their links with culture, other organizations, and institutions.\"\n\nSocial systems \n\nThe macro social systems level is the outer-most ring of the model that represent the influences from social systems as a whole. This level focus on how ideological forces shape and influence media content. For this reason, it is often employed in cross-national comparative media studies.\n\nSocial institutions \n\nSocial institutional level describes influences coming from larger trans-organizational media field. How media organizations combine into larger institutions that become part of larger structured relationships that compete or depend on each other as powerful social institutions.\n\nMedia organizations \n\nMedia organization level is distinguished from routines as this level describes larger organizational and occupational context such as organizational policy, occupational roles, and how the media enterprise itself is structured.\n\nRoutine practices \n\nThe routines level has three sources of routines, which constrain and enable communicators in their work process: audiences, organizations, and suppliers of content. Journalists have developed routines from endless pattern of norms in response to common situations. This level is where Mr. Gates or gatekeeping (communication) theory is also applied in journalists' appearance\n\nIndividuals \n\nThe micro individual level is located at the center of the model. On this level, individual communicator's characteristics, on both personal and professional, influence media content. Individual's innate characteristics such as gender, race, religious and political background influence media content indirectly through shaping personal attitude and values (e.g. ethical values) as well as professional roles and education.\n\nResearch \n\nHierarchy of influences model has been employed as theoretical framework to explain different levels of influences on media content. Researchers have studied professionalism, journalistic roles, cross-national comparative journalistic roles, comparative media studies, and understanding news production to name a few of closely studies areas.\n\nThomas Hanitzsch took a similar approach to hierarchy of influences model in examining different levels of influences on journalists' reporting process in his Worlds of Journalism study. This study conducted interviews in 21 countries focusing on differences in journalism culture, influences and trust in public institutions.\n\nReferences \n\nMass media theories\nMedia studies"
] |
[
"Vince Lombardi",
"Religion",
"what where his influences",
"three constants throughout Lombardi's life were sports--particularly football--family and religion."
] | C_e8df54bbfca040499812d483f0c591b6_0 | what did he look too | 2 | What did Vince Lombardi look too? | Vince Lombardi | The three constants throughout Lombardi's life were sports--particularly football--family and religion. His father was a daily Communicant throughout his life and his mother's favorite picture of Vince as a child was on his Confirmation. When Lombardi was 12, while serving as an altar boy on Easter Sunday, "... amid the color and pageantry scarlet and white vestments, golden cross, scepters, the wafers and wine, body and blood ... that the inspiration came to him that he should become a priest ...",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged about her son's plan to her neighbors. Lombardi attended Mass on a daily basis throughout his life. During his tenure at St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ..." his wife's drinking. When Lombardi became head coach of football in 1942, he would lead his team to Sunday Mass before each home game. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi shared an office with Father Tim Moore wherein it was not unusual for Lombardi to interrupt a conversation and request to go to Confession and which Father Tim would oblige him right in the office. During his stay at Green Bay, Lombardi once emerged from his office and appeared before his secretary, Ruth McKloskey, wearing "... all these priest robes on, and he had a miter with a tassel, everything." Each day on his way to work for the Green Bay Packers, Lombardi would stop at St. Willebrord Church and "offer a prayer in case of unexpected death: 'My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this Communion as my viaticum ...'". He regularly attended Sunday Mass at Resurrection Church in the Allouez neighborhood of Green Bay's southeast side, always sitting with his wife in the middle of the ninth pew. On the morning of the dedication of Lombardi Avenue, Lombardi remarked to his 37-member entourage that he was pleased to have gotten them all up to attend morning Mass. Lombardi was also a 4th degree in the Knights of Columbus. CANNOTANSWER | St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ..." | Vincent Thomas Lombardi (June 11, 1913 – September 3, 1970) was an American football coach and executive in the National Football League (NFL). He is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight and five total NFL Championships in seven years, in addition to winning the first two Super Bowls at the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 NFL seasons.
Lombardi began his coaching career as an assistant and later as a head coach at St. Cecilia High School in Englewood, New Jersey. He was an assistant coach at Fordham, the United States Military Academy and the New York Giants before becoming head coach of the Green Bay Packers from 1959 to 1967 and the Washington Redskins in 1969.
He never had a losing season as head coach in the NFL, compiling a regular-season winning percentage of 73.8% (96–34–6), and 90% (9–1) in the postseason for an overall record of 105 wins, 35 losses and 6 ties in the NFL.
Lombardi is considered by many to be the greatest coach in football history, and he is recognized as one of the greatest coaches and leaders in the history of all American sports.
The year after his sudden death from cancer in 1970, he was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the NFL Super Bowl trophy was named in his honor.
Early years
Lombardi was born on June 11, 1913, in the Sheepshead Bay neighborhood of Brooklyn to Enrico "Harry" Lombardi (1889–1971) and Matilda "Mattie" Izzo (1891–1972). Harry's mother and father, Vincenzo and Michelina, emigrated from Salerno, Italy. Mattie's father and mother, Anthony and Loretta, emigrated from Vietri di Potenza, Basilicata. Harry had three siblings, and Matilda had twelve. Vince was the oldest of five children, including Madeleine, Harold, Claire, and Joe. Both the Lombardi and Izzo clans settled entirely in Sheepshead Bay.
Matilda's father, Anthony, opened up a barber shop in Sheepshead Bay before the turn of the century. At about the time of Lombardi's birth, Harry, and his brother, Eddie, opened a butcher shop in the Meatpacking District of Manhattan. Throughout the Great Depression, Harry's shop did well, and his family prospered. Lombardi grew up in an ethnically diverse, middle-class neighborhood.
Church attendance was mandatory for the Lombardis on Sundays. Mass would be followed with an equally compulsory few hours of dinner with extended family members, friends, and local clergy. Lombardi himself was an altar boy at St. Mark's Catholic Church. Outside their local neighborhood, the Lombardi children were subject to the rampant ethnic discrimination that existed at the time against Italian immigrants and their descendants. As a child, Lombardi helped his father at his meat cutting business, but grew to hate it. At the age of 12 he started playing in an uncoached but organized football league in Sheepshead Bay.
High school
Lombardi graduated from the eighth grade at P.S. 206 at age 15 in 1928. He then enrolled in the Cathedral Preparatory Seminary, a division of Cathedral College of the Immaculate Conception in Brooklyn, a six-year secondary program to become a Catholic priest. At Cathedral, he played on the school's baseball and basketball teams, but his performance was hindered by his poor athleticism and eyesight. Against school rules, he continued to play football off-campus throughout his studies at Cathedral. After completing four years at Cathedral he decided not to pursue the priesthood. He enrolled at St. Francis Preparatory high school for the fall of 1932. There he became a Charter Member of Omega Gamma Delta fraternity. His performance as a fullback on the Terriers' football team earned him a position on the virtual All-City football team.
Fordham University
In 1933, Lombardi received a football scholarship to Fordham University in the Bronx to play for the Fordham Rams and Coach Jim Crowley, who was one of the Four Horsemen of Notre Dame in the 1920s. During his freshman year, Lombardi proved to be an aggressive and spirited player on the football field. Prior to the beginning of his sophomore year, Lombardi was projected to start games at the tackle position. Lombardi was only 5'8" and about 180 pounds and was classified as undersized for the position.
In his senior year of 1936, he was the right guard in the Seven Blocks of Granite, a nickname given by a Fordham University publicist to the Fordham University football team's offensive front line. In a game against Pitt, he suffered a severe gash inside his mouth and had several teeth knocked out. He missed most of the remainder of the game, until he was called in on defense for a successful goal-line stand that preserved a scoreless tie. The Rams were 5–0–2 before losing in the final game of the season, 7–6, to NYU. The loss destroyed all hopes of Fordham playing in the Rose Bowl and taught Lombardi a lesson he would never forget — never to underestimate your opponent.
Early career
Lombardi graduated from Fordham University on June 16, 1937. The nation was still plagued by the Great Depression, so there were few career opportunities for the young Lombardi, and for the next two years, he showed no discernible career path or ambition. He tried to play semi-professional football with the Wilmington Clippers of the American Association and worked as a debt collector for a collection agency, but those efforts very quickly proved to be failures. With his father's strong support, he enrolled in Fordham Law School in September 1938. Although he did not fail any classes, he believed his grades were so poor that he dropped out after one semester. Later in life, he would explain to others that he was close to graduating, but his desire to start and support a family forced him to leave law school and get a job. He also joined the Brooklyn Eagles.
Coaching career
St. Cecilia High School
In 1939, Lombardi wanted to marry his girlfriend, Marie Planitz, but he deferred at his father's insistence because he needed a steady job to support himself and a family; he married Marie the following year. In 1939, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching job at St. Cecilia's, a Catholic high school in Englewood, New Jersey. He was offered the position by the school's new head coach, Lombardi's former Fordham teammate, quarterback Andy Palau. Palau had just inherited the head coaching position from another Fordham teammate, Nat Pierce (left guard), who had accepted an assistant coach's job back at Fordham. In addition to coaching, Lombardi, age 26, taught Latin, chemistry, and physics for an annual salary of under $1,000.
In 1942, Andy Palau left St. Cecilia's for another position at Fordham, and Lombardi became the head coach at St. Cecilia's. He stayed a total of eight years, five as head coach. In 1943, St. Cecilia's was recognized as the top high school football team in the nation, in large part because of their victory over Brooklyn Prep, a Jesuit school considered one of the best teams in the eastern United States. Brooklyn Prep that season was led by senior Joe Paterno, who, like Lombardi, was to rise to legendary status in football. Lombardi won six state private school championships (NJISAA - New Jersey Independent Schools Athletic Association), and became the president of the Bergen County Coaches' Association.
Fordham
In 1947, Lombardi became the coach of freshman teams in football and basketball at his alma mater, Fordham University. The following year, he was an assistant coach for the varsity football team under head coach Ed Danowski, but he was arguably the de facto head coach.
West Point
Following the 1948 season, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching job at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, a position that greatly influenced his future philosophy and system of coaching. He was offensive line coach under head coach Earl "Colonel Red" Blaik. "As integral as religion was to [Lombardi's] sense of self, it was not until he reached West Point and combined his spiritual discipline with Blaik's military discipline that his coaching persona began to take its mature form." Blaik's emphasis on execution became a trademark of Lombardi's coaching style. Lombardi coached at West Point for five seasons, with varying results. The 1949 and 1950 seasons were successful, but the 1951 and 1952 seasons were not, due to the aftermath of a cadet cribbing scandal (a violation of the Cadet Honor Code) which was revealed in spring 1951. By order of the Superintendent, 43 of the 45 members of the varsity football team were discharged from the Academy as a result of the scandal. "Decades later, looking back on his rise, Lombardi came to regard ..." Blaik's decision not to resign "... as a pivotal moment in his [own] career" — it taught him perseverance. After the 1951 and 1952 seasons not much was expected from the 1953 team as it had also lost six players due to academic failure. The 1953 team, however, did achieve a 7–1–1 record, as Lombardi had a bigger role than ever in coaching the team. Following these five seasons at Army, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching position with the New York Giants.
New York Giants
At age 41 in 1954, Lombardi began his NFL career with the New York Giants. He accepted a job that later became known as the offensive coordinator position under new head coach Jim Lee Howell. The Giants had finished the previous season under 23-year coach Steve Owen with a 3–9 record. By his third season in 1956, Lombardi, along with the defensive coordinator, former All-Pro cornerback turned coach Tom Landry, turned the squad into a championship team, defeating the Chicago Bears 47–7 for the league title. "Howell readily acknowledged the talents of Lombardi and Landry, and joked self-deprecatingly, that his main function was to make sure the footballs had air in them." At points in his tenure as an assistant coach at West Point, and as an assistant coach with the Giants, Lombardi worried that he was unable to land a head coaching job due to prejudice against his Italian heritage, especially with respect to Southern colleges. Howell wrote numerous recommendations for Lombardi to aid him in obtaining a head coaching position. Lombardi applied for head coaching positions at Wake Forest, Notre Dame, and other universities and, in some cases, never received a reply. In New York, Lombardi introduced the strategy of rule blocking to the NFL. In rule blocking, the offensive lineman would block an area, and not necessarily a particular defensive player, as was the norm up to that time. The running back was then expected to run towards any hole that was created. Lombardi referred to this as running to daylight.
Green Bay Packers
1959
The Green Bay Packers, with six future Hall of Famers on the roster in 1958, finished at 1–10–1 under head coach Ray McLean, the worst record in Packer history. The players were dispirited, the Packer shareholders were disheartened, and the Green Bay community was enraged. The angst in Green Bay extended to the NFL as a whole, as the financial viability and the very existence of the Green Bay Packer franchise were in jeopardy. On February 2, 1959, Lombardi accepted the position of head coach and general manager of the Packers. He demanded and gained full control over the football operations of the community-owned franchise, leaving no doubt of this when he told the franchise's executive committee, "I want it understood that I am in complete command here."
Lombardi's assertion of "complete command" applied to the players as well. For his first training camp, he instituted harsh regimens and demanded absolute dedication and effort from his players. The Packers immediately improved in 1959 to 7–5, and rookie head coach Lombardi was named Coach of the Year. The fans appreciated what Lombardi was trying to do and responded by purchasing all the tickets for every home game during the 1960 season. Every Packers home game—preseason, regular season and playoffs—has been sold out ever since then.
1960–1966
In Lombardi's second year in 1960, Green Bay won the NFL Western Conference for the first time since 1944. This victory, along with his well-known religious convictions, led the Green Bay community to anoint Lombardi with the nickname "The Pope". Lombardi led the Packers to the Championship Game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Before the championship game, Lombardi met with Wellington Mara and advised him that he would not take the Giants' head coaching job, which was initially offered after the end of the 1959 season. In the final play of the game, in a drive that would have won it, the Packers were stopped a few yards from the goal line. Lombardi had suffered his first and only championship game loss. After the game, and after the press corps had left the locker room, Lombardi told his team, "This will never happen again. You will never lose another championship." In later years as coach of the Packers, Lombardi made it a point to admonish his running backs that if they failed to score from one yard out, he would consider it a personal affront to him and he would seek retribution. He coached the Packers to win their next nine post-season games, a record streak not matched or broken until Bill Belichick won ten straight from 2002 to 2006 with New England. The Packers defeated the Giants for the NFL title in 1961 (37–0 in Green Bay) and 1962 (16–7 at Yankee Stadium), marking the first two of their five titles in Lombardi's seven years. After the 1962 championship victory, President John F. Kennedy called Lombardi and asked him if he would "come back to Army and coach again". Kennedy received Lombardi's tacit refusal of the request. His only other post-season loss occurred to the St. Louis Cardinals in the third-place Playoff Bowl after the 1964 season (officially classified as an exhibition game).
Including postseason but excluding exhibition games, Lombardi compiled a 105–35–6 (.740) record as head coach, and never suffered a losing season. He led the Packers to three consecutive NFL championships — in 1965, 1966, and 1967 — a feat accomplished only once before in the history of the league, by Curly Lambeau, co-founder of the Packers, who coached the team to their first three straight NFL Championships in 1929, 1930, and 1931. At the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 seasons, Lombardi's Packers won the first two Super Bowls, for championships in five of seven seasons.
Packers Sweep
As coach of the Packers, Lombardi converted Notre Dame quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Paul Hornung to a full-time halfback. Lombardi also designed a play for fullback Jim Taylor: both guards, Jerry Kramer and Fuzzy Thurston, pulled to the outside and blocked downfield while Taylor would "run to daylight" — i.e., wherever the defenders weren't. This was a play that he had originally developed with the Giants for Frank Gifford. It soon became known as the Packers sweep (or Lombardi sweep), though Lombardi openly admitted it was based on an old single wing concept.
Ice Bowl
In 1967, Lombardi's Packers hosted the Dallas Cowboys in Green Bay on December 31 in the NFL Championship Game, a rematch of the previous season. This became known as the "Ice Bowl" because of the game-time temperature. Lombardi had a heating coil underneath the field but on this day it was not functioning. Some people believe that he turned it off on purpose. With 16 seconds left in the game and down by three points, the Packers called their final time-out. It was 3rd and goal on the Dallas two-foot line. In the huddle, with the game on the line, Quarterback Bart Starr asked Kramer whether he could get enough traction on the icy turf for a wedge play and Kramer responded with an unequivocal yes. Starr came over to Lombardi on the sidelines to discuss the last play and told him he wanted to run a 31 wedge, but with him keeping the ball. Lombardi, having had enough of the bitter cold, told Starr to 'Run it! And let's get the hell out of here!' Lombardi was asked by Pat Peppler what play Starr would call, to which Lombardi replied, 'Damned if I know.' Starr returned to the huddle and called a Brown right 31 Wedge, but with him keeping the ball. Kramer blocked Jethro Pugh low and Ken Bowman hit Pugh high as Starr followed them into the end zone for the Packer lead and assured victory.
Washington Redskins
Shortly after the victory in Super Bowl II, Lombardi resigned as head coach of the Packers on February 1, 1968, continuing as general manager. He handed the head coaching position to Phil Bengtson, a longtime assistant, but the Packers finished at 6–7–1 in the 1968 season and were out of the four-team NFL playoffs. In February , Lombardi became head coach and general manager of the Washington Redskins. The Redskins finished at 7–5–2, their first winning record since the 1955 season. Lombardi died the following year, but he was credited with having "truly changed the culture in that one unforgettable season in 1969," laying the foundation for Washington's early 1970s success under another future Hall of Fame coach, George Allen.
Personal life
Family
In the fall of 1934, Lombardi's roommate Jim Lawlor introduced him to his cousin's relative, Marie Planitz. When Marie announced her ardent desire to marry Lombardi, her status-conscious stockbroker father did not like the idea of his daughter marrying the son of an Italian butcher from Brooklyn, a prejudice he would face more than once in his life. Lombardi and Marie wed, nonetheless, on August 31, 1940.
Marie's first pregnancy resulted in a miscarriage. This had a terrible effect on Marie and caused her to turn to heavy drinking, a problem she would encounter on more than one occasion in her life. Their son, Vincent Henry Lombardi (Vince Jr.), was born in 1942, and their daughter Susan followed five years later in 1947.
Lombardi's perfectionism, authoritarian nature and temper, instilled in his wife a masterful ability to verbally assault and demean Lombardi when he verbally abused her. His children were not immune from his yelling. When Lombardi had not lost his temper, he would often be reticent and aloof.
Lombardi's grandson, Joe Lombardi, was named the offensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions in January 2014. He was relieved of this position midway through the 2015 season. Lombardi was previously quarterbacks coach for the New Orleans Saints. In the 2009 season, he helped lead the Saints to win the trophy bearing his grandfather's name, and Drew Brees to win a Super Bowl MVP award. He is now the offensive coordinator of the Los Angeles Chargers, under new head coach Brandon Staley.
World War II deferments
Though he was 28 years old when the United States entered World War II, Lombardi did not serve in the war. He obtained a series of deferments: his first was a 2-A due to his teaching occupation; in 1943, he obtained a second deferment due to parenthood (3-A); and his final deferment was labelled a 4-A and given in 1944.
Religion
The three constants throughout Lombardi's life were his Roman Catholic faith, his family, and football. His father was a daily Communicant throughout his life and his mother's favorite picture of Vince as a child was on his Confirmation. When Lombardi was 12, while serving as an altar boy on Easter Sunday, "... amid the color and pageantry scarlet and white vestments, golden cross, scepters, the wafers and wine, body and blood ... the inspiration came to him that he should become a priest ...",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged about her son's plan to her neighbors. Lombardi attended Mass on a daily basis throughout his life.
During his tenure at St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ... his wife's drinking". When Lombardi became head coach of football in 1942, he led his team to Sunday Mass before each home game. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi shared an office with Father Tim Moore wherein it was not unusual for Lombardi to interrupt a conversation and request to go to Confession and for which Father Tim obliged him right in the office.
During his stay at Green Bay, Lombardi once emerged from his office and appeared before his secretary, Ruth McKloskey, wearing "... all these priest robes on, and he had a miter with a tassel, everything". Each day on his way to work for the Green Bay Packers, Lombardi would stop at St. Willebrord Church and "offer a prayer in case of unexpected death: 'My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this Communion as my viaticum ... '". He regularly attended Sunday Mass at Resurrection Church in the Allouez neighborhood of Green Bay's southeast side, always sitting with his wife in the middle of the ninth pew.
On the morning of the dedication of Lombardi Avenue, Lombardi remarked to his 37-member entourage that he was pleased to have gotten them all up to attend morning Mass. Lombardi was a Fourth Degree in the Knights of Columbus.
Anti-discrimination philosophy
In 1960, a color barrier still existed on at least one team in the NFL, but Jack Vainisi, the Scouting Director for the Packers, and Lombardi were determined "to ignore the prejudices then prevalent in most NFL front offices in their search for the most talented players". Lombardi explained his views by saying that he "... viewed his players as neither black nor white, but Packer green".
Among professional football head coaches, in the midst of the civil rights movement, Lombardi's anti-discrimination views were unusual. When Lombardi joined the Packers, they only had one black player, Nate Borden. During his time as coach the team became fully integrated: by 1967 they had 13 black players, including All-Pros Willie Davis, Willie Wood, Dave Robinson, Herb Adderley and Bob Jeter.
During his first training camp in Green Bay, Lombardi was notified by Packer veterans that an interracial relationship existed between one of the Packer rookies and a young woman. The next day at training camp, Lombardi—who was vehemently opposed to Jim Crow discrimination and had a zero-tolerance policy towards racism—responded by warning his team that if any player exhibited prejudice in any manner, that specific player would be thrown off the team.
Lombardi let it be known to all Green Bay establishments that if they did not accommodate his black and white players equally well, then that business would be off-limits to the entire team. Before the start of the 1960 regular season, he instituted a policy that the Packers would only lodge in places that accepted all his players. Lombardi also refused to assign hotel rooms to players based on their race: by 1967 the Packers were the only NFL team with such a policy.
Lombardi was a member of the all-white Oneida Golf and Riding Country club in Green Bay, and he demanded that he should be allowed to choose a Native American caddie, even if white caddies were available. Lombardi's view on racial matters was a result of his religious faith and the ethnic prejudice that he had experienced as an Italian-American.
Lombardi was known to be volatile and terse with players during practices and games, and he insisted on unconditional respect for everyone in his organization. Lombardi demanded "Nothing But Acceptance" from players and coaches toward all people, and he would immediately terminate a coach or release a player if that particular person insulted the sexual orientation of gay players and front office staff. According to Lombardi biographer and Pulitzer Prize-winning writer David Maraniss, if he caught a coach "discriminating against a player thought to be gay, he'd be fired". Richard Nicholls, the lifelong partner of Lombardi's younger brother, Hal, stated, "Vin was always fair in how he treated everybody ... a great man who accepted people at face value for what they were, and didn't judge anybody. He just wanted you to do the job."
In Washington, Lombardi's assistant general manager David Slatterly was gay, as was PR director Joe Blair, who was described as Lombardi's "right-hand man". According to son Vince Lombardi, Jr., "He saw everyone as equals, and I think having a gay brother (Hal) was a big factor in his approach ... I think my father would've felt, 'I hope I've created an atmosphere in the locker room where this would not be an issue at all. And if you do have an issue, the problem will be yours because my locker room will tolerate nothing but acceptance.'"
Upon his arrival in Washington, Lombardi was aware of tight end Jerry Smith's sexual orientation. "Lombardi protected and loved Jerry," said former teammate Dave Kopay. Lombardi brought Smith into his office and told him that his sexual orientation would never be an issue as long as he was coaching the Redskins; Smith would be judged solely on his on-the-field performance and contribution to the team's success. Under Lombardi's leadership Smith flourished, becoming an integral part of Lombardi's offense, and was voted a First Team All-Pro for the first time in his career, which was also Lombardi's only season as the Redskins head coach.
Lombardi invited other gay players to training camp and would privately hope they would prove they could earn a spot on the team. At the Washington Redskins training camp in 1969, Ray McDonald was a gay player, with sub-par skills, who was trying to make the Redskins roster again, but this time with Lombardi as the Redskins' new head coach. True to his word, Lombardi told running back coach, George Dickson, 'I want you to get on McDonald and work on him and work on him – and if I hear one of you people make reference to his manhood, you'll be out of here before your ass hits the ground.'
Politics
Although his wife was a Republican, Lombardi was a lifelong Democrat with liberal views on civil rights: he supported John F. Kennedy in the 1960 presidential election, Robert F. Kennedy in the 1968 primaries, and was also a supporter of Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson. Despite this, during the 1960s he became uncomfortable with the burgeoning youth protest movements associated with the emerging counterculture, such as the New Left and the Anti-war movement. In a speech that he first delivered in February 1967 to the American Management Association, he suggested that "everything has been done to strengthen the rights of the individual and at the same time weaken the rights of the church, weaken the rights of the state, and weaken the rights of all authority". Due to Lombardi's popularity, Richard Nixon once considered him as a possible running mate in the 1968 presidential election but dropped the idea upon learning about Lombardi's support for the Democratic Party.
Illness and death
Lombardi had suffered from digestive tract problems as early as 1967, and he had refused his doctor's request to undergo a proctoscopic exam. On June 24, 1970, Lombardi was admitted to Georgetown University Hospital, and tests "revealed anaplastic carcinoma in the rectal area of his colon, a fast-growing malignant cancer in which the cells barely resemble their normal appearance". On July 27, Lombardi was readmitted to Georgetown and exploratory surgery found that the cancer was terminal. Lombardi and Marie received family, friends, clergy, players, and former players at his hospital bedside. He received a phone call from President Nixon telling Lombardi that all of the U.S. was behind him, to which Lombardi replied that he would never give up his fight against his illness. On his deathbed, Lombardi told Father Tim that he was not afraid to die, but that he regretted he could not have accomplished more in his life. Lombardi died in Washington, D.C. at 7:12 a.m. on Thursday, September 3, 1970, surrounded by his wife, parents, two children, and six grandchildren. He was 57.
The funeral was held on September 7 at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan. Approximately 1,500 people lined Fifth Avenue, and the avenue was closed to traffic between 39th and 50th Street. Terence Cardinal Cooke delivered the eulogy. In attendance were team owners, Commissioner Pete Rozelle, past and present members of the Packers, Redskins, and Giants, former students from Saints, colleagues and players from West Point, and classmates from Fordham University, including the remaining Seven Blocks of Granite. Lombardi was interred in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Middletown Township, New Jersey.
In popular culture
In 1968, Lombardi starred in a half-hour motivational film titled Second Effort, that has been called "The best-selling training film of all time".
On December 14, 1973, ABC aired Legend in Granite starring Ernest Borgnine as Vince. The biographical TV drama focused mostly on his first two years as Packers head coach (1959–1960).
A service area on the New Jersey Turnpike dedicated to and named after Lombardi opened in 1974.
The high school in the 1979 movie Rock 'n' Roll High School is named "Vince Lombardi High School".
In 1986, CHCH aired the TV movie Lombardi: I Am Not a Legend starring Robert Knuckle in the title role that depicted Lombardi's life up until the NFL.
In 1996, Nike aired several commercials featuring Jerry Stiller as the ghost of Lombardi.
ESPN produced the 2005 TV movie Code Breakers that depicted the West Point cheating scandal and its effect on the football program. Richard Zeppieri played then-Assistant Coach Lombardi.
A play titled Lombardi opened on Broadway at the Circle in the Square Theatre in New York City in October 2010, following an out-of-town tryout at the Mahaiwe Theater in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. The production starred Dan Lauria as Lombardi and Judith Light as his wife, Marie. The play received positive reviews, as did Lauria's performance.
NFL Films and HBO produced a film about Lombardi that debuted Saturday, December 11, 2010.
Honors
In May 1967, Lombardi "... received Fordham's highest honor, the Insignis Medal ... for being a great teacher"
On January 13, 1969, he was inducted into the Knights of Malta at St. Patrick's.
Inducted into the Fordham University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1971
As part of the Lambeau Field renovation in 2003, a 14-foot statue of Lombardi (along with one for Curly Lambeau) now stands on a plaza outside the stadium
In 1968, Highland Avenue in Green Bay, home to the Packers' Lambeau Field, was renamed Lombardi Avenue.
In 1969, the Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) awarded Lombardi with the Jack Mara sportsman of the year.
The Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University is named in his honor.
One of the Green Bay School District's public middle schools is named the Lombardi Middle School.
The football field at Old Bridge High School in Old Bridge, New Jersey, is named Lombardi Field. The football field in Palisades Park is also known as Lombardi Field.
A plaque dedication installed in 1974 in the sidewalk on a square (unofficially called Vince Lombardi Square) near Sheepshead Bay Road and East 14th Street in Brooklyn, New York.
There are two places in the Bensonhurst area, which are, or were, dedicated to Lombardi at one time: P.S. 204 Vince Lombardi Elementary School, and the entire Bensonhurst stretch of 16th Avenue was once dedicated by the City of New York as "Vince Lombardi Boulevard"
The Vince Lombardi Service Area and park-and-ride is the northernmost rest area on the New Jersey Turnpike, at mileposts 116E on the Eastern Spur and 115.5W on the Western Spur. Outside the gift shop is a plaque about his life, which notes that he is buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery, Middletown, New Jersey.
The Vincent T. Lombardi Council, No. 6552, Knights of Columbus, in Middletown, NJ is named for him.
The Vince Lombardi Cancer clinic at Aurora Health Care is named after him.
The Vincent T. Lombardi Center at Fordham University was named for the coach.
In 1970 the NFL's Super Bowl Trophy was renamed the Vince Lombardi Trophy
In 1970, the Rotary Club of Houston created the Lombardi Award, which is given annually to the best college football offensive, or defensive, lineman or linebacker.
In 1969, Lombardi received the Silver Buffalo Award, the highest adult award given by the Boy Scouts of America.
Lombardi was enshrined in the NFL's Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971.
Lombardi was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1976.
Lombardi is a member of the Ring of Fame of the Washington Commanders (formerly known as the Redskins).
Induction into the American Football Association's Semi Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1988
In 2008, Lombardi is inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame
Lombardi appeared on a U.S. Postage stamp first issued on July 25, 1997.
Head coaching record
The Packers played in the third-place Playoff Bowl in Miami after the 1963 and 1964 seasons;these are categorized as exhibition games.
Books
Run to Daylight! by Vince Lombardi with W. C. Heinz
Books written about him
Instant Replay, the Green Bay Diary of Jerry Kramer by Jerry Kramer and Dick Schaap
Football's Greatest Coach: Vince Lombardi by Gene Schoor
The Lombardi Legacy: Thirty People who were Touched by Greatness by Royce Boyles and Dave Robinson
Coach: A Season With Lombardi by Tom Dowling
When Pride Still Mattered : A Life Of Vince Lombardi by David Maraniss
Vince by Michael O'Brien
Run to Win: Vince Lombardi on Coaching and Leadership by Donald T. Phillips
See also
List of Knights of Columbus
List of National Football League head coach wins leaders
List of National Football League head coaches by playoff record
List of Super Bowl head coaches
Notes
References
Sources
Further reading
Cavanaugh, Jack (2008), Giants Among Men. New York: Random House. .
Gifford, Frank and Richmond, Peter (2008), The Glory Game: How the 1958 NFL Championship Changed Football Forever. New York: Harper Collins. .
Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2001), What It Takes to Be #1: Vince Lombardi on Leadership. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2003), The Lombardi Rules: 26 Lessons from Vince Lombardi: The World's Greatest Coach. New York: McGraw-Hill.
External links
Vince Lombardi on American Catholic History
1913 births
1970 deaths
American football offensive linemen
American people of Italian descent
American sportspeople of Italian descent
Army Black Knights football coaches
Fordham Rams football players
Green Bay Packers general managers
Green Bay Packers head coaches
New York Giants coaches
Washington Redskins coaches
Washington Redskins executives
National Football League offensive coordinators
National Football League general managers
High school football coaches in New Jersey
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Knights of Malta
St. Francis Preparatory School alumni
People from Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn
Deaths from cancer in Washington, D.C.
Deaths from colorectal cancer
Burials in New Jersey
Sportspeople from Brooklyn
Players of American football from New Jersey
Coaches of American football from New Jersey
Players of American football from New York (state)
Coaches of American football from New York (state)
Super Bowl-winning head coaches
Catholics from New York (state)
New York (state) Democrats
Writers from Brooklyn
LGBT rights activists from the United States
Wilmington Clippers players | false | [
"Look What I Did is an American band, formed in 2001 in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. The band is known for its intense live show, described by Cincinnati CityBeat as a \"live act capable of unleashing a scary, uncontrolled intensity bordering on dangerous,\" and oft-satirical eccentric lyrics.\n\nHistory\nIn 2003, the band added a second guitar player, Aaron \"Skeet\" Childress, formerly of National Green, and relocated to Los Angeles, California. At this time they also released their first recording, an independently recorded, financed, and released LP, My First Time, on their own Clockrock Recordings. Despite its limited pressing, the record received many features from ezines such as theprp.com, loudside.com, and Opuszine.com. \n\nIn early 2008, the band signed a deal with new label Modernist Movement. The album Atlas Drugged was released on February 9, 2010 via Modernist Movement Recordings. Atlas Drugged was also produced by Brian Virtue. Decibel magazine referred to the band in a review of Atlas Drugged, \"Look What I Did crush on political philosophers, put Latin words in their song titles and generally get off on being a bunch of wiseasses to spazzed-out Adderall punk.\"\n\nZanzibar III: Analog Prison was named the Best Metal Album of 2015 by The Nashville Scene.\n\nThe band released a full new song ''If I Were You I Wouldn't'' in January 2016 on their YouTube account, followed by Fireball in June 2016, their first songs released since 'Zanzibar III : Analog Prison'.\n\nThe band was named after friend's child said the phrase 'Mommy, look what I did', about a drawing to her mother when Barry was talking to her over the phone discussing what the band's name should be.\n\nIn September 2020, the band announced that Evan Brewer has joined the band on bass, replacing Chad Omen, with new music underway in the studio.\n\nDiscography\n\nStudio albums\n2003: My First Time (Clockrock Recordings)\n2005: Minuteman for the Moment (Combat Records)\n2010: Atlas Drugged (Modernist Movement Recordings)\n2014: Zanzibar III: Analog Prison (So Say We All Records)\n2019: Sympathy Porn (So Say We All Records)\n\nVideography\n\"Minuteman for the Moment\" (2005)\n\"Fade to Daft\" (2010)\n\"I'm Majoring in Psychology\" (2010)\n\"Serf Song\" (2010)\n\"Pussy Comitatus\" (2011)\n\"Sebastian's Analog Prison\" (2013)\n\"Wait, Don't Jump\" (2015)\n\"If I Were You I Wouldn't\" (2016)\n\"Hands Off My Snacks\" (2019)\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nLook What I Did official website\nMusic on Reverbnation \nLook What I Did on Spotify\n[ Look What I Did @ Allmusic.com]\n\nMNRK Music Group artists\nMusical groups established in 2001",
"Look at What the Light Did Now is a documentary/live album DVD/CD by Canadian indie pop artist Feist, first released in December 2010. The DVD comprises an 80-minute documentary directed by Anthony Seck, five music videos from 2007 album The Reminder, and a number of live performances recorded between 2007 and 2009, including covers of songs by artists such as Little River Band and Ron Sexsmith.\n\nThe set's accompanying CD features live tracks and solo piano takes of tracks from The Reminder, along with live covers of songs by artists such as The Kinks and Peggy Lee, and two studio recordings of a new song, Look at What the Light Did Now, written by Little Wings.\n\nPrior to its December 2010 home video release, the documentary screened at number of international fall festivals, including the 2010 Raindance Film Festival in London, CPH:DOX in Copenhagen, and the Pop Montreal music festival in Quebec. Look at What the Light Did Now marks both Feist's first official documentary and first official live album.\n\nReception\nLook at What the Light Did Now received limited reviews upon release that were mostly positive. Music site Drowned in Sound gave the release 8/10, stating that it is \"absolutely worth your time and attention,\" while at AllMusic, reviewer Andrew Leahey gave the release 3.5/5, commenting: \"Feist sounds great throughout, with a quirky alto voice that, although imperfect, only seems to break at the right moments.\"\n\nMeanwhile, film site Indiewire gave the film a B+ rating, stating that it was not a typical rock documentary. Reviewer Kimber Myers said it \"sets itself apart with an aesthetic that veers between art film and hipster craft fair, a tone that perfectly matches Feist’s own music, itself a mixture of polished and smartly produced tracks and earthy, quirky additions\".\n\nAccolades\nLook at What the Light Did Now won the 'DVD of the Year' prize at the 2012 Juno Awards in Canada, and was nominated for the Sound & Vision Award at CPH:DOX in Denmark.\n\nTour dates\n\nTrack listing\n\nDisc one (DVD)\nFeature Length Documentary \n Look at What the Light Did Now directed by Anthony Seck\n\nMusic videos\n My Moon My Man directed by Patrick Daughters\n 1234 directed by Patrick Daughters\n I Feel It All directed by Patrick Daughters\n The Water directed by Kevin Drew and starring Cillian Murphy\n Honey Honey directed by Anthony Seck\n\nLive Performances from The Reminder Tour 2007-2009\n Limit to Your Love \n Secret Heart (Ron Sexsmith cover) \n Help is On Its Way (Little River Band cover)\n The Water\n\nDisc two (CD)\nLook at What the Light Did Now (Solo) – 3:59 \nLimit To Your Love (Live) – 5:22 \nWhen I Was a Young Girl (Live) – 4:55 \nMy Moon My Man (Live at the Cameron House, 29 October 2008) – 3:41 \nSecret Heart (Live Ron Sexsmith cover) – 4:40 \nStrangers (Live at the Cameron House, 29 October 2008, The Kinks cover) – 2:34 \nSo Sorry (Live) – 3:46 \nWhere Can I Go Without You? (Live in Paris 2007, Peggy Lee cover) – 3:37\nIntuition (Chilly Gonzales solo) – 4:33\nThe Water (Chilly Gonzales solo) – 7:04 \nSea Lion Woman (Chilly Gonzales solo) – 3:35 \n1234 (Chilly Gonzales solo) – 6:39\nLook at What the Light Did Now (Duet with Little Wings) – 4:09\n\nTracks 9-12: Chilly Gonzales Original Score - Songs from The Reminder improvised and performed on solo piano.\n\nTotal running time: 58:43\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nLive video albums\n2010 live albums\n2010 video albums\nConcert films"
] |
[
"Vince Lombardi",
"Religion",
"what where his influences",
"three constants throughout Lombardi's life were sports--particularly football--family and religion.",
"what did he look too",
"St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and \"prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ...\""
] | C_e8df54bbfca040499812d483f0c591b6_0 | what else | 3 | Besides Vince Lombardi attending Mass everyday, what else? | Vince Lombardi | The three constants throughout Lombardi's life were sports--particularly football--family and religion. His father was a daily Communicant throughout his life and his mother's favorite picture of Vince as a child was on his Confirmation. When Lombardi was 12, while serving as an altar boy on Easter Sunday, "... amid the color and pageantry scarlet and white vestments, golden cross, scepters, the wafers and wine, body and blood ... that the inspiration came to him that he should become a priest ...",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged about her son's plan to her neighbors. Lombardi attended Mass on a daily basis throughout his life. During his tenure at St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ..." his wife's drinking. When Lombardi became head coach of football in 1942, he would lead his team to Sunday Mass before each home game. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi shared an office with Father Tim Moore wherein it was not unusual for Lombardi to interrupt a conversation and request to go to Confession and which Father Tim would oblige him right in the office. During his stay at Green Bay, Lombardi once emerged from his office and appeared before his secretary, Ruth McKloskey, wearing "... all these priest robes on, and he had a miter with a tassel, everything." Each day on his way to work for the Green Bay Packers, Lombardi would stop at St. Willebrord Church and "offer a prayer in case of unexpected death: 'My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this Communion as my viaticum ...'". He regularly attended Sunday Mass at Resurrection Church in the Allouez neighborhood of Green Bay's southeast side, always sitting with his wife in the middle of the ninth pew. On the morning of the dedication of Lombardi Avenue, Lombardi remarked to his 37-member entourage that he was pleased to have gotten them all up to attend morning Mass. Lombardi was also a 4th degree in the Knights of Columbus. CANNOTANSWER | ..." his wife's drinking. | Vincent Thomas Lombardi (June 11, 1913 – September 3, 1970) was an American football coach and executive in the National Football League (NFL). He is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight and five total NFL Championships in seven years, in addition to winning the first two Super Bowls at the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 NFL seasons.
Lombardi began his coaching career as an assistant and later as a head coach at St. Cecilia High School in Englewood, New Jersey. He was an assistant coach at Fordham, the United States Military Academy and the New York Giants before becoming head coach of the Green Bay Packers from 1959 to 1967 and the Washington Redskins in 1969.
He never had a losing season as head coach in the NFL, compiling a regular-season winning percentage of 73.8% (96–34–6), and 90% (9–1) in the postseason for an overall record of 105 wins, 35 losses and 6 ties in the NFL.
Lombardi is considered by many to be the greatest coach in football history, and he is recognized as one of the greatest coaches and leaders in the history of all American sports.
The year after his sudden death from cancer in 1970, he was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the NFL Super Bowl trophy was named in his honor.
Early years
Lombardi was born on June 11, 1913, in the Sheepshead Bay neighborhood of Brooklyn to Enrico "Harry" Lombardi (1889–1971) and Matilda "Mattie" Izzo (1891–1972). Harry's mother and father, Vincenzo and Michelina, emigrated from Salerno, Italy. Mattie's father and mother, Anthony and Loretta, emigrated from Vietri di Potenza, Basilicata. Harry had three siblings, and Matilda had twelve. Vince was the oldest of five children, including Madeleine, Harold, Claire, and Joe. Both the Lombardi and Izzo clans settled entirely in Sheepshead Bay.
Matilda's father, Anthony, opened up a barber shop in Sheepshead Bay before the turn of the century. At about the time of Lombardi's birth, Harry, and his brother, Eddie, opened a butcher shop in the Meatpacking District of Manhattan. Throughout the Great Depression, Harry's shop did well, and his family prospered. Lombardi grew up in an ethnically diverse, middle-class neighborhood.
Church attendance was mandatory for the Lombardis on Sundays. Mass would be followed with an equally compulsory few hours of dinner with extended family members, friends, and local clergy. Lombardi himself was an altar boy at St. Mark's Catholic Church. Outside their local neighborhood, the Lombardi children were subject to the rampant ethnic discrimination that existed at the time against Italian immigrants and their descendants. As a child, Lombardi helped his father at his meat cutting business, but grew to hate it. At the age of 12 he started playing in an uncoached but organized football league in Sheepshead Bay.
High school
Lombardi graduated from the eighth grade at P.S. 206 at age 15 in 1928. He then enrolled in the Cathedral Preparatory Seminary, a division of Cathedral College of the Immaculate Conception in Brooklyn, a six-year secondary program to become a Catholic priest. At Cathedral, he played on the school's baseball and basketball teams, but his performance was hindered by his poor athleticism and eyesight. Against school rules, he continued to play football off-campus throughout his studies at Cathedral. After completing four years at Cathedral he decided not to pursue the priesthood. He enrolled at St. Francis Preparatory high school for the fall of 1932. There he became a Charter Member of Omega Gamma Delta fraternity. His performance as a fullback on the Terriers' football team earned him a position on the virtual All-City football team.
Fordham University
In 1933, Lombardi received a football scholarship to Fordham University in the Bronx to play for the Fordham Rams and Coach Jim Crowley, who was one of the Four Horsemen of Notre Dame in the 1920s. During his freshman year, Lombardi proved to be an aggressive and spirited player on the football field. Prior to the beginning of his sophomore year, Lombardi was projected to start games at the tackle position. Lombardi was only 5'8" and about 180 pounds and was classified as undersized for the position.
In his senior year of 1936, he was the right guard in the Seven Blocks of Granite, a nickname given by a Fordham University publicist to the Fordham University football team's offensive front line. In a game against Pitt, he suffered a severe gash inside his mouth and had several teeth knocked out. He missed most of the remainder of the game, until he was called in on defense for a successful goal-line stand that preserved a scoreless tie. The Rams were 5–0–2 before losing in the final game of the season, 7–6, to NYU. The loss destroyed all hopes of Fordham playing in the Rose Bowl and taught Lombardi a lesson he would never forget — never to underestimate your opponent.
Early career
Lombardi graduated from Fordham University on June 16, 1937. The nation was still plagued by the Great Depression, so there were few career opportunities for the young Lombardi, and for the next two years, he showed no discernible career path or ambition. He tried to play semi-professional football with the Wilmington Clippers of the American Association and worked as a debt collector for a collection agency, but those efforts very quickly proved to be failures. With his father's strong support, he enrolled in Fordham Law School in September 1938. Although he did not fail any classes, he believed his grades were so poor that he dropped out after one semester. Later in life, he would explain to others that he was close to graduating, but his desire to start and support a family forced him to leave law school and get a job. He also joined the Brooklyn Eagles.
Coaching career
St. Cecilia High School
In 1939, Lombardi wanted to marry his girlfriend, Marie Planitz, but he deferred at his father's insistence because he needed a steady job to support himself and a family; he married Marie the following year. In 1939, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching job at St. Cecilia's, a Catholic high school in Englewood, New Jersey. He was offered the position by the school's new head coach, Lombardi's former Fordham teammate, quarterback Andy Palau. Palau had just inherited the head coaching position from another Fordham teammate, Nat Pierce (left guard), who had accepted an assistant coach's job back at Fordham. In addition to coaching, Lombardi, age 26, taught Latin, chemistry, and physics for an annual salary of under $1,000.
In 1942, Andy Palau left St. Cecilia's for another position at Fordham, and Lombardi became the head coach at St. Cecilia's. He stayed a total of eight years, five as head coach. In 1943, St. Cecilia's was recognized as the top high school football team in the nation, in large part because of their victory over Brooklyn Prep, a Jesuit school considered one of the best teams in the eastern United States. Brooklyn Prep that season was led by senior Joe Paterno, who, like Lombardi, was to rise to legendary status in football. Lombardi won six state private school championships (NJISAA - New Jersey Independent Schools Athletic Association), and became the president of the Bergen County Coaches' Association.
Fordham
In 1947, Lombardi became the coach of freshman teams in football and basketball at his alma mater, Fordham University. The following year, he was an assistant coach for the varsity football team under head coach Ed Danowski, but he was arguably the de facto head coach.
West Point
Following the 1948 season, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching job at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, a position that greatly influenced his future philosophy and system of coaching. He was offensive line coach under head coach Earl "Colonel Red" Blaik. "As integral as religion was to [Lombardi's] sense of self, it was not until he reached West Point and combined his spiritual discipline with Blaik's military discipline that his coaching persona began to take its mature form." Blaik's emphasis on execution became a trademark of Lombardi's coaching style. Lombardi coached at West Point for five seasons, with varying results. The 1949 and 1950 seasons were successful, but the 1951 and 1952 seasons were not, due to the aftermath of a cadet cribbing scandal (a violation of the Cadet Honor Code) which was revealed in spring 1951. By order of the Superintendent, 43 of the 45 members of the varsity football team were discharged from the Academy as a result of the scandal. "Decades later, looking back on his rise, Lombardi came to regard ..." Blaik's decision not to resign "... as a pivotal moment in his [own] career" — it taught him perseverance. After the 1951 and 1952 seasons not much was expected from the 1953 team as it had also lost six players due to academic failure. The 1953 team, however, did achieve a 7–1–1 record, as Lombardi had a bigger role than ever in coaching the team. Following these five seasons at Army, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching position with the New York Giants.
New York Giants
At age 41 in 1954, Lombardi began his NFL career with the New York Giants. He accepted a job that later became known as the offensive coordinator position under new head coach Jim Lee Howell. The Giants had finished the previous season under 23-year coach Steve Owen with a 3–9 record. By his third season in 1956, Lombardi, along with the defensive coordinator, former All-Pro cornerback turned coach Tom Landry, turned the squad into a championship team, defeating the Chicago Bears 47–7 for the league title. "Howell readily acknowledged the talents of Lombardi and Landry, and joked self-deprecatingly, that his main function was to make sure the footballs had air in them." At points in his tenure as an assistant coach at West Point, and as an assistant coach with the Giants, Lombardi worried that he was unable to land a head coaching job due to prejudice against his Italian heritage, especially with respect to Southern colleges. Howell wrote numerous recommendations for Lombardi to aid him in obtaining a head coaching position. Lombardi applied for head coaching positions at Wake Forest, Notre Dame, and other universities and, in some cases, never received a reply. In New York, Lombardi introduced the strategy of rule blocking to the NFL. In rule blocking, the offensive lineman would block an area, and not necessarily a particular defensive player, as was the norm up to that time. The running back was then expected to run towards any hole that was created. Lombardi referred to this as running to daylight.
Green Bay Packers
1959
The Green Bay Packers, with six future Hall of Famers on the roster in 1958, finished at 1–10–1 under head coach Ray McLean, the worst record in Packer history. The players were dispirited, the Packer shareholders were disheartened, and the Green Bay community was enraged. The angst in Green Bay extended to the NFL as a whole, as the financial viability and the very existence of the Green Bay Packer franchise were in jeopardy. On February 2, 1959, Lombardi accepted the position of head coach and general manager of the Packers. He demanded and gained full control over the football operations of the community-owned franchise, leaving no doubt of this when he told the franchise's executive committee, "I want it understood that I am in complete command here."
Lombardi's assertion of "complete command" applied to the players as well. For his first training camp, he instituted harsh regimens and demanded absolute dedication and effort from his players. The Packers immediately improved in 1959 to 7–5, and rookie head coach Lombardi was named Coach of the Year. The fans appreciated what Lombardi was trying to do and responded by purchasing all the tickets for every home game during the 1960 season. Every Packers home game—preseason, regular season and playoffs—has been sold out ever since then.
1960–1966
In Lombardi's second year in 1960, Green Bay won the NFL Western Conference for the first time since 1944. This victory, along with his well-known religious convictions, led the Green Bay community to anoint Lombardi with the nickname "The Pope". Lombardi led the Packers to the Championship Game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Before the championship game, Lombardi met with Wellington Mara and advised him that he would not take the Giants' head coaching job, which was initially offered after the end of the 1959 season. In the final play of the game, in a drive that would have won it, the Packers were stopped a few yards from the goal line. Lombardi had suffered his first and only championship game loss. After the game, and after the press corps had left the locker room, Lombardi told his team, "This will never happen again. You will never lose another championship." In later years as coach of the Packers, Lombardi made it a point to admonish his running backs that if they failed to score from one yard out, he would consider it a personal affront to him and he would seek retribution. He coached the Packers to win their next nine post-season games, a record streak not matched or broken until Bill Belichick won ten straight from 2002 to 2006 with New England. The Packers defeated the Giants for the NFL title in 1961 (37–0 in Green Bay) and 1962 (16–7 at Yankee Stadium), marking the first two of their five titles in Lombardi's seven years. After the 1962 championship victory, President John F. Kennedy called Lombardi and asked him if he would "come back to Army and coach again". Kennedy received Lombardi's tacit refusal of the request. His only other post-season loss occurred to the St. Louis Cardinals in the third-place Playoff Bowl after the 1964 season (officially classified as an exhibition game).
Including postseason but excluding exhibition games, Lombardi compiled a 105–35–6 (.740) record as head coach, and never suffered a losing season. He led the Packers to three consecutive NFL championships — in 1965, 1966, and 1967 — a feat accomplished only once before in the history of the league, by Curly Lambeau, co-founder of the Packers, who coached the team to their first three straight NFL Championships in 1929, 1930, and 1931. At the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 seasons, Lombardi's Packers won the first two Super Bowls, for championships in five of seven seasons.
Packers Sweep
As coach of the Packers, Lombardi converted Notre Dame quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Paul Hornung to a full-time halfback. Lombardi also designed a play for fullback Jim Taylor: both guards, Jerry Kramer and Fuzzy Thurston, pulled to the outside and blocked downfield while Taylor would "run to daylight" — i.e., wherever the defenders weren't. This was a play that he had originally developed with the Giants for Frank Gifford. It soon became known as the Packers sweep (or Lombardi sweep), though Lombardi openly admitted it was based on an old single wing concept.
Ice Bowl
In 1967, Lombardi's Packers hosted the Dallas Cowboys in Green Bay on December 31 in the NFL Championship Game, a rematch of the previous season. This became known as the "Ice Bowl" because of the game-time temperature. Lombardi had a heating coil underneath the field but on this day it was not functioning. Some people believe that he turned it off on purpose. With 16 seconds left in the game and down by three points, the Packers called their final time-out. It was 3rd and goal on the Dallas two-foot line. In the huddle, with the game on the line, Quarterback Bart Starr asked Kramer whether he could get enough traction on the icy turf for a wedge play and Kramer responded with an unequivocal yes. Starr came over to Lombardi on the sidelines to discuss the last play and told him he wanted to run a 31 wedge, but with him keeping the ball. Lombardi, having had enough of the bitter cold, told Starr to 'Run it! And let's get the hell out of here!' Lombardi was asked by Pat Peppler what play Starr would call, to which Lombardi replied, 'Damned if I know.' Starr returned to the huddle and called a Brown right 31 Wedge, but with him keeping the ball. Kramer blocked Jethro Pugh low and Ken Bowman hit Pugh high as Starr followed them into the end zone for the Packer lead and assured victory.
Washington Redskins
Shortly after the victory in Super Bowl II, Lombardi resigned as head coach of the Packers on February 1, 1968, continuing as general manager. He handed the head coaching position to Phil Bengtson, a longtime assistant, but the Packers finished at 6–7–1 in the 1968 season and were out of the four-team NFL playoffs. In February , Lombardi became head coach and general manager of the Washington Redskins. The Redskins finished at 7–5–2, their first winning record since the 1955 season. Lombardi died the following year, but he was credited with having "truly changed the culture in that one unforgettable season in 1969," laying the foundation for Washington's early 1970s success under another future Hall of Fame coach, George Allen.
Personal life
Family
In the fall of 1934, Lombardi's roommate Jim Lawlor introduced him to his cousin's relative, Marie Planitz. When Marie announced her ardent desire to marry Lombardi, her status-conscious stockbroker father did not like the idea of his daughter marrying the son of an Italian butcher from Brooklyn, a prejudice he would face more than once in his life. Lombardi and Marie wed, nonetheless, on August 31, 1940.
Marie's first pregnancy resulted in a miscarriage. This had a terrible effect on Marie and caused her to turn to heavy drinking, a problem she would encounter on more than one occasion in her life. Their son, Vincent Henry Lombardi (Vince Jr.), was born in 1942, and their daughter Susan followed five years later in 1947.
Lombardi's perfectionism, authoritarian nature and temper, instilled in his wife a masterful ability to verbally assault and demean Lombardi when he verbally abused her. His children were not immune from his yelling. When Lombardi had not lost his temper, he would often be reticent and aloof.
Lombardi's grandson, Joe Lombardi, was named the offensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions in January 2014. He was relieved of this position midway through the 2015 season. Lombardi was previously quarterbacks coach for the New Orleans Saints. In the 2009 season, he helped lead the Saints to win the trophy bearing his grandfather's name, and Drew Brees to win a Super Bowl MVP award. He is now the offensive coordinator of the Los Angeles Chargers, under new head coach Brandon Staley.
World War II deferments
Though he was 28 years old when the United States entered World War II, Lombardi did not serve in the war. He obtained a series of deferments: his first was a 2-A due to his teaching occupation; in 1943, he obtained a second deferment due to parenthood (3-A); and his final deferment was labelled a 4-A and given in 1944.
Religion
The three constants throughout Lombardi's life were his Roman Catholic faith, his family, and football. His father was a daily Communicant throughout his life and his mother's favorite picture of Vince as a child was on his Confirmation. When Lombardi was 12, while serving as an altar boy on Easter Sunday, "... amid the color and pageantry scarlet and white vestments, golden cross, scepters, the wafers and wine, body and blood ... the inspiration came to him that he should become a priest ...",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged about her son's plan to her neighbors. Lombardi attended Mass on a daily basis throughout his life.
During his tenure at St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ... his wife's drinking". When Lombardi became head coach of football in 1942, he led his team to Sunday Mass before each home game. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi shared an office with Father Tim Moore wherein it was not unusual for Lombardi to interrupt a conversation and request to go to Confession and for which Father Tim obliged him right in the office.
During his stay at Green Bay, Lombardi once emerged from his office and appeared before his secretary, Ruth McKloskey, wearing "... all these priest robes on, and he had a miter with a tassel, everything". Each day on his way to work for the Green Bay Packers, Lombardi would stop at St. Willebrord Church and "offer a prayer in case of unexpected death: 'My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this Communion as my viaticum ... '". He regularly attended Sunday Mass at Resurrection Church in the Allouez neighborhood of Green Bay's southeast side, always sitting with his wife in the middle of the ninth pew.
On the morning of the dedication of Lombardi Avenue, Lombardi remarked to his 37-member entourage that he was pleased to have gotten them all up to attend morning Mass. Lombardi was a Fourth Degree in the Knights of Columbus.
Anti-discrimination philosophy
In 1960, a color barrier still existed on at least one team in the NFL, but Jack Vainisi, the Scouting Director for the Packers, and Lombardi were determined "to ignore the prejudices then prevalent in most NFL front offices in their search for the most talented players". Lombardi explained his views by saying that he "... viewed his players as neither black nor white, but Packer green".
Among professional football head coaches, in the midst of the civil rights movement, Lombardi's anti-discrimination views were unusual. When Lombardi joined the Packers, they only had one black player, Nate Borden. During his time as coach the team became fully integrated: by 1967 they had 13 black players, including All-Pros Willie Davis, Willie Wood, Dave Robinson, Herb Adderley and Bob Jeter.
During his first training camp in Green Bay, Lombardi was notified by Packer veterans that an interracial relationship existed between one of the Packer rookies and a young woman. The next day at training camp, Lombardi—who was vehemently opposed to Jim Crow discrimination and had a zero-tolerance policy towards racism—responded by warning his team that if any player exhibited prejudice in any manner, that specific player would be thrown off the team.
Lombardi let it be known to all Green Bay establishments that if they did not accommodate his black and white players equally well, then that business would be off-limits to the entire team. Before the start of the 1960 regular season, he instituted a policy that the Packers would only lodge in places that accepted all his players. Lombardi also refused to assign hotel rooms to players based on their race: by 1967 the Packers were the only NFL team with such a policy.
Lombardi was a member of the all-white Oneida Golf and Riding Country club in Green Bay, and he demanded that he should be allowed to choose a Native American caddie, even if white caddies were available. Lombardi's view on racial matters was a result of his religious faith and the ethnic prejudice that he had experienced as an Italian-American.
Lombardi was known to be volatile and terse with players during practices and games, and he insisted on unconditional respect for everyone in his organization. Lombardi demanded "Nothing But Acceptance" from players and coaches toward all people, and he would immediately terminate a coach or release a player if that particular person insulted the sexual orientation of gay players and front office staff. According to Lombardi biographer and Pulitzer Prize-winning writer David Maraniss, if he caught a coach "discriminating against a player thought to be gay, he'd be fired". Richard Nicholls, the lifelong partner of Lombardi's younger brother, Hal, stated, "Vin was always fair in how he treated everybody ... a great man who accepted people at face value for what they were, and didn't judge anybody. He just wanted you to do the job."
In Washington, Lombardi's assistant general manager David Slatterly was gay, as was PR director Joe Blair, who was described as Lombardi's "right-hand man". According to son Vince Lombardi, Jr., "He saw everyone as equals, and I think having a gay brother (Hal) was a big factor in his approach ... I think my father would've felt, 'I hope I've created an atmosphere in the locker room where this would not be an issue at all. And if you do have an issue, the problem will be yours because my locker room will tolerate nothing but acceptance.'"
Upon his arrival in Washington, Lombardi was aware of tight end Jerry Smith's sexual orientation. "Lombardi protected and loved Jerry," said former teammate Dave Kopay. Lombardi brought Smith into his office and told him that his sexual orientation would never be an issue as long as he was coaching the Redskins; Smith would be judged solely on his on-the-field performance and contribution to the team's success. Under Lombardi's leadership Smith flourished, becoming an integral part of Lombardi's offense, and was voted a First Team All-Pro for the first time in his career, which was also Lombardi's only season as the Redskins head coach.
Lombardi invited other gay players to training camp and would privately hope they would prove they could earn a spot on the team. At the Washington Redskins training camp in 1969, Ray McDonald was a gay player, with sub-par skills, who was trying to make the Redskins roster again, but this time with Lombardi as the Redskins' new head coach. True to his word, Lombardi told running back coach, George Dickson, 'I want you to get on McDonald and work on him and work on him – and if I hear one of you people make reference to his manhood, you'll be out of here before your ass hits the ground.'
Politics
Although his wife was a Republican, Lombardi was a lifelong Democrat with liberal views on civil rights: he supported John F. Kennedy in the 1960 presidential election, Robert F. Kennedy in the 1968 primaries, and was also a supporter of Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson. Despite this, during the 1960s he became uncomfortable with the burgeoning youth protest movements associated with the emerging counterculture, such as the New Left and the Anti-war movement. In a speech that he first delivered in February 1967 to the American Management Association, he suggested that "everything has been done to strengthen the rights of the individual and at the same time weaken the rights of the church, weaken the rights of the state, and weaken the rights of all authority". Due to Lombardi's popularity, Richard Nixon once considered him as a possible running mate in the 1968 presidential election but dropped the idea upon learning about Lombardi's support for the Democratic Party.
Illness and death
Lombardi had suffered from digestive tract problems as early as 1967, and he had refused his doctor's request to undergo a proctoscopic exam. On June 24, 1970, Lombardi was admitted to Georgetown University Hospital, and tests "revealed anaplastic carcinoma in the rectal area of his colon, a fast-growing malignant cancer in which the cells barely resemble their normal appearance". On July 27, Lombardi was readmitted to Georgetown and exploratory surgery found that the cancer was terminal. Lombardi and Marie received family, friends, clergy, players, and former players at his hospital bedside. He received a phone call from President Nixon telling Lombardi that all of the U.S. was behind him, to which Lombardi replied that he would never give up his fight against his illness. On his deathbed, Lombardi told Father Tim that he was not afraid to die, but that he regretted he could not have accomplished more in his life. Lombardi died in Washington, D.C. at 7:12 a.m. on Thursday, September 3, 1970, surrounded by his wife, parents, two children, and six grandchildren. He was 57.
The funeral was held on September 7 at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan. Approximately 1,500 people lined Fifth Avenue, and the avenue was closed to traffic between 39th and 50th Street. Terence Cardinal Cooke delivered the eulogy. In attendance were team owners, Commissioner Pete Rozelle, past and present members of the Packers, Redskins, and Giants, former students from Saints, colleagues and players from West Point, and classmates from Fordham University, including the remaining Seven Blocks of Granite. Lombardi was interred in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Middletown Township, New Jersey.
In popular culture
In 1968, Lombardi starred in a half-hour motivational film titled Second Effort, that has been called "The best-selling training film of all time".
On December 14, 1973, ABC aired Legend in Granite starring Ernest Borgnine as Vince. The biographical TV drama focused mostly on his first two years as Packers head coach (1959–1960).
A service area on the New Jersey Turnpike dedicated to and named after Lombardi opened in 1974.
The high school in the 1979 movie Rock 'n' Roll High School is named "Vince Lombardi High School".
In 1986, CHCH aired the TV movie Lombardi: I Am Not a Legend starring Robert Knuckle in the title role that depicted Lombardi's life up until the NFL.
In 1996, Nike aired several commercials featuring Jerry Stiller as the ghost of Lombardi.
ESPN produced the 2005 TV movie Code Breakers that depicted the West Point cheating scandal and its effect on the football program. Richard Zeppieri played then-Assistant Coach Lombardi.
A play titled Lombardi opened on Broadway at the Circle in the Square Theatre in New York City in October 2010, following an out-of-town tryout at the Mahaiwe Theater in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. The production starred Dan Lauria as Lombardi and Judith Light as his wife, Marie. The play received positive reviews, as did Lauria's performance.
NFL Films and HBO produced a film about Lombardi that debuted Saturday, December 11, 2010.
Honors
In May 1967, Lombardi "... received Fordham's highest honor, the Insignis Medal ... for being a great teacher"
On January 13, 1969, he was inducted into the Knights of Malta at St. Patrick's.
Inducted into the Fordham University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1971
As part of the Lambeau Field renovation in 2003, a 14-foot statue of Lombardi (along with one for Curly Lambeau) now stands on a plaza outside the stadium
In 1968, Highland Avenue in Green Bay, home to the Packers' Lambeau Field, was renamed Lombardi Avenue.
In 1969, the Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) awarded Lombardi with the Jack Mara sportsman of the year.
The Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University is named in his honor.
One of the Green Bay School District's public middle schools is named the Lombardi Middle School.
The football field at Old Bridge High School in Old Bridge, New Jersey, is named Lombardi Field. The football field in Palisades Park is also known as Lombardi Field.
A plaque dedication installed in 1974 in the sidewalk on a square (unofficially called Vince Lombardi Square) near Sheepshead Bay Road and East 14th Street in Brooklyn, New York.
There are two places in the Bensonhurst area, which are, or were, dedicated to Lombardi at one time: P.S. 204 Vince Lombardi Elementary School, and the entire Bensonhurst stretch of 16th Avenue was once dedicated by the City of New York as "Vince Lombardi Boulevard"
The Vince Lombardi Service Area and park-and-ride is the northernmost rest area on the New Jersey Turnpike, at mileposts 116E on the Eastern Spur and 115.5W on the Western Spur. Outside the gift shop is a plaque about his life, which notes that he is buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery, Middletown, New Jersey.
The Vincent T. Lombardi Council, No. 6552, Knights of Columbus, in Middletown, NJ is named for him.
The Vince Lombardi Cancer clinic at Aurora Health Care is named after him.
The Vincent T. Lombardi Center at Fordham University was named for the coach.
In 1970 the NFL's Super Bowl Trophy was renamed the Vince Lombardi Trophy
In 1970, the Rotary Club of Houston created the Lombardi Award, which is given annually to the best college football offensive, or defensive, lineman or linebacker.
In 1969, Lombardi received the Silver Buffalo Award, the highest adult award given by the Boy Scouts of America.
Lombardi was enshrined in the NFL's Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971.
Lombardi was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1976.
Lombardi is a member of the Ring of Fame of the Washington Commanders (formerly known as the Redskins).
Induction into the American Football Association's Semi Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1988
In 2008, Lombardi is inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame
Lombardi appeared on a U.S. Postage stamp first issued on July 25, 1997.
Head coaching record
The Packers played in the third-place Playoff Bowl in Miami after the 1963 and 1964 seasons;these are categorized as exhibition games.
Books
Run to Daylight! by Vince Lombardi with W. C. Heinz
Books written about him
Instant Replay, the Green Bay Diary of Jerry Kramer by Jerry Kramer and Dick Schaap
Football's Greatest Coach: Vince Lombardi by Gene Schoor
The Lombardi Legacy: Thirty People who were Touched by Greatness by Royce Boyles and Dave Robinson
Coach: A Season With Lombardi by Tom Dowling
When Pride Still Mattered : A Life Of Vince Lombardi by David Maraniss
Vince by Michael O'Brien
Run to Win: Vince Lombardi on Coaching and Leadership by Donald T. Phillips
See also
List of Knights of Columbus
List of National Football League head coach wins leaders
List of National Football League head coaches by playoff record
List of Super Bowl head coaches
Notes
References
Sources
Further reading
Cavanaugh, Jack (2008), Giants Among Men. New York: Random House. .
Gifford, Frank and Richmond, Peter (2008), The Glory Game: How the 1958 NFL Championship Changed Football Forever. New York: Harper Collins. .
Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2001), What It Takes to Be #1: Vince Lombardi on Leadership. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2003), The Lombardi Rules: 26 Lessons from Vince Lombardi: The World's Greatest Coach. New York: McGraw-Hill.
External links
Vince Lombardi on American Catholic History
1913 births
1970 deaths
American football offensive linemen
American people of Italian descent
American sportspeople of Italian descent
Army Black Knights football coaches
Fordham Rams football players
Green Bay Packers general managers
Green Bay Packers head coaches
New York Giants coaches
Washington Redskins coaches
Washington Redskins executives
National Football League offensive coordinators
National Football League general managers
High school football coaches in New Jersey
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Knights of Malta
St. Francis Preparatory School alumni
People from Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn
Deaths from cancer in Washington, D.C.
Deaths from colorectal cancer
Burials in New Jersey
Sportspeople from Brooklyn
Players of American football from New Jersey
Coaches of American football from New Jersey
Players of American football from New York (state)
Coaches of American football from New York (state)
Super Bowl-winning head coaches
Catholics from New York (state)
New York (state) Democrats
Writers from Brooklyn
LGBT rights activists from the United States
Wilmington Clippers players | false | [
"\"What Else Is There?\" is the third single from the Norwegian duo Röyksopp's second album The Understanding. It features the vocals of Karin Dreijer from the Swedish electronica duo The Knife. The album was released in the UK with the help of Astralwerks.\n\nThe single was used in an O2 television advertisement in the Czech Republic and in Slovakia during 2008. It was also used in the 2006 film Cashback and the 2007 film, Meet Bill. Trentemøller's remix of \"What Else is There?\" was featured in an episode of the HBO show Entourage.\n\nThe song was covered by extreme metal band Enslaved as a bonus track for their album E.\n\nThe song was listed as the 375th best song of the 2000s by Pitchfork Media.\n\nOfficial versions\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Album Version) – 5:17\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Radio Edit) – 3:38\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Jacques Lu Cont Radio Mix) – 3:46\n\"What Else Is There?\" (The Emperor Machine Vocal Version) – 8:03\n\"What Else Is There?\" (The Emperor Machine Dub Version) – 7:51\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Thin White Duke Mix) – 8:25\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Thin White Duke Edit) – 4:50\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Thin White Duke Remix) (Radio Edit) – 3:06\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Trentemøller Remix) – 7:42\n\"What Else Is There?\" (Vitalic Remix) – 5:14\n\nResponse\nThe single was officially released on 5 December 2005 in the UK. The single had a limited release on 21 November 2005 to promote the upcoming album. On the UK Singles Chart, it peaked at number 32, while on the UK Dance Chart, it reached number one.\n\nMusic video\nThe music video was directed by Martin de Thurah. It features Norwegian model Marianne Schröder who is shown lip-syncing Dreijer's voice. Schröder is depicted as a floating woman traveling across stormy landscapes and within empty houses. Dreijer makes a cameo appearance as a woman wearing an Elizabethan ruff while dining alone at a festive table.\n\nMovie spots\n\nThe song is also featured in the movie Meet Bill as characters played by Jessica Alba and Aaron Eckhart smoke marijuana while listening to it. It is also part of the end credits music of the film Cashback.\n\nCharts\n\nReferences\n\n2005 singles\nRöyksopp songs\nAstralwerks singles\nSongs written by Svein Berge\nSongs written by Torbjørn Brundtland\n2004 songs\nSongs written by Roger Greenaway\nSongs written by Olof Dreijer\nSongs written by Karin Dreijer",
"What Else Do You Do? (A Compilation of Quiet Music) is a various artists compilation album, released in 1990 by Shimmy Disc.\n\nTrack listing\n\nPersonnel \nAdapted from the What Else Do You Do? (A Compilation of Quiet Music) liner notes.\n Kramer – production, engineering\n\nRelease history\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n \n\n1990 compilation albums\nAlbums produced by Kramer (musician)\nShimmy Disc compilation albums"
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] | C_e8df54bbfca040499812d483f0c591b6_0 | what is his moms name | 4 | What is Vince Lombardi moms name? | Vince Lombardi | The three constants throughout Lombardi's life were sports--particularly football--family and religion. His father was a daily Communicant throughout his life and his mother's favorite picture of Vince as a child was on his Confirmation. When Lombardi was 12, while serving as an altar boy on Easter Sunday, "... amid the color and pageantry scarlet and white vestments, golden cross, scepters, the wafers and wine, body and blood ... that the inspiration came to him that he should become a priest ...",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged about her son's plan to her neighbors. Lombardi attended Mass on a daily basis throughout his life. During his tenure at St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ..." his wife's drinking. When Lombardi became head coach of football in 1942, he would lead his team to Sunday Mass before each home game. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi shared an office with Father Tim Moore wherein it was not unusual for Lombardi to interrupt a conversation and request to go to Confession and which Father Tim would oblige him right in the office. During his stay at Green Bay, Lombardi once emerged from his office and appeared before his secretary, Ruth McKloskey, wearing "... all these priest robes on, and he had a miter with a tassel, everything." Each day on his way to work for the Green Bay Packers, Lombardi would stop at St. Willebrord Church and "offer a prayer in case of unexpected death: 'My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this Communion as my viaticum ...'". He regularly attended Sunday Mass at Resurrection Church in the Allouez neighborhood of Green Bay's southeast side, always sitting with his wife in the middle of the ninth pew. On the morning of the dedication of Lombardi Avenue, Lombardi remarked to his 37-member entourage that he was pleased to have gotten them all up to attend morning Mass. Lombardi was also a 4th degree in the Knights of Columbus. CANNOTANSWER | Matty, | Vincent Thomas Lombardi (June 11, 1913 – September 3, 1970) was an American football coach and executive in the National Football League (NFL). He is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight and five total NFL Championships in seven years, in addition to winning the first two Super Bowls at the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 NFL seasons.
Lombardi began his coaching career as an assistant and later as a head coach at St. Cecilia High School in Englewood, New Jersey. He was an assistant coach at Fordham, the United States Military Academy and the New York Giants before becoming head coach of the Green Bay Packers from 1959 to 1967 and the Washington Redskins in 1969.
He never had a losing season as head coach in the NFL, compiling a regular-season winning percentage of 73.8% (96–34–6), and 90% (9–1) in the postseason for an overall record of 105 wins, 35 losses and 6 ties in the NFL.
Lombardi is considered by many to be the greatest coach in football history, and he is recognized as one of the greatest coaches and leaders in the history of all American sports.
The year after his sudden death from cancer in 1970, he was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the NFL Super Bowl trophy was named in his honor.
Early years
Lombardi was born on June 11, 1913, in the Sheepshead Bay neighborhood of Brooklyn to Enrico "Harry" Lombardi (1889–1971) and Matilda "Mattie" Izzo (1891–1972). Harry's mother and father, Vincenzo and Michelina, emigrated from Salerno, Italy. Mattie's father and mother, Anthony and Loretta, emigrated from Vietri di Potenza, Basilicata. Harry had three siblings, and Matilda had twelve. Vince was the oldest of five children, including Madeleine, Harold, Claire, and Joe. Both the Lombardi and Izzo clans settled entirely in Sheepshead Bay.
Matilda's father, Anthony, opened up a barber shop in Sheepshead Bay before the turn of the century. At about the time of Lombardi's birth, Harry, and his brother, Eddie, opened a butcher shop in the Meatpacking District of Manhattan. Throughout the Great Depression, Harry's shop did well, and his family prospered. Lombardi grew up in an ethnically diverse, middle-class neighborhood.
Church attendance was mandatory for the Lombardis on Sundays. Mass would be followed with an equally compulsory few hours of dinner with extended family members, friends, and local clergy. Lombardi himself was an altar boy at St. Mark's Catholic Church. Outside their local neighborhood, the Lombardi children were subject to the rampant ethnic discrimination that existed at the time against Italian immigrants and their descendants. As a child, Lombardi helped his father at his meat cutting business, but grew to hate it. At the age of 12 he started playing in an uncoached but organized football league in Sheepshead Bay.
High school
Lombardi graduated from the eighth grade at P.S. 206 at age 15 in 1928. He then enrolled in the Cathedral Preparatory Seminary, a division of Cathedral College of the Immaculate Conception in Brooklyn, a six-year secondary program to become a Catholic priest. At Cathedral, he played on the school's baseball and basketball teams, but his performance was hindered by his poor athleticism and eyesight. Against school rules, he continued to play football off-campus throughout his studies at Cathedral. After completing four years at Cathedral he decided not to pursue the priesthood. He enrolled at St. Francis Preparatory high school for the fall of 1932. There he became a Charter Member of Omega Gamma Delta fraternity. His performance as a fullback on the Terriers' football team earned him a position on the virtual All-City football team.
Fordham University
In 1933, Lombardi received a football scholarship to Fordham University in the Bronx to play for the Fordham Rams and Coach Jim Crowley, who was one of the Four Horsemen of Notre Dame in the 1920s. During his freshman year, Lombardi proved to be an aggressive and spirited player on the football field. Prior to the beginning of his sophomore year, Lombardi was projected to start games at the tackle position. Lombardi was only 5'8" and about 180 pounds and was classified as undersized for the position.
In his senior year of 1936, he was the right guard in the Seven Blocks of Granite, a nickname given by a Fordham University publicist to the Fordham University football team's offensive front line. In a game against Pitt, he suffered a severe gash inside his mouth and had several teeth knocked out. He missed most of the remainder of the game, until he was called in on defense for a successful goal-line stand that preserved a scoreless tie. The Rams were 5–0–2 before losing in the final game of the season, 7–6, to NYU. The loss destroyed all hopes of Fordham playing in the Rose Bowl and taught Lombardi a lesson he would never forget — never to underestimate your opponent.
Early career
Lombardi graduated from Fordham University on June 16, 1937. The nation was still plagued by the Great Depression, so there were few career opportunities for the young Lombardi, and for the next two years, he showed no discernible career path or ambition. He tried to play semi-professional football with the Wilmington Clippers of the American Association and worked as a debt collector for a collection agency, but those efforts very quickly proved to be failures. With his father's strong support, he enrolled in Fordham Law School in September 1938. Although he did not fail any classes, he believed his grades were so poor that he dropped out after one semester. Later in life, he would explain to others that he was close to graduating, but his desire to start and support a family forced him to leave law school and get a job. He also joined the Brooklyn Eagles.
Coaching career
St. Cecilia High School
In 1939, Lombardi wanted to marry his girlfriend, Marie Planitz, but he deferred at his father's insistence because he needed a steady job to support himself and a family; he married Marie the following year. In 1939, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching job at St. Cecilia's, a Catholic high school in Englewood, New Jersey. He was offered the position by the school's new head coach, Lombardi's former Fordham teammate, quarterback Andy Palau. Palau had just inherited the head coaching position from another Fordham teammate, Nat Pierce (left guard), who had accepted an assistant coach's job back at Fordham. In addition to coaching, Lombardi, age 26, taught Latin, chemistry, and physics for an annual salary of under $1,000.
In 1942, Andy Palau left St. Cecilia's for another position at Fordham, and Lombardi became the head coach at St. Cecilia's. He stayed a total of eight years, five as head coach. In 1943, St. Cecilia's was recognized as the top high school football team in the nation, in large part because of their victory over Brooklyn Prep, a Jesuit school considered one of the best teams in the eastern United States. Brooklyn Prep that season was led by senior Joe Paterno, who, like Lombardi, was to rise to legendary status in football. Lombardi won six state private school championships (NJISAA - New Jersey Independent Schools Athletic Association), and became the president of the Bergen County Coaches' Association.
Fordham
In 1947, Lombardi became the coach of freshman teams in football and basketball at his alma mater, Fordham University. The following year, he was an assistant coach for the varsity football team under head coach Ed Danowski, but he was arguably the de facto head coach.
West Point
Following the 1948 season, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching job at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, a position that greatly influenced his future philosophy and system of coaching. He was offensive line coach under head coach Earl "Colonel Red" Blaik. "As integral as religion was to [Lombardi's] sense of self, it was not until he reached West Point and combined his spiritual discipline with Blaik's military discipline that his coaching persona began to take its mature form." Blaik's emphasis on execution became a trademark of Lombardi's coaching style. Lombardi coached at West Point for five seasons, with varying results. The 1949 and 1950 seasons were successful, but the 1951 and 1952 seasons were not, due to the aftermath of a cadet cribbing scandal (a violation of the Cadet Honor Code) which was revealed in spring 1951. By order of the Superintendent, 43 of the 45 members of the varsity football team were discharged from the Academy as a result of the scandal. "Decades later, looking back on his rise, Lombardi came to regard ..." Blaik's decision not to resign "... as a pivotal moment in his [own] career" — it taught him perseverance. After the 1951 and 1952 seasons not much was expected from the 1953 team as it had also lost six players due to academic failure. The 1953 team, however, did achieve a 7–1–1 record, as Lombardi had a bigger role than ever in coaching the team. Following these five seasons at Army, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching position with the New York Giants.
New York Giants
At age 41 in 1954, Lombardi began his NFL career with the New York Giants. He accepted a job that later became known as the offensive coordinator position under new head coach Jim Lee Howell. The Giants had finished the previous season under 23-year coach Steve Owen with a 3–9 record. By his third season in 1956, Lombardi, along with the defensive coordinator, former All-Pro cornerback turned coach Tom Landry, turned the squad into a championship team, defeating the Chicago Bears 47–7 for the league title. "Howell readily acknowledged the talents of Lombardi and Landry, and joked self-deprecatingly, that his main function was to make sure the footballs had air in them." At points in his tenure as an assistant coach at West Point, and as an assistant coach with the Giants, Lombardi worried that he was unable to land a head coaching job due to prejudice against his Italian heritage, especially with respect to Southern colleges. Howell wrote numerous recommendations for Lombardi to aid him in obtaining a head coaching position. Lombardi applied for head coaching positions at Wake Forest, Notre Dame, and other universities and, in some cases, never received a reply. In New York, Lombardi introduced the strategy of rule blocking to the NFL. In rule blocking, the offensive lineman would block an area, and not necessarily a particular defensive player, as was the norm up to that time. The running back was then expected to run towards any hole that was created. Lombardi referred to this as running to daylight.
Green Bay Packers
1959
The Green Bay Packers, with six future Hall of Famers on the roster in 1958, finished at 1–10–1 under head coach Ray McLean, the worst record in Packer history. The players were dispirited, the Packer shareholders were disheartened, and the Green Bay community was enraged. The angst in Green Bay extended to the NFL as a whole, as the financial viability and the very existence of the Green Bay Packer franchise were in jeopardy. On February 2, 1959, Lombardi accepted the position of head coach and general manager of the Packers. He demanded and gained full control over the football operations of the community-owned franchise, leaving no doubt of this when he told the franchise's executive committee, "I want it understood that I am in complete command here."
Lombardi's assertion of "complete command" applied to the players as well. For his first training camp, he instituted harsh regimens and demanded absolute dedication and effort from his players. The Packers immediately improved in 1959 to 7–5, and rookie head coach Lombardi was named Coach of the Year. The fans appreciated what Lombardi was trying to do and responded by purchasing all the tickets for every home game during the 1960 season. Every Packers home game—preseason, regular season and playoffs—has been sold out ever since then.
1960–1966
In Lombardi's second year in 1960, Green Bay won the NFL Western Conference for the first time since 1944. This victory, along with his well-known religious convictions, led the Green Bay community to anoint Lombardi with the nickname "The Pope". Lombardi led the Packers to the Championship Game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Before the championship game, Lombardi met with Wellington Mara and advised him that he would not take the Giants' head coaching job, which was initially offered after the end of the 1959 season. In the final play of the game, in a drive that would have won it, the Packers were stopped a few yards from the goal line. Lombardi had suffered his first and only championship game loss. After the game, and after the press corps had left the locker room, Lombardi told his team, "This will never happen again. You will never lose another championship." In later years as coach of the Packers, Lombardi made it a point to admonish his running backs that if they failed to score from one yard out, he would consider it a personal affront to him and he would seek retribution. He coached the Packers to win their next nine post-season games, a record streak not matched or broken until Bill Belichick won ten straight from 2002 to 2006 with New England. The Packers defeated the Giants for the NFL title in 1961 (37–0 in Green Bay) and 1962 (16–7 at Yankee Stadium), marking the first two of their five titles in Lombardi's seven years. After the 1962 championship victory, President John F. Kennedy called Lombardi and asked him if he would "come back to Army and coach again". Kennedy received Lombardi's tacit refusal of the request. His only other post-season loss occurred to the St. Louis Cardinals in the third-place Playoff Bowl after the 1964 season (officially classified as an exhibition game).
Including postseason but excluding exhibition games, Lombardi compiled a 105–35–6 (.740) record as head coach, and never suffered a losing season. He led the Packers to three consecutive NFL championships — in 1965, 1966, and 1967 — a feat accomplished only once before in the history of the league, by Curly Lambeau, co-founder of the Packers, who coached the team to their first three straight NFL Championships in 1929, 1930, and 1931. At the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 seasons, Lombardi's Packers won the first two Super Bowls, for championships in five of seven seasons.
Packers Sweep
As coach of the Packers, Lombardi converted Notre Dame quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Paul Hornung to a full-time halfback. Lombardi also designed a play for fullback Jim Taylor: both guards, Jerry Kramer and Fuzzy Thurston, pulled to the outside and blocked downfield while Taylor would "run to daylight" — i.e., wherever the defenders weren't. This was a play that he had originally developed with the Giants for Frank Gifford. It soon became known as the Packers sweep (or Lombardi sweep), though Lombardi openly admitted it was based on an old single wing concept.
Ice Bowl
In 1967, Lombardi's Packers hosted the Dallas Cowboys in Green Bay on December 31 in the NFL Championship Game, a rematch of the previous season. This became known as the "Ice Bowl" because of the game-time temperature. Lombardi had a heating coil underneath the field but on this day it was not functioning. Some people believe that he turned it off on purpose. With 16 seconds left in the game and down by three points, the Packers called their final time-out. It was 3rd and goal on the Dallas two-foot line. In the huddle, with the game on the line, Quarterback Bart Starr asked Kramer whether he could get enough traction on the icy turf for a wedge play and Kramer responded with an unequivocal yes. Starr came over to Lombardi on the sidelines to discuss the last play and told him he wanted to run a 31 wedge, but with him keeping the ball. Lombardi, having had enough of the bitter cold, told Starr to 'Run it! And let's get the hell out of here!' Lombardi was asked by Pat Peppler what play Starr would call, to which Lombardi replied, 'Damned if I know.' Starr returned to the huddle and called a Brown right 31 Wedge, but with him keeping the ball. Kramer blocked Jethro Pugh low and Ken Bowman hit Pugh high as Starr followed them into the end zone for the Packer lead and assured victory.
Washington Redskins
Shortly after the victory in Super Bowl II, Lombardi resigned as head coach of the Packers on February 1, 1968, continuing as general manager. He handed the head coaching position to Phil Bengtson, a longtime assistant, but the Packers finished at 6–7–1 in the 1968 season and were out of the four-team NFL playoffs. In February , Lombardi became head coach and general manager of the Washington Redskins. The Redskins finished at 7–5–2, their first winning record since the 1955 season. Lombardi died the following year, but he was credited with having "truly changed the culture in that one unforgettable season in 1969," laying the foundation for Washington's early 1970s success under another future Hall of Fame coach, George Allen.
Personal life
Family
In the fall of 1934, Lombardi's roommate Jim Lawlor introduced him to his cousin's relative, Marie Planitz. When Marie announced her ardent desire to marry Lombardi, her status-conscious stockbroker father did not like the idea of his daughter marrying the son of an Italian butcher from Brooklyn, a prejudice he would face more than once in his life. Lombardi and Marie wed, nonetheless, on August 31, 1940.
Marie's first pregnancy resulted in a miscarriage. This had a terrible effect on Marie and caused her to turn to heavy drinking, a problem she would encounter on more than one occasion in her life. Their son, Vincent Henry Lombardi (Vince Jr.), was born in 1942, and their daughter Susan followed five years later in 1947.
Lombardi's perfectionism, authoritarian nature and temper, instilled in his wife a masterful ability to verbally assault and demean Lombardi when he verbally abused her. His children were not immune from his yelling. When Lombardi had not lost his temper, he would often be reticent and aloof.
Lombardi's grandson, Joe Lombardi, was named the offensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions in January 2014. He was relieved of this position midway through the 2015 season. Lombardi was previously quarterbacks coach for the New Orleans Saints. In the 2009 season, he helped lead the Saints to win the trophy bearing his grandfather's name, and Drew Brees to win a Super Bowl MVP award. He is now the offensive coordinator of the Los Angeles Chargers, under new head coach Brandon Staley.
World War II deferments
Though he was 28 years old when the United States entered World War II, Lombardi did not serve in the war. He obtained a series of deferments: his first was a 2-A due to his teaching occupation; in 1943, he obtained a second deferment due to parenthood (3-A); and his final deferment was labelled a 4-A and given in 1944.
Religion
The three constants throughout Lombardi's life were his Roman Catholic faith, his family, and football. His father was a daily Communicant throughout his life and his mother's favorite picture of Vince as a child was on his Confirmation. When Lombardi was 12, while serving as an altar boy on Easter Sunday, "... amid the color and pageantry scarlet and white vestments, golden cross, scepters, the wafers and wine, body and blood ... the inspiration came to him that he should become a priest ...",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged about her son's plan to her neighbors. Lombardi attended Mass on a daily basis throughout his life.
During his tenure at St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ... his wife's drinking". When Lombardi became head coach of football in 1942, he led his team to Sunday Mass before each home game. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi shared an office with Father Tim Moore wherein it was not unusual for Lombardi to interrupt a conversation and request to go to Confession and for which Father Tim obliged him right in the office.
During his stay at Green Bay, Lombardi once emerged from his office and appeared before his secretary, Ruth McKloskey, wearing "... all these priest robes on, and he had a miter with a tassel, everything". Each day on his way to work for the Green Bay Packers, Lombardi would stop at St. Willebrord Church and "offer a prayer in case of unexpected death: 'My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this Communion as my viaticum ... '". He regularly attended Sunday Mass at Resurrection Church in the Allouez neighborhood of Green Bay's southeast side, always sitting with his wife in the middle of the ninth pew.
On the morning of the dedication of Lombardi Avenue, Lombardi remarked to his 37-member entourage that he was pleased to have gotten them all up to attend morning Mass. Lombardi was a Fourth Degree in the Knights of Columbus.
Anti-discrimination philosophy
In 1960, a color barrier still existed on at least one team in the NFL, but Jack Vainisi, the Scouting Director for the Packers, and Lombardi were determined "to ignore the prejudices then prevalent in most NFL front offices in their search for the most talented players". Lombardi explained his views by saying that he "... viewed his players as neither black nor white, but Packer green".
Among professional football head coaches, in the midst of the civil rights movement, Lombardi's anti-discrimination views were unusual. When Lombardi joined the Packers, they only had one black player, Nate Borden. During his time as coach the team became fully integrated: by 1967 they had 13 black players, including All-Pros Willie Davis, Willie Wood, Dave Robinson, Herb Adderley and Bob Jeter.
During his first training camp in Green Bay, Lombardi was notified by Packer veterans that an interracial relationship existed between one of the Packer rookies and a young woman. The next day at training camp, Lombardi—who was vehemently opposed to Jim Crow discrimination and had a zero-tolerance policy towards racism—responded by warning his team that if any player exhibited prejudice in any manner, that specific player would be thrown off the team.
Lombardi let it be known to all Green Bay establishments that if they did not accommodate his black and white players equally well, then that business would be off-limits to the entire team. Before the start of the 1960 regular season, he instituted a policy that the Packers would only lodge in places that accepted all his players. Lombardi also refused to assign hotel rooms to players based on their race: by 1967 the Packers were the only NFL team with such a policy.
Lombardi was a member of the all-white Oneida Golf and Riding Country club in Green Bay, and he demanded that he should be allowed to choose a Native American caddie, even if white caddies were available. Lombardi's view on racial matters was a result of his religious faith and the ethnic prejudice that he had experienced as an Italian-American.
Lombardi was known to be volatile and terse with players during practices and games, and he insisted on unconditional respect for everyone in his organization. Lombardi demanded "Nothing But Acceptance" from players and coaches toward all people, and he would immediately terminate a coach or release a player if that particular person insulted the sexual orientation of gay players and front office staff. According to Lombardi biographer and Pulitzer Prize-winning writer David Maraniss, if he caught a coach "discriminating against a player thought to be gay, he'd be fired". Richard Nicholls, the lifelong partner of Lombardi's younger brother, Hal, stated, "Vin was always fair in how he treated everybody ... a great man who accepted people at face value for what they were, and didn't judge anybody. He just wanted you to do the job."
In Washington, Lombardi's assistant general manager David Slatterly was gay, as was PR director Joe Blair, who was described as Lombardi's "right-hand man". According to son Vince Lombardi, Jr., "He saw everyone as equals, and I think having a gay brother (Hal) was a big factor in his approach ... I think my father would've felt, 'I hope I've created an atmosphere in the locker room where this would not be an issue at all. And if you do have an issue, the problem will be yours because my locker room will tolerate nothing but acceptance.'"
Upon his arrival in Washington, Lombardi was aware of tight end Jerry Smith's sexual orientation. "Lombardi protected and loved Jerry," said former teammate Dave Kopay. Lombardi brought Smith into his office and told him that his sexual orientation would never be an issue as long as he was coaching the Redskins; Smith would be judged solely on his on-the-field performance and contribution to the team's success. Under Lombardi's leadership Smith flourished, becoming an integral part of Lombardi's offense, and was voted a First Team All-Pro for the first time in his career, which was also Lombardi's only season as the Redskins head coach.
Lombardi invited other gay players to training camp and would privately hope they would prove they could earn a spot on the team. At the Washington Redskins training camp in 1969, Ray McDonald was a gay player, with sub-par skills, who was trying to make the Redskins roster again, but this time with Lombardi as the Redskins' new head coach. True to his word, Lombardi told running back coach, George Dickson, 'I want you to get on McDonald and work on him and work on him – and if I hear one of you people make reference to his manhood, you'll be out of here before your ass hits the ground.'
Politics
Although his wife was a Republican, Lombardi was a lifelong Democrat with liberal views on civil rights: he supported John F. Kennedy in the 1960 presidential election, Robert F. Kennedy in the 1968 primaries, and was also a supporter of Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson. Despite this, during the 1960s he became uncomfortable with the burgeoning youth protest movements associated with the emerging counterculture, such as the New Left and the Anti-war movement. In a speech that he first delivered in February 1967 to the American Management Association, he suggested that "everything has been done to strengthen the rights of the individual and at the same time weaken the rights of the church, weaken the rights of the state, and weaken the rights of all authority". Due to Lombardi's popularity, Richard Nixon once considered him as a possible running mate in the 1968 presidential election but dropped the idea upon learning about Lombardi's support for the Democratic Party.
Illness and death
Lombardi had suffered from digestive tract problems as early as 1967, and he had refused his doctor's request to undergo a proctoscopic exam. On June 24, 1970, Lombardi was admitted to Georgetown University Hospital, and tests "revealed anaplastic carcinoma in the rectal area of his colon, a fast-growing malignant cancer in which the cells barely resemble their normal appearance". On July 27, Lombardi was readmitted to Georgetown and exploratory surgery found that the cancer was terminal. Lombardi and Marie received family, friends, clergy, players, and former players at his hospital bedside. He received a phone call from President Nixon telling Lombardi that all of the U.S. was behind him, to which Lombardi replied that he would never give up his fight against his illness. On his deathbed, Lombardi told Father Tim that he was not afraid to die, but that he regretted he could not have accomplished more in his life. Lombardi died in Washington, D.C. at 7:12 a.m. on Thursday, September 3, 1970, surrounded by his wife, parents, two children, and six grandchildren. He was 57.
The funeral was held on September 7 at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan. Approximately 1,500 people lined Fifth Avenue, and the avenue was closed to traffic between 39th and 50th Street. Terence Cardinal Cooke delivered the eulogy. In attendance were team owners, Commissioner Pete Rozelle, past and present members of the Packers, Redskins, and Giants, former students from Saints, colleagues and players from West Point, and classmates from Fordham University, including the remaining Seven Blocks of Granite. Lombardi was interred in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Middletown Township, New Jersey.
In popular culture
In 1968, Lombardi starred in a half-hour motivational film titled Second Effort, that has been called "The best-selling training film of all time".
On December 14, 1973, ABC aired Legend in Granite starring Ernest Borgnine as Vince. The biographical TV drama focused mostly on his first two years as Packers head coach (1959–1960).
A service area on the New Jersey Turnpike dedicated to and named after Lombardi opened in 1974.
The high school in the 1979 movie Rock 'n' Roll High School is named "Vince Lombardi High School".
In 1986, CHCH aired the TV movie Lombardi: I Am Not a Legend starring Robert Knuckle in the title role that depicted Lombardi's life up until the NFL.
In 1996, Nike aired several commercials featuring Jerry Stiller as the ghost of Lombardi.
ESPN produced the 2005 TV movie Code Breakers that depicted the West Point cheating scandal and its effect on the football program. Richard Zeppieri played then-Assistant Coach Lombardi.
A play titled Lombardi opened on Broadway at the Circle in the Square Theatre in New York City in October 2010, following an out-of-town tryout at the Mahaiwe Theater in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. The production starred Dan Lauria as Lombardi and Judith Light as his wife, Marie. The play received positive reviews, as did Lauria's performance.
NFL Films and HBO produced a film about Lombardi that debuted Saturday, December 11, 2010.
Honors
In May 1967, Lombardi "... received Fordham's highest honor, the Insignis Medal ... for being a great teacher"
On January 13, 1969, he was inducted into the Knights of Malta at St. Patrick's.
Inducted into the Fordham University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1971
As part of the Lambeau Field renovation in 2003, a 14-foot statue of Lombardi (along with one for Curly Lambeau) now stands on a plaza outside the stadium
In 1968, Highland Avenue in Green Bay, home to the Packers' Lambeau Field, was renamed Lombardi Avenue.
In 1969, the Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) awarded Lombardi with the Jack Mara sportsman of the year.
The Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University is named in his honor.
One of the Green Bay School District's public middle schools is named the Lombardi Middle School.
The football field at Old Bridge High School in Old Bridge, New Jersey, is named Lombardi Field. The football field in Palisades Park is also known as Lombardi Field.
A plaque dedication installed in 1974 in the sidewalk on a square (unofficially called Vince Lombardi Square) near Sheepshead Bay Road and East 14th Street in Brooklyn, New York.
There are two places in the Bensonhurst area, which are, or were, dedicated to Lombardi at one time: P.S. 204 Vince Lombardi Elementary School, and the entire Bensonhurst stretch of 16th Avenue was once dedicated by the City of New York as "Vince Lombardi Boulevard"
The Vince Lombardi Service Area and park-and-ride is the northernmost rest area on the New Jersey Turnpike, at mileposts 116E on the Eastern Spur and 115.5W on the Western Spur. Outside the gift shop is a plaque about his life, which notes that he is buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery, Middletown, New Jersey.
The Vincent T. Lombardi Council, No. 6552, Knights of Columbus, in Middletown, NJ is named for him.
The Vince Lombardi Cancer clinic at Aurora Health Care is named after him.
The Vincent T. Lombardi Center at Fordham University was named for the coach.
In 1970 the NFL's Super Bowl Trophy was renamed the Vince Lombardi Trophy
In 1970, the Rotary Club of Houston created the Lombardi Award, which is given annually to the best college football offensive, or defensive, lineman or linebacker.
In 1969, Lombardi received the Silver Buffalo Award, the highest adult award given by the Boy Scouts of America.
Lombardi was enshrined in the NFL's Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971.
Lombardi was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1976.
Lombardi is a member of the Ring of Fame of the Washington Commanders (formerly known as the Redskins).
Induction into the American Football Association's Semi Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1988
In 2008, Lombardi is inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame
Lombardi appeared on a U.S. Postage stamp first issued on July 25, 1997.
Head coaching record
The Packers played in the third-place Playoff Bowl in Miami after the 1963 and 1964 seasons;these are categorized as exhibition games.
Books
Run to Daylight! by Vince Lombardi with W. C. Heinz
Books written about him
Instant Replay, the Green Bay Diary of Jerry Kramer by Jerry Kramer and Dick Schaap
Football's Greatest Coach: Vince Lombardi by Gene Schoor
The Lombardi Legacy: Thirty People who were Touched by Greatness by Royce Boyles and Dave Robinson
Coach: A Season With Lombardi by Tom Dowling
When Pride Still Mattered : A Life Of Vince Lombardi by David Maraniss
Vince by Michael O'Brien
Run to Win: Vince Lombardi on Coaching and Leadership by Donald T. Phillips
See also
List of Knights of Columbus
List of National Football League head coach wins leaders
List of National Football League head coaches by playoff record
List of Super Bowl head coaches
Notes
References
Sources
Further reading
Cavanaugh, Jack (2008), Giants Among Men. New York: Random House. .
Gifford, Frank and Richmond, Peter (2008), The Glory Game: How the 1958 NFL Championship Changed Football Forever. New York: Harper Collins. .
Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2001), What It Takes to Be #1: Vince Lombardi on Leadership. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2003), The Lombardi Rules: 26 Lessons from Vince Lombardi: The World's Greatest Coach. New York: McGraw-Hill.
External links
Vince Lombardi on American Catholic History
1913 births
1970 deaths
American football offensive linemen
American people of Italian descent
American sportspeople of Italian descent
Army Black Knights football coaches
Fordham Rams football players
Green Bay Packers general managers
Green Bay Packers head coaches
New York Giants coaches
Washington Redskins coaches
Washington Redskins executives
National Football League offensive coordinators
National Football League general managers
High school football coaches in New Jersey
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Knights of Malta
St. Francis Preparatory School alumni
People from Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn
Deaths from cancer in Washington, D.C.
Deaths from colorectal cancer
Burials in New Jersey
Sportspeople from Brooklyn
Players of American football from New Jersey
Coaches of American football from New Jersey
Players of American football from New York (state)
Coaches of American football from New York (state)
Super Bowl-winning head coaches
Catholics from New York (state)
New York (state) Democrats
Writers from Brooklyn
LGBT rights activists from the United States
Wilmington Clippers players | true | [
"MOMS Club is a support group for stay-at-home moms. MOMS is an acronym for Moms Offering Moms Support.\n\nHistory\nMOMS Club was founded in 1983 by Mary James, a stay-at-home mother of two from California. Weary of being home alone all day, James wanted to connect with other at-home moms in her area. She also desired playmates for her children. When she discovered that there were no existing organizations that met during the day and that designed activities for moms and children to enjoy together, she decided to start her own group. Based on the success of this initial chapter, MOMS Club spread throughout the country. Today, there are 973 chapters in the United States, as well as international chapters.\n\nActivities\nAlthough activities vary by chapter, most clubs offer some form of the following: monthly meetings, playgroups, mom's nights out, holiday parties, field trips, community speakers and service projects.\n\nControversy\nIn June 2020, MOMS Club of Rancho Santa Margarita submitted a collage of pictures with an anti-racist message and requested it be posted to the International Chapter's Facebook page. The collage spelled out \"We. Stand. With. All. Moms. And. Pledge. That. Racial. Discrimination. Will. Stop. With. Our. Kids.\" and was done after the murder of George Floyd and the protests that followed. The international organization declined to share the image on their Facebook page with the reasoning that the message was political and could jeopardize the non-profit status of the organization.\n\nAfter push-back, the International MOMS Club responded that \"graphics like that collage ... imply that our members have been racists before now. The MOMS Club has never been a racist organization and never will be. To imply otherwise is not acceptable.\" In response, hundreds of women and chapters across the country left the organization. \n\nPer the MOMS Club bylaws, chapters do not seek political and religious focus, instead the chapters are geared towards what binds mothers together, which is: the sisterhood of motherhood, children and community.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n International MOMS Club\n\nSupport groups\nParents' organizations",
"Zibby Owens, née Elizabeth \"Zibby\" Schwarzman, is an American writer and podcast host based in New York. Her podcast is called \"Moms Don’t Have Time to Read Books\".\n\nLife and career\nZibby Owens, born Elizabeth Schwarzman, grew up on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. She attended Yale and Harvard Business School.\n\nOwens started the \"Moms Don’t Have Time to Read Books\" podcast in which she interviews authors in spring 2018. By December 2019 she had made 200 \"Moms Don’t Have Time to Read Books\" podcast episodes which had been downloaded a quarter of a million times.\n\nIn the spring of 2020, Owens interviewed authors on Instagram and launched an online literary magazine called We Found Time featuring essays written by authors who had been on her podcast. A book called Moms Don't Have Time To: A Quarantine Anthology based on those essays was released in February 2021.\n\nOwens is a member of New York Public Library's Advisory Council.\n\nPublications\nWhat to Wear to Show Off Your Assets. What to Do to Tone Up Your Trouble Spots, (as Zibby Right), co-authored with Paige Adams-Geller, and Ashley Borden; McGraw-Hill (January 2008)\nMoms Don't Have Time To: A Quarantine Anthology (2021)\nMoms Don't Have Time To Have Kids: A Timeless Anthology (2021)\n\nPersonal life\nOwens is married to Kyle Owens, a former tennis pro and a film producer. Owens has four children, including twins Owen And Phoebe Right.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nofficial website\nCBS This Morning: NYC mom runs podcast for moms who like to read, Jan 25, 2020\nVulture profile: New York’s Most Powerful Book-fluencer Runs a Podcast on Park Avenue\n\nLiving people\nAmerican writers\nAmerican podcasters\nYale University alumni\nHarvard Business School alumni\nYear of birth missing (living people)"
] |
[
"Vince Lombardi",
"Religion",
"what where his influences",
"three constants throughout Lombardi's life were sports--particularly football--family and religion.",
"what did he look too",
"St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and \"prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ...\"",
"what else",
"...\" his wife's drinking.",
"what is his moms name",
"Matty,"
] | C_e8df54bbfca040499812d483f0c591b6_0 | what did his mom love | 5 | What did Vince Lombardi mom love? | Vince Lombardi | The three constants throughout Lombardi's life were sports--particularly football--family and religion. His father was a daily Communicant throughout his life and his mother's favorite picture of Vince as a child was on his Confirmation. When Lombardi was 12, while serving as an altar boy on Easter Sunday, "... amid the color and pageantry scarlet and white vestments, golden cross, scepters, the wafers and wine, body and blood ... that the inspiration came to him that he should become a priest ...",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged about her son's plan to her neighbors. Lombardi attended Mass on a daily basis throughout his life. During his tenure at St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ..." his wife's drinking. When Lombardi became head coach of football in 1942, he would lead his team to Sunday Mass before each home game. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi shared an office with Father Tim Moore wherein it was not unusual for Lombardi to interrupt a conversation and request to go to Confession and which Father Tim would oblige him right in the office. During his stay at Green Bay, Lombardi once emerged from his office and appeared before his secretary, Ruth McKloskey, wearing "... all these priest robes on, and he had a miter with a tassel, everything." Each day on his way to work for the Green Bay Packers, Lombardi would stop at St. Willebrord Church and "offer a prayer in case of unexpected death: 'My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this Communion as my viaticum ...'". He regularly attended Sunday Mass at Resurrection Church in the Allouez neighborhood of Green Bay's southeast side, always sitting with his wife in the middle of the ninth pew. On the morning of the dedication of Lombardi Avenue, Lombardi remarked to his 37-member entourage that he was pleased to have gotten them all up to attend morning Mass. Lombardi was also a 4th degree in the Knights of Columbus. CANNOTANSWER | he should become a priest ...",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged | Vincent Thomas Lombardi (June 11, 1913 – September 3, 1970) was an American football coach and executive in the National Football League (NFL). He is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight and five total NFL Championships in seven years, in addition to winning the first two Super Bowls at the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 NFL seasons.
Lombardi began his coaching career as an assistant and later as a head coach at St. Cecilia High School in Englewood, New Jersey. He was an assistant coach at Fordham, the United States Military Academy and the New York Giants before becoming head coach of the Green Bay Packers from 1959 to 1967 and the Washington Redskins in 1969.
He never had a losing season as head coach in the NFL, compiling a regular-season winning percentage of 73.8% (96–34–6), and 90% (9–1) in the postseason for an overall record of 105 wins, 35 losses and 6 ties in the NFL.
Lombardi is considered by many to be the greatest coach in football history, and he is recognized as one of the greatest coaches and leaders in the history of all American sports.
The year after his sudden death from cancer in 1970, he was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the NFL Super Bowl trophy was named in his honor.
Early years
Lombardi was born on June 11, 1913, in the Sheepshead Bay neighborhood of Brooklyn to Enrico "Harry" Lombardi (1889–1971) and Matilda "Mattie" Izzo (1891–1972). Harry's mother and father, Vincenzo and Michelina, emigrated from Salerno, Italy. Mattie's father and mother, Anthony and Loretta, emigrated from Vietri di Potenza, Basilicata. Harry had three siblings, and Matilda had twelve. Vince was the oldest of five children, including Madeleine, Harold, Claire, and Joe. Both the Lombardi and Izzo clans settled entirely in Sheepshead Bay.
Matilda's father, Anthony, opened up a barber shop in Sheepshead Bay before the turn of the century. At about the time of Lombardi's birth, Harry, and his brother, Eddie, opened a butcher shop in the Meatpacking District of Manhattan. Throughout the Great Depression, Harry's shop did well, and his family prospered. Lombardi grew up in an ethnically diverse, middle-class neighborhood.
Church attendance was mandatory for the Lombardis on Sundays. Mass would be followed with an equally compulsory few hours of dinner with extended family members, friends, and local clergy. Lombardi himself was an altar boy at St. Mark's Catholic Church. Outside their local neighborhood, the Lombardi children were subject to the rampant ethnic discrimination that existed at the time against Italian immigrants and their descendants. As a child, Lombardi helped his father at his meat cutting business, but grew to hate it. At the age of 12 he started playing in an uncoached but organized football league in Sheepshead Bay.
High school
Lombardi graduated from the eighth grade at P.S. 206 at age 15 in 1928. He then enrolled in the Cathedral Preparatory Seminary, a division of Cathedral College of the Immaculate Conception in Brooklyn, a six-year secondary program to become a Catholic priest. At Cathedral, he played on the school's baseball and basketball teams, but his performance was hindered by his poor athleticism and eyesight. Against school rules, he continued to play football off-campus throughout his studies at Cathedral. After completing four years at Cathedral he decided not to pursue the priesthood. He enrolled at St. Francis Preparatory high school for the fall of 1932. There he became a Charter Member of Omega Gamma Delta fraternity. His performance as a fullback on the Terriers' football team earned him a position on the virtual All-City football team.
Fordham University
In 1933, Lombardi received a football scholarship to Fordham University in the Bronx to play for the Fordham Rams and Coach Jim Crowley, who was one of the Four Horsemen of Notre Dame in the 1920s. During his freshman year, Lombardi proved to be an aggressive and spirited player on the football field. Prior to the beginning of his sophomore year, Lombardi was projected to start games at the tackle position. Lombardi was only 5'8" and about 180 pounds and was classified as undersized for the position.
In his senior year of 1936, he was the right guard in the Seven Blocks of Granite, a nickname given by a Fordham University publicist to the Fordham University football team's offensive front line. In a game against Pitt, he suffered a severe gash inside his mouth and had several teeth knocked out. He missed most of the remainder of the game, until he was called in on defense for a successful goal-line stand that preserved a scoreless tie. The Rams were 5–0–2 before losing in the final game of the season, 7–6, to NYU. The loss destroyed all hopes of Fordham playing in the Rose Bowl and taught Lombardi a lesson he would never forget — never to underestimate your opponent.
Early career
Lombardi graduated from Fordham University on June 16, 1937. The nation was still plagued by the Great Depression, so there were few career opportunities for the young Lombardi, and for the next two years, he showed no discernible career path or ambition. He tried to play semi-professional football with the Wilmington Clippers of the American Association and worked as a debt collector for a collection agency, but those efforts very quickly proved to be failures. With his father's strong support, he enrolled in Fordham Law School in September 1938. Although he did not fail any classes, he believed his grades were so poor that he dropped out after one semester. Later in life, he would explain to others that he was close to graduating, but his desire to start and support a family forced him to leave law school and get a job. He also joined the Brooklyn Eagles.
Coaching career
St. Cecilia High School
In 1939, Lombardi wanted to marry his girlfriend, Marie Planitz, but he deferred at his father's insistence because he needed a steady job to support himself and a family; he married Marie the following year. In 1939, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching job at St. Cecilia's, a Catholic high school in Englewood, New Jersey. He was offered the position by the school's new head coach, Lombardi's former Fordham teammate, quarterback Andy Palau. Palau had just inherited the head coaching position from another Fordham teammate, Nat Pierce (left guard), who had accepted an assistant coach's job back at Fordham. In addition to coaching, Lombardi, age 26, taught Latin, chemistry, and physics for an annual salary of under $1,000.
In 1942, Andy Palau left St. Cecilia's for another position at Fordham, and Lombardi became the head coach at St. Cecilia's. He stayed a total of eight years, five as head coach. In 1943, St. Cecilia's was recognized as the top high school football team in the nation, in large part because of their victory over Brooklyn Prep, a Jesuit school considered one of the best teams in the eastern United States. Brooklyn Prep that season was led by senior Joe Paterno, who, like Lombardi, was to rise to legendary status in football. Lombardi won six state private school championships (NJISAA - New Jersey Independent Schools Athletic Association), and became the president of the Bergen County Coaches' Association.
Fordham
In 1947, Lombardi became the coach of freshman teams in football and basketball at his alma mater, Fordham University. The following year, he was an assistant coach for the varsity football team under head coach Ed Danowski, but he was arguably the de facto head coach.
West Point
Following the 1948 season, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching job at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, a position that greatly influenced his future philosophy and system of coaching. He was offensive line coach under head coach Earl "Colonel Red" Blaik. "As integral as religion was to [Lombardi's] sense of self, it was not until he reached West Point and combined his spiritual discipline with Blaik's military discipline that his coaching persona began to take its mature form." Blaik's emphasis on execution became a trademark of Lombardi's coaching style. Lombardi coached at West Point for five seasons, with varying results. The 1949 and 1950 seasons were successful, but the 1951 and 1952 seasons were not, due to the aftermath of a cadet cribbing scandal (a violation of the Cadet Honor Code) which was revealed in spring 1951. By order of the Superintendent, 43 of the 45 members of the varsity football team were discharged from the Academy as a result of the scandal. "Decades later, looking back on his rise, Lombardi came to regard ..." Blaik's decision not to resign "... as a pivotal moment in his [own] career" — it taught him perseverance. After the 1951 and 1952 seasons not much was expected from the 1953 team as it had also lost six players due to academic failure. The 1953 team, however, did achieve a 7–1–1 record, as Lombardi had a bigger role than ever in coaching the team. Following these five seasons at Army, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching position with the New York Giants.
New York Giants
At age 41 in 1954, Lombardi began his NFL career with the New York Giants. He accepted a job that later became known as the offensive coordinator position under new head coach Jim Lee Howell. The Giants had finished the previous season under 23-year coach Steve Owen with a 3–9 record. By his third season in 1956, Lombardi, along with the defensive coordinator, former All-Pro cornerback turned coach Tom Landry, turned the squad into a championship team, defeating the Chicago Bears 47–7 for the league title. "Howell readily acknowledged the talents of Lombardi and Landry, and joked self-deprecatingly, that his main function was to make sure the footballs had air in them." At points in his tenure as an assistant coach at West Point, and as an assistant coach with the Giants, Lombardi worried that he was unable to land a head coaching job due to prejudice against his Italian heritage, especially with respect to Southern colleges. Howell wrote numerous recommendations for Lombardi to aid him in obtaining a head coaching position. Lombardi applied for head coaching positions at Wake Forest, Notre Dame, and other universities and, in some cases, never received a reply. In New York, Lombardi introduced the strategy of rule blocking to the NFL. In rule blocking, the offensive lineman would block an area, and not necessarily a particular defensive player, as was the norm up to that time. The running back was then expected to run towards any hole that was created. Lombardi referred to this as running to daylight.
Green Bay Packers
1959
The Green Bay Packers, with six future Hall of Famers on the roster in 1958, finished at 1–10–1 under head coach Ray McLean, the worst record in Packer history. The players were dispirited, the Packer shareholders were disheartened, and the Green Bay community was enraged. The angst in Green Bay extended to the NFL as a whole, as the financial viability and the very existence of the Green Bay Packer franchise were in jeopardy. On February 2, 1959, Lombardi accepted the position of head coach and general manager of the Packers. He demanded and gained full control over the football operations of the community-owned franchise, leaving no doubt of this when he told the franchise's executive committee, "I want it understood that I am in complete command here."
Lombardi's assertion of "complete command" applied to the players as well. For his first training camp, he instituted harsh regimens and demanded absolute dedication and effort from his players. The Packers immediately improved in 1959 to 7–5, and rookie head coach Lombardi was named Coach of the Year. The fans appreciated what Lombardi was trying to do and responded by purchasing all the tickets for every home game during the 1960 season. Every Packers home game—preseason, regular season and playoffs—has been sold out ever since then.
1960–1966
In Lombardi's second year in 1960, Green Bay won the NFL Western Conference for the first time since 1944. This victory, along with his well-known religious convictions, led the Green Bay community to anoint Lombardi with the nickname "The Pope". Lombardi led the Packers to the Championship Game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Before the championship game, Lombardi met with Wellington Mara and advised him that he would not take the Giants' head coaching job, which was initially offered after the end of the 1959 season. In the final play of the game, in a drive that would have won it, the Packers were stopped a few yards from the goal line. Lombardi had suffered his first and only championship game loss. After the game, and after the press corps had left the locker room, Lombardi told his team, "This will never happen again. You will never lose another championship." In later years as coach of the Packers, Lombardi made it a point to admonish his running backs that if they failed to score from one yard out, he would consider it a personal affront to him and he would seek retribution. He coached the Packers to win their next nine post-season games, a record streak not matched or broken until Bill Belichick won ten straight from 2002 to 2006 with New England. The Packers defeated the Giants for the NFL title in 1961 (37–0 in Green Bay) and 1962 (16–7 at Yankee Stadium), marking the first two of their five titles in Lombardi's seven years. After the 1962 championship victory, President John F. Kennedy called Lombardi and asked him if he would "come back to Army and coach again". Kennedy received Lombardi's tacit refusal of the request. His only other post-season loss occurred to the St. Louis Cardinals in the third-place Playoff Bowl after the 1964 season (officially classified as an exhibition game).
Including postseason but excluding exhibition games, Lombardi compiled a 105–35–6 (.740) record as head coach, and never suffered a losing season. He led the Packers to three consecutive NFL championships — in 1965, 1966, and 1967 — a feat accomplished only once before in the history of the league, by Curly Lambeau, co-founder of the Packers, who coached the team to their first three straight NFL Championships in 1929, 1930, and 1931. At the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 seasons, Lombardi's Packers won the first two Super Bowls, for championships in five of seven seasons.
Packers Sweep
As coach of the Packers, Lombardi converted Notre Dame quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Paul Hornung to a full-time halfback. Lombardi also designed a play for fullback Jim Taylor: both guards, Jerry Kramer and Fuzzy Thurston, pulled to the outside and blocked downfield while Taylor would "run to daylight" — i.e., wherever the defenders weren't. This was a play that he had originally developed with the Giants for Frank Gifford. It soon became known as the Packers sweep (or Lombardi sweep), though Lombardi openly admitted it was based on an old single wing concept.
Ice Bowl
In 1967, Lombardi's Packers hosted the Dallas Cowboys in Green Bay on December 31 in the NFL Championship Game, a rematch of the previous season. This became known as the "Ice Bowl" because of the game-time temperature. Lombardi had a heating coil underneath the field but on this day it was not functioning. Some people believe that he turned it off on purpose. With 16 seconds left in the game and down by three points, the Packers called their final time-out. It was 3rd and goal on the Dallas two-foot line. In the huddle, with the game on the line, Quarterback Bart Starr asked Kramer whether he could get enough traction on the icy turf for a wedge play and Kramer responded with an unequivocal yes. Starr came over to Lombardi on the sidelines to discuss the last play and told him he wanted to run a 31 wedge, but with him keeping the ball. Lombardi, having had enough of the bitter cold, told Starr to 'Run it! And let's get the hell out of here!' Lombardi was asked by Pat Peppler what play Starr would call, to which Lombardi replied, 'Damned if I know.' Starr returned to the huddle and called a Brown right 31 Wedge, but with him keeping the ball. Kramer blocked Jethro Pugh low and Ken Bowman hit Pugh high as Starr followed them into the end zone for the Packer lead and assured victory.
Washington Redskins
Shortly after the victory in Super Bowl II, Lombardi resigned as head coach of the Packers on February 1, 1968, continuing as general manager. He handed the head coaching position to Phil Bengtson, a longtime assistant, but the Packers finished at 6–7–1 in the 1968 season and were out of the four-team NFL playoffs. In February , Lombardi became head coach and general manager of the Washington Redskins. The Redskins finished at 7–5–2, their first winning record since the 1955 season. Lombardi died the following year, but he was credited with having "truly changed the culture in that one unforgettable season in 1969," laying the foundation for Washington's early 1970s success under another future Hall of Fame coach, George Allen.
Personal life
Family
In the fall of 1934, Lombardi's roommate Jim Lawlor introduced him to his cousin's relative, Marie Planitz. When Marie announced her ardent desire to marry Lombardi, her status-conscious stockbroker father did not like the idea of his daughter marrying the son of an Italian butcher from Brooklyn, a prejudice he would face more than once in his life. Lombardi and Marie wed, nonetheless, on August 31, 1940.
Marie's first pregnancy resulted in a miscarriage. This had a terrible effect on Marie and caused her to turn to heavy drinking, a problem she would encounter on more than one occasion in her life. Their son, Vincent Henry Lombardi (Vince Jr.), was born in 1942, and their daughter Susan followed five years later in 1947.
Lombardi's perfectionism, authoritarian nature and temper, instilled in his wife a masterful ability to verbally assault and demean Lombardi when he verbally abused her. His children were not immune from his yelling. When Lombardi had not lost his temper, he would often be reticent and aloof.
Lombardi's grandson, Joe Lombardi, was named the offensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions in January 2014. He was relieved of this position midway through the 2015 season. Lombardi was previously quarterbacks coach for the New Orleans Saints. In the 2009 season, he helped lead the Saints to win the trophy bearing his grandfather's name, and Drew Brees to win a Super Bowl MVP award. He is now the offensive coordinator of the Los Angeles Chargers, under new head coach Brandon Staley.
World War II deferments
Though he was 28 years old when the United States entered World War II, Lombardi did not serve in the war. He obtained a series of deferments: his first was a 2-A due to his teaching occupation; in 1943, he obtained a second deferment due to parenthood (3-A); and his final deferment was labelled a 4-A and given in 1944.
Religion
The three constants throughout Lombardi's life were his Roman Catholic faith, his family, and football. His father was a daily Communicant throughout his life and his mother's favorite picture of Vince as a child was on his Confirmation. When Lombardi was 12, while serving as an altar boy on Easter Sunday, "... amid the color and pageantry scarlet and white vestments, golden cross, scepters, the wafers and wine, body and blood ... the inspiration came to him that he should become a priest ...",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged about her son's plan to her neighbors. Lombardi attended Mass on a daily basis throughout his life.
During his tenure at St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ... his wife's drinking". When Lombardi became head coach of football in 1942, he led his team to Sunday Mass before each home game. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi shared an office with Father Tim Moore wherein it was not unusual for Lombardi to interrupt a conversation and request to go to Confession and for which Father Tim obliged him right in the office.
During his stay at Green Bay, Lombardi once emerged from his office and appeared before his secretary, Ruth McKloskey, wearing "... all these priest robes on, and he had a miter with a tassel, everything". Each day on his way to work for the Green Bay Packers, Lombardi would stop at St. Willebrord Church and "offer a prayer in case of unexpected death: 'My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this Communion as my viaticum ... '". He regularly attended Sunday Mass at Resurrection Church in the Allouez neighborhood of Green Bay's southeast side, always sitting with his wife in the middle of the ninth pew.
On the morning of the dedication of Lombardi Avenue, Lombardi remarked to his 37-member entourage that he was pleased to have gotten them all up to attend morning Mass. Lombardi was a Fourth Degree in the Knights of Columbus.
Anti-discrimination philosophy
In 1960, a color barrier still existed on at least one team in the NFL, but Jack Vainisi, the Scouting Director for the Packers, and Lombardi were determined "to ignore the prejudices then prevalent in most NFL front offices in their search for the most talented players". Lombardi explained his views by saying that he "... viewed his players as neither black nor white, but Packer green".
Among professional football head coaches, in the midst of the civil rights movement, Lombardi's anti-discrimination views were unusual. When Lombardi joined the Packers, they only had one black player, Nate Borden. During his time as coach the team became fully integrated: by 1967 they had 13 black players, including All-Pros Willie Davis, Willie Wood, Dave Robinson, Herb Adderley and Bob Jeter.
During his first training camp in Green Bay, Lombardi was notified by Packer veterans that an interracial relationship existed between one of the Packer rookies and a young woman. The next day at training camp, Lombardi—who was vehemently opposed to Jim Crow discrimination and had a zero-tolerance policy towards racism—responded by warning his team that if any player exhibited prejudice in any manner, that specific player would be thrown off the team.
Lombardi let it be known to all Green Bay establishments that if they did not accommodate his black and white players equally well, then that business would be off-limits to the entire team. Before the start of the 1960 regular season, he instituted a policy that the Packers would only lodge in places that accepted all his players. Lombardi also refused to assign hotel rooms to players based on their race: by 1967 the Packers were the only NFL team with such a policy.
Lombardi was a member of the all-white Oneida Golf and Riding Country club in Green Bay, and he demanded that he should be allowed to choose a Native American caddie, even if white caddies were available. Lombardi's view on racial matters was a result of his religious faith and the ethnic prejudice that he had experienced as an Italian-American.
Lombardi was known to be volatile and terse with players during practices and games, and he insisted on unconditional respect for everyone in his organization. Lombardi demanded "Nothing But Acceptance" from players and coaches toward all people, and he would immediately terminate a coach or release a player if that particular person insulted the sexual orientation of gay players and front office staff. According to Lombardi biographer and Pulitzer Prize-winning writer David Maraniss, if he caught a coach "discriminating against a player thought to be gay, he'd be fired". Richard Nicholls, the lifelong partner of Lombardi's younger brother, Hal, stated, "Vin was always fair in how he treated everybody ... a great man who accepted people at face value for what they were, and didn't judge anybody. He just wanted you to do the job."
In Washington, Lombardi's assistant general manager David Slatterly was gay, as was PR director Joe Blair, who was described as Lombardi's "right-hand man". According to son Vince Lombardi, Jr., "He saw everyone as equals, and I think having a gay brother (Hal) was a big factor in his approach ... I think my father would've felt, 'I hope I've created an atmosphere in the locker room where this would not be an issue at all. And if you do have an issue, the problem will be yours because my locker room will tolerate nothing but acceptance.'"
Upon his arrival in Washington, Lombardi was aware of tight end Jerry Smith's sexual orientation. "Lombardi protected and loved Jerry," said former teammate Dave Kopay. Lombardi brought Smith into his office and told him that his sexual orientation would never be an issue as long as he was coaching the Redskins; Smith would be judged solely on his on-the-field performance and contribution to the team's success. Under Lombardi's leadership Smith flourished, becoming an integral part of Lombardi's offense, and was voted a First Team All-Pro for the first time in his career, which was also Lombardi's only season as the Redskins head coach.
Lombardi invited other gay players to training camp and would privately hope they would prove they could earn a spot on the team. At the Washington Redskins training camp in 1969, Ray McDonald was a gay player, with sub-par skills, who was trying to make the Redskins roster again, but this time with Lombardi as the Redskins' new head coach. True to his word, Lombardi told running back coach, George Dickson, 'I want you to get on McDonald and work on him and work on him – and if I hear one of you people make reference to his manhood, you'll be out of here before your ass hits the ground.'
Politics
Although his wife was a Republican, Lombardi was a lifelong Democrat with liberal views on civil rights: he supported John F. Kennedy in the 1960 presidential election, Robert F. Kennedy in the 1968 primaries, and was also a supporter of Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson. Despite this, during the 1960s he became uncomfortable with the burgeoning youth protest movements associated with the emerging counterculture, such as the New Left and the Anti-war movement. In a speech that he first delivered in February 1967 to the American Management Association, he suggested that "everything has been done to strengthen the rights of the individual and at the same time weaken the rights of the church, weaken the rights of the state, and weaken the rights of all authority". Due to Lombardi's popularity, Richard Nixon once considered him as a possible running mate in the 1968 presidential election but dropped the idea upon learning about Lombardi's support for the Democratic Party.
Illness and death
Lombardi had suffered from digestive tract problems as early as 1967, and he had refused his doctor's request to undergo a proctoscopic exam. On June 24, 1970, Lombardi was admitted to Georgetown University Hospital, and tests "revealed anaplastic carcinoma in the rectal area of his colon, a fast-growing malignant cancer in which the cells barely resemble their normal appearance". On July 27, Lombardi was readmitted to Georgetown and exploratory surgery found that the cancer was terminal. Lombardi and Marie received family, friends, clergy, players, and former players at his hospital bedside. He received a phone call from President Nixon telling Lombardi that all of the U.S. was behind him, to which Lombardi replied that he would never give up his fight against his illness. On his deathbed, Lombardi told Father Tim that he was not afraid to die, but that he regretted he could not have accomplished more in his life. Lombardi died in Washington, D.C. at 7:12 a.m. on Thursday, September 3, 1970, surrounded by his wife, parents, two children, and six grandchildren. He was 57.
The funeral was held on September 7 at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan. Approximately 1,500 people lined Fifth Avenue, and the avenue was closed to traffic between 39th and 50th Street. Terence Cardinal Cooke delivered the eulogy. In attendance were team owners, Commissioner Pete Rozelle, past and present members of the Packers, Redskins, and Giants, former students from Saints, colleagues and players from West Point, and classmates from Fordham University, including the remaining Seven Blocks of Granite. Lombardi was interred in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Middletown Township, New Jersey.
In popular culture
In 1968, Lombardi starred in a half-hour motivational film titled Second Effort, that has been called "The best-selling training film of all time".
On December 14, 1973, ABC aired Legend in Granite starring Ernest Borgnine as Vince. The biographical TV drama focused mostly on his first two years as Packers head coach (1959–1960).
A service area on the New Jersey Turnpike dedicated to and named after Lombardi opened in 1974.
The high school in the 1979 movie Rock 'n' Roll High School is named "Vince Lombardi High School".
In 1986, CHCH aired the TV movie Lombardi: I Am Not a Legend starring Robert Knuckle in the title role that depicted Lombardi's life up until the NFL.
In 1996, Nike aired several commercials featuring Jerry Stiller as the ghost of Lombardi.
ESPN produced the 2005 TV movie Code Breakers that depicted the West Point cheating scandal and its effect on the football program. Richard Zeppieri played then-Assistant Coach Lombardi.
A play titled Lombardi opened on Broadway at the Circle in the Square Theatre in New York City in October 2010, following an out-of-town tryout at the Mahaiwe Theater in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. The production starred Dan Lauria as Lombardi and Judith Light as his wife, Marie. The play received positive reviews, as did Lauria's performance.
NFL Films and HBO produced a film about Lombardi that debuted Saturday, December 11, 2010.
Honors
In May 1967, Lombardi "... received Fordham's highest honor, the Insignis Medal ... for being a great teacher"
On January 13, 1969, he was inducted into the Knights of Malta at St. Patrick's.
Inducted into the Fordham University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1971
As part of the Lambeau Field renovation in 2003, a 14-foot statue of Lombardi (along with one for Curly Lambeau) now stands on a plaza outside the stadium
In 1968, Highland Avenue in Green Bay, home to the Packers' Lambeau Field, was renamed Lombardi Avenue.
In 1969, the Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) awarded Lombardi with the Jack Mara sportsman of the year.
The Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University is named in his honor.
One of the Green Bay School District's public middle schools is named the Lombardi Middle School.
The football field at Old Bridge High School in Old Bridge, New Jersey, is named Lombardi Field. The football field in Palisades Park is also known as Lombardi Field.
A plaque dedication installed in 1974 in the sidewalk on a square (unofficially called Vince Lombardi Square) near Sheepshead Bay Road and East 14th Street in Brooklyn, New York.
There are two places in the Bensonhurst area, which are, or were, dedicated to Lombardi at one time: P.S. 204 Vince Lombardi Elementary School, and the entire Bensonhurst stretch of 16th Avenue was once dedicated by the City of New York as "Vince Lombardi Boulevard"
The Vince Lombardi Service Area and park-and-ride is the northernmost rest area on the New Jersey Turnpike, at mileposts 116E on the Eastern Spur and 115.5W on the Western Spur. Outside the gift shop is a plaque about his life, which notes that he is buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery, Middletown, New Jersey.
The Vincent T. Lombardi Council, No. 6552, Knights of Columbus, in Middletown, NJ is named for him.
The Vince Lombardi Cancer clinic at Aurora Health Care is named after him.
The Vincent T. Lombardi Center at Fordham University was named for the coach.
In 1970 the NFL's Super Bowl Trophy was renamed the Vince Lombardi Trophy
In 1970, the Rotary Club of Houston created the Lombardi Award, which is given annually to the best college football offensive, or defensive, lineman or linebacker.
In 1969, Lombardi received the Silver Buffalo Award, the highest adult award given by the Boy Scouts of America.
Lombardi was enshrined in the NFL's Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971.
Lombardi was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1976.
Lombardi is a member of the Ring of Fame of the Washington Commanders (formerly known as the Redskins).
Induction into the American Football Association's Semi Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1988
In 2008, Lombardi is inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame
Lombardi appeared on a U.S. Postage stamp first issued on July 25, 1997.
Head coaching record
The Packers played in the third-place Playoff Bowl in Miami after the 1963 and 1964 seasons;these are categorized as exhibition games.
Books
Run to Daylight! by Vince Lombardi with W. C. Heinz
Books written about him
Instant Replay, the Green Bay Diary of Jerry Kramer by Jerry Kramer and Dick Schaap
Football's Greatest Coach: Vince Lombardi by Gene Schoor
The Lombardi Legacy: Thirty People who were Touched by Greatness by Royce Boyles and Dave Robinson
Coach: A Season With Lombardi by Tom Dowling
When Pride Still Mattered : A Life Of Vince Lombardi by David Maraniss
Vince by Michael O'Brien
Run to Win: Vince Lombardi on Coaching and Leadership by Donald T. Phillips
See also
List of Knights of Columbus
List of National Football League head coach wins leaders
List of National Football League head coaches by playoff record
List of Super Bowl head coaches
Notes
References
Sources
Further reading
Cavanaugh, Jack (2008), Giants Among Men. New York: Random House. .
Gifford, Frank and Richmond, Peter (2008), The Glory Game: How the 1958 NFL Championship Changed Football Forever. New York: Harper Collins. .
Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2001), What It Takes to Be #1: Vince Lombardi on Leadership. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2003), The Lombardi Rules: 26 Lessons from Vince Lombardi: The World's Greatest Coach. New York: McGraw-Hill.
External links
Vince Lombardi on American Catholic History
1913 births
1970 deaths
American football offensive linemen
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"The \"Why Mom Deserves a Diamond\" contest is an American essay contest founded by Michael \"Diamond Mike\" Watson in Costa Mesa, California in 1993. The contest was established in honor of Watson's adoptive mother and the birth mother he had never known. In a limited number of words, children are asked to write essays explaining why their mother deserves a diamond.\n\nHundreds of thousands of American children have participated, and dozens of children have won the grand prize of a diamond to give to their mothers (and other precious gems). The first winner was sophomore Margaret Ketchersid, from Edison High School in Huntington Beach, California. On Mother's Day 1993, she was awarded the grand prize of a quarter-carat diamond to give to her mother, Ruth.\n\nFounder \n\nMichael \"Diamond Mike\" Watson was born and adopted in Indianapolis in 1958. He spent his early life in New Albany, where his adopted parents raised him. The foundation of the contest began while Watson was searching for his own birth mother when he was 17.\n\nAbout the same time he started his quest, Watson entered the jewelry industry as an errand boy for a store in New Albany. He joined a retail chain and worked in jewelry stores in Indiana, Kentucky and Kansas City, then moved to California in 1989.\nIn 1991, Watson opened Gallery of Diamonds Jewelers in Costa Mesa, California.\n\nWatson obtained a copy of his hospital bill from Community Hospital, which showed his mother's name (Betty Price) and age. Armed with this information, he embarked on a search that lasted nearly 20 years. Watson found the judge who had presided over the adoption only to learn that the records were sealed. The judge did, however, give Watson the report by the Department of Public Welfare, which contained information about his birth mother. The report listed names and a wedding date, and he contacted every county in Indiana to locate a wedding license. In mid-1994 he heard from the courthouse in Coatesville that the information on the license matched. He found that his birth mother's maiden name was Stewart, and also discovered her parent's address and telephone number. When calling his biological grandmother, she said that no one knew he was alive because his birth mother told the family he was stillborn. He learned that his mother had died in 1981.\n\nWatson then learned he had an infant sister that vanished before he was born. Thus began a new journey to find his missing sibling. With the help of five genealogical researchers in which Watson named the Fabulous Five, Watson finally found his missing sister alive and well in 2017. That same year, with the miracle of DNA matching, Watson discovered his paternal Syrian Jewish roots and that he came from a long ancestry of distinguished rabbis from Aleppo, Syria. His great great grandfather was Hakham Mordechai Abadi. \n\nFrom 1993 to 2012, Watson published the winning entries in an annual book to raise money for the local county's library. Over the years, thousands of children submit their essays to the company's headquarters in Santa Ana, California, and come to Gallery of Diamonds Jewelers every year.\n\nWatson earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Indiana University Southeast and is a gemologist from the Gemological Institute of America. He is the author of Moon Over Mountains- The Search for Mom, The Legend of Why Mom Deserves a Diamond, Tales of Imagination- Everything is Real, In Search of Mom- Journey of an Adoptee, and Adopted Like Me- Chosen to Search for a Birthmother.\n\nIntellectual property \n\nThe trademark Why Mom Deserves a Diamond was filed with the United States Patent and Trademark office on July 27, 2001, registration number 2,620,840. The trademark, The Legendary Contest, received registration on April 17, 2007, as \"A writing contest in which kids can honor their mothers and have the chance to win a diamond or gemstone.\" Reg #3229618.\n\nFranchise \n\nIn 2009, the Why Mom Deserves a Diamond contest became incorporated, and in 2010 it became a franchise with the mission of \"giving every child the opportunity to express their words of appreciation to the mothers.\"\n\nAnthologies \n\nFrom 1993 to 2012, Gallery of Diamonds Jewelers, the founding sponsor of the contest, published an annual anthology of the winners. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of these books were donated to the Orange County Library system in Orange County, California. Following are the book titles and the years they were published. \n 2012. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - A Gift of Love\n 2011. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - Legacy Edition\n 2010. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - Discovered With Great Bliss\n 2009. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - The Encouraging Branch\n 2008. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - The Crystal Heart\n 2007. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - Sparkling Treasures\n 2006. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - Beyond the Goddess Venus\n 2005. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - Words of Love\n 2004. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - Twelve Years of Love\n 2003. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - The Legendary Contest\n 2002. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - 10th Anniversary of the Greatest Contest on Earth\n 2001. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - The Greatest Contest on Earth\n 2000. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - A Millennium Mother's Day Tribute\n 1999. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - Seventh Anniversary Edition\n 1998. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - 1,500 Essay Winners for 1998\n 1997. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - 1,002 Essay Winners for 1997\n 1996. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - 732 Essay Winners for 1996\n 1995. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - 391 Essay Winners for 1995\n 1994. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - 1994 Essay Winners\n 1993. Why Mom Deserves a Diamond - 1993 Essay Winners\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n \n CBS News\n\nWriting contests\nRecurring events established in 1993\n1993 establishments in California",
"Listen to Lefty is a 1952 studio album recorded by Lefty Frizzell. The album includes many of his hit singles released from 1950, including two of his most well known songs, If You've Got the Money I've Got the Time and I Love You a Thousand Ways. It also includes the fan favorite 1952 hit, Mom and Dad's Waltz.\n\nContent\nListen to Lefty is one of the very few albums released by Lefty in the 1950s and only the second of his then very young career. Many of the songs included, like the 1950 hits noted above and the 1951 hits, \"I Want to Be with You Always\", \"Always Late (With Your Kisses)\", \"Mom and Dad's Waltz\"; and the 1952 hit \"Don't Stay Away (Till Love Grows Cold)\". The only tracks not hit singles at the time of release, were \"Look What Thoughts Will Do\", and \"If You Can Spare the Time\".\n\nUpon the album's release sometime from mid to late 1952, it went mostly unnoticed.\n\nTrack listing\n\n1952 albums\nLefty Frizzell albums"
] |
[
"Vince Lombardi",
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"three constants throughout Lombardi's life were sports--particularly football--family and religion.",
"what did he look too",
"St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and \"prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ...\"",
"what else",
"...\" his wife's drinking.",
"what is his moms name",
"Matty,",
"what did his mom love",
"he should become a priest ...\",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged"
] | C_e8df54bbfca040499812d483f0c591b6_0 | What is his helpers name | 6 | What is Vince Lombardi helpers name? | Vince Lombardi | The three constants throughout Lombardi's life were sports--particularly football--family and religion. His father was a daily Communicant throughout his life and his mother's favorite picture of Vince as a child was on his Confirmation. When Lombardi was 12, while serving as an altar boy on Easter Sunday, "... amid the color and pageantry scarlet and white vestments, golden cross, scepters, the wafers and wine, body and blood ... that the inspiration came to him that he should become a priest ...",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged about her son's plan to her neighbors. Lombardi attended Mass on a daily basis throughout his life. During his tenure at St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ..." his wife's drinking. When Lombardi became head coach of football in 1942, he would lead his team to Sunday Mass before each home game. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi shared an office with Father Tim Moore wherein it was not unusual for Lombardi to interrupt a conversation and request to go to Confession and which Father Tim would oblige him right in the office. During his stay at Green Bay, Lombardi once emerged from his office and appeared before his secretary, Ruth McKloskey, wearing "... all these priest robes on, and he had a miter with a tassel, everything." Each day on his way to work for the Green Bay Packers, Lombardi would stop at St. Willebrord Church and "offer a prayer in case of unexpected death: 'My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this Communion as my viaticum ...'". He regularly attended Sunday Mass at Resurrection Church in the Allouez neighborhood of Green Bay's southeast side, always sitting with his wife in the middle of the ninth pew. On the morning of the dedication of Lombardi Avenue, Lombardi remarked to his 37-member entourage that he was pleased to have gotten them all up to attend morning Mass. Lombardi was also a 4th degree in the Knights of Columbus. CANNOTANSWER | Ruth McKloskey, | Vincent Thomas Lombardi (June 11, 1913 – September 3, 1970) was an American football coach and executive in the National Football League (NFL). He is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight and five total NFL Championships in seven years, in addition to winning the first two Super Bowls at the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 NFL seasons.
Lombardi began his coaching career as an assistant and later as a head coach at St. Cecilia High School in Englewood, New Jersey. He was an assistant coach at Fordham, the United States Military Academy and the New York Giants before becoming head coach of the Green Bay Packers from 1959 to 1967 and the Washington Redskins in 1969.
He never had a losing season as head coach in the NFL, compiling a regular-season winning percentage of 73.8% (96–34–6), and 90% (9–1) in the postseason for an overall record of 105 wins, 35 losses and 6 ties in the NFL.
Lombardi is considered by many to be the greatest coach in football history, and he is recognized as one of the greatest coaches and leaders in the history of all American sports.
The year after his sudden death from cancer in 1970, he was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the NFL Super Bowl trophy was named in his honor.
Early years
Lombardi was born on June 11, 1913, in the Sheepshead Bay neighborhood of Brooklyn to Enrico "Harry" Lombardi (1889–1971) and Matilda "Mattie" Izzo (1891–1972). Harry's mother and father, Vincenzo and Michelina, emigrated from Salerno, Italy. Mattie's father and mother, Anthony and Loretta, emigrated from Vietri di Potenza, Basilicata. Harry had three siblings, and Matilda had twelve. Vince was the oldest of five children, including Madeleine, Harold, Claire, and Joe. Both the Lombardi and Izzo clans settled entirely in Sheepshead Bay.
Matilda's father, Anthony, opened up a barber shop in Sheepshead Bay before the turn of the century. At about the time of Lombardi's birth, Harry, and his brother, Eddie, opened a butcher shop in the Meatpacking District of Manhattan. Throughout the Great Depression, Harry's shop did well, and his family prospered. Lombardi grew up in an ethnically diverse, middle-class neighborhood.
Church attendance was mandatory for the Lombardis on Sundays. Mass would be followed with an equally compulsory few hours of dinner with extended family members, friends, and local clergy. Lombardi himself was an altar boy at St. Mark's Catholic Church. Outside their local neighborhood, the Lombardi children were subject to the rampant ethnic discrimination that existed at the time against Italian immigrants and their descendants. As a child, Lombardi helped his father at his meat cutting business, but grew to hate it. At the age of 12 he started playing in an uncoached but organized football league in Sheepshead Bay.
High school
Lombardi graduated from the eighth grade at P.S. 206 at age 15 in 1928. He then enrolled in the Cathedral Preparatory Seminary, a division of Cathedral College of the Immaculate Conception in Brooklyn, a six-year secondary program to become a Catholic priest. At Cathedral, he played on the school's baseball and basketball teams, but his performance was hindered by his poor athleticism and eyesight. Against school rules, he continued to play football off-campus throughout his studies at Cathedral. After completing four years at Cathedral he decided not to pursue the priesthood. He enrolled at St. Francis Preparatory high school for the fall of 1932. There he became a Charter Member of Omega Gamma Delta fraternity. His performance as a fullback on the Terriers' football team earned him a position on the virtual All-City football team.
Fordham University
In 1933, Lombardi received a football scholarship to Fordham University in the Bronx to play for the Fordham Rams and Coach Jim Crowley, who was one of the Four Horsemen of Notre Dame in the 1920s. During his freshman year, Lombardi proved to be an aggressive and spirited player on the football field. Prior to the beginning of his sophomore year, Lombardi was projected to start games at the tackle position. Lombardi was only 5'8" and about 180 pounds and was classified as undersized for the position.
In his senior year of 1936, he was the right guard in the Seven Blocks of Granite, a nickname given by a Fordham University publicist to the Fordham University football team's offensive front line. In a game against Pitt, he suffered a severe gash inside his mouth and had several teeth knocked out. He missed most of the remainder of the game, until he was called in on defense for a successful goal-line stand that preserved a scoreless tie. The Rams were 5–0–2 before losing in the final game of the season, 7–6, to NYU. The loss destroyed all hopes of Fordham playing in the Rose Bowl and taught Lombardi a lesson he would never forget — never to underestimate your opponent.
Early career
Lombardi graduated from Fordham University on June 16, 1937. The nation was still plagued by the Great Depression, so there were few career opportunities for the young Lombardi, and for the next two years, he showed no discernible career path or ambition. He tried to play semi-professional football with the Wilmington Clippers of the American Association and worked as a debt collector for a collection agency, but those efforts very quickly proved to be failures. With his father's strong support, he enrolled in Fordham Law School in September 1938. Although he did not fail any classes, he believed his grades were so poor that he dropped out after one semester. Later in life, he would explain to others that he was close to graduating, but his desire to start and support a family forced him to leave law school and get a job. He also joined the Brooklyn Eagles.
Coaching career
St. Cecilia High School
In 1939, Lombardi wanted to marry his girlfriend, Marie Planitz, but he deferred at his father's insistence because he needed a steady job to support himself and a family; he married Marie the following year. In 1939, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching job at St. Cecilia's, a Catholic high school in Englewood, New Jersey. He was offered the position by the school's new head coach, Lombardi's former Fordham teammate, quarterback Andy Palau. Palau had just inherited the head coaching position from another Fordham teammate, Nat Pierce (left guard), who had accepted an assistant coach's job back at Fordham. In addition to coaching, Lombardi, age 26, taught Latin, chemistry, and physics for an annual salary of under $1,000.
In 1942, Andy Palau left St. Cecilia's for another position at Fordham, and Lombardi became the head coach at St. Cecilia's. He stayed a total of eight years, five as head coach. In 1943, St. Cecilia's was recognized as the top high school football team in the nation, in large part because of their victory over Brooklyn Prep, a Jesuit school considered one of the best teams in the eastern United States. Brooklyn Prep that season was led by senior Joe Paterno, who, like Lombardi, was to rise to legendary status in football. Lombardi won six state private school championships (NJISAA - New Jersey Independent Schools Athletic Association), and became the president of the Bergen County Coaches' Association.
Fordham
In 1947, Lombardi became the coach of freshman teams in football and basketball at his alma mater, Fordham University. The following year, he was an assistant coach for the varsity football team under head coach Ed Danowski, but he was arguably the de facto head coach.
West Point
Following the 1948 season, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching job at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, a position that greatly influenced his future philosophy and system of coaching. He was offensive line coach under head coach Earl "Colonel Red" Blaik. "As integral as religion was to [Lombardi's] sense of self, it was not until he reached West Point and combined his spiritual discipline with Blaik's military discipline that his coaching persona began to take its mature form." Blaik's emphasis on execution became a trademark of Lombardi's coaching style. Lombardi coached at West Point for five seasons, with varying results. The 1949 and 1950 seasons were successful, but the 1951 and 1952 seasons were not, due to the aftermath of a cadet cribbing scandal (a violation of the Cadet Honor Code) which was revealed in spring 1951. By order of the Superintendent, 43 of the 45 members of the varsity football team were discharged from the Academy as a result of the scandal. "Decades later, looking back on his rise, Lombardi came to regard ..." Blaik's decision not to resign "... as a pivotal moment in his [own] career" — it taught him perseverance. After the 1951 and 1952 seasons not much was expected from the 1953 team as it had also lost six players due to academic failure. The 1953 team, however, did achieve a 7–1–1 record, as Lombardi had a bigger role than ever in coaching the team. Following these five seasons at Army, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching position with the New York Giants.
New York Giants
At age 41 in 1954, Lombardi began his NFL career with the New York Giants. He accepted a job that later became known as the offensive coordinator position under new head coach Jim Lee Howell. The Giants had finished the previous season under 23-year coach Steve Owen with a 3–9 record. By his third season in 1956, Lombardi, along with the defensive coordinator, former All-Pro cornerback turned coach Tom Landry, turned the squad into a championship team, defeating the Chicago Bears 47–7 for the league title. "Howell readily acknowledged the talents of Lombardi and Landry, and joked self-deprecatingly, that his main function was to make sure the footballs had air in them." At points in his tenure as an assistant coach at West Point, and as an assistant coach with the Giants, Lombardi worried that he was unable to land a head coaching job due to prejudice against his Italian heritage, especially with respect to Southern colleges. Howell wrote numerous recommendations for Lombardi to aid him in obtaining a head coaching position. Lombardi applied for head coaching positions at Wake Forest, Notre Dame, and other universities and, in some cases, never received a reply. In New York, Lombardi introduced the strategy of rule blocking to the NFL. In rule blocking, the offensive lineman would block an area, and not necessarily a particular defensive player, as was the norm up to that time. The running back was then expected to run towards any hole that was created. Lombardi referred to this as running to daylight.
Green Bay Packers
1959
The Green Bay Packers, with six future Hall of Famers on the roster in 1958, finished at 1–10–1 under head coach Ray McLean, the worst record in Packer history. The players were dispirited, the Packer shareholders were disheartened, and the Green Bay community was enraged. The angst in Green Bay extended to the NFL as a whole, as the financial viability and the very existence of the Green Bay Packer franchise were in jeopardy. On February 2, 1959, Lombardi accepted the position of head coach and general manager of the Packers. He demanded and gained full control over the football operations of the community-owned franchise, leaving no doubt of this when he told the franchise's executive committee, "I want it understood that I am in complete command here."
Lombardi's assertion of "complete command" applied to the players as well. For his first training camp, he instituted harsh regimens and demanded absolute dedication and effort from his players. The Packers immediately improved in 1959 to 7–5, and rookie head coach Lombardi was named Coach of the Year. The fans appreciated what Lombardi was trying to do and responded by purchasing all the tickets for every home game during the 1960 season. Every Packers home game—preseason, regular season and playoffs—has been sold out ever since then.
1960–1966
In Lombardi's second year in 1960, Green Bay won the NFL Western Conference for the first time since 1944. This victory, along with his well-known religious convictions, led the Green Bay community to anoint Lombardi with the nickname "The Pope". Lombardi led the Packers to the Championship Game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Before the championship game, Lombardi met with Wellington Mara and advised him that he would not take the Giants' head coaching job, which was initially offered after the end of the 1959 season. In the final play of the game, in a drive that would have won it, the Packers were stopped a few yards from the goal line. Lombardi had suffered his first and only championship game loss. After the game, and after the press corps had left the locker room, Lombardi told his team, "This will never happen again. You will never lose another championship." In later years as coach of the Packers, Lombardi made it a point to admonish his running backs that if they failed to score from one yard out, he would consider it a personal affront to him and he would seek retribution. He coached the Packers to win their next nine post-season games, a record streak not matched or broken until Bill Belichick won ten straight from 2002 to 2006 with New England. The Packers defeated the Giants for the NFL title in 1961 (37–0 in Green Bay) and 1962 (16–7 at Yankee Stadium), marking the first two of their five titles in Lombardi's seven years. After the 1962 championship victory, President John F. Kennedy called Lombardi and asked him if he would "come back to Army and coach again". Kennedy received Lombardi's tacit refusal of the request. His only other post-season loss occurred to the St. Louis Cardinals in the third-place Playoff Bowl after the 1964 season (officially classified as an exhibition game).
Including postseason but excluding exhibition games, Lombardi compiled a 105–35–6 (.740) record as head coach, and never suffered a losing season. He led the Packers to three consecutive NFL championships — in 1965, 1966, and 1967 — a feat accomplished only once before in the history of the league, by Curly Lambeau, co-founder of the Packers, who coached the team to their first three straight NFL Championships in 1929, 1930, and 1931. At the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 seasons, Lombardi's Packers won the first two Super Bowls, for championships in five of seven seasons.
Packers Sweep
As coach of the Packers, Lombardi converted Notre Dame quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Paul Hornung to a full-time halfback. Lombardi also designed a play for fullback Jim Taylor: both guards, Jerry Kramer and Fuzzy Thurston, pulled to the outside and blocked downfield while Taylor would "run to daylight" — i.e., wherever the defenders weren't. This was a play that he had originally developed with the Giants for Frank Gifford. It soon became known as the Packers sweep (or Lombardi sweep), though Lombardi openly admitted it was based on an old single wing concept.
Ice Bowl
In 1967, Lombardi's Packers hosted the Dallas Cowboys in Green Bay on December 31 in the NFL Championship Game, a rematch of the previous season. This became known as the "Ice Bowl" because of the game-time temperature. Lombardi had a heating coil underneath the field but on this day it was not functioning. Some people believe that he turned it off on purpose. With 16 seconds left in the game and down by three points, the Packers called their final time-out. It was 3rd and goal on the Dallas two-foot line. In the huddle, with the game on the line, Quarterback Bart Starr asked Kramer whether he could get enough traction on the icy turf for a wedge play and Kramer responded with an unequivocal yes. Starr came over to Lombardi on the sidelines to discuss the last play and told him he wanted to run a 31 wedge, but with him keeping the ball. Lombardi, having had enough of the bitter cold, told Starr to 'Run it! And let's get the hell out of here!' Lombardi was asked by Pat Peppler what play Starr would call, to which Lombardi replied, 'Damned if I know.' Starr returned to the huddle and called a Brown right 31 Wedge, but with him keeping the ball. Kramer blocked Jethro Pugh low and Ken Bowman hit Pugh high as Starr followed them into the end zone for the Packer lead and assured victory.
Washington Redskins
Shortly after the victory in Super Bowl II, Lombardi resigned as head coach of the Packers on February 1, 1968, continuing as general manager. He handed the head coaching position to Phil Bengtson, a longtime assistant, but the Packers finished at 6–7–1 in the 1968 season and were out of the four-team NFL playoffs. In February , Lombardi became head coach and general manager of the Washington Redskins. The Redskins finished at 7–5–2, their first winning record since the 1955 season. Lombardi died the following year, but he was credited with having "truly changed the culture in that one unforgettable season in 1969," laying the foundation for Washington's early 1970s success under another future Hall of Fame coach, George Allen.
Personal life
Family
In the fall of 1934, Lombardi's roommate Jim Lawlor introduced him to his cousin's relative, Marie Planitz. When Marie announced her ardent desire to marry Lombardi, her status-conscious stockbroker father did not like the idea of his daughter marrying the son of an Italian butcher from Brooklyn, a prejudice he would face more than once in his life. Lombardi and Marie wed, nonetheless, on August 31, 1940.
Marie's first pregnancy resulted in a miscarriage. This had a terrible effect on Marie and caused her to turn to heavy drinking, a problem she would encounter on more than one occasion in her life. Their son, Vincent Henry Lombardi (Vince Jr.), was born in 1942, and their daughter Susan followed five years later in 1947.
Lombardi's perfectionism, authoritarian nature and temper, instilled in his wife a masterful ability to verbally assault and demean Lombardi when he verbally abused her. His children were not immune from his yelling. When Lombardi had not lost his temper, he would often be reticent and aloof.
Lombardi's grandson, Joe Lombardi, was named the offensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions in January 2014. He was relieved of this position midway through the 2015 season. Lombardi was previously quarterbacks coach for the New Orleans Saints. In the 2009 season, he helped lead the Saints to win the trophy bearing his grandfather's name, and Drew Brees to win a Super Bowl MVP award. He is now the offensive coordinator of the Los Angeles Chargers, under new head coach Brandon Staley.
World War II deferments
Though he was 28 years old when the United States entered World War II, Lombardi did not serve in the war. He obtained a series of deferments: his first was a 2-A due to his teaching occupation; in 1943, he obtained a second deferment due to parenthood (3-A); and his final deferment was labelled a 4-A and given in 1944.
Religion
The three constants throughout Lombardi's life were his Roman Catholic faith, his family, and football. His father was a daily Communicant throughout his life and his mother's favorite picture of Vince as a child was on his Confirmation. When Lombardi was 12, while serving as an altar boy on Easter Sunday, "... amid the color and pageantry scarlet and white vestments, golden cross, scepters, the wafers and wine, body and blood ... the inspiration came to him that he should become a priest ...",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged about her son's plan to her neighbors. Lombardi attended Mass on a daily basis throughout his life.
During his tenure at St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ... his wife's drinking". When Lombardi became head coach of football in 1942, he led his team to Sunday Mass before each home game. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi shared an office with Father Tim Moore wherein it was not unusual for Lombardi to interrupt a conversation and request to go to Confession and for which Father Tim obliged him right in the office.
During his stay at Green Bay, Lombardi once emerged from his office and appeared before his secretary, Ruth McKloskey, wearing "... all these priest robes on, and he had a miter with a tassel, everything". Each day on his way to work for the Green Bay Packers, Lombardi would stop at St. Willebrord Church and "offer a prayer in case of unexpected death: 'My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this Communion as my viaticum ... '". He regularly attended Sunday Mass at Resurrection Church in the Allouez neighborhood of Green Bay's southeast side, always sitting with his wife in the middle of the ninth pew.
On the morning of the dedication of Lombardi Avenue, Lombardi remarked to his 37-member entourage that he was pleased to have gotten them all up to attend morning Mass. Lombardi was a Fourth Degree in the Knights of Columbus.
Anti-discrimination philosophy
In 1960, a color barrier still existed on at least one team in the NFL, but Jack Vainisi, the Scouting Director for the Packers, and Lombardi were determined "to ignore the prejudices then prevalent in most NFL front offices in their search for the most talented players". Lombardi explained his views by saying that he "... viewed his players as neither black nor white, but Packer green".
Among professional football head coaches, in the midst of the civil rights movement, Lombardi's anti-discrimination views were unusual. When Lombardi joined the Packers, they only had one black player, Nate Borden. During his time as coach the team became fully integrated: by 1967 they had 13 black players, including All-Pros Willie Davis, Willie Wood, Dave Robinson, Herb Adderley and Bob Jeter.
During his first training camp in Green Bay, Lombardi was notified by Packer veterans that an interracial relationship existed between one of the Packer rookies and a young woman. The next day at training camp, Lombardi—who was vehemently opposed to Jim Crow discrimination and had a zero-tolerance policy towards racism—responded by warning his team that if any player exhibited prejudice in any manner, that specific player would be thrown off the team.
Lombardi let it be known to all Green Bay establishments that if they did not accommodate his black and white players equally well, then that business would be off-limits to the entire team. Before the start of the 1960 regular season, he instituted a policy that the Packers would only lodge in places that accepted all his players. Lombardi also refused to assign hotel rooms to players based on their race: by 1967 the Packers were the only NFL team with such a policy.
Lombardi was a member of the all-white Oneida Golf and Riding Country club in Green Bay, and he demanded that he should be allowed to choose a Native American caddie, even if white caddies were available. Lombardi's view on racial matters was a result of his religious faith and the ethnic prejudice that he had experienced as an Italian-American.
Lombardi was known to be volatile and terse with players during practices and games, and he insisted on unconditional respect for everyone in his organization. Lombardi demanded "Nothing But Acceptance" from players and coaches toward all people, and he would immediately terminate a coach or release a player if that particular person insulted the sexual orientation of gay players and front office staff. According to Lombardi biographer and Pulitzer Prize-winning writer David Maraniss, if he caught a coach "discriminating against a player thought to be gay, he'd be fired". Richard Nicholls, the lifelong partner of Lombardi's younger brother, Hal, stated, "Vin was always fair in how he treated everybody ... a great man who accepted people at face value for what they were, and didn't judge anybody. He just wanted you to do the job."
In Washington, Lombardi's assistant general manager David Slatterly was gay, as was PR director Joe Blair, who was described as Lombardi's "right-hand man". According to son Vince Lombardi, Jr., "He saw everyone as equals, and I think having a gay brother (Hal) was a big factor in his approach ... I think my father would've felt, 'I hope I've created an atmosphere in the locker room where this would not be an issue at all. And if you do have an issue, the problem will be yours because my locker room will tolerate nothing but acceptance.'"
Upon his arrival in Washington, Lombardi was aware of tight end Jerry Smith's sexual orientation. "Lombardi protected and loved Jerry," said former teammate Dave Kopay. Lombardi brought Smith into his office and told him that his sexual orientation would never be an issue as long as he was coaching the Redskins; Smith would be judged solely on his on-the-field performance and contribution to the team's success. Under Lombardi's leadership Smith flourished, becoming an integral part of Lombardi's offense, and was voted a First Team All-Pro for the first time in his career, which was also Lombardi's only season as the Redskins head coach.
Lombardi invited other gay players to training camp and would privately hope they would prove they could earn a spot on the team. At the Washington Redskins training camp in 1969, Ray McDonald was a gay player, with sub-par skills, who was trying to make the Redskins roster again, but this time with Lombardi as the Redskins' new head coach. True to his word, Lombardi told running back coach, George Dickson, 'I want you to get on McDonald and work on him and work on him – and if I hear one of you people make reference to his manhood, you'll be out of here before your ass hits the ground.'
Politics
Although his wife was a Republican, Lombardi was a lifelong Democrat with liberal views on civil rights: he supported John F. Kennedy in the 1960 presidential election, Robert F. Kennedy in the 1968 primaries, and was also a supporter of Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson. Despite this, during the 1960s he became uncomfortable with the burgeoning youth protest movements associated with the emerging counterculture, such as the New Left and the Anti-war movement. In a speech that he first delivered in February 1967 to the American Management Association, he suggested that "everything has been done to strengthen the rights of the individual and at the same time weaken the rights of the church, weaken the rights of the state, and weaken the rights of all authority". Due to Lombardi's popularity, Richard Nixon once considered him as a possible running mate in the 1968 presidential election but dropped the idea upon learning about Lombardi's support for the Democratic Party.
Illness and death
Lombardi had suffered from digestive tract problems as early as 1967, and he had refused his doctor's request to undergo a proctoscopic exam. On June 24, 1970, Lombardi was admitted to Georgetown University Hospital, and tests "revealed anaplastic carcinoma in the rectal area of his colon, a fast-growing malignant cancer in which the cells barely resemble their normal appearance". On July 27, Lombardi was readmitted to Georgetown and exploratory surgery found that the cancer was terminal. Lombardi and Marie received family, friends, clergy, players, and former players at his hospital bedside. He received a phone call from President Nixon telling Lombardi that all of the U.S. was behind him, to which Lombardi replied that he would never give up his fight against his illness. On his deathbed, Lombardi told Father Tim that he was not afraid to die, but that he regretted he could not have accomplished more in his life. Lombardi died in Washington, D.C. at 7:12 a.m. on Thursday, September 3, 1970, surrounded by his wife, parents, two children, and six grandchildren. He was 57.
The funeral was held on September 7 at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan. Approximately 1,500 people lined Fifth Avenue, and the avenue was closed to traffic between 39th and 50th Street. Terence Cardinal Cooke delivered the eulogy. In attendance were team owners, Commissioner Pete Rozelle, past and present members of the Packers, Redskins, and Giants, former students from Saints, colleagues and players from West Point, and classmates from Fordham University, including the remaining Seven Blocks of Granite. Lombardi was interred in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Middletown Township, New Jersey.
In popular culture
In 1968, Lombardi starred in a half-hour motivational film titled Second Effort, that has been called "The best-selling training film of all time".
On December 14, 1973, ABC aired Legend in Granite starring Ernest Borgnine as Vince. The biographical TV drama focused mostly on his first two years as Packers head coach (1959–1960).
A service area on the New Jersey Turnpike dedicated to and named after Lombardi opened in 1974.
The high school in the 1979 movie Rock 'n' Roll High School is named "Vince Lombardi High School".
In 1986, CHCH aired the TV movie Lombardi: I Am Not a Legend starring Robert Knuckle in the title role that depicted Lombardi's life up until the NFL.
In 1996, Nike aired several commercials featuring Jerry Stiller as the ghost of Lombardi.
ESPN produced the 2005 TV movie Code Breakers that depicted the West Point cheating scandal and its effect on the football program. Richard Zeppieri played then-Assistant Coach Lombardi.
A play titled Lombardi opened on Broadway at the Circle in the Square Theatre in New York City in October 2010, following an out-of-town tryout at the Mahaiwe Theater in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. The production starred Dan Lauria as Lombardi and Judith Light as his wife, Marie. The play received positive reviews, as did Lauria's performance.
NFL Films and HBO produced a film about Lombardi that debuted Saturday, December 11, 2010.
Honors
In May 1967, Lombardi "... received Fordham's highest honor, the Insignis Medal ... for being a great teacher"
On January 13, 1969, he was inducted into the Knights of Malta at St. Patrick's.
Inducted into the Fordham University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1971
As part of the Lambeau Field renovation in 2003, a 14-foot statue of Lombardi (along with one for Curly Lambeau) now stands on a plaza outside the stadium
In 1968, Highland Avenue in Green Bay, home to the Packers' Lambeau Field, was renamed Lombardi Avenue.
In 1969, the Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) awarded Lombardi with the Jack Mara sportsman of the year.
The Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University is named in his honor.
One of the Green Bay School District's public middle schools is named the Lombardi Middle School.
The football field at Old Bridge High School in Old Bridge, New Jersey, is named Lombardi Field. The football field in Palisades Park is also known as Lombardi Field.
A plaque dedication installed in 1974 in the sidewalk on a square (unofficially called Vince Lombardi Square) near Sheepshead Bay Road and East 14th Street in Brooklyn, New York.
There are two places in the Bensonhurst area, which are, or were, dedicated to Lombardi at one time: P.S. 204 Vince Lombardi Elementary School, and the entire Bensonhurst stretch of 16th Avenue was once dedicated by the City of New York as "Vince Lombardi Boulevard"
The Vince Lombardi Service Area and park-and-ride is the northernmost rest area on the New Jersey Turnpike, at mileposts 116E on the Eastern Spur and 115.5W on the Western Spur. Outside the gift shop is a plaque about his life, which notes that he is buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery, Middletown, New Jersey.
The Vincent T. Lombardi Council, No. 6552, Knights of Columbus, in Middletown, NJ is named for him.
The Vince Lombardi Cancer clinic at Aurora Health Care is named after him.
The Vincent T. Lombardi Center at Fordham University was named for the coach.
In 1970 the NFL's Super Bowl Trophy was renamed the Vince Lombardi Trophy
In 1970, the Rotary Club of Houston created the Lombardi Award, which is given annually to the best college football offensive, or defensive, lineman or linebacker.
In 1969, Lombardi received the Silver Buffalo Award, the highest adult award given by the Boy Scouts of America.
Lombardi was enshrined in the NFL's Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971.
Lombardi was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1976.
Lombardi is a member of the Ring of Fame of the Washington Commanders (formerly known as the Redskins).
Induction into the American Football Association's Semi Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1988
In 2008, Lombardi is inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame
Lombardi appeared on a U.S. Postage stamp first issued on July 25, 1997.
Head coaching record
The Packers played in the third-place Playoff Bowl in Miami after the 1963 and 1964 seasons;these are categorized as exhibition games.
Books
Run to Daylight! by Vince Lombardi with W. C. Heinz
Books written about him
Instant Replay, the Green Bay Diary of Jerry Kramer by Jerry Kramer and Dick Schaap
Football's Greatest Coach: Vince Lombardi by Gene Schoor
The Lombardi Legacy: Thirty People who were Touched by Greatness by Royce Boyles and Dave Robinson
Coach: A Season With Lombardi by Tom Dowling
When Pride Still Mattered : A Life Of Vince Lombardi by David Maraniss
Vince by Michael O'Brien
Run to Win: Vince Lombardi on Coaching and Leadership by Donald T. Phillips
See also
List of Knights of Columbus
List of National Football League head coach wins leaders
List of National Football League head coaches by playoff record
List of Super Bowl head coaches
Notes
References
Sources
Further reading
Cavanaugh, Jack (2008), Giants Among Men. New York: Random House. .
Gifford, Frank and Richmond, Peter (2008), The Glory Game: How the 1958 NFL Championship Changed Football Forever. New York: Harper Collins. .
Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2001), What It Takes to Be #1: Vince Lombardi on Leadership. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2003), The Lombardi Rules: 26 Lessons from Vince Lombardi: The World's Greatest Coach. New York: McGraw-Hill.
External links
Vince Lombardi on American Catholic History
1913 births
1970 deaths
American football offensive linemen
American people of Italian descent
American sportspeople of Italian descent
Army Black Knights football coaches
Fordham Rams football players
Green Bay Packers general managers
Green Bay Packers head coaches
New York Giants coaches
Washington Redskins coaches
Washington Redskins executives
National Football League offensive coordinators
National Football League general managers
High school football coaches in New Jersey
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Knights of Malta
St. Francis Preparatory School alumni
People from Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn
Deaths from cancer in Washington, D.C.
Deaths from colorectal cancer
Burials in New Jersey
Sportspeople from Brooklyn
Players of American football from New Jersey
Coaches of American football from New Jersey
Players of American football from New York (state)
Coaches of American football from New York (state)
Super Bowl-winning head coaches
Catholics from New York (state)
New York (state) Democrats
Writers from Brooklyn
LGBT rights activists from the United States
Wilmington Clippers players | true | [
"Within Subud, a \"helper\" (, meaning “helping to train” or “assistant trainer\") is a person who fills a certain support role. The nature of this role, and the actual performance of those who fill it, are subjects of some controversy within Subud.\n\nMost Subud groups have helpers, who are responsible for assisting other members in various ways, as well as simply timing the latihan. Helpers exist at the local, regional, national, and international levels within the Subud organization.\n\nIdeally, a helper should have at least seven years of practicing the latihan and be generally 'loved and respected' by their fellow members. One becomes a helper by asking the helpers to \"test\", or receive, whether the person has the capacity to fulfill the helper job at that point in time. That is, the helpers make a decision based on what they receive in their testing, and with as little mental thought and personal opinion as is humanly possible.\n\nA focus of criticism is the role some helpers adopt as spiritual and personal counselors. Their ability and understanding apparently vary considerably. Reviewing the internet one can see a whole variety of balanced and not so balanced opinions of helpers. Helpers are as imperfect as the next person, and as is natural in any position of 'authority' interpersonal clashes involving helpers and other helpers and helpers and members do occur. There is no official training program nor set of predetermined skills necessary to become a Helper. Thus most Helpers, unless they have obtained training and licensure outside of the Subud organization in psychology, or behavioral health, or psychiatry, or other related career field, are thus untrained and unskilled.\n\nAccording to the Subud USA National By-Laws (posted at www.subudusa.org), helpers serve six main functions. Note that these are the functions mentioned in the By-Laws, and that other functions are specified in other places, such as Bapak's \"Advice and Guidance for Helpers\" (see link below)):\n\nVerify that members are active in the national (not-for-profit) organization, thereby giving membership status (Article 3, Section 1);\nRemoving membership status (Article 3, Section 2);\nReinstating membership status (Article 3, Section 3);\nSupervising the national census (Article 5, Section 2);\nServing as members in standing national committees (Article 6, Section 6); and\nConsulting with the National Board of Directors in certain situations regarding filling vacancies of the Officers of the Corporation (Article 7, Section 3).\n\nRelationships between the Helpers (but not the duties and responsibilities of the Helpers) are dealt with in Article 11 of the By-Laws.\n\nOfficially, helpers are there to help Bapak, the founder of Subud, by supporting the Subud association in his absence. They have the responsibility to explain what Subud is to any interested person, to facilitate a person's first receiving (opening), and to serve members in deepening their receiving and applying it in their lives.Bapak has said frequently that being a helper is absolutely not a sign of spiritual superiority and that it is possible that some non-helpers are spiritually superior to the helpers. Similarly, there is no spiritual hierarchy of helpers: international helpers, national helpers and local helpers are simply designated as such for practical purposes.\n\nSubud",
"Helpers at the nest is a term used in behavioural ecology and evolutionary biology to describe a social structure in which juveniles and sexually mature adolescents of either one or both sexes remain in association with their parents and help them raise subsequent broods or litters, instead of dispersing and beginning to reproduce themselves. This phenomenon was first studied in birds where it occurs most frequently, but it is also known in animals from many different groups including mammals and insects. It is a simple form of co-operative breeding. The effects of helpers usually amount to a net benefit, however, benefits are not uniformly distributed by all helpers nor across all species that exhibit this behaviour. There are multiple proposed explanations for the behaviour, but its variability and broad taxonomic occurrences result in simultaneously plausible theories.\n\nThe term \"helper\" was coined by Alexander Skutch in 1935 and defined more carefully in 1961 in the avian context as \"a bird which assists in the nesting of an individual other than its mate, or feeds or otherwise attends a bird of whatever age which is neither its mate nor its dependent offspring.\" The term has been criticised as being anthropomorphic, but it remains in use. Other terms used especially in mammals, depending on the specific contexts, are non-maternal (care by other than the mother), alloparental (care by other than the parents), cooperative (care by non-breeding helpers) and communal (care by other breeding females) care.\n\nExamples \nIt occurs in between three and eight percent of bird species worldwide (estimates vary), but is much more common in Australia and Southern Africa. Bird species in which this behaviour is found include the common moorhen, the house sparrow, the acorn woodpecker, and the apostlebird. Damarland mole rats, meerkats and humans are examples of mammals that exhibit this behaviour. It is also seen in a number of species of bee such as carpenter bees (note this is distinct from the behaviour of the European honey bee, where the worker bees are sterile and incapable of reproducing).\n\nEvolution \nThree explanations for the occurrence of helpers at the nest have been put forward; they are not mutually exclusive, and in any particular species an investigation of the exact benefits and costs will be needed to see what combination of these factors may have driven the evolution of helping.\n\nAdvantage to the helpers, who may be protected from predation, or gain skills that they will need when they subsequently reproduce, as a result of staying in the parental nest.\nKin selection: since subsequent litters or broods from the same parents will be full siblings to the helpers, they are as closely related genetically as their own offspring would be. Helping their parents is therefore as productive for the juveniles as reproducing themselves would be, and if their parents are better able to reproduce, the balance of advantage may be greater.\nDelayed advantage to the helpers, in particular because they stand to inherit their parents' territory; this explanation is particularly compelling if suitable territories are in short supply, but requires specific quantitative conditions to be met, favouring a stable queue of potential heirs.\n\nMisconceptions \nAlthough it is frequently assumed that helpers are non-breeders, molecular evidence suggests that this may happen, and the term \"secondary helper\" is sometimes used in this case to indicate helpers that mate with or are not related offspring of the pair being assisted. The term \"primary helper\" being used for the commoner case of the helper being offspring of the pair and not involved in mating. Extrapair mates are chosen by the females and are these then contribute to the care of the young who may be sired by them.\n\nJuveniles living in association with their parents cannot automatically be regarded as helpers. In a number of species, such as the logrunners and the Siberian jay, young remain in the parental territory, but never help feed nestlings. However the delayed advantage explanation for the juveniles' association with their parents can still work in the absence of effective helping, whereas the kin selection explanation cannot.\n\nAssociated effects\n\nReproductive success \nEffects on reproductive success can be but are not always positive, and the strength of that positive correlation varies by species. Sometimes, the energy benefits to breeders, instead of being invested in improving reproductive performance, are used to offset reductions in reproductive performance. However, in many species, nestling survival rates are increased from helper investments. Further reproductive success benefits include better quality offspring, and nestling immune response.\n\nParental investment \nHelpers at the nest can provide advantageous plasticity in the amount of investment parents need to give to their eggs and chicks. The presence of helpers can be associated with lower investments as the helpers can be depended on to provide certain elements of care and raising. For example, in the superb fairy-wren, nests with helpers present exhibit different average egg sizes than those without helpers. This plasticity can be seen in reference to change in climate conditions. In unfavourable conditions there is a need for female parents to maintain high egg investment, but in favourable conditions, egg investment by mothers declines as helpers can assist with some of the care-load. Superb fairy-wrens with helpers at the nest see average egg sizes increase in dry and hot conditions and decrease in colder conditions compared to nests without helpers.\n\nHelper variability \nGenerally, helpers provide a net benefit to parents raising offspring, but this benefit is not necessarily distributed uniformly. There can be an uneven distribution of benefits between species, or even between sexes within a species. Benefits provided by one sex may more heavily fluctuate according to various factors such as food availability. In acorn woodpeckers, while helpers of both sexes provide relatively the same benefit to reproductive success, male helper behaviour fluctuates. This fluctuation is dependent upon the size of recent acorn crops. Large acorn crops translate to increased behavioural effects from male helpers such as higher rates of granary tending and time spent in the home territory.\n\nBenefits and consequences for helpers \nHelpers often also benefit from joining a breeding couple. After unsuccessfully breeding, juveniles may join breeding couples to become helpers. By opting to become helpers while still juveniles and having poor breeding prospects, helpers can benefit from increased survival rates. A trade-off of this increased survival over non-helper juveniles is that their successful breeding rate after becoming helpers decreases compared to non-helpers.\n\nSee also \nAlloparenting\nAltruistic behaviour\nEthology\n\nReferences\n\nBehavioral ecology\nEthology\nBirds"
] |
[
"Vince Lombardi",
"Religion",
"what where his influences",
"three constants throughout Lombardi's life were sports--particularly football--family and religion.",
"what did he look too",
"St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and \"prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ...\"",
"what else",
"...\" his wife's drinking.",
"what is his moms name",
"Matty,",
"what did his mom love",
"he should become a priest ...\",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged",
"What is his helpers name",
"Ruth McKloskey,"
] | C_e8df54bbfca040499812d483f0c591b6_0 | where did he stop | 7 | Where did Vince Lombardi stop? | Vince Lombardi | The three constants throughout Lombardi's life were sports--particularly football--family and religion. His father was a daily Communicant throughout his life and his mother's favorite picture of Vince as a child was on his Confirmation. When Lombardi was 12, while serving as an altar boy on Easter Sunday, "... amid the color and pageantry scarlet and white vestments, golden cross, scepters, the wafers and wine, body and blood ... that the inspiration came to him that he should become a priest ...",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged about her son's plan to her neighbors. Lombardi attended Mass on a daily basis throughout his life. During his tenure at St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ..." his wife's drinking. When Lombardi became head coach of football in 1942, he would lead his team to Sunday Mass before each home game. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi shared an office with Father Tim Moore wherein it was not unusual for Lombardi to interrupt a conversation and request to go to Confession and which Father Tim would oblige him right in the office. During his stay at Green Bay, Lombardi once emerged from his office and appeared before his secretary, Ruth McKloskey, wearing "... all these priest robes on, and he had a miter with a tassel, everything." Each day on his way to work for the Green Bay Packers, Lombardi would stop at St. Willebrord Church and "offer a prayer in case of unexpected death: 'My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this Communion as my viaticum ...'". He regularly attended Sunday Mass at Resurrection Church in the Allouez neighborhood of Green Bay's southeast side, always sitting with his wife in the middle of the ninth pew. On the morning of the dedication of Lombardi Avenue, Lombardi remarked to his 37-member entourage that he was pleased to have gotten them all up to attend morning Mass. Lombardi was also a 4th degree in the Knights of Columbus. CANNOTANSWER | St. Willebrord Church | Vincent Thomas Lombardi (June 11, 1913 – September 3, 1970) was an American football coach and executive in the National Football League (NFL). He is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight and five total NFL Championships in seven years, in addition to winning the first two Super Bowls at the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 NFL seasons.
Lombardi began his coaching career as an assistant and later as a head coach at St. Cecilia High School in Englewood, New Jersey. He was an assistant coach at Fordham, the United States Military Academy and the New York Giants before becoming head coach of the Green Bay Packers from 1959 to 1967 and the Washington Redskins in 1969.
He never had a losing season as head coach in the NFL, compiling a regular-season winning percentage of 73.8% (96–34–6), and 90% (9–1) in the postseason for an overall record of 105 wins, 35 losses and 6 ties in the NFL.
Lombardi is considered by many to be the greatest coach in football history, and he is recognized as one of the greatest coaches and leaders in the history of all American sports.
The year after his sudden death from cancer in 1970, he was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the NFL Super Bowl trophy was named in his honor.
Early years
Lombardi was born on June 11, 1913, in the Sheepshead Bay neighborhood of Brooklyn to Enrico "Harry" Lombardi (1889–1971) and Matilda "Mattie" Izzo (1891–1972). Harry's mother and father, Vincenzo and Michelina, emigrated from Salerno, Italy. Mattie's father and mother, Anthony and Loretta, emigrated from Vietri di Potenza, Basilicata. Harry had three siblings, and Matilda had twelve. Vince was the oldest of five children, including Madeleine, Harold, Claire, and Joe. Both the Lombardi and Izzo clans settled entirely in Sheepshead Bay.
Matilda's father, Anthony, opened up a barber shop in Sheepshead Bay before the turn of the century. At about the time of Lombardi's birth, Harry, and his brother, Eddie, opened a butcher shop in the Meatpacking District of Manhattan. Throughout the Great Depression, Harry's shop did well, and his family prospered. Lombardi grew up in an ethnically diverse, middle-class neighborhood.
Church attendance was mandatory for the Lombardis on Sundays. Mass would be followed with an equally compulsory few hours of dinner with extended family members, friends, and local clergy. Lombardi himself was an altar boy at St. Mark's Catholic Church. Outside their local neighborhood, the Lombardi children were subject to the rampant ethnic discrimination that existed at the time against Italian immigrants and their descendants. As a child, Lombardi helped his father at his meat cutting business, but grew to hate it. At the age of 12 he started playing in an uncoached but organized football league in Sheepshead Bay.
High school
Lombardi graduated from the eighth grade at P.S. 206 at age 15 in 1928. He then enrolled in the Cathedral Preparatory Seminary, a division of Cathedral College of the Immaculate Conception in Brooklyn, a six-year secondary program to become a Catholic priest. At Cathedral, he played on the school's baseball and basketball teams, but his performance was hindered by his poor athleticism and eyesight. Against school rules, he continued to play football off-campus throughout his studies at Cathedral. After completing four years at Cathedral he decided not to pursue the priesthood. He enrolled at St. Francis Preparatory high school for the fall of 1932. There he became a Charter Member of Omega Gamma Delta fraternity. His performance as a fullback on the Terriers' football team earned him a position on the virtual All-City football team.
Fordham University
In 1933, Lombardi received a football scholarship to Fordham University in the Bronx to play for the Fordham Rams and Coach Jim Crowley, who was one of the Four Horsemen of Notre Dame in the 1920s. During his freshman year, Lombardi proved to be an aggressive and spirited player on the football field. Prior to the beginning of his sophomore year, Lombardi was projected to start games at the tackle position. Lombardi was only 5'8" and about 180 pounds and was classified as undersized for the position.
In his senior year of 1936, he was the right guard in the Seven Blocks of Granite, a nickname given by a Fordham University publicist to the Fordham University football team's offensive front line. In a game against Pitt, he suffered a severe gash inside his mouth and had several teeth knocked out. He missed most of the remainder of the game, until he was called in on defense for a successful goal-line stand that preserved a scoreless tie. The Rams were 5–0–2 before losing in the final game of the season, 7–6, to NYU. The loss destroyed all hopes of Fordham playing in the Rose Bowl and taught Lombardi a lesson he would never forget — never to underestimate your opponent.
Early career
Lombardi graduated from Fordham University on June 16, 1937. The nation was still plagued by the Great Depression, so there were few career opportunities for the young Lombardi, and for the next two years, he showed no discernible career path or ambition. He tried to play semi-professional football with the Wilmington Clippers of the American Association and worked as a debt collector for a collection agency, but those efforts very quickly proved to be failures. With his father's strong support, he enrolled in Fordham Law School in September 1938. Although he did not fail any classes, he believed his grades were so poor that he dropped out after one semester. Later in life, he would explain to others that he was close to graduating, but his desire to start and support a family forced him to leave law school and get a job. He also joined the Brooklyn Eagles.
Coaching career
St. Cecilia High School
In 1939, Lombardi wanted to marry his girlfriend, Marie Planitz, but he deferred at his father's insistence because he needed a steady job to support himself and a family; he married Marie the following year. In 1939, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching job at St. Cecilia's, a Catholic high school in Englewood, New Jersey. He was offered the position by the school's new head coach, Lombardi's former Fordham teammate, quarterback Andy Palau. Palau had just inherited the head coaching position from another Fordham teammate, Nat Pierce (left guard), who had accepted an assistant coach's job back at Fordham. In addition to coaching, Lombardi, age 26, taught Latin, chemistry, and physics for an annual salary of under $1,000.
In 1942, Andy Palau left St. Cecilia's for another position at Fordham, and Lombardi became the head coach at St. Cecilia's. He stayed a total of eight years, five as head coach. In 1943, St. Cecilia's was recognized as the top high school football team in the nation, in large part because of their victory over Brooklyn Prep, a Jesuit school considered one of the best teams in the eastern United States. Brooklyn Prep that season was led by senior Joe Paterno, who, like Lombardi, was to rise to legendary status in football. Lombardi won six state private school championships (NJISAA - New Jersey Independent Schools Athletic Association), and became the president of the Bergen County Coaches' Association.
Fordham
In 1947, Lombardi became the coach of freshman teams in football and basketball at his alma mater, Fordham University. The following year, he was an assistant coach for the varsity football team under head coach Ed Danowski, but he was arguably the de facto head coach.
West Point
Following the 1948 season, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching job at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, a position that greatly influenced his future philosophy and system of coaching. He was offensive line coach under head coach Earl "Colonel Red" Blaik. "As integral as religion was to [Lombardi's] sense of self, it was not until he reached West Point and combined his spiritual discipline with Blaik's military discipline that his coaching persona began to take its mature form." Blaik's emphasis on execution became a trademark of Lombardi's coaching style. Lombardi coached at West Point for five seasons, with varying results. The 1949 and 1950 seasons were successful, but the 1951 and 1952 seasons were not, due to the aftermath of a cadet cribbing scandal (a violation of the Cadet Honor Code) which was revealed in spring 1951. By order of the Superintendent, 43 of the 45 members of the varsity football team were discharged from the Academy as a result of the scandal. "Decades later, looking back on his rise, Lombardi came to regard ..." Blaik's decision not to resign "... as a pivotal moment in his [own] career" — it taught him perseverance. After the 1951 and 1952 seasons not much was expected from the 1953 team as it had also lost six players due to academic failure. The 1953 team, however, did achieve a 7–1–1 record, as Lombardi had a bigger role than ever in coaching the team. Following these five seasons at Army, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching position with the New York Giants.
New York Giants
At age 41 in 1954, Lombardi began his NFL career with the New York Giants. He accepted a job that later became known as the offensive coordinator position under new head coach Jim Lee Howell. The Giants had finished the previous season under 23-year coach Steve Owen with a 3–9 record. By his third season in 1956, Lombardi, along with the defensive coordinator, former All-Pro cornerback turned coach Tom Landry, turned the squad into a championship team, defeating the Chicago Bears 47–7 for the league title. "Howell readily acknowledged the talents of Lombardi and Landry, and joked self-deprecatingly, that his main function was to make sure the footballs had air in them." At points in his tenure as an assistant coach at West Point, and as an assistant coach with the Giants, Lombardi worried that he was unable to land a head coaching job due to prejudice against his Italian heritage, especially with respect to Southern colleges. Howell wrote numerous recommendations for Lombardi to aid him in obtaining a head coaching position. Lombardi applied for head coaching positions at Wake Forest, Notre Dame, and other universities and, in some cases, never received a reply. In New York, Lombardi introduced the strategy of rule blocking to the NFL. In rule blocking, the offensive lineman would block an area, and not necessarily a particular defensive player, as was the norm up to that time. The running back was then expected to run towards any hole that was created. Lombardi referred to this as running to daylight.
Green Bay Packers
1959
The Green Bay Packers, with six future Hall of Famers on the roster in 1958, finished at 1–10–1 under head coach Ray McLean, the worst record in Packer history. The players were dispirited, the Packer shareholders were disheartened, and the Green Bay community was enraged. The angst in Green Bay extended to the NFL as a whole, as the financial viability and the very existence of the Green Bay Packer franchise were in jeopardy. On February 2, 1959, Lombardi accepted the position of head coach and general manager of the Packers. He demanded and gained full control over the football operations of the community-owned franchise, leaving no doubt of this when he told the franchise's executive committee, "I want it understood that I am in complete command here."
Lombardi's assertion of "complete command" applied to the players as well. For his first training camp, he instituted harsh regimens and demanded absolute dedication and effort from his players. The Packers immediately improved in 1959 to 7–5, and rookie head coach Lombardi was named Coach of the Year. The fans appreciated what Lombardi was trying to do and responded by purchasing all the tickets for every home game during the 1960 season. Every Packers home game—preseason, regular season and playoffs—has been sold out ever since then.
1960–1966
In Lombardi's second year in 1960, Green Bay won the NFL Western Conference for the first time since 1944. This victory, along with his well-known religious convictions, led the Green Bay community to anoint Lombardi with the nickname "The Pope". Lombardi led the Packers to the Championship Game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Before the championship game, Lombardi met with Wellington Mara and advised him that he would not take the Giants' head coaching job, which was initially offered after the end of the 1959 season. In the final play of the game, in a drive that would have won it, the Packers were stopped a few yards from the goal line. Lombardi had suffered his first and only championship game loss. After the game, and after the press corps had left the locker room, Lombardi told his team, "This will never happen again. You will never lose another championship." In later years as coach of the Packers, Lombardi made it a point to admonish his running backs that if they failed to score from one yard out, he would consider it a personal affront to him and he would seek retribution. He coached the Packers to win their next nine post-season games, a record streak not matched or broken until Bill Belichick won ten straight from 2002 to 2006 with New England. The Packers defeated the Giants for the NFL title in 1961 (37–0 in Green Bay) and 1962 (16–7 at Yankee Stadium), marking the first two of their five titles in Lombardi's seven years. After the 1962 championship victory, President John F. Kennedy called Lombardi and asked him if he would "come back to Army and coach again". Kennedy received Lombardi's tacit refusal of the request. His only other post-season loss occurred to the St. Louis Cardinals in the third-place Playoff Bowl after the 1964 season (officially classified as an exhibition game).
Including postseason but excluding exhibition games, Lombardi compiled a 105–35–6 (.740) record as head coach, and never suffered a losing season. He led the Packers to three consecutive NFL championships — in 1965, 1966, and 1967 — a feat accomplished only once before in the history of the league, by Curly Lambeau, co-founder of the Packers, who coached the team to their first three straight NFL Championships in 1929, 1930, and 1931. At the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 seasons, Lombardi's Packers won the first two Super Bowls, for championships in five of seven seasons.
Packers Sweep
As coach of the Packers, Lombardi converted Notre Dame quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Paul Hornung to a full-time halfback. Lombardi also designed a play for fullback Jim Taylor: both guards, Jerry Kramer and Fuzzy Thurston, pulled to the outside and blocked downfield while Taylor would "run to daylight" — i.e., wherever the defenders weren't. This was a play that he had originally developed with the Giants for Frank Gifford. It soon became known as the Packers sweep (or Lombardi sweep), though Lombardi openly admitted it was based on an old single wing concept.
Ice Bowl
In 1967, Lombardi's Packers hosted the Dallas Cowboys in Green Bay on December 31 in the NFL Championship Game, a rematch of the previous season. This became known as the "Ice Bowl" because of the game-time temperature. Lombardi had a heating coil underneath the field but on this day it was not functioning. Some people believe that he turned it off on purpose. With 16 seconds left in the game and down by three points, the Packers called their final time-out. It was 3rd and goal on the Dallas two-foot line. In the huddle, with the game on the line, Quarterback Bart Starr asked Kramer whether he could get enough traction on the icy turf for a wedge play and Kramer responded with an unequivocal yes. Starr came over to Lombardi on the sidelines to discuss the last play and told him he wanted to run a 31 wedge, but with him keeping the ball. Lombardi, having had enough of the bitter cold, told Starr to 'Run it! And let's get the hell out of here!' Lombardi was asked by Pat Peppler what play Starr would call, to which Lombardi replied, 'Damned if I know.' Starr returned to the huddle and called a Brown right 31 Wedge, but with him keeping the ball. Kramer blocked Jethro Pugh low and Ken Bowman hit Pugh high as Starr followed them into the end zone for the Packer lead and assured victory.
Washington Redskins
Shortly after the victory in Super Bowl II, Lombardi resigned as head coach of the Packers on February 1, 1968, continuing as general manager. He handed the head coaching position to Phil Bengtson, a longtime assistant, but the Packers finished at 6–7–1 in the 1968 season and were out of the four-team NFL playoffs. In February , Lombardi became head coach and general manager of the Washington Redskins. The Redskins finished at 7–5–2, their first winning record since the 1955 season. Lombardi died the following year, but he was credited with having "truly changed the culture in that one unforgettable season in 1969," laying the foundation for Washington's early 1970s success under another future Hall of Fame coach, George Allen.
Personal life
Family
In the fall of 1934, Lombardi's roommate Jim Lawlor introduced him to his cousin's relative, Marie Planitz. When Marie announced her ardent desire to marry Lombardi, her status-conscious stockbroker father did not like the idea of his daughter marrying the son of an Italian butcher from Brooklyn, a prejudice he would face more than once in his life. Lombardi and Marie wed, nonetheless, on August 31, 1940.
Marie's first pregnancy resulted in a miscarriage. This had a terrible effect on Marie and caused her to turn to heavy drinking, a problem she would encounter on more than one occasion in her life. Their son, Vincent Henry Lombardi (Vince Jr.), was born in 1942, and their daughter Susan followed five years later in 1947.
Lombardi's perfectionism, authoritarian nature and temper, instilled in his wife a masterful ability to verbally assault and demean Lombardi when he verbally abused her. His children were not immune from his yelling. When Lombardi had not lost his temper, he would often be reticent and aloof.
Lombardi's grandson, Joe Lombardi, was named the offensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions in January 2014. He was relieved of this position midway through the 2015 season. Lombardi was previously quarterbacks coach for the New Orleans Saints. In the 2009 season, he helped lead the Saints to win the trophy bearing his grandfather's name, and Drew Brees to win a Super Bowl MVP award. He is now the offensive coordinator of the Los Angeles Chargers, under new head coach Brandon Staley.
World War II deferments
Though he was 28 years old when the United States entered World War II, Lombardi did not serve in the war. He obtained a series of deferments: his first was a 2-A due to his teaching occupation; in 1943, he obtained a second deferment due to parenthood (3-A); and his final deferment was labelled a 4-A and given in 1944.
Religion
The three constants throughout Lombardi's life were his Roman Catholic faith, his family, and football. His father was a daily Communicant throughout his life and his mother's favorite picture of Vince as a child was on his Confirmation. When Lombardi was 12, while serving as an altar boy on Easter Sunday, "... amid the color and pageantry scarlet and white vestments, golden cross, scepters, the wafers and wine, body and blood ... the inspiration came to him that he should become a priest ...",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged about her son's plan to her neighbors. Lombardi attended Mass on a daily basis throughout his life.
During his tenure at St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ... his wife's drinking". When Lombardi became head coach of football in 1942, he led his team to Sunday Mass before each home game. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi shared an office with Father Tim Moore wherein it was not unusual for Lombardi to interrupt a conversation and request to go to Confession and for which Father Tim obliged him right in the office.
During his stay at Green Bay, Lombardi once emerged from his office and appeared before his secretary, Ruth McKloskey, wearing "... all these priest robes on, and he had a miter with a tassel, everything". Each day on his way to work for the Green Bay Packers, Lombardi would stop at St. Willebrord Church and "offer a prayer in case of unexpected death: 'My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this Communion as my viaticum ... '". He regularly attended Sunday Mass at Resurrection Church in the Allouez neighborhood of Green Bay's southeast side, always sitting with his wife in the middle of the ninth pew.
On the morning of the dedication of Lombardi Avenue, Lombardi remarked to his 37-member entourage that he was pleased to have gotten them all up to attend morning Mass. Lombardi was a Fourth Degree in the Knights of Columbus.
Anti-discrimination philosophy
In 1960, a color barrier still existed on at least one team in the NFL, but Jack Vainisi, the Scouting Director for the Packers, and Lombardi were determined "to ignore the prejudices then prevalent in most NFL front offices in their search for the most talented players". Lombardi explained his views by saying that he "... viewed his players as neither black nor white, but Packer green".
Among professional football head coaches, in the midst of the civil rights movement, Lombardi's anti-discrimination views were unusual. When Lombardi joined the Packers, they only had one black player, Nate Borden. During his time as coach the team became fully integrated: by 1967 they had 13 black players, including All-Pros Willie Davis, Willie Wood, Dave Robinson, Herb Adderley and Bob Jeter.
During his first training camp in Green Bay, Lombardi was notified by Packer veterans that an interracial relationship existed between one of the Packer rookies and a young woman. The next day at training camp, Lombardi—who was vehemently opposed to Jim Crow discrimination and had a zero-tolerance policy towards racism—responded by warning his team that if any player exhibited prejudice in any manner, that specific player would be thrown off the team.
Lombardi let it be known to all Green Bay establishments that if they did not accommodate his black and white players equally well, then that business would be off-limits to the entire team. Before the start of the 1960 regular season, he instituted a policy that the Packers would only lodge in places that accepted all his players. Lombardi also refused to assign hotel rooms to players based on their race: by 1967 the Packers were the only NFL team with such a policy.
Lombardi was a member of the all-white Oneida Golf and Riding Country club in Green Bay, and he demanded that he should be allowed to choose a Native American caddie, even if white caddies were available. Lombardi's view on racial matters was a result of his religious faith and the ethnic prejudice that he had experienced as an Italian-American.
Lombardi was known to be volatile and terse with players during practices and games, and he insisted on unconditional respect for everyone in his organization. Lombardi demanded "Nothing But Acceptance" from players and coaches toward all people, and he would immediately terminate a coach or release a player if that particular person insulted the sexual orientation of gay players and front office staff. According to Lombardi biographer and Pulitzer Prize-winning writer David Maraniss, if he caught a coach "discriminating against a player thought to be gay, he'd be fired". Richard Nicholls, the lifelong partner of Lombardi's younger brother, Hal, stated, "Vin was always fair in how he treated everybody ... a great man who accepted people at face value for what they were, and didn't judge anybody. He just wanted you to do the job."
In Washington, Lombardi's assistant general manager David Slatterly was gay, as was PR director Joe Blair, who was described as Lombardi's "right-hand man". According to son Vince Lombardi, Jr., "He saw everyone as equals, and I think having a gay brother (Hal) was a big factor in his approach ... I think my father would've felt, 'I hope I've created an atmosphere in the locker room where this would not be an issue at all. And if you do have an issue, the problem will be yours because my locker room will tolerate nothing but acceptance.'"
Upon his arrival in Washington, Lombardi was aware of tight end Jerry Smith's sexual orientation. "Lombardi protected and loved Jerry," said former teammate Dave Kopay. Lombardi brought Smith into his office and told him that his sexual orientation would never be an issue as long as he was coaching the Redskins; Smith would be judged solely on his on-the-field performance and contribution to the team's success. Under Lombardi's leadership Smith flourished, becoming an integral part of Lombardi's offense, and was voted a First Team All-Pro for the first time in his career, which was also Lombardi's only season as the Redskins head coach.
Lombardi invited other gay players to training camp and would privately hope they would prove they could earn a spot on the team. At the Washington Redskins training camp in 1969, Ray McDonald was a gay player, with sub-par skills, who was trying to make the Redskins roster again, but this time with Lombardi as the Redskins' new head coach. True to his word, Lombardi told running back coach, George Dickson, 'I want you to get on McDonald and work on him and work on him – and if I hear one of you people make reference to his manhood, you'll be out of here before your ass hits the ground.'
Politics
Although his wife was a Republican, Lombardi was a lifelong Democrat with liberal views on civil rights: he supported John F. Kennedy in the 1960 presidential election, Robert F. Kennedy in the 1968 primaries, and was also a supporter of Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson. Despite this, during the 1960s he became uncomfortable with the burgeoning youth protest movements associated with the emerging counterculture, such as the New Left and the Anti-war movement. In a speech that he first delivered in February 1967 to the American Management Association, he suggested that "everything has been done to strengthen the rights of the individual and at the same time weaken the rights of the church, weaken the rights of the state, and weaken the rights of all authority". Due to Lombardi's popularity, Richard Nixon once considered him as a possible running mate in the 1968 presidential election but dropped the idea upon learning about Lombardi's support for the Democratic Party.
Illness and death
Lombardi had suffered from digestive tract problems as early as 1967, and he had refused his doctor's request to undergo a proctoscopic exam. On June 24, 1970, Lombardi was admitted to Georgetown University Hospital, and tests "revealed anaplastic carcinoma in the rectal area of his colon, a fast-growing malignant cancer in which the cells barely resemble their normal appearance". On July 27, Lombardi was readmitted to Georgetown and exploratory surgery found that the cancer was terminal. Lombardi and Marie received family, friends, clergy, players, and former players at his hospital bedside. He received a phone call from President Nixon telling Lombardi that all of the U.S. was behind him, to which Lombardi replied that he would never give up his fight against his illness. On his deathbed, Lombardi told Father Tim that he was not afraid to die, but that he regretted he could not have accomplished more in his life. Lombardi died in Washington, D.C. at 7:12 a.m. on Thursday, September 3, 1970, surrounded by his wife, parents, two children, and six grandchildren. He was 57.
The funeral was held on September 7 at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan. Approximately 1,500 people lined Fifth Avenue, and the avenue was closed to traffic between 39th and 50th Street. Terence Cardinal Cooke delivered the eulogy. In attendance were team owners, Commissioner Pete Rozelle, past and present members of the Packers, Redskins, and Giants, former students from Saints, colleagues and players from West Point, and classmates from Fordham University, including the remaining Seven Blocks of Granite. Lombardi was interred in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Middletown Township, New Jersey.
In popular culture
In 1968, Lombardi starred in a half-hour motivational film titled Second Effort, that has been called "The best-selling training film of all time".
On December 14, 1973, ABC aired Legend in Granite starring Ernest Borgnine as Vince. The biographical TV drama focused mostly on his first two years as Packers head coach (1959–1960).
A service area on the New Jersey Turnpike dedicated to and named after Lombardi opened in 1974.
The high school in the 1979 movie Rock 'n' Roll High School is named "Vince Lombardi High School".
In 1986, CHCH aired the TV movie Lombardi: I Am Not a Legend starring Robert Knuckle in the title role that depicted Lombardi's life up until the NFL.
In 1996, Nike aired several commercials featuring Jerry Stiller as the ghost of Lombardi.
ESPN produced the 2005 TV movie Code Breakers that depicted the West Point cheating scandal and its effect on the football program. Richard Zeppieri played then-Assistant Coach Lombardi.
A play titled Lombardi opened on Broadway at the Circle in the Square Theatre in New York City in October 2010, following an out-of-town tryout at the Mahaiwe Theater in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. The production starred Dan Lauria as Lombardi and Judith Light as his wife, Marie. The play received positive reviews, as did Lauria's performance.
NFL Films and HBO produced a film about Lombardi that debuted Saturday, December 11, 2010.
Honors
In May 1967, Lombardi "... received Fordham's highest honor, the Insignis Medal ... for being a great teacher"
On January 13, 1969, he was inducted into the Knights of Malta at St. Patrick's.
Inducted into the Fordham University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1971
As part of the Lambeau Field renovation in 2003, a 14-foot statue of Lombardi (along with one for Curly Lambeau) now stands on a plaza outside the stadium
In 1968, Highland Avenue in Green Bay, home to the Packers' Lambeau Field, was renamed Lombardi Avenue.
In 1969, the Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) awarded Lombardi with the Jack Mara sportsman of the year.
The Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University is named in his honor.
One of the Green Bay School District's public middle schools is named the Lombardi Middle School.
The football field at Old Bridge High School in Old Bridge, New Jersey, is named Lombardi Field. The football field in Palisades Park is also known as Lombardi Field.
A plaque dedication installed in 1974 in the sidewalk on a square (unofficially called Vince Lombardi Square) near Sheepshead Bay Road and East 14th Street in Brooklyn, New York.
There are two places in the Bensonhurst area, which are, or were, dedicated to Lombardi at one time: P.S. 204 Vince Lombardi Elementary School, and the entire Bensonhurst stretch of 16th Avenue was once dedicated by the City of New York as "Vince Lombardi Boulevard"
The Vince Lombardi Service Area and park-and-ride is the northernmost rest area on the New Jersey Turnpike, at mileposts 116E on the Eastern Spur and 115.5W on the Western Spur. Outside the gift shop is a plaque about his life, which notes that he is buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery, Middletown, New Jersey.
The Vincent T. Lombardi Council, No. 6552, Knights of Columbus, in Middletown, NJ is named for him.
The Vince Lombardi Cancer clinic at Aurora Health Care is named after him.
The Vincent T. Lombardi Center at Fordham University was named for the coach.
In 1970 the NFL's Super Bowl Trophy was renamed the Vince Lombardi Trophy
In 1970, the Rotary Club of Houston created the Lombardi Award, which is given annually to the best college football offensive, or defensive, lineman or linebacker.
In 1969, Lombardi received the Silver Buffalo Award, the highest adult award given by the Boy Scouts of America.
Lombardi was enshrined in the NFL's Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971.
Lombardi was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1976.
Lombardi is a member of the Ring of Fame of the Washington Commanders (formerly known as the Redskins).
Induction into the American Football Association's Semi Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1988
In 2008, Lombardi is inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame
Lombardi appeared on a U.S. Postage stamp first issued on July 25, 1997.
Head coaching record
The Packers played in the third-place Playoff Bowl in Miami after the 1963 and 1964 seasons;these are categorized as exhibition games.
Books
Run to Daylight! by Vince Lombardi with W. C. Heinz
Books written about him
Instant Replay, the Green Bay Diary of Jerry Kramer by Jerry Kramer and Dick Schaap
Football's Greatest Coach: Vince Lombardi by Gene Schoor
The Lombardi Legacy: Thirty People who were Touched by Greatness by Royce Boyles and Dave Robinson
Coach: A Season With Lombardi by Tom Dowling
When Pride Still Mattered : A Life Of Vince Lombardi by David Maraniss
Vince by Michael O'Brien
Run to Win: Vince Lombardi on Coaching and Leadership by Donald T. Phillips
See also
List of Knights of Columbus
List of National Football League head coach wins leaders
List of National Football League head coaches by playoff record
List of Super Bowl head coaches
Notes
References
Sources
Further reading
Cavanaugh, Jack (2008), Giants Among Men. New York: Random House. .
Gifford, Frank and Richmond, Peter (2008), The Glory Game: How the 1958 NFL Championship Changed Football Forever. New York: Harper Collins. .
Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2001), What It Takes to Be #1: Vince Lombardi on Leadership. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2003), The Lombardi Rules: 26 Lessons from Vince Lombardi: The World's Greatest Coach. New York: McGraw-Hill.
External links
Vince Lombardi on American Catholic History
1913 births
1970 deaths
American football offensive linemen
American people of Italian descent
American sportspeople of Italian descent
Army Black Knights football coaches
Fordham Rams football players
Green Bay Packers general managers
Green Bay Packers head coaches
New York Giants coaches
Washington Redskins coaches
Washington Redskins executives
National Football League offensive coordinators
National Football League general managers
High school football coaches in New Jersey
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Knights of Malta
St. Francis Preparatory School alumni
People from Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn
Deaths from cancer in Washington, D.C.
Deaths from colorectal cancer
Burials in New Jersey
Sportspeople from Brooklyn
Players of American football from New Jersey
Coaches of American football from New Jersey
Players of American football from New York (state)
Coaches of American football from New York (state)
Super Bowl-winning head coaches
Catholics from New York (state)
New York (state) Democrats
Writers from Brooklyn
LGBT rights activists from the United States
Wilmington Clippers players | true | [
"Paolo Preite (born 1985) is an Italian singer-songwriter. He was born in 1985 in Frascati and began with composing of music at age of fifteen. His debut album Don't Stop Dreaming was produced by Fernando Saunders and featured drummer Kenny Aronoff among others. It was recorded in various studios in Ostrava, Los Angeles and Rome.\n\nDiscography\nDon't Stop Dreaming (2015)\nAn Eye on the World (2018)\n\nVideography\nI wanna hold your hands feat. Fernando Saunders & Kenny Aronoff - directed by Andrea Aronica (2013)\nWhere did you go feat. Fernando Saunders - directed by Federico Mudoni (2015)\nDon't stop dreaming - directed by Francesco Albanese (2015)\nCan't find a reason feat. Kenny Aronoff - directed by Federico Mudoni (2016)\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Official website\n The video production website Springo Studio, producer of the music video Where did you go\n\n1985 births\nLiving people\nItalian male singer-songwriters\n21st-century Italian male singers",
"Santos Sambajon (born September 10, 1960) is a Filipino professional pool player. His nicknames are \"The Little Giant\" and \"The Saint.\" Originally from the Philippines, he now resides in the United States.\n\nProfessional career\n\nIn 2004, Sambajon was first seen on television playing at the finals of the BCA Open Nine-ball Championship. While he did not win that event, Sambajon dominated the World Summit of Pool, a tournament featured on ESPN several months later, by defeating Mike Davis in the finals.\n\nIn 2005, he won the Skins Billiards Championship, another tournament televised on ESPN, by besting Danny Basavich in sudden death. This was Sambajon's greatest win, earning him $73,500, the most he has earned from a single event.\n\nHe nearly had the chance to compete in the WPA World Nine-ball Championship in 2004 but could not, due to passport problems. He made his debut at that tournament in 2006.\n\nHe served as Efren Reyes's corner man (players who reached the finals of an IPT event get to have someone who would instruct or give them advice during the match) at the final of the 2006 IPT World Open Eight-ball Championship.\n\nTitles\n2007 Blaze Tour Stop\n2007 Blaze 9-Ball Tour Stop\n2005 Skins Billiards Championship\n2005 Joss NE 9-Ball Tour Stop\n2004 World Summit of Pool\n2004 Joss NE 9-Ball Tour Stop\n2004 Joss NE 9-Ball Tour Stop\n2004 Jay Swanson Memorial\n2003 New England 9-Ball Championship\n2003 Joss NE 9-Ball Tour Stop 1\n2003 Hard Times 4th Annual Summer Jamboree One Pocket \n2003 Joss NE 9-Ball Tour Stop #25\n2003 Joss NE 9-Ball Tour Stop #24\n2003 Joss NE 9-Ball Tour Stop #20\n2003 Joss Northeast Tour Stop 7\n2003 Joss Northeast Tour Stop 5\n2002 Joss Northeast Tour Stop 16\n2002 Joss Northeast Tour Stop 14\n2002 Joss Northeast Tour Stop 13\n2000 Joss Northeast Tour Stop 13\n2000 California Billiard Club Open One Pocket\n2000 Planet-Pool.com Tour Stop 3 Men's Division\n2000 Joss Northeast Tour Stop 12\n2000 Joss Northeast Tour Stop 8\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Last rack video footage of the Skins Billiard Championship\n\nLiving people\nFilipino pool players\n1960 births\nPlace of birth missing (living people)"
] |
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"Vince Lombardi",
"Religion",
"what where his influences",
"three constants throughout Lombardi's life were sports--particularly football--family and religion.",
"what did he look too",
"St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and \"prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ...\"",
"what else",
"...\" his wife's drinking.",
"what is his moms name",
"Matty,",
"what did his mom love",
"he should become a priest ...\",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged",
"What is his helpers name",
"Ruth McKloskey,",
"where did he stop",
"St. Willebrord Church"
] | C_e8df54bbfca040499812d483f0c591b6_0 | Why did he staop | 8 | Why did Vince Lombardi stop at St. Willebrord Church? | Vince Lombardi | The three constants throughout Lombardi's life were sports--particularly football--family and religion. His father was a daily Communicant throughout his life and his mother's favorite picture of Vince as a child was on his Confirmation. When Lombardi was 12, while serving as an altar boy on Easter Sunday, "... amid the color and pageantry scarlet and white vestments, golden cross, scepters, the wafers and wine, body and blood ... that the inspiration came to him that he should become a priest ...",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged about her son's plan to her neighbors. Lombardi attended Mass on a daily basis throughout his life. During his tenure at St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ..." his wife's drinking. When Lombardi became head coach of football in 1942, he would lead his team to Sunday Mass before each home game. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi shared an office with Father Tim Moore wherein it was not unusual for Lombardi to interrupt a conversation and request to go to Confession and which Father Tim would oblige him right in the office. During his stay at Green Bay, Lombardi once emerged from his office and appeared before his secretary, Ruth McKloskey, wearing "... all these priest robes on, and he had a miter with a tassel, everything." Each day on his way to work for the Green Bay Packers, Lombardi would stop at St. Willebrord Church and "offer a prayer in case of unexpected death: 'My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this Communion as my viaticum ...'". He regularly attended Sunday Mass at Resurrection Church in the Allouez neighborhood of Green Bay's southeast side, always sitting with his wife in the middle of the ninth pew. On the morning of the dedication of Lombardi Avenue, Lombardi remarked to his 37-member entourage that he was pleased to have gotten them all up to attend morning Mass. Lombardi was also a 4th degree in the Knights of Columbus. CANNOTANSWER | My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this Communion as my viaticum | Vincent Thomas Lombardi (June 11, 1913 – September 3, 1970) was an American football coach and executive in the National Football League (NFL). He is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight and five total NFL Championships in seven years, in addition to winning the first two Super Bowls at the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 NFL seasons.
Lombardi began his coaching career as an assistant and later as a head coach at St. Cecilia High School in Englewood, New Jersey. He was an assistant coach at Fordham, the United States Military Academy and the New York Giants before becoming head coach of the Green Bay Packers from 1959 to 1967 and the Washington Redskins in 1969.
He never had a losing season as head coach in the NFL, compiling a regular-season winning percentage of 73.8% (96–34–6), and 90% (9–1) in the postseason for an overall record of 105 wins, 35 losses and 6 ties in the NFL.
Lombardi is considered by many to be the greatest coach in football history, and he is recognized as one of the greatest coaches and leaders in the history of all American sports.
The year after his sudden death from cancer in 1970, he was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the NFL Super Bowl trophy was named in his honor.
Early years
Lombardi was born on June 11, 1913, in the Sheepshead Bay neighborhood of Brooklyn to Enrico "Harry" Lombardi (1889–1971) and Matilda "Mattie" Izzo (1891–1972). Harry's mother and father, Vincenzo and Michelina, emigrated from Salerno, Italy. Mattie's father and mother, Anthony and Loretta, emigrated from Vietri di Potenza, Basilicata. Harry had three siblings, and Matilda had twelve. Vince was the oldest of five children, including Madeleine, Harold, Claire, and Joe. Both the Lombardi and Izzo clans settled entirely in Sheepshead Bay.
Matilda's father, Anthony, opened up a barber shop in Sheepshead Bay before the turn of the century. At about the time of Lombardi's birth, Harry, and his brother, Eddie, opened a butcher shop in the Meatpacking District of Manhattan. Throughout the Great Depression, Harry's shop did well, and his family prospered. Lombardi grew up in an ethnically diverse, middle-class neighborhood.
Church attendance was mandatory for the Lombardis on Sundays. Mass would be followed with an equally compulsory few hours of dinner with extended family members, friends, and local clergy. Lombardi himself was an altar boy at St. Mark's Catholic Church. Outside their local neighborhood, the Lombardi children were subject to the rampant ethnic discrimination that existed at the time against Italian immigrants and their descendants. As a child, Lombardi helped his father at his meat cutting business, but grew to hate it. At the age of 12 he started playing in an uncoached but organized football league in Sheepshead Bay.
High school
Lombardi graduated from the eighth grade at P.S. 206 at age 15 in 1928. He then enrolled in the Cathedral Preparatory Seminary, a division of Cathedral College of the Immaculate Conception in Brooklyn, a six-year secondary program to become a Catholic priest. At Cathedral, he played on the school's baseball and basketball teams, but his performance was hindered by his poor athleticism and eyesight. Against school rules, he continued to play football off-campus throughout his studies at Cathedral. After completing four years at Cathedral he decided not to pursue the priesthood. He enrolled at St. Francis Preparatory high school for the fall of 1932. There he became a Charter Member of Omega Gamma Delta fraternity. His performance as a fullback on the Terriers' football team earned him a position on the virtual All-City football team.
Fordham University
In 1933, Lombardi received a football scholarship to Fordham University in the Bronx to play for the Fordham Rams and Coach Jim Crowley, who was one of the Four Horsemen of Notre Dame in the 1920s. During his freshman year, Lombardi proved to be an aggressive and spirited player on the football field. Prior to the beginning of his sophomore year, Lombardi was projected to start games at the tackle position. Lombardi was only 5'8" and about 180 pounds and was classified as undersized for the position.
In his senior year of 1936, he was the right guard in the Seven Blocks of Granite, a nickname given by a Fordham University publicist to the Fordham University football team's offensive front line. In a game against Pitt, he suffered a severe gash inside his mouth and had several teeth knocked out. He missed most of the remainder of the game, until he was called in on defense for a successful goal-line stand that preserved a scoreless tie. The Rams were 5–0–2 before losing in the final game of the season, 7–6, to NYU. The loss destroyed all hopes of Fordham playing in the Rose Bowl and taught Lombardi a lesson he would never forget — never to underestimate your opponent.
Early career
Lombardi graduated from Fordham University on June 16, 1937. The nation was still plagued by the Great Depression, so there were few career opportunities for the young Lombardi, and for the next two years, he showed no discernible career path or ambition. He tried to play semi-professional football with the Wilmington Clippers of the American Association and worked as a debt collector for a collection agency, but those efforts very quickly proved to be failures. With his father's strong support, he enrolled in Fordham Law School in September 1938. Although he did not fail any classes, he believed his grades were so poor that he dropped out after one semester. Later in life, he would explain to others that he was close to graduating, but his desire to start and support a family forced him to leave law school and get a job. He also joined the Brooklyn Eagles.
Coaching career
St. Cecilia High School
In 1939, Lombardi wanted to marry his girlfriend, Marie Planitz, but he deferred at his father's insistence because he needed a steady job to support himself and a family; he married Marie the following year. In 1939, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching job at St. Cecilia's, a Catholic high school in Englewood, New Jersey. He was offered the position by the school's new head coach, Lombardi's former Fordham teammate, quarterback Andy Palau. Palau had just inherited the head coaching position from another Fordham teammate, Nat Pierce (left guard), who had accepted an assistant coach's job back at Fordham. In addition to coaching, Lombardi, age 26, taught Latin, chemistry, and physics for an annual salary of under $1,000.
In 1942, Andy Palau left St. Cecilia's for another position at Fordham, and Lombardi became the head coach at St. Cecilia's. He stayed a total of eight years, five as head coach. In 1943, St. Cecilia's was recognized as the top high school football team in the nation, in large part because of their victory over Brooklyn Prep, a Jesuit school considered one of the best teams in the eastern United States. Brooklyn Prep that season was led by senior Joe Paterno, who, like Lombardi, was to rise to legendary status in football. Lombardi won six state private school championships (NJISAA - New Jersey Independent Schools Athletic Association), and became the president of the Bergen County Coaches' Association.
Fordham
In 1947, Lombardi became the coach of freshman teams in football and basketball at his alma mater, Fordham University. The following year, he was an assistant coach for the varsity football team under head coach Ed Danowski, but he was arguably the de facto head coach.
West Point
Following the 1948 season, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching job at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, a position that greatly influenced his future philosophy and system of coaching. He was offensive line coach under head coach Earl "Colonel Red" Blaik. "As integral as religion was to [Lombardi's] sense of self, it was not until he reached West Point and combined his spiritual discipline with Blaik's military discipline that his coaching persona began to take its mature form." Blaik's emphasis on execution became a trademark of Lombardi's coaching style. Lombardi coached at West Point for five seasons, with varying results. The 1949 and 1950 seasons were successful, but the 1951 and 1952 seasons were not, due to the aftermath of a cadet cribbing scandal (a violation of the Cadet Honor Code) which was revealed in spring 1951. By order of the Superintendent, 43 of the 45 members of the varsity football team were discharged from the Academy as a result of the scandal. "Decades later, looking back on his rise, Lombardi came to regard ..." Blaik's decision not to resign "... as a pivotal moment in his [own] career" — it taught him perseverance. After the 1951 and 1952 seasons not much was expected from the 1953 team as it had also lost six players due to academic failure. The 1953 team, however, did achieve a 7–1–1 record, as Lombardi had a bigger role than ever in coaching the team. Following these five seasons at Army, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching position with the New York Giants.
New York Giants
At age 41 in 1954, Lombardi began his NFL career with the New York Giants. He accepted a job that later became known as the offensive coordinator position under new head coach Jim Lee Howell. The Giants had finished the previous season under 23-year coach Steve Owen with a 3–9 record. By his third season in 1956, Lombardi, along with the defensive coordinator, former All-Pro cornerback turned coach Tom Landry, turned the squad into a championship team, defeating the Chicago Bears 47–7 for the league title. "Howell readily acknowledged the talents of Lombardi and Landry, and joked self-deprecatingly, that his main function was to make sure the footballs had air in them." At points in his tenure as an assistant coach at West Point, and as an assistant coach with the Giants, Lombardi worried that he was unable to land a head coaching job due to prejudice against his Italian heritage, especially with respect to Southern colleges. Howell wrote numerous recommendations for Lombardi to aid him in obtaining a head coaching position. Lombardi applied for head coaching positions at Wake Forest, Notre Dame, and other universities and, in some cases, never received a reply. In New York, Lombardi introduced the strategy of rule blocking to the NFL. In rule blocking, the offensive lineman would block an area, and not necessarily a particular defensive player, as was the norm up to that time. The running back was then expected to run towards any hole that was created. Lombardi referred to this as running to daylight.
Green Bay Packers
1959
The Green Bay Packers, with six future Hall of Famers on the roster in 1958, finished at 1–10–1 under head coach Ray McLean, the worst record in Packer history. The players were dispirited, the Packer shareholders were disheartened, and the Green Bay community was enraged. The angst in Green Bay extended to the NFL as a whole, as the financial viability and the very existence of the Green Bay Packer franchise were in jeopardy. On February 2, 1959, Lombardi accepted the position of head coach and general manager of the Packers. He demanded and gained full control over the football operations of the community-owned franchise, leaving no doubt of this when he told the franchise's executive committee, "I want it understood that I am in complete command here."
Lombardi's assertion of "complete command" applied to the players as well. For his first training camp, he instituted harsh regimens and demanded absolute dedication and effort from his players. The Packers immediately improved in 1959 to 7–5, and rookie head coach Lombardi was named Coach of the Year. The fans appreciated what Lombardi was trying to do and responded by purchasing all the tickets for every home game during the 1960 season. Every Packers home game—preseason, regular season and playoffs—has been sold out ever since then.
1960–1966
In Lombardi's second year in 1960, Green Bay won the NFL Western Conference for the first time since 1944. This victory, along with his well-known religious convictions, led the Green Bay community to anoint Lombardi with the nickname "The Pope". Lombardi led the Packers to the Championship Game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Before the championship game, Lombardi met with Wellington Mara and advised him that he would not take the Giants' head coaching job, which was initially offered after the end of the 1959 season. In the final play of the game, in a drive that would have won it, the Packers were stopped a few yards from the goal line. Lombardi had suffered his first and only championship game loss. After the game, and after the press corps had left the locker room, Lombardi told his team, "This will never happen again. You will never lose another championship." In later years as coach of the Packers, Lombardi made it a point to admonish his running backs that if they failed to score from one yard out, he would consider it a personal affront to him and he would seek retribution. He coached the Packers to win their next nine post-season games, a record streak not matched or broken until Bill Belichick won ten straight from 2002 to 2006 with New England. The Packers defeated the Giants for the NFL title in 1961 (37–0 in Green Bay) and 1962 (16–7 at Yankee Stadium), marking the first two of their five titles in Lombardi's seven years. After the 1962 championship victory, President John F. Kennedy called Lombardi and asked him if he would "come back to Army and coach again". Kennedy received Lombardi's tacit refusal of the request. His only other post-season loss occurred to the St. Louis Cardinals in the third-place Playoff Bowl after the 1964 season (officially classified as an exhibition game).
Including postseason but excluding exhibition games, Lombardi compiled a 105–35–6 (.740) record as head coach, and never suffered a losing season. He led the Packers to three consecutive NFL championships — in 1965, 1966, and 1967 — a feat accomplished only once before in the history of the league, by Curly Lambeau, co-founder of the Packers, who coached the team to their first three straight NFL Championships in 1929, 1930, and 1931. At the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 seasons, Lombardi's Packers won the first two Super Bowls, for championships in five of seven seasons.
Packers Sweep
As coach of the Packers, Lombardi converted Notre Dame quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Paul Hornung to a full-time halfback. Lombardi also designed a play for fullback Jim Taylor: both guards, Jerry Kramer and Fuzzy Thurston, pulled to the outside and blocked downfield while Taylor would "run to daylight" — i.e., wherever the defenders weren't. This was a play that he had originally developed with the Giants for Frank Gifford. It soon became known as the Packers sweep (or Lombardi sweep), though Lombardi openly admitted it was based on an old single wing concept.
Ice Bowl
In 1967, Lombardi's Packers hosted the Dallas Cowboys in Green Bay on December 31 in the NFL Championship Game, a rematch of the previous season. This became known as the "Ice Bowl" because of the game-time temperature. Lombardi had a heating coil underneath the field but on this day it was not functioning. Some people believe that he turned it off on purpose. With 16 seconds left in the game and down by three points, the Packers called their final time-out. It was 3rd and goal on the Dallas two-foot line. In the huddle, with the game on the line, Quarterback Bart Starr asked Kramer whether he could get enough traction on the icy turf for a wedge play and Kramer responded with an unequivocal yes. Starr came over to Lombardi on the sidelines to discuss the last play and told him he wanted to run a 31 wedge, but with him keeping the ball. Lombardi, having had enough of the bitter cold, told Starr to 'Run it! And let's get the hell out of here!' Lombardi was asked by Pat Peppler what play Starr would call, to which Lombardi replied, 'Damned if I know.' Starr returned to the huddle and called a Brown right 31 Wedge, but with him keeping the ball. Kramer blocked Jethro Pugh low and Ken Bowman hit Pugh high as Starr followed them into the end zone for the Packer lead and assured victory.
Washington Redskins
Shortly after the victory in Super Bowl II, Lombardi resigned as head coach of the Packers on February 1, 1968, continuing as general manager. He handed the head coaching position to Phil Bengtson, a longtime assistant, but the Packers finished at 6–7–1 in the 1968 season and were out of the four-team NFL playoffs. In February , Lombardi became head coach and general manager of the Washington Redskins. The Redskins finished at 7–5–2, their first winning record since the 1955 season. Lombardi died the following year, but he was credited with having "truly changed the culture in that one unforgettable season in 1969," laying the foundation for Washington's early 1970s success under another future Hall of Fame coach, George Allen.
Personal life
Family
In the fall of 1934, Lombardi's roommate Jim Lawlor introduced him to his cousin's relative, Marie Planitz. When Marie announced her ardent desire to marry Lombardi, her status-conscious stockbroker father did not like the idea of his daughter marrying the son of an Italian butcher from Brooklyn, a prejudice he would face more than once in his life. Lombardi and Marie wed, nonetheless, on August 31, 1940.
Marie's first pregnancy resulted in a miscarriage. This had a terrible effect on Marie and caused her to turn to heavy drinking, a problem she would encounter on more than one occasion in her life. Their son, Vincent Henry Lombardi (Vince Jr.), was born in 1942, and their daughter Susan followed five years later in 1947.
Lombardi's perfectionism, authoritarian nature and temper, instilled in his wife a masterful ability to verbally assault and demean Lombardi when he verbally abused her. His children were not immune from his yelling. When Lombardi had not lost his temper, he would often be reticent and aloof.
Lombardi's grandson, Joe Lombardi, was named the offensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions in January 2014. He was relieved of this position midway through the 2015 season. Lombardi was previously quarterbacks coach for the New Orleans Saints. In the 2009 season, he helped lead the Saints to win the trophy bearing his grandfather's name, and Drew Brees to win a Super Bowl MVP award. He is now the offensive coordinator of the Los Angeles Chargers, under new head coach Brandon Staley.
World War II deferments
Though he was 28 years old when the United States entered World War II, Lombardi did not serve in the war. He obtained a series of deferments: his first was a 2-A due to his teaching occupation; in 1943, he obtained a second deferment due to parenthood (3-A); and his final deferment was labelled a 4-A and given in 1944.
Religion
The three constants throughout Lombardi's life were his Roman Catholic faith, his family, and football. His father was a daily Communicant throughout his life and his mother's favorite picture of Vince as a child was on his Confirmation. When Lombardi was 12, while serving as an altar boy on Easter Sunday, "... amid the color and pageantry scarlet and white vestments, golden cross, scepters, the wafers and wine, body and blood ... the inspiration came to him that he should become a priest ...",. When his mother, Matty, got wind of it she bragged about her son's plan to her neighbors. Lombardi attended Mass on a daily basis throughout his life.
During his tenure at St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended Mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and ... his wife's drinking". When Lombardi became head coach of football in 1942, he led his team to Sunday Mass before each home game. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi shared an office with Father Tim Moore wherein it was not unusual for Lombardi to interrupt a conversation and request to go to Confession and for which Father Tim obliged him right in the office.
During his stay at Green Bay, Lombardi once emerged from his office and appeared before his secretary, Ruth McKloskey, wearing "... all these priest robes on, and he had a miter with a tassel, everything". Each day on his way to work for the Green Bay Packers, Lombardi would stop at St. Willebrord Church and "offer a prayer in case of unexpected death: 'My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this Communion as my viaticum ... '". He regularly attended Sunday Mass at Resurrection Church in the Allouez neighborhood of Green Bay's southeast side, always sitting with his wife in the middle of the ninth pew.
On the morning of the dedication of Lombardi Avenue, Lombardi remarked to his 37-member entourage that he was pleased to have gotten them all up to attend morning Mass. Lombardi was a Fourth Degree in the Knights of Columbus.
Anti-discrimination philosophy
In 1960, a color barrier still existed on at least one team in the NFL, but Jack Vainisi, the Scouting Director for the Packers, and Lombardi were determined "to ignore the prejudices then prevalent in most NFL front offices in their search for the most talented players". Lombardi explained his views by saying that he "... viewed his players as neither black nor white, but Packer green".
Among professional football head coaches, in the midst of the civil rights movement, Lombardi's anti-discrimination views were unusual. When Lombardi joined the Packers, they only had one black player, Nate Borden. During his time as coach the team became fully integrated: by 1967 they had 13 black players, including All-Pros Willie Davis, Willie Wood, Dave Robinson, Herb Adderley and Bob Jeter.
During his first training camp in Green Bay, Lombardi was notified by Packer veterans that an interracial relationship existed between one of the Packer rookies and a young woman. The next day at training camp, Lombardi—who was vehemently opposed to Jim Crow discrimination and had a zero-tolerance policy towards racism—responded by warning his team that if any player exhibited prejudice in any manner, that specific player would be thrown off the team.
Lombardi let it be known to all Green Bay establishments that if they did not accommodate his black and white players equally well, then that business would be off-limits to the entire team. Before the start of the 1960 regular season, he instituted a policy that the Packers would only lodge in places that accepted all his players. Lombardi also refused to assign hotel rooms to players based on their race: by 1967 the Packers were the only NFL team with such a policy.
Lombardi was a member of the all-white Oneida Golf and Riding Country club in Green Bay, and he demanded that he should be allowed to choose a Native American caddie, even if white caddies were available. Lombardi's view on racial matters was a result of his religious faith and the ethnic prejudice that he had experienced as an Italian-American.
Lombardi was known to be volatile and terse with players during practices and games, and he insisted on unconditional respect for everyone in his organization. Lombardi demanded "Nothing But Acceptance" from players and coaches toward all people, and he would immediately terminate a coach or release a player if that particular person insulted the sexual orientation of gay players and front office staff. According to Lombardi biographer and Pulitzer Prize-winning writer David Maraniss, if he caught a coach "discriminating against a player thought to be gay, he'd be fired". Richard Nicholls, the lifelong partner of Lombardi's younger brother, Hal, stated, "Vin was always fair in how he treated everybody ... a great man who accepted people at face value for what they were, and didn't judge anybody. He just wanted you to do the job."
In Washington, Lombardi's assistant general manager David Slatterly was gay, as was PR director Joe Blair, who was described as Lombardi's "right-hand man". According to son Vince Lombardi, Jr., "He saw everyone as equals, and I think having a gay brother (Hal) was a big factor in his approach ... I think my father would've felt, 'I hope I've created an atmosphere in the locker room where this would not be an issue at all. And if you do have an issue, the problem will be yours because my locker room will tolerate nothing but acceptance.'"
Upon his arrival in Washington, Lombardi was aware of tight end Jerry Smith's sexual orientation. "Lombardi protected and loved Jerry," said former teammate Dave Kopay. Lombardi brought Smith into his office and told him that his sexual orientation would never be an issue as long as he was coaching the Redskins; Smith would be judged solely on his on-the-field performance and contribution to the team's success. Under Lombardi's leadership Smith flourished, becoming an integral part of Lombardi's offense, and was voted a First Team All-Pro for the first time in his career, which was also Lombardi's only season as the Redskins head coach.
Lombardi invited other gay players to training camp and would privately hope they would prove they could earn a spot on the team. At the Washington Redskins training camp in 1969, Ray McDonald was a gay player, with sub-par skills, who was trying to make the Redskins roster again, but this time with Lombardi as the Redskins' new head coach. True to his word, Lombardi told running back coach, George Dickson, 'I want you to get on McDonald and work on him and work on him – and if I hear one of you people make reference to his manhood, you'll be out of here before your ass hits the ground.'
Politics
Although his wife was a Republican, Lombardi was a lifelong Democrat with liberal views on civil rights: he supported John F. Kennedy in the 1960 presidential election, Robert F. Kennedy in the 1968 primaries, and was also a supporter of Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson. Despite this, during the 1960s he became uncomfortable with the burgeoning youth protest movements associated with the emerging counterculture, such as the New Left and the Anti-war movement. In a speech that he first delivered in February 1967 to the American Management Association, he suggested that "everything has been done to strengthen the rights of the individual and at the same time weaken the rights of the church, weaken the rights of the state, and weaken the rights of all authority". Due to Lombardi's popularity, Richard Nixon once considered him as a possible running mate in the 1968 presidential election but dropped the idea upon learning about Lombardi's support for the Democratic Party.
Illness and death
Lombardi had suffered from digestive tract problems as early as 1967, and he had refused his doctor's request to undergo a proctoscopic exam. On June 24, 1970, Lombardi was admitted to Georgetown University Hospital, and tests "revealed anaplastic carcinoma in the rectal area of his colon, a fast-growing malignant cancer in which the cells barely resemble their normal appearance". On July 27, Lombardi was readmitted to Georgetown and exploratory surgery found that the cancer was terminal. Lombardi and Marie received family, friends, clergy, players, and former players at his hospital bedside. He received a phone call from President Nixon telling Lombardi that all of the U.S. was behind him, to which Lombardi replied that he would never give up his fight against his illness. On his deathbed, Lombardi told Father Tim that he was not afraid to die, but that he regretted he could not have accomplished more in his life. Lombardi died in Washington, D.C. at 7:12 a.m. on Thursday, September 3, 1970, surrounded by his wife, parents, two children, and six grandchildren. He was 57.
The funeral was held on September 7 at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan. Approximately 1,500 people lined Fifth Avenue, and the avenue was closed to traffic between 39th and 50th Street. Terence Cardinal Cooke delivered the eulogy. In attendance were team owners, Commissioner Pete Rozelle, past and present members of the Packers, Redskins, and Giants, former students from Saints, colleagues and players from West Point, and classmates from Fordham University, including the remaining Seven Blocks of Granite. Lombardi was interred in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Middletown Township, New Jersey.
In popular culture
In 1968, Lombardi starred in a half-hour motivational film titled Second Effort, that has been called "The best-selling training film of all time".
On December 14, 1973, ABC aired Legend in Granite starring Ernest Borgnine as Vince. The biographical TV drama focused mostly on his first two years as Packers head coach (1959–1960).
A service area on the New Jersey Turnpike dedicated to and named after Lombardi opened in 1974.
The high school in the 1979 movie Rock 'n' Roll High School is named "Vince Lombardi High School".
In 1986, CHCH aired the TV movie Lombardi: I Am Not a Legend starring Robert Knuckle in the title role that depicted Lombardi's life up until the NFL.
In 1996, Nike aired several commercials featuring Jerry Stiller as the ghost of Lombardi.
ESPN produced the 2005 TV movie Code Breakers that depicted the West Point cheating scandal and its effect on the football program. Richard Zeppieri played then-Assistant Coach Lombardi.
A play titled Lombardi opened on Broadway at the Circle in the Square Theatre in New York City in October 2010, following an out-of-town tryout at the Mahaiwe Theater in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. The production starred Dan Lauria as Lombardi and Judith Light as his wife, Marie. The play received positive reviews, as did Lauria's performance.
NFL Films and HBO produced a film about Lombardi that debuted Saturday, December 11, 2010.
Honors
In May 1967, Lombardi "... received Fordham's highest honor, the Insignis Medal ... for being a great teacher"
On January 13, 1969, he was inducted into the Knights of Malta at St. Patrick's.
Inducted into the Fordham University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1971
As part of the Lambeau Field renovation in 2003, a 14-foot statue of Lombardi (along with one for Curly Lambeau) now stands on a plaza outside the stadium
In 1968, Highland Avenue in Green Bay, home to the Packers' Lambeau Field, was renamed Lombardi Avenue.
In 1969, the Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) awarded Lombardi with the Jack Mara sportsman of the year.
The Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University is named in his honor.
One of the Green Bay School District's public middle schools is named the Lombardi Middle School.
The football field at Old Bridge High School in Old Bridge, New Jersey, is named Lombardi Field. The football field in Palisades Park is also known as Lombardi Field.
A plaque dedication installed in 1974 in the sidewalk on a square (unofficially called Vince Lombardi Square) near Sheepshead Bay Road and East 14th Street in Brooklyn, New York.
There are two places in the Bensonhurst area, which are, or were, dedicated to Lombardi at one time: P.S. 204 Vince Lombardi Elementary School, and the entire Bensonhurst stretch of 16th Avenue was once dedicated by the City of New York as "Vince Lombardi Boulevard"
The Vince Lombardi Service Area and park-and-ride is the northernmost rest area on the New Jersey Turnpike, at mileposts 116E on the Eastern Spur and 115.5W on the Western Spur. Outside the gift shop is a plaque about his life, which notes that he is buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery, Middletown, New Jersey.
The Vincent T. Lombardi Council, No. 6552, Knights of Columbus, in Middletown, NJ is named for him.
The Vince Lombardi Cancer clinic at Aurora Health Care is named after him.
The Vincent T. Lombardi Center at Fordham University was named for the coach.
In 1970 the NFL's Super Bowl Trophy was renamed the Vince Lombardi Trophy
In 1970, the Rotary Club of Houston created the Lombardi Award, which is given annually to the best college football offensive, or defensive, lineman or linebacker.
In 1969, Lombardi received the Silver Buffalo Award, the highest adult award given by the Boy Scouts of America.
Lombardi was enshrined in the NFL's Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971.
Lombardi was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1976.
Lombardi is a member of the Ring of Fame of the Washington Commanders (formerly known as the Redskins).
Induction into the American Football Association's Semi Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1988
In 2008, Lombardi is inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame
Lombardi appeared on a U.S. Postage stamp first issued on July 25, 1997.
Head coaching record
The Packers played in the third-place Playoff Bowl in Miami after the 1963 and 1964 seasons;these are categorized as exhibition games.
Books
Run to Daylight! by Vince Lombardi with W. C. Heinz
Books written about him
Instant Replay, the Green Bay Diary of Jerry Kramer by Jerry Kramer and Dick Schaap
Football's Greatest Coach: Vince Lombardi by Gene Schoor
The Lombardi Legacy: Thirty People who were Touched by Greatness by Royce Boyles and Dave Robinson
Coach: A Season With Lombardi by Tom Dowling
When Pride Still Mattered : A Life Of Vince Lombardi by David Maraniss
Vince by Michael O'Brien
Run to Win: Vince Lombardi on Coaching and Leadership by Donald T. Phillips
See also
List of Knights of Columbus
List of National Football League head coach wins leaders
List of National Football League head coaches by playoff record
List of Super Bowl head coaches
Notes
References
Sources
Further reading
Cavanaugh, Jack (2008), Giants Among Men. New York: Random House. .
Gifford, Frank and Richmond, Peter (2008), The Glory Game: How the 1958 NFL Championship Changed Football Forever. New York: Harper Collins. .
Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2001), What It Takes to Be #1: Vince Lombardi on Leadership. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2003), The Lombardi Rules: 26 Lessons from Vince Lombardi: The World's Greatest Coach. New York: McGraw-Hill.
External links
Vince Lombardi on American Catholic History
1913 births
1970 deaths
American football offensive linemen
American people of Italian descent
American sportspeople of Italian descent
Army Black Knights football coaches
Fordham Rams football players
Green Bay Packers general managers
Green Bay Packers head coaches
New York Giants coaches
Washington Redskins coaches
Washington Redskins executives
National Football League offensive coordinators
National Football League general managers
High school football coaches in New Jersey
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Knights of Malta
St. Francis Preparatory School alumni
People from Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn
Deaths from cancer in Washington, D.C.
Deaths from colorectal cancer
Burials in New Jersey
Sportspeople from Brooklyn
Players of American football from New Jersey
Coaches of American football from New Jersey
Players of American football from New York (state)
Coaches of American football from New York (state)
Super Bowl-winning head coaches
Catholics from New York (state)
New York (state) Democrats
Writers from Brooklyn
LGBT rights activists from the United States
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"\"Why did the chicken cross the road?\" is a common riddle joke, with the answer being \"To get to the other side\". It is commonly seen as an example of anti-humor, in that the curious setup of the joke leads the listener to expect a traditional punchline, but they are instead given a simple statement of fact. Some also see the phrase \"other side\" as the afterlife, suggesting that it is not anti-humor. \"Why did the chicken cross the road?\" has become iconic as an exemplary generic joke to which most people know the answer, and has been repeated and changed numerous times over the course of history.\n\nHistory \n\nThe riddle appeared in an 1847 edition of The Knickerbocker, a New York City monthly magazine:\n\nThere are 'quips and quillets' which seem actual conundrums, but yet are none. Of such is this: 'Why does a chicken cross the street?['] Are you 'out of town?' Do you 'give it up?' Well, then: 'Because it wants to get on the other side!'\n\nAccording to music critic Gary Giddins in the Ken Burns documentary Jazz, the joke was spread through the United States, to large cities and small towns, by minstrel shows beginning in the 1840s as one of the first national jokes, which endures as a part of American culture to this day. \n\nIn the 1890s, a pun variant version appeared in the magazine Potter's American Monthly:\nWhy should not a chicken cross the road?\nIt would be a fowl proceeding.\n\nVariations \n\nThere are many riddles that assume a familiarity with this well-known riddle and its answer. For example, an alternate punchline can be used for the riddle, such as \"it was too far to walk around\". One class of variations enlists a creature other than the chicken to cross the road, in order to refer back to the original riddle. For example, a duck (or turkey) crosses \"because it was the chicken's day off,\" and a dinosaur crosses \"because chickens didn't exist yet.\" Some variants are both puns and references to the original, such as \"Why did the duck cross the road?\" \"To prove he's no chicken\".\n\nOther variations replace side with another word often to form a pun. Some examples are:\n 'Why did the chicken cross the road? To get to the idiot's house'. Knock knock',\n\n 'Who's there?' \n\n 'The chicken'\n\n\"Why did the chicken cross the playground? To get to the other slide\"\n\n\"Why did the chewing gum cross the road? It was stuck to the chicken's foot\"\n\n\"Why did the whale cross the ocean? To get to the other tide.\"\n\nA mathematical version asks, \"Why did the chicken cross the Möbius strip?\" \"To get to the same side.\"\n\nAs with the lightbulb joke, variants on these themes are widespread.\n\nReferences\n\nFurther reading \n Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: \n\nJoke cycles\nChickens\n1840s neologisms\nQuotations from literature\nRiddles\nWorks originally published in The Knickerbocker"
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"The Residents",
"Storytelling projects (2006-09)"
] | C_efa3e1045f514ebcbfedfcc182b59c64_1 | What type of stories did they like to write? | 1 | What type of stories did The Residents like to write? | The Residents | Summer of 2006 brought the internet download project, River of Crime (Episodes 1-5). River of Crime was their first project with Warner Music Group's Cordless Label. Following the success of that album, the Residents launched their weekly Timmy video project on YouTube. In 2007 they did the soundtrack for the documentary Strange Culture and also released a double instrumental album, Night of the Hunters. On the Fourth of July 2007, the planned October release of its latest project with Mute Records, The Voice of Midnight (a music theater adaptation of E.T.A. Hoffmann's short story "Der Sandmann"), was announced on its Web site. On the May 21 the band announced on its website that its first North America tour since Demons Dance Alone for a project titled The Bunny Boy was set to begin on October 9 in New York--later an earlier date was added for Santa Cruz. Soon, it was announced that the tour would also include Europe, starting November 13. On June 3, the Residents.com Web site boasted the planned release of The Bunny Boy, which was released on September 1. The Web site had posted information in which "Foxboro" claimed this would be a farewell tour; it was later revealed that this was nothing more than a mistake by Foxboro. November 3, 2009, saw three new releases. The Ughs! is a mostly instrumental album made up of music composed earlier in the band's career, which had been completely reworked for the Voice of Midnight album. Ten Little Piggies is a "futurist compilation", ten songs from projects that may or may not be released in the future. Finally, Is Anybody out There is a DVD collecting all the Bunny Boy videos from the series posted on YouTube. The episodes are streamlined and not exactly the same as the originals. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | The Residents are an American art collective best known for their avant-garde music and multimedia works. Since their first official release, Meet the Residents (1974), they have released over 60 albums, numerous music videos and short films, three CD-ROM projects, and ten DVDs. They have undertaken seven major world tours and scored multiple films. Pioneers in exploring the potential of CD-ROM and similar technologies, the Residents have won several awards for their multimedia projects. They founded Ralph Records, a record label focusing on avant-garde music, in 1972.
Throughout the group's existence, the individual members have ostensibly attempted to work anonymously, preferring to have attention focused on their art. Much speculation and rumor has focused on this aspect of the group. In public, they appear silent and costumed, often wearing eyeball helmets, top hats and tails—a costume now recognized as their signature iconography. In 2017, Hardy Fox, long known to be associated with the Residents, identified himself as the band's co-founder and primary composer; he died in 2018.
The Residents' albums generally fall into two categories: deconstructions of Western popular music, and complex conceptual pieces composed around a theme, theory or plot. The group is noted for surrealistic lyrics and sound, with a disregard for conventional music composition.
History
1965–1972: Origins and Residents Unincorporated
The artists who became The Residents met in high school in Shreveport, Louisiana in the early 1960s. Around 1965, they began making their first amateur home tape recordings and making art together with a number of friends. In 1966, intending to join the flourishing hippie movement, they headed west for San Francisco, but when their truck broke down in San Mateo, California they decided to remain there.
While attempting to make a living, the group purchased crude recording equipment and began to refine their recording and editing skills, as well as photography, painting, and anything remotely to do with art that they could afford. The Residents have acknowledged the existence of at least two unreleased reel-to-reel items from this era, titled The Ballad of Stuffed Trigger and Rusty Coathangers for the Doctor. The Cryptic Corporation has confirmed that their archives contain many tapes dating back decades, but because they were recorded before the group officially became the Residents, the band does not consider them part of its discography.
Word of the unnamed group's experimentation spread, and in 1969 British guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Philip Lithman, known as Snakefinger, began to participate with them. Around this time they also met the mysterious (and perhaps apocryphal) N. Senada, whom Lithman had picked up during an expedition in Bavaria. The two Europeans became great influences and life-long collaborators with the group.
In 1971, the group sent a reel-to-reel demo tape to Hal Halverstadt at Warner Bros., as he had signed Captain Beefheart, one of the group's heroes, to the label. Halverstadt was not impressed with The Warner Bros. Album, but gave it an "A for Ariginality". Because the band had not included a name in the return address, the rejection slip was addressed to "Residents". The group decided to use this name, first becoming Residents Uninc., then shortening it to the current name.
The first known public performance of the Residents, Uninc. was at the Boarding House in San Francisco in 1971. The brief, guerrilla-style performance took the audience by surprise. A photo from it, showing Lithman playing violin with his pinky "about to strike the violin like a snake", originated the stage name he used for the rest of his life, Snakefinger. Later in 1971, a second tape was completed called Baby Sex, featuring a long collage partially consisting of recordings from the Boarding House performance. The cover art for the tape box was a silk-screened copy of an old photo depicting a woman fellating a small child, an example of the extremely confrontational and deliberately puerile visual and lyrical style the group adopted during this period.
Alleged early influence
N. Senada (which may be a play on Ensenada, en se nada meaning "in himself nothing," no sé nada meaning "I don't know anything" or enseñada, a form of the past participle meaning "taught") was said to be a Bavarian composer and music theorist who formulated the "Theory of Obscurity" and the "Theory of Phonetic Organization". His "Theory of Obscurity" states that an artist can only produce pure art when the expectations and influences of the outside world are not taken into consideration; while his "Theory of Phonetic Organization" states, "the musician should put the sounds first, building the music up from [them] rather than developing the music, then working down to the sounds that make it up."
There is a debate as to whether or not Senada, supposedly having been born in 1907 and dying in 1993 at the age of 86, actually existed, or was simply an invention of the Residents. It is frequently speculated that, if real, N. Senada may have been the famous avant-garde composer and instrument-designer Harry Partch, the influence of whose work may be heard in Residents compositions such as "Six Things to a Cycle"; his death is also referenced in the song "Death in Barstow". Another rumor speculates that N. Senada may have been Captain Beefheart, because in the late 1960s Beefheart and his "Magic Band" lived in a residence on Ensenada Drive in Woodland Hills, California, while recording Trout Mask Replica and Safe as Milk; Beefheart's influence can also be heard in early Residents works. The Residents also sent an early demo tape to the Warner Brothers executive Hal Halverstadt who had signed Beefheart.
According to The Residents, in 1937, N. Senada premiered his masterpiece, Pollex Christi, which means either Thumb of Christ or Big Toe of Christ. This work mainly consisted of borrowed pieces from other composers, namely Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 and Carl Orff's Carmina Burana, among others. He also left large holes in the work so that the performers could insert music of their choosing, thus "becoming composers themselves". Senada justified his work with "house" analogies claiming that he did not make the "bricks" but "cemented them together"; he was not the "architect", just the "builder". N. Senada allegedly collaborated with The Residents on their work prior to "Santa Dog" and "Meet The Residents", and then disappeared. He resurfaced in the mid-1970s, returning from an Arctic expedition and bearing a sealed bottle of pure Arctic air; this served as inspiration for the Eskimo project.
1972–1980: "Classic" era
Santa Dog, Meet The Residents, Not Available & The Third Reich 'n Roll (1972–1976)
In early 1972, the band left San Mateo and relocated to 20 Sycamore St, San Francisco; a studio they named "El Ralpho", which boasted a completely open ground floor (seemingly ideal for a sound stage), allowing the group to expand their operations and also begin preliminary work on their most ambitious project up to that point, a full-length film entitled Vileness Fats, which consumed most of their attention for the next four years. Intended to be the first-ever long form music video, The Residents saw this project as an opportunity to create the ultimate cult film. After four years of filming (from 1972 to 1976) the project was reluctantly cancelled because of time, space, and monetary constraints. Fifteen hours of footage was shot for the project, yet only approximately 35 minutes of that footage has ever been released.
The group also formed Ralph Records at this time, as a small, independent label to release and promote their own work. In 1972, to inaugurate the new business, the group recorded and pressed the Santa Dog EP, their first recorded output to be released to the public. Designed to resemble a Christmas card from an insurance company, the EP consisted of two 7" singles, one song on each side. The four songs were presented as being by four different bands (Ivory & The Braineaters, Delta Nudes, the College Walkers, and Arf & Omega featuring the Singing Lawnchairs), with only a small note on the interior of the gatefold sleeve mentioning the participation of "Residents, Uninc."
They sent copies of Santa Dog to west coast radio stations with no response until Bill Reinhardt, program director of KBOO-FM in Portland, Oregon received a copy and played it heavily on his show. Reinhardt met the Residents at their studio at 20 Sycamore St. in the summer of 1973 with the news of his broadcasts. The Residents gave Reinhardt exclusive access to all their recordings, including copies of the original masters of Stuffed Trigger, Baby Sex, and The Warner Bros. Album.
Throughout this point, the group had been manipulating old tapes they had collected and regularly recording jam sessions, and these recordings eventually became the group's debut full-length album, Meet The Residents, which was released in 1974 on Ralph. To aid in promoting the group, Reinhardt was given 50 of the first 1,000 copies of Meet the Residents. Some were sent to friends, listeners and critics, and two dozen were left for sale on consignment at the Music Millennium record store, where they sat unsold for months. KBOO DJ Barry Schwam (a.k.a. Schwump, who also recorded with the Residents) promoted them on his program as well. Eventually, KBOO airplay attracted a cult following.Following the release of Meet The Residents, the group began working on a follow-up entitled Not Available, following N. Senada's theory of obscurity. The LP was recorded and compiled completely in private, and would not be released until the group had completely forgotten about its existence.
During breaks in the sessions for Vileness Fats, the group would record their next project, entitled The Third Reich 'n Roll, over the course of a year between October 1974 and October 1975. The album consisted of two side-long medleys of the band covering popular songs from 1950s and 1960s, whilst toying with the concept of the popularity of rock 'n' roll being comparable to that of the rise of Nazism in the 1930s. The resulting LP was released in 1976, and was the group's first project to feature a music video, created by syncing an old video of the group performing with an edited version of "Swastikas on Parade".
After the Third Reich 'n Rolls release, a group of enterprising friends and collaborators from their early days in San Mateo — Homer Flynn, Hardy Fox, Jay Clem and John Kennedy — also joined the group in San Francisco, forming what became the Cryptic Corporation to manage and represent the band. Clem became the band's spokesman; Fox edited, produced and compiled the band's increasingly prolific output; Flynn was already handling the group's cover design and promotional art under the banner of Pore Know Graphics; and Kennedy took the role of "President" (admittedly a fairly empty title, as overall responsibilities were handled more or less equally by the four). The Cryptic Corporation took over the day-to-day operations of Ralph Records, and provided the band with an improved public relations platform.
Shortly after the introduction of the Cryptic Corporation, the Residents recorded their "Satisfaction" single, the B-side of which featured the Residents' first work with the ARP Odyssey, the first synthesizer owned by the group, purchased by the Cryptics.
Eskimo, Fingerprince, Duck Stab, & Rise in popularity (1976–1979)
Following "Satisfaction", the group began recording Eskimo in April 1976; a concept album based upon the Theory of Phonetic Organisation that suggests that music should not be confined to chords and structures, but instead should simply be a collection of fascinating noises. The album would feature acoustic soundscapes inspired by Inuit culture, whilst parodying American ignorance of other cultures. The Eskimo sessions would last many years, and feature many divergences, the first of which, in November 1976, resulting in Fingerprince, a collection of unused recordings from the Third Reich 'n Roll, Not Available, and Eskimo sessions.
Fingerprince received considerable coverage in the British press, and was the first LP by the group to receive any critical attention when Jon Savage reviewed the album and its two predecessors favorably for the December 31st issue of Sounds magazine. This review gained the group considerable attention, with many of their previously unsold mail-order items being sold seemingly overnight. The sudden success of Fingerprince and its predecessors caused the group to briefly halt production on Eskimo to create something more appealing to their newfound audience.
The Residents followed up Fingerprince with their Duck Stab! EP – their most accessible release up to that point. This EP got the band some attention from the press (namely NME, Sounds and Melody Maker), and was followed in 1978 by the Duck Stab/Buster & Glen album, which paired the EP with a similar, concurrently recorded EP which had not been released separately. The group then continued work on Eskimo, which proved a very difficult project, marked by many conflicts between the band and their management, which led to a number of delays in the release date.
The sudden attention afforded to them by the success of the Duck Stab! EP and "Satisfaction" single required an album release as soon as possible to help fund the band's spiraling recording costs, and to meet the demand for new Residents material. This forced the release of the band's long-shelved "second album" Not Available in 1978. The Residents were not bothered by this deviation from the original plan not to release the album, as the 1978 release ultimately did not affect the philosophical conditions under which it was originally recorded.
Eskimo was finally released in 1979 to much acclaim, even making it to the final list for nominations for a Grammy award in 1980, although the album wasn't nominated. Rather than being songs in the orthodox sense, the compositions on Eskimo sounded like "live-action stories" without dialogue. The cover art of Eskimo also presents the first instance of the group wearing eyeball masks and tuxedos, which was later considered by many to be the group's signature costume. The Residents had only intended to wear these costumes for the cover of Eskimo, but adopted the costumes in the longer term as it provided them with a unique and recognisable image.
The group followed Eskimo with Commercial Album in 1980. The LP featured 40 songs, each exactly one minute in length. Around this time, two short films were made in collaboration with Graeme Whifler: One Minute Movies, consisting of four music videos for tracks from the Commercial Album; and a video for "Hello Skinny" from the Duck Stab LP. Created at a time when MTV (and what later became known as "music video" in general) was in its infancy, the group's videos were in heavy rotation since they were among the few music videos available to broadcasters.
1981–1990: New technology and live performances
Mark of the Mole & The Mole Show (1981–1983)
The Residents' follow up to Commercial Album was Mark of the Mole, released in 1981. The album was a reaction to the group feeling betrayed by a suddenly disinterested music press.
Shortly after the release of Mark of the Mole, The Residents purchased one of the first ever E-Mu Emulator samplers, number #00005 specifically. The instrument was revolutionary for the band, as the sampling capacities of the keyboard not only allowed them to recreate instruments the members were not able to play, but also gave them the opportunity to create their meticulously crafted studio sound in a live setting. The first album the band recorded using the emulator was The Tunes of Two Cities, the second part of the Mole Trilogy, which was nearly entirely recorded using the Emulator.
Following the release of Cities, the Residents started rehearsing for a possible live show, eventually developing their first touring project, the Mole Show, a theatrical retelling of their Mark of the Mole album. The band debuted the show with a test performance, on April 10, 1982, before a tour of California in October, and a European tour throughout mid 1983. The show featured Penn Jillette as the narrator, playing a similar role as he had previously done with the Ralph Records 10th Anniversary radio special.
A third leg, featuring dates in New York, was booked, but had to be cancelled after one performance due to lack of funding. Following the Mole Show, the band was broke, and as such attempted to recoup some of their losses with several archival releases, including a collection of outtakes called Residue in 1983, and a VHS containing recordings from the Mole Show as well as a newly-scored edit of Vileness Fats footage.
The American Composers Series, 13th Anniversary Show, and the end of Ralph (1984–1987)
Deciding to take a break from part three of the Mole Trilogy, the Residents began a new project entitled the American Composers Series, a planned series of 10 albums which would pay tribute to pop artists and instrumental composers from the United States. The first result of this pairing was George & James, featuring the music of George Gershwin and James Brown. Following the release of George & James, the Residents finally abandoned part three of the Mole Trilogy, choosing instead to record a fourth entry entitled The Big Bubble, featuring very stripped-down instrumentation in order to portray a fictional garage rock band. No further entries into the Mole Trilogy have been recorded, and the project is considered abandoned.
When The Big Bubble was released in Japan by Wave Records, it was an unquestioned success, with its popularity resulting in Wave funding a two-week tour of Japan for the group in October 1985. The tour was successful, and re-ignited the group's interest in creating live performances. As a result, they eventually embarked on their 13th Anniversary world tour, ranging from 1985 to 1987, with Snakefinger playing electric guitar. As for studio work, the group eventually released their second entry into the American Composers series, Stars & Hank Forever, featuring the music of Hank Williams and John Philip Sousa. Their version of the Williams song "Kaw-liga" was particularly successful in the emerging club scene.
Due to licensing costs and the emerging CD format, the American Composers series was later abandoned. Stars & Hank Forever was the last Residents project Snakefinger would play on, as he later died of a heart attack in July 1987.
Following the release of the 13th Anniversary Show LP in 1986 and a cover of "Hit the Road Jack" in 1987, the Cryptic Corporation resigned control of Ralph Records over to Tom & Sheenah Timony, and the Residents signed to Rykodisc. Tom and Sheenah would later turn Ralph into a new label, T.E.C. Tones, and establish the Residents' official fan club from 1988 to 1993 - UWEB (Uncle Willie's Eyeball Buddies).
God in Three Persons, Cube E, and (1987–1990)
After two compilation CDs titled Heaven? and Hell!, the Residents' first new project for Ryko was titled God in Three Persons, an hour-long poem in the form of a spoken-word rock opera. This was the first new Residents album to be released on CD, and the last Residents project to be entirely recorded on analog tape, as the group moved on to MIDI technology; their first venture into MIDI would be scoring episodes for Pee-wee's Playhouse in 1987. Despite initially mixed critical and commercial reaction, God in Three Persons today is considered one of the group's masterworks.
On November 18, 1987, at a party in Amsterdam for Boudisque Records, the Residents' European label, they premiered a new work titled Buckaroo Blues, a suite of cowboy songs. After a choreographed TELE5 appearance in April 1988, this suite would be coupled with a second one titled Black Barry, a suite of "black music" (that is, blues and gospel), and form the first act of the Residents' next touring project, Cube-E: The History of American Music in 3EZ Pieces. After the show's debut in New York, on July 21, 1989, it was decided to add a third act consisting of covers of Elvis Presley songs, completing the equation "Cowboy music + Black music = Rock and roll." The show took on a much more theatrical approach than the 13th Anniversary tour, with elaborate set designs, costumes, lighting and choreography. Cube-E toured from September 1989 to November 1990, and was successful, both critically and financially.
A studio version of the third act was also released and titled The King & Eye. The album was recorded at Different Fur Studios and released on Enigma Records around the time the tour began in September 1989. Further television work was also being done for MTV, with the Residents scoring and doing voice work for Liquid Television and the Henry Selick-directed pilot "Slow Bob in the Lower Dimensions."
1990–1997: Multimedia projects
Freak Show, CD-ROMs, and the 25th anniversary (1991–1997)
Recordings for a new studio album were worked on during breaks in the Cube-E tour, and shortly after the tour ended, Freak Show was released. An album detailing the lives and personalities of fictional carnival freaks, the Freak Show project would spawn many other iterations, such as a graphic novel in collaboration with comic artists from Dark Horse, such as Brian Bolland and Matt Howarth, and a promotional video created with the help of New York artist John Sanborn, which also presented a music video for "Harry the Head", animated by computer artist Jim Ludtke - both artists would go on to collaborate with the Residents on many further projects.
A partnership with Voyager in 1992 allowed the Residents to develop a laserdisc titled Twenty Twisted Questions to celebrate their twentieth anniversary. Along with this laserdisc, a studio album was recorded, titled Our Finest Flowers. Not quite a "greatest hits" compilation, many tracks on the album borrow elements from previous songs in the Residents' catalog.
The Residents' collaboration with Jim Ludtke would result in the creation of the Freak Show and Bad Day on the Midway CD-ROMs. Both of these projects featured many other collaborations with visual artists, including returning collaborators from the Freak Show graphic novel, such as Richard Sala and Dave McKean. The Residents enjoyed quite a bit of critical and financial success with these CD-ROMs, winning several industry awards. However, during early development stages for a third CD-ROM titled I Murdered Mommy, their distributor Inscape was forced to dissolve due to oversaturation and obsoletion of the CD-ROM market.
Despite majorly occupying themselves with CD-ROM development, the Residents still remained musically active, releasing an enhanced CD album titled Gingerbread Man (an observation and study of nine fictional characters) in 1994, and scoring the Discovery Channel documentary series Hunters in 1995. Freak Show would also get a live adaptation in November 1995, at the Archa Theater in Prague. While the Residents did act as music and stage directors for the show, they did not actually perform - the music was conducted and performed by Czech band Už Jsme Doma, while actors and dancers played their roles on stage.
Freak Show Live would be the last iteration of the Freak Show brand; while a DVD was being developed in 2003, the early death of animator Jim Ludtke immediately brought the project to a halt.
Around this time, singer/performer Molly Harvey was recruited to work with the group. While her first appearance in a Residents project was the Gingerbread Man album, she would officially become a member of the group in 1997, with a one-off performance at the Popkomm festival in Germany titled Disfigured Night. This performance would later become the second act of a special 25th anniversary show at the Fillmore in San Francisco, in October 1997.
1998-2009: New collaborators / The 2nd millennium
Return to touring: Wormwood, Icky Flix, and Demons Dance Alone (1998–2005)
Due to the collapse of the CD-ROM market, a collective decision was made to tour again. While keeping up with their theatrical tendencies by regular use of costumes and stage props, the Residents would also perform and record with a team of guest musicians: the aforementioned Molly Harvey (vocals), Nolan Cook (guitar), Carla Fabrizio (arrangements and vocals), Toby Dammit (drums), and later on in 2002, Eric Drew Feldman (keyboards). Some of the band members, notably Feldman and Fabrizio, went on to collaborate with the group on numerous other projects up until the present time, while Cook eventually became a full-time band member. Fabrizio's connections with the Balinese gamelan ensemble Gamelan Sekar Jaya allowed for occasional collaborations between the two groups during this period.
The first tour with this new band formation was for the 1998 album Wormwood, a collection of songs depicting typically gruesome stories from the Holy Bible, mostly from the Old Testament. While the studio album only featured Harvey, Fabrizio and Dammit as guests (with Dammit only taking occasional vocal duties), the band would be mostly fully formed by the time of the show's live debut at the Fillmore in October 1998. The Wormwood show toured up to July 1999, and featured drastically different arrangements of songs from the album, mostly darker and heavier, as well as new or unused material related to the concept. Some of these arrangements would be recorded for a studio album titled Roadworms, and a DVD of the live show would be released in 2005.
The same band formation would later tour to promote the Residents' first DVD, Icky Flix - a compilation of most of the group's music videos, as well as new animated videos and a re-recorded soundtrack, to celebrate the group's upcoming 30th anniversary. These re-recorded arrangements would be performed on the show as their corresponding videos would be played from the DVD on a screen.
On the event of the September 11 attacks, the Residents were still touring Icky Flix in Europe. The resulting fear and anxiety caused by the attacks would eventually result in the recording of Demons Dance Alone in 2002. While not a direct response to the events, the songs on the album portrayed the negative emotions felt by the group and its individual members, and this was reflected in the album's subsequent tour, from October 2002 to September 2003. The group's next major album, the 2005 Animal Lover, contained lyrics of a similarly tragic nature, although in a more abstract manner. The album also contained a booklet with stories which presented the songs from the point of view of animals. Animal Lover was also the first Residents album to be released on the Mute label, which would be solely responsible for the Residents' major releases up until 2008.
Animal Lover is currently the last Residents album to feature Molly Harvey, who moved to Atlanta to live with her husband at the time. Her last appearance as a member of the Residents was at a small series of shows titled The Way We Were at the "What is Music?" festival in Australia. The show's setlist was a career retrospective much in the style of the 13th Anniversary tour - the last time the Residents had toured Australia.
2005-2009: The "Storyteller" era
Narrative albums and The Bunny Boy (2006-2009)
Due to the increasing numbers of illegal downloads of music on the Internet, which considerably decreased product sales, the Residents attempted a new artistic medium: the radio drama, in the form of a paid podcast distributed through Apple's iTunes service. This podcast, titled The River of Crime (a first-person tale of an individual's obsession with crime and criminals) ran for five weekly episodes in 2006 before its cancellation due to inconveniences surrounding the podcast's promotion on iTunes, thereby discouraging further production.
Aside from Animal Lover, the group's partnership with Mute produced three more albums: Tweedles in 2006 (a first-person character study of a sexually successful yet emotionally unavailable vampiric figure); The Voice of Midnight in 2007 (a retelling of the E.T.A. Hoffmann story, Der Sandmann); and The Bunny Boy in 2008 (a first-person narrative and character study of the titular Bunny in search of his missing brother).
While Tweedles and The Voice of Midnight have not yet been developed further (aside from instrumental releases such as The UGHS! in 2009), The Bunny Boy proved a very accessible concept. A YouTube video series of the same name was done to promote and further elaborate on the project. The series was partially interactive; fans could communicate with Bunny via e-mail, and some of the interactions may or may not have altered the course of the series' plot (a book containing some of Bunny's correspondence was published by Bandits Mages in 2019). Soon afterwards the album was toured from October to December 2008. A second season of the video series was shown in 2009, somewhat officially ending the project.
2010–2016: Randy, Chuck & Bob
Making a decision to shift focus from studio work to touring, and to enhance their show's portability, the Residents would change their live band to a "power trio" formation, and in a sort of meta stunt, appear to "unmask" themselves as lead singer / frontman "Randy," composer / keyboardist "Charles 'Chuck' Bobuck," and guitarist Nolan Cook as "Bob" – although all three band members were still costumed: "Randy" donned an old man mask and wore an overcoat with oversized red tie and shoes; "Chuck" and "Bob" wore red jackets, special goggles and fake dreadlocks. There was also mention of a fourth band member, drummer "Carlos," who allegedly had left the music business to take care of his mother in Mexico; however, despite being credited as singer in the group's 2012 album Coochie Brake, there is no further evidence of "Carlos" having ever been a real band member.
This new band formation debuted in the Talking Light tour, which ran from January 2010 to April 2011. While the setlist once again consisted of assorted songs from the band's repertoire (although with greatly reworked arrangements), the show would also feature newly written "ghost stories," in which a video of a narrator telling said stories would be projected onto the stage while the band performed in a somewhat improvisational manner. These "ghost stories" were loosely threaded by the presence of television, TV commercials, and industrialized products such as Oscar Mayer hot dogs or Betty Crocker Pudding Roll-ups – although these weren't endorsements; these products were simply a minor element integrated into the stories, not unlike product placement. In between certain songs, "Randy" would also speak to the audience, introducing the band and later describing his own history with supernatural appearances, and his subsequent fear of mirrors. The tour was financially successful, and the band would continue to perform in this formation with only minor changes in stage and costume design.
In the next couple of years, "Randy" would take on an increased role as frontman of the band, starting a "personal" Tumblr blog where he would write mostly about life experiences and trivia regarding the Residents' history, as well as promoting his "solo" show, Sam's Enchanted Evening, which was presented in various incarnations between June 2010 and March 2012 with collaborators Joshua Raoul Brody and Carla Fabrizio. More akin to musical theater than a concert, the show focused on the titular Sam's life story, with the singer alternating between monologues and cover performances of various songs that were important in his life. During this period, the Residents would also collaborate with Belgian dancer/choreographer Grace Ellen Barkey from Needcompany, composing the music for a show titled Mush-Room in 2013.
In 2014, "Randy" would maintain a series of vlogs with the help of director Don Hardy, titled In My Room and later Randyland, elaborating further on his experiences, both with the Residents and with events in his personal life. The blog currently has been inactive since January 6, 2019. Composer "Charles Bobuck" would also maintain a series of personal writings on the Residents' website titled The Test Tube of Tomorrow, and occasionally release music under this name, usually material deemed unfitting for the Residents concept. Bobuck's writings were of a much more detailed and biographical nature, and his music much more abstract, often referred to as "contraptions" rather than compositions.
The group's 40th anniversary tour, The Wonder of Weird, also elaborated on the "Randy, Chuck & Bob" concept, although guised as an anthology show – lead singer Randy would once more speak to the audience between songs, briefly discussing the band's history as he slowly grew depressed with the state of the band and his own life, occasionally leaving the stage and prompting the remaining band members to improvise. The show toured from January to May 2013.
This band formation toured once more in 2014 with a show called Shadowland, retrofittingly subtitled "part three of the 'Randy, Chuck & Bob' trilogy." Initially a one-off week of performances in Europe, the show was eventually brought back in March 2015, coinciding with the premiere of the Theory of Obscurity film – a documentary on the history of the band, directed by Don Hardy and produced by Barton Bishoff and Josh Keppel – at the SXSW Film Festival. This show would be the last time "Charles Bobuck" would perform with the band, as he decided to quit the touring business due to increasing health problems. He eventually quit the Residents altogether in 2016, revealing his identity as Hardy Fox of the Cryptic Corporation, and continued to make music as a solo artist until his death in October 2018.
Shadowland then toured from August 2015 to July 2016, with Eric Drew Feldman (as Bobuck's cousin "Rico") replacing Fox on keyboards, as well as production on future Residents projects. The show was mostly similar to the previous two tours, with a setlist of various reworked songs from the group's repertoire, and occasional video interludes in the vein of Talking Light, with different characters discussing their experiences with birth, reincarnation and near-death.
2017–present: "The Real Residents", Metal Meat & Bone, and the pREServed series
In March 2017, the Residents presented their new lineup, advertised as "The Real Residents": "Tyrone" on vocals, "Eekie" (Nolan Cook) on guitar, "Erkie" (Eric Feldman) on keyboards, and "Cha Cha" on drums and percussion. Shortly after a preview of their In Between Dreams tour in Japan, the group released their first studio album since Coochie Brake, entitled The Ghost of Hope, describing real train wreck stories from the 19th and early 20th century. The album was released on Cherry Red Records, the Residents' current label, and promoted with a single, and their first music video since 2001's Icky Flix – "Rushing Like a Banshee," directed by John Sanborn. Although The Ghost of Hope wasn't toured (except for a one-off performance at the San Francisco Exploratorium), the Residents played both sides of the "Rushing Like a Banshee" single on the In Between Dreams show, which ran from October 2017 up to February 2019 and followed a loose theme, much like Shadowland, this time of dreams.
During the course of the tour, the Residents would work on new projects. Their next album, Intruders, released in October 2018, was advertised along with the I am a Resident! concept, which started as a sort of officially-endorsed tribute project: fans would submit their interpretations of Residents songs, and the group would collect their favorites into an album. After the number of submissions vastly exceeded their expectations, the group decided to change the project into a type of collage, even recording segments and overdubs of their own. The final album was released to contributors in May 2018, and worldwide in August 2018.
In July 2018, the Residents also published their second novel (the first being a novelization of their game Bad Day on the Midway in 2012). The book, entitled The Brick-Eaters, was described as "an absurdist buddy movie story featuring a very tall internet content screener teaming up with an aging career criminal whose primary companions are an oxygen bottle and a .44 Magnum".
The group also began their ongoing pREServed reissue series in January 2018 – deluxe editions of the major albums in the band's discography, containing brand new remasters and unreleased recordings from the band's archives, previously in care of Hardy Fox before he quit the group.
During the In Between Dreams tour, the Residents also previewed songs from their "upcoming blues album," which was eventually titled Metal, Meat & Bone. The premise of the album was to present the long lost recordings of a fictional albino blues singer named Alvin Snow, also known as "Dyin' Dog." The Residents would present the original "Dyin' Dog demos" on one disc, and their own interpretations of the same songs on another disc. The album was released in July 2020 and promoted with two music videos for the Residents' new versions of "Bury My Bone" and "DIE! DIE! DIE!", the latter being sung by rock musician and Pixies frontman Black Francis.
Metal, Meat & Bone will be further promoted by the Residents on their upcoming Dog Stab tour in August 2021 (following numerous cancellations and postponements on account of the COVID-19 pandemic) – the show, currently marketed as "the 50th anniversary show," will allegedly present songs from the new album as well as new arrangements of songs from their 1978 album, Duck Stab / Buster & Glen.
To celebrate the groups' 50th anniversary, a retrospective coffee table book The Residents: A Sight for Sore Eyes, Vol. 1 by author Aaron Tanner was announced. The book contains never before seen photos, quotes from celebrities influenced by the group, as well as a 7" single dating to the group's Not Available era.
Identity
In the group's early days, many rumors circulated about its membership. As the cover art of Meet the Residents was a parody of The Beatles' 1964 North American release, Meet the Beatles!, rumors circulated that The Residents were actually The Beatles, even specifically naming George Harrison. Many other rumors have come and gone over the years, one being that '60s experimental band Cromagnon shared members with the band. Les Claypool, frontman of rock band Primus, and Gerald Casale of new wave band Devo claimed to have been accused of being members of the band; and Mark Mothersbaugh is alleged to have played keyboards during the band's 13th-anniversary tour.
Since the late 1970s, much of the speculation about the members' identities has involved the group's management team, The Cryptic Corporation. It was formed in 1976 as a corporation in California by Jay Clem, Homer Flynn, Hardy W. Fox, and John Kennedy, all of whom denied having been band members. Clem and Kennedy left the Corporation in 1982, to the chagrin of fans. The Residents members do not grant interviews, although Flynn, Fox, and Clem have conducted interviews on behalf of the group.
Nolan Cook, a prominent collaborator in the band's live and studio work (and a live member of I Am Spoonbender) denied in an interview that Fox and Flynn were The Residents. However, some consider Cook himself a member of the band, as he is known to wear the same head coverings as the group in live shows, and wore the trademark eyeball mask on the Wormwood Tour. He also played the part of "Bob" during the "Randy", "Chuck", and "Bob" trilogy of shows.
William Poundstone, author of the Big Secrets books, compared voiceprints of a Flynn lecture with those of spoken word segments from the Residents discography in his book "Biggest Secrets". He concluded, "The similarities in the spectograms second the convincing subjective impression that the voices are identical", and that "it is possible that the creative core of the Residents is the duo of Flynn and Fox." A subset of that belief is that Flynn is the lyricist and that Fox writes the music. The online database of the performance rights organization BMI (of which The Residents and their publishing company, Pale Pachyderm Publishing [Warner-Chappell] have been members for their entire careers) lists Flynn and Fox as the composers of all original Residents songs, including pre-1974 songs from the "Residents Unincorporated" years.
Simon Reynolds wrote in his book Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978–1984 that "the Residents and their representatives were one and the same," and elaborated further on one of his blogs, stating that "this was something that anybody who had any direct dealings with Ralph figured out sooner rather than later." Reynolds quotes Helios Creed, who identifies the Residents as a keyboardist named "H," a singer named "Homer," and "this other guy called John." Peter Principle of Tuxedomoon claimed that he and others "eventually figured out that the guy doing the graphics and the engineer in the studio were, in fact, the Residents."Cryptic openly admits the group's artwork is done by Flynn (among others) under various names that, put together, become "Pornographics", but the pseudonym is rarely spelled the same way twice (examples: Porno Graphics, Pore No Graphix, Pore-Know Graphics); and that Fox is the sound engineer – meaning that he is the main producer, engineer, mixer, and editor of all their recordings. (Since 1976, all of The Residents' recordings have listed their producer as the Cryptic Corporation, presumably meaning Fox in particular.)
From 2010 to 2016, The Residents referred to themselves in concert as the characters "Randy", "Chuck", and "Bob", and referred to a former member of the band, "Carlos", who left the group following a disagreement with "Randy". There is speculation that "Carlos" is Carlos Cadona. Better known by his stage name, "6025," Cadona was in the original lineup of the Dead Kennedys and appears on a live album by Snakefinger. "Carlos" may also refer to Carla Fabrizio, a touring member of The Residents from 1998 to 2008.
"Bob" is speculated to be guitarist and longtime collaborator Nolan Cook. Cook is often the only credited collaborator on the "Randy, Chuck, & Bob" era albums, such as Lonely Teenager, Talking Light: Bimbo's, and Shadowland.
A synopsis for The Residents' 2012 stage production "Sam's Enchanted Evening" provides the name "Randy Rose" as that of The Residents' lead singer. "Chuck", or "Charles Bobuck", was the group's primary songwriter, and released a series of solo albums (or "contraptions") under this name during the "Randy, Chuck and Bob" era. The member known as Chuck retired from live performance due to ill health in 2015, and ultimately retired from The Residents altogether following the release of the Theory of Obscurity documentary film. Eric Drew Feldman replaced him and performed under the name "Rico" from 2015 to 2016.
In the liner notes featured on the 2020 reissue of Phillip Perkins' King Of The World album, Perkins confirms that he was a member of The Residents during their Assorted Secrets' lineup, which also performed The Mole Show. On his BayImproviser biography Perkins states that he worked closely with The Residents between 1979 and 1984. He had previously been credited as the lighting designer on the Mole Show Roxy LP, and as engineer on original versions of Stars & Hank Forever, as well as on reissues of The Tune of Two Cities and The Snakey Wake. Considering this, his time working with the group roughly would have been from 1979 - 1987.
Hardy Fox
In October 2017, former manager for The Residents, Hardy Fox identified himself as both the anonymous primary composer and producer for the Residents as well as the pseudonymous Charles Bobuck. Fox was born in Longview, Texas, where his father worked in the oil industry; his mother was a nurse. The family moved several times, and Fox graduated from Rayville High School in Louisiana in 1963. He then studied art and business at Louisiana Tech University, where he met Homer Flynn, and graduated in 1967.
In September 2018 Fox added to his website the dates "1945–2018", although he was known to be alive (but unwell) after the dates were published. Fox died on October 30, 2018, from brain cancer, aged 73. He was identified in obituaries as the co-founder and primary composer of the Residents. On December 14, 2018, the official Residents mailing list acknowledged Fox as "engineer, producer and sometime composer of much of the Residents’ best-loved work".
Frequent collaborators
Since their inception, The Residents have had a number of credited collaborators. These collaborators, despite not being anonymous, can be considered by some definition, Residents.
1971–1975
During the band's formative years, its main members consisted of The Singing Resident, Hardy Fox, jazz pianist James Whittaker, and bassist Bob Tagney, the later two of which are credited as writers on the 2018 LP release of The Warner Brothers album. This lineup, along with Snakefinger, who would join the group in late 1971, are credited as the 'core' members of the group on the 2013 early demos compilation, The Delta Nudes Greatest Hiss. Bob Tagney and James Whittaker are also two of the only credited collaborators on the band's debut album, Meet the Residents, Whittaker, as the pianist on "Spotted Pinto Bean", and Tagney as the co-bassist on "Infant Tango". Female vocalist Pamela Zeibak was also one of The Residents' frequent collaborators during this time, with credits on The Delta Nudes Greatest Hiss, Meet The Residents, The Third Reich 'n Roll, and Fingerprince.Joshua Raoul Brody began working with The Residents in the mid-1970s, when he was invited to the set of their film Vileness Fats. Shortly after this he worked with the group anonymously by arranging the backing vocals on their "Satisfaction" single. In the 1980s, Brody began to receive credit for his work with The Residents under the pseudonym "Raoul N. Di Seimbote", but by 1987, he was using his own name. Brody most recently worked with The Residents on their 2020 God In Three Persons live show.
1976–1983
In early 1976, Snakefinger returned to the US, and continued his collaborations with The Residents, and was credited on a majority of The Residents' major releases up until his death in 1987. At the same time, drummer Don Jakovich started working with the band, making credited appearances on Satisfaction, Fingerprince, Snakefinger's Chewing Hides the Sound, and Commercial Album. He also performed with them in costume as part of their June 1976 live debut.
Following the demise of Henry Cow, former members Chris Cutler and Fred Frith began making appearances on Residents material as drummer and guitarist respectively. Frith first appeared with The Residents on the Subterranean Modern anthology, and Cutler on the Eskimo album. The following year both featured on The Commercial Album, with Frith receiving the credit of 'Extra Hard Working Guest Musician'.
Nessie Lessons, the wife of Hardy Fox, began to make appearances on Residents releases between 1980 and 1983, initially as an uncredited female vocalist. Lessons was first credited on The Tunes of Two Cities, toured with the band from 1982–1983, and acted as the group's spokesperson when Penn Jillette was unavailable. Her final work as a regular collaborator was on the song "HellNo", for the soundtrack to the 1984 film The Census Taker.
For The Mole Show, The Residents also had dancers: Kathleen French, Carol Werner LeMaitre, Sarah McLennan Walker and Chris Van Ralte. Carol LeMaitre and Sarah McLennan went on to portray The Residents on stage during the 13th Anniversary Show, and the dancers in Cube-E.
1987–1993
Starting in 1987, The Residents began working with female vocalist Laurie Amat, who went on to become The Residents' primary female vocalist for much of the 1990s. Her final role as a regular collaborator was on the 1998 Wormwood album. Another female vocalist from this period was Diane Alden, who first appeared on the Freak Show album, she once again worked with the group up until Wormwood. Tony Janssen, who was first credited as an engineer on the band's Cube-E album, eventually became a male vocalist for the band and provided the voice of Tex the Barker in their Freak Show projects.
1994–2014
During recording of their Gingerbread Man album, The Singing Resident met future singer Molly Harvey at a coffee store, and invited her to record vocals for the song 'The Old Woman'.The Residents - Gingerbread Man Credits - MVDaudio, MVD8193A, 2016 Following this she became a core member of The Residents' team of collaborators, and appeared on all of their mainline albums and live shows until 2005's Animal Lover. Also appearing for the first time on Gingerbread Man was Isabelle Barbier, a young actress who would make occasional appearances with The Residents up until The Ghost of Hope in 2017.
The Residents' 1998–2000 Wormwood project introduced three important figures in Residents history, Carla Fabrizio, Nolan Cook and Toby Dammit. Dammit briefly played with The Residents live from 1999 to 2003, and performed on the Demons Dance Alone album. Carla played with The Residents in concert until the 2008 Bunny Boy tour, and has worked with the band on their studio albums as recently as 2020. Nolan Cook acted as The Residents' lead guitarist both in concert and in the studio for over twenty years, most recently appearing on their 2020 God In Three Persons live project.
In the years following Molly Harvey''s departure, professional voice actress Gerri Lawlor began to make regular appearances on The Residents spoken-word projects, Tweedles, The River of Crime, The Voice Of Midnight and Lonely Teenager. Corey Rosen also began working with The Residents during this time, on The River of Crime, The Voice of Midnight, and The Bunny Boy web series.
2015–present
Following the departure of Hardy Fox in 2015, Eric Drew Feldman was asked to help with some of the duties previously undertaken by him. Along with Feldman, performers Laurie Hall and Peter Whitehead began appearing on Residents releases, starting with The Ghost of Hope. Hall stopped working with them following the release of Intruders, which introduced Sivan Lioncub.
The lineup of collaborators as featured on The Residents' latest album, Metal Meat & Bone, includes Eric Drew Feldman, Carla Fabrizio, Nolan Cook, Peter Whitehead, and Sivan Lioncub.
Discography
Studio albums
Meet the Residents – 1974
The Third Reich 'n Roll – 1976
Fingerprince – 1977
Not Available – 1978 (Recorded In 1974)
Duck Stab! / Buster and Glen – 1978
Eskimo – 1979
Commercial Album – 1980
Mark of the Mole – 1981
The Tunes of Two Cities – 1982
Title in Limbo with Renaldo and the Loaf – 1983 (Recorded In 1981)
George & James – 1984
Assorted Secrets (Live In the Studio) – 1984
Whatever Happened to Vileness Fats? – 1984
The Census Taker – 1985
The Big Bubble – 1985
Stars & Hank Forever! – 1986
God In Three Persons – 1988
God In Three Persons Soundtrack (Instrumental Version of "God In Three Persons") – 1988
Buckaroo Blues – 1989
The King & Eye – 1989
Freak Show – 1990
Our Finest Flowers – 1992
Poor Kaw-Liga's Pain (Remixes) – 1994
Gingerbread Man – 1994
Hunters – 1995
Have a Bad Day – 1996
Wormwood: Curious Stories From the Bible – 1998
Roadworm: The Berlin Sessions (Live In the Studio) – 2000
Dot.com (compilation of various digital singles released between 1999 and 2000) – 2000
Icky Flix (soundtrack of a DVD consisting of re-recordings) – 2001
Demons Dance Alone – 2002
12 Days of Brumalia (consists of a compilation of 13 virtual singles released between December 24, 2003 and January 5, 2004) – 2004
WB:RMX (Remixes derived from the unrealeses album "The W***** B*** Album (The Warner Bros. Album) " recorded between 1970 and 1971) – 2004
The King and Eye: RMX (Remixes of "The King and Eye") – 2004
I Murdered Mommy! – 2004 (Recorded In 1994)
Animal Lover – 2005
The River of Crime – 2006
Tweedles! – 2006
The River of Crime Instrumental Soundtrack (Instrumental version of "The River of Crime") – 2006
Night of the Hunters (Overdubs to the 1995 album "Hunters") – 2007
The Voice of Midnight – 2007
The Bunny Boy – 2008
Postcards From Patmos – 2008
The Fillmore Dress Rehearsal (Live In the Studio) - 2009 (recorded in 1997)
RMX (consists of several remixes released as singles in 2007) – 2009
Hades (later released in 2011 as The River of Hades) – 2009
The Ughs! – 2009 (Recorded In 2006)
Live at the Snakey Wake (Live Without Audience) - 2010 (recorded in 1987)
Dollar General (with Charles Bobuck) – 2010
Talking Light Live In Rehearsal (Live In the Studio) - 2010 (reheaesals of Talking Light tour)
Chuck's Ghost Music (credited to "The Residents' Talking Light" and later credited to Charles Bobuck) – 2010
Lonely Teenager – 2011
D*ck S*ab (credited to Th* R*esidents) - 2012 (re-recordings of "Duck Stab! / Buster and Glen")
Coochie Brake (credited to "Sonidos de la Noche") – 2012
Bad Day On The Midway: Music From the Game Reconsidered – 2012 (overdubs of 1995 recordings for a game soundtrack)
Mush-Room (later credited to Charles Bobuck) – 2013
The Theory of Obscurity – 2014
The Ghost of Hope – 2017
I Am a Resident! - 2018
And So Are We... - 2018 (bonus disc of I Am a Resident)
Intruders - 2018
Music to Eat Bricks By – 2019 (Recorded In 2006)
A Nickle If Your Dick's This Big – 2019 (Combination of "The W***** B*** Album (The Warner Bros. Album)" recorded between 1970 and 1971, and "B.S. (Baby Sex)" recorded in 1971)
Metal, Meat & Bone: The Songs of Dyin' Dog - 2020
The World of Weird Demos 1 (Live In the Studio) - 2021 (rehearsals of the Wonder of Weird Tour, recorded in 2012)
Mole Dance 82 (Live In the Studio) - 2021 (reheaesals for the Mole Show, recorded in 1982)
Demo albums
The Residents Radio Special - (includes released content) - 1977 (legal releases in 1983)
Residue of the Residents – 1983 (recorded between 1971 and 1983)
Stranger Than Supper (includes released content) - 1990 (recorded between 1985 and 1990, and 1971)
Our Tired, Our Poor, Our Huddled Masses (the third disc includes released content) – 1997 (recorded between 1971 and 1996)
Petting Zoo – 2002 (recorded between 1973 and 2002)
Animal Lover Instrumental – 2008 (recorded in the Animal Lover sessions, between 2004 and 2005)
Smell My Picture – 2008 (recorded between 2006 and 2007)
The Bridegroom of Blood – 2009 (recorded between 1998 and 2005)
Ten Little Piggies – 2009 (recorded between 2005 and 2009)
El Año del Muerto – 2009 (recorded between 1971 and 2008)
Arkansas - 2009 (recording in the Bunny Boy sessions, 2008)
Tabasco: Tweedles Instrumental - 2010 (recorded in the Tweedles! sessions, 2006)
Night Train to Nowhere! - 2012 (recorded in 2009)
Ten Two Times - 2013 (recorded between 1972 and 2012)
Eyeful - 2020 (recorded between 1983 and 2012, all those recordings were released as single in 2012)
Anganok – 2020 (recorded in 1991)
Leftovers Again?! – 2021 (recorded between 1971 and 1979)
Live albums
The Mole Show – 1983
Live In Japan – 1986
Live In the USA! – 1986
Live In Holland – 1987
Buckaroo Blues and Black Barry (often referred to simply as Black Barry to avoid confusion with the studio album "Buckaroo Blues") - 1989
Mole Show: Live In Holland – 1989 (recorded in 1983)
Liver Music - 1990 (recorded between 1971 and 1990)
Cube-E - Live In Holland – 1990
Daydream B-Liver – 1991 (recorded between 1971 and 1991)
Live at the Fillmore – 1998
Wormwood Live 1999 – 1999
Demons Dance Alone DVD – 2002
Kettles of Fish On the Outskirts of Town – 2003 (recorded between 1971-2001)
The Residents Play Wormwood – 2005 (recorded in 1999)
The Way We Were – 2005
JJJ 105.7 Radio Show – 2009 (recorded in 1982)
Icky Flix Live –2009 (recorded in 2001)
Prague and Beyond – 2009 (recorded in 1995, with two bonus tracks recorded in 2001)
Adobe Disfigured Night – 2009 (recorded in 1997)
The Malboro Eyeball Experience – 2009 (recorded in 1997)
Oh Mummy! Oh Daddy! Can't You See That It's True; What the Beatles Did to Me, I Love Lucy Did to You – 2010 (recorded in 1976)
Ritz NY – 2010 (recorded in 1986)
Brava – 2010 (recorded in 2001)
Talking Light Bimbo's – 2011
Cube-E Dynasone 3EZ EP – 2011 (recorded in 1989, remixed in 2000)
Triple Dub-Ya – 2012 (recorded in 2005, remixed in 2012)
The Wonder of Weird - 2014 (recorded in 2013, inaudible audience)
Demonic! – 2013 (recorded in 2003)
The Wonder of Weird – 2014
Cleveland – 2014 (recorded in 1986)
Shadowland – 2015 (recorded in 2014)
Disfigured Night – 2016 (full version of 1997 album of the same name)
In Between Dreams – 2019 (recorded in 2018)
Dreaming of an Eyeball Beaming – 2019 (recorded between 2018 and 2019)
Bunny Boy: Live in Frankfurt – 2021 (recorded in 2008)
God In 3 Persons Live – 2020
Singles / EPs
Santa Dog EP – 1972
"Satisfaction" – 1976
The Beatles Play the Residents and the Residents Play the Beatles – 1977
Duck Stab! – 1978
"Santa Dog '78" – 1978
Diskomo / Goosebump – 1980
The Commercial Single – 1980
Intermission – 1982
"It's a Man's Man's Man's World" – 1984
"Kaw-liga" – 1986
"Hit the Road Jack" – 1987
"Double Shot" – 1988
"Holy Kiss of Flesh" – 1988
"Don't Be Cruel" – 1989
"Rushing Like a Banshee" – 2016
"DIE! DIE! DIE!" – 2020
"Bury My Bone" – 2020
Video releases
The Mole Show/Whatever Happened to Vileness Fats? (VHS) –1984
The Eyes Scream: A History of the Residents (VHS) (with host Penn Jillette) – 1991
Twenty Twisted Questions (Laserdisc) – 1992
Icky Flix (DVD) – 2001
Eskimo (DVD) – 2002
Disfigured Night (DVD) – 2002
Demons Dance Alone (DVD) – 2003
The Commercial DVD (DVD) – 2004
The Residents play Wormwood (DVD) – 2005
Is Anybody Out There? (DVD) – 2009
Randy's Ghost Stories (DVD) – 2010
Talking Light Bimbo's (DVD) – 2011
Other
Freak Show (comic) – 1992
Freak Show (CD-ROM) – 1994
References
Further reading
Meet the Residents – America's most eccentric band!, Ian Shirley, SAF Publishing, Wembley, UK, 1998
External links
Official YouTube page
"More Than What The Ear Hears Coming From The Eye",
"The Most Ever Company",
"Twin Peaks Meets SimCity", WIRED article on The Residents, page on the "Theory of Obscurity"
American artist groups and collectives
American experimental musical groups
American progressive rock groups
Avant-pop musicians
Surrealist groups
Bands with fictional stage personas
Cordless Recordings artists
Masked musicians
Musical groups from the San Francisco Bay Area
Mute Records artists
Pranksters
American surrealist artists
Musical groups established in 1969
Unidentified people
Avant-garde music groups | false | [
"This Type of Thinking (Could Do Us In) is the third studio album by American rock band Chevelle. Debuting at No. 8 on the Billboard 200 based on nearly 90,000 copies sold in its first week, it charted higher than its predecessor, Wonder What's Next but did not exceed its debut position. The album did not manage to match its predecessor's commercial success, but was certified platinum. This Type of Thinking follows generally the same heavy style as Wonder What's Next with popular singles like \"Vitamin R\" and \"The Clincher\". It would be the first of two records produced by Michael \"Elvis\" Baskette. This was also the final album featuring bassist Joe Loeffler, who departed from the band in 2005.\n\nBackground and recording\nComing off a highly successful major label debut, Chevelle finishing touring on December 17, 2003. They set out to write a follow-up album from scratch at the onset of the following year in what drummer Sam Loeffler described as a different approach to writing. He also noted how the band felt significant pressure from their label to not simply match but topple the platinum success of Wonder What's Next. In a 2004 interview, Loeffler described the process of approaching This Type of Thinking:\n\"We went home for Christmas and after New Year's we went into the studio and we said, 'All right, we have to write a whole record in basically four months.' We had no songs, so we had to write that whole record and we ended up taking five months. We wanted to go heavy, we wanted to do a lot of double-bass drum, kind of syncopated rhythms, and we wanted to basically write songs that we could bob our heads to. That was sort of where we started. We're a heavy melodic rock band, that's what we like to write, and that's what we like to play. And that's what we did.\"\n\nThis time around, Chevelle opted to produce their own album with the help of Michael \"Elvis\" Baskette. This Type of Thinking would continue the balance of melody and heaviness of its predecessor. And much like the final track on Wonder What's Next, \"Bend the Bracket\" would be recorded simply as an acoustic demo for its unpolished presentation.\n\nCritical reception\n\nAllMusic editor Johnny Loftus observes the album as \"...flatly mixed, lost in depression, and obsessed with rewriting \"Sober\" for a new generation of lank-haired misunderstoods.\"\n\nMelodic calls it \"...a real quality album that you will never get bored of.\", praising the songs \"The Clincher\", \"Vitamin R (Leading Us Along)\" and \"Another Know It All\".\n\nTrack listing\n\nPersonnel\nChevelle\n Pete Loeffler – guitar, vocals\n Joe Loeffler – bass, backing vocals\n Sam Loeffler – drums\n\nTechnical personnel\n Andy Wallace – mixing\n Ben Goldman – A&R\n Christian Lantry – photography\n Dave Holdredge – digital editing, drum programming, engineer\n Eddy Schreyer – mastering\n Farra Mathews – A&R\n Jef Moll – assistant\n Josh Wilbur – digital editing\n Katharina Fritsch – cover sculpture\n Kevin Dean – assistant\n Michael \"Elvis\" Baskette – engineer, producer\n Sean Evans – art direction\n Steve Sisco – assistant\n\nCharts\n\nCertifications\n\nReferences\n\n2004 albums\nAlbums produced by Michael Baskette\nChevelle (band) albums\nEpic Records albums",
"\n\nTrack listing\n Opening Overture\n \"I Get a Kick Out of You\" (Cole Porter)\n \"You Are the Sunshine of My Life\" (Stevie Wonder)\n \"You Will Be My Music\" (Joe Raposo)\n \"Don't Worry 'bout Me\" (Ted Koehler, Rube Bloom)\n \"If\" (David Gates)\n \"Bad, Bad Leroy Brown\" (Jim Croce)\n \"Ol' Man River\" (Jerome Kern, Oscar Hammerstein II)\n Famous Monologue\n Saloon Trilogy: \"Last Night When We Were Young\"/\"Violets for Your Furs\"/\"Here's That Rainy Day\" (Harold Arlen, E.Y. Harburg)/(Matt Dennis, Tom Adair)/(Jimmy Van Heusen, Johnny Burke)\n \"I've Got You Under My Skin\" (Porter)\n \"My Kind of Town\" (Sammy Cahn, Van Heusen)\n \"Let Me Try Again\" (Paul Anka, Cahn, Michel Jourdan)\n \"The Lady Is a Tramp\" (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart)\n \"My Way\" (Anka, Claude Francois, Jacques Revaux, Gilles Thibaut)\n\nFrank Sinatra's Monologue About the Australian Press\nI do believe this is my interval, as we say... We've been having a marvelous time being chased around the country for three days. You know, I think it's worth mentioning because it's so idiotic, it's so ridiculous what's been happening. We came all the way to Australia because I chose to come here. I haven't been here for a long time and I wanted to come back for a few days. Wait now, wait. I'm not buttering anybody at all. I don't have to. I really don't have to. I like coming here. I like the people. I love your attitude. I like the booze and the beer and everything else that comes into the scene. I also like the way the country's growing and it's a swinging place.\n\nSo we come here and what happens? We gotta run all day long because of the parasites who chase us with automobiles. That's dangerous, too, on the road, you know. Might cause an accident. They won't quit. They wonder why I won't talk to them. I wouldn't drink their water, let alone talk to them. And if any of you folks in the press are in the audience, please quote me properly. Don't mix it up, do it exactly as I'm saying it, please. Write it down very clearly. One idiot called me up and he wanted to know what I had for breakfast. What the hell does he care what I had for breakfast? I was about to tell him what I did after breakfast. Oh, boy, they're murder! We have a name in the States for their counterparts: They're called parasites. Because they take and take and take and never give, absolutely, never give. I don't care what you think about any press in the world, I say they're bums and they'll always be bums, everyone of them. There are just a few exceptions to the rule. Some good editorial writers who don't go out in the street and chase people around. Critics don't bother me, because if I do badly, I know I'm bad before they even write it, and if I'm good, I know I'm good before they write it. It's true. I know best about myself. So, a critic is a critic. He doesn't anger me. It's the scandal man who bugs you, drives you crazy. It's the two-bit-type work that they do. They're pimps. They're just crazy, you know. And the broads who work in the press are the hookers of the press. Need I explain that to you? I might offer them a buck and a half... I'm not sure. I once gave a chick in Washington $2 and I overpaid her, I found out. She didn't even bathe. Imagine what that was like, ha, ha.\n\nNow, it's a good thing I'm not angry. Really. It's a good thing I'm not angry. I couldn't care less. The press of the world never made a person a star who was untalented, nor did they ever hurt any artist who was talented. So we, who have God-given talent, say, \"To hell with them.\" It doesn't make any difference, you know. And I want to say one more thing. From what I see what's happened since I was last here... what, 16 years ago? Twelve years ago. From what I've seen to happen with the type of news that they print in this town shocked me. And do you know what is devastating? It's old-fashioned. It was done in America and England twenty years ago. And they're catching up with it now, with the scandal sheet. They're rags, that's what they are. You use them to train your dog and your parrot. What else do I have to say? Oh, I guess that's it. That'll keep them talking to themselves for a while. I think most of them are a bunch of fags anyway. Never did a hard day's work in their life. I love when they say, \"What do you mean, you won't stand still when I take your picture?\" All of a sudden, they're God. We gotta do what they want us to do. It's incredible. A pox on them... Now, let's get down to some serious business here...\n\nSee also\nConcerts of Frank Sinatra\n\nFrank Sinatra"
] |
[
"The Residents",
"Storytelling projects (2006-09)",
"What type of stories did they like to write?",
"I don't know."
] | C_efa3e1045f514ebcbfedfcc182b59c64_1 | Are there any other interesting aspects about this article? | 2 | Are there any other interesting aspects about this article about The Residents other than their stories? | The Residents | Summer of 2006 brought the internet download project, River of Crime (Episodes 1-5). River of Crime was their first project with Warner Music Group's Cordless Label. Following the success of that album, the Residents launched their weekly Timmy video project on YouTube. In 2007 they did the soundtrack for the documentary Strange Culture and also released a double instrumental album, Night of the Hunters. On the Fourth of July 2007, the planned October release of its latest project with Mute Records, The Voice of Midnight (a music theater adaptation of E.T.A. Hoffmann's short story "Der Sandmann"), was announced on its Web site. On the May 21 the band announced on its website that its first North America tour since Demons Dance Alone for a project titled The Bunny Boy was set to begin on October 9 in New York--later an earlier date was added for Santa Cruz. Soon, it was announced that the tour would also include Europe, starting November 13. On June 3, the Residents.com Web site boasted the planned release of The Bunny Boy, which was released on September 1. The Web site had posted information in which "Foxboro" claimed this would be a farewell tour; it was later revealed that this was nothing more than a mistake by Foxboro. November 3, 2009, saw three new releases. The Ughs! is a mostly instrumental album made up of music composed earlier in the band's career, which had been completely reworked for the Voice of Midnight album. Ten Little Piggies is a "futurist compilation", ten songs from projects that may or may not be released in the future. Finally, Is Anybody out There is a DVD collecting all the Bunny Boy videos from the series posted on YouTube. The episodes are streamlined and not exactly the same as the originals. CANNOTANSWER | Summer of 2006 brought the internet download project, River of Crime ( | The Residents are an American art collective best known for their avant-garde music and multimedia works. Since their first official release, Meet the Residents (1974), they have released over 60 albums, numerous music videos and short films, three CD-ROM projects, and ten DVDs. They have undertaken seven major world tours and scored multiple films. Pioneers in exploring the potential of CD-ROM and similar technologies, the Residents have won several awards for their multimedia projects. They founded Ralph Records, a record label focusing on avant-garde music, in 1972.
Throughout the group's existence, the individual members have ostensibly attempted to work anonymously, preferring to have attention focused on their art. Much speculation and rumor has focused on this aspect of the group. In public, they appear silent and costumed, often wearing eyeball helmets, top hats and tails—a costume now recognized as their signature iconography. In 2017, Hardy Fox, long known to be associated with the Residents, identified himself as the band's co-founder and primary composer; he died in 2018.
The Residents' albums generally fall into two categories: deconstructions of Western popular music, and complex conceptual pieces composed around a theme, theory or plot. The group is noted for surrealistic lyrics and sound, with a disregard for conventional music composition.
History
1965–1972: Origins and Residents Unincorporated
The artists who became The Residents met in high school in Shreveport, Louisiana in the early 1960s. Around 1965, they began making their first amateur home tape recordings and making art together with a number of friends. In 1966, intending to join the flourishing hippie movement, they headed west for San Francisco, but when their truck broke down in San Mateo, California they decided to remain there.
While attempting to make a living, the group purchased crude recording equipment and began to refine their recording and editing skills, as well as photography, painting, and anything remotely to do with art that they could afford. The Residents have acknowledged the existence of at least two unreleased reel-to-reel items from this era, titled The Ballad of Stuffed Trigger and Rusty Coathangers for the Doctor. The Cryptic Corporation has confirmed that their archives contain many tapes dating back decades, but because they were recorded before the group officially became the Residents, the band does not consider them part of its discography.
Word of the unnamed group's experimentation spread, and in 1969 British guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Philip Lithman, known as Snakefinger, began to participate with them. Around this time they also met the mysterious (and perhaps apocryphal) N. Senada, whom Lithman had picked up during an expedition in Bavaria. The two Europeans became great influences and life-long collaborators with the group.
In 1971, the group sent a reel-to-reel demo tape to Hal Halverstadt at Warner Bros., as he had signed Captain Beefheart, one of the group's heroes, to the label. Halverstadt was not impressed with The Warner Bros. Album, but gave it an "A for Ariginality". Because the band had not included a name in the return address, the rejection slip was addressed to "Residents". The group decided to use this name, first becoming Residents Uninc., then shortening it to the current name.
The first known public performance of the Residents, Uninc. was at the Boarding House in San Francisco in 1971. The brief, guerrilla-style performance took the audience by surprise. A photo from it, showing Lithman playing violin with his pinky "about to strike the violin like a snake", originated the stage name he used for the rest of his life, Snakefinger. Later in 1971, a second tape was completed called Baby Sex, featuring a long collage partially consisting of recordings from the Boarding House performance. The cover art for the tape box was a silk-screened copy of an old photo depicting a woman fellating a small child, an example of the extremely confrontational and deliberately puerile visual and lyrical style the group adopted during this period.
Alleged early influence
N. Senada (which may be a play on Ensenada, en se nada meaning "in himself nothing," no sé nada meaning "I don't know anything" or enseñada, a form of the past participle meaning "taught") was said to be a Bavarian composer and music theorist who formulated the "Theory of Obscurity" and the "Theory of Phonetic Organization". His "Theory of Obscurity" states that an artist can only produce pure art when the expectations and influences of the outside world are not taken into consideration; while his "Theory of Phonetic Organization" states, "the musician should put the sounds first, building the music up from [them] rather than developing the music, then working down to the sounds that make it up."
There is a debate as to whether or not Senada, supposedly having been born in 1907 and dying in 1993 at the age of 86, actually existed, or was simply an invention of the Residents. It is frequently speculated that, if real, N. Senada may have been the famous avant-garde composer and instrument-designer Harry Partch, the influence of whose work may be heard in Residents compositions such as "Six Things to a Cycle"; his death is also referenced in the song "Death in Barstow". Another rumor speculates that N. Senada may have been Captain Beefheart, because in the late 1960s Beefheart and his "Magic Band" lived in a residence on Ensenada Drive in Woodland Hills, California, while recording Trout Mask Replica and Safe as Milk; Beefheart's influence can also be heard in early Residents works. The Residents also sent an early demo tape to the Warner Brothers executive Hal Halverstadt who had signed Beefheart.
According to The Residents, in 1937, N. Senada premiered his masterpiece, Pollex Christi, which means either Thumb of Christ or Big Toe of Christ. This work mainly consisted of borrowed pieces from other composers, namely Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 and Carl Orff's Carmina Burana, among others. He also left large holes in the work so that the performers could insert music of their choosing, thus "becoming composers themselves". Senada justified his work with "house" analogies claiming that he did not make the "bricks" but "cemented them together"; he was not the "architect", just the "builder". N. Senada allegedly collaborated with The Residents on their work prior to "Santa Dog" and "Meet The Residents", and then disappeared. He resurfaced in the mid-1970s, returning from an Arctic expedition and bearing a sealed bottle of pure Arctic air; this served as inspiration for the Eskimo project.
1972–1980: "Classic" era
Santa Dog, Meet The Residents, Not Available & The Third Reich 'n Roll (1972–1976)
In early 1972, the band left San Mateo and relocated to 20 Sycamore St, San Francisco; a studio they named "El Ralpho", which boasted a completely open ground floor (seemingly ideal for a sound stage), allowing the group to expand their operations and also begin preliminary work on their most ambitious project up to that point, a full-length film entitled Vileness Fats, which consumed most of their attention for the next four years. Intended to be the first-ever long form music video, The Residents saw this project as an opportunity to create the ultimate cult film. After four years of filming (from 1972 to 1976) the project was reluctantly cancelled because of time, space, and monetary constraints. Fifteen hours of footage was shot for the project, yet only approximately 35 minutes of that footage has ever been released.
The group also formed Ralph Records at this time, as a small, independent label to release and promote their own work. In 1972, to inaugurate the new business, the group recorded and pressed the Santa Dog EP, their first recorded output to be released to the public. Designed to resemble a Christmas card from an insurance company, the EP consisted of two 7" singles, one song on each side. The four songs were presented as being by four different bands (Ivory & The Braineaters, Delta Nudes, the College Walkers, and Arf & Omega featuring the Singing Lawnchairs), with only a small note on the interior of the gatefold sleeve mentioning the participation of "Residents, Uninc."
They sent copies of Santa Dog to west coast radio stations with no response until Bill Reinhardt, program director of KBOO-FM in Portland, Oregon received a copy and played it heavily on his show. Reinhardt met the Residents at their studio at 20 Sycamore St. in the summer of 1973 with the news of his broadcasts. The Residents gave Reinhardt exclusive access to all their recordings, including copies of the original masters of Stuffed Trigger, Baby Sex, and The Warner Bros. Album.
Throughout this point, the group had been manipulating old tapes they had collected and regularly recording jam sessions, and these recordings eventually became the group's debut full-length album, Meet The Residents, which was released in 1974 on Ralph. To aid in promoting the group, Reinhardt was given 50 of the first 1,000 copies of Meet the Residents. Some were sent to friends, listeners and critics, and two dozen were left for sale on consignment at the Music Millennium record store, where they sat unsold for months. KBOO DJ Barry Schwam (a.k.a. Schwump, who also recorded with the Residents) promoted them on his program as well. Eventually, KBOO airplay attracted a cult following.Following the release of Meet The Residents, the group began working on a follow-up entitled Not Available, following N. Senada's theory of obscurity. The LP was recorded and compiled completely in private, and would not be released until the group had completely forgotten about its existence.
During breaks in the sessions for Vileness Fats, the group would record their next project, entitled The Third Reich 'n Roll, over the course of a year between October 1974 and October 1975. The album consisted of two side-long medleys of the band covering popular songs from 1950s and 1960s, whilst toying with the concept of the popularity of rock 'n' roll being comparable to that of the rise of Nazism in the 1930s. The resulting LP was released in 1976, and was the group's first project to feature a music video, created by syncing an old video of the group performing with an edited version of "Swastikas on Parade".
After the Third Reich 'n Rolls release, a group of enterprising friends and collaborators from their early days in San Mateo — Homer Flynn, Hardy Fox, Jay Clem and John Kennedy — also joined the group in San Francisco, forming what became the Cryptic Corporation to manage and represent the band. Clem became the band's spokesman; Fox edited, produced and compiled the band's increasingly prolific output; Flynn was already handling the group's cover design and promotional art under the banner of Pore Know Graphics; and Kennedy took the role of "President" (admittedly a fairly empty title, as overall responsibilities were handled more or less equally by the four). The Cryptic Corporation took over the day-to-day operations of Ralph Records, and provided the band with an improved public relations platform.
Shortly after the introduction of the Cryptic Corporation, the Residents recorded their "Satisfaction" single, the B-side of which featured the Residents' first work with the ARP Odyssey, the first synthesizer owned by the group, purchased by the Cryptics.
Eskimo, Fingerprince, Duck Stab, & Rise in popularity (1976–1979)
Following "Satisfaction", the group began recording Eskimo in April 1976; a concept album based upon the Theory of Phonetic Organisation that suggests that music should not be confined to chords and structures, but instead should simply be a collection of fascinating noises. The album would feature acoustic soundscapes inspired by Inuit culture, whilst parodying American ignorance of other cultures. The Eskimo sessions would last many years, and feature many divergences, the first of which, in November 1976, resulting in Fingerprince, a collection of unused recordings from the Third Reich 'n Roll, Not Available, and Eskimo sessions.
Fingerprince received considerable coverage in the British press, and was the first LP by the group to receive any critical attention when Jon Savage reviewed the album and its two predecessors favorably for the December 31st issue of Sounds magazine. This review gained the group considerable attention, with many of their previously unsold mail-order items being sold seemingly overnight. The sudden success of Fingerprince and its predecessors caused the group to briefly halt production on Eskimo to create something more appealing to their newfound audience.
The Residents followed up Fingerprince with their Duck Stab! EP – their most accessible release up to that point. This EP got the band some attention from the press (namely NME, Sounds and Melody Maker), and was followed in 1978 by the Duck Stab/Buster & Glen album, which paired the EP with a similar, concurrently recorded EP which had not been released separately. The group then continued work on Eskimo, which proved a very difficult project, marked by many conflicts between the band and their management, which led to a number of delays in the release date.
The sudden attention afforded to them by the success of the Duck Stab! EP and "Satisfaction" single required an album release as soon as possible to help fund the band's spiraling recording costs, and to meet the demand for new Residents material. This forced the release of the band's long-shelved "second album" Not Available in 1978. The Residents were not bothered by this deviation from the original plan not to release the album, as the 1978 release ultimately did not affect the philosophical conditions under which it was originally recorded.
Eskimo was finally released in 1979 to much acclaim, even making it to the final list for nominations for a Grammy award in 1980, although the album wasn't nominated. Rather than being songs in the orthodox sense, the compositions on Eskimo sounded like "live-action stories" without dialogue. The cover art of Eskimo also presents the first instance of the group wearing eyeball masks and tuxedos, which was later considered by many to be the group's signature costume. The Residents had only intended to wear these costumes for the cover of Eskimo, but adopted the costumes in the longer term as it provided them with a unique and recognisable image.
The group followed Eskimo with Commercial Album in 1980. The LP featured 40 songs, each exactly one minute in length. Around this time, two short films were made in collaboration with Graeme Whifler: One Minute Movies, consisting of four music videos for tracks from the Commercial Album; and a video for "Hello Skinny" from the Duck Stab LP. Created at a time when MTV (and what later became known as "music video" in general) was in its infancy, the group's videos were in heavy rotation since they were among the few music videos available to broadcasters.
1981–1990: New technology and live performances
Mark of the Mole & The Mole Show (1981–1983)
The Residents' follow up to Commercial Album was Mark of the Mole, released in 1981. The album was a reaction to the group feeling betrayed by a suddenly disinterested music press.
Shortly after the release of Mark of the Mole, The Residents purchased one of the first ever E-Mu Emulator samplers, number #00005 specifically. The instrument was revolutionary for the band, as the sampling capacities of the keyboard not only allowed them to recreate instruments the members were not able to play, but also gave them the opportunity to create their meticulously crafted studio sound in a live setting. The first album the band recorded using the emulator was The Tunes of Two Cities, the second part of the Mole Trilogy, which was nearly entirely recorded using the Emulator.
Following the release of Cities, the Residents started rehearsing for a possible live show, eventually developing their first touring project, the Mole Show, a theatrical retelling of their Mark of the Mole album. The band debuted the show with a test performance, on April 10, 1982, before a tour of California in October, and a European tour throughout mid 1983. The show featured Penn Jillette as the narrator, playing a similar role as he had previously done with the Ralph Records 10th Anniversary radio special.
A third leg, featuring dates in New York, was booked, but had to be cancelled after one performance due to lack of funding. Following the Mole Show, the band was broke, and as such attempted to recoup some of their losses with several archival releases, including a collection of outtakes called Residue in 1983, and a VHS containing recordings from the Mole Show as well as a newly-scored edit of Vileness Fats footage.
The American Composers Series, 13th Anniversary Show, and the end of Ralph (1984–1987)
Deciding to take a break from part three of the Mole Trilogy, the Residents began a new project entitled the American Composers Series, a planned series of 10 albums which would pay tribute to pop artists and instrumental composers from the United States. The first result of this pairing was George & James, featuring the music of George Gershwin and James Brown. Following the release of George & James, the Residents finally abandoned part three of the Mole Trilogy, choosing instead to record a fourth entry entitled The Big Bubble, featuring very stripped-down instrumentation in order to portray a fictional garage rock band. No further entries into the Mole Trilogy have been recorded, and the project is considered abandoned.
When The Big Bubble was released in Japan by Wave Records, it was an unquestioned success, with its popularity resulting in Wave funding a two-week tour of Japan for the group in October 1985. The tour was successful, and re-ignited the group's interest in creating live performances. As a result, they eventually embarked on their 13th Anniversary world tour, ranging from 1985 to 1987, with Snakefinger playing electric guitar. As for studio work, the group eventually released their second entry into the American Composers series, Stars & Hank Forever, featuring the music of Hank Williams and John Philip Sousa. Their version of the Williams song "Kaw-liga" was particularly successful in the emerging club scene.
Due to licensing costs and the emerging CD format, the American Composers series was later abandoned. Stars & Hank Forever was the last Residents project Snakefinger would play on, as he later died of a heart attack in July 1987.
Following the release of the 13th Anniversary Show LP in 1986 and a cover of "Hit the Road Jack" in 1987, the Cryptic Corporation resigned control of Ralph Records over to Tom & Sheenah Timony, and the Residents signed to Rykodisc. Tom and Sheenah would later turn Ralph into a new label, T.E.C. Tones, and establish the Residents' official fan club from 1988 to 1993 - UWEB (Uncle Willie's Eyeball Buddies).
God in Three Persons, Cube E, and (1987–1990)
After two compilation CDs titled Heaven? and Hell!, the Residents' first new project for Ryko was titled God in Three Persons, an hour-long poem in the form of a spoken-word rock opera. This was the first new Residents album to be released on CD, and the last Residents project to be entirely recorded on analog tape, as the group moved on to MIDI technology; their first venture into MIDI would be scoring episodes for Pee-wee's Playhouse in 1987. Despite initially mixed critical and commercial reaction, God in Three Persons today is considered one of the group's masterworks.
On November 18, 1987, at a party in Amsterdam for Boudisque Records, the Residents' European label, they premiered a new work titled Buckaroo Blues, a suite of cowboy songs. After a choreographed TELE5 appearance in April 1988, this suite would be coupled with a second one titled Black Barry, a suite of "black music" (that is, blues and gospel), and form the first act of the Residents' next touring project, Cube-E: The History of American Music in 3EZ Pieces. After the show's debut in New York, on July 21, 1989, it was decided to add a third act consisting of covers of Elvis Presley songs, completing the equation "Cowboy music + Black music = Rock and roll." The show took on a much more theatrical approach than the 13th Anniversary tour, with elaborate set designs, costumes, lighting and choreography. Cube-E toured from September 1989 to November 1990, and was successful, both critically and financially.
A studio version of the third act was also released and titled The King & Eye. The album was recorded at Different Fur Studios and released on Enigma Records around the time the tour began in September 1989. Further television work was also being done for MTV, with the Residents scoring and doing voice work for Liquid Television and the Henry Selick-directed pilot "Slow Bob in the Lower Dimensions."
1990–1997: Multimedia projects
Freak Show, CD-ROMs, and the 25th anniversary (1991–1997)
Recordings for a new studio album were worked on during breaks in the Cube-E tour, and shortly after the tour ended, Freak Show was released. An album detailing the lives and personalities of fictional carnival freaks, the Freak Show project would spawn many other iterations, such as a graphic novel in collaboration with comic artists from Dark Horse, such as Brian Bolland and Matt Howarth, and a promotional video created with the help of New York artist John Sanborn, which also presented a music video for "Harry the Head", animated by computer artist Jim Ludtke - both artists would go on to collaborate with the Residents on many further projects.
A partnership with Voyager in 1992 allowed the Residents to develop a laserdisc titled Twenty Twisted Questions to celebrate their twentieth anniversary. Along with this laserdisc, a studio album was recorded, titled Our Finest Flowers. Not quite a "greatest hits" compilation, many tracks on the album borrow elements from previous songs in the Residents' catalog.
The Residents' collaboration with Jim Ludtke would result in the creation of the Freak Show and Bad Day on the Midway CD-ROMs. Both of these projects featured many other collaborations with visual artists, including returning collaborators from the Freak Show graphic novel, such as Richard Sala and Dave McKean. The Residents enjoyed quite a bit of critical and financial success with these CD-ROMs, winning several industry awards. However, during early development stages for a third CD-ROM titled I Murdered Mommy, their distributor Inscape was forced to dissolve due to oversaturation and obsoletion of the CD-ROM market.
Despite majorly occupying themselves with CD-ROM development, the Residents still remained musically active, releasing an enhanced CD album titled Gingerbread Man (an observation and study of nine fictional characters) in 1994, and scoring the Discovery Channel documentary series Hunters in 1995. Freak Show would also get a live adaptation in November 1995, at the Archa Theater in Prague. While the Residents did act as music and stage directors for the show, they did not actually perform - the music was conducted and performed by Czech band Už Jsme Doma, while actors and dancers played their roles on stage.
Freak Show Live would be the last iteration of the Freak Show brand; while a DVD was being developed in 2003, the early death of animator Jim Ludtke immediately brought the project to a halt.
Around this time, singer/performer Molly Harvey was recruited to work with the group. While her first appearance in a Residents project was the Gingerbread Man album, she would officially become a member of the group in 1997, with a one-off performance at the Popkomm festival in Germany titled Disfigured Night. This performance would later become the second act of a special 25th anniversary show at the Fillmore in San Francisco, in October 1997.
1998-2009: New collaborators / The 2nd millennium
Return to touring: Wormwood, Icky Flix, and Demons Dance Alone (1998–2005)
Due to the collapse of the CD-ROM market, a collective decision was made to tour again. While keeping up with their theatrical tendencies by regular use of costumes and stage props, the Residents would also perform and record with a team of guest musicians: the aforementioned Molly Harvey (vocals), Nolan Cook (guitar), Carla Fabrizio (arrangements and vocals), Toby Dammit (drums), and later on in 2002, Eric Drew Feldman (keyboards). Some of the band members, notably Feldman and Fabrizio, went on to collaborate with the group on numerous other projects up until the present time, while Cook eventually became a full-time band member. Fabrizio's connections with the Balinese gamelan ensemble Gamelan Sekar Jaya allowed for occasional collaborations between the two groups during this period.
The first tour with this new band formation was for the 1998 album Wormwood, a collection of songs depicting typically gruesome stories from the Holy Bible, mostly from the Old Testament. While the studio album only featured Harvey, Fabrizio and Dammit as guests (with Dammit only taking occasional vocal duties), the band would be mostly fully formed by the time of the show's live debut at the Fillmore in October 1998. The Wormwood show toured up to July 1999, and featured drastically different arrangements of songs from the album, mostly darker and heavier, as well as new or unused material related to the concept. Some of these arrangements would be recorded for a studio album titled Roadworms, and a DVD of the live show would be released in 2005.
The same band formation would later tour to promote the Residents' first DVD, Icky Flix - a compilation of most of the group's music videos, as well as new animated videos and a re-recorded soundtrack, to celebrate the group's upcoming 30th anniversary. These re-recorded arrangements would be performed on the show as their corresponding videos would be played from the DVD on a screen.
On the event of the September 11 attacks, the Residents were still touring Icky Flix in Europe. The resulting fear and anxiety caused by the attacks would eventually result in the recording of Demons Dance Alone in 2002. While not a direct response to the events, the songs on the album portrayed the negative emotions felt by the group and its individual members, and this was reflected in the album's subsequent tour, from October 2002 to September 2003. The group's next major album, the 2005 Animal Lover, contained lyrics of a similarly tragic nature, although in a more abstract manner. The album also contained a booklet with stories which presented the songs from the point of view of animals. Animal Lover was also the first Residents album to be released on the Mute label, which would be solely responsible for the Residents' major releases up until 2008.
Animal Lover is currently the last Residents album to feature Molly Harvey, who moved to Atlanta to live with her husband at the time. Her last appearance as a member of the Residents was at a small series of shows titled The Way We Were at the "What is Music?" festival in Australia. The show's setlist was a career retrospective much in the style of the 13th Anniversary tour - the last time the Residents had toured Australia.
2005-2009: The "Storyteller" era
Narrative albums and The Bunny Boy (2006-2009)
Due to the increasing numbers of illegal downloads of music on the Internet, which considerably decreased product sales, the Residents attempted a new artistic medium: the radio drama, in the form of a paid podcast distributed through Apple's iTunes service. This podcast, titled The River of Crime (a first-person tale of an individual's obsession with crime and criminals) ran for five weekly episodes in 2006 before its cancellation due to inconveniences surrounding the podcast's promotion on iTunes, thereby discouraging further production.
Aside from Animal Lover, the group's partnership with Mute produced three more albums: Tweedles in 2006 (a first-person character study of a sexually successful yet emotionally unavailable vampiric figure); The Voice of Midnight in 2007 (a retelling of the E.T.A. Hoffmann story, Der Sandmann); and The Bunny Boy in 2008 (a first-person narrative and character study of the titular Bunny in search of his missing brother).
While Tweedles and The Voice of Midnight have not yet been developed further (aside from instrumental releases such as The UGHS! in 2009), The Bunny Boy proved a very accessible concept. A YouTube video series of the same name was done to promote and further elaborate on the project. The series was partially interactive; fans could communicate with Bunny via e-mail, and some of the interactions may or may not have altered the course of the series' plot (a book containing some of Bunny's correspondence was published by Bandits Mages in 2019). Soon afterwards the album was toured from October to December 2008. A second season of the video series was shown in 2009, somewhat officially ending the project.
2010–2016: Randy, Chuck & Bob
Making a decision to shift focus from studio work to touring, and to enhance their show's portability, the Residents would change their live band to a "power trio" formation, and in a sort of meta stunt, appear to "unmask" themselves as lead singer / frontman "Randy," composer / keyboardist "Charles 'Chuck' Bobuck," and guitarist Nolan Cook as "Bob" – although all three band members were still costumed: "Randy" donned an old man mask and wore an overcoat with oversized red tie and shoes; "Chuck" and "Bob" wore red jackets, special goggles and fake dreadlocks. There was also mention of a fourth band member, drummer "Carlos," who allegedly had left the music business to take care of his mother in Mexico; however, despite being credited as singer in the group's 2012 album Coochie Brake, there is no further evidence of "Carlos" having ever been a real band member.
This new band formation debuted in the Talking Light tour, which ran from January 2010 to April 2011. While the setlist once again consisted of assorted songs from the band's repertoire (although with greatly reworked arrangements), the show would also feature newly written "ghost stories," in which a video of a narrator telling said stories would be projected onto the stage while the band performed in a somewhat improvisational manner. These "ghost stories" were loosely threaded by the presence of television, TV commercials, and industrialized products such as Oscar Mayer hot dogs or Betty Crocker Pudding Roll-ups – although these weren't endorsements; these products were simply a minor element integrated into the stories, not unlike product placement. In between certain songs, "Randy" would also speak to the audience, introducing the band and later describing his own history with supernatural appearances, and his subsequent fear of mirrors. The tour was financially successful, and the band would continue to perform in this formation with only minor changes in stage and costume design.
In the next couple of years, "Randy" would take on an increased role as frontman of the band, starting a "personal" Tumblr blog where he would write mostly about life experiences and trivia regarding the Residents' history, as well as promoting his "solo" show, Sam's Enchanted Evening, which was presented in various incarnations between June 2010 and March 2012 with collaborators Joshua Raoul Brody and Carla Fabrizio. More akin to musical theater than a concert, the show focused on the titular Sam's life story, with the singer alternating between monologues and cover performances of various songs that were important in his life. During this period, the Residents would also collaborate with Belgian dancer/choreographer Grace Ellen Barkey from Needcompany, composing the music for a show titled Mush-Room in 2013.
In 2014, "Randy" would maintain a series of vlogs with the help of director Don Hardy, titled In My Room and later Randyland, elaborating further on his experiences, both with the Residents and with events in his personal life. The blog currently has been inactive since January 6, 2019. Composer "Charles Bobuck" would also maintain a series of personal writings on the Residents' website titled The Test Tube of Tomorrow, and occasionally release music under this name, usually material deemed unfitting for the Residents concept. Bobuck's writings were of a much more detailed and biographical nature, and his music much more abstract, often referred to as "contraptions" rather than compositions.
The group's 40th anniversary tour, The Wonder of Weird, also elaborated on the "Randy, Chuck & Bob" concept, although guised as an anthology show – lead singer Randy would once more speak to the audience between songs, briefly discussing the band's history as he slowly grew depressed with the state of the band and his own life, occasionally leaving the stage and prompting the remaining band members to improvise. The show toured from January to May 2013.
This band formation toured once more in 2014 with a show called Shadowland, retrofittingly subtitled "part three of the 'Randy, Chuck & Bob' trilogy." Initially a one-off week of performances in Europe, the show was eventually brought back in March 2015, coinciding with the premiere of the Theory of Obscurity film – a documentary on the history of the band, directed by Don Hardy and produced by Barton Bishoff and Josh Keppel – at the SXSW Film Festival. This show would be the last time "Charles Bobuck" would perform with the band, as he decided to quit the touring business due to increasing health problems. He eventually quit the Residents altogether in 2016, revealing his identity as Hardy Fox of the Cryptic Corporation, and continued to make music as a solo artist until his death in October 2018.
Shadowland then toured from August 2015 to July 2016, with Eric Drew Feldman (as Bobuck's cousin "Rico") replacing Fox on keyboards, as well as production on future Residents projects. The show was mostly similar to the previous two tours, with a setlist of various reworked songs from the group's repertoire, and occasional video interludes in the vein of Talking Light, with different characters discussing their experiences with birth, reincarnation and near-death.
2017–present: "The Real Residents", Metal Meat & Bone, and the pREServed series
In March 2017, the Residents presented their new lineup, advertised as "The Real Residents": "Tyrone" on vocals, "Eekie" (Nolan Cook) on guitar, "Erkie" (Eric Feldman) on keyboards, and "Cha Cha" on drums and percussion. Shortly after a preview of their In Between Dreams tour in Japan, the group released their first studio album since Coochie Brake, entitled The Ghost of Hope, describing real train wreck stories from the 19th and early 20th century. The album was released on Cherry Red Records, the Residents' current label, and promoted with a single, and their first music video since 2001's Icky Flix – "Rushing Like a Banshee," directed by John Sanborn. Although The Ghost of Hope wasn't toured (except for a one-off performance at the San Francisco Exploratorium), the Residents played both sides of the "Rushing Like a Banshee" single on the In Between Dreams show, which ran from October 2017 up to February 2019 and followed a loose theme, much like Shadowland, this time of dreams.
During the course of the tour, the Residents would work on new projects. Their next album, Intruders, released in October 2018, was advertised along with the I am a Resident! concept, which started as a sort of officially-endorsed tribute project: fans would submit their interpretations of Residents songs, and the group would collect their favorites into an album. After the number of submissions vastly exceeded their expectations, the group decided to change the project into a type of collage, even recording segments and overdubs of their own. The final album was released to contributors in May 2018, and worldwide in August 2018.
In July 2018, the Residents also published their second novel (the first being a novelization of their game Bad Day on the Midway in 2012). The book, entitled The Brick-Eaters, was described as "an absurdist buddy movie story featuring a very tall internet content screener teaming up with an aging career criminal whose primary companions are an oxygen bottle and a .44 Magnum".
The group also began their ongoing pREServed reissue series in January 2018 – deluxe editions of the major albums in the band's discography, containing brand new remasters and unreleased recordings from the band's archives, previously in care of Hardy Fox before he quit the group.
During the In Between Dreams tour, the Residents also previewed songs from their "upcoming blues album," which was eventually titled Metal, Meat & Bone. The premise of the album was to present the long lost recordings of a fictional albino blues singer named Alvin Snow, also known as "Dyin' Dog." The Residents would present the original "Dyin' Dog demos" on one disc, and their own interpretations of the same songs on another disc. The album was released in July 2020 and promoted with two music videos for the Residents' new versions of "Bury My Bone" and "DIE! DIE! DIE!", the latter being sung by rock musician and Pixies frontman Black Francis.
Metal, Meat & Bone will be further promoted by the Residents on their upcoming Dog Stab tour in August 2021 (following numerous cancellations and postponements on account of the COVID-19 pandemic) – the show, currently marketed as "the 50th anniversary show," will allegedly present songs from the new album as well as new arrangements of songs from their 1978 album, Duck Stab / Buster & Glen.
To celebrate the groups' 50th anniversary, a retrospective coffee table book The Residents: A Sight for Sore Eyes, Vol. 1 by author Aaron Tanner was announced. The book contains never before seen photos, quotes from celebrities influenced by the group, as well as a 7" single dating to the group's Not Available era.
Identity
In the group's early days, many rumors circulated about its membership. As the cover art of Meet the Residents was a parody of The Beatles' 1964 North American release, Meet the Beatles!, rumors circulated that The Residents were actually The Beatles, even specifically naming George Harrison. Many other rumors have come and gone over the years, one being that '60s experimental band Cromagnon shared members with the band. Les Claypool, frontman of rock band Primus, and Gerald Casale of new wave band Devo claimed to have been accused of being members of the band; and Mark Mothersbaugh is alleged to have played keyboards during the band's 13th-anniversary tour.
Since the late 1970s, much of the speculation about the members' identities has involved the group's management team, The Cryptic Corporation. It was formed in 1976 as a corporation in California by Jay Clem, Homer Flynn, Hardy W. Fox, and John Kennedy, all of whom denied having been band members. Clem and Kennedy left the Corporation in 1982, to the chagrin of fans. The Residents members do not grant interviews, although Flynn, Fox, and Clem have conducted interviews on behalf of the group.
Nolan Cook, a prominent collaborator in the band's live and studio work (and a live member of I Am Spoonbender) denied in an interview that Fox and Flynn were The Residents. However, some consider Cook himself a member of the band, as he is known to wear the same head coverings as the group in live shows, and wore the trademark eyeball mask on the Wormwood Tour. He also played the part of "Bob" during the "Randy", "Chuck", and "Bob" trilogy of shows.
William Poundstone, author of the Big Secrets books, compared voiceprints of a Flynn lecture with those of spoken word segments from the Residents discography in his book "Biggest Secrets". He concluded, "The similarities in the spectograms second the convincing subjective impression that the voices are identical", and that "it is possible that the creative core of the Residents is the duo of Flynn and Fox." A subset of that belief is that Flynn is the lyricist and that Fox writes the music. The online database of the performance rights organization BMI (of which The Residents and their publishing company, Pale Pachyderm Publishing [Warner-Chappell] have been members for their entire careers) lists Flynn and Fox as the composers of all original Residents songs, including pre-1974 songs from the "Residents Unincorporated" years.
Simon Reynolds wrote in his book Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978–1984 that "the Residents and their representatives were one and the same," and elaborated further on one of his blogs, stating that "this was something that anybody who had any direct dealings with Ralph figured out sooner rather than later." Reynolds quotes Helios Creed, who identifies the Residents as a keyboardist named "H," a singer named "Homer," and "this other guy called John." Peter Principle of Tuxedomoon claimed that he and others "eventually figured out that the guy doing the graphics and the engineer in the studio were, in fact, the Residents."Cryptic openly admits the group's artwork is done by Flynn (among others) under various names that, put together, become "Pornographics", but the pseudonym is rarely spelled the same way twice (examples: Porno Graphics, Pore No Graphix, Pore-Know Graphics); and that Fox is the sound engineer – meaning that he is the main producer, engineer, mixer, and editor of all their recordings. (Since 1976, all of The Residents' recordings have listed their producer as the Cryptic Corporation, presumably meaning Fox in particular.)
From 2010 to 2016, The Residents referred to themselves in concert as the characters "Randy", "Chuck", and "Bob", and referred to a former member of the band, "Carlos", who left the group following a disagreement with "Randy". There is speculation that "Carlos" is Carlos Cadona. Better known by his stage name, "6025," Cadona was in the original lineup of the Dead Kennedys and appears on a live album by Snakefinger. "Carlos" may also refer to Carla Fabrizio, a touring member of The Residents from 1998 to 2008.
"Bob" is speculated to be guitarist and longtime collaborator Nolan Cook. Cook is often the only credited collaborator on the "Randy, Chuck, & Bob" era albums, such as Lonely Teenager, Talking Light: Bimbo's, and Shadowland.
A synopsis for The Residents' 2012 stage production "Sam's Enchanted Evening" provides the name "Randy Rose" as that of The Residents' lead singer. "Chuck", or "Charles Bobuck", was the group's primary songwriter, and released a series of solo albums (or "contraptions") under this name during the "Randy, Chuck and Bob" era. The member known as Chuck retired from live performance due to ill health in 2015, and ultimately retired from The Residents altogether following the release of the Theory of Obscurity documentary film. Eric Drew Feldman replaced him and performed under the name "Rico" from 2015 to 2016.
In the liner notes featured on the 2020 reissue of Phillip Perkins' King Of The World album, Perkins confirms that he was a member of The Residents during their Assorted Secrets' lineup, which also performed The Mole Show. On his BayImproviser biography Perkins states that he worked closely with The Residents between 1979 and 1984. He had previously been credited as the lighting designer on the Mole Show Roxy LP, and as engineer on original versions of Stars & Hank Forever, as well as on reissues of The Tune of Two Cities and The Snakey Wake. Considering this, his time working with the group roughly would have been from 1979 - 1987.
Hardy Fox
In October 2017, former manager for The Residents, Hardy Fox identified himself as both the anonymous primary composer and producer for the Residents as well as the pseudonymous Charles Bobuck. Fox was born in Longview, Texas, where his father worked in the oil industry; his mother was a nurse. The family moved several times, and Fox graduated from Rayville High School in Louisiana in 1963. He then studied art and business at Louisiana Tech University, where he met Homer Flynn, and graduated in 1967.
In September 2018 Fox added to his website the dates "1945–2018", although he was known to be alive (but unwell) after the dates were published. Fox died on October 30, 2018, from brain cancer, aged 73. He was identified in obituaries as the co-founder and primary composer of the Residents. On December 14, 2018, the official Residents mailing list acknowledged Fox as "engineer, producer and sometime composer of much of the Residents’ best-loved work".
Frequent collaborators
Since their inception, The Residents have had a number of credited collaborators. These collaborators, despite not being anonymous, can be considered by some definition, Residents.
1971–1975
During the band's formative years, its main members consisted of The Singing Resident, Hardy Fox, jazz pianist James Whittaker, and bassist Bob Tagney, the later two of which are credited as writers on the 2018 LP release of The Warner Brothers album. This lineup, along with Snakefinger, who would join the group in late 1971, are credited as the 'core' members of the group on the 2013 early demos compilation, The Delta Nudes Greatest Hiss. Bob Tagney and James Whittaker are also two of the only credited collaborators on the band's debut album, Meet the Residents, Whittaker, as the pianist on "Spotted Pinto Bean", and Tagney as the co-bassist on "Infant Tango". Female vocalist Pamela Zeibak was also one of The Residents' frequent collaborators during this time, with credits on The Delta Nudes Greatest Hiss, Meet The Residents, The Third Reich 'n Roll, and Fingerprince.Joshua Raoul Brody began working with The Residents in the mid-1970s, when he was invited to the set of their film Vileness Fats. Shortly after this he worked with the group anonymously by arranging the backing vocals on their "Satisfaction" single. In the 1980s, Brody began to receive credit for his work with The Residents under the pseudonym "Raoul N. Di Seimbote", but by 1987, he was using his own name. Brody most recently worked with The Residents on their 2020 God In Three Persons live show.
1976–1983
In early 1976, Snakefinger returned to the US, and continued his collaborations with The Residents, and was credited on a majority of The Residents' major releases up until his death in 1987. At the same time, drummer Don Jakovich started working with the band, making credited appearances on Satisfaction, Fingerprince, Snakefinger's Chewing Hides the Sound, and Commercial Album. He also performed with them in costume as part of their June 1976 live debut.
Following the demise of Henry Cow, former members Chris Cutler and Fred Frith began making appearances on Residents material as drummer and guitarist respectively. Frith first appeared with The Residents on the Subterranean Modern anthology, and Cutler on the Eskimo album. The following year both featured on The Commercial Album, with Frith receiving the credit of 'Extra Hard Working Guest Musician'.
Nessie Lessons, the wife of Hardy Fox, began to make appearances on Residents releases between 1980 and 1983, initially as an uncredited female vocalist. Lessons was first credited on The Tunes of Two Cities, toured with the band from 1982–1983, and acted as the group's spokesperson when Penn Jillette was unavailable. Her final work as a regular collaborator was on the song "HellNo", for the soundtrack to the 1984 film The Census Taker.
For The Mole Show, The Residents also had dancers: Kathleen French, Carol Werner LeMaitre, Sarah McLennan Walker and Chris Van Ralte. Carol LeMaitre and Sarah McLennan went on to portray The Residents on stage during the 13th Anniversary Show, and the dancers in Cube-E.
1987–1993
Starting in 1987, The Residents began working with female vocalist Laurie Amat, who went on to become The Residents' primary female vocalist for much of the 1990s. Her final role as a regular collaborator was on the 1998 Wormwood album. Another female vocalist from this period was Diane Alden, who first appeared on the Freak Show album, she once again worked with the group up until Wormwood. Tony Janssen, who was first credited as an engineer on the band's Cube-E album, eventually became a male vocalist for the band and provided the voice of Tex the Barker in their Freak Show projects.
1994–2014
During recording of their Gingerbread Man album, The Singing Resident met future singer Molly Harvey at a coffee store, and invited her to record vocals for the song 'The Old Woman'.The Residents - Gingerbread Man Credits - MVDaudio, MVD8193A, 2016 Following this she became a core member of The Residents' team of collaborators, and appeared on all of their mainline albums and live shows until 2005's Animal Lover. Also appearing for the first time on Gingerbread Man was Isabelle Barbier, a young actress who would make occasional appearances with The Residents up until The Ghost of Hope in 2017.
The Residents' 1998–2000 Wormwood project introduced three important figures in Residents history, Carla Fabrizio, Nolan Cook and Toby Dammit. Dammit briefly played with The Residents live from 1999 to 2003, and performed on the Demons Dance Alone album. Carla played with The Residents in concert until the 2008 Bunny Boy tour, and has worked with the band on their studio albums as recently as 2020. Nolan Cook acted as The Residents' lead guitarist both in concert and in the studio for over twenty years, most recently appearing on their 2020 God In Three Persons live project.
In the years following Molly Harvey''s departure, professional voice actress Gerri Lawlor began to make regular appearances on The Residents spoken-word projects, Tweedles, The River of Crime, The Voice Of Midnight and Lonely Teenager. Corey Rosen also began working with The Residents during this time, on The River of Crime, The Voice of Midnight, and The Bunny Boy web series.
2015–present
Following the departure of Hardy Fox in 2015, Eric Drew Feldman was asked to help with some of the duties previously undertaken by him. Along with Feldman, performers Laurie Hall and Peter Whitehead began appearing on Residents releases, starting with The Ghost of Hope. Hall stopped working with them following the release of Intruders, which introduced Sivan Lioncub.
The lineup of collaborators as featured on The Residents' latest album, Metal Meat & Bone, includes Eric Drew Feldman, Carla Fabrizio, Nolan Cook, Peter Whitehead, and Sivan Lioncub.
Discography
Studio albums
Meet the Residents – 1974
The Third Reich 'n Roll – 1976
Fingerprince – 1977
Not Available – 1978 (Recorded In 1974)
Duck Stab! / Buster and Glen – 1978
Eskimo – 1979
Commercial Album – 1980
Mark of the Mole – 1981
The Tunes of Two Cities – 1982
Title in Limbo with Renaldo and the Loaf – 1983 (Recorded In 1981)
George & James – 1984
Assorted Secrets (Live In the Studio) – 1984
Whatever Happened to Vileness Fats? – 1984
The Census Taker – 1985
The Big Bubble – 1985
Stars & Hank Forever! – 1986
God In Three Persons – 1988
God In Three Persons Soundtrack (Instrumental Version of "God In Three Persons") – 1988
Buckaroo Blues – 1989
The King & Eye – 1989
Freak Show – 1990
Our Finest Flowers – 1992
Poor Kaw-Liga's Pain (Remixes) – 1994
Gingerbread Man – 1994
Hunters – 1995
Have a Bad Day – 1996
Wormwood: Curious Stories From the Bible – 1998
Roadworm: The Berlin Sessions (Live In the Studio) – 2000
Dot.com (compilation of various digital singles released between 1999 and 2000) – 2000
Icky Flix (soundtrack of a DVD consisting of re-recordings) – 2001
Demons Dance Alone – 2002
12 Days of Brumalia (consists of a compilation of 13 virtual singles released between December 24, 2003 and January 5, 2004) – 2004
WB:RMX (Remixes derived from the unrealeses album "The W***** B*** Album (The Warner Bros. Album) " recorded between 1970 and 1971) – 2004
The King and Eye: RMX (Remixes of "The King and Eye") – 2004
I Murdered Mommy! – 2004 (Recorded In 1994)
Animal Lover – 2005
The River of Crime – 2006
Tweedles! – 2006
The River of Crime Instrumental Soundtrack (Instrumental version of "The River of Crime") – 2006
Night of the Hunters (Overdubs to the 1995 album "Hunters") – 2007
The Voice of Midnight – 2007
The Bunny Boy – 2008
Postcards From Patmos – 2008
The Fillmore Dress Rehearsal (Live In the Studio) - 2009 (recorded in 1997)
RMX (consists of several remixes released as singles in 2007) – 2009
Hades (later released in 2011 as The River of Hades) – 2009
The Ughs! – 2009 (Recorded In 2006)
Live at the Snakey Wake (Live Without Audience) - 2010 (recorded in 1987)
Dollar General (with Charles Bobuck) – 2010
Talking Light Live In Rehearsal (Live In the Studio) - 2010 (reheaesals of Talking Light tour)
Chuck's Ghost Music (credited to "The Residents' Talking Light" and later credited to Charles Bobuck) – 2010
Lonely Teenager – 2011
D*ck S*ab (credited to Th* R*esidents) - 2012 (re-recordings of "Duck Stab! / Buster and Glen")
Coochie Brake (credited to "Sonidos de la Noche") – 2012
Bad Day On The Midway: Music From the Game Reconsidered – 2012 (overdubs of 1995 recordings for a game soundtrack)
Mush-Room (later credited to Charles Bobuck) – 2013
The Theory of Obscurity – 2014
The Ghost of Hope – 2017
I Am a Resident! - 2018
And So Are We... - 2018 (bonus disc of I Am a Resident)
Intruders - 2018
Music to Eat Bricks By – 2019 (Recorded In 2006)
A Nickle If Your Dick's This Big – 2019 (Combination of "The W***** B*** Album (The Warner Bros. Album)" recorded between 1970 and 1971, and "B.S. (Baby Sex)" recorded in 1971)
Metal, Meat & Bone: The Songs of Dyin' Dog - 2020
The World of Weird Demos 1 (Live In the Studio) - 2021 (rehearsals of the Wonder of Weird Tour, recorded in 2012)
Mole Dance 82 (Live In the Studio) - 2021 (reheaesals for the Mole Show, recorded in 1982)
Demo albums
The Residents Radio Special - (includes released content) - 1977 (legal releases in 1983)
Residue of the Residents – 1983 (recorded between 1971 and 1983)
Stranger Than Supper (includes released content) - 1990 (recorded between 1985 and 1990, and 1971)
Our Tired, Our Poor, Our Huddled Masses (the third disc includes released content) – 1997 (recorded between 1971 and 1996)
Petting Zoo – 2002 (recorded between 1973 and 2002)
Animal Lover Instrumental – 2008 (recorded in the Animal Lover sessions, between 2004 and 2005)
Smell My Picture – 2008 (recorded between 2006 and 2007)
The Bridegroom of Blood – 2009 (recorded between 1998 and 2005)
Ten Little Piggies – 2009 (recorded between 2005 and 2009)
El Año del Muerto – 2009 (recorded between 1971 and 2008)
Arkansas - 2009 (recording in the Bunny Boy sessions, 2008)
Tabasco: Tweedles Instrumental - 2010 (recorded in the Tweedles! sessions, 2006)
Night Train to Nowhere! - 2012 (recorded in 2009)
Ten Two Times - 2013 (recorded between 1972 and 2012)
Eyeful - 2020 (recorded between 1983 and 2012, all those recordings were released as single in 2012)
Anganok – 2020 (recorded in 1991)
Leftovers Again?! – 2021 (recorded between 1971 and 1979)
Live albums
The Mole Show – 1983
Live In Japan – 1986
Live In the USA! – 1986
Live In Holland – 1987
Buckaroo Blues and Black Barry (often referred to simply as Black Barry to avoid confusion with the studio album "Buckaroo Blues") - 1989
Mole Show: Live In Holland – 1989 (recorded in 1983)
Liver Music - 1990 (recorded between 1971 and 1990)
Cube-E - Live In Holland – 1990
Daydream B-Liver – 1991 (recorded between 1971 and 1991)
Live at the Fillmore – 1998
Wormwood Live 1999 – 1999
Demons Dance Alone DVD – 2002
Kettles of Fish On the Outskirts of Town – 2003 (recorded between 1971-2001)
The Residents Play Wormwood – 2005 (recorded in 1999)
The Way We Were – 2005
JJJ 105.7 Radio Show – 2009 (recorded in 1982)
Icky Flix Live –2009 (recorded in 2001)
Prague and Beyond – 2009 (recorded in 1995, with two bonus tracks recorded in 2001)
Adobe Disfigured Night – 2009 (recorded in 1997)
The Malboro Eyeball Experience – 2009 (recorded in 1997)
Oh Mummy! Oh Daddy! Can't You See That It's True; What the Beatles Did to Me, I Love Lucy Did to You – 2010 (recorded in 1976)
Ritz NY – 2010 (recorded in 1986)
Brava – 2010 (recorded in 2001)
Talking Light Bimbo's – 2011
Cube-E Dynasone 3EZ EP – 2011 (recorded in 1989, remixed in 2000)
Triple Dub-Ya – 2012 (recorded in 2005, remixed in 2012)
The Wonder of Weird - 2014 (recorded in 2013, inaudible audience)
Demonic! – 2013 (recorded in 2003)
The Wonder of Weird – 2014
Cleveland – 2014 (recorded in 1986)
Shadowland – 2015 (recorded in 2014)
Disfigured Night – 2016 (full version of 1997 album of the same name)
In Between Dreams – 2019 (recorded in 2018)
Dreaming of an Eyeball Beaming – 2019 (recorded between 2018 and 2019)
Bunny Boy: Live in Frankfurt – 2021 (recorded in 2008)
God In 3 Persons Live – 2020
Singles / EPs
Santa Dog EP – 1972
"Satisfaction" – 1976
The Beatles Play the Residents and the Residents Play the Beatles – 1977
Duck Stab! – 1978
"Santa Dog '78" – 1978
Diskomo / Goosebump – 1980
The Commercial Single – 1980
Intermission – 1982
"It's a Man's Man's Man's World" – 1984
"Kaw-liga" – 1986
"Hit the Road Jack" – 1987
"Double Shot" – 1988
"Holy Kiss of Flesh" – 1988
"Don't Be Cruel" – 1989
"Rushing Like a Banshee" – 2016
"DIE! DIE! DIE!" – 2020
"Bury My Bone" – 2020
Video releases
The Mole Show/Whatever Happened to Vileness Fats? (VHS) –1984
The Eyes Scream: A History of the Residents (VHS) (with host Penn Jillette) – 1991
Twenty Twisted Questions (Laserdisc) – 1992
Icky Flix (DVD) – 2001
Eskimo (DVD) – 2002
Disfigured Night (DVD) – 2002
Demons Dance Alone (DVD) – 2003
The Commercial DVD (DVD) – 2004
The Residents play Wormwood (DVD) – 2005
Is Anybody Out There? (DVD) – 2009
Randy's Ghost Stories (DVD) – 2010
Talking Light Bimbo's (DVD) – 2011
Other
Freak Show (comic) – 1992
Freak Show (CD-ROM) – 1994
References
Further reading
Meet the Residents – America's most eccentric band!, Ian Shirley, SAF Publishing, Wembley, UK, 1998
External links
Official YouTube page
"More Than What The Ear Hears Coming From The Eye",
"The Most Ever Company",
"Twin Peaks Meets SimCity", WIRED article on The Residents, page on the "Theory of Obscurity"
American artist groups and collectives
American experimental musical groups
American progressive rock groups
Avant-pop musicians
Surrealist groups
Bands with fictional stage personas
Cordless Recordings artists
Masked musicians
Musical groups from the San Francisco Bay Area
Mute Records artists
Pranksters
American surrealist artists
Musical groups established in 1969
Unidentified people
Avant-garde music groups | false | [
"Přírodní park Třebíčsko (before Oblast klidu Třebíčsko) is a natural park near Třebíč in the Czech Republic. There are many interesting plants. The park was founded in 1983.\n\nKobylinec and Ptáčovský kopeček\n\nKobylinec is a natural monument situated ca 0,5 km from the village of Trnava.\nThe area of this monument is 0,44 ha. Pulsatilla grandis can be found here and in the Ptáčovský kopeček park near Ptáčov near Třebíč. Both monuments are very popular for tourists.\n\nPonds\n\nIn the natural park there are some interesting ponds such as Velký Bor, Malý Bor, Buršík near Přeckov and a brook Březinka. Dams on the brook are examples of European beaver activity.\n\nSyenitové skály near Pocoucov\n\nSyenitové skály (rocks of syenit) near Pocoucov is one of famed locations. There are interesting granite boulders. The area of the reservation is 0,77 ha.\n\nExternal links\nParts of this article or all article was translated from Czech. The original article is :cs:Přírodní park Třebíčsko.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nNature near the village Trnava which is there\n\nTřebíč\nParks in the Czech Republic\nTourist attractions in the Vysočina Region",
"Damn Interesting is an independent website founded by Alan Bellows in 2005. The website presents true stories from science, history, and psychology, primarily as long-form articles, often illustrated with original artwork. Works are written by various authors, and published at irregular intervals. The website openly rejects advertising, relying on reader and listener donations to cover operating costs.\n\nAs of October 2012, each article is also published as a podcast under the same name. In November 2019, a second podcast was launched under the title Damn Interesting Week, featuring unscripted commentary on an assortment of news articles featured on the website's \"Curated Links\" section that week. In mid-2020, a third podcast called Damn Interesting Curio Cabinet began highlighting the website's periodic short-form articles in the same radioplay format as the original podcast.\n\nIn July 2009, Damn Interesting published the print book Alien Hand Syndrome through Workman Publishing. It contains some favorites from the site and some exclusive content.\n\nAwards and recognition \nIn August 2007, PC Magazine named Damn Interesting one of the \"Top 100 Undiscovered Web Sites\".\nThe article \"The Zero-Armed Bandit\" by Alan Bellows won a 2015 Sidney Award from David Brooks in The New York Times.\nThe article \"Ghoulish Acts and Dastardly Deeds\" by Alan Bellows was cited as \"nonfiction journalism from 2017 that will stand the test of time\" by Conor Friedersdorf in The Atlantic.\nThe article \"Dupes and Duplicity\" by Jennifer Lee Noonan won a 2020 Sidney Award from David Brooks in the New York Times.\n\nAccusing The Dollop of plagiarism \n\nOn July 9, 2015, Bellows posted an open letter accusing The Dollop, a comedy podcast about history, of plagiarism due to their repeated use of verbatim text from Damn Interesting articles without permission or attribution. Dave Anthony, the writer of The Dollop, responded on reddit, admitting to using Damn Interesting content, but claiming that the use was protected by fair use, and that \"historical facts are not copyrightable.\" In an article about the controversy on Plagiarism Today, Jonathan Bailey concluded, \"Any way one looks at it, The Dollop failed its ethical obligations to all of the people, not just those writing for Damn Interesting, who put in the time, energy and expertise into writing the original content upon which their show is based.\"\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Official website\n\n2005 podcast debuts"
] |
[
"The Residents",
"Storytelling projects (2006-09)",
"What type of stories did they like to write?",
"I don't know.",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"Summer of 2006 brought the internet download project, River of Crime ("
] | C_efa3e1045f514ebcbfedfcc182b59c64_1 | What was it about? | 3 | What was the internet download project, River of Crime about? | The Residents | Summer of 2006 brought the internet download project, River of Crime (Episodes 1-5). River of Crime was their first project with Warner Music Group's Cordless Label. Following the success of that album, the Residents launched their weekly Timmy video project on YouTube. In 2007 they did the soundtrack for the documentary Strange Culture and also released a double instrumental album, Night of the Hunters. On the Fourth of July 2007, the planned October release of its latest project with Mute Records, The Voice of Midnight (a music theater adaptation of E.T.A. Hoffmann's short story "Der Sandmann"), was announced on its Web site. On the May 21 the band announced on its website that its first North America tour since Demons Dance Alone for a project titled The Bunny Boy was set to begin on October 9 in New York--later an earlier date was added for Santa Cruz. Soon, it was announced that the tour would also include Europe, starting November 13. On June 3, the Residents.com Web site boasted the planned release of The Bunny Boy, which was released on September 1. The Web site had posted information in which "Foxboro" claimed this would be a farewell tour; it was later revealed that this was nothing more than a mistake by Foxboro. November 3, 2009, saw three new releases. The Ughs! is a mostly instrumental album made up of music composed earlier in the band's career, which had been completely reworked for the Voice of Midnight album. Ten Little Piggies is a "futurist compilation", ten songs from projects that may or may not be released in the future. Finally, Is Anybody out There is a DVD collecting all the Bunny Boy videos from the series posted on YouTube. The episodes are streamlined and not exactly the same as the originals. CANNOTANSWER | River of Crime was their first project with Warner Music Group's Cordless Label. | The Residents are an American art collective best known for their avant-garde music and multimedia works. Since their first official release, Meet the Residents (1974), they have released over 60 albums, numerous music videos and short films, three CD-ROM projects, and ten DVDs. They have undertaken seven major world tours and scored multiple films. Pioneers in exploring the potential of CD-ROM and similar technologies, the Residents have won several awards for their multimedia projects. They founded Ralph Records, a record label focusing on avant-garde music, in 1972.
Throughout the group's existence, the individual members have ostensibly attempted to work anonymously, preferring to have attention focused on their art. Much speculation and rumor has focused on this aspect of the group. In public, they appear silent and costumed, often wearing eyeball helmets, top hats and tails—a costume now recognized as their signature iconography. In 2017, Hardy Fox, long known to be associated with the Residents, identified himself as the band's co-founder and primary composer; he died in 2018.
The Residents' albums generally fall into two categories: deconstructions of Western popular music, and complex conceptual pieces composed around a theme, theory or plot. The group is noted for surrealistic lyrics and sound, with a disregard for conventional music composition.
History
1965–1972: Origins and Residents Unincorporated
The artists who became The Residents met in high school in Shreveport, Louisiana in the early 1960s. Around 1965, they began making their first amateur home tape recordings and making art together with a number of friends. In 1966, intending to join the flourishing hippie movement, they headed west for San Francisco, but when their truck broke down in San Mateo, California they decided to remain there.
While attempting to make a living, the group purchased crude recording equipment and began to refine their recording and editing skills, as well as photography, painting, and anything remotely to do with art that they could afford. The Residents have acknowledged the existence of at least two unreleased reel-to-reel items from this era, titled The Ballad of Stuffed Trigger and Rusty Coathangers for the Doctor. The Cryptic Corporation has confirmed that their archives contain many tapes dating back decades, but because they were recorded before the group officially became the Residents, the band does not consider them part of its discography.
Word of the unnamed group's experimentation spread, and in 1969 British guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Philip Lithman, known as Snakefinger, began to participate with them. Around this time they also met the mysterious (and perhaps apocryphal) N. Senada, whom Lithman had picked up during an expedition in Bavaria. The two Europeans became great influences and life-long collaborators with the group.
In 1971, the group sent a reel-to-reel demo tape to Hal Halverstadt at Warner Bros., as he had signed Captain Beefheart, one of the group's heroes, to the label. Halverstadt was not impressed with The Warner Bros. Album, but gave it an "A for Ariginality". Because the band had not included a name in the return address, the rejection slip was addressed to "Residents". The group decided to use this name, first becoming Residents Uninc., then shortening it to the current name.
The first known public performance of the Residents, Uninc. was at the Boarding House in San Francisco in 1971. The brief, guerrilla-style performance took the audience by surprise. A photo from it, showing Lithman playing violin with his pinky "about to strike the violin like a snake", originated the stage name he used for the rest of his life, Snakefinger. Later in 1971, a second tape was completed called Baby Sex, featuring a long collage partially consisting of recordings from the Boarding House performance. The cover art for the tape box was a silk-screened copy of an old photo depicting a woman fellating a small child, an example of the extremely confrontational and deliberately puerile visual and lyrical style the group adopted during this period.
Alleged early influence
N. Senada (which may be a play on Ensenada, en se nada meaning "in himself nothing," no sé nada meaning "I don't know anything" or enseñada, a form of the past participle meaning "taught") was said to be a Bavarian composer and music theorist who formulated the "Theory of Obscurity" and the "Theory of Phonetic Organization". His "Theory of Obscurity" states that an artist can only produce pure art when the expectations and influences of the outside world are not taken into consideration; while his "Theory of Phonetic Organization" states, "the musician should put the sounds first, building the music up from [them] rather than developing the music, then working down to the sounds that make it up."
There is a debate as to whether or not Senada, supposedly having been born in 1907 and dying in 1993 at the age of 86, actually existed, or was simply an invention of the Residents. It is frequently speculated that, if real, N. Senada may have been the famous avant-garde composer and instrument-designer Harry Partch, the influence of whose work may be heard in Residents compositions such as "Six Things to a Cycle"; his death is also referenced in the song "Death in Barstow". Another rumor speculates that N. Senada may have been Captain Beefheart, because in the late 1960s Beefheart and his "Magic Band" lived in a residence on Ensenada Drive in Woodland Hills, California, while recording Trout Mask Replica and Safe as Milk; Beefheart's influence can also be heard in early Residents works. The Residents also sent an early demo tape to the Warner Brothers executive Hal Halverstadt who had signed Beefheart.
According to The Residents, in 1937, N. Senada premiered his masterpiece, Pollex Christi, which means either Thumb of Christ or Big Toe of Christ. This work mainly consisted of borrowed pieces from other composers, namely Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 and Carl Orff's Carmina Burana, among others. He also left large holes in the work so that the performers could insert music of their choosing, thus "becoming composers themselves". Senada justified his work with "house" analogies claiming that he did not make the "bricks" but "cemented them together"; he was not the "architect", just the "builder". N. Senada allegedly collaborated with The Residents on their work prior to "Santa Dog" and "Meet The Residents", and then disappeared. He resurfaced in the mid-1970s, returning from an Arctic expedition and bearing a sealed bottle of pure Arctic air; this served as inspiration for the Eskimo project.
1972–1980: "Classic" era
Santa Dog, Meet The Residents, Not Available & The Third Reich 'n Roll (1972–1976)
In early 1972, the band left San Mateo and relocated to 20 Sycamore St, San Francisco; a studio they named "El Ralpho", which boasted a completely open ground floor (seemingly ideal for a sound stage), allowing the group to expand their operations and also begin preliminary work on their most ambitious project up to that point, a full-length film entitled Vileness Fats, which consumed most of their attention for the next four years. Intended to be the first-ever long form music video, The Residents saw this project as an opportunity to create the ultimate cult film. After four years of filming (from 1972 to 1976) the project was reluctantly cancelled because of time, space, and monetary constraints. Fifteen hours of footage was shot for the project, yet only approximately 35 minutes of that footage has ever been released.
The group also formed Ralph Records at this time, as a small, independent label to release and promote their own work. In 1972, to inaugurate the new business, the group recorded and pressed the Santa Dog EP, their first recorded output to be released to the public. Designed to resemble a Christmas card from an insurance company, the EP consisted of two 7" singles, one song on each side. The four songs were presented as being by four different bands (Ivory & The Braineaters, Delta Nudes, the College Walkers, and Arf & Omega featuring the Singing Lawnchairs), with only a small note on the interior of the gatefold sleeve mentioning the participation of "Residents, Uninc."
They sent copies of Santa Dog to west coast radio stations with no response until Bill Reinhardt, program director of KBOO-FM in Portland, Oregon received a copy and played it heavily on his show. Reinhardt met the Residents at their studio at 20 Sycamore St. in the summer of 1973 with the news of his broadcasts. The Residents gave Reinhardt exclusive access to all their recordings, including copies of the original masters of Stuffed Trigger, Baby Sex, and The Warner Bros. Album.
Throughout this point, the group had been manipulating old tapes they had collected and regularly recording jam sessions, and these recordings eventually became the group's debut full-length album, Meet The Residents, which was released in 1974 on Ralph. To aid in promoting the group, Reinhardt was given 50 of the first 1,000 copies of Meet the Residents. Some were sent to friends, listeners and critics, and two dozen were left for sale on consignment at the Music Millennium record store, where they sat unsold for months. KBOO DJ Barry Schwam (a.k.a. Schwump, who also recorded with the Residents) promoted them on his program as well. Eventually, KBOO airplay attracted a cult following.Following the release of Meet The Residents, the group began working on a follow-up entitled Not Available, following N. Senada's theory of obscurity. The LP was recorded and compiled completely in private, and would not be released until the group had completely forgotten about its existence.
During breaks in the sessions for Vileness Fats, the group would record their next project, entitled The Third Reich 'n Roll, over the course of a year between October 1974 and October 1975. The album consisted of two side-long medleys of the band covering popular songs from 1950s and 1960s, whilst toying with the concept of the popularity of rock 'n' roll being comparable to that of the rise of Nazism in the 1930s. The resulting LP was released in 1976, and was the group's first project to feature a music video, created by syncing an old video of the group performing with an edited version of "Swastikas on Parade".
After the Third Reich 'n Rolls release, a group of enterprising friends and collaborators from their early days in San Mateo — Homer Flynn, Hardy Fox, Jay Clem and John Kennedy — also joined the group in San Francisco, forming what became the Cryptic Corporation to manage and represent the band. Clem became the band's spokesman; Fox edited, produced and compiled the band's increasingly prolific output; Flynn was already handling the group's cover design and promotional art under the banner of Pore Know Graphics; and Kennedy took the role of "President" (admittedly a fairly empty title, as overall responsibilities were handled more or less equally by the four). The Cryptic Corporation took over the day-to-day operations of Ralph Records, and provided the band with an improved public relations platform.
Shortly after the introduction of the Cryptic Corporation, the Residents recorded their "Satisfaction" single, the B-side of which featured the Residents' first work with the ARP Odyssey, the first synthesizer owned by the group, purchased by the Cryptics.
Eskimo, Fingerprince, Duck Stab, & Rise in popularity (1976–1979)
Following "Satisfaction", the group began recording Eskimo in April 1976; a concept album based upon the Theory of Phonetic Organisation that suggests that music should not be confined to chords and structures, but instead should simply be a collection of fascinating noises. The album would feature acoustic soundscapes inspired by Inuit culture, whilst parodying American ignorance of other cultures. The Eskimo sessions would last many years, and feature many divergences, the first of which, in November 1976, resulting in Fingerprince, a collection of unused recordings from the Third Reich 'n Roll, Not Available, and Eskimo sessions.
Fingerprince received considerable coverage in the British press, and was the first LP by the group to receive any critical attention when Jon Savage reviewed the album and its two predecessors favorably for the December 31st issue of Sounds magazine. This review gained the group considerable attention, with many of their previously unsold mail-order items being sold seemingly overnight. The sudden success of Fingerprince and its predecessors caused the group to briefly halt production on Eskimo to create something more appealing to their newfound audience.
The Residents followed up Fingerprince with their Duck Stab! EP – their most accessible release up to that point. This EP got the band some attention from the press (namely NME, Sounds and Melody Maker), and was followed in 1978 by the Duck Stab/Buster & Glen album, which paired the EP with a similar, concurrently recorded EP which had not been released separately. The group then continued work on Eskimo, which proved a very difficult project, marked by many conflicts between the band and their management, which led to a number of delays in the release date.
The sudden attention afforded to them by the success of the Duck Stab! EP and "Satisfaction" single required an album release as soon as possible to help fund the band's spiraling recording costs, and to meet the demand for new Residents material. This forced the release of the band's long-shelved "second album" Not Available in 1978. The Residents were not bothered by this deviation from the original plan not to release the album, as the 1978 release ultimately did not affect the philosophical conditions under which it was originally recorded.
Eskimo was finally released in 1979 to much acclaim, even making it to the final list for nominations for a Grammy award in 1980, although the album wasn't nominated. Rather than being songs in the orthodox sense, the compositions on Eskimo sounded like "live-action stories" without dialogue. The cover art of Eskimo also presents the first instance of the group wearing eyeball masks and tuxedos, which was later considered by many to be the group's signature costume. The Residents had only intended to wear these costumes for the cover of Eskimo, but adopted the costumes in the longer term as it provided them with a unique and recognisable image.
The group followed Eskimo with Commercial Album in 1980. The LP featured 40 songs, each exactly one minute in length. Around this time, two short films were made in collaboration with Graeme Whifler: One Minute Movies, consisting of four music videos for tracks from the Commercial Album; and a video for "Hello Skinny" from the Duck Stab LP. Created at a time when MTV (and what later became known as "music video" in general) was in its infancy, the group's videos were in heavy rotation since they were among the few music videos available to broadcasters.
1981–1990: New technology and live performances
Mark of the Mole & The Mole Show (1981–1983)
The Residents' follow up to Commercial Album was Mark of the Mole, released in 1981. The album was a reaction to the group feeling betrayed by a suddenly disinterested music press.
Shortly after the release of Mark of the Mole, The Residents purchased one of the first ever E-Mu Emulator samplers, number #00005 specifically. The instrument was revolutionary for the band, as the sampling capacities of the keyboard not only allowed them to recreate instruments the members were not able to play, but also gave them the opportunity to create their meticulously crafted studio sound in a live setting. The first album the band recorded using the emulator was The Tunes of Two Cities, the second part of the Mole Trilogy, which was nearly entirely recorded using the Emulator.
Following the release of Cities, the Residents started rehearsing for a possible live show, eventually developing their first touring project, the Mole Show, a theatrical retelling of their Mark of the Mole album. The band debuted the show with a test performance, on April 10, 1982, before a tour of California in October, and a European tour throughout mid 1983. The show featured Penn Jillette as the narrator, playing a similar role as he had previously done with the Ralph Records 10th Anniversary radio special.
A third leg, featuring dates in New York, was booked, but had to be cancelled after one performance due to lack of funding. Following the Mole Show, the band was broke, and as such attempted to recoup some of their losses with several archival releases, including a collection of outtakes called Residue in 1983, and a VHS containing recordings from the Mole Show as well as a newly-scored edit of Vileness Fats footage.
The American Composers Series, 13th Anniversary Show, and the end of Ralph (1984–1987)
Deciding to take a break from part three of the Mole Trilogy, the Residents began a new project entitled the American Composers Series, a planned series of 10 albums which would pay tribute to pop artists and instrumental composers from the United States. The first result of this pairing was George & James, featuring the music of George Gershwin and James Brown. Following the release of George & James, the Residents finally abandoned part three of the Mole Trilogy, choosing instead to record a fourth entry entitled The Big Bubble, featuring very stripped-down instrumentation in order to portray a fictional garage rock band. No further entries into the Mole Trilogy have been recorded, and the project is considered abandoned.
When The Big Bubble was released in Japan by Wave Records, it was an unquestioned success, with its popularity resulting in Wave funding a two-week tour of Japan for the group in October 1985. The tour was successful, and re-ignited the group's interest in creating live performances. As a result, they eventually embarked on their 13th Anniversary world tour, ranging from 1985 to 1987, with Snakefinger playing electric guitar. As for studio work, the group eventually released their second entry into the American Composers series, Stars & Hank Forever, featuring the music of Hank Williams and John Philip Sousa. Their version of the Williams song "Kaw-liga" was particularly successful in the emerging club scene.
Due to licensing costs and the emerging CD format, the American Composers series was later abandoned. Stars & Hank Forever was the last Residents project Snakefinger would play on, as he later died of a heart attack in July 1987.
Following the release of the 13th Anniversary Show LP in 1986 and a cover of "Hit the Road Jack" in 1987, the Cryptic Corporation resigned control of Ralph Records over to Tom & Sheenah Timony, and the Residents signed to Rykodisc. Tom and Sheenah would later turn Ralph into a new label, T.E.C. Tones, and establish the Residents' official fan club from 1988 to 1993 - UWEB (Uncle Willie's Eyeball Buddies).
God in Three Persons, Cube E, and (1987–1990)
After two compilation CDs titled Heaven? and Hell!, the Residents' first new project for Ryko was titled God in Three Persons, an hour-long poem in the form of a spoken-word rock opera. This was the first new Residents album to be released on CD, and the last Residents project to be entirely recorded on analog tape, as the group moved on to MIDI technology; their first venture into MIDI would be scoring episodes for Pee-wee's Playhouse in 1987. Despite initially mixed critical and commercial reaction, God in Three Persons today is considered one of the group's masterworks.
On November 18, 1987, at a party in Amsterdam for Boudisque Records, the Residents' European label, they premiered a new work titled Buckaroo Blues, a suite of cowboy songs. After a choreographed TELE5 appearance in April 1988, this suite would be coupled with a second one titled Black Barry, a suite of "black music" (that is, blues and gospel), and form the first act of the Residents' next touring project, Cube-E: The History of American Music in 3EZ Pieces. After the show's debut in New York, on July 21, 1989, it was decided to add a third act consisting of covers of Elvis Presley songs, completing the equation "Cowboy music + Black music = Rock and roll." The show took on a much more theatrical approach than the 13th Anniversary tour, with elaborate set designs, costumes, lighting and choreography. Cube-E toured from September 1989 to November 1990, and was successful, both critically and financially.
A studio version of the third act was also released and titled The King & Eye. The album was recorded at Different Fur Studios and released on Enigma Records around the time the tour began in September 1989. Further television work was also being done for MTV, with the Residents scoring and doing voice work for Liquid Television and the Henry Selick-directed pilot "Slow Bob in the Lower Dimensions."
1990–1997: Multimedia projects
Freak Show, CD-ROMs, and the 25th anniversary (1991–1997)
Recordings for a new studio album were worked on during breaks in the Cube-E tour, and shortly after the tour ended, Freak Show was released. An album detailing the lives and personalities of fictional carnival freaks, the Freak Show project would spawn many other iterations, such as a graphic novel in collaboration with comic artists from Dark Horse, such as Brian Bolland and Matt Howarth, and a promotional video created with the help of New York artist John Sanborn, which also presented a music video for "Harry the Head", animated by computer artist Jim Ludtke - both artists would go on to collaborate with the Residents on many further projects.
A partnership with Voyager in 1992 allowed the Residents to develop a laserdisc titled Twenty Twisted Questions to celebrate their twentieth anniversary. Along with this laserdisc, a studio album was recorded, titled Our Finest Flowers. Not quite a "greatest hits" compilation, many tracks on the album borrow elements from previous songs in the Residents' catalog.
The Residents' collaboration with Jim Ludtke would result in the creation of the Freak Show and Bad Day on the Midway CD-ROMs. Both of these projects featured many other collaborations with visual artists, including returning collaborators from the Freak Show graphic novel, such as Richard Sala and Dave McKean. The Residents enjoyed quite a bit of critical and financial success with these CD-ROMs, winning several industry awards. However, during early development stages for a third CD-ROM titled I Murdered Mommy, their distributor Inscape was forced to dissolve due to oversaturation and obsoletion of the CD-ROM market.
Despite majorly occupying themselves with CD-ROM development, the Residents still remained musically active, releasing an enhanced CD album titled Gingerbread Man (an observation and study of nine fictional characters) in 1994, and scoring the Discovery Channel documentary series Hunters in 1995. Freak Show would also get a live adaptation in November 1995, at the Archa Theater in Prague. While the Residents did act as music and stage directors for the show, they did not actually perform - the music was conducted and performed by Czech band Už Jsme Doma, while actors and dancers played their roles on stage.
Freak Show Live would be the last iteration of the Freak Show brand; while a DVD was being developed in 2003, the early death of animator Jim Ludtke immediately brought the project to a halt.
Around this time, singer/performer Molly Harvey was recruited to work with the group. While her first appearance in a Residents project was the Gingerbread Man album, she would officially become a member of the group in 1997, with a one-off performance at the Popkomm festival in Germany titled Disfigured Night. This performance would later become the second act of a special 25th anniversary show at the Fillmore in San Francisco, in October 1997.
1998-2009: New collaborators / The 2nd millennium
Return to touring: Wormwood, Icky Flix, and Demons Dance Alone (1998–2005)
Due to the collapse of the CD-ROM market, a collective decision was made to tour again. While keeping up with their theatrical tendencies by regular use of costumes and stage props, the Residents would also perform and record with a team of guest musicians: the aforementioned Molly Harvey (vocals), Nolan Cook (guitar), Carla Fabrizio (arrangements and vocals), Toby Dammit (drums), and later on in 2002, Eric Drew Feldman (keyboards). Some of the band members, notably Feldman and Fabrizio, went on to collaborate with the group on numerous other projects up until the present time, while Cook eventually became a full-time band member. Fabrizio's connections with the Balinese gamelan ensemble Gamelan Sekar Jaya allowed for occasional collaborations between the two groups during this period.
The first tour with this new band formation was for the 1998 album Wormwood, a collection of songs depicting typically gruesome stories from the Holy Bible, mostly from the Old Testament. While the studio album only featured Harvey, Fabrizio and Dammit as guests (with Dammit only taking occasional vocal duties), the band would be mostly fully formed by the time of the show's live debut at the Fillmore in October 1998. The Wormwood show toured up to July 1999, and featured drastically different arrangements of songs from the album, mostly darker and heavier, as well as new or unused material related to the concept. Some of these arrangements would be recorded for a studio album titled Roadworms, and a DVD of the live show would be released in 2005.
The same band formation would later tour to promote the Residents' first DVD, Icky Flix - a compilation of most of the group's music videos, as well as new animated videos and a re-recorded soundtrack, to celebrate the group's upcoming 30th anniversary. These re-recorded arrangements would be performed on the show as their corresponding videos would be played from the DVD on a screen.
On the event of the September 11 attacks, the Residents were still touring Icky Flix in Europe. The resulting fear and anxiety caused by the attacks would eventually result in the recording of Demons Dance Alone in 2002. While not a direct response to the events, the songs on the album portrayed the negative emotions felt by the group and its individual members, and this was reflected in the album's subsequent tour, from October 2002 to September 2003. The group's next major album, the 2005 Animal Lover, contained lyrics of a similarly tragic nature, although in a more abstract manner. The album also contained a booklet with stories which presented the songs from the point of view of animals. Animal Lover was also the first Residents album to be released on the Mute label, which would be solely responsible for the Residents' major releases up until 2008.
Animal Lover is currently the last Residents album to feature Molly Harvey, who moved to Atlanta to live with her husband at the time. Her last appearance as a member of the Residents was at a small series of shows titled The Way We Were at the "What is Music?" festival in Australia. The show's setlist was a career retrospective much in the style of the 13th Anniversary tour - the last time the Residents had toured Australia.
2005-2009: The "Storyteller" era
Narrative albums and The Bunny Boy (2006-2009)
Due to the increasing numbers of illegal downloads of music on the Internet, which considerably decreased product sales, the Residents attempted a new artistic medium: the radio drama, in the form of a paid podcast distributed through Apple's iTunes service. This podcast, titled The River of Crime (a first-person tale of an individual's obsession with crime and criminals) ran for five weekly episodes in 2006 before its cancellation due to inconveniences surrounding the podcast's promotion on iTunes, thereby discouraging further production.
Aside from Animal Lover, the group's partnership with Mute produced three more albums: Tweedles in 2006 (a first-person character study of a sexually successful yet emotionally unavailable vampiric figure); The Voice of Midnight in 2007 (a retelling of the E.T.A. Hoffmann story, Der Sandmann); and The Bunny Boy in 2008 (a first-person narrative and character study of the titular Bunny in search of his missing brother).
While Tweedles and The Voice of Midnight have not yet been developed further (aside from instrumental releases such as The UGHS! in 2009), The Bunny Boy proved a very accessible concept. A YouTube video series of the same name was done to promote and further elaborate on the project. The series was partially interactive; fans could communicate with Bunny via e-mail, and some of the interactions may or may not have altered the course of the series' plot (a book containing some of Bunny's correspondence was published by Bandits Mages in 2019). Soon afterwards the album was toured from October to December 2008. A second season of the video series was shown in 2009, somewhat officially ending the project.
2010–2016: Randy, Chuck & Bob
Making a decision to shift focus from studio work to touring, and to enhance their show's portability, the Residents would change their live band to a "power trio" formation, and in a sort of meta stunt, appear to "unmask" themselves as lead singer / frontman "Randy," composer / keyboardist "Charles 'Chuck' Bobuck," and guitarist Nolan Cook as "Bob" – although all three band members were still costumed: "Randy" donned an old man mask and wore an overcoat with oversized red tie and shoes; "Chuck" and "Bob" wore red jackets, special goggles and fake dreadlocks. There was also mention of a fourth band member, drummer "Carlos," who allegedly had left the music business to take care of his mother in Mexico; however, despite being credited as singer in the group's 2012 album Coochie Brake, there is no further evidence of "Carlos" having ever been a real band member.
This new band formation debuted in the Talking Light tour, which ran from January 2010 to April 2011. While the setlist once again consisted of assorted songs from the band's repertoire (although with greatly reworked arrangements), the show would also feature newly written "ghost stories," in which a video of a narrator telling said stories would be projected onto the stage while the band performed in a somewhat improvisational manner. These "ghost stories" were loosely threaded by the presence of television, TV commercials, and industrialized products such as Oscar Mayer hot dogs or Betty Crocker Pudding Roll-ups – although these weren't endorsements; these products were simply a minor element integrated into the stories, not unlike product placement. In between certain songs, "Randy" would also speak to the audience, introducing the band and later describing his own history with supernatural appearances, and his subsequent fear of mirrors. The tour was financially successful, and the band would continue to perform in this formation with only minor changes in stage and costume design.
In the next couple of years, "Randy" would take on an increased role as frontman of the band, starting a "personal" Tumblr blog where he would write mostly about life experiences and trivia regarding the Residents' history, as well as promoting his "solo" show, Sam's Enchanted Evening, which was presented in various incarnations between June 2010 and March 2012 with collaborators Joshua Raoul Brody and Carla Fabrizio. More akin to musical theater than a concert, the show focused on the titular Sam's life story, with the singer alternating between monologues and cover performances of various songs that were important in his life. During this period, the Residents would also collaborate with Belgian dancer/choreographer Grace Ellen Barkey from Needcompany, composing the music for a show titled Mush-Room in 2013.
In 2014, "Randy" would maintain a series of vlogs with the help of director Don Hardy, titled In My Room and later Randyland, elaborating further on his experiences, both with the Residents and with events in his personal life. The blog currently has been inactive since January 6, 2019. Composer "Charles Bobuck" would also maintain a series of personal writings on the Residents' website titled The Test Tube of Tomorrow, and occasionally release music under this name, usually material deemed unfitting for the Residents concept. Bobuck's writings were of a much more detailed and biographical nature, and his music much more abstract, often referred to as "contraptions" rather than compositions.
The group's 40th anniversary tour, The Wonder of Weird, also elaborated on the "Randy, Chuck & Bob" concept, although guised as an anthology show – lead singer Randy would once more speak to the audience between songs, briefly discussing the band's history as he slowly grew depressed with the state of the band and his own life, occasionally leaving the stage and prompting the remaining band members to improvise. The show toured from January to May 2013.
This band formation toured once more in 2014 with a show called Shadowland, retrofittingly subtitled "part three of the 'Randy, Chuck & Bob' trilogy." Initially a one-off week of performances in Europe, the show was eventually brought back in March 2015, coinciding with the premiere of the Theory of Obscurity film – a documentary on the history of the band, directed by Don Hardy and produced by Barton Bishoff and Josh Keppel – at the SXSW Film Festival. This show would be the last time "Charles Bobuck" would perform with the band, as he decided to quit the touring business due to increasing health problems. He eventually quit the Residents altogether in 2016, revealing his identity as Hardy Fox of the Cryptic Corporation, and continued to make music as a solo artist until his death in October 2018.
Shadowland then toured from August 2015 to July 2016, with Eric Drew Feldman (as Bobuck's cousin "Rico") replacing Fox on keyboards, as well as production on future Residents projects. The show was mostly similar to the previous two tours, with a setlist of various reworked songs from the group's repertoire, and occasional video interludes in the vein of Talking Light, with different characters discussing their experiences with birth, reincarnation and near-death.
2017–present: "The Real Residents", Metal Meat & Bone, and the pREServed series
In March 2017, the Residents presented their new lineup, advertised as "The Real Residents": "Tyrone" on vocals, "Eekie" (Nolan Cook) on guitar, "Erkie" (Eric Feldman) on keyboards, and "Cha Cha" on drums and percussion. Shortly after a preview of their In Between Dreams tour in Japan, the group released their first studio album since Coochie Brake, entitled The Ghost of Hope, describing real train wreck stories from the 19th and early 20th century. The album was released on Cherry Red Records, the Residents' current label, and promoted with a single, and their first music video since 2001's Icky Flix – "Rushing Like a Banshee," directed by John Sanborn. Although The Ghost of Hope wasn't toured (except for a one-off performance at the San Francisco Exploratorium), the Residents played both sides of the "Rushing Like a Banshee" single on the In Between Dreams show, which ran from October 2017 up to February 2019 and followed a loose theme, much like Shadowland, this time of dreams.
During the course of the tour, the Residents would work on new projects. Their next album, Intruders, released in October 2018, was advertised along with the I am a Resident! concept, which started as a sort of officially-endorsed tribute project: fans would submit their interpretations of Residents songs, and the group would collect their favorites into an album. After the number of submissions vastly exceeded their expectations, the group decided to change the project into a type of collage, even recording segments and overdubs of their own. The final album was released to contributors in May 2018, and worldwide in August 2018.
In July 2018, the Residents also published their second novel (the first being a novelization of their game Bad Day on the Midway in 2012). The book, entitled The Brick-Eaters, was described as "an absurdist buddy movie story featuring a very tall internet content screener teaming up with an aging career criminal whose primary companions are an oxygen bottle and a .44 Magnum".
The group also began their ongoing pREServed reissue series in January 2018 – deluxe editions of the major albums in the band's discography, containing brand new remasters and unreleased recordings from the band's archives, previously in care of Hardy Fox before he quit the group.
During the In Between Dreams tour, the Residents also previewed songs from their "upcoming blues album," which was eventually titled Metal, Meat & Bone. The premise of the album was to present the long lost recordings of a fictional albino blues singer named Alvin Snow, also known as "Dyin' Dog." The Residents would present the original "Dyin' Dog demos" on one disc, and their own interpretations of the same songs on another disc. The album was released in July 2020 and promoted with two music videos for the Residents' new versions of "Bury My Bone" and "DIE! DIE! DIE!", the latter being sung by rock musician and Pixies frontman Black Francis.
Metal, Meat & Bone will be further promoted by the Residents on their upcoming Dog Stab tour in August 2021 (following numerous cancellations and postponements on account of the COVID-19 pandemic) – the show, currently marketed as "the 50th anniversary show," will allegedly present songs from the new album as well as new arrangements of songs from their 1978 album, Duck Stab / Buster & Glen.
To celebrate the groups' 50th anniversary, a retrospective coffee table book The Residents: A Sight for Sore Eyes, Vol. 1 by author Aaron Tanner was announced. The book contains never before seen photos, quotes from celebrities influenced by the group, as well as a 7" single dating to the group's Not Available era.
Identity
In the group's early days, many rumors circulated about its membership. As the cover art of Meet the Residents was a parody of The Beatles' 1964 North American release, Meet the Beatles!, rumors circulated that The Residents were actually The Beatles, even specifically naming George Harrison. Many other rumors have come and gone over the years, one being that '60s experimental band Cromagnon shared members with the band. Les Claypool, frontman of rock band Primus, and Gerald Casale of new wave band Devo claimed to have been accused of being members of the band; and Mark Mothersbaugh is alleged to have played keyboards during the band's 13th-anniversary tour.
Since the late 1970s, much of the speculation about the members' identities has involved the group's management team, The Cryptic Corporation. It was formed in 1976 as a corporation in California by Jay Clem, Homer Flynn, Hardy W. Fox, and John Kennedy, all of whom denied having been band members. Clem and Kennedy left the Corporation in 1982, to the chagrin of fans. The Residents members do not grant interviews, although Flynn, Fox, and Clem have conducted interviews on behalf of the group.
Nolan Cook, a prominent collaborator in the band's live and studio work (and a live member of I Am Spoonbender) denied in an interview that Fox and Flynn were The Residents. However, some consider Cook himself a member of the band, as he is known to wear the same head coverings as the group in live shows, and wore the trademark eyeball mask on the Wormwood Tour. He also played the part of "Bob" during the "Randy", "Chuck", and "Bob" trilogy of shows.
William Poundstone, author of the Big Secrets books, compared voiceprints of a Flynn lecture with those of spoken word segments from the Residents discography in his book "Biggest Secrets". He concluded, "The similarities in the spectograms second the convincing subjective impression that the voices are identical", and that "it is possible that the creative core of the Residents is the duo of Flynn and Fox." A subset of that belief is that Flynn is the lyricist and that Fox writes the music. The online database of the performance rights organization BMI (of which The Residents and their publishing company, Pale Pachyderm Publishing [Warner-Chappell] have been members for their entire careers) lists Flynn and Fox as the composers of all original Residents songs, including pre-1974 songs from the "Residents Unincorporated" years.
Simon Reynolds wrote in his book Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978–1984 that "the Residents and their representatives were one and the same," and elaborated further on one of his blogs, stating that "this was something that anybody who had any direct dealings with Ralph figured out sooner rather than later." Reynolds quotes Helios Creed, who identifies the Residents as a keyboardist named "H," a singer named "Homer," and "this other guy called John." Peter Principle of Tuxedomoon claimed that he and others "eventually figured out that the guy doing the graphics and the engineer in the studio were, in fact, the Residents."Cryptic openly admits the group's artwork is done by Flynn (among others) under various names that, put together, become "Pornographics", but the pseudonym is rarely spelled the same way twice (examples: Porno Graphics, Pore No Graphix, Pore-Know Graphics); and that Fox is the sound engineer – meaning that he is the main producer, engineer, mixer, and editor of all their recordings. (Since 1976, all of The Residents' recordings have listed their producer as the Cryptic Corporation, presumably meaning Fox in particular.)
From 2010 to 2016, The Residents referred to themselves in concert as the characters "Randy", "Chuck", and "Bob", and referred to a former member of the band, "Carlos", who left the group following a disagreement with "Randy". There is speculation that "Carlos" is Carlos Cadona. Better known by his stage name, "6025," Cadona was in the original lineup of the Dead Kennedys and appears on a live album by Snakefinger. "Carlos" may also refer to Carla Fabrizio, a touring member of The Residents from 1998 to 2008.
"Bob" is speculated to be guitarist and longtime collaborator Nolan Cook. Cook is often the only credited collaborator on the "Randy, Chuck, & Bob" era albums, such as Lonely Teenager, Talking Light: Bimbo's, and Shadowland.
A synopsis for The Residents' 2012 stage production "Sam's Enchanted Evening" provides the name "Randy Rose" as that of The Residents' lead singer. "Chuck", or "Charles Bobuck", was the group's primary songwriter, and released a series of solo albums (or "contraptions") under this name during the "Randy, Chuck and Bob" era. The member known as Chuck retired from live performance due to ill health in 2015, and ultimately retired from The Residents altogether following the release of the Theory of Obscurity documentary film. Eric Drew Feldman replaced him and performed under the name "Rico" from 2015 to 2016.
In the liner notes featured on the 2020 reissue of Phillip Perkins' King Of The World album, Perkins confirms that he was a member of The Residents during their Assorted Secrets' lineup, which also performed The Mole Show. On his BayImproviser biography Perkins states that he worked closely with The Residents between 1979 and 1984. He had previously been credited as the lighting designer on the Mole Show Roxy LP, and as engineer on original versions of Stars & Hank Forever, as well as on reissues of The Tune of Two Cities and The Snakey Wake. Considering this, his time working with the group roughly would have been from 1979 - 1987.
Hardy Fox
In October 2017, former manager for The Residents, Hardy Fox identified himself as both the anonymous primary composer and producer for the Residents as well as the pseudonymous Charles Bobuck. Fox was born in Longview, Texas, where his father worked in the oil industry; his mother was a nurse. The family moved several times, and Fox graduated from Rayville High School in Louisiana in 1963. He then studied art and business at Louisiana Tech University, where he met Homer Flynn, and graduated in 1967.
In September 2018 Fox added to his website the dates "1945–2018", although he was known to be alive (but unwell) after the dates were published. Fox died on October 30, 2018, from brain cancer, aged 73. He was identified in obituaries as the co-founder and primary composer of the Residents. On December 14, 2018, the official Residents mailing list acknowledged Fox as "engineer, producer and sometime composer of much of the Residents’ best-loved work".
Frequent collaborators
Since their inception, The Residents have had a number of credited collaborators. These collaborators, despite not being anonymous, can be considered by some definition, Residents.
1971–1975
During the band's formative years, its main members consisted of The Singing Resident, Hardy Fox, jazz pianist James Whittaker, and bassist Bob Tagney, the later two of which are credited as writers on the 2018 LP release of The Warner Brothers album. This lineup, along with Snakefinger, who would join the group in late 1971, are credited as the 'core' members of the group on the 2013 early demos compilation, The Delta Nudes Greatest Hiss. Bob Tagney and James Whittaker are also two of the only credited collaborators on the band's debut album, Meet the Residents, Whittaker, as the pianist on "Spotted Pinto Bean", and Tagney as the co-bassist on "Infant Tango". Female vocalist Pamela Zeibak was also one of The Residents' frequent collaborators during this time, with credits on The Delta Nudes Greatest Hiss, Meet The Residents, The Third Reich 'n Roll, and Fingerprince.Joshua Raoul Brody began working with The Residents in the mid-1970s, when he was invited to the set of their film Vileness Fats. Shortly after this he worked with the group anonymously by arranging the backing vocals on their "Satisfaction" single. In the 1980s, Brody began to receive credit for his work with The Residents under the pseudonym "Raoul N. Di Seimbote", but by 1987, he was using his own name. Brody most recently worked with The Residents on their 2020 God In Three Persons live show.
1976–1983
In early 1976, Snakefinger returned to the US, and continued his collaborations with The Residents, and was credited on a majority of The Residents' major releases up until his death in 1987. At the same time, drummer Don Jakovich started working with the band, making credited appearances on Satisfaction, Fingerprince, Snakefinger's Chewing Hides the Sound, and Commercial Album. He also performed with them in costume as part of their June 1976 live debut.
Following the demise of Henry Cow, former members Chris Cutler and Fred Frith began making appearances on Residents material as drummer and guitarist respectively. Frith first appeared with The Residents on the Subterranean Modern anthology, and Cutler on the Eskimo album. The following year both featured on The Commercial Album, with Frith receiving the credit of 'Extra Hard Working Guest Musician'.
Nessie Lessons, the wife of Hardy Fox, began to make appearances on Residents releases between 1980 and 1983, initially as an uncredited female vocalist. Lessons was first credited on The Tunes of Two Cities, toured with the band from 1982–1983, and acted as the group's spokesperson when Penn Jillette was unavailable. Her final work as a regular collaborator was on the song "HellNo", for the soundtrack to the 1984 film The Census Taker.
For The Mole Show, The Residents also had dancers: Kathleen French, Carol Werner LeMaitre, Sarah McLennan Walker and Chris Van Ralte. Carol LeMaitre and Sarah McLennan went on to portray The Residents on stage during the 13th Anniversary Show, and the dancers in Cube-E.
1987–1993
Starting in 1987, The Residents began working with female vocalist Laurie Amat, who went on to become The Residents' primary female vocalist for much of the 1990s. Her final role as a regular collaborator was on the 1998 Wormwood album. Another female vocalist from this period was Diane Alden, who first appeared on the Freak Show album, she once again worked with the group up until Wormwood. Tony Janssen, who was first credited as an engineer on the band's Cube-E album, eventually became a male vocalist for the band and provided the voice of Tex the Barker in their Freak Show projects.
1994–2014
During recording of their Gingerbread Man album, The Singing Resident met future singer Molly Harvey at a coffee store, and invited her to record vocals for the song 'The Old Woman'.The Residents - Gingerbread Man Credits - MVDaudio, MVD8193A, 2016 Following this she became a core member of The Residents' team of collaborators, and appeared on all of their mainline albums and live shows until 2005's Animal Lover. Also appearing for the first time on Gingerbread Man was Isabelle Barbier, a young actress who would make occasional appearances with The Residents up until The Ghost of Hope in 2017.
The Residents' 1998–2000 Wormwood project introduced three important figures in Residents history, Carla Fabrizio, Nolan Cook and Toby Dammit. Dammit briefly played with The Residents live from 1999 to 2003, and performed on the Demons Dance Alone album. Carla played with The Residents in concert until the 2008 Bunny Boy tour, and has worked with the band on their studio albums as recently as 2020. Nolan Cook acted as The Residents' lead guitarist both in concert and in the studio for over twenty years, most recently appearing on their 2020 God In Three Persons live project.
In the years following Molly Harvey''s departure, professional voice actress Gerri Lawlor began to make regular appearances on The Residents spoken-word projects, Tweedles, The River of Crime, The Voice Of Midnight and Lonely Teenager. Corey Rosen also began working with The Residents during this time, on The River of Crime, The Voice of Midnight, and The Bunny Boy web series.
2015–present
Following the departure of Hardy Fox in 2015, Eric Drew Feldman was asked to help with some of the duties previously undertaken by him. Along with Feldman, performers Laurie Hall and Peter Whitehead began appearing on Residents releases, starting with The Ghost of Hope. Hall stopped working with them following the release of Intruders, which introduced Sivan Lioncub.
The lineup of collaborators as featured on The Residents' latest album, Metal Meat & Bone, includes Eric Drew Feldman, Carla Fabrizio, Nolan Cook, Peter Whitehead, and Sivan Lioncub.
Discography
Studio albums
Meet the Residents – 1974
The Third Reich 'n Roll – 1976
Fingerprince – 1977
Not Available – 1978 (Recorded In 1974)
Duck Stab! / Buster and Glen – 1978
Eskimo – 1979
Commercial Album – 1980
Mark of the Mole – 1981
The Tunes of Two Cities – 1982
Title in Limbo with Renaldo and the Loaf – 1983 (Recorded In 1981)
George & James – 1984
Assorted Secrets (Live In the Studio) – 1984
Whatever Happened to Vileness Fats? – 1984
The Census Taker – 1985
The Big Bubble – 1985
Stars & Hank Forever! – 1986
God In Three Persons – 1988
God In Three Persons Soundtrack (Instrumental Version of "God In Three Persons") – 1988
Buckaroo Blues – 1989
The King & Eye – 1989
Freak Show – 1990
Our Finest Flowers – 1992
Poor Kaw-Liga's Pain (Remixes) – 1994
Gingerbread Man – 1994
Hunters – 1995
Have a Bad Day – 1996
Wormwood: Curious Stories From the Bible – 1998
Roadworm: The Berlin Sessions (Live In the Studio) – 2000
Dot.com (compilation of various digital singles released between 1999 and 2000) – 2000
Icky Flix (soundtrack of a DVD consisting of re-recordings) – 2001
Demons Dance Alone – 2002
12 Days of Brumalia (consists of a compilation of 13 virtual singles released between December 24, 2003 and January 5, 2004) – 2004
WB:RMX (Remixes derived from the unrealeses album "The W***** B*** Album (The Warner Bros. Album) " recorded between 1970 and 1971) – 2004
The King and Eye: RMX (Remixes of "The King and Eye") – 2004
I Murdered Mommy! – 2004 (Recorded In 1994)
Animal Lover – 2005
The River of Crime – 2006
Tweedles! – 2006
The River of Crime Instrumental Soundtrack (Instrumental version of "The River of Crime") – 2006
Night of the Hunters (Overdubs to the 1995 album "Hunters") – 2007
The Voice of Midnight – 2007
The Bunny Boy – 2008
Postcards From Patmos – 2008
The Fillmore Dress Rehearsal (Live In the Studio) - 2009 (recorded in 1997)
RMX (consists of several remixes released as singles in 2007) – 2009
Hades (later released in 2011 as The River of Hades) – 2009
The Ughs! – 2009 (Recorded In 2006)
Live at the Snakey Wake (Live Without Audience) - 2010 (recorded in 1987)
Dollar General (with Charles Bobuck) – 2010
Talking Light Live In Rehearsal (Live In the Studio) - 2010 (reheaesals of Talking Light tour)
Chuck's Ghost Music (credited to "The Residents' Talking Light" and later credited to Charles Bobuck) – 2010
Lonely Teenager – 2011
D*ck S*ab (credited to Th* R*esidents) - 2012 (re-recordings of "Duck Stab! / Buster and Glen")
Coochie Brake (credited to "Sonidos de la Noche") – 2012
Bad Day On The Midway: Music From the Game Reconsidered – 2012 (overdubs of 1995 recordings for a game soundtrack)
Mush-Room (later credited to Charles Bobuck) – 2013
The Theory of Obscurity – 2014
The Ghost of Hope – 2017
I Am a Resident! - 2018
And So Are We... - 2018 (bonus disc of I Am a Resident)
Intruders - 2018
Music to Eat Bricks By – 2019 (Recorded In 2006)
A Nickle If Your Dick's This Big – 2019 (Combination of "The W***** B*** Album (The Warner Bros. Album)" recorded between 1970 and 1971, and "B.S. (Baby Sex)" recorded in 1971)
Metal, Meat & Bone: The Songs of Dyin' Dog - 2020
The World of Weird Demos 1 (Live In the Studio) - 2021 (rehearsals of the Wonder of Weird Tour, recorded in 2012)
Mole Dance 82 (Live In the Studio) - 2021 (reheaesals for the Mole Show, recorded in 1982)
Demo albums
The Residents Radio Special - (includes released content) - 1977 (legal releases in 1983)
Residue of the Residents – 1983 (recorded between 1971 and 1983)
Stranger Than Supper (includes released content) - 1990 (recorded between 1985 and 1990, and 1971)
Our Tired, Our Poor, Our Huddled Masses (the third disc includes released content) – 1997 (recorded between 1971 and 1996)
Petting Zoo – 2002 (recorded between 1973 and 2002)
Animal Lover Instrumental – 2008 (recorded in the Animal Lover sessions, between 2004 and 2005)
Smell My Picture – 2008 (recorded between 2006 and 2007)
The Bridegroom of Blood – 2009 (recorded between 1998 and 2005)
Ten Little Piggies – 2009 (recorded between 2005 and 2009)
El Año del Muerto – 2009 (recorded between 1971 and 2008)
Arkansas - 2009 (recording in the Bunny Boy sessions, 2008)
Tabasco: Tweedles Instrumental - 2010 (recorded in the Tweedles! sessions, 2006)
Night Train to Nowhere! - 2012 (recorded in 2009)
Ten Two Times - 2013 (recorded between 1972 and 2012)
Eyeful - 2020 (recorded between 1983 and 2012, all those recordings were released as single in 2012)
Anganok – 2020 (recorded in 1991)
Leftovers Again?! – 2021 (recorded between 1971 and 1979)
Live albums
The Mole Show – 1983
Live In Japan – 1986
Live In the USA! – 1986
Live In Holland – 1987
Buckaroo Blues and Black Barry (often referred to simply as Black Barry to avoid confusion with the studio album "Buckaroo Blues") - 1989
Mole Show: Live In Holland – 1989 (recorded in 1983)
Liver Music - 1990 (recorded between 1971 and 1990)
Cube-E - Live In Holland – 1990
Daydream B-Liver – 1991 (recorded between 1971 and 1991)
Live at the Fillmore – 1998
Wormwood Live 1999 – 1999
Demons Dance Alone DVD – 2002
Kettles of Fish On the Outskirts of Town – 2003 (recorded between 1971-2001)
The Residents Play Wormwood – 2005 (recorded in 1999)
The Way We Were – 2005
JJJ 105.7 Radio Show – 2009 (recorded in 1982)
Icky Flix Live –2009 (recorded in 2001)
Prague and Beyond – 2009 (recorded in 1995, with two bonus tracks recorded in 2001)
Adobe Disfigured Night – 2009 (recorded in 1997)
The Malboro Eyeball Experience – 2009 (recorded in 1997)
Oh Mummy! Oh Daddy! Can't You See That It's True; What the Beatles Did to Me, I Love Lucy Did to You – 2010 (recorded in 1976)
Ritz NY – 2010 (recorded in 1986)
Brava – 2010 (recorded in 2001)
Talking Light Bimbo's – 2011
Cube-E Dynasone 3EZ EP – 2011 (recorded in 1989, remixed in 2000)
Triple Dub-Ya – 2012 (recorded in 2005, remixed in 2012)
The Wonder of Weird - 2014 (recorded in 2013, inaudible audience)
Demonic! – 2013 (recorded in 2003)
The Wonder of Weird – 2014
Cleveland – 2014 (recorded in 1986)
Shadowland – 2015 (recorded in 2014)
Disfigured Night – 2016 (full version of 1997 album of the same name)
In Between Dreams – 2019 (recorded in 2018)
Dreaming of an Eyeball Beaming – 2019 (recorded between 2018 and 2019)
Bunny Boy: Live in Frankfurt – 2021 (recorded in 2008)
God In 3 Persons Live – 2020
Singles / EPs
Santa Dog EP – 1972
"Satisfaction" – 1976
The Beatles Play the Residents and the Residents Play the Beatles – 1977
Duck Stab! – 1978
"Santa Dog '78" – 1978
Diskomo / Goosebump – 1980
The Commercial Single – 1980
Intermission – 1982
"It's a Man's Man's Man's World" – 1984
"Kaw-liga" – 1986
"Hit the Road Jack" – 1987
"Double Shot" – 1988
"Holy Kiss of Flesh" – 1988
"Don't Be Cruel" – 1989
"Rushing Like a Banshee" – 2016
"DIE! DIE! DIE!" – 2020
"Bury My Bone" – 2020
Video releases
The Mole Show/Whatever Happened to Vileness Fats? (VHS) –1984
The Eyes Scream: A History of the Residents (VHS) (with host Penn Jillette) – 1991
Twenty Twisted Questions (Laserdisc) – 1992
Icky Flix (DVD) – 2001
Eskimo (DVD) – 2002
Disfigured Night (DVD) – 2002
Demons Dance Alone (DVD) – 2003
The Commercial DVD (DVD) – 2004
The Residents play Wormwood (DVD) – 2005
Is Anybody Out There? (DVD) – 2009
Randy's Ghost Stories (DVD) – 2010
Talking Light Bimbo's (DVD) – 2011
Other
Freak Show (comic) – 1992
Freak Show (CD-ROM) – 1994
References
Further reading
Meet the Residents – America's most eccentric band!, Ian Shirley, SAF Publishing, Wembley, UK, 1998
External links
Official YouTube page
"More Than What The Ear Hears Coming From The Eye",
"The Most Ever Company",
"Twin Peaks Meets SimCity", WIRED article on The Residents, page on the "Theory of Obscurity"
American artist groups and collectives
American experimental musical groups
American progressive rock groups
Avant-pop musicians
Surrealist groups
Bands with fictional stage personas
Cordless Recordings artists
Masked musicians
Musical groups from the San Francisco Bay Area
Mute Records artists
Pranksters
American surrealist artists
Musical groups established in 1969
Unidentified people
Avant-garde music groups | false | [
"\"What About Us\" is a single released by British-Irish girl group the Saturdays. Their first international single, it is the lead single from their first American-only release EP, Chasing the Saturdays (2013). It also acts as the second single from their fourth studio album Living for the Weekend (2013). The single was first released in the United States and Canada on 18 December 2012 via digital download, before being released in the United Kingdom on 16 March 2013 via CD single and digital download. The single was written by Camille Purcell, Ollie Jacobs, Philip Jacobs. There are two different versions of the track which have been recorded and released: a solo version, which was released exclusively in the US and Canada, and a version featuring Jamaican rapper Sean Paul, which was released internationally. Music critics gave the song positive feedback, but questioned the heavily auto-tuned chorus and the move away from the group's traditional sound.\n\nA music video was released for the song was published and released via the Saturdays' Vevo account on 11 January 2013. The video was filmed in Los Angeles, where the band were filming their US reality series, Chasing the Saturdays, which is broadcast through E!. An acoustic version of \"Somebody Else's Life\", which can be heard on the opening titles of the show, was released as a B-side. The Saturdays went on to a promotional tour in order to get the song \"out there\" in the United States, and appeared on a number of different chat shows including The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Jeff Probst Show, Fashion Police, Chelsea Lately and The Today Show in New York City. They later went on to a promotional tour in the UK, visiting radio stations around the country.\n\n\"What About Us\" gained commercial success, debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart to become the Saturdays' twelfth UK top 10 single and first ever number-one. In Ireland, the song debuted at number six on the Irish Singles Chart, gaining the group their fifth top 10 single there. With first-week sales of 114,000 copies and 40,000 copies more sold than their closest competitor to number one, \"What About Us\" was the fastest-selling single of 2013 in the UK until it was overtaken by Naughty Boy's \"La La La\" two months later. In December 2013, it was announced as the eleventh fastest-selling single of the year overall. As of August 2014, the song has sold over 400,000 copies in the UK. On 23 December 2013, Mollie King posted a photo on Instagram of her holding a 500,000 sales plaque from their record label, with the message that \"What About Us\" had sold over 500,000 copies in UK and USA, with 120,000 copies in the US alone even without charting on the Billboard Hot 100.\n\nBackground \n\nIn 2012, it was announced that the Saturdays had received an offer to star in their own reality television programme, Chasing the Saturdays, broadcast through E! Network. While filming their show, the band began visiting the recording studio, where they began work with Rodney \"Darkchild\" Jerkins.\n\nThe Saturdays felt comfortable with their US labels, and thanked them for not only giving them a chance in North America, but for making them feel at ease and welcome which took a lot of \"weight of our shoulders\". The band said they have always respected the labels due to the massive success they've had with artists. The band had been working with Demi Lovato in the recording studio.\n\nComposition\n\n\"What About Us\" was written and produced by Ollie Jacobs and acts as the Saturdays first single to be released in North America where it could appear on the Billboard Hot 100 and Canadian Hot 100. In America its release coincided with their TV show, Chasing the Saturdays. The track is the band's fourteenth single to be released in the United Kingdom and Ireland and the track is a dance-pop song. Before the release of the song, Mollie King said that the band were excited to share the track as they had the song \"for months\" She said: \"I can't wait for everyone to hear it and to get to perform it. I'm just so excited about this one, I think it's going down really well.\" The band said they didn't want to change their type of music just for the American public and would stick to their roots and the genre they enjoyed to perform. King spoke: \"We've always made a point that we don't want to change to go to America. We wanted to go over as we are and if they like us, they like us and if they don't, they don't!\" King said that the track is reggae pop music, a little different from what band usually record, but the track is still really \"dancey\" and \"upbeat\", as well a good song to dance to on either stage or at a club. When Una Healy was asked what the song was about she said that she \"did not know\" what the song was exactly about. \"To be honest I was trying to figure out the other day what exactly it's about. I could bullshit away telling you, but I really don't know. But I think it's all about someone driving you crazy.\" She said she \"thinks\" that 'What About Us' part means \"me and you getting together\". She did point out that she did know that the song was about \"making you happy\" and that the track was good for the summer and will get you on the dancefloor. The band teased saying that \"What About Us\" is a pop track, and that is a good indication of what the expect from the album, and that they've paired up with Diane Warren to record a few ballads and not just pop tracks. \"What About Us\" is the only collaboration on the album.\n\nRelease\n\"What About Us\" was confirmed as the Saturdays' first single to be released in North America, and would be released on 18 December 2012 to coincide with their American reality show, Chasing the Saturdays. It was also revealed that the track would be released as the lead single from the band's North America released only Extended play, Chasing the Saturdays, which was named after the show. Some critics said that releasing \"What About Us\" from an EP for the US market was a \"wise decision\". One critic said: For, throwing out a traditional release on the back of a show that isn't (yet) a hit would ultimately be setting them up for failure. What's more, the EP allows their \"storyline\" for the next season of the show (should there be one) to revolve around recording an album. In the United Kingdom, it was revealed that \"What About Us\" would be the follow-up single from \"30 Days\" in the UK and Ireland, and therefore would not be the lead single from the band's fourth studio album. The band announced that before the release of the album, there would be another single release from the album. The follow-up single was revealed to be titled \"Gentleman\".\n\nJust like all the band's previous singles, the record was accepted by all A-Lists at radio stations. The UK and Ireland version of the track features a guest rap from Sean Paul. Whereas the North American version does not feature vocals from Sean Paul and only vocals from the band. The original version of the track last 3 minutes and 24 seconds, whereas the version which features Sean Paul lasts 3 minutes and 40 seconds. The single was released with B-side, an Acoustic version of a brand new track, \"Somebody Else's Life\", which is the opening theme to Chasing the Saturdays. \"What About Us\" was released as a digital download EP, and this featured the single version which features Sean Paul, the solo version and the B-side track. Upon the release in North America, there was a digital remixes EP which featured remixes of \"What About Us\" by a number of DJs including: Seamus Haji, Guy Scheiman, the Buzz Junkies and 2nd Adventure and this was also made available to purchase on 18 December 2012. While in the UK, the CD single was made available to be from stores from 18 March 2013. On the CD single featured \"What About Us\", the B-side \"Somebody Else's Life\".\n\nThe band decided to release \"What About Us\" differently between the United Kingdom and the United States, \"What About Us\" was released onto the charts without any airplay and without a music video accompanying the release, something the band experienced in the UK, with \"Notorious\". Whereas in the UK, \"What About Us\" was released with airplay and the music video being released before the release of the single. During this time, Frankie Sandford became ambassadors for mental health after Sandford battled depression. The band said they choose \"What About Us\" to be the lead single in the US and follow-up single from \"30 Days\" because they all loved it once they demoed it and it gave them a \"really good feeling\" They also said it is a fresh start for a new album, with a \"reggae vibe\", but still a pop record. The Saturdays said that Sean Paul was \"perfect\" for the UK version of the song. They said that he was \"just so nice\" and that he would be present during some of the promotional performances when the single was released.\n\nCritical reception\nRobert Copsey of Digital Spy said that Rochelle Humes asks in a \"curious Jamaican-flecked timbre\" during the intro of \"What About Us\". During the lyrics \"Oh why are we are waiting so long I'm suffocating\", and he went on to say that it is in reference to \"man-related drama\" and also pointing out that there is plenty of that on their reality series, Chasing the Saturdays. Copsey later went on to tip the band for their first number-one single as he said: \"but we suspect it could also be a sly wink at their enduring quest for a number one single\". He said that track was \"radio-friendly\" due to the \"trace beats\" and \"demanding their contrary lover to give up the hard-to-get schtick sharpish\". Although he didn't think that the song was \"original\" enough for the band, but is \"strangely addictive\" and he would be happy to see the song at the top of the charts.\n\n4Music described the song as a \"electro-pop affair with a bucket-load of synths thrown in for good measure. It's quite good, but we wonder if they should reconsider this single choice if they truly want to launch an invasion on America's charts.\" Idolator wrote a mixed review criticizing the track for lacking the group's signature style; \"While the beat is pounding enough to nab the girls a chart hit, it doesn’t feel true to the spirit of The Sats. Then again, maybe it isn’t supposed to.\" Jessica Sager from PopCrush also touched on the departure from their original sound; \"It’s a pretty big departure from their usual sugary oeuvre, but not necessarily in a bad way.\" She went on to praise Sean Paul's feature; \"His presence on the track gives it an air of authenticity and fun, but pretty much only during his own verses and interjections.\" However, she criticised the mediocre attempt at dialect the groups sing in throughout the track; \"When the Saturdays try to emulate island tones, it sounds a little awkward and they start out like that right off the bat, but go in and out of the undistinguished dialect throughout the song.\" She also felt that the heavily Auto-Tuned chorus was not need; \"The Auto-Tune seems extraneous, because the Saturdays can actually sing well without it.\" She end the review by labeling their latest effort as \"generic\" and \"not the best the Saturdays have to offer\", also rating it two and a half stars out of five.\n\nCommercial reception\n\"What About Us\" debuted at number 44 on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs chart for the week dated 8 December 2012. This marks their first ever chart entry in the United States and it has since peaked at number twenty-seven. The song debuted at number 79 on the Canadian Hot 100, becoming the highest Canadian debut for a new artist in 2013.\n\nThe Saturdays admitted that they did not want to get their hopes up on debuting at number one on the UK Singles Charts due to being beaten to number-one three times before with \"Forever Is Over\", \"Just Can't Get Enough\" and \"Missing You\", after being number one on the Official Chart Update. During the latter two occasions, it was rapper Flo Rida who had pushed them back to numbers two and three respectively. It was revealed that the Saturdays had knocked Justin Timberlake's \"Mirrors\" off the number-one spot on the UK Singles Chart. This became the band's first ever number-one single in the United Kingdom, it also became Sean Paul's second number one in the United Kingdom after being featured on \"Breathe\" in 2003. For every one copy that Timberlake's \"Mirrors\" sold, the Saturdays sold two more copies of \"What About Us\". \"What About Us\" sold 114,000 copies in the first week of release, making it, at the time, the fastest selling single of 2013. The track sold 40,000 copies more than Timberlake, who was pushed back to number-two on the UK Singles Charts. The band said they were thrilled to be the UK's number-one with \"What About Us\". They went on to thanking their fans for supporting the single and supporting them for the past five years.\n\n\"What About Us\" debuted at number six on the Irish Singles Chart, marking the band's fifth top ten single in that country. \"What About Us\" made its debut at number thirty-six on the New Zealand Singles Chart.\n\nMusic video\nThe music video for \"What About Us\" was filmed during the summer of 2012 in Los Angeles, while the Saturdays were filming their reality television series. The North American version of the video was released via the Saturdays' official Vevo account on YouTube on 11 January 2013. A variant of the video, featuring vocals and additional scenes of the women with Sean Paul, was later released on 5 February 2013.\n\nLive performances and promotion\nThe Saturdays appeared in a number of nightclubs throughout 2012 in the United States performing \"What About Us\" along other hits. On 14 January 2013, the group made their first televised performance of the single on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. It was their first performance done on American television. On 16 January, the girls performed \"What About Us\" on The Today Show in New York City. Along with the performances, they appeared on chat shows such as Chelsea Lately, Daybreak, Fashion Police, Lorraine, The Jeff Probst Show, Loose Women, Alan Carr: Chatty Man, Sunday Brunch and What's Cooking? to promote the single.\n\nTrack listings\nUS digital download\n\"What About Us\" - 3:24\n\nCD Single - UK Version Only\n\"What About Us\" (featuring Sean Paul) - 3:40\n\"What About Us\" - 3:24\n\"Somebody Else's Life\" (Acoustic) - 3:18\n\nUS Digital remixes EP\n\"What About Us\" (Seamus Haji Radio Edit) - 3:06\n\"What About Us\" (Seamus Haji Club Mix) - 6:35\n\"What About Us\" (Seamus Haji Dub) - 6:49\n\"What About Us\" (Guy Scheiman Radio Edit) - 3:59\n\"What About Us\" (Guy Scheiman Club Mix) - 7:35\n\"What About Us\" (Guy Scheiman Dub) - 7:20\n\"What About Us\" (The Buzz Junkies Radio Edit) - 3:23\n\"What About Us\" (The Buzz Junkies Club Mix) - 4:32\n\"What About Us\" (featuring Sean Paul) - 4:32\n\"What About Us\" (2nd Adventure Radio Edit) - 4:24\n\"What About Us\" (2nd Adventure Club Mix) - 6:36\n\nEurope and Oceania EP - digital download\n\"What About Us\" (featuring Sean Paul) - 3:40\n\"What About Us\" (featuring Sean Paul) [The Buzz Junkies Radio Edit] - 3:23\n\"What About Us\" (featuring Sean Paul) [Seamus Haji Radio Edit] - 3:37\n\"What About Us\" (Guy Scheiman Radio Edit) - 3:58\n\"What About Us\" (Extended Mix) - 3:49 (only available through pre-order)\n\nUK Digital Remixes EP\n\"What About Us\" (Guy Scheiman Club Mix) - 7:35\n\"What About Us\" (2nd Adventure Club Mix) - 6:36\n\"What About Us\" (Seamus Haji Club Mix) - 6:35\n\"What About Us\" (The Buzz Junkies Club Mix) - 4:32\n\"What About Us\" (2nd Adventure Radio Edit) - 4:24\n\nRevamped Version\n\"What About Us\" - 3:24\n\"Somebody Else's Life\" (Acoustic) - 3:18\n\"What About Us\" (Extended Mix) - 3:49\n\"What About Us\" (2nd Adventure Radio Edit) - 4:24\n\"What About Us\" (Guy Scheiman Radio Edit) - 3:58\n\"What About Us\" (featuring Sean Paul) - 4:32\n\"What About Us\" (featuring Sean Paul) [The Buzz Junkies Radio Edit] - 3:23\n\"What About Us\" (featuring Sean Paul) [Seamus Haji Radio Edit] - 3:37\n\"What About Us\" (2nd Adventure Club Mix) - 6:36\n\"What About Us\" (Guy Scheiman Club Mix) - 7:35\n\"What About Us\" (The Buzz Junkies Club Mix) - 4:32\n\"What About Us\" (Seamus Haji Club Mix) - 6:35\n\nCredits and personnel\n\"What About Us\" was recorded at Rollover Studios in London.\n\nOllie Jacobs a.k.a. Art Bastian ~ Songwriter, Producer, Vocal Producer, Mix Engineer\n\nPhillip Jacobs ~ co-writer\nCamille Purcell ~ co-writer\nThe Saturdays ~ vocals\nSean Paul ~ guest vocalist\n\nCharts and certifications\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nCertifications\n\nRelease and radio history\n\nSee also\n\nList of UK Singles Chart number ones of the 2010s\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n feat. Sean Paul\n\nThe Saturdays songs\nSean Paul songs\n2012 singles\nDance-pop songs\nNumber-one singles in Scotland\nUK Singles Chart number-one singles\nSongs written by Camille Purcell\n2012 songs\nFascination Records singles\nSongs written by Ollie Jacobs",
"No Turning Back: The Story So Far is the first compilation album by Shannon Noll. The album includes tracks from Noll's three studio albums to date, That's What I'm Talking About (2004), Lift (2005) and Turn It Up (2008) and five brand new tracks. The album was released in September 2008 and peaked at number 7 on the ARIA Charts, becoming Noll's fourth consecutive top ten album.\n\nUpon released, Noll said \"It was only once we started talking about the idea that it sank in how many singles there's been, from \"What About Me\" right through to \"Loud\" and \"In Pieces\". All these songs mean so much to me and showcase a journey that I've been through with my songwriting and recording, my career in general. It's great to have the new songs on the album, as they are just a taste of what we've got planned for next year!\"\n\nSingles\nThe first single taken from the album was \"Summertime\", which was originally by 2007 Canadian Idol Brian Melo. The track peaked at number 54 on the ARIA Chart.\n\nTrack listing\n\"Summertime\" – 3:42\n\"Shine\" – 3:34\n\"Lift\" – 3:56\n\"Lonely\" – 4:42\n\"Now I Run\" – 3:44\n\"What About Me\" – 3:21\n\"Drive\" – 3:58\n\"Learn to Fly\" – 4:09\n\"Don't Give Up\" (with Natalie Bassingthwaighte) – 4:40\n\"Loud\" – 3:10\n\"In Pieces\" – 3:32\n\"Tomorrow\" – 3:57\n\"No Turning Back\" – 3:43\n\"Crash\" – 3:21\n\"You're Never Alone\" – 5:01\n\"Sorry Is Just Too Late\" (featuring Kari Kimmel) (iTunes exclusive bonus track) – 3:54\n\nDisc 2 (DVD edition)\n\"What About Me\"\n\"Drive\"\n\"Learn to Fly\"\n\"Lonely\"\n\"Shine\"\n\"Lift\"\n\"Now I Run\"\n\"Loud\"\n\"In Pieces\"\n\"Don't Give Up\" (with Natalie Bassingthwaighte)\n\nOmissions\nThe compilation omits the following singles:\n \"Rise Up\" with Australian Idol Top 12 (2003) – was a collaborative single and is not considered part of Noll's official discography.\n \"New Beginning\" (2004) – was a radio-only single release from That's What I'm Talking About.\n \"C'mon Aussie C'mon\" (2004) – was a charity single only.\n \"Twelve Days of Christmas\" with Dreamtime Christmas All-Stars (2004) – was a collaborative single and is not considered part of Noll's official discography.\n \"Everybody Needs a Little Help\" (2008) – was a radio-only single release from Turn It Up.\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nRelease history\n\nReferences\n\nShannon Noll albums\nSony BMG albums\n2008 greatest hits albums\nCompilation albums by Australian artists"
] |
[
"The Residents",
"Storytelling projects (2006-09)",
"What type of stories did they like to write?",
"I don't know.",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"Summer of 2006 brought the internet download project, River of Crime (",
"What was it about?",
"River of Crime was their first project with Warner Music Group's Cordless Label."
] | C_efa3e1045f514ebcbfedfcc182b59c64_1 | did they release any other albums? | 4 | did The Residents release any other albums other than River Crime? | The Residents | Summer of 2006 brought the internet download project, River of Crime (Episodes 1-5). River of Crime was their first project with Warner Music Group's Cordless Label. Following the success of that album, the Residents launched their weekly Timmy video project on YouTube. In 2007 they did the soundtrack for the documentary Strange Culture and also released a double instrumental album, Night of the Hunters. On the Fourth of July 2007, the planned October release of its latest project with Mute Records, The Voice of Midnight (a music theater adaptation of E.T.A. Hoffmann's short story "Der Sandmann"), was announced on its Web site. On the May 21 the band announced on its website that its first North America tour since Demons Dance Alone for a project titled The Bunny Boy was set to begin on October 9 in New York--later an earlier date was added for Santa Cruz. Soon, it was announced that the tour would also include Europe, starting November 13. On June 3, the Residents.com Web site boasted the planned release of The Bunny Boy, which was released on September 1. The Web site had posted information in which "Foxboro" claimed this would be a farewell tour; it was later revealed that this was nothing more than a mistake by Foxboro. November 3, 2009, saw three new releases. The Ughs! is a mostly instrumental album made up of music composed earlier in the band's career, which had been completely reworked for the Voice of Midnight album. Ten Little Piggies is a "futurist compilation", ten songs from projects that may or may not be released in the future. Finally, Is Anybody out There is a DVD collecting all the Bunny Boy videos from the series posted on YouTube. The episodes are streamlined and not exactly the same as the originals. CANNOTANSWER | released a double instrumental album, Night of the Hunters. | The Residents are an American art collective best known for their avant-garde music and multimedia works. Since their first official release, Meet the Residents (1974), they have released over 60 albums, numerous music videos and short films, three CD-ROM projects, and ten DVDs. They have undertaken seven major world tours and scored multiple films. Pioneers in exploring the potential of CD-ROM and similar technologies, the Residents have won several awards for their multimedia projects. They founded Ralph Records, a record label focusing on avant-garde music, in 1972.
Throughout the group's existence, the individual members have ostensibly attempted to work anonymously, preferring to have attention focused on their art. Much speculation and rumor has focused on this aspect of the group. In public, they appear silent and costumed, often wearing eyeball helmets, top hats and tails—a costume now recognized as their signature iconography. In 2017, Hardy Fox, long known to be associated with the Residents, identified himself as the band's co-founder and primary composer; he died in 2018.
The Residents' albums generally fall into two categories: deconstructions of Western popular music, and complex conceptual pieces composed around a theme, theory or plot. The group is noted for surrealistic lyrics and sound, with a disregard for conventional music composition.
History
1965–1972: Origins and Residents Unincorporated
The artists who became The Residents met in high school in Shreveport, Louisiana in the early 1960s. Around 1965, they began making their first amateur home tape recordings and making art together with a number of friends. In 1966, intending to join the flourishing hippie movement, they headed west for San Francisco, but when their truck broke down in San Mateo, California they decided to remain there.
While attempting to make a living, the group purchased crude recording equipment and began to refine their recording and editing skills, as well as photography, painting, and anything remotely to do with art that they could afford. The Residents have acknowledged the existence of at least two unreleased reel-to-reel items from this era, titled The Ballad of Stuffed Trigger and Rusty Coathangers for the Doctor. The Cryptic Corporation has confirmed that their archives contain many tapes dating back decades, but because they were recorded before the group officially became the Residents, the band does not consider them part of its discography.
Word of the unnamed group's experimentation spread, and in 1969 British guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Philip Lithman, known as Snakefinger, began to participate with them. Around this time they also met the mysterious (and perhaps apocryphal) N. Senada, whom Lithman had picked up during an expedition in Bavaria. The two Europeans became great influences and life-long collaborators with the group.
In 1971, the group sent a reel-to-reel demo tape to Hal Halverstadt at Warner Bros., as he had signed Captain Beefheart, one of the group's heroes, to the label. Halverstadt was not impressed with The Warner Bros. Album, but gave it an "A for Ariginality". Because the band had not included a name in the return address, the rejection slip was addressed to "Residents". The group decided to use this name, first becoming Residents Uninc., then shortening it to the current name.
The first known public performance of the Residents, Uninc. was at the Boarding House in San Francisco in 1971. The brief, guerrilla-style performance took the audience by surprise. A photo from it, showing Lithman playing violin with his pinky "about to strike the violin like a snake", originated the stage name he used for the rest of his life, Snakefinger. Later in 1971, a second tape was completed called Baby Sex, featuring a long collage partially consisting of recordings from the Boarding House performance. The cover art for the tape box was a silk-screened copy of an old photo depicting a woman fellating a small child, an example of the extremely confrontational and deliberately puerile visual and lyrical style the group adopted during this period.
Alleged early influence
N. Senada (which may be a play on Ensenada, en se nada meaning "in himself nothing," no sé nada meaning "I don't know anything" or enseñada, a form of the past participle meaning "taught") was said to be a Bavarian composer and music theorist who formulated the "Theory of Obscurity" and the "Theory of Phonetic Organization". His "Theory of Obscurity" states that an artist can only produce pure art when the expectations and influences of the outside world are not taken into consideration; while his "Theory of Phonetic Organization" states, "the musician should put the sounds first, building the music up from [them] rather than developing the music, then working down to the sounds that make it up."
There is a debate as to whether or not Senada, supposedly having been born in 1907 and dying in 1993 at the age of 86, actually existed, or was simply an invention of the Residents. It is frequently speculated that, if real, N. Senada may have been the famous avant-garde composer and instrument-designer Harry Partch, the influence of whose work may be heard in Residents compositions such as "Six Things to a Cycle"; his death is also referenced in the song "Death in Barstow". Another rumor speculates that N. Senada may have been Captain Beefheart, because in the late 1960s Beefheart and his "Magic Band" lived in a residence on Ensenada Drive in Woodland Hills, California, while recording Trout Mask Replica and Safe as Milk; Beefheart's influence can also be heard in early Residents works. The Residents also sent an early demo tape to the Warner Brothers executive Hal Halverstadt who had signed Beefheart.
According to The Residents, in 1937, N. Senada premiered his masterpiece, Pollex Christi, which means either Thumb of Christ or Big Toe of Christ. This work mainly consisted of borrowed pieces from other composers, namely Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 and Carl Orff's Carmina Burana, among others. He also left large holes in the work so that the performers could insert music of their choosing, thus "becoming composers themselves". Senada justified his work with "house" analogies claiming that he did not make the "bricks" but "cemented them together"; he was not the "architect", just the "builder". N. Senada allegedly collaborated with The Residents on their work prior to "Santa Dog" and "Meet The Residents", and then disappeared. He resurfaced in the mid-1970s, returning from an Arctic expedition and bearing a sealed bottle of pure Arctic air; this served as inspiration for the Eskimo project.
1972–1980: "Classic" era
Santa Dog, Meet The Residents, Not Available & The Third Reich 'n Roll (1972–1976)
In early 1972, the band left San Mateo and relocated to 20 Sycamore St, San Francisco; a studio they named "El Ralpho", which boasted a completely open ground floor (seemingly ideal for a sound stage), allowing the group to expand their operations and also begin preliminary work on their most ambitious project up to that point, a full-length film entitled Vileness Fats, which consumed most of their attention for the next four years. Intended to be the first-ever long form music video, The Residents saw this project as an opportunity to create the ultimate cult film. After four years of filming (from 1972 to 1976) the project was reluctantly cancelled because of time, space, and monetary constraints. Fifteen hours of footage was shot for the project, yet only approximately 35 minutes of that footage has ever been released.
The group also formed Ralph Records at this time, as a small, independent label to release and promote their own work. In 1972, to inaugurate the new business, the group recorded and pressed the Santa Dog EP, their first recorded output to be released to the public. Designed to resemble a Christmas card from an insurance company, the EP consisted of two 7" singles, one song on each side. The four songs were presented as being by four different bands (Ivory & The Braineaters, Delta Nudes, the College Walkers, and Arf & Omega featuring the Singing Lawnchairs), with only a small note on the interior of the gatefold sleeve mentioning the participation of "Residents, Uninc."
They sent copies of Santa Dog to west coast radio stations with no response until Bill Reinhardt, program director of KBOO-FM in Portland, Oregon received a copy and played it heavily on his show. Reinhardt met the Residents at their studio at 20 Sycamore St. in the summer of 1973 with the news of his broadcasts. The Residents gave Reinhardt exclusive access to all their recordings, including copies of the original masters of Stuffed Trigger, Baby Sex, and The Warner Bros. Album.
Throughout this point, the group had been manipulating old tapes they had collected and regularly recording jam sessions, and these recordings eventually became the group's debut full-length album, Meet The Residents, which was released in 1974 on Ralph. To aid in promoting the group, Reinhardt was given 50 of the first 1,000 copies of Meet the Residents. Some were sent to friends, listeners and critics, and two dozen were left for sale on consignment at the Music Millennium record store, where they sat unsold for months. KBOO DJ Barry Schwam (a.k.a. Schwump, who also recorded with the Residents) promoted them on his program as well. Eventually, KBOO airplay attracted a cult following.Following the release of Meet The Residents, the group began working on a follow-up entitled Not Available, following N. Senada's theory of obscurity. The LP was recorded and compiled completely in private, and would not be released until the group had completely forgotten about its existence.
During breaks in the sessions for Vileness Fats, the group would record their next project, entitled The Third Reich 'n Roll, over the course of a year between October 1974 and October 1975. The album consisted of two side-long medleys of the band covering popular songs from 1950s and 1960s, whilst toying with the concept of the popularity of rock 'n' roll being comparable to that of the rise of Nazism in the 1930s. The resulting LP was released in 1976, and was the group's first project to feature a music video, created by syncing an old video of the group performing with an edited version of "Swastikas on Parade".
After the Third Reich 'n Rolls release, a group of enterprising friends and collaborators from their early days in San Mateo — Homer Flynn, Hardy Fox, Jay Clem and John Kennedy — also joined the group in San Francisco, forming what became the Cryptic Corporation to manage and represent the band. Clem became the band's spokesman; Fox edited, produced and compiled the band's increasingly prolific output; Flynn was already handling the group's cover design and promotional art under the banner of Pore Know Graphics; and Kennedy took the role of "President" (admittedly a fairly empty title, as overall responsibilities were handled more or less equally by the four). The Cryptic Corporation took over the day-to-day operations of Ralph Records, and provided the band with an improved public relations platform.
Shortly after the introduction of the Cryptic Corporation, the Residents recorded their "Satisfaction" single, the B-side of which featured the Residents' first work with the ARP Odyssey, the first synthesizer owned by the group, purchased by the Cryptics.
Eskimo, Fingerprince, Duck Stab, & Rise in popularity (1976–1979)
Following "Satisfaction", the group began recording Eskimo in April 1976; a concept album based upon the Theory of Phonetic Organisation that suggests that music should not be confined to chords and structures, but instead should simply be a collection of fascinating noises. The album would feature acoustic soundscapes inspired by Inuit culture, whilst parodying American ignorance of other cultures. The Eskimo sessions would last many years, and feature many divergences, the first of which, in November 1976, resulting in Fingerprince, a collection of unused recordings from the Third Reich 'n Roll, Not Available, and Eskimo sessions.
Fingerprince received considerable coverage in the British press, and was the first LP by the group to receive any critical attention when Jon Savage reviewed the album and its two predecessors favorably for the December 31st issue of Sounds magazine. This review gained the group considerable attention, with many of their previously unsold mail-order items being sold seemingly overnight. The sudden success of Fingerprince and its predecessors caused the group to briefly halt production on Eskimo to create something more appealing to their newfound audience.
The Residents followed up Fingerprince with their Duck Stab! EP – their most accessible release up to that point. This EP got the band some attention from the press (namely NME, Sounds and Melody Maker), and was followed in 1978 by the Duck Stab/Buster & Glen album, which paired the EP with a similar, concurrently recorded EP which had not been released separately. The group then continued work on Eskimo, which proved a very difficult project, marked by many conflicts between the band and their management, which led to a number of delays in the release date.
The sudden attention afforded to them by the success of the Duck Stab! EP and "Satisfaction" single required an album release as soon as possible to help fund the band's spiraling recording costs, and to meet the demand for new Residents material. This forced the release of the band's long-shelved "second album" Not Available in 1978. The Residents were not bothered by this deviation from the original plan not to release the album, as the 1978 release ultimately did not affect the philosophical conditions under which it was originally recorded.
Eskimo was finally released in 1979 to much acclaim, even making it to the final list for nominations for a Grammy award in 1980, although the album wasn't nominated. Rather than being songs in the orthodox sense, the compositions on Eskimo sounded like "live-action stories" without dialogue. The cover art of Eskimo also presents the first instance of the group wearing eyeball masks and tuxedos, which was later considered by many to be the group's signature costume. The Residents had only intended to wear these costumes for the cover of Eskimo, but adopted the costumes in the longer term as it provided them with a unique and recognisable image.
The group followed Eskimo with Commercial Album in 1980. The LP featured 40 songs, each exactly one minute in length. Around this time, two short films were made in collaboration with Graeme Whifler: One Minute Movies, consisting of four music videos for tracks from the Commercial Album; and a video for "Hello Skinny" from the Duck Stab LP. Created at a time when MTV (and what later became known as "music video" in general) was in its infancy, the group's videos were in heavy rotation since they were among the few music videos available to broadcasters.
1981–1990: New technology and live performances
Mark of the Mole & The Mole Show (1981–1983)
The Residents' follow up to Commercial Album was Mark of the Mole, released in 1981. The album was a reaction to the group feeling betrayed by a suddenly disinterested music press.
Shortly after the release of Mark of the Mole, The Residents purchased one of the first ever E-Mu Emulator samplers, number #00005 specifically. The instrument was revolutionary for the band, as the sampling capacities of the keyboard not only allowed them to recreate instruments the members were not able to play, but also gave them the opportunity to create their meticulously crafted studio sound in a live setting. The first album the band recorded using the emulator was The Tunes of Two Cities, the second part of the Mole Trilogy, which was nearly entirely recorded using the Emulator.
Following the release of Cities, the Residents started rehearsing for a possible live show, eventually developing their first touring project, the Mole Show, a theatrical retelling of their Mark of the Mole album. The band debuted the show with a test performance, on April 10, 1982, before a tour of California in October, and a European tour throughout mid 1983. The show featured Penn Jillette as the narrator, playing a similar role as he had previously done with the Ralph Records 10th Anniversary radio special.
A third leg, featuring dates in New York, was booked, but had to be cancelled after one performance due to lack of funding. Following the Mole Show, the band was broke, and as such attempted to recoup some of their losses with several archival releases, including a collection of outtakes called Residue in 1983, and a VHS containing recordings from the Mole Show as well as a newly-scored edit of Vileness Fats footage.
The American Composers Series, 13th Anniversary Show, and the end of Ralph (1984–1987)
Deciding to take a break from part three of the Mole Trilogy, the Residents began a new project entitled the American Composers Series, a planned series of 10 albums which would pay tribute to pop artists and instrumental composers from the United States. The first result of this pairing was George & James, featuring the music of George Gershwin and James Brown. Following the release of George & James, the Residents finally abandoned part three of the Mole Trilogy, choosing instead to record a fourth entry entitled The Big Bubble, featuring very stripped-down instrumentation in order to portray a fictional garage rock band. No further entries into the Mole Trilogy have been recorded, and the project is considered abandoned.
When The Big Bubble was released in Japan by Wave Records, it was an unquestioned success, with its popularity resulting in Wave funding a two-week tour of Japan for the group in October 1985. The tour was successful, and re-ignited the group's interest in creating live performances. As a result, they eventually embarked on their 13th Anniversary world tour, ranging from 1985 to 1987, with Snakefinger playing electric guitar. As for studio work, the group eventually released their second entry into the American Composers series, Stars & Hank Forever, featuring the music of Hank Williams and John Philip Sousa. Their version of the Williams song "Kaw-liga" was particularly successful in the emerging club scene.
Due to licensing costs and the emerging CD format, the American Composers series was later abandoned. Stars & Hank Forever was the last Residents project Snakefinger would play on, as he later died of a heart attack in July 1987.
Following the release of the 13th Anniversary Show LP in 1986 and a cover of "Hit the Road Jack" in 1987, the Cryptic Corporation resigned control of Ralph Records over to Tom & Sheenah Timony, and the Residents signed to Rykodisc. Tom and Sheenah would later turn Ralph into a new label, T.E.C. Tones, and establish the Residents' official fan club from 1988 to 1993 - UWEB (Uncle Willie's Eyeball Buddies).
God in Three Persons, Cube E, and (1987–1990)
After two compilation CDs titled Heaven? and Hell!, the Residents' first new project for Ryko was titled God in Three Persons, an hour-long poem in the form of a spoken-word rock opera. This was the first new Residents album to be released on CD, and the last Residents project to be entirely recorded on analog tape, as the group moved on to MIDI technology; their first venture into MIDI would be scoring episodes for Pee-wee's Playhouse in 1987. Despite initially mixed critical and commercial reaction, God in Three Persons today is considered one of the group's masterworks.
On November 18, 1987, at a party in Amsterdam for Boudisque Records, the Residents' European label, they premiered a new work titled Buckaroo Blues, a suite of cowboy songs. After a choreographed TELE5 appearance in April 1988, this suite would be coupled with a second one titled Black Barry, a suite of "black music" (that is, blues and gospel), and form the first act of the Residents' next touring project, Cube-E: The History of American Music in 3EZ Pieces. After the show's debut in New York, on July 21, 1989, it was decided to add a third act consisting of covers of Elvis Presley songs, completing the equation "Cowboy music + Black music = Rock and roll." The show took on a much more theatrical approach than the 13th Anniversary tour, with elaborate set designs, costumes, lighting and choreography. Cube-E toured from September 1989 to November 1990, and was successful, both critically and financially.
A studio version of the third act was also released and titled The King & Eye. The album was recorded at Different Fur Studios and released on Enigma Records around the time the tour began in September 1989. Further television work was also being done for MTV, with the Residents scoring and doing voice work for Liquid Television and the Henry Selick-directed pilot "Slow Bob in the Lower Dimensions."
1990–1997: Multimedia projects
Freak Show, CD-ROMs, and the 25th anniversary (1991–1997)
Recordings for a new studio album were worked on during breaks in the Cube-E tour, and shortly after the tour ended, Freak Show was released. An album detailing the lives and personalities of fictional carnival freaks, the Freak Show project would spawn many other iterations, such as a graphic novel in collaboration with comic artists from Dark Horse, such as Brian Bolland and Matt Howarth, and a promotional video created with the help of New York artist John Sanborn, which also presented a music video for "Harry the Head", animated by computer artist Jim Ludtke - both artists would go on to collaborate with the Residents on many further projects.
A partnership with Voyager in 1992 allowed the Residents to develop a laserdisc titled Twenty Twisted Questions to celebrate their twentieth anniversary. Along with this laserdisc, a studio album was recorded, titled Our Finest Flowers. Not quite a "greatest hits" compilation, many tracks on the album borrow elements from previous songs in the Residents' catalog.
The Residents' collaboration with Jim Ludtke would result in the creation of the Freak Show and Bad Day on the Midway CD-ROMs. Both of these projects featured many other collaborations with visual artists, including returning collaborators from the Freak Show graphic novel, such as Richard Sala and Dave McKean. The Residents enjoyed quite a bit of critical and financial success with these CD-ROMs, winning several industry awards. However, during early development stages for a third CD-ROM titled I Murdered Mommy, their distributor Inscape was forced to dissolve due to oversaturation and obsoletion of the CD-ROM market.
Despite majorly occupying themselves with CD-ROM development, the Residents still remained musically active, releasing an enhanced CD album titled Gingerbread Man (an observation and study of nine fictional characters) in 1994, and scoring the Discovery Channel documentary series Hunters in 1995. Freak Show would also get a live adaptation in November 1995, at the Archa Theater in Prague. While the Residents did act as music and stage directors for the show, they did not actually perform - the music was conducted and performed by Czech band Už Jsme Doma, while actors and dancers played their roles on stage.
Freak Show Live would be the last iteration of the Freak Show brand; while a DVD was being developed in 2003, the early death of animator Jim Ludtke immediately brought the project to a halt.
Around this time, singer/performer Molly Harvey was recruited to work with the group. While her first appearance in a Residents project was the Gingerbread Man album, she would officially become a member of the group in 1997, with a one-off performance at the Popkomm festival in Germany titled Disfigured Night. This performance would later become the second act of a special 25th anniversary show at the Fillmore in San Francisco, in October 1997.
1998-2009: New collaborators / The 2nd millennium
Return to touring: Wormwood, Icky Flix, and Demons Dance Alone (1998–2005)
Due to the collapse of the CD-ROM market, a collective decision was made to tour again. While keeping up with their theatrical tendencies by regular use of costumes and stage props, the Residents would also perform and record with a team of guest musicians: the aforementioned Molly Harvey (vocals), Nolan Cook (guitar), Carla Fabrizio (arrangements and vocals), Toby Dammit (drums), and later on in 2002, Eric Drew Feldman (keyboards). Some of the band members, notably Feldman and Fabrizio, went on to collaborate with the group on numerous other projects up until the present time, while Cook eventually became a full-time band member. Fabrizio's connections with the Balinese gamelan ensemble Gamelan Sekar Jaya allowed for occasional collaborations between the two groups during this period.
The first tour with this new band formation was for the 1998 album Wormwood, a collection of songs depicting typically gruesome stories from the Holy Bible, mostly from the Old Testament. While the studio album only featured Harvey, Fabrizio and Dammit as guests (with Dammit only taking occasional vocal duties), the band would be mostly fully formed by the time of the show's live debut at the Fillmore in October 1998. The Wormwood show toured up to July 1999, and featured drastically different arrangements of songs from the album, mostly darker and heavier, as well as new or unused material related to the concept. Some of these arrangements would be recorded for a studio album titled Roadworms, and a DVD of the live show would be released in 2005.
The same band formation would later tour to promote the Residents' first DVD, Icky Flix - a compilation of most of the group's music videos, as well as new animated videos and a re-recorded soundtrack, to celebrate the group's upcoming 30th anniversary. These re-recorded arrangements would be performed on the show as their corresponding videos would be played from the DVD on a screen.
On the event of the September 11 attacks, the Residents were still touring Icky Flix in Europe. The resulting fear and anxiety caused by the attacks would eventually result in the recording of Demons Dance Alone in 2002. While not a direct response to the events, the songs on the album portrayed the negative emotions felt by the group and its individual members, and this was reflected in the album's subsequent tour, from October 2002 to September 2003. The group's next major album, the 2005 Animal Lover, contained lyrics of a similarly tragic nature, although in a more abstract manner. The album also contained a booklet with stories which presented the songs from the point of view of animals. Animal Lover was also the first Residents album to be released on the Mute label, which would be solely responsible for the Residents' major releases up until 2008.
Animal Lover is currently the last Residents album to feature Molly Harvey, who moved to Atlanta to live with her husband at the time. Her last appearance as a member of the Residents was at a small series of shows titled The Way We Were at the "What is Music?" festival in Australia. The show's setlist was a career retrospective much in the style of the 13th Anniversary tour - the last time the Residents had toured Australia.
2005-2009: The "Storyteller" era
Narrative albums and The Bunny Boy (2006-2009)
Due to the increasing numbers of illegal downloads of music on the Internet, which considerably decreased product sales, the Residents attempted a new artistic medium: the radio drama, in the form of a paid podcast distributed through Apple's iTunes service. This podcast, titled The River of Crime (a first-person tale of an individual's obsession with crime and criminals) ran for five weekly episodes in 2006 before its cancellation due to inconveniences surrounding the podcast's promotion on iTunes, thereby discouraging further production.
Aside from Animal Lover, the group's partnership with Mute produced three more albums: Tweedles in 2006 (a first-person character study of a sexually successful yet emotionally unavailable vampiric figure); The Voice of Midnight in 2007 (a retelling of the E.T.A. Hoffmann story, Der Sandmann); and The Bunny Boy in 2008 (a first-person narrative and character study of the titular Bunny in search of his missing brother).
While Tweedles and The Voice of Midnight have not yet been developed further (aside from instrumental releases such as The UGHS! in 2009), The Bunny Boy proved a very accessible concept. A YouTube video series of the same name was done to promote and further elaborate on the project. The series was partially interactive; fans could communicate with Bunny via e-mail, and some of the interactions may or may not have altered the course of the series' plot (a book containing some of Bunny's correspondence was published by Bandits Mages in 2019). Soon afterwards the album was toured from October to December 2008. A second season of the video series was shown in 2009, somewhat officially ending the project.
2010–2016: Randy, Chuck & Bob
Making a decision to shift focus from studio work to touring, and to enhance their show's portability, the Residents would change their live band to a "power trio" formation, and in a sort of meta stunt, appear to "unmask" themselves as lead singer / frontman "Randy," composer / keyboardist "Charles 'Chuck' Bobuck," and guitarist Nolan Cook as "Bob" – although all three band members were still costumed: "Randy" donned an old man mask and wore an overcoat with oversized red tie and shoes; "Chuck" and "Bob" wore red jackets, special goggles and fake dreadlocks. There was also mention of a fourth band member, drummer "Carlos," who allegedly had left the music business to take care of his mother in Mexico; however, despite being credited as singer in the group's 2012 album Coochie Brake, there is no further evidence of "Carlos" having ever been a real band member.
This new band formation debuted in the Talking Light tour, which ran from January 2010 to April 2011. While the setlist once again consisted of assorted songs from the band's repertoire (although with greatly reworked arrangements), the show would also feature newly written "ghost stories," in which a video of a narrator telling said stories would be projected onto the stage while the band performed in a somewhat improvisational manner. These "ghost stories" were loosely threaded by the presence of television, TV commercials, and industrialized products such as Oscar Mayer hot dogs or Betty Crocker Pudding Roll-ups – although these weren't endorsements; these products were simply a minor element integrated into the stories, not unlike product placement. In between certain songs, "Randy" would also speak to the audience, introducing the band and later describing his own history with supernatural appearances, and his subsequent fear of mirrors. The tour was financially successful, and the band would continue to perform in this formation with only minor changes in stage and costume design.
In the next couple of years, "Randy" would take on an increased role as frontman of the band, starting a "personal" Tumblr blog where he would write mostly about life experiences and trivia regarding the Residents' history, as well as promoting his "solo" show, Sam's Enchanted Evening, which was presented in various incarnations between June 2010 and March 2012 with collaborators Joshua Raoul Brody and Carla Fabrizio. More akin to musical theater than a concert, the show focused on the titular Sam's life story, with the singer alternating between monologues and cover performances of various songs that were important in his life. During this period, the Residents would also collaborate with Belgian dancer/choreographer Grace Ellen Barkey from Needcompany, composing the music for a show titled Mush-Room in 2013.
In 2014, "Randy" would maintain a series of vlogs with the help of director Don Hardy, titled In My Room and later Randyland, elaborating further on his experiences, both with the Residents and with events in his personal life. The blog currently has been inactive since January 6, 2019. Composer "Charles Bobuck" would also maintain a series of personal writings on the Residents' website titled The Test Tube of Tomorrow, and occasionally release music under this name, usually material deemed unfitting for the Residents concept. Bobuck's writings were of a much more detailed and biographical nature, and his music much more abstract, often referred to as "contraptions" rather than compositions.
The group's 40th anniversary tour, The Wonder of Weird, also elaborated on the "Randy, Chuck & Bob" concept, although guised as an anthology show – lead singer Randy would once more speak to the audience between songs, briefly discussing the band's history as he slowly grew depressed with the state of the band and his own life, occasionally leaving the stage and prompting the remaining band members to improvise. The show toured from January to May 2013.
This band formation toured once more in 2014 with a show called Shadowland, retrofittingly subtitled "part three of the 'Randy, Chuck & Bob' trilogy." Initially a one-off week of performances in Europe, the show was eventually brought back in March 2015, coinciding with the premiere of the Theory of Obscurity film – a documentary on the history of the band, directed by Don Hardy and produced by Barton Bishoff and Josh Keppel – at the SXSW Film Festival. This show would be the last time "Charles Bobuck" would perform with the band, as he decided to quit the touring business due to increasing health problems. He eventually quit the Residents altogether in 2016, revealing his identity as Hardy Fox of the Cryptic Corporation, and continued to make music as a solo artist until his death in October 2018.
Shadowland then toured from August 2015 to July 2016, with Eric Drew Feldman (as Bobuck's cousin "Rico") replacing Fox on keyboards, as well as production on future Residents projects. The show was mostly similar to the previous two tours, with a setlist of various reworked songs from the group's repertoire, and occasional video interludes in the vein of Talking Light, with different characters discussing their experiences with birth, reincarnation and near-death.
2017–present: "The Real Residents", Metal Meat & Bone, and the pREServed series
In March 2017, the Residents presented their new lineup, advertised as "The Real Residents": "Tyrone" on vocals, "Eekie" (Nolan Cook) on guitar, "Erkie" (Eric Feldman) on keyboards, and "Cha Cha" on drums and percussion. Shortly after a preview of their In Between Dreams tour in Japan, the group released their first studio album since Coochie Brake, entitled The Ghost of Hope, describing real train wreck stories from the 19th and early 20th century. The album was released on Cherry Red Records, the Residents' current label, and promoted with a single, and their first music video since 2001's Icky Flix – "Rushing Like a Banshee," directed by John Sanborn. Although The Ghost of Hope wasn't toured (except for a one-off performance at the San Francisco Exploratorium), the Residents played both sides of the "Rushing Like a Banshee" single on the In Between Dreams show, which ran from October 2017 up to February 2019 and followed a loose theme, much like Shadowland, this time of dreams.
During the course of the tour, the Residents would work on new projects. Their next album, Intruders, released in October 2018, was advertised along with the I am a Resident! concept, which started as a sort of officially-endorsed tribute project: fans would submit their interpretations of Residents songs, and the group would collect their favorites into an album. After the number of submissions vastly exceeded their expectations, the group decided to change the project into a type of collage, even recording segments and overdubs of their own. The final album was released to contributors in May 2018, and worldwide in August 2018.
In July 2018, the Residents also published their second novel (the first being a novelization of their game Bad Day on the Midway in 2012). The book, entitled The Brick-Eaters, was described as "an absurdist buddy movie story featuring a very tall internet content screener teaming up with an aging career criminal whose primary companions are an oxygen bottle and a .44 Magnum".
The group also began their ongoing pREServed reissue series in January 2018 – deluxe editions of the major albums in the band's discography, containing brand new remasters and unreleased recordings from the band's archives, previously in care of Hardy Fox before he quit the group.
During the In Between Dreams tour, the Residents also previewed songs from their "upcoming blues album," which was eventually titled Metal, Meat & Bone. The premise of the album was to present the long lost recordings of a fictional albino blues singer named Alvin Snow, also known as "Dyin' Dog." The Residents would present the original "Dyin' Dog demos" on one disc, and their own interpretations of the same songs on another disc. The album was released in July 2020 and promoted with two music videos for the Residents' new versions of "Bury My Bone" and "DIE! DIE! DIE!", the latter being sung by rock musician and Pixies frontman Black Francis.
Metal, Meat & Bone will be further promoted by the Residents on their upcoming Dog Stab tour in August 2021 (following numerous cancellations and postponements on account of the COVID-19 pandemic) – the show, currently marketed as "the 50th anniversary show," will allegedly present songs from the new album as well as new arrangements of songs from their 1978 album, Duck Stab / Buster & Glen.
To celebrate the groups' 50th anniversary, a retrospective coffee table book The Residents: A Sight for Sore Eyes, Vol. 1 by author Aaron Tanner was announced. The book contains never before seen photos, quotes from celebrities influenced by the group, as well as a 7" single dating to the group's Not Available era.
Identity
In the group's early days, many rumors circulated about its membership. As the cover art of Meet the Residents was a parody of The Beatles' 1964 North American release, Meet the Beatles!, rumors circulated that The Residents were actually The Beatles, even specifically naming George Harrison. Many other rumors have come and gone over the years, one being that '60s experimental band Cromagnon shared members with the band. Les Claypool, frontman of rock band Primus, and Gerald Casale of new wave band Devo claimed to have been accused of being members of the band; and Mark Mothersbaugh is alleged to have played keyboards during the band's 13th-anniversary tour.
Since the late 1970s, much of the speculation about the members' identities has involved the group's management team, The Cryptic Corporation. It was formed in 1976 as a corporation in California by Jay Clem, Homer Flynn, Hardy W. Fox, and John Kennedy, all of whom denied having been band members. Clem and Kennedy left the Corporation in 1982, to the chagrin of fans. The Residents members do not grant interviews, although Flynn, Fox, and Clem have conducted interviews on behalf of the group.
Nolan Cook, a prominent collaborator in the band's live and studio work (and a live member of I Am Spoonbender) denied in an interview that Fox and Flynn were The Residents. However, some consider Cook himself a member of the band, as he is known to wear the same head coverings as the group in live shows, and wore the trademark eyeball mask on the Wormwood Tour. He also played the part of "Bob" during the "Randy", "Chuck", and "Bob" trilogy of shows.
William Poundstone, author of the Big Secrets books, compared voiceprints of a Flynn lecture with those of spoken word segments from the Residents discography in his book "Biggest Secrets". He concluded, "The similarities in the spectograms second the convincing subjective impression that the voices are identical", and that "it is possible that the creative core of the Residents is the duo of Flynn and Fox." A subset of that belief is that Flynn is the lyricist and that Fox writes the music. The online database of the performance rights organization BMI (of which The Residents and their publishing company, Pale Pachyderm Publishing [Warner-Chappell] have been members for their entire careers) lists Flynn and Fox as the composers of all original Residents songs, including pre-1974 songs from the "Residents Unincorporated" years.
Simon Reynolds wrote in his book Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978–1984 that "the Residents and their representatives were one and the same," and elaborated further on one of his blogs, stating that "this was something that anybody who had any direct dealings with Ralph figured out sooner rather than later." Reynolds quotes Helios Creed, who identifies the Residents as a keyboardist named "H," a singer named "Homer," and "this other guy called John." Peter Principle of Tuxedomoon claimed that he and others "eventually figured out that the guy doing the graphics and the engineer in the studio were, in fact, the Residents."Cryptic openly admits the group's artwork is done by Flynn (among others) under various names that, put together, become "Pornographics", but the pseudonym is rarely spelled the same way twice (examples: Porno Graphics, Pore No Graphix, Pore-Know Graphics); and that Fox is the sound engineer – meaning that he is the main producer, engineer, mixer, and editor of all their recordings. (Since 1976, all of The Residents' recordings have listed their producer as the Cryptic Corporation, presumably meaning Fox in particular.)
From 2010 to 2016, The Residents referred to themselves in concert as the characters "Randy", "Chuck", and "Bob", and referred to a former member of the band, "Carlos", who left the group following a disagreement with "Randy". There is speculation that "Carlos" is Carlos Cadona. Better known by his stage name, "6025," Cadona was in the original lineup of the Dead Kennedys and appears on a live album by Snakefinger. "Carlos" may also refer to Carla Fabrizio, a touring member of The Residents from 1998 to 2008.
"Bob" is speculated to be guitarist and longtime collaborator Nolan Cook. Cook is often the only credited collaborator on the "Randy, Chuck, & Bob" era albums, such as Lonely Teenager, Talking Light: Bimbo's, and Shadowland.
A synopsis for The Residents' 2012 stage production "Sam's Enchanted Evening" provides the name "Randy Rose" as that of The Residents' lead singer. "Chuck", or "Charles Bobuck", was the group's primary songwriter, and released a series of solo albums (or "contraptions") under this name during the "Randy, Chuck and Bob" era. The member known as Chuck retired from live performance due to ill health in 2015, and ultimately retired from The Residents altogether following the release of the Theory of Obscurity documentary film. Eric Drew Feldman replaced him and performed under the name "Rico" from 2015 to 2016.
In the liner notes featured on the 2020 reissue of Phillip Perkins' King Of The World album, Perkins confirms that he was a member of The Residents during their Assorted Secrets' lineup, which also performed The Mole Show. On his BayImproviser biography Perkins states that he worked closely with The Residents between 1979 and 1984. He had previously been credited as the lighting designer on the Mole Show Roxy LP, and as engineer on original versions of Stars & Hank Forever, as well as on reissues of The Tune of Two Cities and The Snakey Wake. Considering this, his time working with the group roughly would have been from 1979 - 1987.
Hardy Fox
In October 2017, former manager for The Residents, Hardy Fox identified himself as both the anonymous primary composer and producer for the Residents as well as the pseudonymous Charles Bobuck. Fox was born in Longview, Texas, where his father worked in the oil industry; his mother was a nurse. The family moved several times, and Fox graduated from Rayville High School in Louisiana in 1963. He then studied art and business at Louisiana Tech University, where he met Homer Flynn, and graduated in 1967.
In September 2018 Fox added to his website the dates "1945–2018", although he was known to be alive (but unwell) after the dates were published. Fox died on October 30, 2018, from brain cancer, aged 73. He was identified in obituaries as the co-founder and primary composer of the Residents. On December 14, 2018, the official Residents mailing list acknowledged Fox as "engineer, producer and sometime composer of much of the Residents’ best-loved work".
Frequent collaborators
Since their inception, The Residents have had a number of credited collaborators. These collaborators, despite not being anonymous, can be considered by some definition, Residents.
1971–1975
During the band's formative years, its main members consisted of The Singing Resident, Hardy Fox, jazz pianist James Whittaker, and bassist Bob Tagney, the later two of which are credited as writers on the 2018 LP release of The Warner Brothers album. This lineup, along with Snakefinger, who would join the group in late 1971, are credited as the 'core' members of the group on the 2013 early demos compilation, The Delta Nudes Greatest Hiss. Bob Tagney and James Whittaker are also two of the only credited collaborators on the band's debut album, Meet the Residents, Whittaker, as the pianist on "Spotted Pinto Bean", and Tagney as the co-bassist on "Infant Tango". Female vocalist Pamela Zeibak was also one of The Residents' frequent collaborators during this time, with credits on The Delta Nudes Greatest Hiss, Meet The Residents, The Third Reich 'n Roll, and Fingerprince.Joshua Raoul Brody began working with The Residents in the mid-1970s, when he was invited to the set of their film Vileness Fats. Shortly after this he worked with the group anonymously by arranging the backing vocals on their "Satisfaction" single. In the 1980s, Brody began to receive credit for his work with The Residents under the pseudonym "Raoul N. Di Seimbote", but by 1987, he was using his own name. Brody most recently worked with The Residents on their 2020 God In Three Persons live show.
1976–1983
In early 1976, Snakefinger returned to the US, and continued his collaborations with The Residents, and was credited on a majority of The Residents' major releases up until his death in 1987. At the same time, drummer Don Jakovich started working with the band, making credited appearances on Satisfaction, Fingerprince, Snakefinger's Chewing Hides the Sound, and Commercial Album. He also performed with them in costume as part of their June 1976 live debut.
Following the demise of Henry Cow, former members Chris Cutler and Fred Frith began making appearances on Residents material as drummer and guitarist respectively. Frith first appeared with The Residents on the Subterranean Modern anthology, and Cutler on the Eskimo album. The following year both featured on The Commercial Album, with Frith receiving the credit of 'Extra Hard Working Guest Musician'.
Nessie Lessons, the wife of Hardy Fox, began to make appearances on Residents releases between 1980 and 1983, initially as an uncredited female vocalist. Lessons was first credited on The Tunes of Two Cities, toured with the band from 1982–1983, and acted as the group's spokesperson when Penn Jillette was unavailable. Her final work as a regular collaborator was on the song "HellNo", for the soundtrack to the 1984 film The Census Taker.
For The Mole Show, The Residents also had dancers: Kathleen French, Carol Werner LeMaitre, Sarah McLennan Walker and Chris Van Ralte. Carol LeMaitre and Sarah McLennan went on to portray The Residents on stage during the 13th Anniversary Show, and the dancers in Cube-E.
1987–1993
Starting in 1987, The Residents began working with female vocalist Laurie Amat, who went on to become The Residents' primary female vocalist for much of the 1990s. Her final role as a regular collaborator was on the 1998 Wormwood album. Another female vocalist from this period was Diane Alden, who first appeared on the Freak Show album, she once again worked with the group up until Wormwood. Tony Janssen, who was first credited as an engineer on the band's Cube-E album, eventually became a male vocalist for the band and provided the voice of Tex the Barker in their Freak Show projects.
1994–2014
During recording of their Gingerbread Man album, The Singing Resident met future singer Molly Harvey at a coffee store, and invited her to record vocals for the song 'The Old Woman'.The Residents - Gingerbread Man Credits - MVDaudio, MVD8193A, 2016 Following this she became a core member of The Residents' team of collaborators, and appeared on all of their mainline albums and live shows until 2005's Animal Lover. Also appearing for the first time on Gingerbread Man was Isabelle Barbier, a young actress who would make occasional appearances with The Residents up until The Ghost of Hope in 2017.
The Residents' 1998–2000 Wormwood project introduced three important figures in Residents history, Carla Fabrizio, Nolan Cook and Toby Dammit. Dammit briefly played with The Residents live from 1999 to 2003, and performed on the Demons Dance Alone album. Carla played with The Residents in concert until the 2008 Bunny Boy tour, and has worked with the band on their studio albums as recently as 2020. Nolan Cook acted as The Residents' lead guitarist both in concert and in the studio for over twenty years, most recently appearing on their 2020 God In Three Persons live project.
In the years following Molly Harvey''s departure, professional voice actress Gerri Lawlor began to make regular appearances on The Residents spoken-word projects, Tweedles, The River of Crime, The Voice Of Midnight and Lonely Teenager. Corey Rosen also began working with The Residents during this time, on The River of Crime, The Voice of Midnight, and The Bunny Boy web series.
2015–present
Following the departure of Hardy Fox in 2015, Eric Drew Feldman was asked to help with some of the duties previously undertaken by him. Along with Feldman, performers Laurie Hall and Peter Whitehead began appearing on Residents releases, starting with The Ghost of Hope. Hall stopped working with them following the release of Intruders, which introduced Sivan Lioncub.
The lineup of collaborators as featured on The Residents' latest album, Metal Meat & Bone, includes Eric Drew Feldman, Carla Fabrizio, Nolan Cook, Peter Whitehead, and Sivan Lioncub.
Discography
Studio albums
Meet the Residents – 1974
The Third Reich 'n Roll – 1976
Fingerprince – 1977
Not Available – 1978 (Recorded In 1974)
Duck Stab! / Buster and Glen – 1978
Eskimo – 1979
Commercial Album – 1980
Mark of the Mole – 1981
The Tunes of Two Cities – 1982
Title in Limbo with Renaldo and the Loaf – 1983 (Recorded In 1981)
George & James – 1984
Assorted Secrets (Live In the Studio) – 1984
Whatever Happened to Vileness Fats? – 1984
The Census Taker – 1985
The Big Bubble – 1985
Stars & Hank Forever! – 1986
God In Three Persons – 1988
God In Three Persons Soundtrack (Instrumental Version of "God In Three Persons") – 1988
Buckaroo Blues – 1989
The King & Eye – 1989
Freak Show – 1990
Our Finest Flowers – 1992
Poor Kaw-Liga's Pain (Remixes) – 1994
Gingerbread Man – 1994
Hunters – 1995
Have a Bad Day – 1996
Wormwood: Curious Stories From the Bible – 1998
Roadworm: The Berlin Sessions (Live In the Studio) – 2000
Dot.com (compilation of various digital singles released between 1999 and 2000) – 2000
Icky Flix (soundtrack of a DVD consisting of re-recordings) – 2001
Demons Dance Alone – 2002
12 Days of Brumalia (consists of a compilation of 13 virtual singles released between December 24, 2003 and January 5, 2004) – 2004
WB:RMX (Remixes derived from the unrealeses album "The W***** B*** Album (The Warner Bros. Album) " recorded between 1970 and 1971) – 2004
The King and Eye: RMX (Remixes of "The King and Eye") – 2004
I Murdered Mommy! – 2004 (Recorded In 1994)
Animal Lover – 2005
The River of Crime – 2006
Tweedles! – 2006
The River of Crime Instrumental Soundtrack (Instrumental version of "The River of Crime") – 2006
Night of the Hunters (Overdubs to the 1995 album "Hunters") – 2007
The Voice of Midnight – 2007
The Bunny Boy – 2008
Postcards From Patmos – 2008
The Fillmore Dress Rehearsal (Live In the Studio) - 2009 (recorded in 1997)
RMX (consists of several remixes released as singles in 2007) – 2009
Hades (later released in 2011 as The River of Hades) – 2009
The Ughs! – 2009 (Recorded In 2006)
Live at the Snakey Wake (Live Without Audience) - 2010 (recorded in 1987)
Dollar General (with Charles Bobuck) – 2010
Talking Light Live In Rehearsal (Live In the Studio) - 2010 (reheaesals of Talking Light tour)
Chuck's Ghost Music (credited to "The Residents' Talking Light" and later credited to Charles Bobuck) – 2010
Lonely Teenager – 2011
D*ck S*ab (credited to Th* R*esidents) - 2012 (re-recordings of "Duck Stab! / Buster and Glen")
Coochie Brake (credited to "Sonidos de la Noche") – 2012
Bad Day On The Midway: Music From the Game Reconsidered – 2012 (overdubs of 1995 recordings for a game soundtrack)
Mush-Room (later credited to Charles Bobuck) – 2013
The Theory of Obscurity – 2014
The Ghost of Hope – 2017
I Am a Resident! - 2018
And So Are We... - 2018 (bonus disc of I Am a Resident)
Intruders - 2018
Music to Eat Bricks By – 2019 (Recorded In 2006)
A Nickle If Your Dick's This Big – 2019 (Combination of "The W***** B*** Album (The Warner Bros. Album)" recorded between 1970 and 1971, and "B.S. (Baby Sex)" recorded in 1971)
Metal, Meat & Bone: The Songs of Dyin' Dog - 2020
The World of Weird Demos 1 (Live In the Studio) - 2021 (rehearsals of the Wonder of Weird Tour, recorded in 2012)
Mole Dance 82 (Live In the Studio) - 2021 (reheaesals for the Mole Show, recorded in 1982)
Demo albums
The Residents Radio Special - (includes released content) - 1977 (legal releases in 1983)
Residue of the Residents – 1983 (recorded between 1971 and 1983)
Stranger Than Supper (includes released content) - 1990 (recorded between 1985 and 1990, and 1971)
Our Tired, Our Poor, Our Huddled Masses (the third disc includes released content) – 1997 (recorded between 1971 and 1996)
Petting Zoo – 2002 (recorded between 1973 and 2002)
Animal Lover Instrumental – 2008 (recorded in the Animal Lover sessions, between 2004 and 2005)
Smell My Picture – 2008 (recorded between 2006 and 2007)
The Bridegroom of Blood – 2009 (recorded between 1998 and 2005)
Ten Little Piggies – 2009 (recorded between 2005 and 2009)
El Año del Muerto – 2009 (recorded between 1971 and 2008)
Arkansas - 2009 (recording in the Bunny Boy sessions, 2008)
Tabasco: Tweedles Instrumental - 2010 (recorded in the Tweedles! sessions, 2006)
Night Train to Nowhere! - 2012 (recorded in 2009)
Ten Two Times - 2013 (recorded between 1972 and 2012)
Eyeful - 2020 (recorded between 1983 and 2012, all those recordings were released as single in 2012)
Anganok – 2020 (recorded in 1991)
Leftovers Again?! – 2021 (recorded between 1971 and 1979)
Live albums
The Mole Show – 1983
Live In Japan – 1986
Live In the USA! – 1986
Live In Holland – 1987
Buckaroo Blues and Black Barry (often referred to simply as Black Barry to avoid confusion with the studio album "Buckaroo Blues") - 1989
Mole Show: Live In Holland – 1989 (recorded in 1983)
Liver Music - 1990 (recorded between 1971 and 1990)
Cube-E - Live In Holland – 1990
Daydream B-Liver – 1991 (recorded between 1971 and 1991)
Live at the Fillmore – 1998
Wormwood Live 1999 – 1999
Demons Dance Alone DVD – 2002
Kettles of Fish On the Outskirts of Town – 2003 (recorded between 1971-2001)
The Residents Play Wormwood – 2005 (recorded in 1999)
The Way We Were – 2005
JJJ 105.7 Radio Show – 2009 (recorded in 1982)
Icky Flix Live –2009 (recorded in 2001)
Prague and Beyond – 2009 (recorded in 1995, with two bonus tracks recorded in 2001)
Adobe Disfigured Night – 2009 (recorded in 1997)
The Malboro Eyeball Experience – 2009 (recorded in 1997)
Oh Mummy! Oh Daddy! Can't You See That It's True; What the Beatles Did to Me, I Love Lucy Did to You – 2010 (recorded in 1976)
Ritz NY – 2010 (recorded in 1986)
Brava – 2010 (recorded in 2001)
Talking Light Bimbo's – 2011
Cube-E Dynasone 3EZ EP – 2011 (recorded in 1989, remixed in 2000)
Triple Dub-Ya – 2012 (recorded in 2005, remixed in 2012)
The Wonder of Weird - 2014 (recorded in 2013, inaudible audience)
Demonic! – 2013 (recorded in 2003)
The Wonder of Weird – 2014
Cleveland – 2014 (recorded in 1986)
Shadowland – 2015 (recorded in 2014)
Disfigured Night – 2016 (full version of 1997 album of the same name)
In Between Dreams – 2019 (recorded in 2018)
Dreaming of an Eyeball Beaming – 2019 (recorded between 2018 and 2019)
Bunny Boy: Live in Frankfurt – 2021 (recorded in 2008)
God In 3 Persons Live – 2020
Singles / EPs
Santa Dog EP – 1972
"Satisfaction" – 1976
The Beatles Play the Residents and the Residents Play the Beatles – 1977
Duck Stab! – 1978
"Santa Dog '78" – 1978
Diskomo / Goosebump – 1980
The Commercial Single – 1980
Intermission – 1982
"It's a Man's Man's Man's World" – 1984
"Kaw-liga" – 1986
"Hit the Road Jack" – 1987
"Double Shot" – 1988
"Holy Kiss of Flesh" – 1988
"Don't Be Cruel" – 1989
"Rushing Like a Banshee" – 2016
"DIE! DIE! DIE!" – 2020
"Bury My Bone" – 2020
Video releases
The Mole Show/Whatever Happened to Vileness Fats? (VHS) –1984
The Eyes Scream: A History of the Residents (VHS) (with host Penn Jillette) – 1991
Twenty Twisted Questions (Laserdisc) – 1992
Icky Flix (DVD) – 2001
Eskimo (DVD) – 2002
Disfigured Night (DVD) – 2002
Demons Dance Alone (DVD) – 2003
The Commercial DVD (DVD) – 2004
The Residents play Wormwood (DVD) – 2005
Is Anybody Out There? (DVD) – 2009
Randy's Ghost Stories (DVD) – 2010
Talking Light Bimbo's (DVD) – 2011
Other
Freak Show (comic) – 1992
Freak Show (CD-ROM) – 1994
References
Further reading
Meet the Residents – America's most eccentric band!, Ian Shirley, SAF Publishing, Wembley, UK, 1998
External links
Official YouTube page
"More Than What The Ear Hears Coming From The Eye",
"The Most Ever Company",
"Twin Peaks Meets SimCity", WIRED article on The Residents, page on the "Theory of Obscurity"
American artist groups and collectives
American experimental musical groups
American progressive rock groups
Avant-pop musicians
Surrealist groups
Bands with fictional stage personas
Cordless Recordings artists
Masked musicians
Musical groups from the San Francisco Bay Area
Mute Records artists
Pranksters
American surrealist artists
Musical groups established in 1969
Unidentified people
Avant-garde music groups | false | [
"West Coast Bad Boyz, Vol. 1: Anotha Level of the Game is the first compilation album released by No Limit Records. It was originally released on August 9, 1994, but was later re-released on July 22, 1997. Due to it being a re-release, the album couldn't make it to the Billboard 200 or any other regular charts, but it did make it to #1 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Catalog Albums. Due to a beef between Master P and King George, Two songs that featured George [Locked Up and Peace 2 Da Streets] were not included on the 1997 re-release.\n\nTrack listing \nWest Coast Bad Boyz, Vol. 1: Anotha Level of the Game\n\nReferences\n\nHip hop compilation albums\n1994 compilation albums\nNo Limit Records compilation albums\nPriority Records compilation albums\nGangsta rap compilation albums",
"World Famous Classics: 1993–1998 is the first of three greatest hits albums by hip hop group The Beatnuts. It was released by Sony BMG in 1999 two weeks after the release of The Beatnuts' most commercially successful album, A Musical Massacre. It contains songs from The Beatnuts' first three albums, as well as its two EPs. The album does not feature any exclusive songs. World Famous Classics did not chart upon release, and is currently out of print.\n\nTrack listing\n\nReferences\n\nThe Beatnuts albums\n1999 greatest hits albums"
] |
[
"The Residents",
"Storytelling projects (2006-09)",
"What type of stories did they like to write?",
"I don't know.",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"Summer of 2006 brought the internet download project, River of Crime (",
"What was it about?",
"River of Crime was their first project with Warner Music Group's Cordless Label.",
"did they release any other albums?",
"released a double instrumental album, Night of the Hunters."
] | C_efa3e1045f514ebcbfedfcc182b59c64_1 | Where there any hits of these albums? | 5 | Where there any hits of River Crime and Night of the Hunters? | The Residents | Summer of 2006 brought the internet download project, River of Crime (Episodes 1-5). River of Crime was their first project with Warner Music Group's Cordless Label. Following the success of that album, the Residents launched their weekly Timmy video project on YouTube. In 2007 they did the soundtrack for the documentary Strange Culture and also released a double instrumental album, Night of the Hunters. On the Fourth of July 2007, the planned October release of its latest project with Mute Records, The Voice of Midnight (a music theater adaptation of E.T.A. Hoffmann's short story "Der Sandmann"), was announced on its Web site. On the May 21 the band announced on its website that its first North America tour since Demons Dance Alone for a project titled The Bunny Boy was set to begin on October 9 in New York--later an earlier date was added for Santa Cruz. Soon, it was announced that the tour would also include Europe, starting November 13. On June 3, the Residents.com Web site boasted the planned release of The Bunny Boy, which was released on September 1. The Web site had posted information in which "Foxboro" claimed this would be a farewell tour; it was later revealed that this was nothing more than a mistake by Foxboro. November 3, 2009, saw three new releases. The Ughs! is a mostly instrumental album made up of music composed earlier in the band's career, which had been completely reworked for the Voice of Midnight album. Ten Little Piggies is a "futurist compilation", ten songs from projects that may or may not be released in the future. Finally, Is Anybody out There is a DVD collecting all the Bunny Boy videos from the series posted on YouTube. The episodes are streamlined and not exactly the same as the originals. CANNOTANSWER | The Voice of Midnight | The Residents are an American art collective best known for their avant-garde music and multimedia works. Since their first official release, Meet the Residents (1974), they have released over 60 albums, numerous music videos and short films, three CD-ROM projects, and ten DVDs. They have undertaken seven major world tours and scored multiple films. Pioneers in exploring the potential of CD-ROM and similar technologies, the Residents have won several awards for their multimedia projects. They founded Ralph Records, a record label focusing on avant-garde music, in 1972.
Throughout the group's existence, the individual members have ostensibly attempted to work anonymously, preferring to have attention focused on their art. Much speculation and rumor has focused on this aspect of the group. In public, they appear silent and costumed, often wearing eyeball helmets, top hats and tails—a costume now recognized as their signature iconography. In 2017, Hardy Fox, long known to be associated with the Residents, identified himself as the band's co-founder and primary composer; he died in 2018.
The Residents' albums generally fall into two categories: deconstructions of Western popular music, and complex conceptual pieces composed around a theme, theory or plot. The group is noted for surrealistic lyrics and sound, with a disregard for conventional music composition.
History
1965–1972: Origins and Residents Unincorporated
The artists who became The Residents met in high school in Shreveport, Louisiana in the early 1960s. Around 1965, they began making their first amateur home tape recordings and making art together with a number of friends. In 1966, intending to join the flourishing hippie movement, they headed west for San Francisco, but when their truck broke down in San Mateo, California they decided to remain there.
While attempting to make a living, the group purchased crude recording equipment and began to refine their recording and editing skills, as well as photography, painting, and anything remotely to do with art that they could afford. The Residents have acknowledged the existence of at least two unreleased reel-to-reel items from this era, titled The Ballad of Stuffed Trigger and Rusty Coathangers for the Doctor. The Cryptic Corporation has confirmed that their archives contain many tapes dating back decades, but because they were recorded before the group officially became the Residents, the band does not consider them part of its discography.
Word of the unnamed group's experimentation spread, and in 1969 British guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Philip Lithman, known as Snakefinger, began to participate with them. Around this time they also met the mysterious (and perhaps apocryphal) N. Senada, whom Lithman had picked up during an expedition in Bavaria. The two Europeans became great influences and life-long collaborators with the group.
In 1971, the group sent a reel-to-reel demo tape to Hal Halverstadt at Warner Bros., as he had signed Captain Beefheart, one of the group's heroes, to the label. Halverstadt was not impressed with The Warner Bros. Album, but gave it an "A for Ariginality". Because the band had not included a name in the return address, the rejection slip was addressed to "Residents". The group decided to use this name, first becoming Residents Uninc., then shortening it to the current name.
The first known public performance of the Residents, Uninc. was at the Boarding House in San Francisco in 1971. The brief, guerrilla-style performance took the audience by surprise. A photo from it, showing Lithman playing violin with his pinky "about to strike the violin like a snake", originated the stage name he used for the rest of his life, Snakefinger. Later in 1971, a second tape was completed called Baby Sex, featuring a long collage partially consisting of recordings from the Boarding House performance. The cover art for the tape box was a silk-screened copy of an old photo depicting a woman fellating a small child, an example of the extremely confrontational and deliberately puerile visual and lyrical style the group adopted during this period.
Alleged early influence
N. Senada (which may be a play on Ensenada, en se nada meaning "in himself nothing," no sé nada meaning "I don't know anything" or enseñada, a form of the past participle meaning "taught") was said to be a Bavarian composer and music theorist who formulated the "Theory of Obscurity" and the "Theory of Phonetic Organization". His "Theory of Obscurity" states that an artist can only produce pure art when the expectations and influences of the outside world are not taken into consideration; while his "Theory of Phonetic Organization" states, "the musician should put the sounds first, building the music up from [them] rather than developing the music, then working down to the sounds that make it up."
There is a debate as to whether or not Senada, supposedly having been born in 1907 and dying in 1993 at the age of 86, actually existed, or was simply an invention of the Residents. It is frequently speculated that, if real, N. Senada may have been the famous avant-garde composer and instrument-designer Harry Partch, the influence of whose work may be heard in Residents compositions such as "Six Things to a Cycle"; his death is also referenced in the song "Death in Barstow". Another rumor speculates that N. Senada may have been Captain Beefheart, because in the late 1960s Beefheart and his "Magic Band" lived in a residence on Ensenada Drive in Woodland Hills, California, while recording Trout Mask Replica and Safe as Milk; Beefheart's influence can also be heard in early Residents works. The Residents also sent an early demo tape to the Warner Brothers executive Hal Halverstadt who had signed Beefheart.
According to The Residents, in 1937, N. Senada premiered his masterpiece, Pollex Christi, which means either Thumb of Christ or Big Toe of Christ. This work mainly consisted of borrowed pieces from other composers, namely Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 and Carl Orff's Carmina Burana, among others. He also left large holes in the work so that the performers could insert music of their choosing, thus "becoming composers themselves". Senada justified his work with "house" analogies claiming that he did not make the "bricks" but "cemented them together"; he was not the "architect", just the "builder". N. Senada allegedly collaborated with The Residents on their work prior to "Santa Dog" and "Meet The Residents", and then disappeared. He resurfaced in the mid-1970s, returning from an Arctic expedition and bearing a sealed bottle of pure Arctic air; this served as inspiration for the Eskimo project.
1972–1980: "Classic" era
Santa Dog, Meet The Residents, Not Available & The Third Reich 'n Roll (1972–1976)
In early 1972, the band left San Mateo and relocated to 20 Sycamore St, San Francisco; a studio they named "El Ralpho", which boasted a completely open ground floor (seemingly ideal for a sound stage), allowing the group to expand their operations and also begin preliminary work on their most ambitious project up to that point, a full-length film entitled Vileness Fats, which consumed most of their attention for the next four years. Intended to be the first-ever long form music video, The Residents saw this project as an opportunity to create the ultimate cult film. After four years of filming (from 1972 to 1976) the project was reluctantly cancelled because of time, space, and monetary constraints. Fifteen hours of footage was shot for the project, yet only approximately 35 minutes of that footage has ever been released.
The group also formed Ralph Records at this time, as a small, independent label to release and promote their own work. In 1972, to inaugurate the new business, the group recorded and pressed the Santa Dog EP, their first recorded output to be released to the public. Designed to resemble a Christmas card from an insurance company, the EP consisted of two 7" singles, one song on each side. The four songs were presented as being by four different bands (Ivory & The Braineaters, Delta Nudes, the College Walkers, and Arf & Omega featuring the Singing Lawnchairs), with only a small note on the interior of the gatefold sleeve mentioning the participation of "Residents, Uninc."
They sent copies of Santa Dog to west coast radio stations with no response until Bill Reinhardt, program director of KBOO-FM in Portland, Oregon received a copy and played it heavily on his show. Reinhardt met the Residents at their studio at 20 Sycamore St. in the summer of 1973 with the news of his broadcasts. The Residents gave Reinhardt exclusive access to all their recordings, including copies of the original masters of Stuffed Trigger, Baby Sex, and The Warner Bros. Album.
Throughout this point, the group had been manipulating old tapes they had collected and regularly recording jam sessions, and these recordings eventually became the group's debut full-length album, Meet The Residents, which was released in 1974 on Ralph. To aid in promoting the group, Reinhardt was given 50 of the first 1,000 copies of Meet the Residents. Some were sent to friends, listeners and critics, and two dozen were left for sale on consignment at the Music Millennium record store, where they sat unsold for months. KBOO DJ Barry Schwam (a.k.a. Schwump, who also recorded with the Residents) promoted them on his program as well. Eventually, KBOO airplay attracted a cult following.Following the release of Meet The Residents, the group began working on a follow-up entitled Not Available, following N. Senada's theory of obscurity. The LP was recorded and compiled completely in private, and would not be released until the group had completely forgotten about its existence.
During breaks in the sessions for Vileness Fats, the group would record their next project, entitled The Third Reich 'n Roll, over the course of a year between October 1974 and October 1975. The album consisted of two side-long medleys of the band covering popular songs from 1950s and 1960s, whilst toying with the concept of the popularity of rock 'n' roll being comparable to that of the rise of Nazism in the 1930s. The resulting LP was released in 1976, and was the group's first project to feature a music video, created by syncing an old video of the group performing with an edited version of "Swastikas on Parade".
After the Third Reich 'n Rolls release, a group of enterprising friends and collaborators from their early days in San Mateo — Homer Flynn, Hardy Fox, Jay Clem and John Kennedy — also joined the group in San Francisco, forming what became the Cryptic Corporation to manage and represent the band. Clem became the band's spokesman; Fox edited, produced and compiled the band's increasingly prolific output; Flynn was already handling the group's cover design and promotional art under the banner of Pore Know Graphics; and Kennedy took the role of "President" (admittedly a fairly empty title, as overall responsibilities were handled more or less equally by the four). The Cryptic Corporation took over the day-to-day operations of Ralph Records, and provided the band with an improved public relations platform.
Shortly after the introduction of the Cryptic Corporation, the Residents recorded their "Satisfaction" single, the B-side of which featured the Residents' first work with the ARP Odyssey, the first synthesizer owned by the group, purchased by the Cryptics.
Eskimo, Fingerprince, Duck Stab, & Rise in popularity (1976–1979)
Following "Satisfaction", the group began recording Eskimo in April 1976; a concept album based upon the Theory of Phonetic Organisation that suggests that music should not be confined to chords and structures, but instead should simply be a collection of fascinating noises. The album would feature acoustic soundscapes inspired by Inuit culture, whilst parodying American ignorance of other cultures. The Eskimo sessions would last many years, and feature many divergences, the first of which, in November 1976, resulting in Fingerprince, a collection of unused recordings from the Third Reich 'n Roll, Not Available, and Eskimo sessions.
Fingerprince received considerable coverage in the British press, and was the first LP by the group to receive any critical attention when Jon Savage reviewed the album and its two predecessors favorably for the December 31st issue of Sounds magazine. This review gained the group considerable attention, with many of their previously unsold mail-order items being sold seemingly overnight. The sudden success of Fingerprince and its predecessors caused the group to briefly halt production on Eskimo to create something more appealing to their newfound audience.
The Residents followed up Fingerprince with their Duck Stab! EP – their most accessible release up to that point. This EP got the band some attention from the press (namely NME, Sounds and Melody Maker), and was followed in 1978 by the Duck Stab/Buster & Glen album, which paired the EP with a similar, concurrently recorded EP which had not been released separately. The group then continued work on Eskimo, which proved a very difficult project, marked by many conflicts between the band and their management, which led to a number of delays in the release date.
The sudden attention afforded to them by the success of the Duck Stab! EP and "Satisfaction" single required an album release as soon as possible to help fund the band's spiraling recording costs, and to meet the demand for new Residents material. This forced the release of the band's long-shelved "second album" Not Available in 1978. The Residents were not bothered by this deviation from the original plan not to release the album, as the 1978 release ultimately did not affect the philosophical conditions under which it was originally recorded.
Eskimo was finally released in 1979 to much acclaim, even making it to the final list for nominations for a Grammy award in 1980, although the album wasn't nominated. Rather than being songs in the orthodox sense, the compositions on Eskimo sounded like "live-action stories" without dialogue. The cover art of Eskimo also presents the first instance of the group wearing eyeball masks and tuxedos, which was later considered by many to be the group's signature costume. The Residents had only intended to wear these costumes for the cover of Eskimo, but adopted the costumes in the longer term as it provided them with a unique and recognisable image.
The group followed Eskimo with Commercial Album in 1980. The LP featured 40 songs, each exactly one minute in length. Around this time, two short films were made in collaboration with Graeme Whifler: One Minute Movies, consisting of four music videos for tracks from the Commercial Album; and a video for "Hello Skinny" from the Duck Stab LP. Created at a time when MTV (and what later became known as "music video" in general) was in its infancy, the group's videos were in heavy rotation since they were among the few music videos available to broadcasters.
1981–1990: New technology and live performances
Mark of the Mole & The Mole Show (1981–1983)
The Residents' follow up to Commercial Album was Mark of the Mole, released in 1981. The album was a reaction to the group feeling betrayed by a suddenly disinterested music press.
Shortly after the release of Mark of the Mole, The Residents purchased one of the first ever E-Mu Emulator samplers, number #00005 specifically. The instrument was revolutionary for the band, as the sampling capacities of the keyboard not only allowed them to recreate instruments the members were not able to play, but also gave them the opportunity to create their meticulously crafted studio sound in a live setting. The first album the band recorded using the emulator was The Tunes of Two Cities, the second part of the Mole Trilogy, which was nearly entirely recorded using the Emulator.
Following the release of Cities, the Residents started rehearsing for a possible live show, eventually developing their first touring project, the Mole Show, a theatrical retelling of their Mark of the Mole album. The band debuted the show with a test performance, on April 10, 1982, before a tour of California in October, and a European tour throughout mid 1983. The show featured Penn Jillette as the narrator, playing a similar role as he had previously done with the Ralph Records 10th Anniversary radio special.
A third leg, featuring dates in New York, was booked, but had to be cancelled after one performance due to lack of funding. Following the Mole Show, the band was broke, and as such attempted to recoup some of their losses with several archival releases, including a collection of outtakes called Residue in 1983, and a VHS containing recordings from the Mole Show as well as a newly-scored edit of Vileness Fats footage.
The American Composers Series, 13th Anniversary Show, and the end of Ralph (1984–1987)
Deciding to take a break from part three of the Mole Trilogy, the Residents began a new project entitled the American Composers Series, a planned series of 10 albums which would pay tribute to pop artists and instrumental composers from the United States. The first result of this pairing was George & James, featuring the music of George Gershwin and James Brown. Following the release of George & James, the Residents finally abandoned part three of the Mole Trilogy, choosing instead to record a fourth entry entitled The Big Bubble, featuring very stripped-down instrumentation in order to portray a fictional garage rock band. No further entries into the Mole Trilogy have been recorded, and the project is considered abandoned.
When The Big Bubble was released in Japan by Wave Records, it was an unquestioned success, with its popularity resulting in Wave funding a two-week tour of Japan for the group in October 1985. The tour was successful, and re-ignited the group's interest in creating live performances. As a result, they eventually embarked on their 13th Anniversary world tour, ranging from 1985 to 1987, with Snakefinger playing electric guitar. As for studio work, the group eventually released their second entry into the American Composers series, Stars & Hank Forever, featuring the music of Hank Williams and John Philip Sousa. Their version of the Williams song "Kaw-liga" was particularly successful in the emerging club scene.
Due to licensing costs and the emerging CD format, the American Composers series was later abandoned. Stars & Hank Forever was the last Residents project Snakefinger would play on, as he later died of a heart attack in July 1987.
Following the release of the 13th Anniversary Show LP in 1986 and a cover of "Hit the Road Jack" in 1987, the Cryptic Corporation resigned control of Ralph Records over to Tom & Sheenah Timony, and the Residents signed to Rykodisc. Tom and Sheenah would later turn Ralph into a new label, T.E.C. Tones, and establish the Residents' official fan club from 1988 to 1993 - UWEB (Uncle Willie's Eyeball Buddies).
God in Three Persons, Cube E, and (1987–1990)
After two compilation CDs titled Heaven? and Hell!, the Residents' first new project for Ryko was titled God in Three Persons, an hour-long poem in the form of a spoken-word rock opera. This was the first new Residents album to be released on CD, and the last Residents project to be entirely recorded on analog tape, as the group moved on to MIDI technology; their first venture into MIDI would be scoring episodes for Pee-wee's Playhouse in 1987. Despite initially mixed critical and commercial reaction, God in Three Persons today is considered one of the group's masterworks.
On November 18, 1987, at a party in Amsterdam for Boudisque Records, the Residents' European label, they premiered a new work titled Buckaroo Blues, a suite of cowboy songs. After a choreographed TELE5 appearance in April 1988, this suite would be coupled with a second one titled Black Barry, a suite of "black music" (that is, blues and gospel), and form the first act of the Residents' next touring project, Cube-E: The History of American Music in 3EZ Pieces. After the show's debut in New York, on July 21, 1989, it was decided to add a third act consisting of covers of Elvis Presley songs, completing the equation "Cowboy music + Black music = Rock and roll." The show took on a much more theatrical approach than the 13th Anniversary tour, with elaborate set designs, costumes, lighting and choreography. Cube-E toured from September 1989 to November 1990, and was successful, both critically and financially.
A studio version of the third act was also released and titled The King & Eye. The album was recorded at Different Fur Studios and released on Enigma Records around the time the tour began in September 1989. Further television work was also being done for MTV, with the Residents scoring and doing voice work for Liquid Television and the Henry Selick-directed pilot "Slow Bob in the Lower Dimensions."
1990–1997: Multimedia projects
Freak Show, CD-ROMs, and the 25th anniversary (1991–1997)
Recordings for a new studio album were worked on during breaks in the Cube-E tour, and shortly after the tour ended, Freak Show was released. An album detailing the lives and personalities of fictional carnival freaks, the Freak Show project would spawn many other iterations, such as a graphic novel in collaboration with comic artists from Dark Horse, such as Brian Bolland and Matt Howarth, and a promotional video created with the help of New York artist John Sanborn, which also presented a music video for "Harry the Head", animated by computer artist Jim Ludtke - both artists would go on to collaborate with the Residents on many further projects.
A partnership with Voyager in 1992 allowed the Residents to develop a laserdisc titled Twenty Twisted Questions to celebrate their twentieth anniversary. Along with this laserdisc, a studio album was recorded, titled Our Finest Flowers. Not quite a "greatest hits" compilation, many tracks on the album borrow elements from previous songs in the Residents' catalog.
The Residents' collaboration with Jim Ludtke would result in the creation of the Freak Show and Bad Day on the Midway CD-ROMs. Both of these projects featured many other collaborations with visual artists, including returning collaborators from the Freak Show graphic novel, such as Richard Sala and Dave McKean. The Residents enjoyed quite a bit of critical and financial success with these CD-ROMs, winning several industry awards. However, during early development stages for a third CD-ROM titled I Murdered Mommy, their distributor Inscape was forced to dissolve due to oversaturation and obsoletion of the CD-ROM market.
Despite majorly occupying themselves with CD-ROM development, the Residents still remained musically active, releasing an enhanced CD album titled Gingerbread Man (an observation and study of nine fictional characters) in 1994, and scoring the Discovery Channel documentary series Hunters in 1995. Freak Show would also get a live adaptation in November 1995, at the Archa Theater in Prague. While the Residents did act as music and stage directors for the show, they did not actually perform - the music was conducted and performed by Czech band Už Jsme Doma, while actors and dancers played their roles on stage.
Freak Show Live would be the last iteration of the Freak Show brand; while a DVD was being developed in 2003, the early death of animator Jim Ludtke immediately brought the project to a halt.
Around this time, singer/performer Molly Harvey was recruited to work with the group. While her first appearance in a Residents project was the Gingerbread Man album, she would officially become a member of the group in 1997, with a one-off performance at the Popkomm festival in Germany titled Disfigured Night. This performance would later become the second act of a special 25th anniversary show at the Fillmore in San Francisco, in October 1997.
1998-2009: New collaborators / The 2nd millennium
Return to touring: Wormwood, Icky Flix, and Demons Dance Alone (1998–2005)
Due to the collapse of the CD-ROM market, a collective decision was made to tour again. While keeping up with their theatrical tendencies by regular use of costumes and stage props, the Residents would also perform and record with a team of guest musicians: the aforementioned Molly Harvey (vocals), Nolan Cook (guitar), Carla Fabrizio (arrangements and vocals), Toby Dammit (drums), and later on in 2002, Eric Drew Feldman (keyboards). Some of the band members, notably Feldman and Fabrizio, went on to collaborate with the group on numerous other projects up until the present time, while Cook eventually became a full-time band member. Fabrizio's connections with the Balinese gamelan ensemble Gamelan Sekar Jaya allowed for occasional collaborations between the two groups during this period.
The first tour with this new band formation was for the 1998 album Wormwood, a collection of songs depicting typically gruesome stories from the Holy Bible, mostly from the Old Testament. While the studio album only featured Harvey, Fabrizio and Dammit as guests (with Dammit only taking occasional vocal duties), the band would be mostly fully formed by the time of the show's live debut at the Fillmore in October 1998. The Wormwood show toured up to July 1999, and featured drastically different arrangements of songs from the album, mostly darker and heavier, as well as new or unused material related to the concept. Some of these arrangements would be recorded for a studio album titled Roadworms, and a DVD of the live show would be released in 2005.
The same band formation would later tour to promote the Residents' first DVD, Icky Flix - a compilation of most of the group's music videos, as well as new animated videos and a re-recorded soundtrack, to celebrate the group's upcoming 30th anniversary. These re-recorded arrangements would be performed on the show as their corresponding videos would be played from the DVD on a screen.
On the event of the September 11 attacks, the Residents were still touring Icky Flix in Europe. The resulting fear and anxiety caused by the attacks would eventually result in the recording of Demons Dance Alone in 2002. While not a direct response to the events, the songs on the album portrayed the negative emotions felt by the group and its individual members, and this was reflected in the album's subsequent tour, from October 2002 to September 2003. The group's next major album, the 2005 Animal Lover, contained lyrics of a similarly tragic nature, although in a more abstract manner. The album also contained a booklet with stories which presented the songs from the point of view of animals. Animal Lover was also the first Residents album to be released on the Mute label, which would be solely responsible for the Residents' major releases up until 2008.
Animal Lover is currently the last Residents album to feature Molly Harvey, who moved to Atlanta to live with her husband at the time. Her last appearance as a member of the Residents was at a small series of shows titled The Way We Were at the "What is Music?" festival in Australia. The show's setlist was a career retrospective much in the style of the 13th Anniversary tour - the last time the Residents had toured Australia.
2005-2009: The "Storyteller" era
Narrative albums and The Bunny Boy (2006-2009)
Due to the increasing numbers of illegal downloads of music on the Internet, which considerably decreased product sales, the Residents attempted a new artistic medium: the radio drama, in the form of a paid podcast distributed through Apple's iTunes service. This podcast, titled The River of Crime (a first-person tale of an individual's obsession with crime and criminals) ran for five weekly episodes in 2006 before its cancellation due to inconveniences surrounding the podcast's promotion on iTunes, thereby discouraging further production.
Aside from Animal Lover, the group's partnership with Mute produced three more albums: Tweedles in 2006 (a first-person character study of a sexually successful yet emotionally unavailable vampiric figure); The Voice of Midnight in 2007 (a retelling of the E.T.A. Hoffmann story, Der Sandmann); and The Bunny Boy in 2008 (a first-person narrative and character study of the titular Bunny in search of his missing brother).
While Tweedles and The Voice of Midnight have not yet been developed further (aside from instrumental releases such as The UGHS! in 2009), The Bunny Boy proved a very accessible concept. A YouTube video series of the same name was done to promote and further elaborate on the project. The series was partially interactive; fans could communicate with Bunny via e-mail, and some of the interactions may or may not have altered the course of the series' plot (a book containing some of Bunny's correspondence was published by Bandits Mages in 2019). Soon afterwards the album was toured from October to December 2008. A second season of the video series was shown in 2009, somewhat officially ending the project.
2010–2016: Randy, Chuck & Bob
Making a decision to shift focus from studio work to touring, and to enhance their show's portability, the Residents would change their live band to a "power trio" formation, and in a sort of meta stunt, appear to "unmask" themselves as lead singer / frontman "Randy," composer / keyboardist "Charles 'Chuck' Bobuck," and guitarist Nolan Cook as "Bob" – although all three band members were still costumed: "Randy" donned an old man mask and wore an overcoat with oversized red tie and shoes; "Chuck" and "Bob" wore red jackets, special goggles and fake dreadlocks. There was also mention of a fourth band member, drummer "Carlos," who allegedly had left the music business to take care of his mother in Mexico; however, despite being credited as singer in the group's 2012 album Coochie Brake, there is no further evidence of "Carlos" having ever been a real band member.
This new band formation debuted in the Talking Light tour, which ran from January 2010 to April 2011. While the setlist once again consisted of assorted songs from the band's repertoire (although with greatly reworked arrangements), the show would also feature newly written "ghost stories," in which a video of a narrator telling said stories would be projected onto the stage while the band performed in a somewhat improvisational manner. These "ghost stories" were loosely threaded by the presence of television, TV commercials, and industrialized products such as Oscar Mayer hot dogs or Betty Crocker Pudding Roll-ups – although these weren't endorsements; these products were simply a minor element integrated into the stories, not unlike product placement. In between certain songs, "Randy" would also speak to the audience, introducing the band and later describing his own history with supernatural appearances, and his subsequent fear of mirrors. The tour was financially successful, and the band would continue to perform in this formation with only minor changes in stage and costume design.
In the next couple of years, "Randy" would take on an increased role as frontman of the band, starting a "personal" Tumblr blog where he would write mostly about life experiences and trivia regarding the Residents' history, as well as promoting his "solo" show, Sam's Enchanted Evening, which was presented in various incarnations between June 2010 and March 2012 with collaborators Joshua Raoul Brody and Carla Fabrizio. More akin to musical theater than a concert, the show focused on the titular Sam's life story, with the singer alternating between monologues and cover performances of various songs that were important in his life. During this period, the Residents would also collaborate with Belgian dancer/choreographer Grace Ellen Barkey from Needcompany, composing the music for a show titled Mush-Room in 2013.
In 2014, "Randy" would maintain a series of vlogs with the help of director Don Hardy, titled In My Room and later Randyland, elaborating further on his experiences, both with the Residents and with events in his personal life. The blog currently has been inactive since January 6, 2019. Composer "Charles Bobuck" would also maintain a series of personal writings on the Residents' website titled The Test Tube of Tomorrow, and occasionally release music under this name, usually material deemed unfitting for the Residents concept. Bobuck's writings were of a much more detailed and biographical nature, and his music much more abstract, often referred to as "contraptions" rather than compositions.
The group's 40th anniversary tour, The Wonder of Weird, also elaborated on the "Randy, Chuck & Bob" concept, although guised as an anthology show – lead singer Randy would once more speak to the audience between songs, briefly discussing the band's history as he slowly grew depressed with the state of the band and his own life, occasionally leaving the stage and prompting the remaining band members to improvise. The show toured from January to May 2013.
This band formation toured once more in 2014 with a show called Shadowland, retrofittingly subtitled "part three of the 'Randy, Chuck & Bob' trilogy." Initially a one-off week of performances in Europe, the show was eventually brought back in March 2015, coinciding with the premiere of the Theory of Obscurity film – a documentary on the history of the band, directed by Don Hardy and produced by Barton Bishoff and Josh Keppel – at the SXSW Film Festival. This show would be the last time "Charles Bobuck" would perform with the band, as he decided to quit the touring business due to increasing health problems. He eventually quit the Residents altogether in 2016, revealing his identity as Hardy Fox of the Cryptic Corporation, and continued to make music as a solo artist until his death in October 2018.
Shadowland then toured from August 2015 to July 2016, with Eric Drew Feldman (as Bobuck's cousin "Rico") replacing Fox on keyboards, as well as production on future Residents projects. The show was mostly similar to the previous two tours, with a setlist of various reworked songs from the group's repertoire, and occasional video interludes in the vein of Talking Light, with different characters discussing their experiences with birth, reincarnation and near-death.
2017–present: "The Real Residents", Metal Meat & Bone, and the pREServed series
In March 2017, the Residents presented their new lineup, advertised as "The Real Residents": "Tyrone" on vocals, "Eekie" (Nolan Cook) on guitar, "Erkie" (Eric Feldman) on keyboards, and "Cha Cha" on drums and percussion. Shortly after a preview of their In Between Dreams tour in Japan, the group released their first studio album since Coochie Brake, entitled The Ghost of Hope, describing real train wreck stories from the 19th and early 20th century. The album was released on Cherry Red Records, the Residents' current label, and promoted with a single, and their first music video since 2001's Icky Flix – "Rushing Like a Banshee," directed by John Sanborn. Although The Ghost of Hope wasn't toured (except for a one-off performance at the San Francisco Exploratorium), the Residents played both sides of the "Rushing Like a Banshee" single on the In Between Dreams show, which ran from October 2017 up to February 2019 and followed a loose theme, much like Shadowland, this time of dreams.
During the course of the tour, the Residents would work on new projects. Their next album, Intruders, released in October 2018, was advertised along with the I am a Resident! concept, which started as a sort of officially-endorsed tribute project: fans would submit their interpretations of Residents songs, and the group would collect their favorites into an album. After the number of submissions vastly exceeded their expectations, the group decided to change the project into a type of collage, even recording segments and overdubs of their own. The final album was released to contributors in May 2018, and worldwide in August 2018.
In July 2018, the Residents also published their second novel (the first being a novelization of their game Bad Day on the Midway in 2012). The book, entitled The Brick-Eaters, was described as "an absurdist buddy movie story featuring a very tall internet content screener teaming up with an aging career criminal whose primary companions are an oxygen bottle and a .44 Magnum".
The group also began their ongoing pREServed reissue series in January 2018 – deluxe editions of the major albums in the band's discography, containing brand new remasters and unreleased recordings from the band's archives, previously in care of Hardy Fox before he quit the group.
During the In Between Dreams tour, the Residents also previewed songs from their "upcoming blues album," which was eventually titled Metal, Meat & Bone. The premise of the album was to present the long lost recordings of a fictional albino blues singer named Alvin Snow, also known as "Dyin' Dog." The Residents would present the original "Dyin' Dog demos" on one disc, and their own interpretations of the same songs on another disc. The album was released in July 2020 and promoted with two music videos for the Residents' new versions of "Bury My Bone" and "DIE! DIE! DIE!", the latter being sung by rock musician and Pixies frontman Black Francis.
Metal, Meat & Bone will be further promoted by the Residents on their upcoming Dog Stab tour in August 2021 (following numerous cancellations and postponements on account of the COVID-19 pandemic) – the show, currently marketed as "the 50th anniversary show," will allegedly present songs from the new album as well as new arrangements of songs from their 1978 album, Duck Stab / Buster & Glen.
To celebrate the groups' 50th anniversary, a retrospective coffee table book The Residents: A Sight for Sore Eyes, Vol. 1 by author Aaron Tanner was announced. The book contains never before seen photos, quotes from celebrities influenced by the group, as well as a 7" single dating to the group's Not Available era.
Identity
In the group's early days, many rumors circulated about its membership. As the cover art of Meet the Residents was a parody of The Beatles' 1964 North American release, Meet the Beatles!, rumors circulated that The Residents were actually The Beatles, even specifically naming George Harrison. Many other rumors have come and gone over the years, one being that '60s experimental band Cromagnon shared members with the band. Les Claypool, frontman of rock band Primus, and Gerald Casale of new wave band Devo claimed to have been accused of being members of the band; and Mark Mothersbaugh is alleged to have played keyboards during the band's 13th-anniversary tour.
Since the late 1970s, much of the speculation about the members' identities has involved the group's management team, The Cryptic Corporation. It was formed in 1976 as a corporation in California by Jay Clem, Homer Flynn, Hardy W. Fox, and John Kennedy, all of whom denied having been band members. Clem and Kennedy left the Corporation in 1982, to the chagrin of fans. The Residents members do not grant interviews, although Flynn, Fox, and Clem have conducted interviews on behalf of the group.
Nolan Cook, a prominent collaborator in the band's live and studio work (and a live member of I Am Spoonbender) denied in an interview that Fox and Flynn were The Residents. However, some consider Cook himself a member of the band, as he is known to wear the same head coverings as the group in live shows, and wore the trademark eyeball mask on the Wormwood Tour. He also played the part of "Bob" during the "Randy", "Chuck", and "Bob" trilogy of shows.
William Poundstone, author of the Big Secrets books, compared voiceprints of a Flynn lecture with those of spoken word segments from the Residents discography in his book "Biggest Secrets". He concluded, "The similarities in the spectograms second the convincing subjective impression that the voices are identical", and that "it is possible that the creative core of the Residents is the duo of Flynn and Fox." A subset of that belief is that Flynn is the lyricist and that Fox writes the music. The online database of the performance rights organization BMI (of which The Residents and their publishing company, Pale Pachyderm Publishing [Warner-Chappell] have been members for their entire careers) lists Flynn and Fox as the composers of all original Residents songs, including pre-1974 songs from the "Residents Unincorporated" years.
Simon Reynolds wrote in his book Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978–1984 that "the Residents and their representatives were one and the same," and elaborated further on one of his blogs, stating that "this was something that anybody who had any direct dealings with Ralph figured out sooner rather than later." Reynolds quotes Helios Creed, who identifies the Residents as a keyboardist named "H," a singer named "Homer," and "this other guy called John." Peter Principle of Tuxedomoon claimed that he and others "eventually figured out that the guy doing the graphics and the engineer in the studio were, in fact, the Residents."Cryptic openly admits the group's artwork is done by Flynn (among others) under various names that, put together, become "Pornographics", but the pseudonym is rarely spelled the same way twice (examples: Porno Graphics, Pore No Graphix, Pore-Know Graphics); and that Fox is the sound engineer – meaning that he is the main producer, engineer, mixer, and editor of all their recordings. (Since 1976, all of The Residents' recordings have listed their producer as the Cryptic Corporation, presumably meaning Fox in particular.)
From 2010 to 2016, The Residents referred to themselves in concert as the characters "Randy", "Chuck", and "Bob", and referred to a former member of the band, "Carlos", who left the group following a disagreement with "Randy". There is speculation that "Carlos" is Carlos Cadona. Better known by his stage name, "6025," Cadona was in the original lineup of the Dead Kennedys and appears on a live album by Snakefinger. "Carlos" may also refer to Carla Fabrizio, a touring member of The Residents from 1998 to 2008.
"Bob" is speculated to be guitarist and longtime collaborator Nolan Cook. Cook is often the only credited collaborator on the "Randy, Chuck, & Bob" era albums, such as Lonely Teenager, Talking Light: Bimbo's, and Shadowland.
A synopsis for The Residents' 2012 stage production "Sam's Enchanted Evening" provides the name "Randy Rose" as that of The Residents' lead singer. "Chuck", or "Charles Bobuck", was the group's primary songwriter, and released a series of solo albums (or "contraptions") under this name during the "Randy, Chuck and Bob" era. The member known as Chuck retired from live performance due to ill health in 2015, and ultimately retired from The Residents altogether following the release of the Theory of Obscurity documentary film. Eric Drew Feldman replaced him and performed under the name "Rico" from 2015 to 2016.
In the liner notes featured on the 2020 reissue of Phillip Perkins' King Of The World album, Perkins confirms that he was a member of The Residents during their Assorted Secrets' lineup, which also performed The Mole Show. On his BayImproviser biography Perkins states that he worked closely with The Residents between 1979 and 1984. He had previously been credited as the lighting designer on the Mole Show Roxy LP, and as engineer on original versions of Stars & Hank Forever, as well as on reissues of The Tune of Two Cities and The Snakey Wake. Considering this, his time working with the group roughly would have been from 1979 - 1987.
Hardy Fox
In October 2017, former manager for The Residents, Hardy Fox identified himself as both the anonymous primary composer and producer for the Residents as well as the pseudonymous Charles Bobuck. Fox was born in Longview, Texas, where his father worked in the oil industry; his mother was a nurse. The family moved several times, and Fox graduated from Rayville High School in Louisiana in 1963. He then studied art and business at Louisiana Tech University, where he met Homer Flynn, and graduated in 1967.
In September 2018 Fox added to his website the dates "1945–2018", although he was known to be alive (but unwell) after the dates were published. Fox died on October 30, 2018, from brain cancer, aged 73. He was identified in obituaries as the co-founder and primary composer of the Residents. On December 14, 2018, the official Residents mailing list acknowledged Fox as "engineer, producer and sometime composer of much of the Residents’ best-loved work".
Frequent collaborators
Since their inception, The Residents have had a number of credited collaborators. These collaborators, despite not being anonymous, can be considered by some definition, Residents.
1971–1975
During the band's formative years, its main members consisted of The Singing Resident, Hardy Fox, jazz pianist James Whittaker, and bassist Bob Tagney, the later two of which are credited as writers on the 2018 LP release of The Warner Brothers album. This lineup, along with Snakefinger, who would join the group in late 1971, are credited as the 'core' members of the group on the 2013 early demos compilation, The Delta Nudes Greatest Hiss. Bob Tagney and James Whittaker are also two of the only credited collaborators on the band's debut album, Meet the Residents, Whittaker, as the pianist on "Spotted Pinto Bean", and Tagney as the co-bassist on "Infant Tango". Female vocalist Pamela Zeibak was also one of The Residents' frequent collaborators during this time, with credits on The Delta Nudes Greatest Hiss, Meet The Residents, The Third Reich 'n Roll, and Fingerprince.Joshua Raoul Brody began working with The Residents in the mid-1970s, when he was invited to the set of their film Vileness Fats. Shortly after this he worked with the group anonymously by arranging the backing vocals on their "Satisfaction" single. In the 1980s, Brody began to receive credit for his work with The Residents under the pseudonym "Raoul N. Di Seimbote", but by 1987, he was using his own name. Brody most recently worked with The Residents on their 2020 God In Three Persons live show.
1976–1983
In early 1976, Snakefinger returned to the US, and continued his collaborations with The Residents, and was credited on a majority of The Residents' major releases up until his death in 1987. At the same time, drummer Don Jakovich started working with the band, making credited appearances on Satisfaction, Fingerprince, Snakefinger's Chewing Hides the Sound, and Commercial Album. He also performed with them in costume as part of their June 1976 live debut.
Following the demise of Henry Cow, former members Chris Cutler and Fred Frith began making appearances on Residents material as drummer and guitarist respectively. Frith first appeared with The Residents on the Subterranean Modern anthology, and Cutler on the Eskimo album. The following year both featured on The Commercial Album, with Frith receiving the credit of 'Extra Hard Working Guest Musician'.
Nessie Lessons, the wife of Hardy Fox, began to make appearances on Residents releases between 1980 and 1983, initially as an uncredited female vocalist. Lessons was first credited on The Tunes of Two Cities, toured with the band from 1982–1983, and acted as the group's spokesperson when Penn Jillette was unavailable. Her final work as a regular collaborator was on the song "HellNo", for the soundtrack to the 1984 film The Census Taker.
For The Mole Show, The Residents also had dancers: Kathleen French, Carol Werner LeMaitre, Sarah McLennan Walker and Chris Van Ralte. Carol LeMaitre and Sarah McLennan went on to portray The Residents on stage during the 13th Anniversary Show, and the dancers in Cube-E.
1987–1993
Starting in 1987, The Residents began working with female vocalist Laurie Amat, who went on to become The Residents' primary female vocalist for much of the 1990s. Her final role as a regular collaborator was on the 1998 Wormwood album. Another female vocalist from this period was Diane Alden, who first appeared on the Freak Show album, she once again worked with the group up until Wormwood. Tony Janssen, who was first credited as an engineer on the band's Cube-E album, eventually became a male vocalist for the band and provided the voice of Tex the Barker in their Freak Show projects.
1994–2014
During recording of their Gingerbread Man album, The Singing Resident met future singer Molly Harvey at a coffee store, and invited her to record vocals for the song 'The Old Woman'.The Residents - Gingerbread Man Credits - MVDaudio, MVD8193A, 2016 Following this she became a core member of The Residents' team of collaborators, and appeared on all of their mainline albums and live shows until 2005's Animal Lover. Also appearing for the first time on Gingerbread Man was Isabelle Barbier, a young actress who would make occasional appearances with The Residents up until The Ghost of Hope in 2017.
The Residents' 1998–2000 Wormwood project introduced three important figures in Residents history, Carla Fabrizio, Nolan Cook and Toby Dammit. Dammit briefly played with The Residents live from 1999 to 2003, and performed on the Demons Dance Alone album. Carla played with The Residents in concert until the 2008 Bunny Boy tour, and has worked with the band on their studio albums as recently as 2020. Nolan Cook acted as The Residents' lead guitarist both in concert and in the studio for over twenty years, most recently appearing on their 2020 God In Three Persons live project.
In the years following Molly Harvey''s departure, professional voice actress Gerri Lawlor began to make regular appearances on The Residents spoken-word projects, Tweedles, The River of Crime, The Voice Of Midnight and Lonely Teenager. Corey Rosen also began working with The Residents during this time, on The River of Crime, The Voice of Midnight, and The Bunny Boy web series.
2015–present
Following the departure of Hardy Fox in 2015, Eric Drew Feldman was asked to help with some of the duties previously undertaken by him. Along with Feldman, performers Laurie Hall and Peter Whitehead began appearing on Residents releases, starting with The Ghost of Hope. Hall stopped working with them following the release of Intruders, which introduced Sivan Lioncub.
The lineup of collaborators as featured on The Residents' latest album, Metal Meat & Bone, includes Eric Drew Feldman, Carla Fabrizio, Nolan Cook, Peter Whitehead, and Sivan Lioncub.
Discography
Studio albums
Meet the Residents – 1974
The Third Reich 'n Roll – 1976
Fingerprince – 1977
Not Available – 1978 (Recorded In 1974)
Duck Stab! / Buster and Glen – 1978
Eskimo – 1979
Commercial Album – 1980
Mark of the Mole – 1981
The Tunes of Two Cities – 1982
Title in Limbo with Renaldo and the Loaf – 1983 (Recorded In 1981)
George & James – 1984
Assorted Secrets (Live In the Studio) – 1984
Whatever Happened to Vileness Fats? – 1984
The Census Taker – 1985
The Big Bubble – 1985
Stars & Hank Forever! – 1986
God In Three Persons – 1988
God In Three Persons Soundtrack (Instrumental Version of "God In Three Persons") – 1988
Buckaroo Blues – 1989
The King & Eye – 1989
Freak Show – 1990
Our Finest Flowers – 1992
Poor Kaw-Liga's Pain (Remixes) – 1994
Gingerbread Man – 1994
Hunters – 1995
Have a Bad Day – 1996
Wormwood: Curious Stories From the Bible – 1998
Roadworm: The Berlin Sessions (Live In the Studio) – 2000
Dot.com (compilation of various digital singles released between 1999 and 2000) – 2000
Icky Flix (soundtrack of a DVD consisting of re-recordings) – 2001
Demons Dance Alone – 2002
12 Days of Brumalia (consists of a compilation of 13 virtual singles released between December 24, 2003 and January 5, 2004) – 2004
WB:RMX (Remixes derived from the unrealeses album "The W***** B*** Album (The Warner Bros. Album) " recorded between 1970 and 1971) – 2004
The King and Eye: RMX (Remixes of "The King and Eye") – 2004
I Murdered Mommy! – 2004 (Recorded In 1994)
Animal Lover – 2005
The River of Crime – 2006
Tweedles! – 2006
The River of Crime Instrumental Soundtrack (Instrumental version of "The River of Crime") – 2006
Night of the Hunters (Overdubs to the 1995 album "Hunters") – 2007
The Voice of Midnight – 2007
The Bunny Boy – 2008
Postcards From Patmos – 2008
The Fillmore Dress Rehearsal (Live In the Studio) - 2009 (recorded in 1997)
RMX (consists of several remixes released as singles in 2007) – 2009
Hades (later released in 2011 as The River of Hades) – 2009
The Ughs! – 2009 (Recorded In 2006)
Live at the Snakey Wake (Live Without Audience) - 2010 (recorded in 1987)
Dollar General (with Charles Bobuck) – 2010
Talking Light Live In Rehearsal (Live In the Studio) - 2010 (reheaesals of Talking Light tour)
Chuck's Ghost Music (credited to "The Residents' Talking Light" and later credited to Charles Bobuck) – 2010
Lonely Teenager – 2011
D*ck S*ab (credited to Th* R*esidents) - 2012 (re-recordings of "Duck Stab! / Buster and Glen")
Coochie Brake (credited to "Sonidos de la Noche") – 2012
Bad Day On The Midway: Music From the Game Reconsidered – 2012 (overdubs of 1995 recordings for a game soundtrack)
Mush-Room (later credited to Charles Bobuck) – 2013
The Theory of Obscurity – 2014
The Ghost of Hope – 2017
I Am a Resident! - 2018
And So Are We... - 2018 (bonus disc of I Am a Resident)
Intruders - 2018
Music to Eat Bricks By – 2019 (Recorded In 2006)
A Nickle If Your Dick's This Big – 2019 (Combination of "The W***** B*** Album (The Warner Bros. Album)" recorded between 1970 and 1971, and "B.S. (Baby Sex)" recorded in 1971)
Metal, Meat & Bone: The Songs of Dyin' Dog - 2020
The World of Weird Demos 1 (Live In the Studio) - 2021 (rehearsals of the Wonder of Weird Tour, recorded in 2012)
Mole Dance 82 (Live In the Studio) - 2021 (reheaesals for the Mole Show, recorded in 1982)
Demo albums
The Residents Radio Special - (includes released content) - 1977 (legal releases in 1983)
Residue of the Residents – 1983 (recorded between 1971 and 1983)
Stranger Than Supper (includes released content) - 1990 (recorded between 1985 and 1990, and 1971)
Our Tired, Our Poor, Our Huddled Masses (the third disc includes released content) – 1997 (recorded between 1971 and 1996)
Petting Zoo – 2002 (recorded between 1973 and 2002)
Animal Lover Instrumental – 2008 (recorded in the Animal Lover sessions, between 2004 and 2005)
Smell My Picture – 2008 (recorded between 2006 and 2007)
The Bridegroom of Blood – 2009 (recorded between 1998 and 2005)
Ten Little Piggies – 2009 (recorded between 2005 and 2009)
El Año del Muerto – 2009 (recorded between 1971 and 2008)
Arkansas - 2009 (recording in the Bunny Boy sessions, 2008)
Tabasco: Tweedles Instrumental - 2010 (recorded in the Tweedles! sessions, 2006)
Night Train to Nowhere! - 2012 (recorded in 2009)
Ten Two Times - 2013 (recorded between 1972 and 2012)
Eyeful - 2020 (recorded between 1983 and 2012, all those recordings were released as single in 2012)
Anganok – 2020 (recorded in 1991)
Leftovers Again?! – 2021 (recorded between 1971 and 1979)
Live albums
The Mole Show – 1983
Live In Japan – 1986
Live In the USA! – 1986
Live In Holland – 1987
Buckaroo Blues and Black Barry (often referred to simply as Black Barry to avoid confusion with the studio album "Buckaroo Blues") - 1989
Mole Show: Live In Holland – 1989 (recorded in 1983)
Liver Music - 1990 (recorded between 1971 and 1990)
Cube-E - Live In Holland – 1990
Daydream B-Liver – 1991 (recorded between 1971 and 1991)
Live at the Fillmore – 1998
Wormwood Live 1999 – 1999
Demons Dance Alone DVD – 2002
Kettles of Fish On the Outskirts of Town – 2003 (recorded between 1971-2001)
The Residents Play Wormwood – 2005 (recorded in 1999)
The Way We Were – 2005
JJJ 105.7 Radio Show – 2009 (recorded in 1982)
Icky Flix Live –2009 (recorded in 2001)
Prague and Beyond – 2009 (recorded in 1995, with two bonus tracks recorded in 2001)
Adobe Disfigured Night – 2009 (recorded in 1997)
The Malboro Eyeball Experience – 2009 (recorded in 1997)
Oh Mummy! Oh Daddy! Can't You See That It's True; What the Beatles Did to Me, I Love Lucy Did to You – 2010 (recorded in 1976)
Ritz NY – 2010 (recorded in 1986)
Brava – 2010 (recorded in 2001)
Talking Light Bimbo's – 2011
Cube-E Dynasone 3EZ EP – 2011 (recorded in 1989, remixed in 2000)
Triple Dub-Ya – 2012 (recorded in 2005, remixed in 2012)
The Wonder of Weird - 2014 (recorded in 2013, inaudible audience)
Demonic! – 2013 (recorded in 2003)
The Wonder of Weird – 2014
Cleveland – 2014 (recorded in 1986)
Shadowland – 2015 (recorded in 2014)
Disfigured Night – 2016 (full version of 1997 album of the same name)
In Between Dreams – 2019 (recorded in 2018)
Dreaming of an Eyeball Beaming – 2019 (recorded between 2018 and 2019)
Bunny Boy: Live in Frankfurt – 2021 (recorded in 2008)
God In 3 Persons Live – 2020
Singles / EPs
Santa Dog EP – 1972
"Satisfaction" – 1976
The Beatles Play the Residents and the Residents Play the Beatles – 1977
Duck Stab! – 1978
"Santa Dog '78" – 1978
Diskomo / Goosebump – 1980
The Commercial Single – 1980
Intermission – 1982
"It's a Man's Man's Man's World" – 1984
"Kaw-liga" – 1986
"Hit the Road Jack" – 1987
"Double Shot" – 1988
"Holy Kiss of Flesh" – 1988
"Don't Be Cruel" – 1989
"Rushing Like a Banshee" – 2016
"DIE! DIE! DIE!" – 2020
"Bury My Bone" – 2020
Video releases
The Mole Show/Whatever Happened to Vileness Fats? (VHS) –1984
The Eyes Scream: A History of the Residents (VHS) (with host Penn Jillette) – 1991
Twenty Twisted Questions (Laserdisc) – 1992
Icky Flix (DVD) – 2001
Eskimo (DVD) – 2002
Disfigured Night (DVD) – 2002
Demons Dance Alone (DVD) – 2003
The Commercial DVD (DVD) – 2004
The Residents play Wormwood (DVD) – 2005
Is Anybody Out There? (DVD) – 2009
Randy's Ghost Stories (DVD) – 2010
Talking Light Bimbo's (DVD) – 2011
Other
Freak Show (comic) – 1992
Freak Show (CD-ROM) – 1994
References
Further reading
Meet the Residents – America's most eccentric band!, Ian Shirley, SAF Publishing, Wembley, UK, 1998
External links
Official YouTube page
"More Than What The Ear Hears Coming From The Eye",
"The Most Ever Company",
"Twin Peaks Meets SimCity", WIRED article on The Residents, page on the "Theory of Obscurity"
American artist groups and collectives
American experimental musical groups
American progressive rock groups
Avant-pop musicians
Surrealist groups
Bands with fictional stage personas
Cordless Recordings artists
Masked musicians
Musical groups from the San Francisco Bay Area
Mute Records artists
Pranksters
American surrealist artists
Musical groups established in 1969
Unidentified people
Avant-garde music groups | true | [
"Original Hits is a retrospective compilation album by Cuban artist Pitbull, spanning the 2004 to 2008 period of his career when he was signed to TVT Records (now-defunct). It was released in the United States on May 8, 2012 by The Orchard who bought all of the rights to TVT's assets and previous catalogs, and later that same month in Australia and the United Kingdom. Original Hits features several of Pitbull's guest appearances, remixes and some unreleased tracks. It does not contain any of his more recent hit singles.\n\nPitbull acknowledged that album at the time of its release by saying \"I wouldn’t be where I am today without these songs. Each one represents a step on my journey from Mr. 305 to Mr. Worldwide. This album is a good introduction for newer fans and a reminder to longtime fans of how far we’ve come together.\" Despite not being promoted with any singles or marketing initiatives, Original Hits charted in the top-twenty on the U.S. Independent Albums, R&B Albums and Rap Albums charts, as published by Billboard. It also charted at number 136 on the main Billboard 200 albums chart.\n\nCritical reception \nDavid Jeffries praised the choice of singles included from the 2004 to 2008 period of Pitbull's career, pick out \"the spicy crunk anthem \"The Anthem,\" the hypnotic reggaeton floor filler \"Culo,\" and the raw, pounding \"Bojangles,\" all of them sounding flashy, big, and like the start of a penthouse pool party where every beer has a lime on top.\" He also said that the choice of album tracks to complete the compilation were strong and that hardcore fans would appreciate the three bonus tracks, previously unreleased or from mixtapes.\n\nTrack listing\n\nCharts\n\nRelease history\n\nReferences\n\nSpanish-language albums\nPitbull (rapper) albums\nAlbums produced by Jim Jonsin\nAlbums produced by Mr. Collipark\n2012 remix albums\nTVT Records remix albums\nAlbums produced by DJ Toomp",
"Playlist: The Very Best of Sara Evans is the second compilation album from Sara Evans, after 2007's Greatest Hits, released as part of the Legacy Recordings Playlist series. The album features a selection of Evans' biggest hits, as well as album tracks and songs that have not previously been included on any of her albums.\n\nTrack listing\n\nChart performance\n\nReferences\n\nSara Evans albums\n2013 greatest hits albums\nEvans, Sara"
] |
[
"Jon Stewart",
"Criticism of Fox News"
] | C_786034d9487f49daa667e68a1af6e708_1 | What was his criticisms of fox news? | 1 | What was Jon Stewart's criticisms of fox news? | Jon Stewart | Throughout his tenure on The Daily Show, Stewart has frequently accused Fox News of distorting the news to fit a conservative agenda, at one point ridiculing the network as "the meanest sorority in the world." In November 2009, Stewart called out Fox News for using some footage from a previous Tea Party rally during a report on a more recent rally, making the latter event appear more highly attended than it actually was. The show's anchor, Sean Hannity, apologized for the footage use the following night. A month later, Stewart criticized Fox & Friends cohost Gretchen Carlson - a former Miss America and a Stanford graduate - for claiming that she googled words such as "ignoramus" and "czar". Stewart said that Carlson was dumbing herself down for "an audience who sees intellect as an elitist flaw". Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010; as of April 24, The Daily Show had 24 segments criticizing Fox News' coverage. Bill O'Reilly, host of the talk show The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News, countered that The Daily Show was a "key component of left-wing television" and that Stewart loved Fox News because the network was "not boring". During an interview with Chris Wallace on June 19, 2011, Stewart called Wallace "insane" after Wallace said that Stewart's earlier comparison of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment. Stewart also said Fox viewers are the "most consistently misinformed" viewers of political media. This comment was ranked by fact-checking site PolitiFact as false, with conditions. Stewart later accepted his error. In 2014, Stewart engaged in an extended "call-out" of Fox News based on their perceived hypocritical coverage of food stamps and U.S. Government assistance. This culminated during the Bundy standoff involving multiple segments, across multiple episodes, specifically singling out Sean Hannity and Hannity's coverage of the event. Hannity would "return fire" by calling out Stewart for associating himself with Cat Stevens during his Rally in 2010. Stewart responded to this by calling out Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a "friend and frequent guest" on his program and supporting Nugent's violent rhetoric towards Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2007. In late August 2014, Stewart vehemently opposed the manner in which Fox News portrayed the events surrounding the shooting of teenager Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri and the subsequent protests from citizens. CANNOTANSWER | based on their perceived hypocritical coverage of food stamps and U.S. Government assistance. | Jon Stewart (born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz; November 28, 1962) is an American comedian, writer, producer, director, political commentator, actor, and television host. He hosted The Daily Show, a satirical news program on Comedy Central, from 1999 to 2015. Stewart now hosts The Problem with Jon Stewart, which premiered September 2021 on Apple TV+.
Stewart started as a stand-up comedian but branched into television as host of Short Attention Span Theater for Comedy Central. He went on to host You Wrote It, You Watch It (1992–1993) and then The Jon Stewart Show (1993–1995), both on MTV, until The Jon Stewart Show was retooled, dropped by the network and moved to syndication. Stewart has also appeared in several films, including Big Daddy (1999) and Death to Smoochy (2002), but did few cinematic projects after becoming host of The Daily Show in 1999. He also was a writer and co-executive producer of the show. After Stewart joined, The Daily Show steadily gained popularity and critical acclaim, and during his tenure, won 22 Primetime Emmy Awards, two Grammy Awards and also was nominated for news and journalism awards. Stewart hosted the 78th and 80th Academy Awards. He is the co-author of America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, which was one of the best-selling books in the US in 2004, and Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race, released in 2010.
Since leaving The Daily Show, Stewart has mostly maintained a low profile in entertainment industry circles, but has used his celebrity and voice in a sustained advocacy for 9/11 first responders, and also for war veterans' health benefits. In 2019 he received the New York City Bronze Medallion for his "tireless advocacy, inspiration, and leadership (helping to) pass the permanent authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund Act".
Early life and education
Jon Stewart was born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz on November 28, 1962, in New York City, to Marian (née Laskin), a teacher and later educational consultant, and Donald Leibowitz, an energy coordinator for the New Jersey Department of the Treasury. Stewart's family members are Jewish immigrants to America from Poland, Ukraine, and Belarus. One of his grandfathers was born in Manzhouli (now part of Inner Mongolia). He is the second of four sons, with older brother Lawrence, and younger brothers Dan and Matthew.
Stewart's parents divorced when he was eleven years old, and Stewart was largely estranged from his father. Because of his strained relationship with his father, which in 2015 he described as "still 'complicated'", he dropped his surname and began using his middle name. Stewart stated, "There was a thought of using my mother's maiden name, but I thought that would be just too big a fuck you to my dad... Did I have some problems with my father? Yes. Yet people always view [changing my surname] through the prism of ethnic identity." He had his surname changed legally to Stewart in 2001. Stewart and his brother Lawrence, who was previously the chief operating officer of NYSE Euronext (parent company of the New York Stock Exchange), grew up in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, where they attended Lawrence High School. According to Stewart, he was subjected to anti-Semitic bullying as a child. He describes himself in high school as "very into Eugene Debs and a bit of a leftist."
Stewart grew up in the era of the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal, which inspired in him "a healthy skepticism towards official reports". His first job was working with his brother at a Woolworth's store, and jokingly says being fired by Lawrence was one of the "scarring events" of his youth. He has also credited legendary television producer Norman Lear as someone who "raised me."
Stewart graduated in 1984 from The College of William & Mary where he initially majored in chemistry before switching to psychology. While at William & Mary, Stewart became a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity, but eventually began disassociating himself from them; leaving the fraternity altogether after six months. "My college career was waking up late, memorizing someone else's notes, doing bong hits, and going to soccer practice", he later said. He was a three-year starter in 1981, 1982 and 1983 with the Tribe men's soccer team. He had 10 goals and 12 assists on a squad that went 40–15–9 (.695) in his three seasons with the program. He is listed as Jon Leibowitz in official William & Mary Athletics records. The former head coach of the Tribe men's soccer team from 1971 to 2003, Al Albert, describes Jon as "athletic and feisty and quick" and added that he "wasn't the most technical or clinical player, but he could make things happen."
After college, Stewart held numerous jobs: a contingency planner for the New Jersey Department of Human Services, a contract administrator for the City University of New York, a puppeteer for children with disabilities, a soccer coach at Gloucester High School in Virginia, a caterer, a busboy, a shelf stocker at Woolworth's, a bartender at the Franklin Corner Tavern (a local blue-collar bar), and a bartender at the legendary City Gardens in Trenton, New Jersey. He has said that working at City Gardens was a pivotal moment for him: "finding this place City Gardens was like, 'Oh, maybe I'm not a giant weirdo. Maybe there are other people who have a similar sense of yearning for something other than what they have now.' I think it inspired a lot of people, man. It was a very creative environment. It was a place of great possibility."
Career
Early work
With a reputation for being a funny man in school, Jon Stewart returned to New York City in 1986 to try his hand at the comedy club circuit, but he could not muster the courage to get on stage until the following year. He made his stand-up debut at The Bitter End, where one of his comedic idols, Woody Allen, also began. He began using the stage name "Jon Stewart" by dropping his last name and changing the spelling of his middle name "Stuart" to "Stewart". He often jokes this is because people had difficulty with the pronunciation of Leibowitz or it "sounded too Hollywood" (a reference to Lenny Bruce's joke on the same theme). He has implied that the name change was due to a strained relationship with his father, with whom Stewart no longer had any contact.
Stewart became a regular at the Comedy Cellar, where he was the last performer every night. For two years, he would perform at 2 a.m. while developing his comedic style. In 1989, Stewart landed his first television job as a writer for Caroline's Comedy Hour. In 1990, he began co-hosting Comedy Central's Short Attention Span Theater, with Patty Rosborough. In 1992, Stewart hosted the short-lived You Wrote It, You Watch It on MTV, which invited viewers to send in their stories to be acted out by the comedy troupe, The State.
Stewart relates that his career did not take off until his March 6, 1992, appearance on NBC's Late Night with David Letterman. He was considered a finalist to take over Letterman's position upon his departure from the program, but instead, it was given to relatively unknown Conan O'Brien. He co-hosted MTV Spring Break '93 Blind Date from Daytona Beach with Melissa Rivers.
The Jon Stewart Show
Later in 1993, Stewart developed The Jon Stewart Show, a talk show on MTV, which was later dropped by the network and was syndicated for its last two years. The Jon Stewart Show was the first talk show on that network and was an instant hit, becoming the second-highest rated MTV show, behind Beavis and Butt-Head. In 1994, Paramount canceled The Arsenio Hall Show and, with new corporate sibling MTV (through MTV parent Viacom's acquisition of the studio), launched an hour-long syndicated late-night version of The Jon Stewart Show. Many local affiliates had moved Hall's show to 2 a.m. during its decline and Stewart's show inherited such early morning time slots in many cities. Ratings were dismal and the show was canceled in June 1995.
Among the fans of the show was David Letterman, who was the final guest of The Jon Stewart Show. Letterman signed Stewart with his production company, Worldwide Pants. Stewart then became a frequent guest host for Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show with Tom Snyder, which was produced by Letterman and aired after the Late Show on CBS. This led to much speculation that Stewart would soon replace Snyder permanently, but instead, Stewart was offered the time slot after Snyder's, which he turned down.
In 1996 Stewart hosted a short-lived talk show entitled, Where's Elvis This Week?, that was a half-hour, weekly comedy television program. It aired on Sunday nights in the United Kingdom on BBC Two. It was filmed at the CBS Broadcast Center in New York City and featured a set of panelists, two from the UK and two from the United States, who discussed news items and cultural issues. The show premiered in the UK on October 6, 1996; five episodes aired in total. Notable panelists included Dave Chappelle, Eddie Izzard, Phill Jupitus, Nora Ephron, Craig Kilborn, Christopher Hitchens, Armando Iannucci, Norm Macdonald, and Helen Gurley Brown. In 1997, Stewart was chosen as the host and interviewer for George Carlin's tenth HBO special, 40 Years of Comedy.
The Daily Show
In 1998, when Craig Kilborn left the show to replace Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show, Stewart began hosting The Daily Show on Comedy Central. The Daily Show blends humor with the day's top news stories, usually in politics, while simultaneously poking fun at politicians, newsmakers, and the news media. In an interview on The O'Reilly Factor, Stewart denied the show has any intentional political agenda, saying the goal was "schnicks and giggles" and that "[t]he same weakness that drove me into comedy also informs my show", meaning that he was uncomfortable talking without hearing the audience laugh. In his first Daily Show on-air appearance on January 11, 1999, Stewart told his guest that evening, Michael J. Fox, that he felt as if "this is my bar mitzvah". His style was described by one critic as, "Stewart does not offer us cynicism for its own sake, but as a playful way to offer the kinds of insights that are not permitted in more serious news formats that slavishly cling to official account of events."
Until Trevor Noah permanently took over the show in 2015, Stewart hosted almost all airings of the program, except for a few occasions when correspondents such as Stephen Colbert, Rob Corddry, Jason Jones, and Steve Carell subbed for him, and during John Oliver's stint as host during the summer of 2013. Stewart won twenty Primetime Emmy Awards for The Daily Show as either a writer or producer, and two for producing The Colbert Report (2013–14), earning a total of twenty-two Primetime Emmy Awards, the most wins for a male individual. In 2005, Stewart and The Daily Show received the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album for the audiobook edition of America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction. In 2000 and 2004, the show won two Peabody Awards for its coverage of the U.S. presidential elections in those years, called "Indecision 2000" and "Indecision 2004", respectively.
The show of September 20, 2001, the first show after the attacks of September 11th, 2001, began with no introduction. Before this, the introduction included footage of a fly-in toward the World Trade Center and New York City. The first nine minutes of the show included a tearful Stewart discussing his personal view on the event. His remarks ended as follows:
In mid-2002, amid rumors that David Letterman was going to switch from CBS to ABC when his contract ran out, Stewart was rumored as Letterman's replacement on CBS. Ultimately, Letterman renewed his contract with CBS. On the March 9, 2002, episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by Stewart, a Weekend Update sketch poked fun at the situation.
In late 2002, ABC offered Stewart his own talk show to air right after Nightline. Stewart's contract with The Daily Show was near expiring, and he expressed strong interest. ABC, however, decided to give another Comedy Central figure, Jimmy Kimmel, the post-Nightline slot.
On April 4, 2006, Stewart confronted U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) on The Daily Show about his decision to appear at Liberty University, an institution founded by Jerry Falwell whom McCain previously had denounced as one of the "agents of intolerance". In the interchange, Stewart asked McCain, "You're not freaking out on us? Are you freaking out on us, because if you're freaking out ... and you're going into the crazy base world—are you going into crazy base world?" McCain replied, "Just– just– just a little" and "I'm afraid so." The clip was played on CNN, was noted and discussed in more detail in the blogosphere and was followed up on in the mainstream media.
In 2007, The Daily Show was involved in former correspondent Stephen Colbert's announcement that he would run for president in 2008. In 2008, Stewart appeared on the news program Democracy Now!. A 2008 New York Times story questioned whether he was, in a phrase originally used to describe longtime network news anchor Walter Cronkite, "the most trusted man in America".
On April 28, 2009, during a discussion on torture with Clifford May, Stewart expressed his opinion that former President Harry S. Truman was a war criminal for his use of the atomic bomb on Japan during World War II. He defended his assertion moments later:
"Here's what I think of the atom bombs. I think if you dropped an atom bomb fifteen miles offshore and you said, 'The next one's coming and hitting you', then I would think it's okay. To drop it on a city, and kill a hundred thousand people? Yeah. I think that's criminal." On April 30, Stewart apologized on his program, and stated he did not believe Truman was a war criminal: "I shouldn't have said that, and I did. So I say right now, no, I don't believe that to be the case. The atomic bomb, a very complicated decision in the context of a horrific war, and I walk that back because it was in my estimation a stupid thing to say."
In April 2010, Comedy Central renewed Stewart's contract to host The Daily Show into 2013. According to a Forbes list of celebrities in 2008, he was earning $14 million a year.
On September 16, 2010, Stewart and Stephen Colbert announced a rally for October 30, known as the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear. It took place on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. and attracted an estimated 215,000 participants. In December 2010, Stewart was credited by the White House, other media, and political news outlets for bringing awareness of the Republican filibuster on the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act to the public, leading to the ultimate passing of the bill that provides health benefits to first responders whose health has been adversely affected by their work at Ground Zero.
On the show of January 10, 2011, Stewart began with a monologue about the shootings in Tucson, Arizona. He said he wished the "ramblings of crazy people didn't in any way resemble how we actually talk to each other on television". Before a commercial break, Stewart told viewers that the show would continue as usual the next night. After the commercial break, the show featured a rerun of a field piece done by Jason Jones two years earlier.
The New York Times opined that Stewart is "the modern-day equivalent of Edward R. Murrow" and the UK national newspaper The Independent called him the "satirist-in-chief". In an interview, Senator John McCain described Stewart as "a modern-day Will Rogers and Mark Twain".
Writer Wyatt Cenac said that Stewart cursed him out after Cenac acknowledged he was uncomfortable about a June 2011 Daily Show bit about Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain (reported in July 2015).
In March 2013, it was announced that Stewart would be taking a 12-week hiatus from The Daily Show to direct the film Rosewater, which is based on the book Then They Came for Me by Maziar Bahari. Beginning June 10, 2013, The Daily Show correspondent John Oliver assumed primary hosting duties during Stewart's break. The TV Guide annual survey for 2013 star salaries showed that Stewart was the highest-paid late night host, making an estimated $25–30 million per year.
On July 14, 2014, Stewart interviewed Hillary Clinton about the Middle East. Clinton's condemnations of Hamas led Stewart to ask her: "But don't you think they would look at that though as, they've given a lot of different things a chance and these are the only guys to them that are giving any resistance to what their condition is?" For Gazans living in that situation, he said Hamas could be viewed as "freedom fighters".
Leaving The Daily Show
During a taping of the show on February 10, 2015, Stewart announced he was leaving The Daily Show. Comedy Central president Michele Ganeless confirmed Stewart's retirement with a statement. Later, it was announced that South African comedian Trevor Noah would succeed Stewart as the host of the show. On April 20, 2015, Stewart indicated that his final show would be on August 6, 2015.
On July 28, 2015, Darren Samuelsohn of Politico reported that twice, Stewart had been at the White House for previously unreported meetings with President Obama: once in October 2011 and once in February 2014. Michael D. Shear of The New York Times also picked up on the story. Stewart responded on his show by pointing out that the meetings were listed in the president's publicly available visitor log and that he has been asked to meet privately by many prominent individuals, including Roger Ailes of Fox News. He said Obama encouraged him not to make young Americans cynical about their government and Stewart said that his reply was that he was "skeptically idealistic".
On June 19, 2015, in the wake of the Charleston Church Shooting, Stewart decided not to write jokes for the opening monologue. Elaborating on his decision, Stewart stated, "I honestly have nothing other than just sadness". Stewart spoke about the racial disparity and injustices in America, saying "The Confederate flag flies over South Carolina ... and the roads are named for Confederate generals" describing it as "racial wallpaper". Instead he designated a large portion of the show to his guest that night Malala Yousafzai, calling her "an incredible inspiration," and that "to be quite honest with you, I don't think there's anyone else in the world I would rather talk to tonight than Malala: So that's what we're going to do. And sorry about no jokes."
On August 5, 2015, Stewart's friend of 30 years, comedian Louis C.K., was selected to be the last guest before the final Daily Show episode with Stewart helming the show. C.K. joked that he was there "representing comedy to say good job".
The hour-long-plus final Daily Show on August 6 featured reunions with former correspondents Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, John Oliver, Samantha Bee, Hasan Minhaj, Ed Helms, Kristen Schaal, Larry Wilmore, Jessica Williams, Aasif Mandvi, Lewis Black, John Hodgman, Rob Corddry, Olivia Munn, Josh Gad, Michael Che, and Mo Rocca and cameo video clips from people Stewart had targeted over the years, including Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Lindsey Graham, Chris Christie, John Kerry, Chuck Schumer, Bill O'Reilly, Wolf Blitzer, Joe Scarborough, and Mika Brzezinski. During the final episode, there was a pre-taped behind-the-scenes look at the show spoofing the long-take Copacabana scene from Goodfellas, featuring a brief appearance by Martin Scorsese. It concluded with a performance by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.
Post-Daily Show
In November 2015, it was announced that Stewart signed a four-year deal with HBO that would include exclusive digital content for HBO NOW, HBO Go, and other platforms. HBO programming president Casey Bloys has said that "the idea is it will be an animated parody of a cable news network with an Onion-like portal." The team began working with the cloud graphics company, OTOY, to build a system for creating content. Confirmed to be working on the project included Mike Brown, Steve Waltien, Chelsea Devantez, Lucy Steiner, Kate James, and Robby Slowik. The team tested material in Red Bank, New Jersey at The Count Basie Theatre Performing Arts Academy.
The show's premiere was moved several times, from fall 2016, to the first quarter of 2017, and then cancelled on May 23, 2017. The cancelation statement read:
After his contract with HBO ended, Stewart signed a multi-year show deal with Apple. On September 30, 2021, Stewart's new series, The Problem with Jon Stewart, premiered on AppleTV. The series features hour-long, single-subject episodes. In addition to hosting the show, Stewart serves as executive producer through his company, Busboy Productions.
Writing
In 1998, Stewart released his first book, Naked Pictures of Famous People, a collection of humorous short stories and essays. The book reached The New York Times Best Seller List.
In 2004, Stewart and The Daily Show writing staff released, America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, a mock high-school history textbook offering insights into the unique American system of government, dissecting its institutions, explaining its history and processes, and satirizing such popular American political precepts as, "one man, one vote", "government by the people", and "every vote counts". The book sold millions of copies upon its 2004 release and ended the year as a top-fifteen best seller.
In 2005, Stewart provided the voice of President James A. Garfield for the audiobook version of Sarah Vowell's Assassination Vacation. In 2007, Stewart voiced Mort Sinclaire, former TV comedy writer and communist, on Stephen Colbert's audiobook version of I Am America (And So Can You!).
In 2010, Stewart and The Daily Show writing staff released a sequel to their first book entitled, Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race. The book is meant to serve as a Baedeker travel guide for an alien civilization that discovers Earth after humanity has died out, most likely by its own hands.
In March 2012, Stewart interviewed Bruce Springsteen for Rolling Stone.
Acting
Stewart's first film role was a bit part in the box-office bomb, Mixed Nuts. He landed a minor part in The First Wives Club, but his scene was deleted. In 1995, Stewart signed a three-year deal with Miramax. Stewart played romantic leads in the films, Playing by Heart and Wishful Thinking. He had a supporting role in the romantic comedy, Since You've Been Gone and in the horror film, The Faculty. Other films were planned for Stewart to write and star in, but they never were produced. Stewart maintained a relationship with Miramax founders Harvey and Bob Weinstein and appeared in films they produced including, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Doogal, and the documentary, Wordplay.
He appeared in Half Baked as an "enhancement smoker" and in Big Daddy as Adam Sandler's roommate; he has joked on the Daily Show and in the documentary The Aristocrats that to get the role, he slept with Sandler. Stewart often makes fun of his appearances in the high-profile flop, Death to Smoochy, in which he played a treacherous television executive; and the animated film Doogal, where he played a blue spring named Zeebad who shot a freeze ray from his mustache. In 2007, Stewart made a cameo appearance as himself in Evan Almighty, which starred former Daily Show correspondent Steve Carell. In the movie, Stewart was seen on a television screen in a fictional Daily Show episode poking fun at Carell's character for building an ark.
Stewart had a recurring role in The Larry Sanders Show, playing himself as an occasional substitute and possible successor to late-night talk show host Larry Sanders (played by Garry Shandling). In 1998, Stewart hosted the television special, Elmopalooza, celebrating 30 years of Sesame Street. He has guest-starred on other sitcoms including The Nanny, Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist, Spin City, NewsRadio, American Dad!, and The Simpsons. He also has made guest appearances on the children's television series Between the Lions, Sesame Street, Jack's Big Music Show, and Gravity Falls.
Producing
In the mid-1990s, Stewart launched his own production company, Busboy Productions, naming the company in reference to his previous job as a busboy. Stewart signed a deal with Miramax to develop projects through his company, but none of his ideas have been produced. After Stewart's success as host and producer of The Daily Show, he revived Busboy Productions with Daily Show producers Ben Karlin and Rich Korson. In 2002, Busboy planned to produce a sitcom for NBC starring Stephen Colbert, but the show did not come to fruition.
In 2005, Comedy Central reached an agreement with Busboy in which Comedy Central would provide financial backing for the production company. Comedy Central has a first-look agreement on all projects, after which Busboy is free to shop them to other networks.
The deal spawned the Daily Show spin-off The Colbert Report and its replacement, The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore. Other projects include the sitcom pilot Three Strikes, the documentary Sportsfan, the series Important Things with Demetri Martin, and the film The Donor.
After Stewart's departure from The Daily Show, he was listed as an executive producer on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. In addition, Stewart has presented occasional comedic monologues filled with political and media commentary.
In July 2017, HBO announced Stewart would produce a stand-up comedy special for the network, his first stand-up special since 1996.
Directing
In March 2010, Stewart announced that he had optioned rights to the story of journalist Maziar Bahari, who was imprisoned in Iran for 118 days. On June 6, 2011, episode of The Daily Show, Stewart again hosted Bahari, and in March 2013, he announced that he was leaving the show for 12 weeks to direct the film version of Bahari's 2011 book, Then They Came For Me. Stewart's screenplay adaptation is entitled, Rosewater. It premiered at the September 2014 Toronto International Film Festival, receiving "generally favorable" reviews, and was released to general audiences on November 14, 2014.
On directing, Stewart noted on Employee of the Month that The Daily Show influenced his directing process more than his acting gigs did. He said, "It's about the collaboration. It's about understanding. Doing a show taught me this process of clarity of vision, but the flexibility of process. So know your intention, know where you're wanting to go with the scene with the way that you want it to go, the momentum shifts, the emphasis, where you want it to be." He also expressed interest in directing more films.
Stewart directed the political satire Irresistible, released in June 2020, which follows a demoralized Democratic strategist (played by Daily Show alumnus Steve Carell), who helps a retired veteran (Chris Cooper) run for mayor in a small, blue collar town in Wisconsin.
Hosting and public speaking
Stewart has hosted the Grammy Awards twice, in 2001 and in 2002, and the 78th Academy Awards, which were held March 5, 2006, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood. Critical response to Stewart's performance was mixed. Roger Ebert compared him favorably to legendary Oscar host Johnny Carson. Other reviewers were less positive; Tom Shales of The Washington Post said that Stewart hosted with "smug humorlessness". James Poniewozik of TIME said that Stewart was a bad host, but a great "anti-host" in that he poked fun at parts of the broadcast that deserved it, which lent him a degree of authenticity with the non-Hollywood audience. Stewart and correspondent John Oliver later poked fun at his lackluster reception on The Daily Show coverage of the 79th Academy Awards by saying that the "demon of last year's Oscars had finally been exorcised".
Stewart returned to host the 80th Academy Awards on February 24, 2008. The reception to his performance was better received. Matthew Gilbert of the Boston Globe felt the ceremony was average, but praised Stewart, writing that, "It was good to see Jon Stewart being Jon Stewart. He is shaping up to be a dependable Oscar host for the post-Billy Crystal years. He's not musical, but he's versatile enough to swing smoothly between jokes about politics, Hollywood, new media, and, most importantly, hair." Variety columnist Brian Lowry lauded Stewart's performance noting that he "earned his keep by maintaining a playful, irreverent tone throughout the night, whether it was jesting about Cate Blanchett's versatility or watching Lawrence of Arabia on an iPhone screen.
In December 2009, Stewart gave a speech at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts honoring Bruce Springsteen, one of that year's Kennedy Center Honors recipients, and of whom Stewart is a fan. Stewart gave another speech paying tribute to Springsteen in February 2013 as part of the singer's MusiCares Person of the Year award ceremony.
Stewart began a comedic feud with WWE wrestler Seth Rollins in March 2015, and appeared on WWE Raw during a Daily Show-styled segment hosted by Rollins. On August 23, 2015, Stewart returned to host the WWE's SummerSlam at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Later, he got involved in the main event between Rollins and John Cena, helping Rollins retain his WWE World Heavyweight Championship, as well as winning Cena's United States Championship when he interfered and hit Cena with a steel chair. The next night on Raw, he explained his actions, saying he did it for Ric Flair (who was also present), which was to retain his world championship record. Cena then gave Stewart his finishing move, the Attitude Adjustment, to end the segment. Stewart returned at SummerSlam on August 21, 2016, as a special guest.
In 2016, Stewart joined President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Jill Biden, and David Letterman in honoring military families on May 5 at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. The special celebration which marked both the USO's 75th anniversary and the fifth anniversary of Joining Forces.
Stewart got into a Twitter war with then-presidential candidate Donald Trump, who in multiple tweets stated that Stewart's changing his name indicated that he was a fraud. Stewart and some analysts considered this to be anti-Semitic. Trump then tweeted that Stewart should be "proud of his heritage", and Stewart tweeted back, facetiously, that Trump's real name was "Fuckface Von Clownstick" and that Trump should be proud of the "Clownstick heritage".
In June 2017, Stewart spoke at the funeral service for Ray Pfeifer, an FDNY firefighter from Hicksville, New York, who died after an eight-year battle with cancer as a result of service as a first responder at the September 11 attacks.
Criticism of television journalists
Stewart is known as an outspoken, humorous critic of personality-driven media shows, in particular, those of the U.S. media broadcast networks such as CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC. Critics say Stewart benefits from a double standard: he critiques other news shows from the safe, removed position of his "news satire" desk; Stewart asserts that neither his show nor Comedy Central purport to be anything other than satire and comedy.
Crossfire appearance
In a televised exchange with then-CNN correspondent Tucker Carlson on Crossfire on October 15, 2004, Stewart criticized the state of television journalism and pleaded with the show's hosts to "stop hurting America", and he referred to both Carlson and co-host Paul Begala as "partisan hacks". When posted on the internet, this exchange became widely viewed and was a topic of much media discussion.
Despite being on the program to comment on current events, Stewart immediately shifted the discussion toward the show itself, asserting that Crossfire had failed in its responsibility to inform and educate viewers about politics as a serious topic. Stewart stated that the show engaged in partisan hackery instead of honest debate, and said that the hosts' assertion that Crossfire is a debate show is like "saying pro wrestling is a show about athletic competition". Carlson responded by saying that Stewart criticizes news organizations for not holding public officials accountable, but when he interviewed John Kerry, Stewart asked a series of "softball" questions (Stewart has acknowledged he voted for Kerry in the 2004 presidential election). Stewart responded that he didn't realize "the news organizations look to Comedy Central for their cues on integrity". When Carlson continued to press Stewart on the Kerry issue, Stewart said, "You're on CNN! The show that leads into me is puppets making crank phone calls! What is wrong with you?" In response to prods from Carlson, "Come on. Be funny." Stewart said, "No, I'm not going to be your monkey." Later in the show when Carlson jibed, "I do think you're more fun on your show", Stewart retorted, "You're as big a dick on your show as you are on any show." In response to Stewart's criticisms, Carlson said, "You need to get a job at a journalism school", to which Stewart responded, "You need to go to one!"
Stewart discussed the incident on The Daily Show the following Monday:
In January 2005, CNN announced that it was canceling Crossfire. When asked about the cancellation, CNN's incoming president, Jonathan Klein, referred to Stewart's appearance on the show: "I think he made a good point about the noise level of these types of shows, which does nothing to illuminate the issues of the day."
On March 18, 2009, Carlson wrote a blog entry for The Daily Beast criticizing Stewart for his handling of the CNBC controversy (see below). Carlson discussed the CNN incident and claimed that Stewart remained backstage for at least "an hour" and "continued to lecture our staff", something Carlson described as, "one of the weirdest things I have ever seen".
Criticism of CNBC
Stewart again became a viral internet phenomenon following a March 4, 2009, The Daily Show sequence. CNBC canceled Rick Santelli's scheduled appearance on The Daily Show that day, so the show ran a short segment showing CNBC giving poor investment advice.
Subsequent media coverage of exchanges between Stewart and Jim Cramer, who had been featured heavily in the original segment, led to a highly anticipated face-to-face confrontation on The Daily Show. The episode received much media attention and became the second most-viewed episode of The Daily Show, trailing only the 2009 Inauguration Day episode. It had 2.3 million total viewers, and the next day, the show's website saw its highest day of traffic in 2009. Although Cramer acknowledged on the show that some of Stewart's criticisms of CNBC were valid and that the network could "do better", he later said on The Today Show that Stewart's criticism of the media was "naïve and misleading."
Criticism of Fox News
Throughout his tenure on The Daily Show, Stewart frequently accused Fox News of distorting the news to fit a conservative agenda, at one point ridiculing the network as "the meanest sorority in the world". In November 2009, Stewart "called out" Fox News for using some footage from a previous Tea Party rally during a report on a more recent rally, making the latter event appear more highly attended than it was. The show's anchor, Sean Hannity, apologized for the footage use the following night. A month later, Stewart criticized Fox & Friends cohost Gretchen Carlson – a former Miss America and a Stanford graduate – for claiming that she googled words such as "ignoramus" and "czar". Stewart said that Carlson was dumbing herself down for "an audience who sees intellect as an elitist flaw".
Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010; within five months, The Daily Show had 24 segments criticizing the Fox News coverage. Bill O'Reilly, host of the talk show The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News, countered that The Daily Show was a "key component of left-wing television" and that Stewart loved Fox News because the network was "not boring".
During an interview with Chris Wallace on June 19, 2011, Stewart called Wallace "insane" for saying that Stewart's earlier comparison of the marketing techniques of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment. Stewart also said Fox viewers are the "most consistently misinformed" viewers of political media. This comment was ranked by the fact-checking site, PolitiFact, as false, with conditions. Stewart later accepted his error.
In 2014, Stewart engaged in an extended "call-out" of Fox News, based on their coverage of food stamps and U.S. government assistance, opining that said coverage was biased. This culminated in segments across multiple episodes, specifically singling out Sean Hannity and his show's coverage of the Bundy standoff. Hannity would "return fire" by calling out Stewart for associating himself with Cat Stevens during his Rally in 2010. Stewart responded to this by criticizing Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a "friend and frequent guest" on his program and supporting Nugent's violent rhetoric toward Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2007. In late August 2014, Stewart criticized the manner in which Fox News portrayed the events surrounding the shooting of teenager Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri, and the subsequent protests from citizens.
Advocacy of the 9/11 First Responders Bill
Over the years, Stewart sometimes used The Daily Show to argue for causes such as the treatment of veterans and 9/11 first responders. He is credited with breaking a Senate deadlock over a bill to provide health care and benefits for 9/11 emergency workers; the bill passed three days after he featured a group of 9/11 responders on the show. In March 2009, he criticized a White House proposal to remove veterans from Veterans Administration rolls if they had private health insurance; the White House dropped the plan the next day. In 2010, Stewart held an interview with a panel of four of the 9/11 first responders Kenny Specht with the FDNY, Chris Bowman NYPD, Ken George DOT, and Kevin Devlin, Operating Engineer of Heavy Equipment, who discussed their health problems with Stewart. In 2015 four months after leaving The Daily Show he returned to reunite the four, with Specht as the only panelist healthy enough to attend. Devlin had died and the two other panelists, Bowman and George, were too ill to make it to the show.
In February and June 2019, Stewart again went to Congress to oppose the $7.375 billion limit in pay-outs to 9/11 responders through December 2020 and to lobby for permanent funding for the Victims Compensation Fund past December 2020, delivering a tearful testimony.
Stewart continued to be a vocal advocate, appearing on late night shows such as The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, and news programs such as Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace, and The Fox Report with Shepherd Smith. On July 12, 2019, the House approved the bill overwhelmingly 402–12. The bill came to the Senate floor where it passed the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund through 2092, virtually funding health care for 9/11 victims and first responders for life. The vote was 97–2 with Republican Senators Rand Paul (KY) and Mike Lee (UT) opposing. When hearing that the bill had been passed, Stewart responded by saying, "It has been the honor of my life working with the 9/11 first responders...these families deserve better...and I will follow you wherever your next adventure shall be".
Writers Guild of America strike of 2007–2008
Stewart was an important factor in the unionization of the Comedy Central writers. The Daily Show writers were the first of Comedy Central's writers to be able to join the guild, after which other shows followed.
Stewart supported the 2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike. On The Daily Show episode just before the strike, he sarcastically commented about how Comedy Central had made available all episodes for free on their website, but without advertising, and said, "go support our advertisers". The show went on hiatus when the strike began, as did other late-night talk shows. Upon Stewart's return to the show on January 7, 2008, he refused to use the title, The Daily Show, stating that The Daily Show was the show made with all of the people responsible for the broadcast, including his writers. During the strike, he referred to his show as A Daily Show with Jon Stewart until the strike ended on February 13, 2008.
Stewart's choice to return to the air did bring criticism that he was undermining the writers of his show. Seth MacFarlane wrote an inside joke into an episode of Family Guy about this, causing Stewart to respond with an hour-long call in which he questioned how MacFarlane could consider himself the "moral arbiter" of Hollywood. Other former writers of The Daily Show such as David Feldman also have indicated that Stewart was anti-union at the time and punished his writers for their decision to unionize.
The Writers Guild Strike of 2007–08 also was responsible for a notable mock feud between Stewart, Stephen Colbert, and Conan O'Brien in early 2008. Without writers to help fuel their banter, the three comedians concocted a crossover/rivalry to garner more viewers during the ratings slump. Colbert claimed that because of "the Colbert bump", he was responsible for Mike Huckabee's success in the 2008 presidential race. O'Brien claimed that he was responsible for Huckabee's success because not only had he mentioned Huckabee on his show, but also that he was responsible for Chuck Norris's success (Norris backed Huckabee). In response, Stewart claimed that he was responsible for the success of O'Brien since Stewart had featured him on The Jon Stewart Show, and in turn, the success of Huckabee. This resulted in a three-part comedic battle between the three pundits, with all three appearing on each other's shows. The feud ended on Late Night with Conan O'Brien with a mock brawl involving the three hosts.
Influences
Stewart has said his influences include George Carlin, Lenny Bruce, Woody Allen, David Letterman, Steve Martin, and Richard Pryor.
Among comedians who say they were influenced by Stewart are Stephen Colbert, John Oliver, Hasan Minhaj, Samantha Bee, Larry Wilmore, Bassem Youssef, Trevor Noah, and Jordan Klepper.
Personal life
Stewart is irreligious, but of Jewish heritage.
While making the 1997 film, Wishful Thinking, a production assistant on the film arranged for a blind date between Stewart and Tracey Lynn McShane. They dated for four years. Stewart proposed to her through a personalized crossword puzzle created with the help of Will Shortz, the crossword editor at The New York Times. They married in 2000. On June 19, 2001, Stewart and his wife filed a joint name change application and legally changed both of their surnames to "Stewart". With the help of in vitro fertilization, the couple has two children.
In 2000, when he was labelled a Democrat, Stewart generally agreed, but described his political affiliation as "more socialist or independent" than Democratic, and Stewart has voted for Republicans, the last time being in the 1988 presidential election when he voted for George H. W. Bush over Michael Dukakis. He described Bush as having "an integrity about him that I respected greatly". He has been a vocal proponent of single-payer health care system.
In 2013, Stewart and his wife bought a farm in Middletown, New Jersey, called "Bufflehead Farm". The Stewarts operate it as a sanctuary for abused animals.
In 2015, Stewart began eating a vegetarian diet for ethical reasons; his wife is a long-time vegan.
In 2017, Stewart and his wife received approval to open a 45-acre (18 ha) animal sanctuary in Colts Neck, New Jersey, a home to animals saved from slaughterhouses and live markets.
Honors and awards
Stewart and other members of The Daily Show have received three Peabody Awards for "Indecision 2000" and "Indecision 2004", covering the 2000 presidential election and the 2004 presidential election, respectively. He received his third Peabody in 2016 for his tenure at The Daily Show.
The Daily Show received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Program in 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2015 and Outstanding Variety, Music, or Comedy Series for 10 consecutive years from 2003 to 2012. In 2013, the award for both categories instead went to The Daily Show spin-off The Colbert Report. In 2015, The Daily Show resurfaced, winning both categories for one last time for Stewart's swan song as host. Stewart won the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album in 2005 for his recording, America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction.
In the December 2003 New Year's edition of Newsweek, Stewart was named the "Who's Next?" person for 2004, with the magazine predicting that he would emerge as an absolute sensation in that year. (The magazine said they had been correct at the end of that year.) Stewart was named among the 2005 Time 100, an annual list of 100 of the most influential people of the year by Time magazine.
In 2004, Stewart spoke at the commencement ceremonies at his alma mater, William and Mary, and received an honorary Doctor of Arts degree. Stewart was the Class Day keynote speaker at Princeton University in 2004, and the 2008 Sacerdote Great Names speaker at Hamilton College. Stewart and The Daily Show received the 2005 National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) George Orwell Award for Distinguished Contribution to Honesty and Clarity in Public Language. Stewart was presented an Honorary All-America Award by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) in 2006.
On April 21, 2009, President of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf made Stewart a chief. On October 26, 2010, Stewart was named the Most Influential Man of 2010 by AskMen.
For his advocacy on behalf of 9/11 victims and families, Stewart was one of eighteen individuals and organizations awarded the Bronze Medallion on December 16, 2019. The Bronze Medallion is the highest award conferred upon civilians by New York City.
Filmography
Film
Television
Bibliography
Naked Pictures of Famous People (Rob Weisbach Books, 1998). .
America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction (Warner Books, September 2004). .
Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race (Grand Central Publishing, 2010). .
See also
New Yorkers in journalism
Political satire
References
Further reading
David Marchese, "Jon Stewart Is Back to Weigh In", The New York Times Magazine, June 15, 2020.
Lisa Rogak, Angry Optimist: The Life and Times of Jon Stewart. New York: Saint Martin's Griffin, 2014. .
Bruce Watson, Jon Stewart: Beyond the Moments of Zen. New Word City, 2014.
External links
The Daily Show profile
1962 births
20th-century American comedians
21st-century American comedians
20th-century American male actors
20th-century American non-fiction writers
21st-century American male actors
21st-century American non-fiction writers
American film producers
American male comedians
American male film actors
American male non-fiction writers
American male television actors
American media critics
American people of Belarusian-Jewish descent
American people of Polish-Jewish descent
American people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent
American political commentators
American satirists
American male screenwriters
American religious skeptics
American social commentators
American stand-up comedians
American television talk show hosts
American television writers
Association footballers not categorized by position
Comedians from New York City
Criticism of journalism
Film directors from New Jersey
Film directors from New York City
Grammy Award winners
Jewish American male comedians
Jewish American male actors
Jewish American writers
Jewish male comedians
Late night television talk show hosts
Lawrence High School (New Jersey) alumni
Living people
Male actors from New Jersey
Male actors from New York City
New Jersey Hall of Fame inductees
American male television writers
Peabody Award winners
People from Lawrence Township, Mercer County, New Jersey
Primetime Emmy Award winners
Screenwriters from New York (state)
Television producers from New York City
William & Mary Tribe men's soccer players
Writers from New Jersey
Writers from New York City
20th-century American male writers
21st-century American male writers
Television producers from New Jersey
Association football players not categorized by nationality | false | [
"Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism is a 2004 documentary film by filmmaker Robert Greenwald about Fox News Channel's and its owner's, Rupert Murdoch, promotion of right-wing views. The film says this bias belies the channel's motto of being \"Fair and Balanced\".\n\nThe documentary had a limited theatrical release, was distributed in DVD format by the political action committee MoveOn.org, and was sold online through Internet retailers such as Amazon.com. MoveOn.org had helped promote the DVD release by taking out a full-page advertisement in The New York Times.\n\nFollowing the release of Outfoxed, Greenwald and Brave New Films produced a related series of anti-Fox viral videos, collectively entitled Fox Attacks.\n\nIn an interview, Greenwald stated his goal in making the film: \"What we set out to do was to show that, in fact, the entire Fox News was not a news organization. The goal was not just to change that narrative but to change the impact that Fox News often had on legitimate journalists.\"\n\nSynopsis\nThe film examines the global growth of Murdoch's media enterprise in the context of concentration of media ownership considerations, and evaluates the effect of having one person in control of a large media conglomerate on freedom of the press.\n\nSome of Outfoxeds coverage includes:\n Review of Fox News's coverage during the lead-up to, and the aftermath of, the 2003 invasion of Iraq.\n Interviews with former Fox News journalists, discussing incidents where Fox News allegedly pressured journalists to slant their reports towards support for the Republican Party.\n Instances where Fox News commentators such as Bill O'Reilly intimidate guests with whom they disagree, such as author and activist Jeremy Glick.\n Studies which claim more airtime and coverage is consistently given to Republican politicians, particularly those in the George W. Bush administration, than to Democrats.\n Examination of whether Fox News' premature result-calling of the 2000 presidential election contributed to George W. Bush officially being elected.\n Scrutiny of Fox News management, including Murdoch and president Roger Ailes, both conservatives, in allegedly controlling the network's content, and editorial control from Murdoch on down allegedly ensuring which stories and issues are covered and the strongly conservative perspective of such coverage.\n\nFormer Fox News journalists appear in the film critiquing the methods and perceived integrity of their former employer. Jon Du Pre, a former reporter for Fox News's West Coast bureau, said that he had been suspended by Fox News management because his live shots from the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library on Ronald Reagan's birthday — which Du Pre described was like a \"holy day\" to Fox News's hierarchy — were not \"celebratory enough.\" A former Fox News military contributor, Larry C. Johnson, said that he was in high demand to give on-air analysis on the \"War on Terrorism\", until he called into question on Hannity & Colmes whether or not the United States could fight two wars (in Afghanistan and Iraq) simultaneously, an incident after which Johnson says he was ignored as a potential Fox News contributor.\n\nParticipants\n Alterman, Eric\n Brock, David\n Cheek, Douglas\n Clarke, Richard A.\n Cohen, Jeff\n Cronkite, Walter\n Du Pre, Jon\n Franken, Al\n Glick, Jeremy\n Nichols, John\n Sanders, Bernie\n Westin, Av\n\nReception\nOutfoxed received positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes the film has a score of 85% based on reviews from 60 critics.\n\nVariety reviewer David Rooney wrote that the film \"provides stimulating evidence of how thoroughly news can be skewed, political agendas served and a climate of fear created by a news net selling itself as an objective information service.\" He compares it favorably to Michael Moore's documentary Fahrenheit 9/11, adding that without the \"media spotlight\" that surrounded Moore's film, Outfoxed \"appears unlikely to reach beyond a liberal audience with an already vehement aversion to Fox News' partisan coverage.\"\n\nHoward Kurtz of The Washington Post praised Greenwald's uncovering of \"...a handful of memos from a top Fox executive\", which he argued suggested network bias over the war in Iraq and the investigation of the September 11 attacks. Kurtz was critical of how Greenwald's allegations relied on \"orders, or attitudes, of an unnamed 'they'...\", and was critical of the filmmaker for making \"...no effort at fairness or balance himself.\"\n\nFox News' and Rupert Murdoch's response\nMegan Lehmann wrote in the New York Post, a newspaper owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, that the movie was a \"narrowly focused, unapologetically partisan documentary,\" and that it \"is so one-sided, it undermines its own integrity.\"\n\nFox News called the film \"illegal copyright infringement\" for its use of clips from Fox News Channel programs.\n\nFox also said the film misrepresented the employment of four people identified as former Fox News employees. Fox News said Alexander Kippen and Frank O'Donnell had actually been employees of WTTG, the Fox owned-and-operated station in Washington, D.C., and not employees of Fox News Channel. It said that Jon Du Pre, identified as a former anchor in the film, had actually been a reporter, and that his contract had not been renewed because he was \"a weak field correspondent and could not do live shots.\" It said that Clara Frenk, identified as a former producer in the film, had actually been a \"pool booker\" who \"expressed no concern about the editorial process\" while employed there. Fox also pointed out that Frenk had been a volunteer for Bill Clinton's 1992 Presidential campaign.\n\nFox News challenged any news organization that thought this was a major story to \"put out 100 percent of their editorial directions and internal memos [and] Fox News Channel will publish 100 percent of our editorial directions and internal memos, and let the public decide who is fair.\"\n\nSee also\n Alternative media (U.S. political right)\n Fox News controversies\n List of documentaries\n Media bias in the United States\n The medium is the message\n Politico-media complex\n Propaganda model\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \n \n\n2004 films\n2004 documentary films\nAmerican documentary films\nAmerican films\nAmerican independent films\nDocumentary films about American politics\nDocumentary films about television\nDocumentary films about journalism\nDocumentary films about mass media owners\nFox News criticisms and controversies\nMass media-related controversies in the United States\nFilms directed by Robert Greenwald\nWorks about Fox News",
"Fox News was the original newsreel established by movie mogul William Fox. It was eventually replaced by Fox's pioneering sound newsreel, Fox Movietone News, which began regular operations in December 1927.\n\nWilliam Fox had great ambitions for his newsreel from the very beginning; he even managed to secure a letter from President Woodrow Wilson endorsing his newsreel. At its launch in 1919, Fox had already secured a network of cameramen spanning the globe. Although the newsreel began acquiring stories in August 1919, the newsreel did not begin a regular, twice-weekly release until October 1919. From the beginnings of its operations, Fox News main domestic rivals were Hearst News, Pathé News, International News and Kinograms.\n\nWhen Fox Films ceased production of Fox News, the extensive library of unused and outtake film was folded into the Fox Movietone News library and was used internally as stock footage by Fox Films and 20th Century Fox until the corporation ceased production of Fox Movietone News in 1963.\n\nAs part of its gift of newsreel material to the University of South Carolina announced in 1979, 20th Century Fox donated all remaining elements from the original Fox News library. Estimated at 3 million feet of film, the original, camera‐negative nitrate film from this newsreel is arguably the most significant film record of American life, politics, and culture in the 1920s.\n\nFox News developed a comprehensive library system to keep track of the negative films being sent to New York from all over the world. Library story numbers were assigned to each roll of film and these numbers are still used today by the University of South Carolina to identify the films. On each \"dope sheet\" (i.e., the notes taken by newsreel cameramen in the field) was stamped a unique library number and this number was then written onto the tail of the film negative. Fox News story numbers run in series: 0001–9999, A0001–A9999, B0001–B9999, C0001–C9999, and D0001–D4444. The last films registered into the Fox News library date from April 1930.\n\nThe original library records from Fox News for those films donated to the University of South Carolina have been converted into an online database available for research. A comprehensive listing of companies and cameramen that submitted film to Fox News is available online. This listing provides names and locations of over 700 individuals and 170 businesses or organizations.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Moving Image Research Collections, University of South Carolina\n\nNewsreels\nFox Film"
] |
[
"Jon Stewart",
"Criticism of Fox News",
"What was his criticisms of fox news?",
"based on their perceived hypocritical coverage of food stamps and U.S. Government assistance."
] | C_786034d9487f49daa667e68a1af6e708_1 | did he have any problems with them? | 2 | did Jon Stewart have any problems with Fox News? | Jon Stewart | Throughout his tenure on The Daily Show, Stewart has frequently accused Fox News of distorting the news to fit a conservative agenda, at one point ridiculing the network as "the meanest sorority in the world." In November 2009, Stewart called out Fox News for using some footage from a previous Tea Party rally during a report on a more recent rally, making the latter event appear more highly attended than it actually was. The show's anchor, Sean Hannity, apologized for the footage use the following night. A month later, Stewart criticized Fox & Friends cohost Gretchen Carlson - a former Miss America and a Stanford graduate - for claiming that she googled words such as "ignoramus" and "czar". Stewart said that Carlson was dumbing herself down for "an audience who sees intellect as an elitist flaw". Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010; as of April 24, The Daily Show had 24 segments criticizing Fox News' coverage. Bill O'Reilly, host of the talk show The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News, countered that The Daily Show was a "key component of left-wing television" and that Stewart loved Fox News because the network was "not boring". During an interview with Chris Wallace on June 19, 2011, Stewart called Wallace "insane" after Wallace said that Stewart's earlier comparison of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment. Stewart also said Fox viewers are the "most consistently misinformed" viewers of political media. This comment was ranked by fact-checking site PolitiFact as false, with conditions. Stewart later accepted his error. In 2014, Stewart engaged in an extended "call-out" of Fox News based on their perceived hypocritical coverage of food stamps and U.S. Government assistance. This culminated during the Bundy standoff involving multiple segments, across multiple episodes, specifically singling out Sean Hannity and Hannity's coverage of the event. Hannity would "return fire" by calling out Stewart for associating himself with Cat Stevens during his Rally in 2010. Stewart responded to this by calling out Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a "friend and frequent guest" on his program and supporting Nugent's violent rhetoric towards Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2007. In late August 2014, Stewart vehemently opposed the manner in which Fox News portrayed the events surrounding the shooting of teenager Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri and the subsequent protests from citizens. CANNOTANSWER | Hannity would "return fire" by calling out Stewart | Jon Stewart (born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz; November 28, 1962) is an American comedian, writer, producer, director, political commentator, actor, and television host. He hosted The Daily Show, a satirical news program on Comedy Central, from 1999 to 2015. Stewart now hosts The Problem with Jon Stewart, which premiered September 2021 on Apple TV+.
Stewart started as a stand-up comedian but branched into television as host of Short Attention Span Theater for Comedy Central. He went on to host You Wrote It, You Watch It (1992–1993) and then The Jon Stewart Show (1993–1995), both on MTV, until The Jon Stewart Show was retooled, dropped by the network and moved to syndication. Stewart has also appeared in several films, including Big Daddy (1999) and Death to Smoochy (2002), but did few cinematic projects after becoming host of The Daily Show in 1999. He also was a writer and co-executive producer of the show. After Stewart joined, The Daily Show steadily gained popularity and critical acclaim, and during his tenure, won 22 Primetime Emmy Awards, two Grammy Awards and also was nominated for news and journalism awards. Stewart hosted the 78th and 80th Academy Awards. He is the co-author of America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, which was one of the best-selling books in the US in 2004, and Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race, released in 2010.
Since leaving The Daily Show, Stewart has mostly maintained a low profile in entertainment industry circles, but has used his celebrity and voice in a sustained advocacy for 9/11 first responders, and also for war veterans' health benefits. In 2019 he received the New York City Bronze Medallion for his "tireless advocacy, inspiration, and leadership (helping to) pass the permanent authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund Act".
Early life and education
Jon Stewart was born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz on November 28, 1962, in New York City, to Marian (née Laskin), a teacher and later educational consultant, and Donald Leibowitz, an energy coordinator for the New Jersey Department of the Treasury. Stewart's family members are Jewish immigrants to America from Poland, Ukraine, and Belarus. One of his grandfathers was born in Manzhouli (now part of Inner Mongolia). He is the second of four sons, with older brother Lawrence, and younger brothers Dan and Matthew.
Stewart's parents divorced when he was eleven years old, and Stewart was largely estranged from his father. Because of his strained relationship with his father, which in 2015 he described as "still 'complicated'", he dropped his surname and began using his middle name. Stewart stated, "There was a thought of using my mother's maiden name, but I thought that would be just too big a fuck you to my dad... Did I have some problems with my father? Yes. Yet people always view [changing my surname] through the prism of ethnic identity." He had his surname changed legally to Stewart in 2001. Stewart and his brother Lawrence, who was previously the chief operating officer of NYSE Euronext (parent company of the New York Stock Exchange), grew up in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, where they attended Lawrence High School. According to Stewart, he was subjected to anti-Semitic bullying as a child. He describes himself in high school as "very into Eugene Debs and a bit of a leftist."
Stewart grew up in the era of the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal, which inspired in him "a healthy skepticism towards official reports". His first job was working with his brother at a Woolworth's store, and jokingly says being fired by Lawrence was one of the "scarring events" of his youth. He has also credited legendary television producer Norman Lear as someone who "raised me."
Stewart graduated in 1984 from The College of William & Mary where he initially majored in chemistry before switching to psychology. While at William & Mary, Stewart became a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity, but eventually began disassociating himself from them; leaving the fraternity altogether after six months. "My college career was waking up late, memorizing someone else's notes, doing bong hits, and going to soccer practice", he later said. He was a three-year starter in 1981, 1982 and 1983 with the Tribe men's soccer team. He had 10 goals and 12 assists on a squad that went 40–15–9 (.695) in his three seasons with the program. He is listed as Jon Leibowitz in official William & Mary Athletics records. The former head coach of the Tribe men's soccer team from 1971 to 2003, Al Albert, describes Jon as "athletic and feisty and quick" and added that he "wasn't the most technical or clinical player, but he could make things happen."
After college, Stewart held numerous jobs: a contingency planner for the New Jersey Department of Human Services, a contract administrator for the City University of New York, a puppeteer for children with disabilities, a soccer coach at Gloucester High School in Virginia, a caterer, a busboy, a shelf stocker at Woolworth's, a bartender at the Franklin Corner Tavern (a local blue-collar bar), and a bartender at the legendary City Gardens in Trenton, New Jersey. He has said that working at City Gardens was a pivotal moment for him: "finding this place City Gardens was like, 'Oh, maybe I'm not a giant weirdo. Maybe there are other people who have a similar sense of yearning for something other than what they have now.' I think it inspired a lot of people, man. It was a very creative environment. It was a place of great possibility."
Career
Early work
With a reputation for being a funny man in school, Jon Stewart returned to New York City in 1986 to try his hand at the comedy club circuit, but he could not muster the courage to get on stage until the following year. He made his stand-up debut at The Bitter End, where one of his comedic idols, Woody Allen, also began. He began using the stage name "Jon Stewart" by dropping his last name and changing the spelling of his middle name "Stuart" to "Stewart". He often jokes this is because people had difficulty with the pronunciation of Leibowitz or it "sounded too Hollywood" (a reference to Lenny Bruce's joke on the same theme). He has implied that the name change was due to a strained relationship with his father, with whom Stewart no longer had any contact.
Stewart became a regular at the Comedy Cellar, where he was the last performer every night. For two years, he would perform at 2 a.m. while developing his comedic style. In 1989, Stewart landed his first television job as a writer for Caroline's Comedy Hour. In 1990, he began co-hosting Comedy Central's Short Attention Span Theater, with Patty Rosborough. In 1992, Stewart hosted the short-lived You Wrote It, You Watch It on MTV, which invited viewers to send in their stories to be acted out by the comedy troupe, The State.
Stewart relates that his career did not take off until his March 6, 1992, appearance on NBC's Late Night with David Letterman. He was considered a finalist to take over Letterman's position upon his departure from the program, but instead, it was given to relatively unknown Conan O'Brien. He co-hosted MTV Spring Break '93 Blind Date from Daytona Beach with Melissa Rivers.
The Jon Stewart Show
Later in 1993, Stewart developed The Jon Stewart Show, a talk show on MTV, which was later dropped by the network and was syndicated for its last two years. The Jon Stewart Show was the first talk show on that network and was an instant hit, becoming the second-highest rated MTV show, behind Beavis and Butt-Head. In 1994, Paramount canceled The Arsenio Hall Show and, with new corporate sibling MTV (through MTV parent Viacom's acquisition of the studio), launched an hour-long syndicated late-night version of The Jon Stewart Show. Many local affiliates had moved Hall's show to 2 a.m. during its decline and Stewart's show inherited such early morning time slots in many cities. Ratings were dismal and the show was canceled in June 1995.
Among the fans of the show was David Letterman, who was the final guest of The Jon Stewart Show. Letterman signed Stewart with his production company, Worldwide Pants. Stewart then became a frequent guest host for Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show with Tom Snyder, which was produced by Letterman and aired after the Late Show on CBS. This led to much speculation that Stewart would soon replace Snyder permanently, but instead, Stewart was offered the time slot after Snyder's, which he turned down.
In 1996 Stewart hosted a short-lived talk show entitled, Where's Elvis This Week?, that was a half-hour, weekly comedy television program. It aired on Sunday nights in the United Kingdom on BBC Two. It was filmed at the CBS Broadcast Center in New York City and featured a set of panelists, two from the UK and two from the United States, who discussed news items and cultural issues. The show premiered in the UK on October 6, 1996; five episodes aired in total. Notable panelists included Dave Chappelle, Eddie Izzard, Phill Jupitus, Nora Ephron, Craig Kilborn, Christopher Hitchens, Armando Iannucci, Norm Macdonald, and Helen Gurley Brown. In 1997, Stewart was chosen as the host and interviewer for George Carlin's tenth HBO special, 40 Years of Comedy.
The Daily Show
In 1998, when Craig Kilborn left the show to replace Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show, Stewart began hosting The Daily Show on Comedy Central. The Daily Show blends humor with the day's top news stories, usually in politics, while simultaneously poking fun at politicians, newsmakers, and the news media. In an interview on The O'Reilly Factor, Stewart denied the show has any intentional political agenda, saying the goal was "schnicks and giggles" and that "[t]he same weakness that drove me into comedy also informs my show", meaning that he was uncomfortable talking without hearing the audience laugh. In his first Daily Show on-air appearance on January 11, 1999, Stewart told his guest that evening, Michael J. Fox, that he felt as if "this is my bar mitzvah". His style was described by one critic as, "Stewart does not offer us cynicism for its own sake, but as a playful way to offer the kinds of insights that are not permitted in more serious news formats that slavishly cling to official account of events."
Until Trevor Noah permanently took over the show in 2015, Stewart hosted almost all airings of the program, except for a few occasions when correspondents such as Stephen Colbert, Rob Corddry, Jason Jones, and Steve Carell subbed for him, and during John Oliver's stint as host during the summer of 2013. Stewart won twenty Primetime Emmy Awards for The Daily Show as either a writer or producer, and two for producing The Colbert Report (2013–14), earning a total of twenty-two Primetime Emmy Awards, the most wins for a male individual. In 2005, Stewart and The Daily Show received the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album for the audiobook edition of America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction. In 2000 and 2004, the show won two Peabody Awards for its coverage of the U.S. presidential elections in those years, called "Indecision 2000" and "Indecision 2004", respectively.
The show of September 20, 2001, the first show after the attacks of September 11th, 2001, began with no introduction. Before this, the introduction included footage of a fly-in toward the World Trade Center and New York City. The first nine minutes of the show included a tearful Stewart discussing his personal view on the event. His remarks ended as follows:
In mid-2002, amid rumors that David Letterman was going to switch from CBS to ABC when his contract ran out, Stewart was rumored as Letterman's replacement on CBS. Ultimately, Letterman renewed his contract with CBS. On the March 9, 2002, episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by Stewart, a Weekend Update sketch poked fun at the situation.
In late 2002, ABC offered Stewart his own talk show to air right after Nightline. Stewart's contract with The Daily Show was near expiring, and he expressed strong interest. ABC, however, decided to give another Comedy Central figure, Jimmy Kimmel, the post-Nightline slot.
On April 4, 2006, Stewart confronted U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) on The Daily Show about his decision to appear at Liberty University, an institution founded by Jerry Falwell whom McCain previously had denounced as one of the "agents of intolerance". In the interchange, Stewart asked McCain, "You're not freaking out on us? Are you freaking out on us, because if you're freaking out ... and you're going into the crazy base world—are you going into crazy base world?" McCain replied, "Just– just– just a little" and "I'm afraid so." The clip was played on CNN, was noted and discussed in more detail in the blogosphere and was followed up on in the mainstream media.
In 2007, The Daily Show was involved in former correspondent Stephen Colbert's announcement that he would run for president in 2008. In 2008, Stewart appeared on the news program Democracy Now!. A 2008 New York Times story questioned whether he was, in a phrase originally used to describe longtime network news anchor Walter Cronkite, "the most trusted man in America".
On April 28, 2009, during a discussion on torture with Clifford May, Stewart expressed his opinion that former President Harry S. Truman was a war criminal for his use of the atomic bomb on Japan during World War II. He defended his assertion moments later:
"Here's what I think of the atom bombs. I think if you dropped an atom bomb fifteen miles offshore and you said, 'The next one's coming and hitting you', then I would think it's okay. To drop it on a city, and kill a hundred thousand people? Yeah. I think that's criminal." On April 30, Stewart apologized on his program, and stated he did not believe Truman was a war criminal: "I shouldn't have said that, and I did. So I say right now, no, I don't believe that to be the case. The atomic bomb, a very complicated decision in the context of a horrific war, and I walk that back because it was in my estimation a stupid thing to say."
In April 2010, Comedy Central renewed Stewart's contract to host The Daily Show into 2013. According to a Forbes list of celebrities in 2008, he was earning $14 million a year.
On September 16, 2010, Stewart and Stephen Colbert announced a rally for October 30, known as the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear. It took place on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. and attracted an estimated 215,000 participants. In December 2010, Stewart was credited by the White House, other media, and political news outlets for bringing awareness of the Republican filibuster on the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act to the public, leading to the ultimate passing of the bill that provides health benefits to first responders whose health has been adversely affected by their work at Ground Zero.
On the show of January 10, 2011, Stewart began with a monologue about the shootings in Tucson, Arizona. He said he wished the "ramblings of crazy people didn't in any way resemble how we actually talk to each other on television". Before a commercial break, Stewart told viewers that the show would continue as usual the next night. After the commercial break, the show featured a rerun of a field piece done by Jason Jones two years earlier.
The New York Times opined that Stewart is "the modern-day equivalent of Edward R. Murrow" and the UK national newspaper The Independent called him the "satirist-in-chief". In an interview, Senator John McCain described Stewart as "a modern-day Will Rogers and Mark Twain".
Writer Wyatt Cenac said that Stewart cursed him out after Cenac acknowledged he was uncomfortable about a June 2011 Daily Show bit about Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain (reported in July 2015).
In March 2013, it was announced that Stewart would be taking a 12-week hiatus from The Daily Show to direct the film Rosewater, which is based on the book Then They Came for Me by Maziar Bahari. Beginning June 10, 2013, The Daily Show correspondent John Oliver assumed primary hosting duties during Stewart's break. The TV Guide annual survey for 2013 star salaries showed that Stewart was the highest-paid late night host, making an estimated $25–30 million per year.
On July 14, 2014, Stewart interviewed Hillary Clinton about the Middle East. Clinton's condemnations of Hamas led Stewart to ask her: "But don't you think they would look at that though as, they've given a lot of different things a chance and these are the only guys to them that are giving any resistance to what their condition is?" For Gazans living in that situation, he said Hamas could be viewed as "freedom fighters".
Leaving The Daily Show
During a taping of the show on February 10, 2015, Stewart announced he was leaving The Daily Show. Comedy Central president Michele Ganeless confirmed Stewart's retirement with a statement. Later, it was announced that South African comedian Trevor Noah would succeed Stewart as the host of the show. On April 20, 2015, Stewart indicated that his final show would be on August 6, 2015.
On July 28, 2015, Darren Samuelsohn of Politico reported that twice, Stewart had been at the White House for previously unreported meetings with President Obama: once in October 2011 and once in February 2014. Michael D. Shear of The New York Times also picked up on the story. Stewart responded on his show by pointing out that the meetings were listed in the president's publicly available visitor log and that he has been asked to meet privately by many prominent individuals, including Roger Ailes of Fox News. He said Obama encouraged him not to make young Americans cynical about their government and Stewart said that his reply was that he was "skeptically idealistic".
On June 19, 2015, in the wake of the Charleston Church Shooting, Stewart decided not to write jokes for the opening monologue. Elaborating on his decision, Stewart stated, "I honestly have nothing other than just sadness". Stewart spoke about the racial disparity and injustices in America, saying "The Confederate flag flies over South Carolina ... and the roads are named for Confederate generals" describing it as "racial wallpaper". Instead he designated a large portion of the show to his guest that night Malala Yousafzai, calling her "an incredible inspiration," and that "to be quite honest with you, I don't think there's anyone else in the world I would rather talk to tonight than Malala: So that's what we're going to do. And sorry about no jokes."
On August 5, 2015, Stewart's friend of 30 years, comedian Louis C.K., was selected to be the last guest before the final Daily Show episode with Stewart helming the show. C.K. joked that he was there "representing comedy to say good job".
The hour-long-plus final Daily Show on August 6 featured reunions with former correspondents Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, John Oliver, Samantha Bee, Hasan Minhaj, Ed Helms, Kristen Schaal, Larry Wilmore, Jessica Williams, Aasif Mandvi, Lewis Black, John Hodgman, Rob Corddry, Olivia Munn, Josh Gad, Michael Che, and Mo Rocca and cameo video clips from people Stewart had targeted over the years, including Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Lindsey Graham, Chris Christie, John Kerry, Chuck Schumer, Bill O'Reilly, Wolf Blitzer, Joe Scarborough, and Mika Brzezinski. During the final episode, there was a pre-taped behind-the-scenes look at the show spoofing the long-take Copacabana scene from Goodfellas, featuring a brief appearance by Martin Scorsese. It concluded with a performance by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.
Post-Daily Show
In November 2015, it was announced that Stewart signed a four-year deal with HBO that would include exclusive digital content for HBO NOW, HBO Go, and other platforms. HBO programming president Casey Bloys has said that "the idea is it will be an animated parody of a cable news network with an Onion-like portal." The team began working with the cloud graphics company, OTOY, to build a system for creating content. Confirmed to be working on the project included Mike Brown, Steve Waltien, Chelsea Devantez, Lucy Steiner, Kate James, and Robby Slowik. The team tested material in Red Bank, New Jersey at The Count Basie Theatre Performing Arts Academy.
The show's premiere was moved several times, from fall 2016, to the first quarter of 2017, and then cancelled on May 23, 2017. The cancelation statement read:
After his contract with HBO ended, Stewart signed a multi-year show deal with Apple. On September 30, 2021, Stewart's new series, The Problem with Jon Stewart, premiered on AppleTV. The series features hour-long, single-subject episodes. In addition to hosting the show, Stewart serves as executive producer through his company, Busboy Productions.
Writing
In 1998, Stewart released his first book, Naked Pictures of Famous People, a collection of humorous short stories and essays. The book reached The New York Times Best Seller List.
In 2004, Stewart and The Daily Show writing staff released, America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, a mock high-school history textbook offering insights into the unique American system of government, dissecting its institutions, explaining its history and processes, and satirizing such popular American political precepts as, "one man, one vote", "government by the people", and "every vote counts". The book sold millions of copies upon its 2004 release and ended the year as a top-fifteen best seller.
In 2005, Stewart provided the voice of President James A. Garfield for the audiobook version of Sarah Vowell's Assassination Vacation. In 2007, Stewart voiced Mort Sinclaire, former TV comedy writer and communist, on Stephen Colbert's audiobook version of I Am America (And So Can You!).
In 2010, Stewart and The Daily Show writing staff released a sequel to their first book entitled, Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race. The book is meant to serve as a Baedeker travel guide for an alien civilization that discovers Earth after humanity has died out, most likely by its own hands.
In March 2012, Stewart interviewed Bruce Springsteen for Rolling Stone.
Acting
Stewart's first film role was a bit part in the box-office bomb, Mixed Nuts. He landed a minor part in The First Wives Club, but his scene was deleted. In 1995, Stewart signed a three-year deal with Miramax. Stewart played romantic leads in the films, Playing by Heart and Wishful Thinking. He had a supporting role in the romantic comedy, Since You've Been Gone and in the horror film, The Faculty. Other films were planned for Stewart to write and star in, but they never were produced. Stewart maintained a relationship with Miramax founders Harvey and Bob Weinstein and appeared in films they produced including, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Doogal, and the documentary, Wordplay.
He appeared in Half Baked as an "enhancement smoker" and in Big Daddy as Adam Sandler's roommate; he has joked on the Daily Show and in the documentary The Aristocrats that to get the role, he slept with Sandler. Stewart often makes fun of his appearances in the high-profile flop, Death to Smoochy, in which he played a treacherous television executive; and the animated film Doogal, where he played a blue spring named Zeebad who shot a freeze ray from his mustache. In 2007, Stewart made a cameo appearance as himself in Evan Almighty, which starred former Daily Show correspondent Steve Carell. In the movie, Stewart was seen on a television screen in a fictional Daily Show episode poking fun at Carell's character for building an ark.
Stewart had a recurring role in The Larry Sanders Show, playing himself as an occasional substitute and possible successor to late-night talk show host Larry Sanders (played by Garry Shandling). In 1998, Stewart hosted the television special, Elmopalooza, celebrating 30 years of Sesame Street. He has guest-starred on other sitcoms including The Nanny, Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist, Spin City, NewsRadio, American Dad!, and The Simpsons. He also has made guest appearances on the children's television series Between the Lions, Sesame Street, Jack's Big Music Show, and Gravity Falls.
Producing
In the mid-1990s, Stewart launched his own production company, Busboy Productions, naming the company in reference to his previous job as a busboy. Stewart signed a deal with Miramax to develop projects through his company, but none of his ideas have been produced. After Stewart's success as host and producer of The Daily Show, he revived Busboy Productions with Daily Show producers Ben Karlin and Rich Korson. In 2002, Busboy planned to produce a sitcom for NBC starring Stephen Colbert, but the show did not come to fruition.
In 2005, Comedy Central reached an agreement with Busboy in which Comedy Central would provide financial backing for the production company. Comedy Central has a first-look agreement on all projects, after which Busboy is free to shop them to other networks.
The deal spawned the Daily Show spin-off The Colbert Report and its replacement, The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore. Other projects include the sitcom pilot Three Strikes, the documentary Sportsfan, the series Important Things with Demetri Martin, and the film The Donor.
After Stewart's departure from The Daily Show, he was listed as an executive producer on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. In addition, Stewart has presented occasional comedic monologues filled with political and media commentary.
In July 2017, HBO announced Stewart would produce a stand-up comedy special for the network, his first stand-up special since 1996.
Directing
In March 2010, Stewart announced that he had optioned rights to the story of journalist Maziar Bahari, who was imprisoned in Iran for 118 days. On June 6, 2011, episode of The Daily Show, Stewart again hosted Bahari, and in March 2013, he announced that he was leaving the show for 12 weeks to direct the film version of Bahari's 2011 book, Then They Came For Me. Stewart's screenplay adaptation is entitled, Rosewater. It premiered at the September 2014 Toronto International Film Festival, receiving "generally favorable" reviews, and was released to general audiences on November 14, 2014.
On directing, Stewart noted on Employee of the Month that The Daily Show influenced his directing process more than his acting gigs did. He said, "It's about the collaboration. It's about understanding. Doing a show taught me this process of clarity of vision, but the flexibility of process. So know your intention, know where you're wanting to go with the scene with the way that you want it to go, the momentum shifts, the emphasis, where you want it to be." He also expressed interest in directing more films.
Stewart directed the political satire Irresistible, released in June 2020, which follows a demoralized Democratic strategist (played by Daily Show alumnus Steve Carell), who helps a retired veteran (Chris Cooper) run for mayor in a small, blue collar town in Wisconsin.
Hosting and public speaking
Stewart has hosted the Grammy Awards twice, in 2001 and in 2002, and the 78th Academy Awards, which were held March 5, 2006, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood. Critical response to Stewart's performance was mixed. Roger Ebert compared him favorably to legendary Oscar host Johnny Carson. Other reviewers were less positive; Tom Shales of The Washington Post said that Stewart hosted with "smug humorlessness". James Poniewozik of TIME said that Stewart was a bad host, but a great "anti-host" in that he poked fun at parts of the broadcast that deserved it, which lent him a degree of authenticity with the non-Hollywood audience. Stewart and correspondent John Oliver later poked fun at his lackluster reception on The Daily Show coverage of the 79th Academy Awards by saying that the "demon of last year's Oscars had finally been exorcised".
Stewart returned to host the 80th Academy Awards on February 24, 2008. The reception to his performance was better received. Matthew Gilbert of the Boston Globe felt the ceremony was average, but praised Stewart, writing that, "It was good to see Jon Stewart being Jon Stewart. He is shaping up to be a dependable Oscar host for the post-Billy Crystal years. He's not musical, but he's versatile enough to swing smoothly between jokes about politics, Hollywood, new media, and, most importantly, hair." Variety columnist Brian Lowry lauded Stewart's performance noting that he "earned his keep by maintaining a playful, irreverent tone throughout the night, whether it was jesting about Cate Blanchett's versatility or watching Lawrence of Arabia on an iPhone screen.
In December 2009, Stewart gave a speech at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts honoring Bruce Springsteen, one of that year's Kennedy Center Honors recipients, and of whom Stewart is a fan. Stewart gave another speech paying tribute to Springsteen in February 2013 as part of the singer's MusiCares Person of the Year award ceremony.
Stewart began a comedic feud with WWE wrestler Seth Rollins in March 2015, and appeared on WWE Raw during a Daily Show-styled segment hosted by Rollins. On August 23, 2015, Stewart returned to host the WWE's SummerSlam at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Later, he got involved in the main event between Rollins and John Cena, helping Rollins retain his WWE World Heavyweight Championship, as well as winning Cena's United States Championship when he interfered and hit Cena with a steel chair. The next night on Raw, he explained his actions, saying he did it for Ric Flair (who was also present), which was to retain his world championship record. Cena then gave Stewart his finishing move, the Attitude Adjustment, to end the segment. Stewart returned at SummerSlam on August 21, 2016, as a special guest.
In 2016, Stewart joined President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Jill Biden, and David Letterman in honoring military families on May 5 at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. The special celebration which marked both the USO's 75th anniversary and the fifth anniversary of Joining Forces.
Stewart got into a Twitter war with then-presidential candidate Donald Trump, who in multiple tweets stated that Stewart's changing his name indicated that he was a fraud. Stewart and some analysts considered this to be anti-Semitic. Trump then tweeted that Stewart should be "proud of his heritage", and Stewart tweeted back, facetiously, that Trump's real name was "Fuckface Von Clownstick" and that Trump should be proud of the "Clownstick heritage".
In June 2017, Stewart spoke at the funeral service for Ray Pfeifer, an FDNY firefighter from Hicksville, New York, who died after an eight-year battle with cancer as a result of service as a first responder at the September 11 attacks.
Criticism of television journalists
Stewart is known as an outspoken, humorous critic of personality-driven media shows, in particular, those of the U.S. media broadcast networks such as CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC. Critics say Stewart benefits from a double standard: he critiques other news shows from the safe, removed position of his "news satire" desk; Stewart asserts that neither his show nor Comedy Central purport to be anything other than satire and comedy.
Crossfire appearance
In a televised exchange with then-CNN correspondent Tucker Carlson on Crossfire on October 15, 2004, Stewart criticized the state of television journalism and pleaded with the show's hosts to "stop hurting America", and he referred to both Carlson and co-host Paul Begala as "partisan hacks". When posted on the internet, this exchange became widely viewed and was a topic of much media discussion.
Despite being on the program to comment on current events, Stewart immediately shifted the discussion toward the show itself, asserting that Crossfire had failed in its responsibility to inform and educate viewers about politics as a serious topic. Stewart stated that the show engaged in partisan hackery instead of honest debate, and said that the hosts' assertion that Crossfire is a debate show is like "saying pro wrestling is a show about athletic competition". Carlson responded by saying that Stewart criticizes news organizations for not holding public officials accountable, but when he interviewed John Kerry, Stewart asked a series of "softball" questions (Stewart has acknowledged he voted for Kerry in the 2004 presidential election). Stewart responded that he didn't realize "the news organizations look to Comedy Central for their cues on integrity". When Carlson continued to press Stewart on the Kerry issue, Stewart said, "You're on CNN! The show that leads into me is puppets making crank phone calls! What is wrong with you?" In response to prods from Carlson, "Come on. Be funny." Stewart said, "No, I'm not going to be your monkey." Later in the show when Carlson jibed, "I do think you're more fun on your show", Stewart retorted, "You're as big a dick on your show as you are on any show." In response to Stewart's criticisms, Carlson said, "You need to get a job at a journalism school", to which Stewart responded, "You need to go to one!"
Stewart discussed the incident on The Daily Show the following Monday:
In January 2005, CNN announced that it was canceling Crossfire. When asked about the cancellation, CNN's incoming president, Jonathan Klein, referred to Stewart's appearance on the show: "I think he made a good point about the noise level of these types of shows, which does nothing to illuminate the issues of the day."
On March 18, 2009, Carlson wrote a blog entry for The Daily Beast criticizing Stewart for his handling of the CNBC controversy (see below). Carlson discussed the CNN incident and claimed that Stewart remained backstage for at least "an hour" and "continued to lecture our staff", something Carlson described as, "one of the weirdest things I have ever seen".
Criticism of CNBC
Stewart again became a viral internet phenomenon following a March 4, 2009, The Daily Show sequence. CNBC canceled Rick Santelli's scheduled appearance on The Daily Show that day, so the show ran a short segment showing CNBC giving poor investment advice.
Subsequent media coverage of exchanges between Stewart and Jim Cramer, who had been featured heavily in the original segment, led to a highly anticipated face-to-face confrontation on The Daily Show. The episode received much media attention and became the second most-viewed episode of The Daily Show, trailing only the 2009 Inauguration Day episode. It had 2.3 million total viewers, and the next day, the show's website saw its highest day of traffic in 2009. Although Cramer acknowledged on the show that some of Stewart's criticisms of CNBC were valid and that the network could "do better", he later said on The Today Show that Stewart's criticism of the media was "naïve and misleading."
Criticism of Fox News
Throughout his tenure on The Daily Show, Stewart frequently accused Fox News of distorting the news to fit a conservative agenda, at one point ridiculing the network as "the meanest sorority in the world". In November 2009, Stewart "called out" Fox News for using some footage from a previous Tea Party rally during a report on a more recent rally, making the latter event appear more highly attended than it was. The show's anchor, Sean Hannity, apologized for the footage use the following night. A month later, Stewart criticized Fox & Friends cohost Gretchen Carlson – a former Miss America and a Stanford graduate – for claiming that she googled words such as "ignoramus" and "czar". Stewart said that Carlson was dumbing herself down for "an audience who sees intellect as an elitist flaw".
Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010; within five months, The Daily Show had 24 segments criticizing the Fox News coverage. Bill O'Reilly, host of the talk show The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News, countered that The Daily Show was a "key component of left-wing television" and that Stewart loved Fox News because the network was "not boring".
During an interview with Chris Wallace on June 19, 2011, Stewart called Wallace "insane" for saying that Stewart's earlier comparison of the marketing techniques of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment. Stewart also said Fox viewers are the "most consistently misinformed" viewers of political media. This comment was ranked by the fact-checking site, PolitiFact, as false, with conditions. Stewart later accepted his error.
In 2014, Stewart engaged in an extended "call-out" of Fox News, based on their coverage of food stamps and U.S. government assistance, opining that said coverage was biased. This culminated in segments across multiple episodes, specifically singling out Sean Hannity and his show's coverage of the Bundy standoff. Hannity would "return fire" by calling out Stewart for associating himself with Cat Stevens during his Rally in 2010. Stewart responded to this by criticizing Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a "friend and frequent guest" on his program and supporting Nugent's violent rhetoric toward Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2007. In late August 2014, Stewart criticized the manner in which Fox News portrayed the events surrounding the shooting of teenager Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri, and the subsequent protests from citizens.
Advocacy of the 9/11 First Responders Bill
Over the years, Stewart sometimes used The Daily Show to argue for causes such as the treatment of veterans and 9/11 first responders. He is credited with breaking a Senate deadlock over a bill to provide health care and benefits for 9/11 emergency workers; the bill passed three days after he featured a group of 9/11 responders on the show. In March 2009, he criticized a White House proposal to remove veterans from Veterans Administration rolls if they had private health insurance; the White House dropped the plan the next day. In 2010, Stewart held an interview with a panel of four of the 9/11 first responders Kenny Specht with the FDNY, Chris Bowman NYPD, Ken George DOT, and Kevin Devlin, Operating Engineer of Heavy Equipment, who discussed their health problems with Stewart. In 2015 four months after leaving The Daily Show he returned to reunite the four, with Specht as the only panelist healthy enough to attend. Devlin had died and the two other panelists, Bowman and George, were too ill to make it to the show.
In February and June 2019, Stewart again went to Congress to oppose the $7.375 billion limit in pay-outs to 9/11 responders through December 2020 and to lobby for permanent funding for the Victims Compensation Fund past December 2020, delivering a tearful testimony.
Stewart continued to be a vocal advocate, appearing on late night shows such as The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, and news programs such as Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace, and The Fox Report with Shepherd Smith. On July 12, 2019, the House approved the bill overwhelmingly 402–12. The bill came to the Senate floor where it passed the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund through 2092, virtually funding health care for 9/11 victims and first responders for life. The vote was 97–2 with Republican Senators Rand Paul (KY) and Mike Lee (UT) opposing. When hearing that the bill had been passed, Stewart responded by saying, "It has been the honor of my life working with the 9/11 first responders...these families deserve better...and I will follow you wherever your next adventure shall be".
Writers Guild of America strike of 2007–2008
Stewart was an important factor in the unionization of the Comedy Central writers. The Daily Show writers were the first of Comedy Central's writers to be able to join the guild, after which other shows followed.
Stewart supported the 2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike. On The Daily Show episode just before the strike, he sarcastically commented about how Comedy Central had made available all episodes for free on their website, but without advertising, and said, "go support our advertisers". The show went on hiatus when the strike began, as did other late-night talk shows. Upon Stewart's return to the show on January 7, 2008, he refused to use the title, The Daily Show, stating that The Daily Show was the show made with all of the people responsible for the broadcast, including his writers. During the strike, he referred to his show as A Daily Show with Jon Stewart until the strike ended on February 13, 2008.
Stewart's choice to return to the air did bring criticism that he was undermining the writers of his show. Seth MacFarlane wrote an inside joke into an episode of Family Guy about this, causing Stewart to respond with an hour-long call in which he questioned how MacFarlane could consider himself the "moral arbiter" of Hollywood. Other former writers of The Daily Show such as David Feldman also have indicated that Stewart was anti-union at the time and punished his writers for their decision to unionize.
The Writers Guild Strike of 2007–08 also was responsible for a notable mock feud between Stewart, Stephen Colbert, and Conan O'Brien in early 2008. Without writers to help fuel their banter, the three comedians concocted a crossover/rivalry to garner more viewers during the ratings slump. Colbert claimed that because of "the Colbert bump", he was responsible for Mike Huckabee's success in the 2008 presidential race. O'Brien claimed that he was responsible for Huckabee's success because not only had he mentioned Huckabee on his show, but also that he was responsible for Chuck Norris's success (Norris backed Huckabee). In response, Stewart claimed that he was responsible for the success of O'Brien since Stewart had featured him on The Jon Stewart Show, and in turn, the success of Huckabee. This resulted in a three-part comedic battle between the three pundits, with all three appearing on each other's shows. The feud ended on Late Night with Conan O'Brien with a mock brawl involving the three hosts.
Influences
Stewart has said his influences include George Carlin, Lenny Bruce, Woody Allen, David Letterman, Steve Martin, and Richard Pryor.
Among comedians who say they were influenced by Stewart are Stephen Colbert, John Oliver, Hasan Minhaj, Samantha Bee, Larry Wilmore, Bassem Youssef, Trevor Noah, and Jordan Klepper.
Personal life
Stewart is irreligious, but of Jewish heritage.
While making the 1997 film, Wishful Thinking, a production assistant on the film arranged for a blind date between Stewart and Tracey Lynn McShane. They dated for four years. Stewart proposed to her through a personalized crossword puzzle created with the help of Will Shortz, the crossword editor at The New York Times. They married in 2000. On June 19, 2001, Stewart and his wife filed a joint name change application and legally changed both of their surnames to "Stewart". With the help of in vitro fertilization, the couple has two children.
In 2000, when he was labelled a Democrat, Stewart generally agreed, but described his political affiliation as "more socialist or independent" than Democratic, and Stewart has voted for Republicans, the last time being in the 1988 presidential election when he voted for George H. W. Bush over Michael Dukakis. He described Bush as having "an integrity about him that I respected greatly". He has been a vocal proponent of single-payer health care system.
In 2013, Stewart and his wife bought a farm in Middletown, New Jersey, called "Bufflehead Farm". The Stewarts operate it as a sanctuary for abused animals.
In 2015, Stewart began eating a vegetarian diet for ethical reasons; his wife is a long-time vegan.
In 2017, Stewart and his wife received approval to open a 45-acre (18 ha) animal sanctuary in Colts Neck, New Jersey, a home to animals saved from slaughterhouses and live markets.
Honors and awards
Stewart and other members of The Daily Show have received three Peabody Awards for "Indecision 2000" and "Indecision 2004", covering the 2000 presidential election and the 2004 presidential election, respectively. He received his third Peabody in 2016 for his tenure at The Daily Show.
The Daily Show received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Program in 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2015 and Outstanding Variety, Music, or Comedy Series for 10 consecutive years from 2003 to 2012. In 2013, the award for both categories instead went to The Daily Show spin-off The Colbert Report. In 2015, The Daily Show resurfaced, winning both categories for one last time for Stewart's swan song as host. Stewart won the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album in 2005 for his recording, America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction.
In the December 2003 New Year's edition of Newsweek, Stewart was named the "Who's Next?" person for 2004, with the magazine predicting that he would emerge as an absolute sensation in that year. (The magazine said they had been correct at the end of that year.) Stewart was named among the 2005 Time 100, an annual list of 100 of the most influential people of the year by Time magazine.
In 2004, Stewart spoke at the commencement ceremonies at his alma mater, William and Mary, and received an honorary Doctor of Arts degree. Stewart was the Class Day keynote speaker at Princeton University in 2004, and the 2008 Sacerdote Great Names speaker at Hamilton College. Stewart and The Daily Show received the 2005 National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) George Orwell Award for Distinguished Contribution to Honesty and Clarity in Public Language. Stewart was presented an Honorary All-America Award by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) in 2006.
On April 21, 2009, President of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf made Stewart a chief. On October 26, 2010, Stewart was named the Most Influential Man of 2010 by AskMen.
For his advocacy on behalf of 9/11 victims and families, Stewart was one of eighteen individuals and organizations awarded the Bronze Medallion on December 16, 2019. The Bronze Medallion is the highest award conferred upon civilians by New York City.
Filmography
Film
Television
Bibliography
Naked Pictures of Famous People (Rob Weisbach Books, 1998). .
America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction (Warner Books, September 2004). .
Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race (Grand Central Publishing, 2010). .
See also
New Yorkers in journalism
Political satire
References
Further reading
David Marchese, "Jon Stewart Is Back to Weigh In", The New York Times Magazine, June 15, 2020.
Lisa Rogak, Angry Optimist: The Life and Times of Jon Stewart. New York: Saint Martin's Griffin, 2014. .
Bruce Watson, Jon Stewart: Beyond the Moments of Zen. New Word City, 2014.
External links
The Daily Show profile
1962 births
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Grammy Award winners
Jewish American male comedians
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Living people
Male actors from New Jersey
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William & Mary Tribe men's soccer players
Writers from New Jersey
Writers from New York City
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Association football players not categorized by nationality | true | [
"Hilbert's twenty-fourth problem is a mathematical problem that was not published as part of the list of 23 problems known as Hilbert's problems but was included in David Hilbert's original notes. The problem asks for a criterion of simplicity in mathematical proofs and the development of a proof theory with the power to prove that a given proof is the simplest possible.\n\nThe 24th problem was rediscovered by German historian Rüdiger Thiele in 2000, noting that Hilbert did not include the 24th problem in the lecture presenting Hilbert's problems or any published texts. Hilbert's friends and fellow mathematicians Adolf Hurwitz and Hermann Minkowski were closely involved in the project but did not have any knowledge of this problem.\n\nThis is the full text from Hilbert's notes given in Rüdiger Thiele's paper. The section was translated by Rüdiger Thiele.\n\nIn 2002, Thiele and Larry Wos published an article on Hilbert's twenty-four problem with a discussion about its relation to various issues in automated reasoning, logic, and mathematics.\n\nReferences\n\n24",
"\"The One Where Ross Is Fine\" is the second episode of Friends tenth season. It first aired on the NBC network in the United States on October 2, 2003.\n\nPlot\nRachel and Joey think Ross might have problems with their new relationship but he assures them he is fine. Ross invites Rachel and Joey on a double-date with him and Charlie. They agree but Ross gets drunk at the awkward date. Joey stays with Ross overnight to make sure he is okay and they talk. Ross realizes that he has been apart from Rachel for so long that he should not stop Joey and Rachel's relationship. He does give Joey his blessing even though it still hurts him because they should see where the relationship is going.\n\nMonica and Chandler are having trouble figuring out the adoption process, so Phoebe sends them to a couple who have adopted. Monica and Chandler meet them and Monica instantly gets along with the woman (Kellie Waymire), however later Chandler casually mentions to their son (Daryl Sabara) that he was adopted only to find out that he did not know about it. Chandler also reveals that Santa is not real. The couple then kick out Monica and Chandler after finding out about both this, and Chandler trying to bribe him.\n\nPhoebe hangs out with her brother Frank (Giovanni Ribisi) and his triplets. The kids are driving Frank crazy and he offers Phoebe one of them. He comes to the realization that he could not possibly give up any of the children so Phoebe offers to babysit so Frank and Alice will have more time to relax. The episode ends with Chandler accidentally revealing to the triplets that Phoebe gave birth to them; embarrassed, he leaves to tell Emma she was an accident.\n\nReception\nIn the original broadcast, the episode was viewed by 22.38 million viewers. Sam Ashurst from Digital Spy ranked the episode #5 on their ranking of the 236 Friends episodes. Telegraph & Argus ranked the episode #17 on their ranking of all 236 Friends episodes.\n\nReferences\n\n2003 American television episodes\nFriends (season 10) episodes"
] |
[
"Jon Stewart",
"Criticism of Fox News",
"What was his criticisms of fox news?",
"based on their perceived hypocritical coverage of food stamps and U.S. Government assistance.",
"did he have any problems with them?",
"Hannity would \"return fire\" by calling out Stewart"
] | C_786034d9487f49daa667e68a1af6e708_1 | what happened after that? | 3 | what happened after Hannity calling out Jon Stewart? | Jon Stewart | Throughout his tenure on The Daily Show, Stewart has frequently accused Fox News of distorting the news to fit a conservative agenda, at one point ridiculing the network as "the meanest sorority in the world." In November 2009, Stewart called out Fox News for using some footage from a previous Tea Party rally during a report on a more recent rally, making the latter event appear more highly attended than it actually was. The show's anchor, Sean Hannity, apologized for the footage use the following night. A month later, Stewart criticized Fox & Friends cohost Gretchen Carlson - a former Miss America and a Stanford graduate - for claiming that she googled words such as "ignoramus" and "czar". Stewart said that Carlson was dumbing herself down for "an audience who sees intellect as an elitist flaw". Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010; as of April 24, The Daily Show had 24 segments criticizing Fox News' coverage. Bill O'Reilly, host of the talk show The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News, countered that The Daily Show was a "key component of left-wing television" and that Stewart loved Fox News because the network was "not boring". During an interview with Chris Wallace on June 19, 2011, Stewart called Wallace "insane" after Wallace said that Stewart's earlier comparison of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment. Stewart also said Fox viewers are the "most consistently misinformed" viewers of political media. This comment was ranked by fact-checking site PolitiFact as false, with conditions. Stewart later accepted his error. In 2014, Stewart engaged in an extended "call-out" of Fox News based on their perceived hypocritical coverage of food stamps and U.S. Government assistance. This culminated during the Bundy standoff involving multiple segments, across multiple episodes, specifically singling out Sean Hannity and Hannity's coverage of the event. Hannity would "return fire" by calling out Stewart for associating himself with Cat Stevens during his Rally in 2010. Stewart responded to this by calling out Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a "friend and frequent guest" on his program and supporting Nugent's violent rhetoric towards Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2007. In late August 2014, Stewart vehemently opposed the manner in which Fox News portrayed the events surrounding the shooting of teenager Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri and the subsequent protests from citizens. CANNOTANSWER | 2010. Stewart responded to this by calling out Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a "friend and frequent guest" | Jon Stewart (born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz; November 28, 1962) is an American comedian, writer, producer, director, political commentator, actor, and television host. He hosted The Daily Show, a satirical news program on Comedy Central, from 1999 to 2015. Stewart now hosts The Problem with Jon Stewart, which premiered September 2021 on Apple TV+.
Stewart started as a stand-up comedian but branched into television as host of Short Attention Span Theater for Comedy Central. He went on to host You Wrote It, You Watch It (1992–1993) and then The Jon Stewart Show (1993–1995), both on MTV, until The Jon Stewart Show was retooled, dropped by the network and moved to syndication. Stewart has also appeared in several films, including Big Daddy (1999) and Death to Smoochy (2002), but did few cinematic projects after becoming host of The Daily Show in 1999. He also was a writer and co-executive producer of the show. After Stewart joined, The Daily Show steadily gained popularity and critical acclaim, and during his tenure, won 22 Primetime Emmy Awards, two Grammy Awards and also was nominated for news and journalism awards. Stewart hosted the 78th and 80th Academy Awards. He is the co-author of America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, which was one of the best-selling books in the US in 2004, and Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race, released in 2010.
Since leaving The Daily Show, Stewart has mostly maintained a low profile in entertainment industry circles, but has used his celebrity and voice in a sustained advocacy for 9/11 first responders, and also for war veterans' health benefits. In 2019 he received the New York City Bronze Medallion for his "tireless advocacy, inspiration, and leadership (helping to) pass the permanent authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund Act".
Early life and education
Jon Stewart was born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz on November 28, 1962, in New York City, to Marian (née Laskin), a teacher and later educational consultant, and Donald Leibowitz, an energy coordinator for the New Jersey Department of the Treasury. Stewart's family members are Jewish immigrants to America from Poland, Ukraine, and Belarus. One of his grandfathers was born in Manzhouli (now part of Inner Mongolia). He is the second of four sons, with older brother Lawrence, and younger brothers Dan and Matthew.
Stewart's parents divorced when he was eleven years old, and Stewart was largely estranged from his father. Because of his strained relationship with his father, which in 2015 he described as "still 'complicated'", he dropped his surname and began using his middle name. Stewart stated, "There was a thought of using my mother's maiden name, but I thought that would be just too big a fuck you to my dad... Did I have some problems with my father? Yes. Yet people always view [changing my surname] through the prism of ethnic identity." He had his surname changed legally to Stewart in 2001. Stewart and his brother Lawrence, who was previously the chief operating officer of NYSE Euronext (parent company of the New York Stock Exchange), grew up in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, where they attended Lawrence High School. According to Stewart, he was subjected to anti-Semitic bullying as a child. He describes himself in high school as "very into Eugene Debs and a bit of a leftist."
Stewart grew up in the era of the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal, which inspired in him "a healthy skepticism towards official reports". His first job was working with his brother at a Woolworth's store, and jokingly says being fired by Lawrence was one of the "scarring events" of his youth. He has also credited legendary television producer Norman Lear as someone who "raised me."
Stewart graduated in 1984 from The College of William & Mary where he initially majored in chemistry before switching to psychology. While at William & Mary, Stewart became a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity, but eventually began disassociating himself from them; leaving the fraternity altogether after six months. "My college career was waking up late, memorizing someone else's notes, doing bong hits, and going to soccer practice", he later said. He was a three-year starter in 1981, 1982 and 1983 with the Tribe men's soccer team. He had 10 goals and 12 assists on a squad that went 40–15–9 (.695) in his three seasons with the program. He is listed as Jon Leibowitz in official William & Mary Athletics records. The former head coach of the Tribe men's soccer team from 1971 to 2003, Al Albert, describes Jon as "athletic and feisty and quick" and added that he "wasn't the most technical or clinical player, but he could make things happen."
After college, Stewart held numerous jobs: a contingency planner for the New Jersey Department of Human Services, a contract administrator for the City University of New York, a puppeteer for children with disabilities, a soccer coach at Gloucester High School in Virginia, a caterer, a busboy, a shelf stocker at Woolworth's, a bartender at the Franklin Corner Tavern (a local blue-collar bar), and a bartender at the legendary City Gardens in Trenton, New Jersey. He has said that working at City Gardens was a pivotal moment for him: "finding this place City Gardens was like, 'Oh, maybe I'm not a giant weirdo. Maybe there are other people who have a similar sense of yearning for something other than what they have now.' I think it inspired a lot of people, man. It was a very creative environment. It was a place of great possibility."
Career
Early work
With a reputation for being a funny man in school, Jon Stewart returned to New York City in 1986 to try his hand at the comedy club circuit, but he could not muster the courage to get on stage until the following year. He made his stand-up debut at The Bitter End, where one of his comedic idols, Woody Allen, also began. He began using the stage name "Jon Stewart" by dropping his last name and changing the spelling of his middle name "Stuart" to "Stewart". He often jokes this is because people had difficulty with the pronunciation of Leibowitz or it "sounded too Hollywood" (a reference to Lenny Bruce's joke on the same theme). He has implied that the name change was due to a strained relationship with his father, with whom Stewart no longer had any contact.
Stewart became a regular at the Comedy Cellar, where he was the last performer every night. For two years, he would perform at 2 a.m. while developing his comedic style. In 1989, Stewart landed his first television job as a writer for Caroline's Comedy Hour. In 1990, he began co-hosting Comedy Central's Short Attention Span Theater, with Patty Rosborough. In 1992, Stewart hosted the short-lived You Wrote It, You Watch It on MTV, which invited viewers to send in their stories to be acted out by the comedy troupe, The State.
Stewart relates that his career did not take off until his March 6, 1992, appearance on NBC's Late Night with David Letterman. He was considered a finalist to take over Letterman's position upon his departure from the program, but instead, it was given to relatively unknown Conan O'Brien. He co-hosted MTV Spring Break '93 Blind Date from Daytona Beach with Melissa Rivers.
The Jon Stewart Show
Later in 1993, Stewart developed The Jon Stewart Show, a talk show on MTV, which was later dropped by the network and was syndicated for its last two years. The Jon Stewart Show was the first talk show on that network and was an instant hit, becoming the second-highest rated MTV show, behind Beavis and Butt-Head. In 1994, Paramount canceled The Arsenio Hall Show and, with new corporate sibling MTV (through MTV parent Viacom's acquisition of the studio), launched an hour-long syndicated late-night version of The Jon Stewart Show. Many local affiliates had moved Hall's show to 2 a.m. during its decline and Stewart's show inherited such early morning time slots in many cities. Ratings were dismal and the show was canceled in June 1995.
Among the fans of the show was David Letterman, who was the final guest of The Jon Stewart Show. Letterman signed Stewart with his production company, Worldwide Pants. Stewart then became a frequent guest host for Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show with Tom Snyder, which was produced by Letterman and aired after the Late Show on CBS. This led to much speculation that Stewart would soon replace Snyder permanently, but instead, Stewart was offered the time slot after Snyder's, which he turned down.
In 1996 Stewart hosted a short-lived talk show entitled, Where's Elvis This Week?, that was a half-hour, weekly comedy television program. It aired on Sunday nights in the United Kingdom on BBC Two. It was filmed at the CBS Broadcast Center in New York City and featured a set of panelists, two from the UK and two from the United States, who discussed news items and cultural issues. The show premiered in the UK on October 6, 1996; five episodes aired in total. Notable panelists included Dave Chappelle, Eddie Izzard, Phill Jupitus, Nora Ephron, Craig Kilborn, Christopher Hitchens, Armando Iannucci, Norm Macdonald, and Helen Gurley Brown. In 1997, Stewart was chosen as the host and interviewer for George Carlin's tenth HBO special, 40 Years of Comedy.
The Daily Show
In 1998, when Craig Kilborn left the show to replace Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show, Stewart began hosting The Daily Show on Comedy Central. The Daily Show blends humor with the day's top news stories, usually in politics, while simultaneously poking fun at politicians, newsmakers, and the news media. In an interview on The O'Reilly Factor, Stewart denied the show has any intentional political agenda, saying the goal was "schnicks and giggles" and that "[t]he same weakness that drove me into comedy also informs my show", meaning that he was uncomfortable talking without hearing the audience laugh. In his first Daily Show on-air appearance on January 11, 1999, Stewart told his guest that evening, Michael J. Fox, that he felt as if "this is my bar mitzvah". His style was described by one critic as, "Stewart does not offer us cynicism for its own sake, but as a playful way to offer the kinds of insights that are not permitted in more serious news formats that slavishly cling to official account of events."
Until Trevor Noah permanently took over the show in 2015, Stewart hosted almost all airings of the program, except for a few occasions when correspondents such as Stephen Colbert, Rob Corddry, Jason Jones, and Steve Carell subbed for him, and during John Oliver's stint as host during the summer of 2013. Stewart won twenty Primetime Emmy Awards for The Daily Show as either a writer or producer, and two for producing The Colbert Report (2013–14), earning a total of twenty-two Primetime Emmy Awards, the most wins for a male individual. In 2005, Stewart and The Daily Show received the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album for the audiobook edition of America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction. In 2000 and 2004, the show won two Peabody Awards for its coverage of the U.S. presidential elections in those years, called "Indecision 2000" and "Indecision 2004", respectively.
The show of September 20, 2001, the first show after the attacks of September 11th, 2001, began with no introduction. Before this, the introduction included footage of a fly-in toward the World Trade Center and New York City. The first nine minutes of the show included a tearful Stewart discussing his personal view on the event. His remarks ended as follows:
In mid-2002, amid rumors that David Letterman was going to switch from CBS to ABC when his contract ran out, Stewart was rumored as Letterman's replacement on CBS. Ultimately, Letterman renewed his contract with CBS. On the March 9, 2002, episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by Stewart, a Weekend Update sketch poked fun at the situation.
In late 2002, ABC offered Stewart his own talk show to air right after Nightline. Stewart's contract with The Daily Show was near expiring, and he expressed strong interest. ABC, however, decided to give another Comedy Central figure, Jimmy Kimmel, the post-Nightline slot.
On April 4, 2006, Stewart confronted U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) on The Daily Show about his decision to appear at Liberty University, an institution founded by Jerry Falwell whom McCain previously had denounced as one of the "agents of intolerance". In the interchange, Stewart asked McCain, "You're not freaking out on us? Are you freaking out on us, because if you're freaking out ... and you're going into the crazy base world—are you going into crazy base world?" McCain replied, "Just– just– just a little" and "I'm afraid so." The clip was played on CNN, was noted and discussed in more detail in the blogosphere and was followed up on in the mainstream media.
In 2007, The Daily Show was involved in former correspondent Stephen Colbert's announcement that he would run for president in 2008. In 2008, Stewart appeared on the news program Democracy Now!. A 2008 New York Times story questioned whether he was, in a phrase originally used to describe longtime network news anchor Walter Cronkite, "the most trusted man in America".
On April 28, 2009, during a discussion on torture with Clifford May, Stewart expressed his opinion that former President Harry S. Truman was a war criminal for his use of the atomic bomb on Japan during World War II. He defended his assertion moments later:
"Here's what I think of the atom bombs. I think if you dropped an atom bomb fifteen miles offshore and you said, 'The next one's coming and hitting you', then I would think it's okay. To drop it on a city, and kill a hundred thousand people? Yeah. I think that's criminal." On April 30, Stewart apologized on his program, and stated he did not believe Truman was a war criminal: "I shouldn't have said that, and I did. So I say right now, no, I don't believe that to be the case. The atomic bomb, a very complicated decision in the context of a horrific war, and I walk that back because it was in my estimation a stupid thing to say."
In April 2010, Comedy Central renewed Stewart's contract to host The Daily Show into 2013. According to a Forbes list of celebrities in 2008, he was earning $14 million a year.
On September 16, 2010, Stewart and Stephen Colbert announced a rally for October 30, known as the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear. It took place on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. and attracted an estimated 215,000 participants. In December 2010, Stewart was credited by the White House, other media, and political news outlets for bringing awareness of the Republican filibuster on the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act to the public, leading to the ultimate passing of the bill that provides health benefits to first responders whose health has been adversely affected by their work at Ground Zero.
On the show of January 10, 2011, Stewart began with a monologue about the shootings in Tucson, Arizona. He said he wished the "ramblings of crazy people didn't in any way resemble how we actually talk to each other on television". Before a commercial break, Stewart told viewers that the show would continue as usual the next night. After the commercial break, the show featured a rerun of a field piece done by Jason Jones two years earlier.
The New York Times opined that Stewart is "the modern-day equivalent of Edward R. Murrow" and the UK national newspaper The Independent called him the "satirist-in-chief". In an interview, Senator John McCain described Stewart as "a modern-day Will Rogers and Mark Twain".
Writer Wyatt Cenac said that Stewart cursed him out after Cenac acknowledged he was uncomfortable about a June 2011 Daily Show bit about Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain (reported in July 2015).
In March 2013, it was announced that Stewart would be taking a 12-week hiatus from The Daily Show to direct the film Rosewater, which is based on the book Then They Came for Me by Maziar Bahari. Beginning June 10, 2013, The Daily Show correspondent John Oliver assumed primary hosting duties during Stewart's break. The TV Guide annual survey for 2013 star salaries showed that Stewart was the highest-paid late night host, making an estimated $25–30 million per year.
On July 14, 2014, Stewart interviewed Hillary Clinton about the Middle East. Clinton's condemnations of Hamas led Stewart to ask her: "But don't you think they would look at that though as, they've given a lot of different things a chance and these are the only guys to them that are giving any resistance to what their condition is?" For Gazans living in that situation, he said Hamas could be viewed as "freedom fighters".
Leaving The Daily Show
During a taping of the show on February 10, 2015, Stewart announced he was leaving The Daily Show. Comedy Central president Michele Ganeless confirmed Stewart's retirement with a statement. Later, it was announced that South African comedian Trevor Noah would succeed Stewart as the host of the show. On April 20, 2015, Stewart indicated that his final show would be on August 6, 2015.
On July 28, 2015, Darren Samuelsohn of Politico reported that twice, Stewart had been at the White House for previously unreported meetings with President Obama: once in October 2011 and once in February 2014. Michael D. Shear of The New York Times also picked up on the story. Stewart responded on his show by pointing out that the meetings were listed in the president's publicly available visitor log and that he has been asked to meet privately by many prominent individuals, including Roger Ailes of Fox News. He said Obama encouraged him not to make young Americans cynical about their government and Stewart said that his reply was that he was "skeptically idealistic".
On June 19, 2015, in the wake of the Charleston Church Shooting, Stewart decided not to write jokes for the opening monologue. Elaborating on his decision, Stewart stated, "I honestly have nothing other than just sadness". Stewart spoke about the racial disparity and injustices in America, saying "The Confederate flag flies over South Carolina ... and the roads are named for Confederate generals" describing it as "racial wallpaper". Instead he designated a large portion of the show to his guest that night Malala Yousafzai, calling her "an incredible inspiration," and that "to be quite honest with you, I don't think there's anyone else in the world I would rather talk to tonight than Malala: So that's what we're going to do. And sorry about no jokes."
On August 5, 2015, Stewart's friend of 30 years, comedian Louis C.K., was selected to be the last guest before the final Daily Show episode with Stewart helming the show. C.K. joked that he was there "representing comedy to say good job".
The hour-long-plus final Daily Show on August 6 featured reunions with former correspondents Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, John Oliver, Samantha Bee, Hasan Minhaj, Ed Helms, Kristen Schaal, Larry Wilmore, Jessica Williams, Aasif Mandvi, Lewis Black, John Hodgman, Rob Corddry, Olivia Munn, Josh Gad, Michael Che, and Mo Rocca and cameo video clips from people Stewart had targeted over the years, including Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Lindsey Graham, Chris Christie, John Kerry, Chuck Schumer, Bill O'Reilly, Wolf Blitzer, Joe Scarborough, and Mika Brzezinski. During the final episode, there was a pre-taped behind-the-scenes look at the show spoofing the long-take Copacabana scene from Goodfellas, featuring a brief appearance by Martin Scorsese. It concluded with a performance by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.
Post-Daily Show
In November 2015, it was announced that Stewart signed a four-year deal with HBO that would include exclusive digital content for HBO NOW, HBO Go, and other platforms. HBO programming president Casey Bloys has said that "the idea is it will be an animated parody of a cable news network with an Onion-like portal." The team began working with the cloud graphics company, OTOY, to build a system for creating content. Confirmed to be working on the project included Mike Brown, Steve Waltien, Chelsea Devantez, Lucy Steiner, Kate James, and Robby Slowik. The team tested material in Red Bank, New Jersey at The Count Basie Theatre Performing Arts Academy.
The show's premiere was moved several times, from fall 2016, to the first quarter of 2017, and then cancelled on May 23, 2017. The cancelation statement read:
After his contract with HBO ended, Stewart signed a multi-year show deal with Apple. On September 30, 2021, Stewart's new series, The Problem with Jon Stewart, premiered on AppleTV. The series features hour-long, single-subject episodes. In addition to hosting the show, Stewart serves as executive producer through his company, Busboy Productions.
Writing
In 1998, Stewart released his first book, Naked Pictures of Famous People, a collection of humorous short stories and essays. The book reached The New York Times Best Seller List.
In 2004, Stewart and The Daily Show writing staff released, America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, a mock high-school history textbook offering insights into the unique American system of government, dissecting its institutions, explaining its history and processes, and satirizing such popular American political precepts as, "one man, one vote", "government by the people", and "every vote counts". The book sold millions of copies upon its 2004 release and ended the year as a top-fifteen best seller.
In 2005, Stewart provided the voice of President James A. Garfield for the audiobook version of Sarah Vowell's Assassination Vacation. In 2007, Stewart voiced Mort Sinclaire, former TV comedy writer and communist, on Stephen Colbert's audiobook version of I Am America (And So Can You!).
In 2010, Stewart and The Daily Show writing staff released a sequel to their first book entitled, Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race. The book is meant to serve as a Baedeker travel guide for an alien civilization that discovers Earth after humanity has died out, most likely by its own hands.
In March 2012, Stewart interviewed Bruce Springsteen for Rolling Stone.
Acting
Stewart's first film role was a bit part in the box-office bomb, Mixed Nuts. He landed a minor part in The First Wives Club, but his scene was deleted. In 1995, Stewart signed a three-year deal with Miramax. Stewart played romantic leads in the films, Playing by Heart and Wishful Thinking. He had a supporting role in the romantic comedy, Since You've Been Gone and in the horror film, The Faculty. Other films were planned for Stewart to write and star in, but they never were produced. Stewart maintained a relationship with Miramax founders Harvey and Bob Weinstein and appeared in films they produced including, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Doogal, and the documentary, Wordplay.
He appeared in Half Baked as an "enhancement smoker" and in Big Daddy as Adam Sandler's roommate; he has joked on the Daily Show and in the documentary The Aristocrats that to get the role, he slept with Sandler. Stewart often makes fun of his appearances in the high-profile flop, Death to Smoochy, in which he played a treacherous television executive; and the animated film Doogal, where he played a blue spring named Zeebad who shot a freeze ray from his mustache. In 2007, Stewart made a cameo appearance as himself in Evan Almighty, which starred former Daily Show correspondent Steve Carell. In the movie, Stewart was seen on a television screen in a fictional Daily Show episode poking fun at Carell's character for building an ark.
Stewart had a recurring role in The Larry Sanders Show, playing himself as an occasional substitute and possible successor to late-night talk show host Larry Sanders (played by Garry Shandling). In 1998, Stewart hosted the television special, Elmopalooza, celebrating 30 years of Sesame Street. He has guest-starred on other sitcoms including The Nanny, Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist, Spin City, NewsRadio, American Dad!, and The Simpsons. He also has made guest appearances on the children's television series Between the Lions, Sesame Street, Jack's Big Music Show, and Gravity Falls.
Producing
In the mid-1990s, Stewart launched his own production company, Busboy Productions, naming the company in reference to his previous job as a busboy. Stewart signed a deal with Miramax to develop projects through his company, but none of his ideas have been produced. After Stewart's success as host and producer of The Daily Show, he revived Busboy Productions with Daily Show producers Ben Karlin and Rich Korson. In 2002, Busboy planned to produce a sitcom for NBC starring Stephen Colbert, but the show did not come to fruition.
In 2005, Comedy Central reached an agreement with Busboy in which Comedy Central would provide financial backing for the production company. Comedy Central has a first-look agreement on all projects, after which Busboy is free to shop them to other networks.
The deal spawned the Daily Show spin-off The Colbert Report and its replacement, The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore. Other projects include the sitcom pilot Three Strikes, the documentary Sportsfan, the series Important Things with Demetri Martin, and the film The Donor.
After Stewart's departure from The Daily Show, he was listed as an executive producer on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. In addition, Stewart has presented occasional comedic monologues filled with political and media commentary.
In July 2017, HBO announced Stewart would produce a stand-up comedy special for the network, his first stand-up special since 1996.
Directing
In March 2010, Stewart announced that he had optioned rights to the story of journalist Maziar Bahari, who was imprisoned in Iran for 118 days. On June 6, 2011, episode of The Daily Show, Stewart again hosted Bahari, and in March 2013, he announced that he was leaving the show for 12 weeks to direct the film version of Bahari's 2011 book, Then They Came For Me. Stewart's screenplay adaptation is entitled, Rosewater. It premiered at the September 2014 Toronto International Film Festival, receiving "generally favorable" reviews, and was released to general audiences on November 14, 2014.
On directing, Stewart noted on Employee of the Month that The Daily Show influenced his directing process more than his acting gigs did. He said, "It's about the collaboration. It's about understanding. Doing a show taught me this process of clarity of vision, but the flexibility of process. So know your intention, know where you're wanting to go with the scene with the way that you want it to go, the momentum shifts, the emphasis, where you want it to be." He also expressed interest in directing more films.
Stewart directed the political satire Irresistible, released in June 2020, which follows a demoralized Democratic strategist (played by Daily Show alumnus Steve Carell), who helps a retired veteran (Chris Cooper) run for mayor in a small, blue collar town in Wisconsin.
Hosting and public speaking
Stewart has hosted the Grammy Awards twice, in 2001 and in 2002, and the 78th Academy Awards, which were held March 5, 2006, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood. Critical response to Stewart's performance was mixed. Roger Ebert compared him favorably to legendary Oscar host Johnny Carson. Other reviewers were less positive; Tom Shales of The Washington Post said that Stewart hosted with "smug humorlessness". James Poniewozik of TIME said that Stewart was a bad host, but a great "anti-host" in that he poked fun at parts of the broadcast that deserved it, which lent him a degree of authenticity with the non-Hollywood audience. Stewart and correspondent John Oliver later poked fun at his lackluster reception on The Daily Show coverage of the 79th Academy Awards by saying that the "demon of last year's Oscars had finally been exorcised".
Stewart returned to host the 80th Academy Awards on February 24, 2008. The reception to his performance was better received. Matthew Gilbert of the Boston Globe felt the ceremony was average, but praised Stewart, writing that, "It was good to see Jon Stewart being Jon Stewart. He is shaping up to be a dependable Oscar host for the post-Billy Crystal years. He's not musical, but he's versatile enough to swing smoothly between jokes about politics, Hollywood, new media, and, most importantly, hair." Variety columnist Brian Lowry lauded Stewart's performance noting that he "earned his keep by maintaining a playful, irreverent tone throughout the night, whether it was jesting about Cate Blanchett's versatility or watching Lawrence of Arabia on an iPhone screen.
In December 2009, Stewart gave a speech at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts honoring Bruce Springsteen, one of that year's Kennedy Center Honors recipients, and of whom Stewart is a fan. Stewart gave another speech paying tribute to Springsteen in February 2013 as part of the singer's MusiCares Person of the Year award ceremony.
Stewart began a comedic feud with WWE wrestler Seth Rollins in March 2015, and appeared on WWE Raw during a Daily Show-styled segment hosted by Rollins. On August 23, 2015, Stewart returned to host the WWE's SummerSlam at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Later, he got involved in the main event between Rollins and John Cena, helping Rollins retain his WWE World Heavyweight Championship, as well as winning Cena's United States Championship when he interfered and hit Cena with a steel chair. The next night on Raw, he explained his actions, saying he did it for Ric Flair (who was also present), which was to retain his world championship record. Cena then gave Stewart his finishing move, the Attitude Adjustment, to end the segment. Stewart returned at SummerSlam on August 21, 2016, as a special guest.
In 2016, Stewart joined President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Jill Biden, and David Letterman in honoring military families on May 5 at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. The special celebration which marked both the USO's 75th anniversary and the fifth anniversary of Joining Forces.
Stewart got into a Twitter war with then-presidential candidate Donald Trump, who in multiple tweets stated that Stewart's changing his name indicated that he was a fraud. Stewart and some analysts considered this to be anti-Semitic. Trump then tweeted that Stewart should be "proud of his heritage", and Stewart tweeted back, facetiously, that Trump's real name was "Fuckface Von Clownstick" and that Trump should be proud of the "Clownstick heritage".
In June 2017, Stewart spoke at the funeral service for Ray Pfeifer, an FDNY firefighter from Hicksville, New York, who died after an eight-year battle with cancer as a result of service as a first responder at the September 11 attacks.
Criticism of television journalists
Stewart is known as an outspoken, humorous critic of personality-driven media shows, in particular, those of the U.S. media broadcast networks such as CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC. Critics say Stewart benefits from a double standard: he critiques other news shows from the safe, removed position of his "news satire" desk; Stewart asserts that neither his show nor Comedy Central purport to be anything other than satire and comedy.
Crossfire appearance
In a televised exchange with then-CNN correspondent Tucker Carlson on Crossfire on October 15, 2004, Stewart criticized the state of television journalism and pleaded with the show's hosts to "stop hurting America", and he referred to both Carlson and co-host Paul Begala as "partisan hacks". When posted on the internet, this exchange became widely viewed and was a topic of much media discussion.
Despite being on the program to comment on current events, Stewart immediately shifted the discussion toward the show itself, asserting that Crossfire had failed in its responsibility to inform and educate viewers about politics as a serious topic. Stewart stated that the show engaged in partisan hackery instead of honest debate, and said that the hosts' assertion that Crossfire is a debate show is like "saying pro wrestling is a show about athletic competition". Carlson responded by saying that Stewart criticizes news organizations for not holding public officials accountable, but when he interviewed John Kerry, Stewart asked a series of "softball" questions (Stewart has acknowledged he voted for Kerry in the 2004 presidential election). Stewart responded that he didn't realize "the news organizations look to Comedy Central for their cues on integrity". When Carlson continued to press Stewart on the Kerry issue, Stewart said, "You're on CNN! The show that leads into me is puppets making crank phone calls! What is wrong with you?" In response to prods from Carlson, "Come on. Be funny." Stewart said, "No, I'm not going to be your monkey." Later in the show when Carlson jibed, "I do think you're more fun on your show", Stewart retorted, "You're as big a dick on your show as you are on any show." In response to Stewart's criticisms, Carlson said, "You need to get a job at a journalism school", to which Stewart responded, "You need to go to one!"
Stewart discussed the incident on The Daily Show the following Monday:
In January 2005, CNN announced that it was canceling Crossfire. When asked about the cancellation, CNN's incoming president, Jonathan Klein, referred to Stewart's appearance on the show: "I think he made a good point about the noise level of these types of shows, which does nothing to illuminate the issues of the day."
On March 18, 2009, Carlson wrote a blog entry for The Daily Beast criticizing Stewart for his handling of the CNBC controversy (see below). Carlson discussed the CNN incident and claimed that Stewart remained backstage for at least "an hour" and "continued to lecture our staff", something Carlson described as, "one of the weirdest things I have ever seen".
Criticism of CNBC
Stewart again became a viral internet phenomenon following a March 4, 2009, The Daily Show sequence. CNBC canceled Rick Santelli's scheduled appearance on The Daily Show that day, so the show ran a short segment showing CNBC giving poor investment advice.
Subsequent media coverage of exchanges between Stewart and Jim Cramer, who had been featured heavily in the original segment, led to a highly anticipated face-to-face confrontation on The Daily Show. The episode received much media attention and became the second most-viewed episode of The Daily Show, trailing only the 2009 Inauguration Day episode. It had 2.3 million total viewers, and the next day, the show's website saw its highest day of traffic in 2009. Although Cramer acknowledged on the show that some of Stewart's criticisms of CNBC were valid and that the network could "do better", he later said on The Today Show that Stewart's criticism of the media was "naïve and misleading."
Criticism of Fox News
Throughout his tenure on The Daily Show, Stewart frequently accused Fox News of distorting the news to fit a conservative agenda, at one point ridiculing the network as "the meanest sorority in the world". In November 2009, Stewart "called out" Fox News for using some footage from a previous Tea Party rally during a report on a more recent rally, making the latter event appear more highly attended than it was. The show's anchor, Sean Hannity, apologized for the footage use the following night. A month later, Stewart criticized Fox & Friends cohost Gretchen Carlson – a former Miss America and a Stanford graduate – for claiming that she googled words such as "ignoramus" and "czar". Stewart said that Carlson was dumbing herself down for "an audience who sees intellect as an elitist flaw".
Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010; within five months, The Daily Show had 24 segments criticizing the Fox News coverage. Bill O'Reilly, host of the talk show The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News, countered that The Daily Show was a "key component of left-wing television" and that Stewart loved Fox News because the network was "not boring".
During an interview with Chris Wallace on June 19, 2011, Stewart called Wallace "insane" for saying that Stewart's earlier comparison of the marketing techniques of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment. Stewart also said Fox viewers are the "most consistently misinformed" viewers of political media. This comment was ranked by the fact-checking site, PolitiFact, as false, with conditions. Stewart later accepted his error.
In 2014, Stewart engaged in an extended "call-out" of Fox News, based on their coverage of food stamps and U.S. government assistance, opining that said coverage was biased. This culminated in segments across multiple episodes, specifically singling out Sean Hannity and his show's coverage of the Bundy standoff. Hannity would "return fire" by calling out Stewart for associating himself with Cat Stevens during his Rally in 2010. Stewart responded to this by criticizing Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a "friend and frequent guest" on his program and supporting Nugent's violent rhetoric toward Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2007. In late August 2014, Stewart criticized the manner in which Fox News portrayed the events surrounding the shooting of teenager Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri, and the subsequent protests from citizens.
Advocacy of the 9/11 First Responders Bill
Over the years, Stewart sometimes used The Daily Show to argue for causes such as the treatment of veterans and 9/11 first responders. He is credited with breaking a Senate deadlock over a bill to provide health care and benefits for 9/11 emergency workers; the bill passed three days after he featured a group of 9/11 responders on the show. In March 2009, he criticized a White House proposal to remove veterans from Veterans Administration rolls if they had private health insurance; the White House dropped the plan the next day. In 2010, Stewart held an interview with a panel of four of the 9/11 first responders Kenny Specht with the FDNY, Chris Bowman NYPD, Ken George DOT, and Kevin Devlin, Operating Engineer of Heavy Equipment, who discussed their health problems with Stewart. In 2015 four months after leaving The Daily Show he returned to reunite the four, with Specht as the only panelist healthy enough to attend. Devlin had died and the two other panelists, Bowman and George, were too ill to make it to the show.
In February and June 2019, Stewart again went to Congress to oppose the $7.375 billion limit in pay-outs to 9/11 responders through December 2020 and to lobby for permanent funding for the Victims Compensation Fund past December 2020, delivering a tearful testimony.
Stewart continued to be a vocal advocate, appearing on late night shows such as The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, and news programs such as Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace, and The Fox Report with Shepherd Smith. On July 12, 2019, the House approved the bill overwhelmingly 402–12. The bill came to the Senate floor where it passed the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund through 2092, virtually funding health care for 9/11 victims and first responders for life. The vote was 97–2 with Republican Senators Rand Paul (KY) and Mike Lee (UT) opposing. When hearing that the bill had been passed, Stewart responded by saying, "It has been the honor of my life working with the 9/11 first responders...these families deserve better...and I will follow you wherever your next adventure shall be".
Writers Guild of America strike of 2007–2008
Stewart was an important factor in the unionization of the Comedy Central writers. The Daily Show writers were the first of Comedy Central's writers to be able to join the guild, after which other shows followed.
Stewart supported the 2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike. On The Daily Show episode just before the strike, he sarcastically commented about how Comedy Central had made available all episodes for free on their website, but without advertising, and said, "go support our advertisers". The show went on hiatus when the strike began, as did other late-night talk shows. Upon Stewart's return to the show on January 7, 2008, he refused to use the title, The Daily Show, stating that The Daily Show was the show made with all of the people responsible for the broadcast, including his writers. During the strike, he referred to his show as A Daily Show with Jon Stewart until the strike ended on February 13, 2008.
Stewart's choice to return to the air did bring criticism that he was undermining the writers of his show. Seth MacFarlane wrote an inside joke into an episode of Family Guy about this, causing Stewart to respond with an hour-long call in which he questioned how MacFarlane could consider himself the "moral arbiter" of Hollywood. Other former writers of The Daily Show such as David Feldman also have indicated that Stewart was anti-union at the time and punished his writers for their decision to unionize.
The Writers Guild Strike of 2007–08 also was responsible for a notable mock feud between Stewart, Stephen Colbert, and Conan O'Brien in early 2008. Without writers to help fuel their banter, the three comedians concocted a crossover/rivalry to garner more viewers during the ratings slump. Colbert claimed that because of "the Colbert bump", he was responsible for Mike Huckabee's success in the 2008 presidential race. O'Brien claimed that he was responsible for Huckabee's success because not only had he mentioned Huckabee on his show, but also that he was responsible for Chuck Norris's success (Norris backed Huckabee). In response, Stewart claimed that he was responsible for the success of O'Brien since Stewart had featured him on The Jon Stewart Show, and in turn, the success of Huckabee. This resulted in a three-part comedic battle between the three pundits, with all three appearing on each other's shows. The feud ended on Late Night with Conan O'Brien with a mock brawl involving the three hosts.
Influences
Stewart has said his influences include George Carlin, Lenny Bruce, Woody Allen, David Letterman, Steve Martin, and Richard Pryor.
Among comedians who say they were influenced by Stewart are Stephen Colbert, John Oliver, Hasan Minhaj, Samantha Bee, Larry Wilmore, Bassem Youssef, Trevor Noah, and Jordan Klepper.
Personal life
Stewart is irreligious, but of Jewish heritage.
While making the 1997 film, Wishful Thinking, a production assistant on the film arranged for a blind date between Stewart and Tracey Lynn McShane. They dated for four years. Stewart proposed to her through a personalized crossword puzzle created with the help of Will Shortz, the crossword editor at The New York Times. They married in 2000. On June 19, 2001, Stewart and his wife filed a joint name change application and legally changed both of their surnames to "Stewart". With the help of in vitro fertilization, the couple has two children.
In 2000, when he was labelled a Democrat, Stewart generally agreed, but described his political affiliation as "more socialist or independent" than Democratic, and Stewart has voted for Republicans, the last time being in the 1988 presidential election when he voted for George H. W. Bush over Michael Dukakis. He described Bush as having "an integrity about him that I respected greatly". He has been a vocal proponent of single-payer health care system.
In 2013, Stewart and his wife bought a farm in Middletown, New Jersey, called "Bufflehead Farm". The Stewarts operate it as a sanctuary for abused animals.
In 2015, Stewart began eating a vegetarian diet for ethical reasons; his wife is a long-time vegan.
In 2017, Stewart and his wife received approval to open a 45-acre (18 ha) animal sanctuary in Colts Neck, New Jersey, a home to animals saved from slaughterhouses and live markets.
Honors and awards
Stewart and other members of The Daily Show have received three Peabody Awards for "Indecision 2000" and "Indecision 2004", covering the 2000 presidential election and the 2004 presidential election, respectively. He received his third Peabody in 2016 for his tenure at The Daily Show.
The Daily Show received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Program in 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2015 and Outstanding Variety, Music, or Comedy Series for 10 consecutive years from 2003 to 2012. In 2013, the award for both categories instead went to The Daily Show spin-off The Colbert Report. In 2015, The Daily Show resurfaced, winning both categories for one last time for Stewart's swan song as host. Stewart won the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album in 2005 for his recording, America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction.
In the December 2003 New Year's edition of Newsweek, Stewart was named the "Who's Next?" person for 2004, with the magazine predicting that he would emerge as an absolute sensation in that year. (The magazine said they had been correct at the end of that year.) Stewart was named among the 2005 Time 100, an annual list of 100 of the most influential people of the year by Time magazine.
In 2004, Stewart spoke at the commencement ceremonies at his alma mater, William and Mary, and received an honorary Doctor of Arts degree. Stewart was the Class Day keynote speaker at Princeton University in 2004, and the 2008 Sacerdote Great Names speaker at Hamilton College. Stewart and The Daily Show received the 2005 National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) George Orwell Award for Distinguished Contribution to Honesty and Clarity in Public Language. Stewart was presented an Honorary All-America Award by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) in 2006.
On April 21, 2009, President of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf made Stewart a chief. On October 26, 2010, Stewart was named the Most Influential Man of 2010 by AskMen.
For his advocacy on behalf of 9/11 victims and families, Stewart was one of eighteen individuals and organizations awarded the Bronze Medallion on December 16, 2019. The Bronze Medallion is the highest award conferred upon civilians by New York City.
Filmography
Film
Television
Bibliography
Naked Pictures of Famous People (Rob Weisbach Books, 1998). .
America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction (Warner Books, September 2004). .
Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race (Grand Central Publishing, 2010). .
See also
New Yorkers in journalism
Political satire
References
Further reading
David Marchese, "Jon Stewart Is Back to Weigh In", The New York Times Magazine, June 15, 2020.
Lisa Rogak, Angry Optimist: The Life and Times of Jon Stewart. New York: Saint Martin's Griffin, 2014. .
Bruce Watson, Jon Stewart: Beyond the Moments of Zen. New Word City, 2014.
External links
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Association football players not categorized by nationality | false | [
"Don Juan Manuel's Tales of Count Lucanor, in Spanish Libro de los ejemplos del conde Lucanor y de Patronio (Book of the Examples of Count Lucanor and of Patronio), also commonly known as El Conde Lucanor, Libro de Patronio, or Libro de los ejemplos (original Old Castilian: Libro de los enxiemplos del Conde Lucanor et de Patronio), is one of the earliest works of prose in Castilian Spanish. It was first written in 1335.\n\nThe book is divided into four parts. The first and most well-known part is a series of 51 short stories (some no more than a page or two) drawn from various sources, such as Aesop and other classical writers, and Arabic folktales.\n\nTales of Count Lucanor was first printed in 1575 when it was published at Seville under the auspices of Argote de Molina. It was again printed at Madrid in 1642, after which it lay forgotten for nearly two centuries.\n\nPurpose and structure\n\nA didactic, moralistic purpose, which would color so much of the Spanish literature to follow (see Novela picaresca), is the mark of this book. Count Lucanor engages in conversation with his advisor Patronio, putting to him a problem (\"Some man has made me a proposition...\" or \"I fear that such and such person intends to...\") and asking for advice. Patronio responds always with the greatest humility, claiming not to wish to offer advice to so illustrious a person as the Count, but offering to tell him a story of which the Count's problem reminds him. (Thus, the stories are \"examples\" [ejemplos] of wise action.) At the end he advises the Count to do as the protagonist of his story did.\n\nEach chapter ends in more or less the same way, with slight variations on: \"And this pleased the Count greatly and he did just so, and found it well. And Don Johán (Juan) saw that this example was very good, and had it written in this book, and composed the following verses.\" A rhymed couplet closes, giving the moral of the story.\n\nOrigin of stories and influence on later literature\nMany of the stories written in the book are the first examples written in a modern European language of various stories, which many other writers would use in the proceeding centuries. Many of the stories he included were themselves derived from other stories, coming from western and Arab sources.\n\nShakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew has the basic elements of Tale 35, \"What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\".\n\nTale 32, \"What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth\" tells the story that Hans Christian Andersen made popular as The Emperor's New Clothes.\n\nStory 7, \"What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana\", a version of Aesop's The Milkmaid and Her Pail, was claimed by Max Müller to originate in the Hindu cycle Panchatantra.\n\nTale 2, \"What happened to a good Man and his Son, leading a beast to market,\" is the familiar fable The miller, his son and the donkey.\n\nIn 2016, Baroque Decay released a game under the name \"The Count Lucanor\". As well as some protagonists' names, certain events from the books inspired past events in the game.\n\nThe stories\n\nThe book opens with a prologue which introduces the characters of the Count and Patronio. The titles in the following list are those given in Keller and Keating's 1977 translation into English. James York's 1868 translation into English gives a significantly different ordering of the stories and omits the fifty-first.\n\n What Happened to a King and His Favorite \n What Happened to a Good Man and His Son \n How King Richard of England Leapt into the Sea against the Moors\n What a Genoese Said to His Soul When He Was about to Die \n What Happened to a Fox and a Crow Who Had a Piece of Cheese in His Beak\n How the Swallow Warned the Other Birds When She Saw Flax Being Sown \n What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana \n What Happened to a Man Whose Liver Had to Be Washed \n What Happened to Two Horses Which Were Thrown to the Lion \n What Happened to a Man Who on Account of Poverty and Lack of Other Food Was Eating Bitter Lentils \n What Happened to a Dean of Santiago de Compostela and Don Yllán, the Grand Master of Toledo\n What Happened to the Fox and the Rooster \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Hunting Partridges \n The Miracle of Saint Dominick When He Preached against the Usurer \n What Happened to Lorenzo Suárez at the Siege of Seville \n The Reply that count Fernán González Gave to His Relative Núño Laynes \n What Happened to a Very Hungry Man Who Was Half-heartedly Invited to Dinner \n What Happened to Pero Meléndez de Valdés When He Broke His Leg \n What Happened to the Crows and the Owls \n What Happened to a King for Whom a Man Promised to Perform Alchemy \n What Happened to a Young King and a Philosopher to Whom his Father Commended Him \n What Happened to the Lion and the Bull \n How the Ants Provide for Themselves \n What Happened to the King Who Wanted to Test His Three Sons \n What Happened to the Count of Provence and How He Was Freed from Prison by the Advice of Saladin\n What Happened to the Tree of Lies \n What Happened to an Emperor and to Don Alvarfáñez Minaya and Their Wives \n What Happened in Granada to Don Lorenzo Suárez Gallinato When He Beheaded the Renegade Chaplain \n What Happened to a Fox Who Lay down in the Street to Play Dead \n What Happened to King Abenabet of Seville and Ramayquía His Wife \n How a Cardinal Judged between the Canons of Paris and the Friars Minor \n What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth \n What Happened to Don Juan Manuel's Saker Falcon and an Eagle and a Heron \n What Happened to a Blind Man Who Was Leading Another \n What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\n What Happened to a Merchant When He Found His Son and His Wife Sleeping Together \n What Happened to Count Fernán González with His Men after He Had Won the Battle of Hacinas \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Loaded down with Precious Stones and Drowned in the River \n What Happened to a Man and a Swallow and a Sparrow \n Why the Seneschal of Carcassonne Lost His Soul \n What Happened to a King of Córdova Named Al-Haquem \n What Happened to a Woman of Sham Piety \n What Happened to Good and Evil and the Wise Man and the Madman \n What Happened to Don Pero Núñez the Loyal, to Don Ruy González de Zavallos, and to Don Gutier Roiz de Blaguiello with Don Rodrigo the Generous \n What Happened to a Man Who Became the Devil's Friend and Vassal \n What Happened to a Philosopher who by Accident Went down a Street Where Prostitutes Lived \n What Befell a Moor and His Sister Who Pretended That She Was Timid \n What Happened to a Man Who Tested His Friends \n What Happened to the Man Whom They Cast out Naked on an Island When They Took away from Him the Kingdom He Ruled \n What Happened to Saladin and a Lady, the Wife of a Knight Who Was His Vassal \n What Happened to a Christian King Who Was Very Powerful and Haughty\n\nReferences\n\nNotes\n\nBibliography\n\n Sturm, Harlan\n\n Wacks, David\n\nExternal links\n\nThe Internet Archive provides free access to the 1868 translation by James York.\nJSTOR has the to the 1977 translation by Keller and Keating.\nSelections in English and Spanish (pedagogical edition) with introduction, notes, and bibliography in Open Iberia/América (open access teaching anthology)\n\n14th-century books\nSpanish literature\n1335 books",
"What Happened to Jones may refer to:\n What Happened to Jones (1897 play), a play by George Broadhurst\n What Happened to Jones (1915 film), a lost silent film\n What Happened to Jones (1920 film), a lost silent film\n What Happened to Jones (1926 film), a silent film comedy"
] |
[
"Jon Stewart",
"Criticism of Fox News",
"What was his criticisms of fox news?",
"based on their perceived hypocritical coverage of food stamps and U.S. Government assistance.",
"did he have any problems with them?",
"Hannity would \"return fire\" by calling out Stewart",
"what happened after that?",
"2010. Stewart responded to this by calling out Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a \"friend and frequent guest\""
] | C_786034d9487f49daa667e68a1af6e708_1 | Are there any other interesting aspects about this article? | 4 | Besides Hannity calling out Jon Stewart,Are there any other interesting aspects about this article? | Jon Stewart | Throughout his tenure on The Daily Show, Stewart has frequently accused Fox News of distorting the news to fit a conservative agenda, at one point ridiculing the network as "the meanest sorority in the world." In November 2009, Stewart called out Fox News for using some footage from a previous Tea Party rally during a report on a more recent rally, making the latter event appear more highly attended than it actually was. The show's anchor, Sean Hannity, apologized for the footage use the following night. A month later, Stewart criticized Fox & Friends cohost Gretchen Carlson - a former Miss America and a Stanford graduate - for claiming that she googled words such as "ignoramus" and "czar". Stewart said that Carlson was dumbing herself down for "an audience who sees intellect as an elitist flaw". Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010; as of April 24, The Daily Show had 24 segments criticizing Fox News' coverage. Bill O'Reilly, host of the talk show The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News, countered that The Daily Show was a "key component of left-wing television" and that Stewart loved Fox News because the network was "not boring". During an interview with Chris Wallace on June 19, 2011, Stewart called Wallace "insane" after Wallace said that Stewart's earlier comparison of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment. Stewart also said Fox viewers are the "most consistently misinformed" viewers of political media. This comment was ranked by fact-checking site PolitiFact as false, with conditions. Stewart later accepted his error. In 2014, Stewart engaged in an extended "call-out" of Fox News based on their perceived hypocritical coverage of food stamps and U.S. Government assistance. This culminated during the Bundy standoff involving multiple segments, across multiple episodes, specifically singling out Sean Hannity and Hannity's coverage of the event. Hannity would "return fire" by calling out Stewart for associating himself with Cat Stevens during his Rally in 2010. Stewart responded to this by calling out Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a "friend and frequent guest" on his program and supporting Nugent's violent rhetoric towards Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2007. In late August 2014, Stewart vehemently opposed the manner in which Fox News portrayed the events surrounding the shooting of teenager Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri and the subsequent protests from citizens. CANNOTANSWER | Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010; | Jon Stewart (born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz; November 28, 1962) is an American comedian, writer, producer, director, political commentator, actor, and television host. He hosted The Daily Show, a satirical news program on Comedy Central, from 1999 to 2015. Stewart now hosts The Problem with Jon Stewart, which premiered September 2021 on Apple TV+.
Stewart started as a stand-up comedian but branched into television as host of Short Attention Span Theater for Comedy Central. He went on to host You Wrote It, You Watch It (1992–1993) and then The Jon Stewart Show (1993–1995), both on MTV, until The Jon Stewart Show was retooled, dropped by the network and moved to syndication. Stewart has also appeared in several films, including Big Daddy (1999) and Death to Smoochy (2002), but did few cinematic projects after becoming host of The Daily Show in 1999. He also was a writer and co-executive producer of the show. After Stewart joined, The Daily Show steadily gained popularity and critical acclaim, and during his tenure, won 22 Primetime Emmy Awards, two Grammy Awards and also was nominated for news and journalism awards. Stewart hosted the 78th and 80th Academy Awards. He is the co-author of America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, which was one of the best-selling books in the US in 2004, and Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race, released in 2010.
Since leaving The Daily Show, Stewart has mostly maintained a low profile in entertainment industry circles, but has used his celebrity and voice in a sustained advocacy for 9/11 first responders, and also for war veterans' health benefits. In 2019 he received the New York City Bronze Medallion for his "tireless advocacy, inspiration, and leadership (helping to) pass the permanent authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund Act".
Early life and education
Jon Stewart was born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz on November 28, 1962, in New York City, to Marian (née Laskin), a teacher and later educational consultant, and Donald Leibowitz, an energy coordinator for the New Jersey Department of the Treasury. Stewart's family members are Jewish immigrants to America from Poland, Ukraine, and Belarus. One of his grandfathers was born in Manzhouli (now part of Inner Mongolia). He is the second of four sons, with older brother Lawrence, and younger brothers Dan and Matthew.
Stewart's parents divorced when he was eleven years old, and Stewart was largely estranged from his father. Because of his strained relationship with his father, which in 2015 he described as "still 'complicated'", he dropped his surname and began using his middle name. Stewart stated, "There was a thought of using my mother's maiden name, but I thought that would be just too big a fuck you to my dad... Did I have some problems with my father? Yes. Yet people always view [changing my surname] through the prism of ethnic identity." He had his surname changed legally to Stewart in 2001. Stewart and his brother Lawrence, who was previously the chief operating officer of NYSE Euronext (parent company of the New York Stock Exchange), grew up in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, where they attended Lawrence High School. According to Stewart, he was subjected to anti-Semitic bullying as a child. He describes himself in high school as "very into Eugene Debs and a bit of a leftist."
Stewart grew up in the era of the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal, which inspired in him "a healthy skepticism towards official reports". His first job was working with his brother at a Woolworth's store, and jokingly says being fired by Lawrence was one of the "scarring events" of his youth. He has also credited legendary television producer Norman Lear as someone who "raised me."
Stewart graduated in 1984 from The College of William & Mary where he initially majored in chemistry before switching to psychology. While at William & Mary, Stewart became a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity, but eventually began disassociating himself from them; leaving the fraternity altogether after six months. "My college career was waking up late, memorizing someone else's notes, doing bong hits, and going to soccer practice", he later said. He was a three-year starter in 1981, 1982 and 1983 with the Tribe men's soccer team. He had 10 goals and 12 assists on a squad that went 40–15–9 (.695) in his three seasons with the program. He is listed as Jon Leibowitz in official William & Mary Athletics records. The former head coach of the Tribe men's soccer team from 1971 to 2003, Al Albert, describes Jon as "athletic and feisty and quick" and added that he "wasn't the most technical or clinical player, but he could make things happen."
After college, Stewart held numerous jobs: a contingency planner for the New Jersey Department of Human Services, a contract administrator for the City University of New York, a puppeteer for children with disabilities, a soccer coach at Gloucester High School in Virginia, a caterer, a busboy, a shelf stocker at Woolworth's, a bartender at the Franklin Corner Tavern (a local blue-collar bar), and a bartender at the legendary City Gardens in Trenton, New Jersey. He has said that working at City Gardens was a pivotal moment for him: "finding this place City Gardens was like, 'Oh, maybe I'm not a giant weirdo. Maybe there are other people who have a similar sense of yearning for something other than what they have now.' I think it inspired a lot of people, man. It was a very creative environment. It was a place of great possibility."
Career
Early work
With a reputation for being a funny man in school, Jon Stewart returned to New York City in 1986 to try his hand at the comedy club circuit, but he could not muster the courage to get on stage until the following year. He made his stand-up debut at The Bitter End, where one of his comedic idols, Woody Allen, also began. He began using the stage name "Jon Stewart" by dropping his last name and changing the spelling of his middle name "Stuart" to "Stewart". He often jokes this is because people had difficulty with the pronunciation of Leibowitz or it "sounded too Hollywood" (a reference to Lenny Bruce's joke on the same theme). He has implied that the name change was due to a strained relationship with his father, with whom Stewart no longer had any contact.
Stewart became a regular at the Comedy Cellar, where he was the last performer every night. For two years, he would perform at 2 a.m. while developing his comedic style. In 1989, Stewart landed his first television job as a writer for Caroline's Comedy Hour. In 1990, he began co-hosting Comedy Central's Short Attention Span Theater, with Patty Rosborough. In 1992, Stewart hosted the short-lived You Wrote It, You Watch It on MTV, which invited viewers to send in their stories to be acted out by the comedy troupe, The State.
Stewart relates that his career did not take off until his March 6, 1992, appearance on NBC's Late Night with David Letterman. He was considered a finalist to take over Letterman's position upon his departure from the program, but instead, it was given to relatively unknown Conan O'Brien. He co-hosted MTV Spring Break '93 Blind Date from Daytona Beach with Melissa Rivers.
The Jon Stewart Show
Later in 1993, Stewart developed The Jon Stewart Show, a talk show on MTV, which was later dropped by the network and was syndicated for its last two years. The Jon Stewart Show was the first talk show on that network and was an instant hit, becoming the second-highest rated MTV show, behind Beavis and Butt-Head. In 1994, Paramount canceled The Arsenio Hall Show and, with new corporate sibling MTV (through MTV parent Viacom's acquisition of the studio), launched an hour-long syndicated late-night version of The Jon Stewart Show. Many local affiliates had moved Hall's show to 2 a.m. during its decline and Stewart's show inherited such early morning time slots in many cities. Ratings were dismal and the show was canceled in June 1995.
Among the fans of the show was David Letterman, who was the final guest of The Jon Stewart Show. Letterman signed Stewart with his production company, Worldwide Pants. Stewart then became a frequent guest host for Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show with Tom Snyder, which was produced by Letterman and aired after the Late Show on CBS. This led to much speculation that Stewart would soon replace Snyder permanently, but instead, Stewart was offered the time slot after Snyder's, which he turned down.
In 1996 Stewart hosted a short-lived talk show entitled, Where's Elvis This Week?, that was a half-hour, weekly comedy television program. It aired on Sunday nights in the United Kingdom on BBC Two. It was filmed at the CBS Broadcast Center in New York City and featured a set of panelists, two from the UK and two from the United States, who discussed news items and cultural issues. The show premiered in the UK on October 6, 1996; five episodes aired in total. Notable panelists included Dave Chappelle, Eddie Izzard, Phill Jupitus, Nora Ephron, Craig Kilborn, Christopher Hitchens, Armando Iannucci, Norm Macdonald, and Helen Gurley Brown. In 1997, Stewart was chosen as the host and interviewer for George Carlin's tenth HBO special, 40 Years of Comedy.
The Daily Show
In 1998, when Craig Kilborn left the show to replace Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show, Stewart began hosting The Daily Show on Comedy Central. The Daily Show blends humor with the day's top news stories, usually in politics, while simultaneously poking fun at politicians, newsmakers, and the news media. In an interview on The O'Reilly Factor, Stewart denied the show has any intentional political agenda, saying the goal was "schnicks and giggles" and that "[t]he same weakness that drove me into comedy also informs my show", meaning that he was uncomfortable talking without hearing the audience laugh. In his first Daily Show on-air appearance on January 11, 1999, Stewart told his guest that evening, Michael J. Fox, that he felt as if "this is my bar mitzvah". His style was described by one critic as, "Stewart does not offer us cynicism for its own sake, but as a playful way to offer the kinds of insights that are not permitted in more serious news formats that slavishly cling to official account of events."
Until Trevor Noah permanently took over the show in 2015, Stewart hosted almost all airings of the program, except for a few occasions when correspondents such as Stephen Colbert, Rob Corddry, Jason Jones, and Steve Carell subbed for him, and during John Oliver's stint as host during the summer of 2013. Stewart won twenty Primetime Emmy Awards for The Daily Show as either a writer or producer, and two for producing The Colbert Report (2013–14), earning a total of twenty-two Primetime Emmy Awards, the most wins for a male individual. In 2005, Stewart and The Daily Show received the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album for the audiobook edition of America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction. In 2000 and 2004, the show won two Peabody Awards for its coverage of the U.S. presidential elections in those years, called "Indecision 2000" and "Indecision 2004", respectively.
The show of September 20, 2001, the first show after the attacks of September 11th, 2001, began with no introduction. Before this, the introduction included footage of a fly-in toward the World Trade Center and New York City. The first nine minutes of the show included a tearful Stewart discussing his personal view on the event. His remarks ended as follows:
In mid-2002, amid rumors that David Letterman was going to switch from CBS to ABC when his contract ran out, Stewart was rumored as Letterman's replacement on CBS. Ultimately, Letterman renewed his contract with CBS. On the March 9, 2002, episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by Stewart, a Weekend Update sketch poked fun at the situation.
In late 2002, ABC offered Stewart his own talk show to air right after Nightline. Stewart's contract with The Daily Show was near expiring, and he expressed strong interest. ABC, however, decided to give another Comedy Central figure, Jimmy Kimmel, the post-Nightline slot.
On April 4, 2006, Stewart confronted U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) on The Daily Show about his decision to appear at Liberty University, an institution founded by Jerry Falwell whom McCain previously had denounced as one of the "agents of intolerance". In the interchange, Stewart asked McCain, "You're not freaking out on us? Are you freaking out on us, because if you're freaking out ... and you're going into the crazy base world—are you going into crazy base world?" McCain replied, "Just– just– just a little" and "I'm afraid so." The clip was played on CNN, was noted and discussed in more detail in the blogosphere and was followed up on in the mainstream media.
In 2007, The Daily Show was involved in former correspondent Stephen Colbert's announcement that he would run for president in 2008. In 2008, Stewart appeared on the news program Democracy Now!. A 2008 New York Times story questioned whether he was, in a phrase originally used to describe longtime network news anchor Walter Cronkite, "the most trusted man in America".
On April 28, 2009, during a discussion on torture with Clifford May, Stewart expressed his opinion that former President Harry S. Truman was a war criminal for his use of the atomic bomb on Japan during World War II. He defended his assertion moments later:
"Here's what I think of the atom bombs. I think if you dropped an atom bomb fifteen miles offshore and you said, 'The next one's coming and hitting you', then I would think it's okay. To drop it on a city, and kill a hundred thousand people? Yeah. I think that's criminal." On April 30, Stewart apologized on his program, and stated he did not believe Truman was a war criminal: "I shouldn't have said that, and I did. So I say right now, no, I don't believe that to be the case. The atomic bomb, a very complicated decision in the context of a horrific war, and I walk that back because it was in my estimation a stupid thing to say."
In April 2010, Comedy Central renewed Stewart's contract to host The Daily Show into 2013. According to a Forbes list of celebrities in 2008, he was earning $14 million a year.
On September 16, 2010, Stewart and Stephen Colbert announced a rally for October 30, known as the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear. It took place on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. and attracted an estimated 215,000 participants. In December 2010, Stewart was credited by the White House, other media, and political news outlets for bringing awareness of the Republican filibuster on the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act to the public, leading to the ultimate passing of the bill that provides health benefits to first responders whose health has been adversely affected by their work at Ground Zero.
On the show of January 10, 2011, Stewart began with a monologue about the shootings in Tucson, Arizona. He said he wished the "ramblings of crazy people didn't in any way resemble how we actually talk to each other on television". Before a commercial break, Stewart told viewers that the show would continue as usual the next night. After the commercial break, the show featured a rerun of a field piece done by Jason Jones two years earlier.
The New York Times opined that Stewart is "the modern-day equivalent of Edward R. Murrow" and the UK national newspaper The Independent called him the "satirist-in-chief". In an interview, Senator John McCain described Stewart as "a modern-day Will Rogers and Mark Twain".
Writer Wyatt Cenac said that Stewart cursed him out after Cenac acknowledged he was uncomfortable about a June 2011 Daily Show bit about Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain (reported in July 2015).
In March 2013, it was announced that Stewart would be taking a 12-week hiatus from The Daily Show to direct the film Rosewater, which is based on the book Then They Came for Me by Maziar Bahari. Beginning June 10, 2013, The Daily Show correspondent John Oliver assumed primary hosting duties during Stewart's break. The TV Guide annual survey for 2013 star salaries showed that Stewart was the highest-paid late night host, making an estimated $25–30 million per year.
On July 14, 2014, Stewart interviewed Hillary Clinton about the Middle East. Clinton's condemnations of Hamas led Stewart to ask her: "But don't you think they would look at that though as, they've given a lot of different things a chance and these are the only guys to them that are giving any resistance to what their condition is?" For Gazans living in that situation, he said Hamas could be viewed as "freedom fighters".
Leaving The Daily Show
During a taping of the show on February 10, 2015, Stewart announced he was leaving The Daily Show. Comedy Central president Michele Ganeless confirmed Stewart's retirement with a statement. Later, it was announced that South African comedian Trevor Noah would succeed Stewart as the host of the show. On April 20, 2015, Stewart indicated that his final show would be on August 6, 2015.
On July 28, 2015, Darren Samuelsohn of Politico reported that twice, Stewart had been at the White House for previously unreported meetings with President Obama: once in October 2011 and once in February 2014. Michael D. Shear of The New York Times also picked up on the story. Stewart responded on his show by pointing out that the meetings were listed in the president's publicly available visitor log and that he has been asked to meet privately by many prominent individuals, including Roger Ailes of Fox News. He said Obama encouraged him not to make young Americans cynical about their government and Stewart said that his reply was that he was "skeptically idealistic".
On June 19, 2015, in the wake of the Charleston Church Shooting, Stewart decided not to write jokes for the opening monologue. Elaborating on his decision, Stewart stated, "I honestly have nothing other than just sadness". Stewart spoke about the racial disparity and injustices in America, saying "The Confederate flag flies over South Carolina ... and the roads are named for Confederate generals" describing it as "racial wallpaper". Instead he designated a large portion of the show to his guest that night Malala Yousafzai, calling her "an incredible inspiration," and that "to be quite honest with you, I don't think there's anyone else in the world I would rather talk to tonight than Malala: So that's what we're going to do. And sorry about no jokes."
On August 5, 2015, Stewart's friend of 30 years, comedian Louis C.K., was selected to be the last guest before the final Daily Show episode with Stewart helming the show. C.K. joked that he was there "representing comedy to say good job".
The hour-long-plus final Daily Show on August 6 featured reunions with former correspondents Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, John Oliver, Samantha Bee, Hasan Minhaj, Ed Helms, Kristen Schaal, Larry Wilmore, Jessica Williams, Aasif Mandvi, Lewis Black, John Hodgman, Rob Corddry, Olivia Munn, Josh Gad, Michael Che, and Mo Rocca and cameo video clips from people Stewart had targeted over the years, including Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Lindsey Graham, Chris Christie, John Kerry, Chuck Schumer, Bill O'Reilly, Wolf Blitzer, Joe Scarborough, and Mika Brzezinski. During the final episode, there was a pre-taped behind-the-scenes look at the show spoofing the long-take Copacabana scene from Goodfellas, featuring a brief appearance by Martin Scorsese. It concluded with a performance by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.
Post-Daily Show
In November 2015, it was announced that Stewart signed a four-year deal with HBO that would include exclusive digital content for HBO NOW, HBO Go, and other platforms. HBO programming president Casey Bloys has said that "the idea is it will be an animated parody of a cable news network with an Onion-like portal." The team began working with the cloud graphics company, OTOY, to build a system for creating content. Confirmed to be working on the project included Mike Brown, Steve Waltien, Chelsea Devantez, Lucy Steiner, Kate James, and Robby Slowik. The team tested material in Red Bank, New Jersey at The Count Basie Theatre Performing Arts Academy.
The show's premiere was moved several times, from fall 2016, to the first quarter of 2017, and then cancelled on May 23, 2017. The cancelation statement read:
After his contract with HBO ended, Stewart signed a multi-year show deal with Apple. On September 30, 2021, Stewart's new series, The Problem with Jon Stewart, premiered on AppleTV. The series features hour-long, single-subject episodes. In addition to hosting the show, Stewart serves as executive producer through his company, Busboy Productions.
Writing
In 1998, Stewart released his first book, Naked Pictures of Famous People, a collection of humorous short stories and essays. The book reached The New York Times Best Seller List.
In 2004, Stewart and The Daily Show writing staff released, America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, a mock high-school history textbook offering insights into the unique American system of government, dissecting its institutions, explaining its history and processes, and satirizing such popular American political precepts as, "one man, one vote", "government by the people", and "every vote counts". The book sold millions of copies upon its 2004 release and ended the year as a top-fifteen best seller.
In 2005, Stewart provided the voice of President James A. Garfield for the audiobook version of Sarah Vowell's Assassination Vacation. In 2007, Stewart voiced Mort Sinclaire, former TV comedy writer and communist, on Stephen Colbert's audiobook version of I Am America (And So Can You!).
In 2010, Stewart and The Daily Show writing staff released a sequel to their first book entitled, Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race. The book is meant to serve as a Baedeker travel guide for an alien civilization that discovers Earth after humanity has died out, most likely by its own hands.
In March 2012, Stewart interviewed Bruce Springsteen for Rolling Stone.
Acting
Stewart's first film role was a bit part in the box-office bomb, Mixed Nuts. He landed a minor part in The First Wives Club, but his scene was deleted. In 1995, Stewart signed a three-year deal with Miramax. Stewart played romantic leads in the films, Playing by Heart and Wishful Thinking. He had a supporting role in the romantic comedy, Since You've Been Gone and in the horror film, The Faculty. Other films were planned for Stewart to write and star in, but they never were produced. Stewart maintained a relationship with Miramax founders Harvey and Bob Weinstein and appeared in films they produced including, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Doogal, and the documentary, Wordplay.
He appeared in Half Baked as an "enhancement smoker" and in Big Daddy as Adam Sandler's roommate; he has joked on the Daily Show and in the documentary The Aristocrats that to get the role, he slept with Sandler. Stewart often makes fun of his appearances in the high-profile flop, Death to Smoochy, in which he played a treacherous television executive; and the animated film Doogal, where he played a blue spring named Zeebad who shot a freeze ray from his mustache. In 2007, Stewart made a cameo appearance as himself in Evan Almighty, which starred former Daily Show correspondent Steve Carell. In the movie, Stewart was seen on a television screen in a fictional Daily Show episode poking fun at Carell's character for building an ark.
Stewart had a recurring role in The Larry Sanders Show, playing himself as an occasional substitute and possible successor to late-night talk show host Larry Sanders (played by Garry Shandling). In 1998, Stewart hosted the television special, Elmopalooza, celebrating 30 years of Sesame Street. He has guest-starred on other sitcoms including The Nanny, Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist, Spin City, NewsRadio, American Dad!, and The Simpsons. He also has made guest appearances on the children's television series Between the Lions, Sesame Street, Jack's Big Music Show, and Gravity Falls.
Producing
In the mid-1990s, Stewart launched his own production company, Busboy Productions, naming the company in reference to his previous job as a busboy. Stewart signed a deal with Miramax to develop projects through his company, but none of his ideas have been produced. After Stewart's success as host and producer of The Daily Show, he revived Busboy Productions with Daily Show producers Ben Karlin and Rich Korson. In 2002, Busboy planned to produce a sitcom for NBC starring Stephen Colbert, but the show did not come to fruition.
In 2005, Comedy Central reached an agreement with Busboy in which Comedy Central would provide financial backing for the production company. Comedy Central has a first-look agreement on all projects, after which Busboy is free to shop them to other networks.
The deal spawned the Daily Show spin-off The Colbert Report and its replacement, The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore. Other projects include the sitcom pilot Three Strikes, the documentary Sportsfan, the series Important Things with Demetri Martin, and the film The Donor.
After Stewart's departure from The Daily Show, he was listed as an executive producer on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. In addition, Stewart has presented occasional comedic monologues filled with political and media commentary.
In July 2017, HBO announced Stewart would produce a stand-up comedy special for the network, his first stand-up special since 1996.
Directing
In March 2010, Stewart announced that he had optioned rights to the story of journalist Maziar Bahari, who was imprisoned in Iran for 118 days. On June 6, 2011, episode of The Daily Show, Stewart again hosted Bahari, and in March 2013, he announced that he was leaving the show for 12 weeks to direct the film version of Bahari's 2011 book, Then They Came For Me. Stewart's screenplay adaptation is entitled, Rosewater. It premiered at the September 2014 Toronto International Film Festival, receiving "generally favorable" reviews, and was released to general audiences on November 14, 2014.
On directing, Stewart noted on Employee of the Month that The Daily Show influenced his directing process more than his acting gigs did. He said, "It's about the collaboration. It's about understanding. Doing a show taught me this process of clarity of vision, but the flexibility of process. So know your intention, know where you're wanting to go with the scene with the way that you want it to go, the momentum shifts, the emphasis, where you want it to be." He also expressed interest in directing more films.
Stewart directed the political satire Irresistible, released in June 2020, which follows a demoralized Democratic strategist (played by Daily Show alumnus Steve Carell), who helps a retired veteran (Chris Cooper) run for mayor in a small, blue collar town in Wisconsin.
Hosting and public speaking
Stewart has hosted the Grammy Awards twice, in 2001 and in 2002, and the 78th Academy Awards, which were held March 5, 2006, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood. Critical response to Stewart's performance was mixed. Roger Ebert compared him favorably to legendary Oscar host Johnny Carson. Other reviewers were less positive; Tom Shales of The Washington Post said that Stewart hosted with "smug humorlessness". James Poniewozik of TIME said that Stewart was a bad host, but a great "anti-host" in that he poked fun at parts of the broadcast that deserved it, which lent him a degree of authenticity with the non-Hollywood audience. Stewart and correspondent John Oliver later poked fun at his lackluster reception on The Daily Show coverage of the 79th Academy Awards by saying that the "demon of last year's Oscars had finally been exorcised".
Stewart returned to host the 80th Academy Awards on February 24, 2008. The reception to his performance was better received. Matthew Gilbert of the Boston Globe felt the ceremony was average, but praised Stewart, writing that, "It was good to see Jon Stewart being Jon Stewart. He is shaping up to be a dependable Oscar host for the post-Billy Crystal years. He's not musical, but he's versatile enough to swing smoothly between jokes about politics, Hollywood, new media, and, most importantly, hair." Variety columnist Brian Lowry lauded Stewart's performance noting that he "earned his keep by maintaining a playful, irreverent tone throughout the night, whether it was jesting about Cate Blanchett's versatility or watching Lawrence of Arabia on an iPhone screen.
In December 2009, Stewart gave a speech at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts honoring Bruce Springsteen, one of that year's Kennedy Center Honors recipients, and of whom Stewart is a fan. Stewart gave another speech paying tribute to Springsteen in February 2013 as part of the singer's MusiCares Person of the Year award ceremony.
Stewart began a comedic feud with WWE wrestler Seth Rollins in March 2015, and appeared on WWE Raw during a Daily Show-styled segment hosted by Rollins. On August 23, 2015, Stewart returned to host the WWE's SummerSlam at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Later, he got involved in the main event between Rollins and John Cena, helping Rollins retain his WWE World Heavyweight Championship, as well as winning Cena's United States Championship when he interfered and hit Cena with a steel chair. The next night on Raw, he explained his actions, saying he did it for Ric Flair (who was also present), which was to retain his world championship record. Cena then gave Stewart his finishing move, the Attitude Adjustment, to end the segment. Stewart returned at SummerSlam on August 21, 2016, as a special guest.
In 2016, Stewart joined President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Jill Biden, and David Letterman in honoring military families on May 5 at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. The special celebration which marked both the USO's 75th anniversary and the fifth anniversary of Joining Forces.
Stewart got into a Twitter war with then-presidential candidate Donald Trump, who in multiple tweets stated that Stewart's changing his name indicated that he was a fraud. Stewart and some analysts considered this to be anti-Semitic. Trump then tweeted that Stewart should be "proud of his heritage", and Stewart tweeted back, facetiously, that Trump's real name was "Fuckface Von Clownstick" and that Trump should be proud of the "Clownstick heritage".
In June 2017, Stewart spoke at the funeral service for Ray Pfeifer, an FDNY firefighter from Hicksville, New York, who died after an eight-year battle with cancer as a result of service as a first responder at the September 11 attacks.
Criticism of television journalists
Stewart is known as an outspoken, humorous critic of personality-driven media shows, in particular, those of the U.S. media broadcast networks such as CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC. Critics say Stewart benefits from a double standard: he critiques other news shows from the safe, removed position of his "news satire" desk; Stewart asserts that neither his show nor Comedy Central purport to be anything other than satire and comedy.
Crossfire appearance
In a televised exchange with then-CNN correspondent Tucker Carlson on Crossfire on October 15, 2004, Stewart criticized the state of television journalism and pleaded with the show's hosts to "stop hurting America", and he referred to both Carlson and co-host Paul Begala as "partisan hacks". When posted on the internet, this exchange became widely viewed and was a topic of much media discussion.
Despite being on the program to comment on current events, Stewart immediately shifted the discussion toward the show itself, asserting that Crossfire had failed in its responsibility to inform and educate viewers about politics as a serious topic. Stewart stated that the show engaged in partisan hackery instead of honest debate, and said that the hosts' assertion that Crossfire is a debate show is like "saying pro wrestling is a show about athletic competition". Carlson responded by saying that Stewart criticizes news organizations for not holding public officials accountable, but when he interviewed John Kerry, Stewart asked a series of "softball" questions (Stewart has acknowledged he voted for Kerry in the 2004 presidential election). Stewart responded that he didn't realize "the news organizations look to Comedy Central for their cues on integrity". When Carlson continued to press Stewart on the Kerry issue, Stewart said, "You're on CNN! The show that leads into me is puppets making crank phone calls! What is wrong with you?" In response to prods from Carlson, "Come on. Be funny." Stewart said, "No, I'm not going to be your monkey." Later in the show when Carlson jibed, "I do think you're more fun on your show", Stewart retorted, "You're as big a dick on your show as you are on any show." In response to Stewart's criticisms, Carlson said, "You need to get a job at a journalism school", to which Stewart responded, "You need to go to one!"
Stewart discussed the incident on The Daily Show the following Monday:
In January 2005, CNN announced that it was canceling Crossfire. When asked about the cancellation, CNN's incoming president, Jonathan Klein, referred to Stewart's appearance on the show: "I think he made a good point about the noise level of these types of shows, which does nothing to illuminate the issues of the day."
On March 18, 2009, Carlson wrote a blog entry for The Daily Beast criticizing Stewart for his handling of the CNBC controversy (see below). Carlson discussed the CNN incident and claimed that Stewart remained backstage for at least "an hour" and "continued to lecture our staff", something Carlson described as, "one of the weirdest things I have ever seen".
Criticism of CNBC
Stewart again became a viral internet phenomenon following a March 4, 2009, The Daily Show sequence. CNBC canceled Rick Santelli's scheduled appearance on The Daily Show that day, so the show ran a short segment showing CNBC giving poor investment advice.
Subsequent media coverage of exchanges between Stewart and Jim Cramer, who had been featured heavily in the original segment, led to a highly anticipated face-to-face confrontation on The Daily Show. The episode received much media attention and became the second most-viewed episode of The Daily Show, trailing only the 2009 Inauguration Day episode. It had 2.3 million total viewers, and the next day, the show's website saw its highest day of traffic in 2009. Although Cramer acknowledged on the show that some of Stewart's criticisms of CNBC were valid and that the network could "do better", he later said on The Today Show that Stewart's criticism of the media was "naïve and misleading."
Criticism of Fox News
Throughout his tenure on The Daily Show, Stewart frequently accused Fox News of distorting the news to fit a conservative agenda, at one point ridiculing the network as "the meanest sorority in the world". In November 2009, Stewart "called out" Fox News for using some footage from a previous Tea Party rally during a report on a more recent rally, making the latter event appear more highly attended than it was. The show's anchor, Sean Hannity, apologized for the footage use the following night. A month later, Stewart criticized Fox & Friends cohost Gretchen Carlson – a former Miss America and a Stanford graduate – for claiming that she googled words such as "ignoramus" and "czar". Stewart said that Carlson was dumbing herself down for "an audience who sees intellect as an elitist flaw".
Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010; within five months, The Daily Show had 24 segments criticizing the Fox News coverage. Bill O'Reilly, host of the talk show The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News, countered that The Daily Show was a "key component of left-wing television" and that Stewart loved Fox News because the network was "not boring".
During an interview with Chris Wallace on June 19, 2011, Stewart called Wallace "insane" for saying that Stewart's earlier comparison of the marketing techniques of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment. Stewart also said Fox viewers are the "most consistently misinformed" viewers of political media. This comment was ranked by the fact-checking site, PolitiFact, as false, with conditions. Stewart later accepted his error.
In 2014, Stewart engaged in an extended "call-out" of Fox News, based on their coverage of food stamps and U.S. government assistance, opining that said coverage was biased. This culminated in segments across multiple episodes, specifically singling out Sean Hannity and his show's coverage of the Bundy standoff. Hannity would "return fire" by calling out Stewart for associating himself with Cat Stevens during his Rally in 2010. Stewart responded to this by criticizing Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a "friend and frequent guest" on his program and supporting Nugent's violent rhetoric toward Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2007. In late August 2014, Stewart criticized the manner in which Fox News portrayed the events surrounding the shooting of teenager Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri, and the subsequent protests from citizens.
Advocacy of the 9/11 First Responders Bill
Over the years, Stewart sometimes used The Daily Show to argue for causes such as the treatment of veterans and 9/11 first responders. He is credited with breaking a Senate deadlock over a bill to provide health care and benefits for 9/11 emergency workers; the bill passed three days after he featured a group of 9/11 responders on the show. In March 2009, he criticized a White House proposal to remove veterans from Veterans Administration rolls if they had private health insurance; the White House dropped the plan the next day. In 2010, Stewart held an interview with a panel of four of the 9/11 first responders Kenny Specht with the FDNY, Chris Bowman NYPD, Ken George DOT, and Kevin Devlin, Operating Engineer of Heavy Equipment, who discussed their health problems with Stewart. In 2015 four months after leaving The Daily Show he returned to reunite the four, with Specht as the only panelist healthy enough to attend. Devlin had died and the two other panelists, Bowman and George, were too ill to make it to the show.
In February and June 2019, Stewart again went to Congress to oppose the $7.375 billion limit in pay-outs to 9/11 responders through December 2020 and to lobby for permanent funding for the Victims Compensation Fund past December 2020, delivering a tearful testimony.
Stewart continued to be a vocal advocate, appearing on late night shows such as The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, and news programs such as Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace, and The Fox Report with Shepherd Smith. On July 12, 2019, the House approved the bill overwhelmingly 402–12. The bill came to the Senate floor where it passed the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund through 2092, virtually funding health care for 9/11 victims and first responders for life. The vote was 97–2 with Republican Senators Rand Paul (KY) and Mike Lee (UT) opposing. When hearing that the bill had been passed, Stewart responded by saying, "It has been the honor of my life working with the 9/11 first responders...these families deserve better...and I will follow you wherever your next adventure shall be".
Writers Guild of America strike of 2007–2008
Stewart was an important factor in the unionization of the Comedy Central writers. The Daily Show writers were the first of Comedy Central's writers to be able to join the guild, after which other shows followed.
Stewart supported the 2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike. On The Daily Show episode just before the strike, he sarcastically commented about how Comedy Central had made available all episodes for free on their website, but without advertising, and said, "go support our advertisers". The show went on hiatus when the strike began, as did other late-night talk shows. Upon Stewart's return to the show on January 7, 2008, he refused to use the title, The Daily Show, stating that The Daily Show was the show made with all of the people responsible for the broadcast, including his writers. During the strike, he referred to his show as A Daily Show with Jon Stewart until the strike ended on February 13, 2008.
Stewart's choice to return to the air did bring criticism that he was undermining the writers of his show. Seth MacFarlane wrote an inside joke into an episode of Family Guy about this, causing Stewart to respond with an hour-long call in which he questioned how MacFarlane could consider himself the "moral arbiter" of Hollywood. Other former writers of The Daily Show such as David Feldman also have indicated that Stewart was anti-union at the time and punished his writers for their decision to unionize.
The Writers Guild Strike of 2007–08 also was responsible for a notable mock feud between Stewart, Stephen Colbert, and Conan O'Brien in early 2008. Without writers to help fuel their banter, the three comedians concocted a crossover/rivalry to garner more viewers during the ratings slump. Colbert claimed that because of "the Colbert bump", he was responsible for Mike Huckabee's success in the 2008 presidential race. O'Brien claimed that he was responsible for Huckabee's success because not only had he mentioned Huckabee on his show, but also that he was responsible for Chuck Norris's success (Norris backed Huckabee). In response, Stewart claimed that he was responsible for the success of O'Brien since Stewart had featured him on The Jon Stewart Show, and in turn, the success of Huckabee. This resulted in a three-part comedic battle between the three pundits, with all three appearing on each other's shows. The feud ended on Late Night with Conan O'Brien with a mock brawl involving the three hosts.
Influences
Stewart has said his influences include George Carlin, Lenny Bruce, Woody Allen, David Letterman, Steve Martin, and Richard Pryor.
Among comedians who say they were influenced by Stewart are Stephen Colbert, John Oliver, Hasan Minhaj, Samantha Bee, Larry Wilmore, Bassem Youssef, Trevor Noah, and Jordan Klepper.
Personal life
Stewart is irreligious, but of Jewish heritage.
While making the 1997 film, Wishful Thinking, a production assistant on the film arranged for a blind date between Stewart and Tracey Lynn McShane. They dated for four years. Stewart proposed to her through a personalized crossword puzzle created with the help of Will Shortz, the crossword editor at The New York Times. They married in 2000. On June 19, 2001, Stewart and his wife filed a joint name change application and legally changed both of their surnames to "Stewart". With the help of in vitro fertilization, the couple has two children.
In 2000, when he was labelled a Democrat, Stewart generally agreed, but described his political affiliation as "more socialist or independent" than Democratic, and Stewart has voted for Republicans, the last time being in the 1988 presidential election when he voted for George H. W. Bush over Michael Dukakis. He described Bush as having "an integrity about him that I respected greatly". He has been a vocal proponent of single-payer health care system.
In 2013, Stewart and his wife bought a farm in Middletown, New Jersey, called "Bufflehead Farm". The Stewarts operate it as a sanctuary for abused animals.
In 2015, Stewart began eating a vegetarian diet for ethical reasons; his wife is a long-time vegan.
In 2017, Stewart and his wife received approval to open a 45-acre (18 ha) animal sanctuary in Colts Neck, New Jersey, a home to animals saved from slaughterhouses and live markets.
Honors and awards
Stewart and other members of The Daily Show have received three Peabody Awards for "Indecision 2000" and "Indecision 2004", covering the 2000 presidential election and the 2004 presidential election, respectively. He received his third Peabody in 2016 for his tenure at The Daily Show.
The Daily Show received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Program in 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2015 and Outstanding Variety, Music, or Comedy Series for 10 consecutive years from 2003 to 2012. In 2013, the award for both categories instead went to The Daily Show spin-off The Colbert Report. In 2015, The Daily Show resurfaced, winning both categories for one last time for Stewart's swan song as host. Stewart won the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album in 2005 for his recording, America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction.
In the December 2003 New Year's edition of Newsweek, Stewart was named the "Who's Next?" person for 2004, with the magazine predicting that he would emerge as an absolute sensation in that year. (The magazine said they had been correct at the end of that year.) Stewart was named among the 2005 Time 100, an annual list of 100 of the most influential people of the year by Time magazine.
In 2004, Stewart spoke at the commencement ceremonies at his alma mater, William and Mary, and received an honorary Doctor of Arts degree. Stewart was the Class Day keynote speaker at Princeton University in 2004, and the 2008 Sacerdote Great Names speaker at Hamilton College. Stewart and The Daily Show received the 2005 National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) George Orwell Award for Distinguished Contribution to Honesty and Clarity in Public Language. Stewart was presented an Honorary All-America Award by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) in 2006.
On April 21, 2009, President of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf made Stewart a chief. On October 26, 2010, Stewart was named the Most Influential Man of 2010 by AskMen.
For his advocacy on behalf of 9/11 victims and families, Stewart was one of eighteen individuals and organizations awarded the Bronze Medallion on December 16, 2019. The Bronze Medallion is the highest award conferred upon civilians by New York City.
Filmography
Film
Television
Bibliography
Naked Pictures of Famous People (Rob Weisbach Books, 1998). .
America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction (Warner Books, September 2004). .
Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race (Grand Central Publishing, 2010). .
See also
New Yorkers in journalism
Political satire
References
Further reading
David Marchese, "Jon Stewart Is Back to Weigh In", The New York Times Magazine, June 15, 2020.
Lisa Rogak, Angry Optimist: The Life and Times of Jon Stewart. New York: Saint Martin's Griffin, 2014. .
Bruce Watson, Jon Stewart: Beyond the Moments of Zen. New Word City, 2014.
External links
The Daily Show profile
1962 births
20th-century American comedians
21st-century American comedians
20th-century American male actors
20th-century American non-fiction writers
21st-century American male actors
21st-century American non-fiction writers
American film producers
American male comedians
American male film actors
American male non-fiction writers
American male television actors
American media critics
American people of Belarusian-Jewish descent
American people of Polish-Jewish descent
American people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent
American political commentators
American satirists
American male screenwriters
American religious skeptics
American social commentators
American stand-up comedians
American television talk show hosts
American television writers
Association footballers not categorized by position
Comedians from New York City
Criticism of journalism
Film directors from New Jersey
Film directors from New York City
Grammy Award winners
Jewish American male comedians
Jewish American male actors
Jewish American writers
Jewish male comedians
Late night television talk show hosts
Lawrence High School (New Jersey) alumni
Living people
Male actors from New Jersey
Male actors from New York City
New Jersey Hall of Fame inductees
American male television writers
Peabody Award winners
People from Lawrence Township, Mercer County, New Jersey
Primetime Emmy Award winners
Screenwriters from New York (state)
Television producers from New York City
William & Mary Tribe men's soccer players
Writers from New Jersey
Writers from New York City
20th-century American male writers
21st-century American male writers
Television producers from New Jersey
Association football players not categorized by nationality | true | [
"Přírodní park Třebíčsko (before Oblast klidu Třebíčsko) is a natural park near Třebíč in the Czech Republic. There are many interesting plants. The park was founded in 1983.\n\nKobylinec and Ptáčovský kopeček\n\nKobylinec is a natural monument situated ca 0,5 km from the village of Trnava.\nThe area of this monument is 0,44 ha. Pulsatilla grandis can be found here and in the Ptáčovský kopeček park near Ptáčov near Třebíč. Both monuments are very popular for tourists.\n\nPonds\n\nIn the natural park there are some interesting ponds such as Velký Bor, Malý Bor, Buršík near Přeckov and a brook Březinka. Dams on the brook are examples of European beaver activity.\n\nSyenitové skály near Pocoucov\n\nSyenitové skály (rocks of syenit) near Pocoucov is one of famed locations. There are interesting granite boulders. The area of the reservation is 0,77 ha.\n\nExternal links\nParts of this article or all article was translated from Czech. The original article is :cs:Přírodní park Třebíčsko.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nNature near the village Trnava which is there\n\nTřebíč\nParks in the Czech Republic\nTourist attractions in the Vysočina Region",
"Damn Interesting is an independent website founded by Alan Bellows in 2005. The website presents true stories from science, history, and psychology, primarily as long-form articles, often illustrated with original artwork. Works are written by various authors, and published at irregular intervals. The website openly rejects advertising, relying on reader and listener donations to cover operating costs.\n\nAs of October 2012, each article is also published as a podcast under the same name. In November 2019, a second podcast was launched under the title Damn Interesting Week, featuring unscripted commentary on an assortment of news articles featured on the website's \"Curated Links\" section that week. In mid-2020, a third podcast called Damn Interesting Curio Cabinet began highlighting the website's periodic short-form articles in the same radioplay format as the original podcast.\n\nIn July 2009, Damn Interesting published the print book Alien Hand Syndrome through Workman Publishing. It contains some favorites from the site and some exclusive content.\n\nAwards and recognition \nIn August 2007, PC Magazine named Damn Interesting one of the \"Top 100 Undiscovered Web Sites\".\nThe article \"The Zero-Armed Bandit\" by Alan Bellows won a 2015 Sidney Award from David Brooks in The New York Times.\nThe article \"Ghoulish Acts and Dastardly Deeds\" by Alan Bellows was cited as \"nonfiction journalism from 2017 that will stand the test of time\" by Conor Friedersdorf in The Atlantic.\nThe article \"Dupes and Duplicity\" by Jennifer Lee Noonan won a 2020 Sidney Award from David Brooks in the New York Times.\n\nAccusing The Dollop of plagiarism \n\nOn July 9, 2015, Bellows posted an open letter accusing The Dollop, a comedy podcast about history, of plagiarism due to their repeated use of verbatim text from Damn Interesting articles without permission or attribution. Dave Anthony, the writer of The Dollop, responded on reddit, admitting to using Damn Interesting content, but claiming that the use was protected by fair use, and that \"historical facts are not copyrightable.\" In an article about the controversy on Plagiarism Today, Jonathan Bailey concluded, \"Any way one looks at it, The Dollop failed its ethical obligations to all of the people, not just those writing for Damn Interesting, who put in the time, energy and expertise into writing the original content upon which their show is based.\"\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Official website\n\n2005 podcast debuts"
] |
[
"Jon Stewart",
"Criticism of Fox News",
"What was his criticisms of fox news?",
"based on their perceived hypocritical coverage of food stamps and U.S. Government assistance.",
"did he have any problems with them?",
"Hannity would \"return fire\" by calling out Stewart",
"what happened after that?",
"2010. Stewart responded to this by calling out Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a \"friend and frequent guest\"",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010;"
] | C_786034d9487f49daa667e68a1af6e708_1 | how did he step it up? | 5 | how did Jon Stewart step up Jon Stewart's criticism of Fox News in 2010? | Jon Stewart | Throughout his tenure on The Daily Show, Stewart has frequently accused Fox News of distorting the news to fit a conservative agenda, at one point ridiculing the network as "the meanest sorority in the world." In November 2009, Stewart called out Fox News for using some footage from a previous Tea Party rally during a report on a more recent rally, making the latter event appear more highly attended than it actually was. The show's anchor, Sean Hannity, apologized for the footage use the following night. A month later, Stewart criticized Fox & Friends cohost Gretchen Carlson - a former Miss America and a Stanford graduate - for claiming that she googled words such as "ignoramus" and "czar". Stewart said that Carlson was dumbing herself down for "an audience who sees intellect as an elitist flaw". Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010; as of April 24, The Daily Show had 24 segments criticizing Fox News' coverage. Bill O'Reilly, host of the talk show The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News, countered that The Daily Show was a "key component of left-wing television" and that Stewart loved Fox News because the network was "not boring". During an interview with Chris Wallace on June 19, 2011, Stewart called Wallace "insane" after Wallace said that Stewart's earlier comparison of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment. Stewart also said Fox viewers are the "most consistently misinformed" viewers of political media. This comment was ranked by fact-checking site PolitiFact as false, with conditions. Stewart later accepted his error. In 2014, Stewart engaged in an extended "call-out" of Fox News based on their perceived hypocritical coverage of food stamps and U.S. Government assistance. This culminated during the Bundy standoff involving multiple segments, across multiple episodes, specifically singling out Sean Hannity and Hannity's coverage of the event. Hannity would "return fire" by calling out Stewart for associating himself with Cat Stevens during his Rally in 2010. Stewart responded to this by calling out Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a "friend and frequent guest" on his program and supporting Nugent's violent rhetoric towards Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2007. In late August 2014, Stewart vehemently opposed the manner in which Fox News portrayed the events surrounding the shooting of teenager Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri and the subsequent protests from citizens. CANNOTANSWER | Stewart called Wallace "insane" after Wallace said that Stewart's earlier comparison of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment. | Jon Stewart (born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz; November 28, 1962) is an American comedian, writer, producer, director, political commentator, actor, and television host. He hosted The Daily Show, a satirical news program on Comedy Central, from 1999 to 2015. Stewart now hosts The Problem with Jon Stewart, which premiered September 2021 on Apple TV+.
Stewart started as a stand-up comedian but branched into television as host of Short Attention Span Theater for Comedy Central. He went on to host You Wrote It, You Watch It (1992–1993) and then The Jon Stewart Show (1993–1995), both on MTV, until The Jon Stewart Show was retooled, dropped by the network and moved to syndication. Stewart has also appeared in several films, including Big Daddy (1999) and Death to Smoochy (2002), but did few cinematic projects after becoming host of The Daily Show in 1999. He also was a writer and co-executive producer of the show. After Stewart joined, The Daily Show steadily gained popularity and critical acclaim, and during his tenure, won 22 Primetime Emmy Awards, two Grammy Awards and also was nominated for news and journalism awards. Stewart hosted the 78th and 80th Academy Awards. He is the co-author of America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, which was one of the best-selling books in the US in 2004, and Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race, released in 2010.
Since leaving The Daily Show, Stewart has mostly maintained a low profile in entertainment industry circles, but has used his celebrity and voice in a sustained advocacy for 9/11 first responders, and also for war veterans' health benefits. In 2019 he received the New York City Bronze Medallion for his "tireless advocacy, inspiration, and leadership (helping to) pass the permanent authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund Act".
Early life and education
Jon Stewart was born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz on November 28, 1962, in New York City, to Marian (née Laskin), a teacher and later educational consultant, and Donald Leibowitz, an energy coordinator for the New Jersey Department of the Treasury. Stewart's family members are Jewish immigrants to America from Poland, Ukraine, and Belarus. One of his grandfathers was born in Manzhouli (now part of Inner Mongolia). He is the second of four sons, with older brother Lawrence, and younger brothers Dan and Matthew.
Stewart's parents divorced when he was eleven years old, and Stewart was largely estranged from his father. Because of his strained relationship with his father, which in 2015 he described as "still 'complicated'", he dropped his surname and began using his middle name. Stewart stated, "There was a thought of using my mother's maiden name, but I thought that would be just too big a fuck you to my dad... Did I have some problems with my father? Yes. Yet people always view [changing my surname] through the prism of ethnic identity." He had his surname changed legally to Stewart in 2001. Stewart and his brother Lawrence, who was previously the chief operating officer of NYSE Euronext (parent company of the New York Stock Exchange), grew up in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, where they attended Lawrence High School. According to Stewart, he was subjected to anti-Semitic bullying as a child. He describes himself in high school as "very into Eugene Debs and a bit of a leftist."
Stewart grew up in the era of the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal, which inspired in him "a healthy skepticism towards official reports". His first job was working with his brother at a Woolworth's store, and jokingly says being fired by Lawrence was one of the "scarring events" of his youth. He has also credited legendary television producer Norman Lear as someone who "raised me."
Stewart graduated in 1984 from The College of William & Mary where he initially majored in chemistry before switching to psychology. While at William & Mary, Stewart became a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity, but eventually began disassociating himself from them; leaving the fraternity altogether after six months. "My college career was waking up late, memorizing someone else's notes, doing bong hits, and going to soccer practice", he later said. He was a three-year starter in 1981, 1982 and 1983 with the Tribe men's soccer team. He had 10 goals and 12 assists on a squad that went 40–15–9 (.695) in his three seasons with the program. He is listed as Jon Leibowitz in official William & Mary Athletics records. The former head coach of the Tribe men's soccer team from 1971 to 2003, Al Albert, describes Jon as "athletic and feisty and quick" and added that he "wasn't the most technical or clinical player, but he could make things happen."
After college, Stewart held numerous jobs: a contingency planner for the New Jersey Department of Human Services, a contract administrator for the City University of New York, a puppeteer for children with disabilities, a soccer coach at Gloucester High School in Virginia, a caterer, a busboy, a shelf stocker at Woolworth's, a bartender at the Franklin Corner Tavern (a local blue-collar bar), and a bartender at the legendary City Gardens in Trenton, New Jersey. He has said that working at City Gardens was a pivotal moment for him: "finding this place City Gardens was like, 'Oh, maybe I'm not a giant weirdo. Maybe there are other people who have a similar sense of yearning for something other than what they have now.' I think it inspired a lot of people, man. It was a very creative environment. It was a place of great possibility."
Career
Early work
With a reputation for being a funny man in school, Jon Stewart returned to New York City in 1986 to try his hand at the comedy club circuit, but he could not muster the courage to get on stage until the following year. He made his stand-up debut at The Bitter End, where one of his comedic idols, Woody Allen, also began. He began using the stage name "Jon Stewart" by dropping his last name and changing the spelling of his middle name "Stuart" to "Stewart". He often jokes this is because people had difficulty with the pronunciation of Leibowitz or it "sounded too Hollywood" (a reference to Lenny Bruce's joke on the same theme). He has implied that the name change was due to a strained relationship with his father, with whom Stewart no longer had any contact.
Stewart became a regular at the Comedy Cellar, where he was the last performer every night. For two years, he would perform at 2 a.m. while developing his comedic style. In 1989, Stewart landed his first television job as a writer for Caroline's Comedy Hour. In 1990, he began co-hosting Comedy Central's Short Attention Span Theater, with Patty Rosborough. In 1992, Stewart hosted the short-lived You Wrote It, You Watch It on MTV, which invited viewers to send in their stories to be acted out by the comedy troupe, The State.
Stewart relates that his career did not take off until his March 6, 1992, appearance on NBC's Late Night with David Letterman. He was considered a finalist to take over Letterman's position upon his departure from the program, but instead, it was given to relatively unknown Conan O'Brien. He co-hosted MTV Spring Break '93 Blind Date from Daytona Beach with Melissa Rivers.
The Jon Stewart Show
Later in 1993, Stewart developed The Jon Stewart Show, a talk show on MTV, which was later dropped by the network and was syndicated for its last two years. The Jon Stewart Show was the first talk show on that network and was an instant hit, becoming the second-highest rated MTV show, behind Beavis and Butt-Head. In 1994, Paramount canceled The Arsenio Hall Show and, with new corporate sibling MTV (through MTV parent Viacom's acquisition of the studio), launched an hour-long syndicated late-night version of The Jon Stewart Show. Many local affiliates had moved Hall's show to 2 a.m. during its decline and Stewart's show inherited such early morning time slots in many cities. Ratings were dismal and the show was canceled in June 1995.
Among the fans of the show was David Letterman, who was the final guest of The Jon Stewart Show. Letterman signed Stewart with his production company, Worldwide Pants. Stewart then became a frequent guest host for Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show with Tom Snyder, which was produced by Letterman and aired after the Late Show on CBS. This led to much speculation that Stewart would soon replace Snyder permanently, but instead, Stewart was offered the time slot after Snyder's, which he turned down.
In 1996 Stewart hosted a short-lived talk show entitled, Where's Elvis This Week?, that was a half-hour, weekly comedy television program. It aired on Sunday nights in the United Kingdom on BBC Two. It was filmed at the CBS Broadcast Center in New York City and featured a set of panelists, two from the UK and two from the United States, who discussed news items and cultural issues. The show premiered in the UK on October 6, 1996; five episodes aired in total. Notable panelists included Dave Chappelle, Eddie Izzard, Phill Jupitus, Nora Ephron, Craig Kilborn, Christopher Hitchens, Armando Iannucci, Norm Macdonald, and Helen Gurley Brown. In 1997, Stewart was chosen as the host and interviewer for George Carlin's tenth HBO special, 40 Years of Comedy.
The Daily Show
In 1998, when Craig Kilborn left the show to replace Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show, Stewart began hosting The Daily Show on Comedy Central. The Daily Show blends humor with the day's top news stories, usually in politics, while simultaneously poking fun at politicians, newsmakers, and the news media. In an interview on The O'Reilly Factor, Stewart denied the show has any intentional political agenda, saying the goal was "schnicks and giggles" and that "[t]he same weakness that drove me into comedy also informs my show", meaning that he was uncomfortable talking without hearing the audience laugh. In his first Daily Show on-air appearance on January 11, 1999, Stewart told his guest that evening, Michael J. Fox, that he felt as if "this is my bar mitzvah". His style was described by one critic as, "Stewart does not offer us cynicism for its own sake, but as a playful way to offer the kinds of insights that are not permitted in more serious news formats that slavishly cling to official account of events."
Until Trevor Noah permanently took over the show in 2015, Stewart hosted almost all airings of the program, except for a few occasions when correspondents such as Stephen Colbert, Rob Corddry, Jason Jones, and Steve Carell subbed for him, and during John Oliver's stint as host during the summer of 2013. Stewart won twenty Primetime Emmy Awards for The Daily Show as either a writer or producer, and two for producing The Colbert Report (2013–14), earning a total of twenty-two Primetime Emmy Awards, the most wins for a male individual. In 2005, Stewart and The Daily Show received the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album for the audiobook edition of America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction. In 2000 and 2004, the show won two Peabody Awards for its coverage of the U.S. presidential elections in those years, called "Indecision 2000" and "Indecision 2004", respectively.
The show of September 20, 2001, the first show after the attacks of September 11th, 2001, began with no introduction. Before this, the introduction included footage of a fly-in toward the World Trade Center and New York City. The first nine minutes of the show included a tearful Stewart discussing his personal view on the event. His remarks ended as follows:
In mid-2002, amid rumors that David Letterman was going to switch from CBS to ABC when his contract ran out, Stewart was rumored as Letterman's replacement on CBS. Ultimately, Letterman renewed his contract with CBS. On the March 9, 2002, episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by Stewart, a Weekend Update sketch poked fun at the situation.
In late 2002, ABC offered Stewart his own talk show to air right after Nightline. Stewart's contract with The Daily Show was near expiring, and he expressed strong interest. ABC, however, decided to give another Comedy Central figure, Jimmy Kimmel, the post-Nightline slot.
On April 4, 2006, Stewart confronted U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) on The Daily Show about his decision to appear at Liberty University, an institution founded by Jerry Falwell whom McCain previously had denounced as one of the "agents of intolerance". In the interchange, Stewart asked McCain, "You're not freaking out on us? Are you freaking out on us, because if you're freaking out ... and you're going into the crazy base world—are you going into crazy base world?" McCain replied, "Just– just– just a little" and "I'm afraid so." The clip was played on CNN, was noted and discussed in more detail in the blogosphere and was followed up on in the mainstream media.
In 2007, The Daily Show was involved in former correspondent Stephen Colbert's announcement that he would run for president in 2008. In 2008, Stewart appeared on the news program Democracy Now!. A 2008 New York Times story questioned whether he was, in a phrase originally used to describe longtime network news anchor Walter Cronkite, "the most trusted man in America".
On April 28, 2009, during a discussion on torture with Clifford May, Stewart expressed his opinion that former President Harry S. Truman was a war criminal for his use of the atomic bomb on Japan during World War II. He defended his assertion moments later:
"Here's what I think of the atom bombs. I think if you dropped an atom bomb fifteen miles offshore and you said, 'The next one's coming and hitting you', then I would think it's okay. To drop it on a city, and kill a hundred thousand people? Yeah. I think that's criminal." On April 30, Stewart apologized on his program, and stated he did not believe Truman was a war criminal: "I shouldn't have said that, and I did. So I say right now, no, I don't believe that to be the case. The atomic bomb, a very complicated decision in the context of a horrific war, and I walk that back because it was in my estimation a stupid thing to say."
In April 2010, Comedy Central renewed Stewart's contract to host The Daily Show into 2013. According to a Forbes list of celebrities in 2008, he was earning $14 million a year.
On September 16, 2010, Stewart and Stephen Colbert announced a rally for October 30, known as the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear. It took place on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. and attracted an estimated 215,000 participants. In December 2010, Stewart was credited by the White House, other media, and political news outlets for bringing awareness of the Republican filibuster on the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act to the public, leading to the ultimate passing of the bill that provides health benefits to first responders whose health has been adversely affected by their work at Ground Zero.
On the show of January 10, 2011, Stewart began with a monologue about the shootings in Tucson, Arizona. He said he wished the "ramblings of crazy people didn't in any way resemble how we actually talk to each other on television". Before a commercial break, Stewart told viewers that the show would continue as usual the next night. After the commercial break, the show featured a rerun of a field piece done by Jason Jones two years earlier.
The New York Times opined that Stewart is "the modern-day equivalent of Edward R. Murrow" and the UK national newspaper The Independent called him the "satirist-in-chief". In an interview, Senator John McCain described Stewart as "a modern-day Will Rogers and Mark Twain".
Writer Wyatt Cenac said that Stewart cursed him out after Cenac acknowledged he was uncomfortable about a June 2011 Daily Show bit about Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain (reported in July 2015).
In March 2013, it was announced that Stewart would be taking a 12-week hiatus from The Daily Show to direct the film Rosewater, which is based on the book Then They Came for Me by Maziar Bahari. Beginning June 10, 2013, The Daily Show correspondent John Oliver assumed primary hosting duties during Stewart's break. The TV Guide annual survey for 2013 star salaries showed that Stewart was the highest-paid late night host, making an estimated $25–30 million per year.
On July 14, 2014, Stewart interviewed Hillary Clinton about the Middle East. Clinton's condemnations of Hamas led Stewart to ask her: "But don't you think they would look at that though as, they've given a lot of different things a chance and these are the only guys to them that are giving any resistance to what their condition is?" For Gazans living in that situation, he said Hamas could be viewed as "freedom fighters".
Leaving The Daily Show
During a taping of the show on February 10, 2015, Stewart announced he was leaving The Daily Show. Comedy Central president Michele Ganeless confirmed Stewart's retirement with a statement. Later, it was announced that South African comedian Trevor Noah would succeed Stewart as the host of the show. On April 20, 2015, Stewart indicated that his final show would be on August 6, 2015.
On July 28, 2015, Darren Samuelsohn of Politico reported that twice, Stewart had been at the White House for previously unreported meetings with President Obama: once in October 2011 and once in February 2014. Michael D. Shear of The New York Times also picked up on the story. Stewart responded on his show by pointing out that the meetings were listed in the president's publicly available visitor log and that he has been asked to meet privately by many prominent individuals, including Roger Ailes of Fox News. He said Obama encouraged him not to make young Americans cynical about their government and Stewart said that his reply was that he was "skeptically idealistic".
On June 19, 2015, in the wake of the Charleston Church Shooting, Stewart decided not to write jokes for the opening monologue. Elaborating on his decision, Stewart stated, "I honestly have nothing other than just sadness". Stewart spoke about the racial disparity and injustices in America, saying "The Confederate flag flies over South Carolina ... and the roads are named for Confederate generals" describing it as "racial wallpaper". Instead he designated a large portion of the show to his guest that night Malala Yousafzai, calling her "an incredible inspiration," and that "to be quite honest with you, I don't think there's anyone else in the world I would rather talk to tonight than Malala: So that's what we're going to do. And sorry about no jokes."
On August 5, 2015, Stewart's friend of 30 years, comedian Louis C.K., was selected to be the last guest before the final Daily Show episode with Stewart helming the show. C.K. joked that he was there "representing comedy to say good job".
The hour-long-plus final Daily Show on August 6 featured reunions with former correspondents Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, John Oliver, Samantha Bee, Hasan Minhaj, Ed Helms, Kristen Schaal, Larry Wilmore, Jessica Williams, Aasif Mandvi, Lewis Black, John Hodgman, Rob Corddry, Olivia Munn, Josh Gad, Michael Che, and Mo Rocca and cameo video clips from people Stewart had targeted over the years, including Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Lindsey Graham, Chris Christie, John Kerry, Chuck Schumer, Bill O'Reilly, Wolf Blitzer, Joe Scarborough, and Mika Brzezinski. During the final episode, there was a pre-taped behind-the-scenes look at the show spoofing the long-take Copacabana scene from Goodfellas, featuring a brief appearance by Martin Scorsese. It concluded with a performance by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.
Post-Daily Show
In November 2015, it was announced that Stewart signed a four-year deal with HBO that would include exclusive digital content for HBO NOW, HBO Go, and other platforms. HBO programming president Casey Bloys has said that "the idea is it will be an animated parody of a cable news network with an Onion-like portal." The team began working with the cloud graphics company, OTOY, to build a system for creating content. Confirmed to be working on the project included Mike Brown, Steve Waltien, Chelsea Devantez, Lucy Steiner, Kate James, and Robby Slowik. The team tested material in Red Bank, New Jersey at The Count Basie Theatre Performing Arts Academy.
The show's premiere was moved several times, from fall 2016, to the first quarter of 2017, and then cancelled on May 23, 2017. The cancelation statement read:
After his contract with HBO ended, Stewart signed a multi-year show deal with Apple. On September 30, 2021, Stewart's new series, The Problem with Jon Stewart, premiered on AppleTV. The series features hour-long, single-subject episodes. In addition to hosting the show, Stewart serves as executive producer through his company, Busboy Productions.
Writing
In 1998, Stewart released his first book, Naked Pictures of Famous People, a collection of humorous short stories and essays. The book reached The New York Times Best Seller List.
In 2004, Stewart and The Daily Show writing staff released, America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, a mock high-school history textbook offering insights into the unique American system of government, dissecting its institutions, explaining its history and processes, and satirizing such popular American political precepts as, "one man, one vote", "government by the people", and "every vote counts". The book sold millions of copies upon its 2004 release and ended the year as a top-fifteen best seller.
In 2005, Stewart provided the voice of President James A. Garfield for the audiobook version of Sarah Vowell's Assassination Vacation. In 2007, Stewart voiced Mort Sinclaire, former TV comedy writer and communist, on Stephen Colbert's audiobook version of I Am America (And So Can You!).
In 2010, Stewart and The Daily Show writing staff released a sequel to their first book entitled, Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race. The book is meant to serve as a Baedeker travel guide for an alien civilization that discovers Earth after humanity has died out, most likely by its own hands.
In March 2012, Stewart interviewed Bruce Springsteen for Rolling Stone.
Acting
Stewart's first film role was a bit part in the box-office bomb, Mixed Nuts. He landed a minor part in The First Wives Club, but his scene was deleted. In 1995, Stewart signed a three-year deal with Miramax. Stewart played romantic leads in the films, Playing by Heart and Wishful Thinking. He had a supporting role in the romantic comedy, Since You've Been Gone and in the horror film, The Faculty. Other films were planned for Stewart to write and star in, but they never were produced. Stewart maintained a relationship with Miramax founders Harvey and Bob Weinstein and appeared in films they produced including, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Doogal, and the documentary, Wordplay.
He appeared in Half Baked as an "enhancement smoker" and in Big Daddy as Adam Sandler's roommate; he has joked on the Daily Show and in the documentary The Aristocrats that to get the role, he slept with Sandler. Stewart often makes fun of his appearances in the high-profile flop, Death to Smoochy, in which he played a treacherous television executive; and the animated film Doogal, where he played a blue spring named Zeebad who shot a freeze ray from his mustache. In 2007, Stewart made a cameo appearance as himself in Evan Almighty, which starred former Daily Show correspondent Steve Carell. In the movie, Stewart was seen on a television screen in a fictional Daily Show episode poking fun at Carell's character for building an ark.
Stewart had a recurring role in The Larry Sanders Show, playing himself as an occasional substitute and possible successor to late-night talk show host Larry Sanders (played by Garry Shandling). In 1998, Stewart hosted the television special, Elmopalooza, celebrating 30 years of Sesame Street. He has guest-starred on other sitcoms including The Nanny, Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist, Spin City, NewsRadio, American Dad!, and The Simpsons. He also has made guest appearances on the children's television series Between the Lions, Sesame Street, Jack's Big Music Show, and Gravity Falls.
Producing
In the mid-1990s, Stewart launched his own production company, Busboy Productions, naming the company in reference to his previous job as a busboy. Stewart signed a deal with Miramax to develop projects through his company, but none of his ideas have been produced. After Stewart's success as host and producer of The Daily Show, he revived Busboy Productions with Daily Show producers Ben Karlin and Rich Korson. In 2002, Busboy planned to produce a sitcom for NBC starring Stephen Colbert, but the show did not come to fruition.
In 2005, Comedy Central reached an agreement with Busboy in which Comedy Central would provide financial backing for the production company. Comedy Central has a first-look agreement on all projects, after which Busboy is free to shop them to other networks.
The deal spawned the Daily Show spin-off The Colbert Report and its replacement, The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore. Other projects include the sitcom pilot Three Strikes, the documentary Sportsfan, the series Important Things with Demetri Martin, and the film The Donor.
After Stewart's departure from The Daily Show, he was listed as an executive producer on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. In addition, Stewart has presented occasional comedic monologues filled with political and media commentary.
In July 2017, HBO announced Stewart would produce a stand-up comedy special for the network, his first stand-up special since 1996.
Directing
In March 2010, Stewart announced that he had optioned rights to the story of journalist Maziar Bahari, who was imprisoned in Iran for 118 days. On June 6, 2011, episode of The Daily Show, Stewart again hosted Bahari, and in March 2013, he announced that he was leaving the show for 12 weeks to direct the film version of Bahari's 2011 book, Then They Came For Me. Stewart's screenplay adaptation is entitled, Rosewater. It premiered at the September 2014 Toronto International Film Festival, receiving "generally favorable" reviews, and was released to general audiences on November 14, 2014.
On directing, Stewart noted on Employee of the Month that The Daily Show influenced his directing process more than his acting gigs did. He said, "It's about the collaboration. It's about understanding. Doing a show taught me this process of clarity of vision, but the flexibility of process. So know your intention, know where you're wanting to go with the scene with the way that you want it to go, the momentum shifts, the emphasis, where you want it to be." He also expressed interest in directing more films.
Stewart directed the political satire Irresistible, released in June 2020, which follows a demoralized Democratic strategist (played by Daily Show alumnus Steve Carell), who helps a retired veteran (Chris Cooper) run for mayor in a small, blue collar town in Wisconsin.
Hosting and public speaking
Stewart has hosted the Grammy Awards twice, in 2001 and in 2002, and the 78th Academy Awards, which were held March 5, 2006, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood. Critical response to Stewart's performance was mixed. Roger Ebert compared him favorably to legendary Oscar host Johnny Carson. Other reviewers were less positive; Tom Shales of The Washington Post said that Stewart hosted with "smug humorlessness". James Poniewozik of TIME said that Stewart was a bad host, but a great "anti-host" in that he poked fun at parts of the broadcast that deserved it, which lent him a degree of authenticity with the non-Hollywood audience. Stewart and correspondent John Oliver later poked fun at his lackluster reception on The Daily Show coverage of the 79th Academy Awards by saying that the "demon of last year's Oscars had finally been exorcised".
Stewart returned to host the 80th Academy Awards on February 24, 2008. The reception to his performance was better received. Matthew Gilbert of the Boston Globe felt the ceremony was average, but praised Stewart, writing that, "It was good to see Jon Stewart being Jon Stewart. He is shaping up to be a dependable Oscar host for the post-Billy Crystal years. He's not musical, but he's versatile enough to swing smoothly between jokes about politics, Hollywood, new media, and, most importantly, hair." Variety columnist Brian Lowry lauded Stewart's performance noting that he "earned his keep by maintaining a playful, irreverent tone throughout the night, whether it was jesting about Cate Blanchett's versatility or watching Lawrence of Arabia on an iPhone screen.
In December 2009, Stewart gave a speech at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts honoring Bruce Springsteen, one of that year's Kennedy Center Honors recipients, and of whom Stewart is a fan. Stewart gave another speech paying tribute to Springsteen in February 2013 as part of the singer's MusiCares Person of the Year award ceremony.
Stewart began a comedic feud with WWE wrestler Seth Rollins in March 2015, and appeared on WWE Raw during a Daily Show-styled segment hosted by Rollins. On August 23, 2015, Stewart returned to host the WWE's SummerSlam at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Later, he got involved in the main event between Rollins and John Cena, helping Rollins retain his WWE World Heavyweight Championship, as well as winning Cena's United States Championship when he interfered and hit Cena with a steel chair. The next night on Raw, he explained his actions, saying he did it for Ric Flair (who was also present), which was to retain his world championship record. Cena then gave Stewart his finishing move, the Attitude Adjustment, to end the segment. Stewart returned at SummerSlam on August 21, 2016, as a special guest.
In 2016, Stewart joined President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Jill Biden, and David Letterman in honoring military families on May 5 at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. The special celebration which marked both the USO's 75th anniversary and the fifth anniversary of Joining Forces.
Stewart got into a Twitter war with then-presidential candidate Donald Trump, who in multiple tweets stated that Stewart's changing his name indicated that he was a fraud. Stewart and some analysts considered this to be anti-Semitic. Trump then tweeted that Stewart should be "proud of his heritage", and Stewart tweeted back, facetiously, that Trump's real name was "Fuckface Von Clownstick" and that Trump should be proud of the "Clownstick heritage".
In June 2017, Stewart spoke at the funeral service for Ray Pfeifer, an FDNY firefighter from Hicksville, New York, who died after an eight-year battle with cancer as a result of service as a first responder at the September 11 attacks.
Criticism of television journalists
Stewart is known as an outspoken, humorous critic of personality-driven media shows, in particular, those of the U.S. media broadcast networks such as CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC. Critics say Stewart benefits from a double standard: he critiques other news shows from the safe, removed position of his "news satire" desk; Stewart asserts that neither his show nor Comedy Central purport to be anything other than satire and comedy.
Crossfire appearance
In a televised exchange with then-CNN correspondent Tucker Carlson on Crossfire on October 15, 2004, Stewart criticized the state of television journalism and pleaded with the show's hosts to "stop hurting America", and he referred to both Carlson and co-host Paul Begala as "partisan hacks". When posted on the internet, this exchange became widely viewed and was a topic of much media discussion.
Despite being on the program to comment on current events, Stewart immediately shifted the discussion toward the show itself, asserting that Crossfire had failed in its responsibility to inform and educate viewers about politics as a serious topic. Stewart stated that the show engaged in partisan hackery instead of honest debate, and said that the hosts' assertion that Crossfire is a debate show is like "saying pro wrestling is a show about athletic competition". Carlson responded by saying that Stewart criticizes news organizations for not holding public officials accountable, but when he interviewed John Kerry, Stewart asked a series of "softball" questions (Stewart has acknowledged he voted for Kerry in the 2004 presidential election). Stewart responded that he didn't realize "the news organizations look to Comedy Central for their cues on integrity". When Carlson continued to press Stewart on the Kerry issue, Stewart said, "You're on CNN! The show that leads into me is puppets making crank phone calls! What is wrong with you?" In response to prods from Carlson, "Come on. Be funny." Stewart said, "No, I'm not going to be your monkey." Later in the show when Carlson jibed, "I do think you're more fun on your show", Stewart retorted, "You're as big a dick on your show as you are on any show." In response to Stewart's criticisms, Carlson said, "You need to get a job at a journalism school", to which Stewart responded, "You need to go to one!"
Stewart discussed the incident on The Daily Show the following Monday:
In January 2005, CNN announced that it was canceling Crossfire. When asked about the cancellation, CNN's incoming president, Jonathan Klein, referred to Stewart's appearance on the show: "I think he made a good point about the noise level of these types of shows, which does nothing to illuminate the issues of the day."
On March 18, 2009, Carlson wrote a blog entry for The Daily Beast criticizing Stewart for his handling of the CNBC controversy (see below). Carlson discussed the CNN incident and claimed that Stewart remained backstage for at least "an hour" and "continued to lecture our staff", something Carlson described as, "one of the weirdest things I have ever seen".
Criticism of CNBC
Stewart again became a viral internet phenomenon following a March 4, 2009, The Daily Show sequence. CNBC canceled Rick Santelli's scheduled appearance on The Daily Show that day, so the show ran a short segment showing CNBC giving poor investment advice.
Subsequent media coverage of exchanges between Stewart and Jim Cramer, who had been featured heavily in the original segment, led to a highly anticipated face-to-face confrontation on The Daily Show. The episode received much media attention and became the second most-viewed episode of The Daily Show, trailing only the 2009 Inauguration Day episode. It had 2.3 million total viewers, and the next day, the show's website saw its highest day of traffic in 2009. Although Cramer acknowledged on the show that some of Stewart's criticisms of CNBC were valid and that the network could "do better", he later said on The Today Show that Stewart's criticism of the media was "naïve and misleading."
Criticism of Fox News
Throughout his tenure on The Daily Show, Stewart frequently accused Fox News of distorting the news to fit a conservative agenda, at one point ridiculing the network as "the meanest sorority in the world". In November 2009, Stewart "called out" Fox News for using some footage from a previous Tea Party rally during a report on a more recent rally, making the latter event appear more highly attended than it was. The show's anchor, Sean Hannity, apologized for the footage use the following night. A month later, Stewart criticized Fox & Friends cohost Gretchen Carlson – a former Miss America and a Stanford graduate – for claiming that she googled words such as "ignoramus" and "czar". Stewart said that Carlson was dumbing herself down for "an audience who sees intellect as an elitist flaw".
Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010; within five months, The Daily Show had 24 segments criticizing the Fox News coverage. Bill O'Reilly, host of the talk show The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News, countered that The Daily Show was a "key component of left-wing television" and that Stewart loved Fox News because the network was "not boring".
During an interview with Chris Wallace on June 19, 2011, Stewart called Wallace "insane" for saying that Stewart's earlier comparison of the marketing techniques of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment. Stewart also said Fox viewers are the "most consistently misinformed" viewers of political media. This comment was ranked by the fact-checking site, PolitiFact, as false, with conditions. Stewart later accepted his error.
In 2014, Stewart engaged in an extended "call-out" of Fox News, based on their coverage of food stamps and U.S. government assistance, opining that said coverage was biased. This culminated in segments across multiple episodes, specifically singling out Sean Hannity and his show's coverage of the Bundy standoff. Hannity would "return fire" by calling out Stewart for associating himself with Cat Stevens during his Rally in 2010. Stewart responded to this by criticizing Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a "friend and frequent guest" on his program and supporting Nugent's violent rhetoric toward Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2007. In late August 2014, Stewart criticized the manner in which Fox News portrayed the events surrounding the shooting of teenager Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri, and the subsequent protests from citizens.
Advocacy of the 9/11 First Responders Bill
Over the years, Stewart sometimes used The Daily Show to argue for causes such as the treatment of veterans and 9/11 first responders. He is credited with breaking a Senate deadlock over a bill to provide health care and benefits for 9/11 emergency workers; the bill passed three days after he featured a group of 9/11 responders on the show. In March 2009, he criticized a White House proposal to remove veterans from Veterans Administration rolls if they had private health insurance; the White House dropped the plan the next day. In 2010, Stewart held an interview with a panel of four of the 9/11 first responders Kenny Specht with the FDNY, Chris Bowman NYPD, Ken George DOT, and Kevin Devlin, Operating Engineer of Heavy Equipment, who discussed their health problems with Stewart. In 2015 four months after leaving The Daily Show he returned to reunite the four, with Specht as the only panelist healthy enough to attend. Devlin had died and the two other panelists, Bowman and George, were too ill to make it to the show.
In February and June 2019, Stewart again went to Congress to oppose the $7.375 billion limit in pay-outs to 9/11 responders through December 2020 and to lobby for permanent funding for the Victims Compensation Fund past December 2020, delivering a tearful testimony.
Stewart continued to be a vocal advocate, appearing on late night shows such as The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, and news programs such as Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace, and The Fox Report with Shepherd Smith. On July 12, 2019, the House approved the bill overwhelmingly 402–12. The bill came to the Senate floor where it passed the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund through 2092, virtually funding health care for 9/11 victims and first responders for life. The vote was 97–2 with Republican Senators Rand Paul (KY) and Mike Lee (UT) opposing. When hearing that the bill had been passed, Stewart responded by saying, "It has been the honor of my life working with the 9/11 first responders...these families deserve better...and I will follow you wherever your next adventure shall be".
Writers Guild of America strike of 2007–2008
Stewart was an important factor in the unionization of the Comedy Central writers. The Daily Show writers were the first of Comedy Central's writers to be able to join the guild, after which other shows followed.
Stewart supported the 2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike. On The Daily Show episode just before the strike, he sarcastically commented about how Comedy Central had made available all episodes for free on their website, but without advertising, and said, "go support our advertisers". The show went on hiatus when the strike began, as did other late-night talk shows. Upon Stewart's return to the show on January 7, 2008, he refused to use the title, The Daily Show, stating that The Daily Show was the show made with all of the people responsible for the broadcast, including his writers. During the strike, he referred to his show as A Daily Show with Jon Stewart until the strike ended on February 13, 2008.
Stewart's choice to return to the air did bring criticism that he was undermining the writers of his show. Seth MacFarlane wrote an inside joke into an episode of Family Guy about this, causing Stewart to respond with an hour-long call in which he questioned how MacFarlane could consider himself the "moral arbiter" of Hollywood. Other former writers of The Daily Show such as David Feldman also have indicated that Stewart was anti-union at the time and punished his writers for their decision to unionize.
The Writers Guild Strike of 2007–08 also was responsible for a notable mock feud between Stewart, Stephen Colbert, and Conan O'Brien in early 2008. Without writers to help fuel their banter, the three comedians concocted a crossover/rivalry to garner more viewers during the ratings slump. Colbert claimed that because of "the Colbert bump", he was responsible for Mike Huckabee's success in the 2008 presidential race. O'Brien claimed that he was responsible for Huckabee's success because not only had he mentioned Huckabee on his show, but also that he was responsible for Chuck Norris's success (Norris backed Huckabee). In response, Stewart claimed that he was responsible for the success of O'Brien since Stewart had featured him on The Jon Stewart Show, and in turn, the success of Huckabee. This resulted in a three-part comedic battle between the three pundits, with all three appearing on each other's shows. The feud ended on Late Night with Conan O'Brien with a mock brawl involving the three hosts.
Influences
Stewart has said his influences include George Carlin, Lenny Bruce, Woody Allen, David Letterman, Steve Martin, and Richard Pryor.
Among comedians who say they were influenced by Stewart are Stephen Colbert, John Oliver, Hasan Minhaj, Samantha Bee, Larry Wilmore, Bassem Youssef, Trevor Noah, and Jordan Klepper.
Personal life
Stewart is irreligious, but of Jewish heritage.
While making the 1997 film, Wishful Thinking, a production assistant on the film arranged for a blind date between Stewart and Tracey Lynn McShane. They dated for four years. Stewart proposed to her through a personalized crossword puzzle created with the help of Will Shortz, the crossword editor at The New York Times. They married in 2000. On June 19, 2001, Stewart and his wife filed a joint name change application and legally changed both of their surnames to "Stewart". With the help of in vitro fertilization, the couple has two children.
In 2000, when he was labelled a Democrat, Stewart generally agreed, but described his political affiliation as "more socialist or independent" than Democratic, and Stewart has voted for Republicans, the last time being in the 1988 presidential election when he voted for George H. W. Bush over Michael Dukakis. He described Bush as having "an integrity about him that I respected greatly". He has been a vocal proponent of single-payer health care system.
In 2013, Stewart and his wife bought a farm in Middletown, New Jersey, called "Bufflehead Farm". The Stewarts operate it as a sanctuary for abused animals.
In 2015, Stewart began eating a vegetarian diet for ethical reasons; his wife is a long-time vegan.
In 2017, Stewart and his wife received approval to open a 45-acre (18 ha) animal sanctuary in Colts Neck, New Jersey, a home to animals saved from slaughterhouses and live markets.
Honors and awards
Stewart and other members of The Daily Show have received three Peabody Awards for "Indecision 2000" and "Indecision 2004", covering the 2000 presidential election and the 2004 presidential election, respectively. He received his third Peabody in 2016 for his tenure at The Daily Show.
The Daily Show received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Program in 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2015 and Outstanding Variety, Music, or Comedy Series for 10 consecutive years from 2003 to 2012. In 2013, the award for both categories instead went to The Daily Show spin-off The Colbert Report. In 2015, The Daily Show resurfaced, winning both categories for one last time for Stewart's swan song as host. Stewart won the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album in 2005 for his recording, America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction.
In the December 2003 New Year's edition of Newsweek, Stewart was named the "Who's Next?" person for 2004, with the magazine predicting that he would emerge as an absolute sensation in that year. (The magazine said they had been correct at the end of that year.) Stewart was named among the 2005 Time 100, an annual list of 100 of the most influential people of the year by Time magazine.
In 2004, Stewart spoke at the commencement ceremonies at his alma mater, William and Mary, and received an honorary Doctor of Arts degree. Stewart was the Class Day keynote speaker at Princeton University in 2004, and the 2008 Sacerdote Great Names speaker at Hamilton College. Stewart and The Daily Show received the 2005 National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) George Orwell Award for Distinguished Contribution to Honesty and Clarity in Public Language. Stewart was presented an Honorary All-America Award by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) in 2006.
On April 21, 2009, President of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf made Stewart a chief. On October 26, 2010, Stewart was named the Most Influential Man of 2010 by AskMen.
For his advocacy on behalf of 9/11 victims and families, Stewart was one of eighteen individuals and organizations awarded the Bronze Medallion on December 16, 2019. The Bronze Medallion is the highest award conferred upon civilians by New York City.
Filmography
Film
Television
Bibliography
Naked Pictures of Famous People (Rob Weisbach Books, 1998). .
America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction (Warner Books, September 2004). .
Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race (Grand Central Publishing, 2010). .
See also
New Yorkers in journalism
Political satire
References
Further reading
David Marchese, "Jon Stewart Is Back to Weigh In", The New York Times Magazine, June 15, 2020.
Lisa Rogak, Angry Optimist: The Life and Times of Jon Stewart. New York: Saint Martin's Griffin, 2014. .
Bruce Watson, Jon Stewart: Beyond the Moments of Zen. New Word City, 2014.
External links
The Daily Show profile
1962 births
20th-century American comedians
21st-century American comedians
20th-century American male actors
20th-century American non-fiction writers
21st-century American male actors
21st-century American non-fiction writers
American film producers
American male comedians
American male film actors
American male non-fiction writers
American male television actors
American media critics
American people of Belarusian-Jewish descent
American people of Polish-Jewish descent
American people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent
American political commentators
American satirists
American male screenwriters
American religious skeptics
American social commentators
American stand-up comedians
American television talk show hosts
American television writers
Association footballers not categorized by position
Comedians from New York City
Criticism of journalism
Film directors from New Jersey
Film directors from New York City
Grammy Award winners
Jewish American male comedians
Jewish American male actors
Jewish American writers
Jewish male comedians
Late night television talk show hosts
Lawrence High School (New Jersey) alumni
Living people
Male actors from New Jersey
Male actors from New York City
New Jersey Hall of Fame inductees
American male television writers
Peabody Award winners
People from Lawrence Township, Mercer County, New Jersey
Primetime Emmy Award winners
Screenwriters from New York (state)
Television producers from New York City
William & Mary Tribe men's soccer players
Writers from New Jersey
Writers from New York City
20th-century American male writers
21st-century American male writers
Television producers from New Jersey
Association football players not categorized by nationality | false | [
"The debt diet refers to a debt management plan made popular by a multi-part series for The Oprah Winfrey Show, first airing on February 17, 2006. In the series, Oprah Winfrey teamed up with financial experts Jean Chatzky, Glinda Bridgforth and David Bach to create a step-by-step plan demonstrating how to get out of debt.\n\nThe debt diet is an eight step plan:\n\n Debt Diet Step 1: How much debt do you really have?\n Debt Diet Step 2: Track your spending and find extra money to pay down the debt\n Debt Diet Step 3: Learn to play the credit card game\n Debt Diet Step 4: Stop spending\n Debt Diet Step 5: Create a monthly spending plan\n Debt Diet Step 6: Grow your income\n Debt Diet Step 7: Prioritize your debts and increase your credit score\n Debt Diet Step 8: Understand your spending issues and save\n\nSee also\nDebt club\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n\nOprah's Debt Diet\n\nPersonal finance",
"Peter Aschwanden (October 4, 1942 – December 3, 2005) was a New Mexican artist and illustrator whose work was emblematic of the 1960s generation's freewheeling spirit.\n\nHow to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive\nAschwanden gained national prominence when he illustrated a series of auto-repair manuals beginning with the 1969 manual How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive: A Manual of Step-by-Step Procedures for the Compleat Idiot, written by John Muir. Following Muir's death, additional new material and revisions for subsequent editions have been provided by Tosh Gregg. The independently published book sold about 2 million copies and is now in its 19th edition. A photo of Aschwanden appeared in the book, with the caption reading his pseudonym, \"Amanda B. Reckondwith\". Aschwanden would also contribute illustrations to Muir's publication, The Velvet Monkeywrench.\n\nOther works\nAschwanden illustrated the sequel to the original How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive book entitled How to Keep Your Volkswagen Rabbit Alive: A Manual of Step-by-Step Procedures for the Compleat Idiot. This publication was written by Richard Sealey (Muir had died in 1977) and published in May 1980 by John Muir Publications of Santa Fe, New Mexico. He illustrated another automotive manual through John Muir Press, How To Keep Your Honda Alive: A Manual of Step by Step Procedures for the Compleat Idiot, published in 1983. He illustrated The Septic System Owner's Manual: Subterranean Mysteries Revealed in the same trademark style he used in the Volkswagen repair books.\n\nDeath\nAschwanden died of cancer on December 3, 2005. He was 63.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Aschwanden's website\n\nAmerican illustrators\n1942 births\n2005 deaths"
] |
[
"Jon Stewart",
"Criticism of Fox News",
"What was his criticisms of fox news?",
"based on their perceived hypocritical coverage of food stamps and U.S. Government assistance.",
"did he have any problems with them?",
"Hannity would \"return fire\" by calling out Stewart",
"what happened after that?",
"2010. Stewart responded to this by calling out Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a \"friend and frequent guest\"",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010;",
"how did he step it up?",
"Stewart called Wallace \"insane\" after Wallace said that Stewart's earlier comparison of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment."
] | C_786034d9487f49daa667e68a1af6e708_1 | what did wallace respond with? | 6 | what did wallace respond with after Stewart called Wallace insane? | Jon Stewart | Throughout his tenure on The Daily Show, Stewart has frequently accused Fox News of distorting the news to fit a conservative agenda, at one point ridiculing the network as "the meanest sorority in the world." In November 2009, Stewart called out Fox News for using some footage from a previous Tea Party rally during a report on a more recent rally, making the latter event appear more highly attended than it actually was. The show's anchor, Sean Hannity, apologized for the footage use the following night. A month later, Stewart criticized Fox & Friends cohost Gretchen Carlson - a former Miss America and a Stanford graduate - for claiming that she googled words such as "ignoramus" and "czar". Stewart said that Carlson was dumbing herself down for "an audience who sees intellect as an elitist flaw". Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010; as of April 24, The Daily Show had 24 segments criticizing Fox News' coverage. Bill O'Reilly, host of the talk show The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News, countered that The Daily Show was a "key component of left-wing television" and that Stewart loved Fox News because the network was "not boring". During an interview with Chris Wallace on June 19, 2011, Stewart called Wallace "insane" after Wallace said that Stewart's earlier comparison of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment. Stewart also said Fox viewers are the "most consistently misinformed" viewers of political media. This comment was ranked by fact-checking site PolitiFact as false, with conditions. Stewart later accepted his error. In 2014, Stewart engaged in an extended "call-out" of Fox News based on their perceived hypocritical coverage of food stamps and U.S. Government assistance. This culminated during the Bundy standoff involving multiple segments, across multiple episodes, specifically singling out Sean Hannity and Hannity's coverage of the event. Hannity would "return fire" by calling out Stewart for associating himself with Cat Stevens during his Rally in 2010. Stewart responded to this by calling out Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a "friend and frequent guest" on his program and supporting Nugent's violent rhetoric towards Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2007. In late August 2014, Stewart vehemently opposed the manner in which Fox News portrayed the events surrounding the shooting of teenager Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri and the subsequent protests from citizens. CANNOTANSWER | Stewart also said Fox viewers are the "most consistently misinformed" viewers of political media. | Jon Stewart (born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz; November 28, 1962) is an American comedian, writer, producer, director, political commentator, actor, and television host. He hosted The Daily Show, a satirical news program on Comedy Central, from 1999 to 2015. Stewart now hosts The Problem with Jon Stewart, which premiered September 2021 on Apple TV+.
Stewart started as a stand-up comedian but branched into television as host of Short Attention Span Theater for Comedy Central. He went on to host You Wrote It, You Watch It (1992–1993) and then The Jon Stewart Show (1993–1995), both on MTV, until The Jon Stewart Show was retooled, dropped by the network and moved to syndication. Stewart has also appeared in several films, including Big Daddy (1999) and Death to Smoochy (2002), but did few cinematic projects after becoming host of The Daily Show in 1999. He also was a writer and co-executive producer of the show. After Stewart joined, The Daily Show steadily gained popularity and critical acclaim, and during his tenure, won 22 Primetime Emmy Awards, two Grammy Awards and also was nominated for news and journalism awards. Stewart hosted the 78th and 80th Academy Awards. He is the co-author of America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, which was one of the best-selling books in the US in 2004, and Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race, released in 2010.
Since leaving The Daily Show, Stewart has mostly maintained a low profile in entertainment industry circles, but has used his celebrity and voice in a sustained advocacy for 9/11 first responders, and also for war veterans' health benefits. In 2019 he received the New York City Bronze Medallion for his "tireless advocacy, inspiration, and leadership (helping to) pass the permanent authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund Act".
Early life and education
Jon Stewart was born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz on November 28, 1962, in New York City, to Marian (née Laskin), a teacher and later educational consultant, and Donald Leibowitz, an energy coordinator for the New Jersey Department of the Treasury. Stewart's family members are Jewish immigrants to America from Poland, Ukraine, and Belarus. One of his grandfathers was born in Manzhouli (now part of Inner Mongolia). He is the second of four sons, with older brother Lawrence, and younger brothers Dan and Matthew.
Stewart's parents divorced when he was eleven years old, and Stewart was largely estranged from his father. Because of his strained relationship with his father, which in 2015 he described as "still 'complicated'", he dropped his surname and began using his middle name. Stewart stated, "There was a thought of using my mother's maiden name, but I thought that would be just too big a fuck you to my dad... Did I have some problems with my father? Yes. Yet people always view [changing my surname] through the prism of ethnic identity." He had his surname changed legally to Stewart in 2001. Stewart and his brother Lawrence, who was previously the chief operating officer of NYSE Euronext (parent company of the New York Stock Exchange), grew up in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, where they attended Lawrence High School. According to Stewart, he was subjected to anti-Semitic bullying as a child. He describes himself in high school as "very into Eugene Debs and a bit of a leftist."
Stewart grew up in the era of the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal, which inspired in him "a healthy skepticism towards official reports". His first job was working with his brother at a Woolworth's store, and jokingly says being fired by Lawrence was one of the "scarring events" of his youth. He has also credited legendary television producer Norman Lear as someone who "raised me."
Stewart graduated in 1984 from The College of William & Mary where he initially majored in chemistry before switching to psychology. While at William & Mary, Stewart became a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity, but eventually began disassociating himself from them; leaving the fraternity altogether after six months. "My college career was waking up late, memorizing someone else's notes, doing bong hits, and going to soccer practice", he later said. He was a three-year starter in 1981, 1982 and 1983 with the Tribe men's soccer team. He had 10 goals and 12 assists on a squad that went 40–15–9 (.695) in his three seasons with the program. He is listed as Jon Leibowitz in official William & Mary Athletics records. The former head coach of the Tribe men's soccer team from 1971 to 2003, Al Albert, describes Jon as "athletic and feisty and quick" and added that he "wasn't the most technical or clinical player, but he could make things happen."
After college, Stewart held numerous jobs: a contingency planner for the New Jersey Department of Human Services, a contract administrator for the City University of New York, a puppeteer for children with disabilities, a soccer coach at Gloucester High School in Virginia, a caterer, a busboy, a shelf stocker at Woolworth's, a bartender at the Franklin Corner Tavern (a local blue-collar bar), and a bartender at the legendary City Gardens in Trenton, New Jersey. He has said that working at City Gardens was a pivotal moment for him: "finding this place City Gardens was like, 'Oh, maybe I'm not a giant weirdo. Maybe there are other people who have a similar sense of yearning for something other than what they have now.' I think it inspired a lot of people, man. It was a very creative environment. It was a place of great possibility."
Career
Early work
With a reputation for being a funny man in school, Jon Stewart returned to New York City in 1986 to try his hand at the comedy club circuit, but he could not muster the courage to get on stage until the following year. He made his stand-up debut at The Bitter End, where one of his comedic idols, Woody Allen, also began. He began using the stage name "Jon Stewart" by dropping his last name and changing the spelling of his middle name "Stuart" to "Stewart". He often jokes this is because people had difficulty with the pronunciation of Leibowitz or it "sounded too Hollywood" (a reference to Lenny Bruce's joke on the same theme). He has implied that the name change was due to a strained relationship with his father, with whom Stewart no longer had any contact.
Stewart became a regular at the Comedy Cellar, where he was the last performer every night. For two years, he would perform at 2 a.m. while developing his comedic style. In 1989, Stewart landed his first television job as a writer for Caroline's Comedy Hour. In 1990, he began co-hosting Comedy Central's Short Attention Span Theater, with Patty Rosborough. In 1992, Stewart hosted the short-lived You Wrote It, You Watch It on MTV, which invited viewers to send in their stories to be acted out by the comedy troupe, The State.
Stewart relates that his career did not take off until his March 6, 1992, appearance on NBC's Late Night with David Letterman. He was considered a finalist to take over Letterman's position upon his departure from the program, but instead, it was given to relatively unknown Conan O'Brien. He co-hosted MTV Spring Break '93 Blind Date from Daytona Beach with Melissa Rivers.
The Jon Stewart Show
Later in 1993, Stewart developed The Jon Stewart Show, a talk show on MTV, which was later dropped by the network and was syndicated for its last two years. The Jon Stewart Show was the first talk show on that network and was an instant hit, becoming the second-highest rated MTV show, behind Beavis and Butt-Head. In 1994, Paramount canceled The Arsenio Hall Show and, with new corporate sibling MTV (through MTV parent Viacom's acquisition of the studio), launched an hour-long syndicated late-night version of The Jon Stewart Show. Many local affiliates had moved Hall's show to 2 a.m. during its decline and Stewart's show inherited such early morning time slots in many cities. Ratings were dismal and the show was canceled in June 1995.
Among the fans of the show was David Letterman, who was the final guest of The Jon Stewart Show. Letterman signed Stewart with his production company, Worldwide Pants. Stewart then became a frequent guest host for Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show with Tom Snyder, which was produced by Letterman and aired after the Late Show on CBS. This led to much speculation that Stewart would soon replace Snyder permanently, but instead, Stewart was offered the time slot after Snyder's, which he turned down.
In 1996 Stewart hosted a short-lived talk show entitled, Where's Elvis This Week?, that was a half-hour, weekly comedy television program. It aired on Sunday nights in the United Kingdom on BBC Two. It was filmed at the CBS Broadcast Center in New York City and featured a set of panelists, two from the UK and two from the United States, who discussed news items and cultural issues. The show premiered in the UK on October 6, 1996; five episodes aired in total. Notable panelists included Dave Chappelle, Eddie Izzard, Phill Jupitus, Nora Ephron, Craig Kilborn, Christopher Hitchens, Armando Iannucci, Norm Macdonald, and Helen Gurley Brown. In 1997, Stewart was chosen as the host and interviewer for George Carlin's tenth HBO special, 40 Years of Comedy.
The Daily Show
In 1998, when Craig Kilborn left the show to replace Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show, Stewart began hosting The Daily Show on Comedy Central. The Daily Show blends humor with the day's top news stories, usually in politics, while simultaneously poking fun at politicians, newsmakers, and the news media. In an interview on The O'Reilly Factor, Stewart denied the show has any intentional political agenda, saying the goal was "schnicks and giggles" and that "[t]he same weakness that drove me into comedy also informs my show", meaning that he was uncomfortable talking without hearing the audience laugh. In his first Daily Show on-air appearance on January 11, 1999, Stewart told his guest that evening, Michael J. Fox, that he felt as if "this is my bar mitzvah". His style was described by one critic as, "Stewart does not offer us cynicism for its own sake, but as a playful way to offer the kinds of insights that are not permitted in more serious news formats that slavishly cling to official account of events."
Until Trevor Noah permanently took over the show in 2015, Stewart hosted almost all airings of the program, except for a few occasions when correspondents such as Stephen Colbert, Rob Corddry, Jason Jones, and Steve Carell subbed for him, and during John Oliver's stint as host during the summer of 2013. Stewart won twenty Primetime Emmy Awards for The Daily Show as either a writer or producer, and two for producing The Colbert Report (2013–14), earning a total of twenty-two Primetime Emmy Awards, the most wins for a male individual. In 2005, Stewart and The Daily Show received the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album for the audiobook edition of America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction. In 2000 and 2004, the show won two Peabody Awards for its coverage of the U.S. presidential elections in those years, called "Indecision 2000" and "Indecision 2004", respectively.
The show of September 20, 2001, the first show after the attacks of September 11th, 2001, began with no introduction. Before this, the introduction included footage of a fly-in toward the World Trade Center and New York City. The first nine minutes of the show included a tearful Stewart discussing his personal view on the event. His remarks ended as follows:
In mid-2002, amid rumors that David Letterman was going to switch from CBS to ABC when his contract ran out, Stewart was rumored as Letterman's replacement on CBS. Ultimately, Letterman renewed his contract with CBS. On the March 9, 2002, episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by Stewart, a Weekend Update sketch poked fun at the situation.
In late 2002, ABC offered Stewart his own talk show to air right after Nightline. Stewart's contract with The Daily Show was near expiring, and he expressed strong interest. ABC, however, decided to give another Comedy Central figure, Jimmy Kimmel, the post-Nightline slot.
On April 4, 2006, Stewart confronted U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) on The Daily Show about his decision to appear at Liberty University, an institution founded by Jerry Falwell whom McCain previously had denounced as one of the "agents of intolerance". In the interchange, Stewart asked McCain, "You're not freaking out on us? Are you freaking out on us, because if you're freaking out ... and you're going into the crazy base world—are you going into crazy base world?" McCain replied, "Just– just– just a little" and "I'm afraid so." The clip was played on CNN, was noted and discussed in more detail in the blogosphere and was followed up on in the mainstream media.
In 2007, The Daily Show was involved in former correspondent Stephen Colbert's announcement that he would run for president in 2008. In 2008, Stewart appeared on the news program Democracy Now!. A 2008 New York Times story questioned whether he was, in a phrase originally used to describe longtime network news anchor Walter Cronkite, "the most trusted man in America".
On April 28, 2009, during a discussion on torture with Clifford May, Stewart expressed his opinion that former President Harry S. Truman was a war criminal for his use of the atomic bomb on Japan during World War II. He defended his assertion moments later:
"Here's what I think of the atom bombs. I think if you dropped an atom bomb fifteen miles offshore and you said, 'The next one's coming and hitting you', then I would think it's okay. To drop it on a city, and kill a hundred thousand people? Yeah. I think that's criminal." On April 30, Stewart apologized on his program, and stated he did not believe Truman was a war criminal: "I shouldn't have said that, and I did. So I say right now, no, I don't believe that to be the case. The atomic bomb, a very complicated decision in the context of a horrific war, and I walk that back because it was in my estimation a stupid thing to say."
In April 2010, Comedy Central renewed Stewart's contract to host The Daily Show into 2013. According to a Forbes list of celebrities in 2008, he was earning $14 million a year.
On September 16, 2010, Stewart and Stephen Colbert announced a rally for October 30, known as the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear. It took place on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. and attracted an estimated 215,000 participants. In December 2010, Stewart was credited by the White House, other media, and political news outlets for bringing awareness of the Republican filibuster on the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act to the public, leading to the ultimate passing of the bill that provides health benefits to first responders whose health has been adversely affected by their work at Ground Zero.
On the show of January 10, 2011, Stewart began with a monologue about the shootings in Tucson, Arizona. He said he wished the "ramblings of crazy people didn't in any way resemble how we actually talk to each other on television". Before a commercial break, Stewart told viewers that the show would continue as usual the next night. After the commercial break, the show featured a rerun of a field piece done by Jason Jones two years earlier.
The New York Times opined that Stewart is "the modern-day equivalent of Edward R. Murrow" and the UK national newspaper The Independent called him the "satirist-in-chief". In an interview, Senator John McCain described Stewart as "a modern-day Will Rogers and Mark Twain".
Writer Wyatt Cenac said that Stewart cursed him out after Cenac acknowledged he was uncomfortable about a June 2011 Daily Show bit about Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain (reported in July 2015).
In March 2013, it was announced that Stewart would be taking a 12-week hiatus from The Daily Show to direct the film Rosewater, which is based on the book Then They Came for Me by Maziar Bahari. Beginning June 10, 2013, The Daily Show correspondent John Oliver assumed primary hosting duties during Stewart's break. The TV Guide annual survey for 2013 star salaries showed that Stewart was the highest-paid late night host, making an estimated $25–30 million per year.
On July 14, 2014, Stewart interviewed Hillary Clinton about the Middle East. Clinton's condemnations of Hamas led Stewart to ask her: "But don't you think they would look at that though as, they've given a lot of different things a chance and these are the only guys to them that are giving any resistance to what their condition is?" For Gazans living in that situation, he said Hamas could be viewed as "freedom fighters".
Leaving The Daily Show
During a taping of the show on February 10, 2015, Stewart announced he was leaving The Daily Show. Comedy Central president Michele Ganeless confirmed Stewart's retirement with a statement. Later, it was announced that South African comedian Trevor Noah would succeed Stewart as the host of the show. On April 20, 2015, Stewart indicated that his final show would be on August 6, 2015.
On July 28, 2015, Darren Samuelsohn of Politico reported that twice, Stewart had been at the White House for previously unreported meetings with President Obama: once in October 2011 and once in February 2014. Michael D. Shear of The New York Times also picked up on the story. Stewart responded on his show by pointing out that the meetings were listed in the president's publicly available visitor log and that he has been asked to meet privately by many prominent individuals, including Roger Ailes of Fox News. He said Obama encouraged him not to make young Americans cynical about their government and Stewart said that his reply was that he was "skeptically idealistic".
On June 19, 2015, in the wake of the Charleston Church Shooting, Stewart decided not to write jokes for the opening monologue. Elaborating on his decision, Stewart stated, "I honestly have nothing other than just sadness". Stewart spoke about the racial disparity and injustices in America, saying "The Confederate flag flies over South Carolina ... and the roads are named for Confederate generals" describing it as "racial wallpaper". Instead he designated a large portion of the show to his guest that night Malala Yousafzai, calling her "an incredible inspiration," and that "to be quite honest with you, I don't think there's anyone else in the world I would rather talk to tonight than Malala: So that's what we're going to do. And sorry about no jokes."
On August 5, 2015, Stewart's friend of 30 years, comedian Louis C.K., was selected to be the last guest before the final Daily Show episode with Stewart helming the show. C.K. joked that he was there "representing comedy to say good job".
The hour-long-plus final Daily Show on August 6 featured reunions with former correspondents Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, John Oliver, Samantha Bee, Hasan Minhaj, Ed Helms, Kristen Schaal, Larry Wilmore, Jessica Williams, Aasif Mandvi, Lewis Black, John Hodgman, Rob Corddry, Olivia Munn, Josh Gad, Michael Che, and Mo Rocca and cameo video clips from people Stewart had targeted over the years, including Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Lindsey Graham, Chris Christie, John Kerry, Chuck Schumer, Bill O'Reilly, Wolf Blitzer, Joe Scarborough, and Mika Brzezinski. During the final episode, there was a pre-taped behind-the-scenes look at the show spoofing the long-take Copacabana scene from Goodfellas, featuring a brief appearance by Martin Scorsese. It concluded with a performance by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.
Post-Daily Show
In November 2015, it was announced that Stewart signed a four-year deal with HBO that would include exclusive digital content for HBO NOW, HBO Go, and other platforms. HBO programming president Casey Bloys has said that "the idea is it will be an animated parody of a cable news network with an Onion-like portal." The team began working with the cloud graphics company, OTOY, to build a system for creating content. Confirmed to be working on the project included Mike Brown, Steve Waltien, Chelsea Devantez, Lucy Steiner, Kate James, and Robby Slowik. The team tested material in Red Bank, New Jersey at The Count Basie Theatre Performing Arts Academy.
The show's premiere was moved several times, from fall 2016, to the first quarter of 2017, and then cancelled on May 23, 2017. The cancelation statement read:
After his contract with HBO ended, Stewart signed a multi-year show deal with Apple. On September 30, 2021, Stewart's new series, The Problem with Jon Stewart, premiered on AppleTV. The series features hour-long, single-subject episodes. In addition to hosting the show, Stewart serves as executive producer through his company, Busboy Productions.
Writing
In 1998, Stewart released his first book, Naked Pictures of Famous People, a collection of humorous short stories and essays. The book reached The New York Times Best Seller List.
In 2004, Stewart and The Daily Show writing staff released, America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, a mock high-school history textbook offering insights into the unique American system of government, dissecting its institutions, explaining its history and processes, and satirizing such popular American political precepts as, "one man, one vote", "government by the people", and "every vote counts". The book sold millions of copies upon its 2004 release and ended the year as a top-fifteen best seller.
In 2005, Stewart provided the voice of President James A. Garfield for the audiobook version of Sarah Vowell's Assassination Vacation. In 2007, Stewart voiced Mort Sinclaire, former TV comedy writer and communist, on Stephen Colbert's audiobook version of I Am America (And So Can You!).
In 2010, Stewart and The Daily Show writing staff released a sequel to their first book entitled, Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race. The book is meant to serve as a Baedeker travel guide for an alien civilization that discovers Earth after humanity has died out, most likely by its own hands.
In March 2012, Stewart interviewed Bruce Springsteen for Rolling Stone.
Acting
Stewart's first film role was a bit part in the box-office bomb, Mixed Nuts. He landed a minor part in The First Wives Club, but his scene was deleted. In 1995, Stewart signed a three-year deal with Miramax. Stewart played romantic leads in the films, Playing by Heart and Wishful Thinking. He had a supporting role in the romantic comedy, Since You've Been Gone and in the horror film, The Faculty. Other films were planned for Stewart to write and star in, but they never were produced. Stewart maintained a relationship with Miramax founders Harvey and Bob Weinstein and appeared in films they produced including, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Doogal, and the documentary, Wordplay.
He appeared in Half Baked as an "enhancement smoker" and in Big Daddy as Adam Sandler's roommate; he has joked on the Daily Show and in the documentary The Aristocrats that to get the role, he slept with Sandler. Stewart often makes fun of his appearances in the high-profile flop, Death to Smoochy, in which he played a treacherous television executive; and the animated film Doogal, where he played a blue spring named Zeebad who shot a freeze ray from his mustache. In 2007, Stewart made a cameo appearance as himself in Evan Almighty, which starred former Daily Show correspondent Steve Carell. In the movie, Stewart was seen on a television screen in a fictional Daily Show episode poking fun at Carell's character for building an ark.
Stewart had a recurring role in The Larry Sanders Show, playing himself as an occasional substitute and possible successor to late-night talk show host Larry Sanders (played by Garry Shandling). In 1998, Stewart hosted the television special, Elmopalooza, celebrating 30 years of Sesame Street. He has guest-starred on other sitcoms including The Nanny, Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist, Spin City, NewsRadio, American Dad!, and The Simpsons. He also has made guest appearances on the children's television series Between the Lions, Sesame Street, Jack's Big Music Show, and Gravity Falls.
Producing
In the mid-1990s, Stewart launched his own production company, Busboy Productions, naming the company in reference to his previous job as a busboy. Stewart signed a deal with Miramax to develop projects through his company, but none of his ideas have been produced. After Stewart's success as host and producer of The Daily Show, he revived Busboy Productions with Daily Show producers Ben Karlin and Rich Korson. In 2002, Busboy planned to produce a sitcom for NBC starring Stephen Colbert, but the show did not come to fruition.
In 2005, Comedy Central reached an agreement with Busboy in which Comedy Central would provide financial backing for the production company. Comedy Central has a first-look agreement on all projects, after which Busboy is free to shop them to other networks.
The deal spawned the Daily Show spin-off The Colbert Report and its replacement, The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore. Other projects include the sitcom pilot Three Strikes, the documentary Sportsfan, the series Important Things with Demetri Martin, and the film The Donor.
After Stewart's departure from The Daily Show, he was listed as an executive producer on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. In addition, Stewart has presented occasional comedic monologues filled with political and media commentary.
In July 2017, HBO announced Stewart would produce a stand-up comedy special for the network, his first stand-up special since 1996.
Directing
In March 2010, Stewart announced that he had optioned rights to the story of journalist Maziar Bahari, who was imprisoned in Iran for 118 days. On June 6, 2011, episode of The Daily Show, Stewart again hosted Bahari, and in March 2013, he announced that he was leaving the show for 12 weeks to direct the film version of Bahari's 2011 book, Then They Came For Me. Stewart's screenplay adaptation is entitled, Rosewater. It premiered at the September 2014 Toronto International Film Festival, receiving "generally favorable" reviews, and was released to general audiences on November 14, 2014.
On directing, Stewart noted on Employee of the Month that The Daily Show influenced his directing process more than his acting gigs did. He said, "It's about the collaboration. It's about understanding. Doing a show taught me this process of clarity of vision, but the flexibility of process. So know your intention, know where you're wanting to go with the scene with the way that you want it to go, the momentum shifts, the emphasis, where you want it to be." He also expressed interest in directing more films.
Stewart directed the political satire Irresistible, released in June 2020, which follows a demoralized Democratic strategist (played by Daily Show alumnus Steve Carell), who helps a retired veteran (Chris Cooper) run for mayor in a small, blue collar town in Wisconsin.
Hosting and public speaking
Stewart has hosted the Grammy Awards twice, in 2001 and in 2002, and the 78th Academy Awards, which were held March 5, 2006, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood. Critical response to Stewart's performance was mixed. Roger Ebert compared him favorably to legendary Oscar host Johnny Carson. Other reviewers were less positive; Tom Shales of The Washington Post said that Stewart hosted with "smug humorlessness". James Poniewozik of TIME said that Stewart was a bad host, but a great "anti-host" in that he poked fun at parts of the broadcast that deserved it, which lent him a degree of authenticity with the non-Hollywood audience. Stewart and correspondent John Oliver later poked fun at his lackluster reception on The Daily Show coverage of the 79th Academy Awards by saying that the "demon of last year's Oscars had finally been exorcised".
Stewart returned to host the 80th Academy Awards on February 24, 2008. The reception to his performance was better received. Matthew Gilbert of the Boston Globe felt the ceremony was average, but praised Stewart, writing that, "It was good to see Jon Stewart being Jon Stewart. He is shaping up to be a dependable Oscar host for the post-Billy Crystal years. He's not musical, but he's versatile enough to swing smoothly between jokes about politics, Hollywood, new media, and, most importantly, hair." Variety columnist Brian Lowry lauded Stewart's performance noting that he "earned his keep by maintaining a playful, irreverent tone throughout the night, whether it was jesting about Cate Blanchett's versatility or watching Lawrence of Arabia on an iPhone screen.
In December 2009, Stewart gave a speech at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts honoring Bruce Springsteen, one of that year's Kennedy Center Honors recipients, and of whom Stewart is a fan. Stewart gave another speech paying tribute to Springsteen in February 2013 as part of the singer's MusiCares Person of the Year award ceremony.
Stewart began a comedic feud with WWE wrestler Seth Rollins in March 2015, and appeared on WWE Raw during a Daily Show-styled segment hosted by Rollins. On August 23, 2015, Stewart returned to host the WWE's SummerSlam at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Later, he got involved in the main event between Rollins and John Cena, helping Rollins retain his WWE World Heavyweight Championship, as well as winning Cena's United States Championship when he interfered and hit Cena with a steel chair. The next night on Raw, he explained his actions, saying he did it for Ric Flair (who was also present), which was to retain his world championship record. Cena then gave Stewart his finishing move, the Attitude Adjustment, to end the segment. Stewart returned at SummerSlam on August 21, 2016, as a special guest.
In 2016, Stewart joined President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Jill Biden, and David Letterman in honoring military families on May 5 at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. The special celebration which marked both the USO's 75th anniversary and the fifth anniversary of Joining Forces.
Stewart got into a Twitter war with then-presidential candidate Donald Trump, who in multiple tweets stated that Stewart's changing his name indicated that he was a fraud. Stewart and some analysts considered this to be anti-Semitic. Trump then tweeted that Stewart should be "proud of his heritage", and Stewart tweeted back, facetiously, that Trump's real name was "Fuckface Von Clownstick" and that Trump should be proud of the "Clownstick heritage".
In June 2017, Stewart spoke at the funeral service for Ray Pfeifer, an FDNY firefighter from Hicksville, New York, who died after an eight-year battle with cancer as a result of service as a first responder at the September 11 attacks.
Criticism of television journalists
Stewart is known as an outspoken, humorous critic of personality-driven media shows, in particular, those of the U.S. media broadcast networks such as CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC. Critics say Stewart benefits from a double standard: he critiques other news shows from the safe, removed position of his "news satire" desk; Stewart asserts that neither his show nor Comedy Central purport to be anything other than satire and comedy.
Crossfire appearance
In a televised exchange with then-CNN correspondent Tucker Carlson on Crossfire on October 15, 2004, Stewart criticized the state of television journalism and pleaded with the show's hosts to "stop hurting America", and he referred to both Carlson and co-host Paul Begala as "partisan hacks". When posted on the internet, this exchange became widely viewed and was a topic of much media discussion.
Despite being on the program to comment on current events, Stewart immediately shifted the discussion toward the show itself, asserting that Crossfire had failed in its responsibility to inform and educate viewers about politics as a serious topic. Stewart stated that the show engaged in partisan hackery instead of honest debate, and said that the hosts' assertion that Crossfire is a debate show is like "saying pro wrestling is a show about athletic competition". Carlson responded by saying that Stewart criticizes news organizations for not holding public officials accountable, but when he interviewed John Kerry, Stewart asked a series of "softball" questions (Stewart has acknowledged he voted for Kerry in the 2004 presidential election). Stewart responded that he didn't realize "the news organizations look to Comedy Central for their cues on integrity". When Carlson continued to press Stewart on the Kerry issue, Stewart said, "You're on CNN! The show that leads into me is puppets making crank phone calls! What is wrong with you?" In response to prods from Carlson, "Come on. Be funny." Stewart said, "No, I'm not going to be your monkey." Later in the show when Carlson jibed, "I do think you're more fun on your show", Stewart retorted, "You're as big a dick on your show as you are on any show." In response to Stewart's criticisms, Carlson said, "You need to get a job at a journalism school", to which Stewart responded, "You need to go to one!"
Stewart discussed the incident on The Daily Show the following Monday:
In January 2005, CNN announced that it was canceling Crossfire. When asked about the cancellation, CNN's incoming president, Jonathan Klein, referred to Stewart's appearance on the show: "I think he made a good point about the noise level of these types of shows, which does nothing to illuminate the issues of the day."
On March 18, 2009, Carlson wrote a blog entry for The Daily Beast criticizing Stewart for his handling of the CNBC controversy (see below). Carlson discussed the CNN incident and claimed that Stewart remained backstage for at least "an hour" and "continued to lecture our staff", something Carlson described as, "one of the weirdest things I have ever seen".
Criticism of CNBC
Stewart again became a viral internet phenomenon following a March 4, 2009, The Daily Show sequence. CNBC canceled Rick Santelli's scheduled appearance on The Daily Show that day, so the show ran a short segment showing CNBC giving poor investment advice.
Subsequent media coverage of exchanges between Stewart and Jim Cramer, who had been featured heavily in the original segment, led to a highly anticipated face-to-face confrontation on The Daily Show. The episode received much media attention and became the second most-viewed episode of The Daily Show, trailing only the 2009 Inauguration Day episode. It had 2.3 million total viewers, and the next day, the show's website saw its highest day of traffic in 2009. Although Cramer acknowledged on the show that some of Stewart's criticisms of CNBC were valid and that the network could "do better", he later said on The Today Show that Stewart's criticism of the media was "naïve and misleading."
Criticism of Fox News
Throughout his tenure on The Daily Show, Stewart frequently accused Fox News of distorting the news to fit a conservative agenda, at one point ridiculing the network as "the meanest sorority in the world". In November 2009, Stewart "called out" Fox News for using some footage from a previous Tea Party rally during a report on a more recent rally, making the latter event appear more highly attended than it was. The show's anchor, Sean Hannity, apologized for the footage use the following night. A month later, Stewart criticized Fox & Friends cohost Gretchen Carlson – a former Miss America and a Stanford graduate – for claiming that she googled words such as "ignoramus" and "czar". Stewart said that Carlson was dumbing herself down for "an audience who sees intellect as an elitist flaw".
Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010; within five months, The Daily Show had 24 segments criticizing the Fox News coverage. Bill O'Reilly, host of the talk show The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News, countered that The Daily Show was a "key component of left-wing television" and that Stewart loved Fox News because the network was "not boring".
During an interview with Chris Wallace on June 19, 2011, Stewart called Wallace "insane" for saying that Stewart's earlier comparison of the marketing techniques of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment. Stewart also said Fox viewers are the "most consistently misinformed" viewers of political media. This comment was ranked by the fact-checking site, PolitiFact, as false, with conditions. Stewart later accepted his error.
In 2014, Stewart engaged in an extended "call-out" of Fox News, based on their coverage of food stamps and U.S. government assistance, opining that said coverage was biased. This culminated in segments across multiple episodes, specifically singling out Sean Hannity and his show's coverage of the Bundy standoff. Hannity would "return fire" by calling out Stewart for associating himself with Cat Stevens during his Rally in 2010. Stewart responded to this by criticizing Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a "friend and frequent guest" on his program and supporting Nugent's violent rhetoric toward Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2007. In late August 2014, Stewart criticized the manner in which Fox News portrayed the events surrounding the shooting of teenager Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri, and the subsequent protests from citizens.
Advocacy of the 9/11 First Responders Bill
Over the years, Stewart sometimes used The Daily Show to argue for causes such as the treatment of veterans and 9/11 first responders. He is credited with breaking a Senate deadlock over a bill to provide health care and benefits for 9/11 emergency workers; the bill passed three days after he featured a group of 9/11 responders on the show. In March 2009, he criticized a White House proposal to remove veterans from Veterans Administration rolls if they had private health insurance; the White House dropped the plan the next day. In 2010, Stewart held an interview with a panel of four of the 9/11 first responders Kenny Specht with the FDNY, Chris Bowman NYPD, Ken George DOT, and Kevin Devlin, Operating Engineer of Heavy Equipment, who discussed their health problems with Stewart. In 2015 four months after leaving The Daily Show he returned to reunite the four, with Specht as the only panelist healthy enough to attend. Devlin had died and the two other panelists, Bowman and George, were too ill to make it to the show.
In February and June 2019, Stewart again went to Congress to oppose the $7.375 billion limit in pay-outs to 9/11 responders through December 2020 and to lobby for permanent funding for the Victims Compensation Fund past December 2020, delivering a tearful testimony.
Stewart continued to be a vocal advocate, appearing on late night shows such as The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, and news programs such as Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace, and The Fox Report with Shepherd Smith. On July 12, 2019, the House approved the bill overwhelmingly 402–12. The bill came to the Senate floor where it passed the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund through 2092, virtually funding health care for 9/11 victims and first responders for life. The vote was 97–2 with Republican Senators Rand Paul (KY) and Mike Lee (UT) opposing. When hearing that the bill had been passed, Stewart responded by saying, "It has been the honor of my life working with the 9/11 first responders...these families deserve better...and I will follow you wherever your next adventure shall be".
Writers Guild of America strike of 2007–2008
Stewart was an important factor in the unionization of the Comedy Central writers. The Daily Show writers were the first of Comedy Central's writers to be able to join the guild, after which other shows followed.
Stewart supported the 2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike. On The Daily Show episode just before the strike, he sarcastically commented about how Comedy Central had made available all episodes for free on their website, but without advertising, and said, "go support our advertisers". The show went on hiatus when the strike began, as did other late-night talk shows. Upon Stewart's return to the show on January 7, 2008, he refused to use the title, The Daily Show, stating that The Daily Show was the show made with all of the people responsible for the broadcast, including his writers. During the strike, he referred to his show as A Daily Show with Jon Stewart until the strike ended on February 13, 2008.
Stewart's choice to return to the air did bring criticism that he was undermining the writers of his show. Seth MacFarlane wrote an inside joke into an episode of Family Guy about this, causing Stewart to respond with an hour-long call in which he questioned how MacFarlane could consider himself the "moral arbiter" of Hollywood. Other former writers of The Daily Show such as David Feldman also have indicated that Stewart was anti-union at the time and punished his writers for their decision to unionize.
The Writers Guild Strike of 2007–08 also was responsible for a notable mock feud between Stewart, Stephen Colbert, and Conan O'Brien in early 2008. Without writers to help fuel their banter, the three comedians concocted a crossover/rivalry to garner more viewers during the ratings slump. Colbert claimed that because of "the Colbert bump", he was responsible for Mike Huckabee's success in the 2008 presidential race. O'Brien claimed that he was responsible for Huckabee's success because not only had he mentioned Huckabee on his show, but also that he was responsible for Chuck Norris's success (Norris backed Huckabee). In response, Stewart claimed that he was responsible for the success of O'Brien since Stewart had featured him on The Jon Stewart Show, and in turn, the success of Huckabee. This resulted in a three-part comedic battle between the three pundits, with all three appearing on each other's shows. The feud ended on Late Night with Conan O'Brien with a mock brawl involving the three hosts.
Influences
Stewart has said his influences include George Carlin, Lenny Bruce, Woody Allen, David Letterman, Steve Martin, and Richard Pryor.
Among comedians who say they were influenced by Stewart are Stephen Colbert, John Oliver, Hasan Minhaj, Samantha Bee, Larry Wilmore, Bassem Youssef, Trevor Noah, and Jordan Klepper.
Personal life
Stewart is irreligious, but of Jewish heritage.
While making the 1997 film, Wishful Thinking, a production assistant on the film arranged for a blind date between Stewart and Tracey Lynn McShane. They dated for four years. Stewart proposed to her through a personalized crossword puzzle created with the help of Will Shortz, the crossword editor at The New York Times. They married in 2000. On June 19, 2001, Stewart and his wife filed a joint name change application and legally changed both of their surnames to "Stewart". With the help of in vitro fertilization, the couple has two children.
In 2000, when he was labelled a Democrat, Stewart generally agreed, but described his political affiliation as "more socialist or independent" than Democratic, and Stewart has voted for Republicans, the last time being in the 1988 presidential election when he voted for George H. W. Bush over Michael Dukakis. He described Bush as having "an integrity about him that I respected greatly". He has been a vocal proponent of single-payer health care system.
In 2013, Stewart and his wife bought a farm in Middletown, New Jersey, called "Bufflehead Farm". The Stewarts operate it as a sanctuary for abused animals.
In 2015, Stewart began eating a vegetarian diet for ethical reasons; his wife is a long-time vegan.
In 2017, Stewart and his wife received approval to open a 45-acre (18 ha) animal sanctuary in Colts Neck, New Jersey, a home to animals saved from slaughterhouses and live markets.
Honors and awards
Stewart and other members of The Daily Show have received three Peabody Awards for "Indecision 2000" and "Indecision 2004", covering the 2000 presidential election and the 2004 presidential election, respectively. He received his third Peabody in 2016 for his tenure at The Daily Show.
The Daily Show received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Program in 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2015 and Outstanding Variety, Music, or Comedy Series for 10 consecutive years from 2003 to 2012. In 2013, the award for both categories instead went to The Daily Show spin-off The Colbert Report. In 2015, The Daily Show resurfaced, winning both categories for one last time for Stewart's swan song as host. Stewart won the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album in 2005 for his recording, America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction.
In the December 2003 New Year's edition of Newsweek, Stewart was named the "Who's Next?" person for 2004, with the magazine predicting that he would emerge as an absolute sensation in that year. (The magazine said they had been correct at the end of that year.) Stewart was named among the 2005 Time 100, an annual list of 100 of the most influential people of the year by Time magazine.
In 2004, Stewart spoke at the commencement ceremonies at his alma mater, William and Mary, and received an honorary Doctor of Arts degree. Stewart was the Class Day keynote speaker at Princeton University in 2004, and the 2008 Sacerdote Great Names speaker at Hamilton College. Stewart and The Daily Show received the 2005 National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) George Orwell Award for Distinguished Contribution to Honesty and Clarity in Public Language. Stewart was presented an Honorary All-America Award by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) in 2006.
On April 21, 2009, President of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf made Stewart a chief. On October 26, 2010, Stewart was named the Most Influential Man of 2010 by AskMen.
For his advocacy on behalf of 9/11 victims and families, Stewart was one of eighteen individuals and organizations awarded the Bronze Medallion on December 16, 2019. The Bronze Medallion is the highest award conferred upon civilians by New York City.
Filmography
Film
Television
Bibliography
Naked Pictures of Famous People (Rob Weisbach Books, 1998). .
America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction (Warner Books, September 2004). .
Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race (Grand Central Publishing, 2010). .
See also
New Yorkers in journalism
Political satire
References
Further reading
David Marchese, "Jon Stewart Is Back to Weigh In", The New York Times Magazine, June 15, 2020.
Lisa Rogak, Angry Optimist: The Life and Times of Jon Stewart. New York: Saint Martin's Griffin, 2014. .
Bruce Watson, Jon Stewart: Beyond the Moments of Zen. New Word City, 2014.
External links
The Daily Show profile
1962 births
20th-century American comedians
21st-century American comedians
20th-century American male actors
20th-century American non-fiction writers
21st-century American male actors
21st-century American non-fiction writers
American film producers
American male comedians
American male film actors
American male non-fiction writers
American male television actors
American media critics
American people of Belarusian-Jewish descent
American people of Polish-Jewish descent
American people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent
American political commentators
American satirists
American male screenwriters
American religious skeptics
American social commentators
American stand-up comedians
American television talk show hosts
American television writers
Association footballers not categorized by position
Comedians from New York City
Criticism of journalism
Film directors from New Jersey
Film directors from New York City
Grammy Award winners
Jewish American male comedians
Jewish American male actors
Jewish American writers
Jewish male comedians
Late night television talk show hosts
Lawrence High School (New Jersey) alumni
Living people
Male actors from New Jersey
Male actors from New York City
New Jersey Hall of Fame inductees
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Peabody Award winners
People from Lawrence Township, Mercer County, New Jersey
Primetime Emmy Award winners
Screenwriters from New York (state)
Television producers from New York City
William & Mary Tribe men's soccer players
Writers from New Jersey
Writers from New York City
20th-century American male writers
21st-century American male writers
Television producers from New Jersey
Association football players not categorized by nationality | true | [
"Amy Wallace (July 3, 1955 – August 10, 2013) was an American writer. She was the daughter of writers Irving Wallace and Sylvia Wallace and the sister of writer and populist historian David Wallechinsky. She was co-author of the bestselling book The Book of Lists (1977).\n\nCareer\nWallace is best known for her books of lists, with topics that ranged from the rare, curious and unusual to crime and horror. In 1977, she lived in Berkeley on her brother's commune and during school breaks, worked with him and their father on what was to become a bestseller, The Book of Lists. The book ran to three versions.\n\nWallace used the lists format in two other books: The Official Punk Rock Book of Lists with Handsome Dick Manitoba (2007) and The Book of Lists: Horror (2008) co-written with Del Howison and her boyfriend Scott Bradley.\n\nShe also wrote The Prodigy, a biography of William James Sidis, published in 1986, and an erotic novel, Desire (1990).\n\nPersonal life\nIn 1990 she entered a relationship with anthropologist Carlos Castañeda, which she wrote about in her memoir, Sorcerer's Apprentice: My Life with Carlos Castañeda, published in 2003. The book was the first to reveal the private life of Castañeda, and detailed his hitherto mysterious \"inner circle\" of women who lived with him on a closed compound.\n\nShe was married for seven years to the musician Josef Marc. She dedicated her biography of William James Sidis, The Prodigy, to him. They divorced in 1986.\n\nDeath\nWallace died of a heart condition in August 2013, aged 58.\n\nBibliography\nThe Book of Lists. William Morrow, 1977. (with Irving Wallace and David Wallechinsky)\nThe Two: The Story of the Original Siamese Twins. Simon & Schuster, 1978. (with Irving Wallace)\nThe Psychic Healing Book. Delacorte Press, 1978. (with Bill Henkin)\nThe Book of Lists #2. William Morrow, 1980. (with Irving Wallace, David Wallechinsky and Sylvia Wallace)\n The Book of Predictions. William Morrow, 1980. (with David Wallechinsky and Irving Wallace)\nThe Intimate Sex Lives of Famous People. Delacorte, 1981. (with Irving Wallace, David Wallechinsky and Sylvia Wallace)\nThe Book of Lists #3. William Morrow, 1983. (with David Wallechinsky and Irving Wallace)\nSignifica. Dutton, 1983. (with Irving Wallace and David Wallechinsky)\nThe Prodigy: A Biography of William James Sidis, America's Greatest Child Prodigy. Dutton, 1986.\nDesire. Houghton Mifflin, 1990. \nThe Book of Lists: The '90s Edition. Little, Brown, 1993. (with David Wallechinsky)\nSorcerer's Apprentice: My Life with Carlos Castaneda. North Atlantic Books, 2003. \nThe New Book of Lists, 2005. . (with David Wallechinsky)\nThe Official Punk Rock Book of Lists. Backbeat Books, 2007. . (with Handsome Dick Manitoba)\nThe Book of Lists: Horror. Harper, 2008. (with Del Howison and Scott Bradley)\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nAmy Wallace at Goodreads\nAmy Wallace at Library Thing\nAmy Wallace RIP, Feral House blog\n\nAmerican information and reference writers\n20th-century American non-fiction writers\n21st-century American non-fiction writers\n20th-century American women writers\n21st-century American women writers\n20th-century American novelists\nAmerican women non-fiction writers\nAmerican women novelists\nJewish American writers\nJewish women writers\nAmerican book editors\nWriters from Los Angeles\nAmerican people of Russian-Jewish descent\n1955 births\n2013 deaths\n21st-century American Jews",
"The Nine Bears is a 1910 British thriller novel by Edgar Wallace. It was originally written in serial form before being published as a novel. After signing a contract with American firm Dodd Mead, Wallace provided them with what effectively an extended version of this story with the villain's name changed to Poltavo, which was published by them as The Other Man. It was the first in a series of books featuring Wallace's fictional Scotland Yard detective Elk, whose rank varies during the series. It is also known by the alternative title The Cheaters.\n\nSynopsis\nA group of shady financiers led by a man named Silinksi make a fortune on the stock market by anticipating the likelihood of disasters which they are orchestrating themselves.\n\nReferences\n\nBibliography\n Clark, Neil. Stranger than Fiction: The Life of Edgar Wallace, the Man Who Created King Kong. Stroud, UK: The History Press, 2015.\n\n1910 British novels\nNovels by Edgar Wallace\nBritish thriller novels"
] |
[
"Jon Stewart",
"Criticism of Fox News",
"What was his criticisms of fox news?",
"based on their perceived hypocritical coverage of food stamps and U.S. Government assistance.",
"did he have any problems with them?",
"Hannity would \"return fire\" by calling out Stewart",
"what happened after that?",
"2010. Stewart responded to this by calling out Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a \"friend and frequent guest\"",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010;",
"how did he step it up?",
"Stewart called Wallace \"insane\" after Wallace said that Stewart's earlier comparison of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment.",
"what did wallace respond with?",
"Stewart also said Fox viewers are the \"most consistently misinformed\" viewers of political media."
] | C_786034d9487f49daa667e68a1af6e708_1 | did stewart ever get fined? | 7 | did Jon stewart ever get fined? | Jon Stewart | Throughout his tenure on The Daily Show, Stewart has frequently accused Fox News of distorting the news to fit a conservative agenda, at one point ridiculing the network as "the meanest sorority in the world." In November 2009, Stewart called out Fox News for using some footage from a previous Tea Party rally during a report on a more recent rally, making the latter event appear more highly attended than it actually was. The show's anchor, Sean Hannity, apologized for the footage use the following night. A month later, Stewart criticized Fox & Friends cohost Gretchen Carlson - a former Miss America and a Stanford graduate - for claiming that she googled words such as "ignoramus" and "czar". Stewart said that Carlson was dumbing herself down for "an audience who sees intellect as an elitist flaw". Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010; as of April 24, The Daily Show had 24 segments criticizing Fox News' coverage. Bill O'Reilly, host of the talk show The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News, countered that The Daily Show was a "key component of left-wing television" and that Stewart loved Fox News because the network was "not boring". During an interview with Chris Wallace on June 19, 2011, Stewart called Wallace "insane" after Wallace said that Stewart's earlier comparison of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment. Stewart also said Fox viewers are the "most consistently misinformed" viewers of political media. This comment was ranked by fact-checking site PolitiFact as false, with conditions. Stewart later accepted his error. In 2014, Stewart engaged in an extended "call-out" of Fox News based on their perceived hypocritical coverage of food stamps and U.S. Government assistance. This culminated during the Bundy standoff involving multiple segments, across multiple episodes, specifically singling out Sean Hannity and Hannity's coverage of the event. Hannity would "return fire" by calling out Stewart for associating himself with Cat Stevens during his Rally in 2010. Stewart responded to this by calling out Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a "friend and frequent guest" on his program and supporting Nugent's violent rhetoric towards Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2007. In late August 2014, Stewart vehemently opposed the manner in which Fox News portrayed the events surrounding the shooting of teenager Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri and the subsequent protests from citizens. CANNOTANSWER | Stewart later accepted his error. | Jon Stewart (born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz; November 28, 1962) is an American comedian, writer, producer, director, political commentator, actor, and television host. He hosted The Daily Show, a satirical news program on Comedy Central, from 1999 to 2015. Stewart now hosts The Problem with Jon Stewart, which premiered September 2021 on Apple TV+.
Stewart started as a stand-up comedian but branched into television as host of Short Attention Span Theater for Comedy Central. He went on to host You Wrote It, You Watch It (1992–1993) and then The Jon Stewart Show (1993–1995), both on MTV, until The Jon Stewart Show was retooled, dropped by the network and moved to syndication. Stewart has also appeared in several films, including Big Daddy (1999) and Death to Smoochy (2002), but did few cinematic projects after becoming host of The Daily Show in 1999. He also was a writer and co-executive producer of the show. After Stewart joined, The Daily Show steadily gained popularity and critical acclaim, and during his tenure, won 22 Primetime Emmy Awards, two Grammy Awards and also was nominated for news and journalism awards. Stewart hosted the 78th and 80th Academy Awards. He is the co-author of America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, which was one of the best-selling books in the US in 2004, and Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race, released in 2010.
Since leaving The Daily Show, Stewart has mostly maintained a low profile in entertainment industry circles, but has used his celebrity and voice in a sustained advocacy for 9/11 first responders, and also for war veterans' health benefits. In 2019 he received the New York City Bronze Medallion for his "tireless advocacy, inspiration, and leadership (helping to) pass the permanent authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund Act".
Early life and education
Jon Stewart was born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz on November 28, 1962, in New York City, to Marian (née Laskin), a teacher and later educational consultant, and Donald Leibowitz, an energy coordinator for the New Jersey Department of the Treasury. Stewart's family members are Jewish immigrants to America from Poland, Ukraine, and Belarus. One of his grandfathers was born in Manzhouli (now part of Inner Mongolia). He is the second of four sons, with older brother Lawrence, and younger brothers Dan and Matthew.
Stewart's parents divorced when he was eleven years old, and Stewart was largely estranged from his father. Because of his strained relationship with his father, which in 2015 he described as "still 'complicated'", he dropped his surname and began using his middle name. Stewart stated, "There was a thought of using my mother's maiden name, but I thought that would be just too big a fuck you to my dad... Did I have some problems with my father? Yes. Yet people always view [changing my surname] through the prism of ethnic identity." He had his surname changed legally to Stewart in 2001. Stewart and his brother Lawrence, who was previously the chief operating officer of NYSE Euronext (parent company of the New York Stock Exchange), grew up in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, where they attended Lawrence High School. According to Stewart, he was subjected to anti-Semitic bullying as a child. He describes himself in high school as "very into Eugene Debs and a bit of a leftist."
Stewart grew up in the era of the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal, which inspired in him "a healthy skepticism towards official reports". His first job was working with his brother at a Woolworth's store, and jokingly says being fired by Lawrence was one of the "scarring events" of his youth. He has also credited legendary television producer Norman Lear as someone who "raised me."
Stewart graduated in 1984 from The College of William & Mary where he initially majored in chemistry before switching to psychology. While at William & Mary, Stewart became a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity, but eventually began disassociating himself from them; leaving the fraternity altogether after six months. "My college career was waking up late, memorizing someone else's notes, doing bong hits, and going to soccer practice", he later said. He was a three-year starter in 1981, 1982 and 1983 with the Tribe men's soccer team. He had 10 goals and 12 assists on a squad that went 40–15–9 (.695) in his three seasons with the program. He is listed as Jon Leibowitz in official William & Mary Athletics records. The former head coach of the Tribe men's soccer team from 1971 to 2003, Al Albert, describes Jon as "athletic and feisty and quick" and added that he "wasn't the most technical or clinical player, but he could make things happen."
After college, Stewart held numerous jobs: a contingency planner for the New Jersey Department of Human Services, a contract administrator for the City University of New York, a puppeteer for children with disabilities, a soccer coach at Gloucester High School in Virginia, a caterer, a busboy, a shelf stocker at Woolworth's, a bartender at the Franklin Corner Tavern (a local blue-collar bar), and a bartender at the legendary City Gardens in Trenton, New Jersey. He has said that working at City Gardens was a pivotal moment for him: "finding this place City Gardens was like, 'Oh, maybe I'm not a giant weirdo. Maybe there are other people who have a similar sense of yearning for something other than what they have now.' I think it inspired a lot of people, man. It was a very creative environment. It was a place of great possibility."
Career
Early work
With a reputation for being a funny man in school, Jon Stewart returned to New York City in 1986 to try his hand at the comedy club circuit, but he could not muster the courage to get on stage until the following year. He made his stand-up debut at The Bitter End, where one of his comedic idols, Woody Allen, also began. He began using the stage name "Jon Stewart" by dropping his last name and changing the spelling of his middle name "Stuart" to "Stewart". He often jokes this is because people had difficulty with the pronunciation of Leibowitz or it "sounded too Hollywood" (a reference to Lenny Bruce's joke on the same theme). He has implied that the name change was due to a strained relationship with his father, with whom Stewart no longer had any contact.
Stewart became a regular at the Comedy Cellar, where he was the last performer every night. For two years, he would perform at 2 a.m. while developing his comedic style. In 1989, Stewart landed his first television job as a writer for Caroline's Comedy Hour. In 1990, he began co-hosting Comedy Central's Short Attention Span Theater, with Patty Rosborough. In 1992, Stewart hosted the short-lived You Wrote It, You Watch It on MTV, which invited viewers to send in their stories to be acted out by the comedy troupe, The State.
Stewart relates that his career did not take off until his March 6, 1992, appearance on NBC's Late Night with David Letterman. He was considered a finalist to take over Letterman's position upon his departure from the program, but instead, it was given to relatively unknown Conan O'Brien. He co-hosted MTV Spring Break '93 Blind Date from Daytona Beach with Melissa Rivers.
The Jon Stewart Show
Later in 1993, Stewart developed The Jon Stewart Show, a talk show on MTV, which was later dropped by the network and was syndicated for its last two years. The Jon Stewart Show was the first talk show on that network and was an instant hit, becoming the second-highest rated MTV show, behind Beavis and Butt-Head. In 1994, Paramount canceled The Arsenio Hall Show and, with new corporate sibling MTV (through MTV parent Viacom's acquisition of the studio), launched an hour-long syndicated late-night version of The Jon Stewart Show. Many local affiliates had moved Hall's show to 2 a.m. during its decline and Stewart's show inherited such early morning time slots in many cities. Ratings were dismal and the show was canceled in June 1995.
Among the fans of the show was David Letterman, who was the final guest of The Jon Stewart Show. Letterman signed Stewart with his production company, Worldwide Pants. Stewart then became a frequent guest host for Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show with Tom Snyder, which was produced by Letterman and aired after the Late Show on CBS. This led to much speculation that Stewart would soon replace Snyder permanently, but instead, Stewart was offered the time slot after Snyder's, which he turned down.
In 1996 Stewart hosted a short-lived talk show entitled, Where's Elvis This Week?, that was a half-hour, weekly comedy television program. It aired on Sunday nights in the United Kingdom on BBC Two. It was filmed at the CBS Broadcast Center in New York City and featured a set of panelists, two from the UK and two from the United States, who discussed news items and cultural issues. The show premiered in the UK on October 6, 1996; five episodes aired in total. Notable panelists included Dave Chappelle, Eddie Izzard, Phill Jupitus, Nora Ephron, Craig Kilborn, Christopher Hitchens, Armando Iannucci, Norm Macdonald, and Helen Gurley Brown. In 1997, Stewart was chosen as the host and interviewer for George Carlin's tenth HBO special, 40 Years of Comedy.
The Daily Show
In 1998, when Craig Kilborn left the show to replace Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show, Stewart began hosting The Daily Show on Comedy Central. The Daily Show blends humor with the day's top news stories, usually in politics, while simultaneously poking fun at politicians, newsmakers, and the news media. In an interview on The O'Reilly Factor, Stewart denied the show has any intentional political agenda, saying the goal was "schnicks and giggles" and that "[t]he same weakness that drove me into comedy also informs my show", meaning that he was uncomfortable talking without hearing the audience laugh. In his first Daily Show on-air appearance on January 11, 1999, Stewart told his guest that evening, Michael J. Fox, that he felt as if "this is my bar mitzvah". His style was described by one critic as, "Stewart does not offer us cynicism for its own sake, but as a playful way to offer the kinds of insights that are not permitted in more serious news formats that slavishly cling to official account of events."
Until Trevor Noah permanently took over the show in 2015, Stewart hosted almost all airings of the program, except for a few occasions when correspondents such as Stephen Colbert, Rob Corddry, Jason Jones, and Steve Carell subbed for him, and during John Oliver's stint as host during the summer of 2013. Stewart won twenty Primetime Emmy Awards for The Daily Show as either a writer or producer, and two for producing The Colbert Report (2013–14), earning a total of twenty-two Primetime Emmy Awards, the most wins for a male individual. In 2005, Stewart and The Daily Show received the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album for the audiobook edition of America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction. In 2000 and 2004, the show won two Peabody Awards for its coverage of the U.S. presidential elections in those years, called "Indecision 2000" and "Indecision 2004", respectively.
The show of September 20, 2001, the first show after the attacks of September 11th, 2001, began with no introduction. Before this, the introduction included footage of a fly-in toward the World Trade Center and New York City. The first nine minutes of the show included a tearful Stewart discussing his personal view on the event. His remarks ended as follows:
In mid-2002, amid rumors that David Letterman was going to switch from CBS to ABC when his contract ran out, Stewart was rumored as Letterman's replacement on CBS. Ultimately, Letterman renewed his contract with CBS. On the March 9, 2002, episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by Stewart, a Weekend Update sketch poked fun at the situation.
In late 2002, ABC offered Stewart his own talk show to air right after Nightline. Stewart's contract with The Daily Show was near expiring, and he expressed strong interest. ABC, however, decided to give another Comedy Central figure, Jimmy Kimmel, the post-Nightline slot.
On April 4, 2006, Stewart confronted U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) on The Daily Show about his decision to appear at Liberty University, an institution founded by Jerry Falwell whom McCain previously had denounced as one of the "agents of intolerance". In the interchange, Stewart asked McCain, "You're not freaking out on us? Are you freaking out on us, because if you're freaking out ... and you're going into the crazy base world—are you going into crazy base world?" McCain replied, "Just– just– just a little" and "I'm afraid so." The clip was played on CNN, was noted and discussed in more detail in the blogosphere and was followed up on in the mainstream media.
In 2007, The Daily Show was involved in former correspondent Stephen Colbert's announcement that he would run for president in 2008. In 2008, Stewart appeared on the news program Democracy Now!. A 2008 New York Times story questioned whether he was, in a phrase originally used to describe longtime network news anchor Walter Cronkite, "the most trusted man in America".
On April 28, 2009, during a discussion on torture with Clifford May, Stewart expressed his opinion that former President Harry S. Truman was a war criminal for his use of the atomic bomb on Japan during World War II. He defended his assertion moments later:
"Here's what I think of the atom bombs. I think if you dropped an atom bomb fifteen miles offshore and you said, 'The next one's coming and hitting you', then I would think it's okay. To drop it on a city, and kill a hundred thousand people? Yeah. I think that's criminal." On April 30, Stewart apologized on his program, and stated he did not believe Truman was a war criminal: "I shouldn't have said that, and I did. So I say right now, no, I don't believe that to be the case. The atomic bomb, a very complicated decision in the context of a horrific war, and I walk that back because it was in my estimation a stupid thing to say."
In April 2010, Comedy Central renewed Stewart's contract to host The Daily Show into 2013. According to a Forbes list of celebrities in 2008, he was earning $14 million a year.
On September 16, 2010, Stewart and Stephen Colbert announced a rally for October 30, known as the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear. It took place on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. and attracted an estimated 215,000 participants. In December 2010, Stewart was credited by the White House, other media, and political news outlets for bringing awareness of the Republican filibuster on the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act to the public, leading to the ultimate passing of the bill that provides health benefits to first responders whose health has been adversely affected by their work at Ground Zero.
On the show of January 10, 2011, Stewart began with a monologue about the shootings in Tucson, Arizona. He said he wished the "ramblings of crazy people didn't in any way resemble how we actually talk to each other on television". Before a commercial break, Stewart told viewers that the show would continue as usual the next night. After the commercial break, the show featured a rerun of a field piece done by Jason Jones two years earlier.
The New York Times opined that Stewart is "the modern-day equivalent of Edward R. Murrow" and the UK national newspaper The Independent called him the "satirist-in-chief". In an interview, Senator John McCain described Stewart as "a modern-day Will Rogers and Mark Twain".
Writer Wyatt Cenac said that Stewart cursed him out after Cenac acknowledged he was uncomfortable about a June 2011 Daily Show bit about Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain (reported in July 2015).
In March 2013, it was announced that Stewart would be taking a 12-week hiatus from The Daily Show to direct the film Rosewater, which is based on the book Then They Came for Me by Maziar Bahari. Beginning June 10, 2013, The Daily Show correspondent John Oliver assumed primary hosting duties during Stewart's break. The TV Guide annual survey for 2013 star salaries showed that Stewart was the highest-paid late night host, making an estimated $25–30 million per year.
On July 14, 2014, Stewart interviewed Hillary Clinton about the Middle East. Clinton's condemnations of Hamas led Stewart to ask her: "But don't you think they would look at that though as, they've given a lot of different things a chance and these are the only guys to them that are giving any resistance to what their condition is?" For Gazans living in that situation, he said Hamas could be viewed as "freedom fighters".
Leaving The Daily Show
During a taping of the show on February 10, 2015, Stewart announced he was leaving The Daily Show. Comedy Central president Michele Ganeless confirmed Stewart's retirement with a statement. Later, it was announced that South African comedian Trevor Noah would succeed Stewart as the host of the show. On April 20, 2015, Stewart indicated that his final show would be on August 6, 2015.
On July 28, 2015, Darren Samuelsohn of Politico reported that twice, Stewart had been at the White House for previously unreported meetings with President Obama: once in October 2011 and once in February 2014. Michael D. Shear of The New York Times also picked up on the story. Stewart responded on his show by pointing out that the meetings were listed in the president's publicly available visitor log and that he has been asked to meet privately by many prominent individuals, including Roger Ailes of Fox News. He said Obama encouraged him not to make young Americans cynical about their government and Stewart said that his reply was that he was "skeptically idealistic".
On June 19, 2015, in the wake of the Charleston Church Shooting, Stewart decided not to write jokes for the opening monologue. Elaborating on his decision, Stewart stated, "I honestly have nothing other than just sadness". Stewart spoke about the racial disparity and injustices in America, saying "The Confederate flag flies over South Carolina ... and the roads are named for Confederate generals" describing it as "racial wallpaper". Instead he designated a large portion of the show to his guest that night Malala Yousafzai, calling her "an incredible inspiration," and that "to be quite honest with you, I don't think there's anyone else in the world I would rather talk to tonight than Malala: So that's what we're going to do. And sorry about no jokes."
On August 5, 2015, Stewart's friend of 30 years, comedian Louis C.K., was selected to be the last guest before the final Daily Show episode with Stewart helming the show. C.K. joked that he was there "representing comedy to say good job".
The hour-long-plus final Daily Show on August 6 featured reunions with former correspondents Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, John Oliver, Samantha Bee, Hasan Minhaj, Ed Helms, Kristen Schaal, Larry Wilmore, Jessica Williams, Aasif Mandvi, Lewis Black, John Hodgman, Rob Corddry, Olivia Munn, Josh Gad, Michael Che, and Mo Rocca and cameo video clips from people Stewart had targeted over the years, including Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Lindsey Graham, Chris Christie, John Kerry, Chuck Schumer, Bill O'Reilly, Wolf Blitzer, Joe Scarborough, and Mika Brzezinski. During the final episode, there was a pre-taped behind-the-scenes look at the show spoofing the long-take Copacabana scene from Goodfellas, featuring a brief appearance by Martin Scorsese. It concluded with a performance by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.
Post-Daily Show
In November 2015, it was announced that Stewart signed a four-year deal with HBO that would include exclusive digital content for HBO NOW, HBO Go, and other platforms. HBO programming president Casey Bloys has said that "the idea is it will be an animated parody of a cable news network with an Onion-like portal." The team began working with the cloud graphics company, OTOY, to build a system for creating content. Confirmed to be working on the project included Mike Brown, Steve Waltien, Chelsea Devantez, Lucy Steiner, Kate James, and Robby Slowik. The team tested material in Red Bank, New Jersey at The Count Basie Theatre Performing Arts Academy.
The show's premiere was moved several times, from fall 2016, to the first quarter of 2017, and then cancelled on May 23, 2017. The cancelation statement read:
After his contract with HBO ended, Stewart signed a multi-year show deal with Apple. On September 30, 2021, Stewart's new series, The Problem with Jon Stewart, premiered on AppleTV. The series features hour-long, single-subject episodes. In addition to hosting the show, Stewart serves as executive producer through his company, Busboy Productions.
Writing
In 1998, Stewart released his first book, Naked Pictures of Famous People, a collection of humorous short stories and essays. The book reached The New York Times Best Seller List.
In 2004, Stewart and The Daily Show writing staff released, America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, a mock high-school history textbook offering insights into the unique American system of government, dissecting its institutions, explaining its history and processes, and satirizing such popular American political precepts as, "one man, one vote", "government by the people", and "every vote counts". The book sold millions of copies upon its 2004 release and ended the year as a top-fifteen best seller.
In 2005, Stewart provided the voice of President James A. Garfield for the audiobook version of Sarah Vowell's Assassination Vacation. In 2007, Stewart voiced Mort Sinclaire, former TV comedy writer and communist, on Stephen Colbert's audiobook version of I Am America (And So Can You!).
In 2010, Stewart and The Daily Show writing staff released a sequel to their first book entitled, Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race. The book is meant to serve as a Baedeker travel guide for an alien civilization that discovers Earth after humanity has died out, most likely by its own hands.
In March 2012, Stewart interviewed Bruce Springsteen for Rolling Stone.
Acting
Stewart's first film role was a bit part in the box-office bomb, Mixed Nuts. He landed a minor part in The First Wives Club, but his scene was deleted. In 1995, Stewart signed a three-year deal with Miramax. Stewart played romantic leads in the films, Playing by Heart and Wishful Thinking. He had a supporting role in the romantic comedy, Since You've Been Gone and in the horror film, The Faculty. Other films were planned for Stewart to write and star in, but they never were produced. Stewart maintained a relationship with Miramax founders Harvey and Bob Weinstein and appeared in films they produced including, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Doogal, and the documentary, Wordplay.
He appeared in Half Baked as an "enhancement smoker" and in Big Daddy as Adam Sandler's roommate; he has joked on the Daily Show and in the documentary The Aristocrats that to get the role, he slept with Sandler. Stewart often makes fun of his appearances in the high-profile flop, Death to Smoochy, in which he played a treacherous television executive; and the animated film Doogal, where he played a blue spring named Zeebad who shot a freeze ray from his mustache. In 2007, Stewart made a cameo appearance as himself in Evan Almighty, which starred former Daily Show correspondent Steve Carell. In the movie, Stewart was seen on a television screen in a fictional Daily Show episode poking fun at Carell's character for building an ark.
Stewart had a recurring role in The Larry Sanders Show, playing himself as an occasional substitute and possible successor to late-night talk show host Larry Sanders (played by Garry Shandling). In 1998, Stewart hosted the television special, Elmopalooza, celebrating 30 years of Sesame Street. He has guest-starred on other sitcoms including The Nanny, Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist, Spin City, NewsRadio, American Dad!, and The Simpsons. He also has made guest appearances on the children's television series Between the Lions, Sesame Street, Jack's Big Music Show, and Gravity Falls.
Producing
In the mid-1990s, Stewart launched his own production company, Busboy Productions, naming the company in reference to his previous job as a busboy. Stewart signed a deal with Miramax to develop projects through his company, but none of his ideas have been produced. After Stewart's success as host and producer of The Daily Show, he revived Busboy Productions with Daily Show producers Ben Karlin and Rich Korson. In 2002, Busboy planned to produce a sitcom for NBC starring Stephen Colbert, but the show did not come to fruition.
In 2005, Comedy Central reached an agreement with Busboy in which Comedy Central would provide financial backing for the production company. Comedy Central has a first-look agreement on all projects, after which Busboy is free to shop them to other networks.
The deal spawned the Daily Show spin-off The Colbert Report and its replacement, The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore. Other projects include the sitcom pilot Three Strikes, the documentary Sportsfan, the series Important Things with Demetri Martin, and the film The Donor.
After Stewart's departure from The Daily Show, he was listed as an executive producer on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. In addition, Stewart has presented occasional comedic monologues filled with political and media commentary.
In July 2017, HBO announced Stewart would produce a stand-up comedy special for the network, his first stand-up special since 1996.
Directing
In March 2010, Stewart announced that he had optioned rights to the story of journalist Maziar Bahari, who was imprisoned in Iran for 118 days. On June 6, 2011, episode of The Daily Show, Stewart again hosted Bahari, and in March 2013, he announced that he was leaving the show for 12 weeks to direct the film version of Bahari's 2011 book, Then They Came For Me. Stewart's screenplay adaptation is entitled, Rosewater. It premiered at the September 2014 Toronto International Film Festival, receiving "generally favorable" reviews, and was released to general audiences on November 14, 2014.
On directing, Stewart noted on Employee of the Month that The Daily Show influenced his directing process more than his acting gigs did. He said, "It's about the collaboration. It's about understanding. Doing a show taught me this process of clarity of vision, but the flexibility of process. So know your intention, know where you're wanting to go with the scene with the way that you want it to go, the momentum shifts, the emphasis, where you want it to be." He also expressed interest in directing more films.
Stewart directed the political satire Irresistible, released in June 2020, which follows a demoralized Democratic strategist (played by Daily Show alumnus Steve Carell), who helps a retired veteran (Chris Cooper) run for mayor in a small, blue collar town in Wisconsin.
Hosting and public speaking
Stewart has hosted the Grammy Awards twice, in 2001 and in 2002, and the 78th Academy Awards, which were held March 5, 2006, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood. Critical response to Stewart's performance was mixed. Roger Ebert compared him favorably to legendary Oscar host Johnny Carson. Other reviewers were less positive; Tom Shales of The Washington Post said that Stewart hosted with "smug humorlessness". James Poniewozik of TIME said that Stewart was a bad host, but a great "anti-host" in that he poked fun at parts of the broadcast that deserved it, which lent him a degree of authenticity with the non-Hollywood audience. Stewart and correspondent John Oliver later poked fun at his lackluster reception on The Daily Show coverage of the 79th Academy Awards by saying that the "demon of last year's Oscars had finally been exorcised".
Stewart returned to host the 80th Academy Awards on February 24, 2008. The reception to his performance was better received. Matthew Gilbert of the Boston Globe felt the ceremony was average, but praised Stewart, writing that, "It was good to see Jon Stewart being Jon Stewart. He is shaping up to be a dependable Oscar host for the post-Billy Crystal years. He's not musical, but he's versatile enough to swing smoothly between jokes about politics, Hollywood, new media, and, most importantly, hair." Variety columnist Brian Lowry lauded Stewart's performance noting that he "earned his keep by maintaining a playful, irreverent tone throughout the night, whether it was jesting about Cate Blanchett's versatility or watching Lawrence of Arabia on an iPhone screen.
In December 2009, Stewart gave a speech at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts honoring Bruce Springsteen, one of that year's Kennedy Center Honors recipients, and of whom Stewart is a fan. Stewart gave another speech paying tribute to Springsteen in February 2013 as part of the singer's MusiCares Person of the Year award ceremony.
Stewart began a comedic feud with WWE wrestler Seth Rollins in March 2015, and appeared on WWE Raw during a Daily Show-styled segment hosted by Rollins. On August 23, 2015, Stewart returned to host the WWE's SummerSlam at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Later, he got involved in the main event between Rollins and John Cena, helping Rollins retain his WWE World Heavyweight Championship, as well as winning Cena's United States Championship when he interfered and hit Cena with a steel chair. The next night on Raw, he explained his actions, saying he did it for Ric Flair (who was also present), which was to retain his world championship record. Cena then gave Stewart his finishing move, the Attitude Adjustment, to end the segment. Stewart returned at SummerSlam on August 21, 2016, as a special guest.
In 2016, Stewart joined President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Jill Biden, and David Letterman in honoring military families on May 5 at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. The special celebration which marked both the USO's 75th anniversary and the fifth anniversary of Joining Forces.
Stewart got into a Twitter war with then-presidential candidate Donald Trump, who in multiple tweets stated that Stewart's changing his name indicated that he was a fraud. Stewart and some analysts considered this to be anti-Semitic. Trump then tweeted that Stewart should be "proud of his heritage", and Stewart tweeted back, facetiously, that Trump's real name was "Fuckface Von Clownstick" and that Trump should be proud of the "Clownstick heritage".
In June 2017, Stewart spoke at the funeral service for Ray Pfeifer, an FDNY firefighter from Hicksville, New York, who died after an eight-year battle with cancer as a result of service as a first responder at the September 11 attacks.
Criticism of television journalists
Stewart is known as an outspoken, humorous critic of personality-driven media shows, in particular, those of the U.S. media broadcast networks such as CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC. Critics say Stewart benefits from a double standard: he critiques other news shows from the safe, removed position of his "news satire" desk; Stewart asserts that neither his show nor Comedy Central purport to be anything other than satire and comedy.
Crossfire appearance
In a televised exchange with then-CNN correspondent Tucker Carlson on Crossfire on October 15, 2004, Stewart criticized the state of television journalism and pleaded with the show's hosts to "stop hurting America", and he referred to both Carlson and co-host Paul Begala as "partisan hacks". When posted on the internet, this exchange became widely viewed and was a topic of much media discussion.
Despite being on the program to comment on current events, Stewart immediately shifted the discussion toward the show itself, asserting that Crossfire had failed in its responsibility to inform and educate viewers about politics as a serious topic. Stewart stated that the show engaged in partisan hackery instead of honest debate, and said that the hosts' assertion that Crossfire is a debate show is like "saying pro wrestling is a show about athletic competition". Carlson responded by saying that Stewart criticizes news organizations for not holding public officials accountable, but when he interviewed John Kerry, Stewart asked a series of "softball" questions (Stewart has acknowledged he voted for Kerry in the 2004 presidential election). Stewart responded that he didn't realize "the news organizations look to Comedy Central for their cues on integrity". When Carlson continued to press Stewart on the Kerry issue, Stewart said, "You're on CNN! The show that leads into me is puppets making crank phone calls! What is wrong with you?" In response to prods from Carlson, "Come on. Be funny." Stewart said, "No, I'm not going to be your monkey." Later in the show when Carlson jibed, "I do think you're more fun on your show", Stewart retorted, "You're as big a dick on your show as you are on any show." In response to Stewart's criticisms, Carlson said, "You need to get a job at a journalism school", to which Stewart responded, "You need to go to one!"
Stewart discussed the incident on The Daily Show the following Monday:
In January 2005, CNN announced that it was canceling Crossfire. When asked about the cancellation, CNN's incoming president, Jonathan Klein, referred to Stewart's appearance on the show: "I think he made a good point about the noise level of these types of shows, which does nothing to illuminate the issues of the day."
On March 18, 2009, Carlson wrote a blog entry for The Daily Beast criticizing Stewart for his handling of the CNBC controversy (see below). Carlson discussed the CNN incident and claimed that Stewart remained backstage for at least "an hour" and "continued to lecture our staff", something Carlson described as, "one of the weirdest things I have ever seen".
Criticism of CNBC
Stewart again became a viral internet phenomenon following a March 4, 2009, The Daily Show sequence. CNBC canceled Rick Santelli's scheduled appearance on The Daily Show that day, so the show ran a short segment showing CNBC giving poor investment advice.
Subsequent media coverage of exchanges between Stewart and Jim Cramer, who had been featured heavily in the original segment, led to a highly anticipated face-to-face confrontation on The Daily Show. The episode received much media attention and became the second most-viewed episode of The Daily Show, trailing only the 2009 Inauguration Day episode. It had 2.3 million total viewers, and the next day, the show's website saw its highest day of traffic in 2009. Although Cramer acknowledged on the show that some of Stewart's criticisms of CNBC were valid and that the network could "do better", he later said on The Today Show that Stewart's criticism of the media was "naïve and misleading."
Criticism of Fox News
Throughout his tenure on The Daily Show, Stewart frequently accused Fox News of distorting the news to fit a conservative agenda, at one point ridiculing the network as "the meanest sorority in the world". In November 2009, Stewart "called out" Fox News for using some footage from a previous Tea Party rally during a report on a more recent rally, making the latter event appear more highly attended than it was. The show's anchor, Sean Hannity, apologized for the footage use the following night. A month later, Stewart criticized Fox & Friends cohost Gretchen Carlson – a former Miss America and a Stanford graduate – for claiming that she googled words such as "ignoramus" and "czar". Stewart said that Carlson was dumbing herself down for "an audience who sees intellect as an elitist flaw".
Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010; within five months, The Daily Show had 24 segments criticizing the Fox News coverage. Bill O'Reilly, host of the talk show The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News, countered that The Daily Show was a "key component of left-wing television" and that Stewart loved Fox News because the network was "not boring".
During an interview with Chris Wallace on June 19, 2011, Stewart called Wallace "insane" for saying that Stewart's earlier comparison of the marketing techniques of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment. Stewart also said Fox viewers are the "most consistently misinformed" viewers of political media. This comment was ranked by the fact-checking site, PolitiFact, as false, with conditions. Stewart later accepted his error.
In 2014, Stewart engaged in an extended "call-out" of Fox News, based on their coverage of food stamps and U.S. government assistance, opining that said coverage was biased. This culminated in segments across multiple episodes, specifically singling out Sean Hannity and his show's coverage of the Bundy standoff. Hannity would "return fire" by calling out Stewart for associating himself with Cat Stevens during his Rally in 2010. Stewart responded to this by criticizing Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a "friend and frequent guest" on his program and supporting Nugent's violent rhetoric toward Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2007. In late August 2014, Stewart criticized the manner in which Fox News portrayed the events surrounding the shooting of teenager Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri, and the subsequent protests from citizens.
Advocacy of the 9/11 First Responders Bill
Over the years, Stewart sometimes used The Daily Show to argue for causes such as the treatment of veterans and 9/11 first responders. He is credited with breaking a Senate deadlock over a bill to provide health care and benefits for 9/11 emergency workers; the bill passed three days after he featured a group of 9/11 responders on the show. In March 2009, he criticized a White House proposal to remove veterans from Veterans Administration rolls if they had private health insurance; the White House dropped the plan the next day. In 2010, Stewart held an interview with a panel of four of the 9/11 first responders Kenny Specht with the FDNY, Chris Bowman NYPD, Ken George DOT, and Kevin Devlin, Operating Engineer of Heavy Equipment, who discussed their health problems with Stewart. In 2015 four months after leaving The Daily Show he returned to reunite the four, with Specht as the only panelist healthy enough to attend. Devlin had died and the two other panelists, Bowman and George, were too ill to make it to the show.
In February and June 2019, Stewart again went to Congress to oppose the $7.375 billion limit in pay-outs to 9/11 responders through December 2020 and to lobby for permanent funding for the Victims Compensation Fund past December 2020, delivering a tearful testimony.
Stewart continued to be a vocal advocate, appearing on late night shows such as The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, and news programs such as Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace, and The Fox Report with Shepherd Smith. On July 12, 2019, the House approved the bill overwhelmingly 402–12. The bill came to the Senate floor where it passed the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund through 2092, virtually funding health care for 9/11 victims and first responders for life. The vote was 97–2 with Republican Senators Rand Paul (KY) and Mike Lee (UT) opposing. When hearing that the bill had been passed, Stewart responded by saying, "It has been the honor of my life working with the 9/11 first responders...these families deserve better...and I will follow you wherever your next adventure shall be".
Writers Guild of America strike of 2007–2008
Stewart was an important factor in the unionization of the Comedy Central writers. The Daily Show writers were the first of Comedy Central's writers to be able to join the guild, after which other shows followed.
Stewart supported the 2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike. On The Daily Show episode just before the strike, he sarcastically commented about how Comedy Central had made available all episodes for free on their website, but without advertising, and said, "go support our advertisers". The show went on hiatus when the strike began, as did other late-night talk shows. Upon Stewart's return to the show on January 7, 2008, he refused to use the title, The Daily Show, stating that The Daily Show was the show made with all of the people responsible for the broadcast, including his writers. During the strike, he referred to his show as A Daily Show with Jon Stewart until the strike ended on February 13, 2008.
Stewart's choice to return to the air did bring criticism that he was undermining the writers of his show. Seth MacFarlane wrote an inside joke into an episode of Family Guy about this, causing Stewart to respond with an hour-long call in which he questioned how MacFarlane could consider himself the "moral arbiter" of Hollywood. Other former writers of The Daily Show such as David Feldman also have indicated that Stewart was anti-union at the time and punished his writers for their decision to unionize.
The Writers Guild Strike of 2007–08 also was responsible for a notable mock feud between Stewart, Stephen Colbert, and Conan O'Brien in early 2008. Without writers to help fuel their banter, the three comedians concocted a crossover/rivalry to garner more viewers during the ratings slump. Colbert claimed that because of "the Colbert bump", he was responsible for Mike Huckabee's success in the 2008 presidential race. O'Brien claimed that he was responsible for Huckabee's success because not only had he mentioned Huckabee on his show, but also that he was responsible for Chuck Norris's success (Norris backed Huckabee). In response, Stewart claimed that he was responsible for the success of O'Brien since Stewart had featured him on The Jon Stewart Show, and in turn, the success of Huckabee. This resulted in a three-part comedic battle between the three pundits, with all three appearing on each other's shows. The feud ended on Late Night with Conan O'Brien with a mock brawl involving the three hosts.
Influences
Stewart has said his influences include George Carlin, Lenny Bruce, Woody Allen, David Letterman, Steve Martin, and Richard Pryor.
Among comedians who say they were influenced by Stewart are Stephen Colbert, John Oliver, Hasan Minhaj, Samantha Bee, Larry Wilmore, Bassem Youssef, Trevor Noah, and Jordan Klepper.
Personal life
Stewart is irreligious, but of Jewish heritage.
While making the 1997 film, Wishful Thinking, a production assistant on the film arranged for a blind date between Stewart and Tracey Lynn McShane. They dated for four years. Stewart proposed to her through a personalized crossword puzzle created with the help of Will Shortz, the crossword editor at The New York Times. They married in 2000. On June 19, 2001, Stewart and his wife filed a joint name change application and legally changed both of their surnames to "Stewart". With the help of in vitro fertilization, the couple has two children.
In 2000, when he was labelled a Democrat, Stewart generally agreed, but described his political affiliation as "more socialist or independent" than Democratic, and Stewart has voted for Republicans, the last time being in the 1988 presidential election when he voted for George H. W. Bush over Michael Dukakis. He described Bush as having "an integrity about him that I respected greatly". He has been a vocal proponent of single-payer health care system.
In 2013, Stewart and his wife bought a farm in Middletown, New Jersey, called "Bufflehead Farm". The Stewarts operate it as a sanctuary for abused animals.
In 2015, Stewart began eating a vegetarian diet for ethical reasons; his wife is a long-time vegan.
In 2017, Stewart and his wife received approval to open a 45-acre (18 ha) animal sanctuary in Colts Neck, New Jersey, a home to animals saved from slaughterhouses and live markets.
Honors and awards
Stewart and other members of The Daily Show have received three Peabody Awards for "Indecision 2000" and "Indecision 2004", covering the 2000 presidential election and the 2004 presidential election, respectively. He received his third Peabody in 2016 for his tenure at The Daily Show.
The Daily Show received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Program in 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2015 and Outstanding Variety, Music, or Comedy Series for 10 consecutive years from 2003 to 2012. In 2013, the award for both categories instead went to The Daily Show spin-off The Colbert Report. In 2015, The Daily Show resurfaced, winning both categories for one last time for Stewart's swan song as host. Stewart won the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album in 2005 for his recording, America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction.
In the December 2003 New Year's edition of Newsweek, Stewart was named the "Who's Next?" person for 2004, with the magazine predicting that he would emerge as an absolute sensation in that year. (The magazine said they had been correct at the end of that year.) Stewart was named among the 2005 Time 100, an annual list of 100 of the most influential people of the year by Time magazine.
In 2004, Stewart spoke at the commencement ceremonies at his alma mater, William and Mary, and received an honorary Doctor of Arts degree. Stewart was the Class Day keynote speaker at Princeton University in 2004, and the 2008 Sacerdote Great Names speaker at Hamilton College. Stewart and The Daily Show received the 2005 National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) George Orwell Award for Distinguished Contribution to Honesty and Clarity in Public Language. Stewart was presented an Honorary All-America Award by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) in 2006.
On April 21, 2009, President of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf made Stewart a chief. On October 26, 2010, Stewart was named the Most Influential Man of 2010 by AskMen.
For his advocacy on behalf of 9/11 victims and families, Stewart was one of eighteen individuals and organizations awarded the Bronze Medallion on December 16, 2019. The Bronze Medallion is the highest award conferred upon civilians by New York City.
Filmography
Film
Television
Bibliography
Naked Pictures of Famous People (Rob Weisbach Books, 1998). .
America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction (Warner Books, September 2004). .
Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race (Grand Central Publishing, 2010). .
See also
New Yorkers in journalism
Political satire
References
Further reading
David Marchese, "Jon Stewart Is Back to Weigh In", The New York Times Magazine, June 15, 2020.
Lisa Rogak, Angry Optimist: The Life and Times of Jon Stewart. New York: Saint Martin's Griffin, 2014. .
Bruce Watson, Jon Stewart: Beyond the Moments of Zen. New Word City, 2014.
External links
The Daily Show profile
1962 births
20th-century American comedians
21st-century American comedians
20th-century American male actors
20th-century American non-fiction writers
21st-century American male actors
21st-century American non-fiction writers
American film producers
American male comedians
American male film actors
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American male television actors
American media critics
American people of Belarusian-Jewish descent
American people of Polish-Jewish descent
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American political commentators
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Comedians from New York City
Criticism of journalism
Film directors from New Jersey
Film directors from New York City
Grammy Award winners
Jewish American male comedians
Jewish American male actors
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Jewish male comedians
Late night television talk show hosts
Lawrence High School (New Jersey) alumni
Living people
Male actors from New Jersey
Male actors from New York City
New Jersey Hall of Fame inductees
American male television writers
Peabody Award winners
People from Lawrence Township, Mercer County, New Jersey
Primetime Emmy Award winners
Screenwriters from New York (state)
Television producers from New York City
William & Mary Tribe men's soccer players
Writers from New Jersey
Writers from New York City
20th-century American male writers
21st-century American male writers
Television producers from New Jersey
Association football players not categorized by nationality | true | [
"Robert Desmond Stewart (born 1949), known as Dessie Stewart, is a former unionist politician in Northern Ireland.\n\nLiving in Portrush, Stewart joined the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), and first stood for Coleraine Borough Council for the party in the Skerries ward, at the 1985 Northern Ireland local elections. Although he was unsuccessful, he was narrowly elected at the following election, in 1989, and then topped the poll in 1993. At the Northern Ireland Forum election in 1996, he stood in East Londonderry, and was elected from second place on the DUP list.\n\nStewart held his council seat in the 1997 and 2001 local elections. In 2001/2, he served as Deputy Mayor of Coleraine, then in 2003/4 as the borough's Mayor.\n\nFollowing the 2005 Northern Ireland local elections, in which Stewart was again re-elected, he was accused of electoral fraud. He was subsequently convicted of taking fifteen electoral votes from a care home and using them to vote for himself. He admitted the charges and resigned from both his party and the council, and was sentenced to four months in prison. During his trial, he punched a press photographer, for which he was fined £300. The subsequent council by-election was won by the Alliance Party, which has held the seat ever since.\n\nReferences\n\n1949 births\nLiving people\nBritish politicians convicted of fraud\nMayors of Coleraine\nDemocratic Unionist Party councillors\nMembers of the Northern Ireland Forum\nPeople from Portrush",
"\"Get Lucky\" is a song by American singer Jermaine Stewart, released in 1988 as the second single from his third studio album Say It Again (1987). It was written by Errol Brown and Simon Climie, and produced by Aaron Zigman and Jerry Knight. For its release as a single, \"Get Lucky\" was given a remix by Phil Harding. The song was a commercial success, particularly in Europe, but failed to chart in the United States, although it did reach No. 12 on the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart. It reached No. 13 in the UK, and No. 6 in both Switzerland and Germany.\n\nThe single's B-side, \"Imagine\", which was exclusive to the single, written by Stewart and Roy Carter.\n\nBackground\nSpeaking to Record Mirror in 1988, Stewart said of the song and its video, \"I think 'Get Lucky' has a nostalgic, Fifties feel to it. We shot the video in a Fifties style and I think it's the kind of thing someone like Marlon Brando would like.\"\n\nPromotion\nA music video was filmed to promote the single. It was directed by Dieter \"Dee\" Trattmann and produced by Anthony Taylor for Picture Music Int. On March 13, 1988, a UK film crew visited Stewart at his home in Hollywood, with footage being shot behind the scenes of the \"Get Lucky\" video. In the UK, Stewart also performed the song on popular music show Top of the Pops.\n\nCritical reception\nOn its release, Max Bell of Number One commented: \"Barely has \"Say It Again\" bade a cheery goodbye than he's back in the ring with a slice of doleful disco that's camper than weekend at Butlin's. Jermaine starts off threatening to be Depeche Mode but sees the error of his ways and ends up settling for a Bee Gees flavoured mood which is palatable in small doses. Cash Box listed the single as one of their \"feature picks\" during July 1986. They commented: \"A shuffling feel and a strong vocal highlight this fine track.\"\n\nFormats\n7\" single\n\"Get Lucky\" - 3:45\n\"Imagine\" - 4:01\n\n12\" single (UK release)\n\"Get Lucky (Extended Remix)\" - 6:15\n\"Get Lucky (Dub)\" - 4:50\n\n12\" single (US release)\n\"Get Lucky (Extended Dance)\" - 6:15\n\"Get Lucky (Dub Version)\" - 4:50\n\"Get Lucky (Single Version)\" - 3:45\n\"Get Lucky (R&B Mix)\" - 3:58\n\"Imagine\" - 4:01\n\n12\" single (European release)\n\"Get Lucky (Extended Remix)\" - 6:15\n\"Get Lucky (Dub)\" - 4:50\n\"Imagine\" - 4:01\n\nCassette single (US release)\n\"Get Lucky (Single Version)\" - 3:45\n\"Imagine\" - 4:01\n\nCD single (UK release)\n\"Get Lucky\" - 3:46\n\"Get Lucky (Extended Remix)\" - 6:19\n\"Say It Again (The Jingle Mix)\" - 3:54\n\"Places\" - 4:01\n\nChart performance\n\nPersonnel\n Jermaine Stewart - vocals\n Jerry Knight - instruments\n Aaron Zigman - instruments\n Lenny Castro - percussion\n Jackie James - backing vocals\n\nProduction\n Aaron Zigman, Jerry Knight - producers of \"Get Lucky\"\n Csaba Petocz, - engineer on \"Get Lucky\"\n John Arrias - additional engineer on \"Get Lucky\"\n Mick Guzauski - mixing and recording on \"Get Lucky\"\n Gary Wagner - engineer and recording on \"Get Lucky\"\n Phil Harding - remixing and additional production on \"Get Lucky\"\n Roy Carter, Jermaine Stewart - producers of \"Imagine\"\n Peter Rackham - engineer on \"Imagine\"\n\nOther\n Timon at Bill Smith Studio - sleeve design\n Marc Le Bon - photography\n\nReferences\n\n1987 songs\n1988 singles\nJermaine Stewart songs\nIsland Records singles\nArista Records singles\nSongs written by Errol Brown\nSongs written by Simon Climie"
] |
[
"Jon Stewart",
"Criticism of Fox News",
"What was his criticisms of fox news?",
"based on their perceived hypocritical coverage of food stamps and U.S. Government assistance.",
"did he have any problems with them?",
"Hannity would \"return fire\" by calling out Stewart",
"what happened after that?",
"2010. Stewart responded to this by calling out Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a \"friend and frequent guest\"",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010;",
"how did he step it up?",
"Stewart called Wallace \"insane\" after Wallace said that Stewart's earlier comparison of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment.",
"what did wallace respond with?",
"Stewart also said Fox viewers are the \"most consistently misinformed\" viewers of political media.",
"did stewart ever get fined?",
"Stewart later accepted his error."
] | C_786034d9487f49daa667e68a1af6e708_1 | was he punihsed in any way? | 8 | was Jon Stewart punihsed in any way? | Jon Stewart | Throughout his tenure on The Daily Show, Stewart has frequently accused Fox News of distorting the news to fit a conservative agenda, at one point ridiculing the network as "the meanest sorority in the world." In November 2009, Stewart called out Fox News for using some footage from a previous Tea Party rally during a report on a more recent rally, making the latter event appear more highly attended than it actually was. The show's anchor, Sean Hannity, apologized for the footage use the following night. A month later, Stewart criticized Fox & Friends cohost Gretchen Carlson - a former Miss America and a Stanford graduate - for claiming that she googled words such as "ignoramus" and "czar". Stewart said that Carlson was dumbing herself down for "an audience who sees intellect as an elitist flaw". Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010; as of April 24, The Daily Show had 24 segments criticizing Fox News' coverage. Bill O'Reilly, host of the talk show The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News, countered that The Daily Show was a "key component of left-wing television" and that Stewart loved Fox News because the network was "not boring". During an interview with Chris Wallace on June 19, 2011, Stewart called Wallace "insane" after Wallace said that Stewart's earlier comparison of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment. Stewart also said Fox viewers are the "most consistently misinformed" viewers of political media. This comment was ranked by fact-checking site PolitiFact as false, with conditions. Stewart later accepted his error. In 2014, Stewart engaged in an extended "call-out" of Fox News based on their perceived hypocritical coverage of food stamps and U.S. Government assistance. This culminated during the Bundy standoff involving multiple segments, across multiple episodes, specifically singling out Sean Hannity and Hannity's coverage of the event. Hannity would "return fire" by calling out Stewart for associating himself with Cat Stevens during his Rally in 2010. Stewart responded to this by calling out Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a "friend and frequent guest" on his program and supporting Nugent's violent rhetoric towards Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2007. In late August 2014, Stewart vehemently opposed the manner in which Fox News portrayed the events surrounding the shooting of teenager Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri and the subsequent protests from citizens. CANNOTANSWER | This comment was ranked by fact-checking site PolitiFact as false, with conditions. | Jon Stewart (born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz; November 28, 1962) is an American comedian, writer, producer, director, political commentator, actor, and television host. He hosted The Daily Show, a satirical news program on Comedy Central, from 1999 to 2015. Stewart now hosts The Problem with Jon Stewart, which premiered September 2021 on Apple TV+.
Stewart started as a stand-up comedian but branched into television as host of Short Attention Span Theater for Comedy Central. He went on to host You Wrote It, You Watch It (1992–1993) and then The Jon Stewart Show (1993–1995), both on MTV, until The Jon Stewart Show was retooled, dropped by the network and moved to syndication. Stewart has also appeared in several films, including Big Daddy (1999) and Death to Smoochy (2002), but did few cinematic projects after becoming host of The Daily Show in 1999. He also was a writer and co-executive producer of the show. After Stewart joined, The Daily Show steadily gained popularity and critical acclaim, and during his tenure, won 22 Primetime Emmy Awards, two Grammy Awards and also was nominated for news and journalism awards. Stewart hosted the 78th and 80th Academy Awards. He is the co-author of America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, which was one of the best-selling books in the US in 2004, and Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race, released in 2010.
Since leaving The Daily Show, Stewart has mostly maintained a low profile in entertainment industry circles, but has used his celebrity and voice in a sustained advocacy for 9/11 first responders, and also for war veterans' health benefits. In 2019 he received the New York City Bronze Medallion for his "tireless advocacy, inspiration, and leadership (helping to) pass the permanent authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund Act".
Early life and education
Jon Stewart was born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz on November 28, 1962, in New York City, to Marian (née Laskin), a teacher and later educational consultant, and Donald Leibowitz, an energy coordinator for the New Jersey Department of the Treasury. Stewart's family members are Jewish immigrants to America from Poland, Ukraine, and Belarus. One of his grandfathers was born in Manzhouli (now part of Inner Mongolia). He is the second of four sons, with older brother Lawrence, and younger brothers Dan and Matthew.
Stewart's parents divorced when he was eleven years old, and Stewart was largely estranged from his father. Because of his strained relationship with his father, which in 2015 he described as "still 'complicated'", he dropped his surname and began using his middle name. Stewart stated, "There was a thought of using my mother's maiden name, but I thought that would be just too big a fuck you to my dad... Did I have some problems with my father? Yes. Yet people always view [changing my surname] through the prism of ethnic identity." He had his surname changed legally to Stewart in 2001. Stewart and his brother Lawrence, who was previously the chief operating officer of NYSE Euronext (parent company of the New York Stock Exchange), grew up in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, where they attended Lawrence High School. According to Stewart, he was subjected to anti-Semitic bullying as a child. He describes himself in high school as "very into Eugene Debs and a bit of a leftist."
Stewart grew up in the era of the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal, which inspired in him "a healthy skepticism towards official reports". His first job was working with his brother at a Woolworth's store, and jokingly says being fired by Lawrence was one of the "scarring events" of his youth. He has also credited legendary television producer Norman Lear as someone who "raised me."
Stewart graduated in 1984 from The College of William & Mary where he initially majored in chemistry before switching to psychology. While at William & Mary, Stewart became a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity, but eventually began disassociating himself from them; leaving the fraternity altogether after six months. "My college career was waking up late, memorizing someone else's notes, doing bong hits, and going to soccer practice", he later said. He was a three-year starter in 1981, 1982 and 1983 with the Tribe men's soccer team. He had 10 goals and 12 assists on a squad that went 40–15–9 (.695) in his three seasons with the program. He is listed as Jon Leibowitz in official William & Mary Athletics records. The former head coach of the Tribe men's soccer team from 1971 to 2003, Al Albert, describes Jon as "athletic and feisty and quick" and added that he "wasn't the most technical or clinical player, but he could make things happen."
After college, Stewart held numerous jobs: a contingency planner for the New Jersey Department of Human Services, a contract administrator for the City University of New York, a puppeteer for children with disabilities, a soccer coach at Gloucester High School in Virginia, a caterer, a busboy, a shelf stocker at Woolworth's, a bartender at the Franklin Corner Tavern (a local blue-collar bar), and a bartender at the legendary City Gardens in Trenton, New Jersey. He has said that working at City Gardens was a pivotal moment for him: "finding this place City Gardens was like, 'Oh, maybe I'm not a giant weirdo. Maybe there are other people who have a similar sense of yearning for something other than what they have now.' I think it inspired a lot of people, man. It was a very creative environment. It was a place of great possibility."
Career
Early work
With a reputation for being a funny man in school, Jon Stewart returned to New York City in 1986 to try his hand at the comedy club circuit, but he could not muster the courage to get on stage until the following year. He made his stand-up debut at The Bitter End, where one of his comedic idols, Woody Allen, also began. He began using the stage name "Jon Stewart" by dropping his last name and changing the spelling of his middle name "Stuart" to "Stewart". He often jokes this is because people had difficulty with the pronunciation of Leibowitz or it "sounded too Hollywood" (a reference to Lenny Bruce's joke on the same theme). He has implied that the name change was due to a strained relationship with his father, with whom Stewart no longer had any contact.
Stewart became a regular at the Comedy Cellar, where he was the last performer every night. For two years, he would perform at 2 a.m. while developing his comedic style. In 1989, Stewart landed his first television job as a writer for Caroline's Comedy Hour. In 1990, he began co-hosting Comedy Central's Short Attention Span Theater, with Patty Rosborough. In 1992, Stewart hosted the short-lived You Wrote It, You Watch It on MTV, which invited viewers to send in their stories to be acted out by the comedy troupe, The State.
Stewart relates that his career did not take off until his March 6, 1992, appearance on NBC's Late Night with David Letterman. He was considered a finalist to take over Letterman's position upon his departure from the program, but instead, it was given to relatively unknown Conan O'Brien. He co-hosted MTV Spring Break '93 Blind Date from Daytona Beach with Melissa Rivers.
The Jon Stewart Show
Later in 1993, Stewart developed The Jon Stewart Show, a talk show on MTV, which was later dropped by the network and was syndicated for its last two years. The Jon Stewart Show was the first talk show on that network and was an instant hit, becoming the second-highest rated MTV show, behind Beavis and Butt-Head. In 1994, Paramount canceled The Arsenio Hall Show and, with new corporate sibling MTV (through MTV parent Viacom's acquisition of the studio), launched an hour-long syndicated late-night version of The Jon Stewart Show. Many local affiliates had moved Hall's show to 2 a.m. during its decline and Stewart's show inherited such early morning time slots in many cities. Ratings were dismal and the show was canceled in June 1995.
Among the fans of the show was David Letterman, who was the final guest of The Jon Stewart Show. Letterman signed Stewart with his production company, Worldwide Pants. Stewart then became a frequent guest host for Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show with Tom Snyder, which was produced by Letterman and aired after the Late Show on CBS. This led to much speculation that Stewart would soon replace Snyder permanently, but instead, Stewart was offered the time slot after Snyder's, which he turned down.
In 1996 Stewart hosted a short-lived talk show entitled, Where's Elvis This Week?, that was a half-hour, weekly comedy television program. It aired on Sunday nights in the United Kingdom on BBC Two. It was filmed at the CBS Broadcast Center in New York City and featured a set of panelists, two from the UK and two from the United States, who discussed news items and cultural issues. The show premiered in the UK on October 6, 1996; five episodes aired in total. Notable panelists included Dave Chappelle, Eddie Izzard, Phill Jupitus, Nora Ephron, Craig Kilborn, Christopher Hitchens, Armando Iannucci, Norm Macdonald, and Helen Gurley Brown. In 1997, Stewart was chosen as the host and interviewer for George Carlin's tenth HBO special, 40 Years of Comedy.
The Daily Show
In 1998, when Craig Kilborn left the show to replace Tom Snyder on The Late Late Show, Stewart began hosting The Daily Show on Comedy Central. The Daily Show blends humor with the day's top news stories, usually in politics, while simultaneously poking fun at politicians, newsmakers, and the news media. In an interview on The O'Reilly Factor, Stewart denied the show has any intentional political agenda, saying the goal was "schnicks and giggles" and that "[t]he same weakness that drove me into comedy also informs my show", meaning that he was uncomfortable talking without hearing the audience laugh. In his first Daily Show on-air appearance on January 11, 1999, Stewart told his guest that evening, Michael J. Fox, that he felt as if "this is my bar mitzvah". His style was described by one critic as, "Stewart does not offer us cynicism for its own sake, but as a playful way to offer the kinds of insights that are not permitted in more serious news formats that slavishly cling to official account of events."
Until Trevor Noah permanently took over the show in 2015, Stewart hosted almost all airings of the program, except for a few occasions when correspondents such as Stephen Colbert, Rob Corddry, Jason Jones, and Steve Carell subbed for him, and during John Oliver's stint as host during the summer of 2013. Stewart won twenty Primetime Emmy Awards for The Daily Show as either a writer or producer, and two for producing The Colbert Report (2013–14), earning a total of twenty-two Primetime Emmy Awards, the most wins for a male individual. In 2005, Stewart and The Daily Show received the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album for the audiobook edition of America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction. In 2000 and 2004, the show won two Peabody Awards for its coverage of the U.S. presidential elections in those years, called "Indecision 2000" and "Indecision 2004", respectively.
The show of September 20, 2001, the first show after the attacks of September 11th, 2001, began with no introduction. Before this, the introduction included footage of a fly-in toward the World Trade Center and New York City. The first nine minutes of the show included a tearful Stewart discussing his personal view on the event. His remarks ended as follows:
In mid-2002, amid rumors that David Letterman was going to switch from CBS to ABC when his contract ran out, Stewart was rumored as Letterman's replacement on CBS. Ultimately, Letterman renewed his contract with CBS. On the March 9, 2002, episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by Stewart, a Weekend Update sketch poked fun at the situation.
In late 2002, ABC offered Stewart his own talk show to air right after Nightline. Stewart's contract with The Daily Show was near expiring, and he expressed strong interest. ABC, however, decided to give another Comedy Central figure, Jimmy Kimmel, the post-Nightline slot.
On April 4, 2006, Stewart confronted U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) on The Daily Show about his decision to appear at Liberty University, an institution founded by Jerry Falwell whom McCain previously had denounced as one of the "agents of intolerance". In the interchange, Stewart asked McCain, "You're not freaking out on us? Are you freaking out on us, because if you're freaking out ... and you're going into the crazy base world—are you going into crazy base world?" McCain replied, "Just– just– just a little" and "I'm afraid so." The clip was played on CNN, was noted and discussed in more detail in the blogosphere and was followed up on in the mainstream media.
In 2007, The Daily Show was involved in former correspondent Stephen Colbert's announcement that he would run for president in 2008. In 2008, Stewart appeared on the news program Democracy Now!. A 2008 New York Times story questioned whether he was, in a phrase originally used to describe longtime network news anchor Walter Cronkite, "the most trusted man in America".
On April 28, 2009, during a discussion on torture with Clifford May, Stewart expressed his opinion that former President Harry S. Truman was a war criminal for his use of the atomic bomb on Japan during World War II. He defended his assertion moments later:
"Here's what I think of the atom bombs. I think if you dropped an atom bomb fifteen miles offshore and you said, 'The next one's coming and hitting you', then I would think it's okay. To drop it on a city, and kill a hundred thousand people? Yeah. I think that's criminal." On April 30, Stewart apologized on his program, and stated he did not believe Truman was a war criminal: "I shouldn't have said that, and I did. So I say right now, no, I don't believe that to be the case. The atomic bomb, a very complicated decision in the context of a horrific war, and I walk that back because it was in my estimation a stupid thing to say."
In April 2010, Comedy Central renewed Stewart's contract to host The Daily Show into 2013. According to a Forbes list of celebrities in 2008, he was earning $14 million a year.
On September 16, 2010, Stewart and Stephen Colbert announced a rally for October 30, known as the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear. It took place on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. and attracted an estimated 215,000 participants. In December 2010, Stewart was credited by the White House, other media, and political news outlets for bringing awareness of the Republican filibuster on the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act to the public, leading to the ultimate passing of the bill that provides health benefits to first responders whose health has been adversely affected by their work at Ground Zero.
On the show of January 10, 2011, Stewart began with a monologue about the shootings in Tucson, Arizona. He said he wished the "ramblings of crazy people didn't in any way resemble how we actually talk to each other on television". Before a commercial break, Stewart told viewers that the show would continue as usual the next night. After the commercial break, the show featured a rerun of a field piece done by Jason Jones two years earlier.
The New York Times opined that Stewart is "the modern-day equivalent of Edward R. Murrow" and the UK national newspaper The Independent called him the "satirist-in-chief". In an interview, Senator John McCain described Stewart as "a modern-day Will Rogers and Mark Twain".
Writer Wyatt Cenac said that Stewart cursed him out after Cenac acknowledged he was uncomfortable about a June 2011 Daily Show bit about Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain (reported in July 2015).
In March 2013, it was announced that Stewart would be taking a 12-week hiatus from The Daily Show to direct the film Rosewater, which is based on the book Then They Came for Me by Maziar Bahari. Beginning June 10, 2013, The Daily Show correspondent John Oliver assumed primary hosting duties during Stewart's break. The TV Guide annual survey for 2013 star salaries showed that Stewart was the highest-paid late night host, making an estimated $25–30 million per year.
On July 14, 2014, Stewart interviewed Hillary Clinton about the Middle East. Clinton's condemnations of Hamas led Stewart to ask her: "But don't you think they would look at that though as, they've given a lot of different things a chance and these are the only guys to them that are giving any resistance to what their condition is?" For Gazans living in that situation, he said Hamas could be viewed as "freedom fighters".
Leaving The Daily Show
During a taping of the show on February 10, 2015, Stewart announced he was leaving The Daily Show. Comedy Central president Michele Ganeless confirmed Stewart's retirement with a statement. Later, it was announced that South African comedian Trevor Noah would succeed Stewart as the host of the show. On April 20, 2015, Stewart indicated that his final show would be on August 6, 2015.
On July 28, 2015, Darren Samuelsohn of Politico reported that twice, Stewart had been at the White House for previously unreported meetings with President Obama: once in October 2011 and once in February 2014. Michael D. Shear of The New York Times also picked up on the story. Stewart responded on his show by pointing out that the meetings were listed in the president's publicly available visitor log and that he has been asked to meet privately by many prominent individuals, including Roger Ailes of Fox News. He said Obama encouraged him not to make young Americans cynical about their government and Stewart said that his reply was that he was "skeptically idealistic".
On June 19, 2015, in the wake of the Charleston Church Shooting, Stewart decided not to write jokes for the opening monologue. Elaborating on his decision, Stewart stated, "I honestly have nothing other than just sadness". Stewart spoke about the racial disparity and injustices in America, saying "The Confederate flag flies over South Carolina ... and the roads are named for Confederate generals" describing it as "racial wallpaper". Instead he designated a large portion of the show to his guest that night Malala Yousafzai, calling her "an incredible inspiration," and that "to be quite honest with you, I don't think there's anyone else in the world I would rather talk to tonight than Malala: So that's what we're going to do. And sorry about no jokes."
On August 5, 2015, Stewart's friend of 30 years, comedian Louis C.K., was selected to be the last guest before the final Daily Show episode with Stewart helming the show. C.K. joked that he was there "representing comedy to say good job".
The hour-long-plus final Daily Show on August 6 featured reunions with former correspondents Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, John Oliver, Samantha Bee, Hasan Minhaj, Ed Helms, Kristen Schaal, Larry Wilmore, Jessica Williams, Aasif Mandvi, Lewis Black, John Hodgman, Rob Corddry, Olivia Munn, Josh Gad, Michael Che, and Mo Rocca and cameo video clips from people Stewart had targeted over the years, including Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Lindsey Graham, Chris Christie, John Kerry, Chuck Schumer, Bill O'Reilly, Wolf Blitzer, Joe Scarborough, and Mika Brzezinski. During the final episode, there was a pre-taped behind-the-scenes look at the show spoofing the long-take Copacabana scene from Goodfellas, featuring a brief appearance by Martin Scorsese. It concluded with a performance by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.
Post-Daily Show
In November 2015, it was announced that Stewart signed a four-year deal with HBO that would include exclusive digital content for HBO NOW, HBO Go, and other platforms. HBO programming president Casey Bloys has said that "the idea is it will be an animated parody of a cable news network with an Onion-like portal." The team began working with the cloud graphics company, OTOY, to build a system for creating content. Confirmed to be working on the project included Mike Brown, Steve Waltien, Chelsea Devantez, Lucy Steiner, Kate James, and Robby Slowik. The team tested material in Red Bank, New Jersey at The Count Basie Theatre Performing Arts Academy.
The show's premiere was moved several times, from fall 2016, to the first quarter of 2017, and then cancelled on May 23, 2017. The cancelation statement read:
After his contract with HBO ended, Stewart signed a multi-year show deal with Apple. On September 30, 2021, Stewart's new series, The Problem with Jon Stewart, premiered on AppleTV. The series features hour-long, single-subject episodes. In addition to hosting the show, Stewart serves as executive producer through his company, Busboy Productions.
Writing
In 1998, Stewart released his first book, Naked Pictures of Famous People, a collection of humorous short stories and essays. The book reached The New York Times Best Seller List.
In 2004, Stewart and The Daily Show writing staff released, America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, a mock high-school history textbook offering insights into the unique American system of government, dissecting its institutions, explaining its history and processes, and satirizing such popular American political precepts as, "one man, one vote", "government by the people", and "every vote counts". The book sold millions of copies upon its 2004 release and ended the year as a top-fifteen best seller.
In 2005, Stewart provided the voice of President James A. Garfield for the audiobook version of Sarah Vowell's Assassination Vacation. In 2007, Stewart voiced Mort Sinclaire, former TV comedy writer and communist, on Stephen Colbert's audiobook version of I Am America (And So Can You!).
In 2010, Stewart and The Daily Show writing staff released a sequel to their first book entitled, Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race. The book is meant to serve as a Baedeker travel guide for an alien civilization that discovers Earth after humanity has died out, most likely by its own hands.
In March 2012, Stewart interviewed Bruce Springsteen for Rolling Stone.
Acting
Stewart's first film role was a bit part in the box-office bomb, Mixed Nuts. He landed a minor part in The First Wives Club, but his scene was deleted. In 1995, Stewart signed a three-year deal with Miramax. Stewart played romantic leads in the films, Playing by Heart and Wishful Thinking. He had a supporting role in the romantic comedy, Since You've Been Gone and in the horror film, The Faculty. Other films were planned for Stewart to write and star in, but they never were produced. Stewart maintained a relationship with Miramax founders Harvey and Bob Weinstein and appeared in films they produced including, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Doogal, and the documentary, Wordplay.
He appeared in Half Baked as an "enhancement smoker" and in Big Daddy as Adam Sandler's roommate; he has joked on the Daily Show and in the documentary The Aristocrats that to get the role, he slept with Sandler. Stewart often makes fun of his appearances in the high-profile flop, Death to Smoochy, in which he played a treacherous television executive; and the animated film Doogal, where he played a blue spring named Zeebad who shot a freeze ray from his mustache. In 2007, Stewart made a cameo appearance as himself in Evan Almighty, which starred former Daily Show correspondent Steve Carell. In the movie, Stewart was seen on a television screen in a fictional Daily Show episode poking fun at Carell's character for building an ark.
Stewart had a recurring role in The Larry Sanders Show, playing himself as an occasional substitute and possible successor to late-night talk show host Larry Sanders (played by Garry Shandling). In 1998, Stewart hosted the television special, Elmopalooza, celebrating 30 years of Sesame Street. He has guest-starred on other sitcoms including The Nanny, Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist, Spin City, NewsRadio, American Dad!, and The Simpsons. He also has made guest appearances on the children's television series Between the Lions, Sesame Street, Jack's Big Music Show, and Gravity Falls.
Producing
In the mid-1990s, Stewart launched his own production company, Busboy Productions, naming the company in reference to his previous job as a busboy. Stewart signed a deal with Miramax to develop projects through his company, but none of his ideas have been produced. After Stewart's success as host and producer of The Daily Show, he revived Busboy Productions with Daily Show producers Ben Karlin and Rich Korson. In 2002, Busboy planned to produce a sitcom for NBC starring Stephen Colbert, but the show did not come to fruition.
In 2005, Comedy Central reached an agreement with Busboy in which Comedy Central would provide financial backing for the production company. Comedy Central has a first-look agreement on all projects, after which Busboy is free to shop them to other networks.
The deal spawned the Daily Show spin-off The Colbert Report and its replacement, The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore. Other projects include the sitcom pilot Three Strikes, the documentary Sportsfan, the series Important Things with Demetri Martin, and the film The Donor.
After Stewart's departure from The Daily Show, he was listed as an executive producer on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. In addition, Stewart has presented occasional comedic monologues filled with political and media commentary.
In July 2017, HBO announced Stewart would produce a stand-up comedy special for the network, his first stand-up special since 1996.
Directing
In March 2010, Stewart announced that he had optioned rights to the story of journalist Maziar Bahari, who was imprisoned in Iran for 118 days. On June 6, 2011, episode of The Daily Show, Stewart again hosted Bahari, and in March 2013, he announced that he was leaving the show for 12 weeks to direct the film version of Bahari's 2011 book, Then They Came For Me. Stewart's screenplay adaptation is entitled, Rosewater. It premiered at the September 2014 Toronto International Film Festival, receiving "generally favorable" reviews, and was released to general audiences on November 14, 2014.
On directing, Stewart noted on Employee of the Month that The Daily Show influenced his directing process more than his acting gigs did. He said, "It's about the collaboration. It's about understanding. Doing a show taught me this process of clarity of vision, but the flexibility of process. So know your intention, know where you're wanting to go with the scene with the way that you want it to go, the momentum shifts, the emphasis, where you want it to be." He also expressed interest in directing more films.
Stewart directed the political satire Irresistible, released in June 2020, which follows a demoralized Democratic strategist (played by Daily Show alumnus Steve Carell), who helps a retired veteran (Chris Cooper) run for mayor in a small, blue collar town in Wisconsin.
Hosting and public speaking
Stewart has hosted the Grammy Awards twice, in 2001 and in 2002, and the 78th Academy Awards, which were held March 5, 2006, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood. Critical response to Stewart's performance was mixed. Roger Ebert compared him favorably to legendary Oscar host Johnny Carson. Other reviewers were less positive; Tom Shales of The Washington Post said that Stewart hosted with "smug humorlessness". James Poniewozik of TIME said that Stewart was a bad host, but a great "anti-host" in that he poked fun at parts of the broadcast that deserved it, which lent him a degree of authenticity with the non-Hollywood audience. Stewart and correspondent John Oliver later poked fun at his lackluster reception on The Daily Show coverage of the 79th Academy Awards by saying that the "demon of last year's Oscars had finally been exorcised".
Stewart returned to host the 80th Academy Awards on February 24, 2008. The reception to his performance was better received. Matthew Gilbert of the Boston Globe felt the ceremony was average, but praised Stewart, writing that, "It was good to see Jon Stewart being Jon Stewart. He is shaping up to be a dependable Oscar host for the post-Billy Crystal years. He's not musical, but he's versatile enough to swing smoothly between jokes about politics, Hollywood, new media, and, most importantly, hair." Variety columnist Brian Lowry lauded Stewart's performance noting that he "earned his keep by maintaining a playful, irreverent tone throughout the night, whether it was jesting about Cate Blanchett's versatility or watching Lawrence of Arabia on an iPhone screen.
In December 2009, Stewart gave a speech at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts honoring Bruce Springsteen, one of that year's Kennedy Center Honors recipients, and of whom Stewart is a fan. Stewart gave another speech paying tribute to Springsteen in February 2013 as part of the singer's MusiCares Person of the Year award ceremony.
Stewart began a comedic feud with WWE wrestler Seth Rollins in March 2015, and appeared on WWE Raw during a Daily Show-styled segment hosted by Rollins. On August 23, 2015, Stewart returned to host the WWE's SummerSlam at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Later, he got involved in the main event between Rollins and John Cena, helping Rollins retain his WWE World Heavyweight Championship, as well as winning Cena's United States Championship when he interfered and hit Cena with a steel chair. The next night on Raw, he explained his actions, saying he did it for Ric Flair (who was also present), which was to retain his world championship record. Cena then gave Stewart his finishing move, the Attitude Adjustment, to end the segment. Stewart returned at SummerSlam on August 21, 2016, as a special guest.
In 2016, Stewart joined President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Jill Biden, and David Letterman in honoring military families on May 5 at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. The special celebration which marked both the USO's 75th anniversary and the fifth anniversary of Joining Forces.
Stewart got into a Twitter war with then-presidential candidate Donald Trump, who in multiple tweets stated that Stewart's changing his name indicated that he was a fraud. Stewart and some analysts considered this to be anti-Semitic. Trump then tweeted that Stewart should be "proud of his heritage", and Stewart tweeted back, facetiously, that Trump's real name was "Fuckface Von Clownstick" and that Trump should be proud of the "Clownstick heritage".
In June 2017, Stewart spoke at the funeral service for Ray Pfeifer, an FDNY firefighter from Hicksville, New York, who died after an eight-year battle with cancer as a result of service as a first responder at the September 11 attacks.
Criticism of television journalists
Stewart is known as an outspoken, humorous critic of personality-driven media shows, in particular, those of the U.S. media broadcast networks such as CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC. Critics say Stewart benefits from a double standard: he critiques other news shows from the safe, removed position of his "news satire" desk; Stewart asserts that neither his show nor Comedy Central purport to be anything other than satire and comedy.
Crossfire appearance
In a televised exchange with then-CNN correspondent Tucker Carlson on Crossfire on October 15, 2004, Stewart criticized the state of television journalism and pleaded with the show's hosts to "stop hurting America", and he referred to both Carlson and co-host Paul Begala as "partisan hacks". When posted on the internet, this exchange became widely viewed and was a topic of much media discussion.
Despite being on the program to comment on current events, Stewart immediately shifted the discussion toward the show itself, asserting that Crossfire had failed in its responsibility to inform and educate viewers about politics as a serious topic. Stewart stated that the show engaged in partisan hackery instead of honest debate, and said that the hosts' assertion that Crossfire is a debate show is like "saying pro wrestling is a show about athletic competition". Carlson responded by saying that Stewart criticizes news organizations for not holding public officials accountable, but when he interviewed John Kerry, Stewart asked a series of "softball" questions (Stewart has acknowledged he voted for Kerry in the 2004 presidential election). Stewart responded that he didn't realize "the news organizations look to Comedy Central for their cues on integrity". When Carlson continued to press Stewart on the Kerry issue, Stewart said, "You're on CNN! The show that leads into me is puppets making crank phone calls! What is wrong with you?" In response to prods from Carlson, "Come on. Be funny." Stewart said, "No, I'm not going to be your monkey." Later in the show when Carlson jibed, "I do think you're more fun on your show", Stewart retorted, "You're as big a dick on your show as you are on any show." In response to Stewart's criticisms, Carlson said, "You need to get a job at a journalism school", to which Stewart responded, "You need to go to one!"
Stewart discussed the incident on The Daily Show the following Monday:
In January 2005, CNN announced that it was canceling Crossfire. When asked about the cancellation, CNN's incoming president, Jonathan Klein, referred to Stewart's appearance on the show: "I think he made a good point about the noise level of these types of shows, which does nothing to illuminate the issues of the day."
On March 18, 2009, Carlson wrote a blog entry for The Daily Beast criticizing Stewart for his handling of the CNBC controversy (see below). Carlson discussed the CNN incident and claimed that Stewart remained backstage for at least "an hour" and "continued to lecture our staff", something Carlson described as, "one of the weirdest things I have ever seen".
Criticism of CNBC
Stewart again became a viral internet phenomenon following a March 4, 2009, The Daily Show sequence. CNBC canceled Rick Santelli's scheduled appearance on The Daily Show that day, so the show ran a short segment showing CNBC giving poor investment advice.
Subsequent media coverage of exchanges between Stewart and Jim Cramer, who had been featured heavily in the original segment, led to a highly anticipated face-to-face confrontation on The Daily Show. The episode received much media attention and became the second most-viewed episode of The Daily Show, trailing only the 2009 Inauguration Day episode. It had 2.3 million total viewers, and the next day, the show's website saw its highest day of traffic in 2009. Although Cramer acknowledged on the show that some of Stewart's criticisms of CNBC were valid and that the network could "do better", he later said on The Today Show that Stewart's criticism of the media was "naïve and misleading."
Criticism of Fox News
Throughout his tenure on The Daily Show, Stewart frequently accused Fox News of distorting the news to fit a conservative agenda, at one point ridiculing the network as "the meanest sorority in the world". In November 2009, Stewart "called out" Fox News for using some footage from a previous Tea Party rally during a report on a more recent rally, making the latter event appear more highly attended than it was. The show's anchor, Sean Hannity, apologized for the footage use the following night. A month later, Stewart criticized Fox & Friends cohost Gretchen Carlson – a former Miss America and a Stanford graduate – for claiming that she googled words such as "ignoramus" and "czar". Stewart said that Carlson was dumbing herself down for "an audience who sees intellect as an elitist flaw".
Stewart stepped up his criticism of Fox News in 2010; within five months, The Daily Show had 24 segments criticizing the Fox News coverage. Bill O'Reilly, host of the talk show The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News, countered that The Daily Show was a "key component of left-wing television" and that Stewart loved Fox News because the network was "not boring".
During an interview with Chris Wallace on June 19, 2011, Stewart called Wallace "insane" for saying that Stewart's earlier comparison of the marketing techniques of a Sarah Palin campaign video and an anti-herpes medicine ad was a political comment. Stewart also said Fox viewers are the "most consistently misinformed" viewers of political media. This comment was ranked by the fact-checking site, PolitiFact, as false, with conditions. Stewart later accepted his error.
In 2014, Stewart engaged in an extended "call-out" of Fox News, based on their coverage of food stamps and U.S. government assistance, opining that said coverage was biased. This culminated in segments across multiple episodes, specifically singling out Sean Hannity and his show's coverage of the Bundy standoff. Hannity would "return fire" by calling out Stewart for associating himself with Cat Stevens during his Rally in 2010. Stewart responded to this by criticizing Hannity for frequently calling Ted Nugent a "friend and frequent guest" on his program and supporting Nugent's violent rhetoric toward Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2007. In late August 2014, Stewart criticized the manner in which Fox News portrayed the events surrounding the shooting of teenager Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri, and the subsequent protests from citizens.
Advocacy of the 9/11 First Responders Bill
Over the years, Stewart sometimes used The Daily Show to argue for causes such as the treatment of veterans and 9/11 first responders. He is credited with breaking a Senate deadlock over a bill to provide health care and benefits for 9/11 emergency workers; the bill passed three days after he featured a group of 9/11 responders on the show. In March 2009, he criticized a White House proposal to remove veterans from Veterans Administration rolls if they had private health insurance; the White House dropped the plan the next day. In 2010, Stewart held an interview with a panel of four of the 9/11 first responders Kenny Specht with the FDNY, Chris Bowman NYPD, Ken George DOT, and Kevin Devlin, Operating Engineer of Heavy Equipment, who discussed their health problems with Stewart. In 2015 four months after leaving The Daily Show he returned to reunite the four, with Specht as the only panelist healthy enough to attend. Devlin had died and the two other panelists, Bowman and George, were too ill to make it to the show.
In February and June 2019, Stewart again went to Congress to oppose the $7.375 billion limit in pay-outs to 9/11 responders through December 2020 and to lobby for permanent funding for the Victims Compensation Fund past December 2020, delivering a tearful testimony.
Stewart continued to be a vocal advocate, appearing on late night shows such as The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, and news programs such as Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace, and The Fox Report with Shepherd Smith. On July 12, 2019, the House approved the bill overwhelmingly 402–12. The bill came to the Senate floor where it passed the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund through 2092, virtually funding health care for 9/11 victims and first responders for life. The vote was 97–2 with Republican Senators Rand Paul (KY) and Mike Lee (UT) opposing. When hearing that the bill had been passed, Stewart responded by saying, "It has been the honor of my life working with the 9/11 first responders...these families deserve better...and I will follow you wherever your next adventure shall be".
Writers Guild of America strike of 2007–2008
Stewart was an important factor in the unionization of the Comedy Central writers. The Daily Show writers were the first of Comedy Central's writers to be able to join the guild, after which other shows followed.
Stewart supported the 2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike. On The Daily Show episode just before the strike, he sarcastically commented about how Comedy Central had made available all episodes for free on their website, but without advertising, and said, "go support our advertisers". The show went on hiatus when the strike began, as did other late-night talk shows. Upon Stewart's return to the show on January 7, 2008, he refused to use the title, The Daily Show, stating that The Daily Show was the show made with all of the people responsible for the broadcast, including his writers. During the strike, he referred to his show as A Daily Show with Jon Stewart until the strike ended on February 13, 2008.
Stewart's choice to return to the air did bring criticism that he was undermining the writers of his show. Seth MacFarlane wrote an inside joke into an episode of Family Guy about this, causing Stewart to respond with an hour-long call in which he questioned how MacFarlane could consider himself the "moral arbiter" of Hollywood. Other former writers of The Daily Show such as David Feldman also have indicated that Stewart was anti-union at the time and punished his writers for their decision to unionize.
The Writers Guild Strike of 2007–08 also was responsible for a notable mock feud between Stewart, Stephen Colbert, and Conan O'Brien in early 2008. Without writers to help fuel their banter, the three comedians concocted a crossover/rivalry to garner more viewers during the ratings slump. Colbert claimed that because of "the Colbert bump", he was responsible for Mike Huckabee's success in the 2008 presidential race. O'Brien claimed that he was responsible for Huckabee's success because not only had he mentioned Huckabee on his show, but also that he was responsible for Chuck Norris's success (Norris backed Huckabee). In response, Stewart claimed that he was responsible for the success of O'Brien since Stewart had featured him on The Jon Stewart Show, and in turn, the success of Huckabee. This resulted in a three-part comedic battle between the three pundits, with all three appearing on each other's shows. The feud ended on Late Night with Conan O'Brien with a mock brawl involving the three hosts.
Influences
Stewart has said his influences include George Carlin, Lenny Bruce, Woody Allen, David Letterman, Steve Martin, and Richard Pryor.
Among comedians who say they were influenced by Stewart are Stephen Colbert, John Oliver, Hasan Minhaj, Samantha Bee, Larry Wilmore, Bassem Youssef, Trevor Noah, and Jordan Klepper.
Personal life
Stewart is irreligious, but of Jewish heritage.
While making the 1997 film, Wishful Thinking, a production assistant on the film arranged for a blind date between Stewart and Tracey Lynn McShane. They dated for four years. Stewart proposed to her through a personalized crossword puzzle created with the help of Will Shortz, the crossword editor at The New York Times. They married in 2000. On June 19, 2001, Stewart and his wife filed a joint name change application and legally changed both of their surnames to "Stewart". With the help of in vitro fertilization, the couple has two children.
In 2000, when he was labelled a Democrat, Stewart generally agreed, but described his political affiliation as "more socialist or independent" than Democratic, and Stewart has voted for Republicans, the last time being in the 1988 presidential election when he voted for George H. W. Bush over Michael Dukakis. He described Bush as having "an integrity about him that I respected greatly". He has been a vocal proponent of single-payer health care system.
In 2013, Stewart and his wife bought a farm in Middletown, New Jersey, called "Bufflehead Farm". The Stewarts operate it as a sanctuary for abused animals.
In 2015, Stewart began eating a vegetarian diet for ethical reasons; his wife is a long-time vegan.
In 2017, Stewart and his wife received approval to open a 45-acre (18 ha) animal sanctuary in Colts Neck, New Jersey, a home to animals saved from slaughterhouses and live markets.
Honors and awards
Stewart and other members of The Daily Show have received three Peabody Awards for "Indecision 2000" and "Indecision 2004", covering the 2000 presidential election and the 2004 presidential election, respectively. He received his third Peabody in 2016 for his tenure at The Daily Show.
The Daily Show received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Program in 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2015 and Outstanding Variety, Music, or Comedy Series for 10 consecutive years from 2003 to 2012. In 2013, the award for both categories instead went to The Daily Show spin-off The Colbert Report. In 2015, The Daily Show resurfaced, winning both categories for one last time for Stewart's swan song as host. Stewart won the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album in 2005 for his recording, America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction.
In the December 2003 New Year's edition of Newsweek, Stewart was named the "Who's Next?" person for 2004, with the magazine predicting that he would emerge as an absolute sensation in that year. (The magazine said they had been correct at the end of that year.) Stewart was named among the 2005 Time 100, an annual list of 100 of the most influential people of the year by Time magazine.
In 2004, Stewart spoke at the commencement ceremonies at his alma mater, William and Mary, and received an honorary Doctor of Arts degree. Stewart was the Class Day keynote speaker at Princeton University in 2004, and the 2008 Sacerdote Great Names speaker at Hamilton College. Stewart and The Daily Show received the 2005 National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) George Orwell Award for Distinguished Contribution to Honesty and Clarity in Public Language. Stewart was presented an Honorary All-America Award by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) in 2006.
On April 21, 2009, President of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf made Stewart a chief. On October 26, 2010, Stewart was named the Most Influential Man of 2010 by AskMen.
For his advocacy on behalf of 9/11 victims and families, Stewart was one of eighteen individuals and organizations awarded the Bronze Medallion on December 16, 2019. The Bronze Medallion is the highest award conferred upon civilians by New York City.
Filmography
Film
Television
Bibliography
Naked Pictures of Famous People (Rob Weisbach Books, 1998). .
America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction (Warner Books, September 2004). .
Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race (Grand Central Publishing, 2010). .
See also
New Yorkers in journalism
Political satire
References
Further reading
David Marchese, "Jon Stewart Is Back to Weigh In", The New York Times Magazine, June 15, 2020.
Lisa Rogak, Angry Optimist: The Life and Times of Jon Stewart. New York: Saint Martin's Griffin, 2014. .
Bruce Watson, Jon Stewart: Beyond the Moments of Zen. New Word City, 2014.
External links
The Daily Show profile
1962 births
20th-century American comedians
21st-century American comedians
20th-century American male actors
20th-century American non-fiction writers
21st-century American male actors
21st-century American non-fiction writers
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Association football players not categorized by nationality | false | [
"\"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" is a song by Canadian singer Celine Dion. It was included on her first English-language album, Unison (1990). \"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" was released by Columbia Records as the album's lead single in Canada on 26 March 1990. The next year, it was issued as the second single in other countries. The song was written by Paul Bliss, while production was handled by Christopher Neil.\n\nAfter its release, \"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" received positive reviews from music critics. The song peaked at number 23 in Canada and number 35 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Additionally, it became a success on the adult contemporary charts, reaching number eight in the United States and number 12 in Canada. Two accompanying music videos for the song were filmed. Dion performed \"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" during her Unison Tour (1990–91).\n\nBackground and release\nIn 1990, Dion was preparing to issue her first English-language album, Unison. After releasing various French-language albums in Canada and France in the '80s, she recorded new English songs in London, Los Angeles and New York. At first, Unison was released in Canada, and \"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" was chosen as its lead single. Written by British musician, Paul Bliss, and produced by British record producer, Christopher Neil, it was issued on 26 March 1990.\n\nOne year later on 18 March 1991, \"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" was released as the second single in the United States after \"Where Does My Heart Beat Now\". For the US market the single was remixed by Walter Afanasieff. This US version features a different audio mix from the Canadian single version and the album version: reverb has been applied throughout (most noticeably to Dion's vocal track), the guitars have been rebalanced so that they are less audible in some places in the song and more prominent in others, the drum track features \"rimshot\" effects during the chorus, additional synthesizer lines have been overdubbed onto the existing keyboard track (most noticeably in the bar before the instrumental break), and the fadeout has been slightly extended in length. It was also used in the American music video of the song that year. Additionally \"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" was remixed by Daniel Abraham, a French record producer living in New York. His dance remixes appeared on a promotional US single.\n\n\"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" was also released as a single in selected European countries, Australia, and Japan in June 1991.\n\nCritical reception\nAllMusic's senior editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine picked the song as an album standout along with \"Where Does My Heart Beat Now\". Larry Flick from Billboard noted that Dion \"continues to soar\" with a \"spirited, up-tempo\" song. He complimented the \"crystalline production and shimmering backup vocal support combined with a passionate lead performance\". Dave Sholin from the Gavin Report wrote about the song: \"Nothing like witnessing the growth and development of a genuine artist. Celine definitely falls into that category, capturing the hearts of Americans the way she's been doing in her native Canada for the past several years. Switching from torch song to snappy rhythm affords listeners an opportunity to hear another side of this wonderful talent\". Music & Media noted that \"talented Canadian chanteuse enters the Whitney Houston racket\" and described it as \"satisfying AC pop.\" Christopher Smith from TalkAboutPopMusic described it as a \"pop-soft rock mid tempo number\".\n\nCommercial performance\nIn Canada \"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" entered the RPM Top Singles chart on 31 March 1990 and peaked at number twenty-three on 9 June 1990. The song also entered the RPM Adult Contemporary chart on 24 March 1990 and reached number twelve there. In the United States \"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, dated 6 April 1991, and peaked at number thirty-five on 1 June 1991. The track also entered Billboards Adult Contemporary chart dated 30 March 1991, reaching number eight.\n\nMusic video\nThere were two music videos made for the song. The first one was directed by Derek Case and released in March 1990 for the Canadian market. The second one was filmed for the US market in Los Angeles, California, and Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It was directed by Dominic Orlando and premiered in March 1991. The two videos were included separately on Dion's 1991 home video Unison, depending on the Canadian or US release.\n\nLive performances\nDion performed \"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" on a few Canadian television shows in 1990. She also sang it on the Canadian/US variety show, Super Dave and performed it in Norway in 1991. It was included in her Unison Tour as well.\n\nTrack listings and formatsAustralian 7\", cassette, CD / Canadian 7\" single\"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" – 3:59\n\"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" (Instrumental) – 3:59Canadian cassette / European 3\", 7\" / Japanese 3\" single\"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" – 3:59\n\"I'm Loving Every Moment With You\" – 4:08European 12\", CD single\"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" – 3:59\n\"I'm Loving Every Moment With You\" – 4:08\n\"If We Could Start Over\" – 4:23US 7\" single\"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" – 3:59\n\"Where Does My Heart Beat Now\" – 4:33US cassette single\"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" (Walter Afanasieff Remix) – 4:13\n\"Where Does My Heart Beat Now\" – 4:33US promotional CD single'\n\"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" (Daniel Abraham's 7\" Remix) – 3:54\n\"(If There Was) Any Other Way\" (Daniel Abraham's 12\" Remix) – 5:39\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nCredits and personnel\nRecording\nRecorded at West Side Studios, London\n\nPersonnel\nCeline Dion – lead and backing vocals\nChristopher Neil – producer, backing vocals\nPhil Palmer – guitars\nPaul Bliss – songwriter, drums, keyboard programming, backing vocals\nSimon Hurrell – engineer\nWalter Afanasieff – additional producer, keyboards, percussion (Remix only)\nDaniel Abraham – additional producer (Dance Remix only)\n\nRelease history\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n1990 singles\n1990 songs\nCeline Dion songs\nColumbia Records singles\nDance-pop songs\nEpic Records singles\nSong recordings produced by Christopher Neil",
"The City Council Cemetery Land Scandal is a scandal that in March 2010, resulted in the Kenyan Deputy Prime Minister Musalia Mudavadi coming under investigation by the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission over a Sh283 million cemetery land fraud at the Nairobi City Council. Commission officials said that they wanted to establish whether the minister was party to the fraud in which the City Council of Nairobi bought land valued at Sh24 million for nearly Sh300 million. Mudavadi however protested his innocence and said that the commission was being unfair by accusing him without giving him a chance to be heard. Investigations are currently ongoing into the matter.\n\nIn 2016, a high court in Kenya established that Musalia Mudavadi did not receive any funds from the scandal neither was he involved in any way in the conspiracy that led to the scandal thus he was not culpable in any way.\n\nReferences\n\nPolitics of Kenya\n2010 in Kenya\n2010 in law\nKenyan law\nCorruption in Kenya"
] |
[
"Donna Haraway",
"\"A Cyborg Manifesto\""
] | C_0fe28ad9572349f8964399f82096dade_1 | What was the Cyborg Manifesto? | 1 | What was "A Cyborg Manifesto"? | Donna Haraway | In 1985, Haraway published the essay "Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the 1980s" in Socialist Review. Although most of Haraway's earlier work was focused on emphasizing the masculine bias in scientific culture, she has also contributed greatly to feminist narratives of the twentieth century. For Haraway, the Manifesto offered a response to the rising conservatism during the 1980s in the United States at a critical juncture at which feminists, in order to have any real-world significance, had to acknowledge their situatedness within what she terms the "informatics of domination." Women were no longer on the outside along a hierarchy of privileged binaries but rather deeply imbued, exploited by and complicit within networked hegemony, and had to form their politics as such. According to Haraway's "Manifesto", "there is nothing about being female that naturally binds women together into a unified category. There is not even such a state as 'being' female, itself a highly complex category constructed in contested sexual scientific discourses and other social practices". A cyborg does not require a stable, essentialist identity, argues Haraway, and feminists should consider creating coalitions based on "affinity" instead of identity. To ground her argument, Haraway analyzes the phrase "women of color", suggesting it as one possible example of affinity politics. Using a term coined by theorist Chela Sandoval, Haraway writes that "oppositional consciousness" is comparable with a cyborg politics, because rather than identity it stresses how affinity comes as a result of "otherness, difference, and specificity". Haraway's cyborg is a set of ideals of a genderless, race-less, more collective and peaceful civilization with the caveat of being utterly connected to the machine. Her new versions of beings reject Western humanist conceptions of personhood and promote a disembodied world of information and the withering of subjectivity. The collective consciousness of the beings and their limitless access to information provide the tools with which to create a world of immense socio-political change through altruism and affinity, not biological unity. In her essay Haraway challenges the liberal human subject and its lack of concern for collective desires which leaves the possibility for wide corruption and inequality in the world. Furthermore, the cyborg's importance lays in its coalition of consciousness not in the physical body that carries the information/consciousness. A world of beings with a type of shared knowledge could create a powerful political force towards positive change. Cyborgs can see "from both perspectives at once." In addition, Haraway writes that the cyborg has an imbued nature towards the collective good. Haraway explains that her "Manifesto" is "an effort to build an ironic political myth faithful to feminism, socialism, and materialism." She adds that "Cyborg imagery can suggest a way out of the maze of dualisms in which we have explained our bodies and our tools to ourselves." Haraway is serious about finding future ways towards equality and ending dominating behavior; however, the cyborg itself is not as serious of an endeavor for her as the idea of it is. Haraway creates an analogy using current technologies and information to imagine a world with a collective coalition that had the capabilities to create grand socio-political change. Haraway's "Manifesto" is a thought experiment, defining what people think is most important about being and what the future holds for increased artificial intelligence. CANNOTANSWER | In 1985, Haraway published the essay "Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the 1980s" in Socialist Review. | Donna J. Haraway (born September 6, 1944) is an American Professor Emerita in the History of Consciousness Department and Feminist Studies Department at the University of California, Santa Cruz, United States. She is a prominent scholar in the field of science and technology studies, described in the early 1990s as a "feminist and postmodernist". Haraway is the author of numerous foundational books and essays that bring together questions of science and feminism, such as "A Cyborg Manifesto: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the Late Twentieth Century" (1985) and "Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective" (1988). Additionally, for her contributions to the intersection of information technology and feminist theory, Haraway is widely cited in works related to Human-Computer Interaction (HCI). Her Situated Knowledges and Cyborg Manifesto publications in particular, have sparked discussion within the HCI community regarding framing the positionality from which research and systems are designed. She is also a leading scholar in contemporary ecofeminism, associated with post-humanism and new materialism movements. Her work criticizes anthropocentrism, emphasizes the self-organizing powers of nonhuman processes, and explores dissonant relations between those processes and cultural practices, rethinking sources of ethics. Haraway criticizes the Anthropocene because it generalizes us as a species. However, she also recognizes the importance of it recognizing humans as key agents. Haraway prefers the term Capitalocene which defines capitalism's relentless imperatives to expand itself and grow, but she does not like the theme of irreversible destruction in both the Anthropocene and Capitalocene.
Haraway has taught Women's Studies and the History of Science at the University of Hawaii (1971-1974) and Johns Hopkins University (1974-1980). She began working as a professor at the University of Santa Cruz in 1980 where she became the first tenured professor in feminist theory in the United States. Haraway's works have contributed to the study of both human–machine and human–animal relations. Her works have sparked debate in primatology, philosophy, and developmental biology. Haraway participated in a collaborative exchange with the feminist theorist Lynn Randolph from 1990 to 1996. Their engagement with specific ideas relating to feminism, technoscience, political consciousness, and other social issues, formed the images and narrative of Haraway's book Modest_Witness for which she received the Society for Social Studies of Science's (4S) Ludwik Fleck Prize in 1999. She was also awarded the Section on Science, Knowledge and Technology's Robert K. Merton award in 1992 for her work Primate Visions:Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science. In 2000, Haraway was awarded the Society for Social Studies of Science's John Desmond Bernal Prize for her distinguished contributions to the field of science and technology studies. Haraway serves on the advisory board for numerous academic journals, including differences, Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, Contemporary Women's Writing, and Environmental Humanities.
Biography
Early life
Donna Jeanne Haraway was born on September 6, 1944, in Denver, Colorado. Haraway's father, Frank O. Haraway, was a sportswriter for The Denver Post and her mother Dorothy Mcguire Haraway, who came from a heavily Irish Catholic background, died from a heart attack when Haraway was 16 years old. Although she is no longer religious, Catholicism had a strong influence on her as she was taught by nuns in her early life. The impression of the Eucharist influenced her linkage of the figurative and the material. Haraway attended high school at St. Mary's Academy in Cherry Hills Village, Colorado. Growing up around her father's adoration for sports writing is a major part of her love for writing. The two of them would have dinner conversations about words and their fascination with them. Another impact on Haraway's writing came from the wars she experienced throughout her life, considering she was born at the end of World War II and grew up during the Cold War.
Education
Haraway majored in Zoology, with minors in philosophy and English at the Colorado College, on the full-tuition Boettcher Scholarship. After college, Haraway moved to Paris and studied evolutionary philosophy and theology at the Fondation Teilhard de Chardin on a Fulbright scholarship. She completed her Ph.D. in biology at Yale in 1972 writing a dissertation about the use of metaphor in shaping experiments in experimental biology titled The Search for Organizing Relations: An Organismic Paradigm in Twentieth-Century Developmental Biology, later edited into a book and published under the title Crystals, Fabrics, and Fields: Metaphors of Organicism in Twentieth-Century Developmental Biology.
Later work
Haraway was the recipient of several scholarships. Alluding to the Cold War and post-war American hegemony, she said of these, "...people like me became national resources in the national science efforts. So, there was money available for educating even Irish Catholic girls' brains." In 1999, Haraway received the Society for Social Studies of Science's (4S) Ludwik Fleck Prize. In September 2000, Haraway was awarded the Society for Social Studies of Science's highest honor, the J. D. Bernal Award, for her "distinguished contributions" to the field. Haraway's most famous essay was published in 1985: "A Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the 1980s" and was characterized as "an effort to build an ironic political myth faithful to feminism, socialism, and materialism".
In Haraway's theses, "Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective" (1988), she means to expose the myth of scientific objectivity. Haraway defined the term "situated knowledges" as a means of understanding that all knowledge comes from positional perspectives. Our positionality inherently determines what it is possible to know about an object of interest. Comprehending situated knowledge "allows us to become answerable for what we learn how to see". Without this accountability, the implicit biases and societal stigmas of the researcher's community are twisted into ground truth from which to build assumptions and hypothesis. Haraway's ideas in "Situated Knowledges" were heavily influenced by conversations with Nancy Hartsock and other feminist philosophers and activists.
Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science, published in 1989 (Routledge), focuses on primate research and primatology: "My hope has been that the always oblique and sometimes perverse focusing would facilitate revisions of fundamental, persistent western narratives about difference, especially racial and sexual difference; about reproduction, especially in terms of the multiplicities of generators and offspring; and about survival, especially about survival imagined in the boundary conditions of both the origins and ends of history, as told within western traditions of that complex genre". Currently, Donna Haraway is an American Professor Emerita in the History of Consciousness Department and Feminist Studies Department at the University of California, Santa Cruz, United States. She lives North of San Francisco with her partner Rusten Hogness. In an interview with Sarah Franklin in 2017, Haraway addresses her intent to incorporate collective thinking and all perspectives: "It isn't that systematic, but there is a little list. I notice if I have cited nothing but white people, if I have erased indigenous people, if I forget non-human beings, etc. I notice on purpose. I notice if I haven't paid the slightest bit of attention ... You know, I run through some old-fashioned, klutzy categories. Race, sex, class, region, sexuality, gender, species. I pay attention. I know how fraught all those categories are, but I think those categories still do important work. I have developed, kind of, an alert system, an internalized alert system."
Major themes
"A Cyborg Manifesto"
In 1985, Haraway published the essay "Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the 1980s" in Socialist Review. Although most of Haraway's earlier work was focused on emphasizing the masculine bias in scientific culture, she has also contributed greatly to the feminist narratives of the twentieth century. For Haraway, the Manifesto offered a response to the rising conservatism during the 1980s in the United States at a critical juncture at which feminists, to have any real-world significance, had to acknowledge their situatedness within what she terms the "informatics of domination." Women were no longer on the outside along a hierarchy of privileged binaries but rather deeply imbued, exploited by and complicit within networked hegemony, and had to form their politics as such.
According to Haraway's "Manifesto," "there is nothing about being female that naturally binds women together into a unified category. There is not even such a state as 'being' female, itself a highly complex category constructed in contested sexual scientific discourses and other social practices". As stated, "In Simians, Cyborgs, and Women: The Reinvention of Nature (1991), Donna Haraway introduces the figure of the cyborg, an “impure” creature who scrambles orderly divisions between the natural and artificial/technical, and the human and the non-human/animal". A cyborg does not require a stable, essentialist identity, argues Haraway, and feminists should consider creating coalitions based on "affinity" instead of identity. To ground her argument, Haraway analyzes the phrase "women of color", suggesting it as one possible example of affinity politics. Using a term coined by theorist Chela Sandoval, Haraway writes that "oppositional consciousness" is comparable with a cyborg politics, because rather than identity it stresses how affinity comes as a result of "otherness, difference, and specificity".
Haraway's cyborg is a set of ideals of a genderless, race-less, more collective, and peaceful civilization with the caveat of being utterly connected to the machine. Her new versions of beings reject Western humanist conceptions of personhood and promote a disembodied world of information and the withering of subjectivity. The collective consciousness of the beings and their limitless access to information provides the tools with which to create a world of immense socio-political change through altruism and affinity, not biological unity. In her essay, Haraway challenges the liberal human subject and its lack of concern for collective desires which leaves the possibility for wide corruption and inequality in the world. Furthermore, the cyborg's importance lies in its coalition of consciousness, not in the physical body that carries the information/consciousness. A world of beings with a type of shared knowledge could create a powerful political force toward positive change. Cyborgs can see "from both perspectives at once." In addition, Haraway writes that the cyborg has an imbued nature toward the collective good.
Haraway explains that her "Manifesto" is "an effort to build an ironic political myth faithful to feminism, socialism, and materialism." She adds that "Cyborg imagery can suggest a way out of the maze of dualisms in which we have explained our bodies and our tools to ourselves." Haraway is serious about finding future ways towards equality and ending dominating behavior; however, the cyborg itself is not as serious of an endeavor for her as the idea of it is. Haraway creates an analogy using current technologies and information to imagine a world with a collective coalition that has the capabilities to create grand socio-political change. Haraway's "Manifesto" is a thought experiment, defining what people think is most important about being and what the future holds for increased artificial intelligence.
Gender, Work, & Organization's author Agnes Prasad's piece Cyborg Writing as a Political Act: Reading Donna Haraway in Organization Studies elaborates on how Haraway's writing contributes to the greater feminist community.
"This essay, almost immediately, became a watershed text for feminist theory and for, what was at the time, the inchoate field of feminist science studies. Interweaving ideas that were playful and imaginative with an incisive critique of the totalizing essentialism that was the ironic hallmark of the myriad strands of the second-wave feminist movement — encompassing, but not limited to, Marxist, psychoanalytic and radical feminist approaches — Haraway conscientiously articulates the politics of a monstrous creature of the post-gender world: the cyborg."
Cyborg feminism
In her updated essay "A Cyborg Manifesto: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the Late Twentieth Century", in her book Simians, Cyborgs and Women: The Reinvention of Nature (1991), Haraway uses the cyborg metaphor to explain how fundamental contradictions in feminist theory and identity should be conjoined, rather than resolved, similar to the fusion of machine and organism in cyborgs. The manifesto is also an important feminist critique of capitalism by revealing how men have exploited women's reproduction labor, providing a barrier for women to reach full equality in the labor market.
"Situated Knowledges"
"Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective" sheds light on Haraway's vision for a feminist science. The essay originated as a commentary on Sandra Harding's The Science Question in Feminism (1986) and is a reply to Harding's "successor science". Haraway offers a critique of the feminist intervention into masculinized traditions of scientific rhetoric and the concept of objectivity. The essay identifies the metaphor that gives shape to the traditional feminist critique as polarization. At one end lies those who would assert that science is a rhetorical practice and, as such, all "science is a contestable text and a power field". At the other are those interested in a feminist version of objectivity, a position Haraway describes as a "feminist empiricism". Haraway argues for an epistemology based in "situated knowledges," which synthesizes aspects of these two traditions. Haraway posits that by acknowledging and understanding the contingency of their position in the world, and hence the contestable nature of their claims to knowledge, subjects can produce knowledge with greater objectivity than if they claimed to be neutral observers.
Primate Visions
Haraway also writes about the history of science and biology. In Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science (1990), she focused on the metaphors and narratives that direct the science of primatology. She asserted that there is a tendency to masculinize the stories about "reproductive competition and sex between aggressive males and receptive females [that] facilitate some and preclude other types of conclusions". She contended that female primatologists focus on different observations that require more communication and basic survival activities, offering very different perspectives of the origins of nature and culture than the currently accepted ones. Drawing on examples of Western narratives and ideologies of gender, race and class, Haraway questioned the most fundamental constructions of scientific human nature stories based on primates. In Primate Visions, she wrote:
"My hope has been that the always oblique and sometimes perverse focusing would facilitate revisions of fundamental, persistent western narratives about difference, especially racial and sexual difference; about reproduction, especially in terms of the multiplicities of generators and offspring; and about survival, especially about survival imagined in the boundary conditions of both the origins and ends of history, as told within western traditions of that complex genre".
Haraway's aim for science is "to reveal the limits and impossibility of its 'objectivity' and to consider some recent revisions offered by feminist primatologists". Haraway presents an alternative perspective to the accepted ideologies that continue to shape the way scientific human nature stories are created.
Haraway urges feminists to be more involved in the world of technoscience and to be credited for that involvement. In a 1997 publication, she remarked:
I want feminists to be enrolled more tightly in the meaning-making processes of technoscientific world-building. I also want feminist—activists, cultural producers, scientists, engineers, and scholars (all overlapping categories) — to be recognized for the articulations and enrollment we have been making all along within technoscience, in spite of the ignorance of most "mainstream" scholars in their characterization (or lack of characterizations) of feminism in relation to both technoscientific practice and technoscience studies.
Make Kin not Population: Reconceiving Generations
Haraway created a panel called 'Make Kin not Babies' in 2015 with five other feminist thinkers named: Alondra Nelson, Kim TallBear, Chia-Ling Wu, Michelle Murphy, and Adele Clarke. The panel's emphasis is on moving human numbers down while paying attention to factors, such as the environment, race, and class. A key phrase of hers is "Making babies is different than giving babies a good childhood." This led to the inspiration for the publication of Making Kin not Population: Reconceiving Generations, by Donna Haraway and Adele Clarke, two of the panelist members. The book addresses the growing concern of the increase in the human population and its consequences on our environment. The book consists of essays from the two authors, incorporating both environmental and reproductive justice along with addressing the functions of family and kinship relationships.
Speculative fabulation
Speculative fabulation is a concept that is included in many of Haraway's works. It includes all of the wild facts that won't hold still, and it indicates a mode of creativity and the story of the Anthropocene. Haraway stresses how this doesn't mean it isn't a fact. In Staying with the Trouble, she defines speculative fabulation as "a mode of attention, theory of history, and a practice of worlding," and she finds it an integral part of scholarly writing and everyday life. In Haraway's work she addresses a feminist speculative fabulation and its focusing on making kin instead of babies to ensure the good childhood of all children while controlling the population. Making Kin not Population: Reconceiving Generations highlights practices and proposals to implement this theory in society.
Plantationocene
Together with scholar Anna Lowenhaupt Tsing, Haraway coined Plantationocene as an alternative term to the proposed epoch Anthropocene that centers human activities in the transformation of the planet and its negative effect on land use, ecosystems, biodiversity, and species extinction.
Tsing and Haraway point out that not all humans equally contribute to the environmental challenges facing our planet. They date the origin of the Anthropocene to the start of colonialism in the Americas in the early modern era and highlight the violent history behind it by focusing on the history of plantations. The Spanish and the Portuguese colonists started importing models of plantations to the Americas by the 1500s which they have previously developed a century earlier in the Atlantic Islands. These models of planation were based on migratory forced labor (slavery), intensive land usage, globalized commerce, and constant racialized violence, all have transformed the lives of humans and non-humans worldwide. Current and past plantations provide an important note of the histories of colonialism, capitalism, and racism which can't be separated from environmental issues that made some humans more at risk to warming temperatures, rising seawater levels, toxicants, and land disposition than others.
The Companion Species Manifesto: Dogs, People, and Significant Otherness
The companion Species Manifesto is to be read as a “personal document”. This work was written to tell the story of cohabitation, coevolution and embodied cross-species sociality. Haraway argues that humans ‘companion’ relationship with dogs can show us the importance of recognizing differences and ‘how to engage with significant otherness'. The link between humans and animals like dogs can show people how to interact with other humans and nonhumans. Haraway believes that we should be using the term "companion species" instead of "companion animals" because of the relationships we can learn through them.
Critical responses to Haraway
Haraway's work has been criticized for being "methodologically vague" and using noticeably opaque language that is "sometimes concealing in an apparently deliberate way". Several reviewers have argued that her understanding of the scientific method is questionable, and that her explorations of epistemology at times leave her texts virtually meaning-free.
A 1991 review of Haraway's Primate Visions, published in the International Journal of Primatology, provides examples of some of the most common critiques of her view of science:
This is a book that contradicts itself a hundred times; but that is not a criticism of it, because its author thinks contradictions are a sign of intellectual ferment and vitality. This is a book that systematically distorts and selects historical evidence; but that is not a criticism, because its author thinks that all interpretations are biased, and she regards it as her duty to pick and choose her facts to favor her own brand of politics. This is a book full of vaporous, French-intellectual prose that makes Teilhard de Chardin sound like Ernest Hemingway by comparison; but that is not a criticism, because the author likes that sort of prose and has taken lessons in how to write it, and she thinks that plain, homely speech is part of a conspiracy to oppress the poor.
This is a book that clatters around in a dark closet of irrelevancies for 450 pages before it bumps accidentally into its index and stops; but that is not a criticism, either, because its author finds it gratifying and refreshing to bang unrelated facts together as a rebuke to stuffy minds. This book infuriated me; but that is not a defect in it, because it is supposed to infuriate people like me, and the author would have been happier still if I had blown out an artery. In short, this book is flawless, because all its deficiencies are deliberate products of art. Given its assumptions, there is nothing here to criticize. The only course open to a reviewer who dislikes this book as much as I do is to question its author's fundamental assumptions—which are big-ticket items involving the nature and relationships of language, knowledge, and science.
Another review of the same book, appearing in a 1990 issue of the American Journal of Primatology, offers a similar criticism of Haraway's literary style and scholarly methods:
There are many places where an editorial hand appears absent altogether. Neologisms are continually coined, and sentences are paragraph-long and convoluted. Biography, history, propaganda, science, science fiction, and cinema are intertwined in the most confusing way. Perhaps the idea is to induce a slightly dissociated state, so that readers can be lulled into belief. If one did not already possess some background, this book would give no lucid history of anthropology or primatology.
However, a review in the Journal of the History of Biology disagrees:
Primate Visions is one of the most important books to come along in the last twenty years. Historians of science have begun to write more externalist histories, acknowledging the possibilities of a science profoundly integrated with ongoing social agenda. Haraway's history of primatology in the twentieth century sets new standards for this approach, standards that will not be surpassed for some time to come. The book is important to students of science, feminists, historians, and anyone else interested in how the complex systems of race, gender, and science intertwine to produce supposedly objective versions of the "truth." This analysis of primatology is at once a complex, interdisciplinary, and deeply scholarly history and an imaginative, provocative analysis of the working of science in late twentieth-century Euro-America.
Publications
Crystals, Fabrics, and Fields: Metaphors of Organicism in Twentieth-Century Developmental Biology, New Haven: Yale University Press, 1976.
"Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist Feminism in the 1980s", Socialist Review, 80 (1985) 65–108.
"Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspectives", Feminist Studies, 14 (1988) 575–599.
Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science, Routledge: New York and London, 1989.
Simians, Cyborgs and Women: The Reinvention of Nature, New York: Routledge, and London: Free Association Books, 1991 (includes "A Cyborg Manifesto").
"A Game of Cat's Cradle: Science Studies, Feminist Theory, Cultural Studies", Configurations, 2 (1994) 59–71.
Modest_Witness@Second_Millennium.FemaleMan©Meets_OncoMouse™: Feminism and Technoscience, New York: Routledge, 1997 (winner of the Ludwik Fleck Prize).
How Like a Leaf: A Conversation with Donna J. Haraway, Thyrza Nichols Goodeve, New York: Routledge, 1999.
The Companion Species Manifesto: Dogs, People, and Significant Otherness, Chicago: Prickly Paradigm Press, 2003.
When Species Meet, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2007.
The Haraway Reader, New York: Routledge, 2004, .
Staying with the Trouble: Making Kin in the Chthulucene, Durham: Duke University Press, 2016.
Manifestly Haraway, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2016.
"Teddy Bear Patriarchy: Taxidermy in the Garden of Eden, New York City, 1908-36," Social Text, no. 11 (Winter 1984/1985): 19-64.
"Signs of Dominance: From a Physiology to a Cybernetics of Primate Society, C.R. Carpenter, 1930-70," Studies in History of Biology 6 (1983): 129-219.
"The Biological Enterprise: Sex, Mind, and Profit from Human Engineering to Sociobiology," Radical History Review, no. 20, (spring/summer, 1979): 206-37.
"The Biopolitics of Postmodern Bodies: Determinations of Self in Immune System Discourse," differences: A Journal of Feminist Cultural Studies 1, no. 1 (1989): 3-43.
"The Promises of Monsters: Reproductive Politics for Inappropriate/d Others," Larry Grossberg, Cary Nelson, and Paula Treichler, eds., Cultural Studies (New York: Routledge, 1992), pp. 295–337.
"Ecce Homo, Ain't (Ar'n't) I a Woman, and Inappropriate/d Others: the Human in a Posthumanist Landscape," Joan Scott and Judith Butler, eds., Feminists Theorize the Political (New York: Routledge, 1992), pp. 87–101.
"Otherworldly Conversations, Terran Topics, Local Terms," Science as Culture (London), 3, no. 1 (1992): 59-92.
Making Kin not Population: Reconceiving Generations, Donna J. Haraway and Adele Clarke, Chicago: Prickly Paradigm Press, 2018. .
See also
A Cyborg Manifesto
Cyborg anthropology
Ecofeminism
Postgenderism
Posthumanism
Postmodernism
Sandy Stone
Techno-progressivism
Feminist technoscience
Judith Butler
Sources
Burow-Flak, Elizabeth, "Background Information on Cyborg Manifesto", 17 September 2000.
Cachel, Susan. "Partisan primatology. Review of Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science", American Journal of Primatology, 22 (1990) 139–142.
Campbell, Kirsten, "The Promise of Feminist Reflexivities: Developing Donna Haraway's Project for Feminist Science Studies", Hypatia, 19:1 (2004) 162–182.
Cartmill, Matt. "Book Review - Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the world of Modern Science", International Journal of Primatology, 12 (1991) 67–75.
Carubia, Josephine M., "Haraway on the Map", Semiotic Review of Books, 9:1 (1998) 4–7.
Clarke, Adele, and Donna Haraway, editors. Making Kin Not Population. Prickly Paradigm Press, 2018.
“Donna Haraway.” The European Graduate School, https://egs.edu/biography/donna-haraway/.
Elkins, Charles, "The Uses of Science Fiction", Science Fiction Studies, 17 (1990) 269–272.
"Feminist Epistemology and Philosophy of Science", in Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, pub. 9 August 2000, rev. 5 August 2015.
Ferguson, Anne and Hennessy, and Rosemary and Nagel Mechthild. “Feminist Perspectives on Class and Work.” Edited by Edward N Zalta, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Stanford University, 2019, Author and Citation Information for "Feminist Perspectives on Class and Work".
Franklin, Sarah. “Staying with the Manifesto: An Interview with Donna Haraway.” Theory, Culture & Society, vol. 34, no. 4, July 2017, pp. 49–63, doi:10.1177/0263276417693290.
Flanagan, Mary and Austin Booth, Reload: Rethinking Women + Cyberculture, Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2002.
Delphine, Gardey, "The Reading of an Œuvre. Donna Haraway: The Poetics and Politics of Life", Feministische Studien, 32 (2014) 86–100. doi:10.1515/fs-2014-0109
Hamner, M. Gail, "The Work of Love: Feminist Politics and the Injunction to Love", in Joerg Rieger (ed.), Opting for the Margins: Postmodernity and Liberation in Christian Theology, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003.
Haraway, Donna. “Anthropocene, Capitalocene, Plantationocene, Chthulucene: Making Kin.” Environmental Humanities, Duke University Press, 1 May 2015, https://doi.org/10.1215/22011919-3615934.
Haraway, Donna, "A Cyborg Manifesto: Science, Technology and Socialist-‐Feminism in the Late Twentieth Century", in D. Bell and B.M. Kennedy (eds), The Cybercultures Reader, London: Routledge, 2000, pp. 291–324.
Haraway, Donna. The Haraway Reader. New York: Routledge, 2003. Print.
Kunzru, Hari, "You Are Cyborg", in Wired Magazine, 5:2 (1997) 1–7.
Lederman, Muriel. “Donna J. Haraway; and Thyrza Nichols Goodeve. How Like a Leaf: An Interview with Donna J. Haraway.” Isis, vol. 93, no. 1, 2002, pp. 164–165., doi:10.1086/343342.
Library of Congress, "Books and Pamphlets Including Serials and Contributions to Periodicals: Current Registrations A–L, January–June 1973", Catalog of Copyright Entries, 3rd ser., 1, pt. 1, no. 1 (1975) 674. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
“Making Kin Not Population.” University of Chicago Press, 1 July 2018, Making Kin not Population.
Mann, Douglas. Understanding Society: a Survey of Modern Social Theory. Oxford University Press, 2011.
O'Riley, Patricia Ann, Technology, Culture, and Socioeconomics: A Rhizoanalysis of Educational Discourses, New York: Peter Lang, 2003.
Packman, Carl, [ "God(desses) and the Jouissance of Woman, or The (Cyborg) Future of Enjoyment"].
Russon, Anne, "Deconstructing Primatology?", Semiotic Review of Books, 2:2 (1991): 9–11.
Rua M. Williams and Juan E. Gilbert. 2019. Cyborg Perspectives on Computing Research Reform. In Extended Abstracts of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI EA '19). Association for Computing Machinery, New York, NY, USA, Paper alt13, 1–11.
Sandoval, Chela, "New Sciences: Cyborg Feminism and the Methodology of the Oppressed", in C. H. Gray (ed.), The Cyborg Handbook, New York: Routledge, 1995, pp. 407–422.
Senft, Theresa M. "Reading Notes on Donna Haraway's 'Cyborg Manifesto'", October 21, 2001. Retrieved February 1, 2006.
Truman, Sarah E. “SF! Haraway's Situated Feminisms and Speculative Fabulations in English Class.” Studies in Philosophy and Education, vol. 38, no. 1, 2018, pp. 31–42, SF! Haraway's Situated Feminisms and Speculative Fabulations in English Class.
Vanderwees, Chris. “Companion Species under Fire: A Defense of Donna Haraway’s The Companion Species Manifesto.” Nebula: A Journal of Multidisciplinary Scholarship. 6.2 (2009): 73-81.
Weigel, Moira. “Feminist Cyborg Scholar Donna Haraway: 'The Disorder of Our Era Isn't Necessary'.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 20 June 2019, Feminist cyborg scholar Donna Haraway: ‘The disorder of our era isn't necessary’.
Young, Robert M, "Science, Ideology and Donna Haraway", Science as Culture, 2 (1992) 165–207.
Citations
External links
Donna Haraway Faculty Webpage at UC Santa Cruz, History of Consciousness Program
Donna Haraway: Storytelling for Earthly Survival, a film by Fabrizio Terranova
1944 births
Living people
20th-century American philosophers
21st-century American philosophers
American socialists
Colorado College alumni
American feminist writers
Feminist studies scholars
Historians of science
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Posthumanists
Postmodern feminists
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University of California, Santa Cruz faculty
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20th-century American women | true | [
"\"A Cyborg Manifesto\" is an essay written by Donna Haraway and published in 1985 in the Socialist Review. In it, the concept of the cyborg is a rejection of rigid boundaries, notably those separating \"human\" from \"animal\" and \"human\" from \"machine.\" She writes: \"The cyborg does not dream of community on the model of the organic family, this time without the oedipal project. The cyborg would not recognize the Garden of Eden; it is not made of mud and cannot dream of returning to dust.\"\n\nThe \"Manifesto\" criticizes traditional notions of feminism, particularly feminist focuses on identity politics, and encourages instead coalition through affinity. She uses the figure of the cyborg to urge feminists to move beyond the limitations of traditional gender, feminism, and politics; the \"Manifesto\" is considered one of the milestones in the development of feminist posthumanist theory.\n\nMajor points\n\nHaraway begins the \"Manifesto\" by explaining three boundary breakdowns since the 20th century that have allowed for her hybrid, cyborg myth: the breakdown of boundaries between human and animal, animal-human and machine, and physical and non-physical. Evolution has blurred the lines between human and animal; 20th century machines have made ambiguous the lines between natural and artificial; and microelectronics and the political invisibility of cyborgs have confused the lines of physicality.\n\nHaraway’s piece is an innovative approach to examining the culture nature divide. She introduces the potential for a completely new ontology of hybridization of nature and culture through the combination of machines and organisms, creating cyborgs. Haraway’s use of the cyborg illustrates her conceptualizations of socialism and feminism in the examinations of dichotomies such as nature/culture, mind/body, and idealism/materialism. Haraway’s ideas of cyborgs are a blending of imagination and material reality. The cyborg is a dualism, as opposed to a dichotomy; there is value perceived in the confusion of the borders of bounded categories. The need for the divide between culture and nature is no longer relevant, and the cyborg emerges from the blending of that boundary.\n\nIssues with Western patriarchal tenets\nHaraway highlights the problematic use and justification of Western traditions like patriarchy, colonialism, essentialism, and naturalism (among others). These traditions in turn allow for the problematic formations of taxonomies (and identifications of the Other) and what Haraway explains as \"antagonistic dualisms\" that order Western discourse. These dualisms, Haraway states, \"have all been systematic to the logics and practices of domination of women, people of color, nature, workers, animals... all [those] constituted as others.\" She highlights specific problematic dualisms of self/other, culture/nature, male/female, civilized/primitive, right/wrong, truth/illusion, total/partial, God/man (among others). She explains that these dualisms are in competition with one another, creating paradoxical relations of domination (especially between the One and the Other). However, high-tech culture provides a challenge to these antagonistic dualisms.\n\nThere is also the idea that cyborgs are beings that have been uncoupled from organic reproduction. Haraway also distinguishes the cyborg from other literary ideas that are lacking in their parentage such as Frankenstein, because that parentage is no longer a relevant or desired connection. Haraway paints the cyborg as the illegitimate offspring of patriarchal capitalism, because that connection isn’t sought or is irrelevant, the cyborg is not beholden to that origin, it is untethered to the capitalism, the patriarchy, and the neoliberalism from which they came. There are social and bodily realities that come about from the joint kinship with both organisms and machines that inform on the identities of cyborgs to be permanently partial identities, incorporating aspects of both. The struggle is to see from both perspectives at once, and can provide an archetype for resistance, as another of Haraway’s premises is about the need for unity of people in the face of what she refers to as “world wide intensification of domination.”\n\nCyborg theory\nHaraway's cyborg theory rejects the notions of essentialism, proposing instead a chimeric, monstrous world of fusions between animal and machine. Cyborg theory relies on writing as \"the technology of cyborgs,\" and asserts that \"cyborg politics is the struggle for language and the struggle against perfect communication, against the one code that translates all meaning perfectly, the central dogma of phallogocentrism.\" Instead, Haraway's cyborg calls for a non-essentialized, material-semiotic metaphor capable of uniting diffuse political coalitions along the lines of affinity rather than identity. Following Lacanian feminists such as Luce Irigaray, Haraway's work addresses the chasm between feminist discourses and the dominant language of Western patriarchy. As Haraway explains, \"grammar is politics by other means,\" and effective politics require speaking in the language of domination. Still, as Haraway states, \"Feminist cyborg stories have the task of recoding communication and intelligence to subvert command and control.\" These stories are \"communications devices\" which \"can suggest a way out of the maze of dualisms in which we have explained our bodies,\" dualisms which engender the illusion of perfect coded communication. Haraway mentions Octavia Butler, John Varley, and Vonda McIntyre as authors/artists whose work constitute a feminist science fiction of cyborg stories.\n\nAs she details in a chart of the paradigmatic shifts from modern to postmodern epistemology within the Manifesto, the unified human subject of identity has shifted to the hybridized posthuman of technoscience, from \"representation\" to \"simulation\", \"bourgeois novel\" to \"science fiction\", \"reproduction\" to \"replication\", and \"white capitalist patriarchy\" to \"informatics of domination\". While Haraway's \"ironic dream of a common language\" is inspired by Irigaray's argument for a discourse other than patriarchy, she rejects Irigaray's essentializing construction of woman-as-not-male to argue for a linguistic community of situated, partial knowledges in which no one is innocent.\n\nIn her discussion of cyborg theory, Haraway describes two possible worlds resulting from embracing cyborg identity. The first future, which aligns with the view point taken by socialist and radical feminism, is that the breaking down of the boundary between the organism and technology will represent the final conquering of the oppressed body. The second future, which Haraway offers as an alternative in her critique of binary thinking, allows for kinship between boundaries and acceptance of fluid and contradictory identities. These futures function within her argument for cyborg theory in that she sees the acknowledgment of both possibilities as necessary for understanding intersecting forces of oppression and preparing for how technological advancement will change the ways that political forces as well as identity and kinship will function in the future.\n\nCriticism of traditional feminism\nHaraway takes issue with some traditional feminists, reflected in statements describing how \"women more than men somehow sustain daily life, and so have a privileged epistemological (relating to the theory of knowledge) position potentially.\" The views of traditional feminism operate under the totalizing assumptions that all men are one way, and women another, whereas \"a cyborg theory of wholes and parts,\" does not desire to explain things in total theory. Haraway suggests that feminists should move beyond naturalism and essentialism, criticizing feminist tactics as \"identity politics\" that victimize those excluded, and she proposes that it is better strategically to confuse identities. Her criticism mainly focuses on socialist and radical feminism. The former, she writes, achieves \"to expand the category of labour to what (some) women did\". Socialist feminism does not naturalize but rather builds a unity that was non-existent before - namely the woman worker. On the other hand, radical feminism, according to Catharine MacKinnon, describes a world in which the woman only exists in opposition to the man. The concept of woman is socially constructed within the patriarchal structure of society and women only exist because men have made them exist. The woman as a self does not exist. Haraway criticizes both when writing that \"my complaint about socialist/Marxian standpoints is their unintended erasure of polyvocal, unassimilable, radical difference made visible in anti-colonial discourse and practice\" and \"MacKinnon's intentional erasure of all difference through the device of the 'essential' non-existence of women is not reassuring\" (299).\n\nHaraway also indirectly critiques white feminism by highlighting the struggles of women of color: she suggests that a woman of color \"might be understood as a cyborg identity, a potent subjectivity synthesized from fusions of outsider identities and in the complex political-historical layerings of her 'biomythography.'\"\n\nTo counteract the essentializing and anachronistic rhetoric of spiritual ecofeminists, who were fighting patriarchy with modernist constructions of female-as-nature and earth mothers, Haraway employs the cyborg to refigure feminism into cybernetic code.\n\nCall to action\nHaraway calls for a revision of the concept of gender, moving away from Western patriarchal essentialism and toward \"the utopian dream of the hope for a monstrous world without gender,\" stating that \"Cyborgs might consider more seriously the partial, fluid, sometimes aspect of sex and sexual embodiment. Gender might not be global identity after all, even if it has profound historical breadth and depth.\"\n\nHaraway also calls for a reconstruction of identity, no longer dictated by naturalism and taxonomy but instead by affinity, wherein individuals can construct their own groups by choice. In this way, groups may construct a \"post-modernist identity out of otherness, difference, and specificity\" as a way to counter Western traditions of exclusive identification.\n\nUpdates and revisions \nAlthough Haraway's metaphor of the cyborg has been labelled as a post-gender statement, Haraway has clarified her stance on post-genderism in some interviews. She acknowledges that her argument in the \"Manifesto\" seeks to challenge the necessity for categorization of gender, but does not correlate this argument to post-genderism. She clarifies this distinction because post-genderism is often associated with the discourse of the utopian concept of being beyond masculinity and femininity. Haraway notes that gender constructs are still prevalent and meaningful, but are troublesome and should therefore be eliminated as categories for identity.\n\nApplications of The Cyborg\nAlthough Donna Haraway intended her concept of the cyborg to be a feminist critique, she acknowledges that other scholars and popular media have taken her concept and applied it to different contexts. Haraway is aware and receptive of the different uses of her concept of the cyborg, but admits \"very few people are taking what I consider all of its parts\". Wired Magazine overlooked the feminist theory of the cyborg and instead used it to make a more literal commentary about the enmeshment of humans and technology. Despite this, Haraway also recognizes that new feminist scholars \"embrace and use the cyborg of the manifesto to do what they want for their own purposes\".\n\nPatchwork Girl \n\nPatchwork Girl, a hypertext work, makes use of elements from \"A Cyborg Manifesto\". Patchwork Girl's \"thematic focus on the connections between monstrosity, subjectivity, and new reproductive technologies is apparent from its very first page, when readers, or users, open the hypertext to find a picture of a scarred and naked female body sewn together with a single dotted line...Readers enter the text by clicking on this body and following its 'limbs' or links to different sections of the text.\" In Jackson's narrative, the Patchwork Girl is an aborted female monster created by Victor Frankenstein of Mary Shelley's 1818 novel Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus, an abhorrent and monstrous creature that is \"part male, part female, part animal, 175 years old, and 'razed' up through hypertext technology.\" The monster, following her destruction by Victor, is sewn back together by Mary Shelley herself, while simultaneously becoming Mary's lover; she is thus, \"a cyborg who is queer, dis-proportioned, and visibly scarred. She both facilitates and undermines preoccupations with the benefits and dangers of reproductive technologies by embracing all of the monstrosities that reproductive/fetal screenings are imagined to 'catch' and one day prevent.\" The Patchwork Girl embraces Haraway's conception of a cybernetic posthuman being in both her physical multiplicity and her challenge towards \"the images and fantasies sustaining reproductive politics.\"\n\n\"Cyborg Goddesses\" \nTurkish critical scholar Leman Giresunlu uses Haraway's cyborg as framework to examine current science fiction movies such as Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and Resident Evil in her essay \"Cyborg Goddesses: The Mainframe Revisited\". In this essay, she explores how her new concept of the cyborg goddess, a female figure \"capable of inflicting pain and pleasure simultaneously\", can be used to make sense of how female representation is shifting towards a more multidimensional stance. Giresunlu builds from Haraway's cyborg because the cyborg goddess goes beyond \"offering a way out from [the] duality\" and instead provides how spirituality and technology work together to form a complex and more accurate representation of women.\n\n\"Mind Over Matter\" \nIn her essay \"Mind Over Matter: Mental Evolution and Physical Devolution in The Incredible Shrinking Man\", American critical scholar Ruthellen Cunnally uses Haraway's cyborg to help make sense of how Robert Scott Carey, the protagonist of The Incredible Shrinking Man, transforms into a cyborg in the midst of a metaphor of cold war politics in his home. As Robert continues to shrink, the gendered power dynamic between him and his wife Louise shifts from \"the realm of husband/wife into the mode of mother/son\". When Robert finds himself lost in the feminine space of the basement, an area of the house that was reserved for Louise's domestic duties of sewing and washing, he is forced to fight for his life and reclaim his masculinity. Although he is able to conquer some of his foes and regain his \"manhood\", the gender lines do not become established again because there is no one to share and implement the gendered power structure with. Robert's transformation presents \"an existence in which acceptance and meaning are released from the limitations of patriarchal dualisms\", which aligns with Haraway's cyborg.\n\nReviews\nTraditional feminists have criticized \"A Cyborg Manifesto\" as anti-feminist because it denies any commonalities of the female experience. In the \"Manifesto\", Haraway writes \"there is nothing about being 'female' that naturally binds women\", which goes against a defining characteristic of traditional feminism that calls women to join together in order to advocate for members of their gender.\n\nCriticism and controversy were built into the essay's publication history: the East Coast Collective of the Socialist Review found the piece \"a naive embrace of technology\" and advocated against its publication, while The Berkeley Collective ultimately insisted that it go to print. The essay has been described as \"controversial\" and \"viral\" in its circulation through multiple academic departments and disciplinary boundaries, contributing to the critical discourse on its claims.\nThis controversiality was matched by its omnipresence; Jackie Orr, Associate Professor of Sociology at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs Syracuse University, writes, \"It is hard to be a feminist graduate student in the U.S. humanities or social sciences after 1985 and not be touched in some way by the cyborg manifesto.\" The rapid adoption of the article in academic circles also increased the pace of the critical conversation surrounding the work, and in 1990, Haraway felt that the essay had \"acquired a surprise half life,\" which made it \"impossible to rewrite\" and necessitated revisiting the topic in her subsequent publications.\n\nMany critiques of \"A Cyborg Manifesto\" focus on a basic level of reader comprehension and writing style, such as Orr's observation that \"undergraduate students in a science and technology class find the cyborg manifesto curiously relevant but somewhat impenetrable to read.\" This is corroborated by Helen Merrick and Margret Grebowicz's observation that scientists who reviewed Primate Visions had similar issues, particularly as related to Haraway's use of irony. Judy Wajcman, Professor of Sociology at the London School of Economics and Political Science, suggests in TechnoFeminism that \"the openness of her writing to a variety of readings is intentional,\" which \"can sometimes make Haraway difficult to interpret;\" however, it does not seem that Wajcman critiques Haraway's tone for its capability to encompass more possibilities, rather than limit them. Wajcman concludes her chapter \"Send in the Cyborgs\" on a critical note, claiming that \"Certainly, Haraway is much stronger at providing evocative figurations of a new feminist subjectivity than she is at providing guidelines for a practical emancipatory politics.\"\n\nCritiques of Haraway have also centered on the accessibility of the thematic topics she discusses in her writing, and according to third-wave feminist readings, her work \"assumes a reader who is familiar with North American culture,\" and posits that \"readers without the appropriate cultural capital are...likely to find it infuriatingly obscure and impenetrable.\" Therefore, Haraway's symbolism is representative of North American culture symbolizing a \"non-universalizing vision for feminist strategies\" and \"has been taken up within cyberfeminism as the symbol of an essential female being.\" Considering the question of accessibility more broadly, disability studies have focused on Haraway's essay, noting the absence of \"any kind of critical engagement with disability...disabled bodies are simply presented as exemplary...requiring neither analysis nor critique\"—a gap which Alison Kafer, Professor of Feminist Studies at Southwestern University, attempts to address in Feminist, Queer, Crip. Wajcman also argues that Haraway's view of technology in \"A Cyborg Manifesto\" is perhaps too totalizing, and that the binary of \"the cyborg solution and the goddess solution\" ultimately \"caricatures feminism\" by focusing too readily on a dichotomy that may in fact be a false one.\n\nIn Unfinished Work-From Cyborg to Cognisphere, N. Katherine Hayles questions the validity of cyborg as a unit of analysis. She says that because of the complicated situation of technology and media, \"cyborg is no longer the individual person – or for that matter, the individual cyborg – is no longer the appropriate unit of analysis, if indeed it ever was.\"\n\nAs for the relationships between cyborg and religion, Robert A. Campbell argues that \"in spite of Haraway's efforts to move beyond traditional Western dualisms and offer a new hope for women, and by extension of humanity and the world, what she in fact offers is a further legitimation for buying into the not so new American civil religion of high technology.\" He says that \"in spite of what some may view as a radical critique of the present and a potentially frightening prescription for the future, the stark reality about Haraway's 'postmodern reality' is that there is no such thing.\"\n\nBeyond its presence in academic context, \"A Cyborg Manifesto\" has also had popular traction including Wireds piece by Hari Kunzru and Mute, BuzzFeed,\n as well as Vice. Retrospective articles consistently mark its anniversary.\n\nIn 2018, the disability rights activist and self-described cyborg Cy argued that \"A Cyborg Manifesto\" erased disabled people and appropriated the aesthetic of disability.\n\nSonographic fetus as cyborg \nScholar Marilyn Maness Mehaffy writes that the \"sonographic fetus is in many ways the ultimate cyborg in that it is 'created' in a space of virtuality that straddles the conventional boundary between an organic body and a digital text.\" Yet it is this cyborg that presents a limit to Haraway's posthuman theory. The sonographic fetus, as posited by scholar Heather Latimer, \"is publicly envisioned as both independent of [its mother's] body and as independent of the sonographic equipment used to read this body. We know that fetal images are depictions, yet the sonogram invokes a documentary-like access to fetuses that makes it easy to ignore this, which in turn can limit the authority and agency of pregnant women.\" In positioning the fetus as independent, and consequently oppositional, to the pregnant mother, these reproductive technologies \"reinscribe stable meanings to the human/machine dualism they supposedly disrupt.\" Valerie Hartouni argues, \"most reproductive technologies have assimilated into the 'order of nature'\" which would make Haraway's vision of a regenerative species, unrestricted by heteronormative conceptions of reproduction, unattainable in the sonographic fetus.\n\nPublication history \nHaraway began writing the \"Manifesto\" in 1983 to address the Socialist Review request of American socialist feminists to ponder over the future of socialist feminism in the context of the early Reagan era and the decline of leftist politics. The first versions of the essay had a strong socialist and European connection that the Socialist Review East Coast Collective found too controversial to publish. The Berkeley Socialist Review Collective published the essay in 1985 under the editor Jeff Escoffier. The essay was most widely read as part of Haraway's 1991 book Simians, Cyborgs and Women. In 2006, a variorum edition of the Manifesto was published in The International Handbook of Virtual Learning Environments integrating variations from the various versions and returning references and some of the scholarly apparatus that had become separated from the text.\n\nSee also\nCyberfeminism\nPost-humanism\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nA manifesto for cyborgs: Science, technology, and socialist feminism in the 1980s – Full text, with complete footnote references\nA manifesto for cyborgs: Science, technology, and socialist feminism in the 1980s - Archive of full text hosted at University of Warwick\n AudioZine – Audio recording of the manifesto\n\nCriticism of feminism\nGender studies literature\nFeminist theory\nPostmodern feminism\nManifestos\nWorks by Donna Haraway\nScience and technology studies works",
"Cyborg is a play-by-mail game that was published by Integral Games beginning in 1981.\n\nGameplay\nCyborg was a game in which players are computer complexes two hundred years after a devastating war.\n\nReception\nW.G. Armintrout reviewed Cyborg in The Space Gamer No. 49. Armintrout commented that \"I recommend Cyborg as a good game with these provisions: (1) be prepared to spend some time keeping track of what you own and what you know, and (2) expect an error occasionally.\"\n\nReferences\n\nPlay-by-mail games"
] |
[
"Donna Haraway",
"\"A Cyborg Manifesto\"",
"What was the Cyborg Manifesto?",
"In 1985, Haraway published the essay \"Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the 1980s\" in Socialist Review."
] | C_0fe28ad9572349f8964399f82096dade_1 | What was it about? | 2 | What was "A Cyborg Manifesto" about? | Donna Haraway | In 1985, Haraway published the essay "Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the 1980s" in Socialist Review. Although most of Haraway's earlier work was focused on emphasizing the masculine bias in scientific culture, she has also contributed greatly to feminist narratives of the twentieth century. For Haraway, the Manifesto offered a response to the rising conservatism during the 1980s in the United States at a critical juncture at which feminists, in order to have any real-world significance, had to acknowledge their situatedness within what she terms the "informatics of domination." Women were no longer on the outside along a hierarchy of privileged binaries but rather deeply imbued, exploited by and complicit within networked hegemony, and had to form their politics as such. According to Haraway's "Manifesto", "there is nothing about being female that naturally binds women together into a unified category. There is not even such a state as 'being' female, itself a highly complex category constructed in contested sexual scientific discourses and other social practices". A cyborg does not require a stable, essentialist identity, argues Haraway, and feminists should consider creating coalitions based on "affinity" instead of identity. To ground her argument, Haraway analyzes the phrase "women of color", suggesting it as one possible example of affinity politics. Using a term coined by theorist Chela Sandoval, Haraway writes that "oppositional consciousness" is comparable with a cyborg politics, because rather than identity it stresses how affinity comes as a result of "otherness, difference, and specificity". Haraway's cyborg is a set of ideals of a genderless, race-less, more collective and peaceful civilization with the caveat of being utterly connected to the machine. Her new versions of beings reject Western humanist conceptions of personhood and promote a disembodied world of information and the withering of subjectivity. The collective consciousness of the beings and their limitless access to information provide the tools with which to create a world of immense socio-political change through altruism and affinity, not biological unity. In her essay Haraway challenges the liberal human subject and its lack of concern for collective desires which leaves the possibility for wide corruption and inequality in the world. Furthermore, the cyborg's importance lays in its coalition of consciousness not in the physical body that carries the information/consciousness. A world of beings with a type of shared knowledge could create a powerful political force towards positive change. Cyborgs can see "from both perspectives at once." In addition, Haraway writes that the cyborg has an imbued nature towards the collective good. Haraway explains that her "Manifesto" is "an effort to build an ironic political myth faithful to feminism, socialism, and materialism." She adds that "Cyborg imagery can suggest a way out of the maze of dualisms in which we have explained our bodies and our tools to ourselves." Haraway is serious about finding future ways towards equality and ending dominating behavior; however, the cyborg itself is not as serious of an endeavor for her as the idea of it is. Haraway creates an analogy using current technologies and information to imagine a world with a collective coalition that had the capabilities to create grand socio-political change. Haraway's "Manifesto" is a thought experiment, defining what people think is most important about being and what the future holds for increased artificial intelligence. CANNOTANSWER | the Manifesto offered a response to the rising conservatism during the 1980s in the United States at a critical juncture at which feminists, | Donna J. Haraway (born September 6, 1944) is an American Professor Emerita in the History of Consciousness Department and Feminist Studies Department at the University of California, Santa Cruz, United States. She is a prominent scholar in the field of science and technology studies, described in the early 1990s as a "feminist and postmodernist". Haraway is the author of numerous foundational books and essays that bring together questions of science and feminism, such as "A Cyborg Manifesto: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the Late Twentieth Century" (1985) and "Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective" (1988). Additionally, for her contributions to the intersection of information technology and feminist theory, Haraway is widely cited in works related to Human-Computer Interaction (HCI). Her Situated Knowledges and Cyborg Manifesto publications in particular, have sparked discussion within the HCI community regarding framing the positionality from which research and systems are designed. She is also a leading scholar in contemporary ecofeminism, associated with post-humanism and new materialism movements. Her work criticizes anthropocentrism, emphasizes the self-organizing powers of nonhuman processes, and explores dissonant relations between those processes and cultural practices, rethinking sources of ethics. Haraway criticizes the Anthropocene because it generalizes us as a species. However, she also recognizes the importance of it recognizing humans as key agents. Haraway prefers the term Capitalocene which defines capitalism's relentless imperatives to expand itself and grow, but she does not like the theme of irreversible destruction in both the Anthropocene and Capitalocene.
Haraway has taught Women's Studies and the History of Science at the University of Hawaii (1971-1974) and Johns Hopkins University (1974-1980). She began working as a professor at the University of Santa Cruz in 1980 where she became the first tenured professor in feminist theory in the United States. Haraway's works have contributed to the study of both human–machine and human–animal relations. Her works have sparked debate in primatology, philosophy, and developmental biology. Haraway participated in a collaborative exchange with the feminist theorist Lynn Randolph from 1990 to 1996. Their engagement with specific ideas relating to feminism, technoscience, political consciousness, and other social issues, formed the images and narrative of Haraway's book Modest_Witness for which she received the Society for Social Studies of Science's (4S) Ludwik Fleck Prize in 1999. She was also awarded the Section on Science, Knowledge and Technology's Robert K. Merton award in 1992 for her work Primate Visions:Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science. In 2000, Haraway was awarded the Society for Social Studies of Science's John Desmond Bernal Prize for her distinguished contributions to the field of science and technology studies. Haraway serves on the advisory board for numerous academic journals, including differences, Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, Contemporary Women's Writing, and Environmental Humanities.
Biography
Early life
Donna Jeanne Haraway was born on September 6, 1944, in Denver, Colorado. Haraway's father, Frank O. Haraway, was a sportswriter for The Denver Post and her mother Dorothy Mcguire Haraway, who came from a heavily Irish Catholic background, died from a heart attack when Haraway was 16 years old. Although she is no longer religious, Catholicism had a strong influence on her as she was taught by nuns in her early life. The impression of the Eucharist influenced her linkage of the figurative and the material. Haraway attended high school at St. Mary's Academy in Cherry Hills Village, Colorado. Growing up around her father's adoration for sports writing is a major part of her love for writing. The two of them would have dinner conversations about words and their fascination with them. Another impact on Haraway's writing came from the wars she experienced throughout her life, considering she was born at the end of World War II and grew up during the Cold War.
Education
Haraway majored in Zoology, with minors in philosophy and English at the Colorado College, on the full-tuition Boettcher Scholarship. After college, Haraway moved to Paris and studied evolutionary philosophy and theology at the Fondation Teilhard de Chardin on a Fulbright scholarship. She completed her Ph.D. in biology at Yale in 1972 writing a dissertation about the use of metaphor in shaping experiments in experimental biology titled The Search for Organizing Relations: An Organismic Paradigm in Twentieth-Century Developmental Biology, later edited into a book and published under the title Crystals, Fabrics, and Fields: Metaphors of Organicism in Twentieth-Century Developmental Biology.
Later work
Haraway was the recipient of several scholarships. Alluding to the Cold War and post-war American hegemony, she said of these, "...people like me became national resources in the national science efforts. So, there was money available for educating even Irish Catholic girls' brains." In 1999, Haraway received the Society for Social Studies of Science's (4S) Ludwik Fleck Prize. In September 2000, Haraway was awarded the Society for Social Studies of Science's highest honor, the J. D. Bernal Award, for her "distinguished contributions" to the field. Haraway's most famous essay was published in 1985: "A Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the 1980s" and was characterized as "an effort to build an ironic political myth faithful to feminism, socialism, and materialism".
In Haraway's theses, "Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective" (1988), she means to expose the myth of scientific objectivity. Haraway defined the term "situated knowledges" as a means of understanding that all knowledge comes from positional perspectives. Our positionality inherently determines what it is possible to know about an object of interest. Comprehending situated knowledge "allows us to become answerable for what we learn how to see". Without this accountability, the implicit biases and societal stigmas of the researcher's community are twisted into ground truth from which to build assumptions and hypothesis. Haraway's ideas in "Situated Knowledges" were heavily influenced by conversations with Nancy Hartsock and other feminist philosophers and activists.
Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science, published in 1989 (Routledge), focuses on primate research and primatology: "My hope has been that the always oblique and sometimes perverse focusing would facilitate revisions of fundamental, persistent western narratives about difference, especially racial and sexual difference; about reproduction, especially in terms of the multiplicities of generators and offspring; and about survival, especially about survival imagined in the boundary conditions of both the origins and ends of history, as told within western traditions of that complex genre". Currently, Donna Haraway is an American Professor Emerita in the History of Consciousness Department and Feminist Studies Department at the University of California, Santa Cruz, United States. She lives North of San Francisco with her partner Rusten Hogness. In an interview with Sarah Franklin in 2017, Haraway addresses her intent to incorporate collective thinking and all perspectives: "It isn't that systematic, but there is a little list. I notice if I have cited nothing but white people, if I have erased indigenous people, if I forget non-human beings, etc. I notice on purpose. I notice if I haven't paid the slightest bit of attention ... You know, I run through some old-fashioned, klutzy categories. Race, sex, class, region, sexuality, gender, species. I pay attention. I know how fraught all those categories are, but I think those categories still do important work. I have developed, kind of, an alert system, an internalized alert system."
Major themes
"A Cyborg Manifesto"
In 1985, Haraway published the essay "Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the 1980s" in Socialist Review. Although most of Haraway's earlier work was focused on emphasizing the masculine bias in scientific culture, she has also contributed greatly to the feminist narratives of the twentieth century. For Haraway, the Manifesto offered a response to the rising conservatism during the 1980s in the United States at a critical juncture at which feminists, to have any real-world significance, had to acknowledge their situatedness within what she terms the "informatics of domination." Women were no longer on the outside along a hierarchy of privileged binaries but rather deeply imbued, exploited by and complicit within networked hegemony, and had to form their politics as such.
According to Haraway's "Manifesto," "there is nothing about being female that naturally binds women together into a unified category. There is not even such a state as 'being' female, itself a highly complex category constructed in contested sexual scientific discourses and other social practices". As stated, "In Simians, Cyborgs, and Women: The Reinvention of Nature (1991), Donna Haraway introduces the figure of the cyborg, an “impure” creature who scrambles orderly divisions between the natural and artificial/technical, and the human and the non-human/animal". A cyborg does not require a stable, essentialist identity, argues Haraway, and feminists should consider creating coalitions based on "affinity" instead of identity. To ground her argument, Haraway analyzes the phrase "women of color", suggesting it as one possible example of affinity politics. Using a term coined by theorist Chela Sandoval, Haraway writes that "oppositional consciousness" is comparable with a cyborg politics, because rather than identity it stresses how affinity comes as a result of "otherness, difference, and specificity".
Haraway's cyborg is a set of ideals of a genderless, race-less, more collective, and peaceful civilization with the caveat of being utterly connected to the machine. Her new versions of beings reject Western humanist conceptions of personhood and promote a disembodied world of information and the withering of subjectivity. The collective consciousness of the beings and their limitless access to information provides the tools with which to create a world of immense socio-political change through altruism and affinity, not biological unity. In her essay, Haraway challenges the liberal human subject and its lack of concern for collective desires which leaves the possibility for wide corruption and inequality in the world. Furthermore, the cyborg's importance lies in its coalition of consciousness, not in the physical body that carries the information/consciousness. A world of beings with a type of shared knowledge could create a powerful political force toward positive change. Cyborgs can see "from both perspectives at once." In addition, Haraway writes that the cyborg has an imbued nature toward the collective good.
Haraway explains that her "Manifesto" is "an effort to build an ironic political myth faithful to feminism, socialism, and materialism." She adds that "Cyborg imagery can suggest a way out of the maze of dualisms in which we have explained our bodies and our tools to ourselves." Haraway is serious about finding future ways towards equality and ending dominating behavior; however, the cyborg itself is not as serious of an endeavor for her as the idea of it is. Haraway creates an analogy using current technologies and information to imagine a world with a collective coalition that has the capabilities to create grand socio-political change. Haraway's "Manifesto" is a thought experiment, defining what people think is most important about being and what the future holds for increased artificial intelligence.
Gender, Work, & Organization's author Agnes Prasad's piece Cyborg Writing as a Political Act: Reading Donna Haraway in Organization Studies elaborates on how Haraway's writing contributes to the greater feminist community.
"This essay, almost immediately, became a watershed text for feminist theory and for, what was at the time, the inchoate field of feminist science studies. Interweaving ideas that were playful and imaginative with an incisive critique of the totalizing essentialism that was the ironic hallmark of the myriad strands of the second-wave feminist movement — encompassing, but not limited to, Marxist, psychoanalytic and radical feminist approaches — Haraway conscientiously articulates the politics of a monstrous creature of the post-gender world: the cyborg."
Cyborg feminism
In her updated essay "A Cyborg Manifesto: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the Late Twentieth Century", in her book Simians, Cyborgs and Women: The Reinvention of Nature (1991), Haraway uses the cyborg metaphor to explain how fundamental contradictions in feminist theory and identity should be conjoined, rather than resolved, similar to the fusion of machine and organism in cyborgs. The manifesto is also an important feminist critique of capitalism by revealing how men have exploited women's reproduction labor, providing a barrier for women to reach full equality in the labor market.
"Situated Knowledges"
"Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective" sheds light on Haraway's vision for a feminist science. The essay originated as a commentary on Sandra Harding's The Science Question in Feminism (1986) and is a reply to Harding's "successor science". Haraway offers a critique of the feminist intervention into masculinized traditions of scientific rhetoric and the concept of objectivity. The essay identifies the metaphor that gives shape to the traditional feminist critique as polarization. At one end lies those who would assert that science is a rhetorical practice and, as such, all "science is a contestable text and a power field". At the other are those interested in a feminist version of objectivity, a position Haraway describes as a "feminist empiricism". Haraway argues for an epistemology based in "situated knowledges," which synthesizes aspects of these two traditions. Haraway posits that by acknowledging and understanding the contingency of their position in the world, and hence the contestable nature of their claims to knowledge, subjects can produce knowledge with greater objectivity than if they claimed to be neutral observers.
Primate Visions
Haraway also writes about the history of science and biology. In Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science (1990), she focused on the metaphors and narratives that direct the science of primatology. She asserted that there is a tendency to masculinize the stories about "reproductive competition and sex between aggressive males and receptive females [that] facilitate some and preclude other types of conclusions". She contended that female primatologists focus on different observations that require more communication and basic survival activities, offering very different perspectives of the origins of nature and culture than the currently accepted ones. Drawing on examples of Western narratives and ideologies of gender, race and class, Haraway questioned the most fundamental constructions of scientific human nature stories based on primates. In Primate Visions, she wrote:
"My hope has been that the always oblique and sometimes perverse focusing would facilitate revisions of fundamental, persistent western narratives about difference, especially racial and sexual difference; about reproduction, especially in terms of the multiplicities of generators and offspring; and about survival, especially about survival imagined in the boundary conditions of both the origins and ends of history, as told within western traditions of that complex genre".
Haraway's aim for science is "to reveal the limits and impossibility of its 'objectivity' and to consider some recent revisions offered by feminist primatologists". Haraway presents an alternative perspective to the accepted ideologies that continue to shape the way scientific human nature stories are created.
Haraway urges feminists to be more involved in the world of technoscience and to be credited for that involvement. In a 1997 publication, she remarked:
I want feminists to be enrolled more tightly in the meaning-making processes of technoscientific world-building. I also want feminist—activists, cultural producers, scientists, engineers, and scholars (all overlapping categories) — to be recognized for the articulations and enrollment we have been making all along within technoscience, in spite of the ignorance of most "mainstream" scholars in their characterization (or lack of characterizations) of feminism in relation to both technoscientific practice and technoscience studies.
Make Kin not Population: Reconceiving Generations
Haraway created a panel called 'Make Kin not Babies' in 2015 with five other feminist thinkers named: Alondra Nelson, Kim TallBear, Chia-Ling Wu, Michelle Murphy, and Adele Clarke. The panel's emphasis is on moving human numbers down while paying attention to factors, such as the environment, race, and class. A key phrase of hers is "Making babies is different than giving babies a good childhood." This led to the inspiration for the publication of Making Kin not Population: Reconceiving Generations, by Donna Haraway and Adele Clarke, two of the panelist members. The book addresses the growing concern of the increase in the human population and its consequences on our environment. The book consists of essays from the two authors, incorporating both environmental and reproductive justice along with addressing the functions of family and kinship relationships.
Speculative fabulation
Speculative fabulation is a concept that is included in many of Haraway's works. It includes all of the wild facts that won't hold still, and it indicates a mode of creativity and the story of the Anthropocene. Haraway stresses how this doesn't mean it isn't a fact. In Staying with the Trouble, she defines speculative fabulation as "a mode of attention, theory of history, and a practice of worlding," and she finds it an integral part of scholarly writing and everyday life. In Haraway's work she addresses a feminist speculative fabulation and its focusing on making kin instead of babies to ensure the good childhood of all children while controlling the population. Making Kin not Population: Reconceiving Generations highlights practices and proposals to implement this theory in society.
Plantationocene
Together with scholar Anna Lowenhaupt Tsing, Haraway coined Plantationocene as an alternative term to the proposed epoch Anthropocene that centers human activities in the transformation of the planet and its negative effect on land use, ecosystems, biodiversity, and species extinction.
Tsing and Haraway point out that not all humans equally contribute to the environmental challenges facing our planet. They date the origin of the Anthropocene to the start of colonialism in the Americas in the early modern era and highlight the violent history behind it by focusing on the history of plantations. The Spanish and the Portuguese colonists started importing models of plantations to the Americas by the 1500s which they have previously developed a century earlier in the Atlantic Islands. These models of planation were based on migratory forced labor (slavery), intensive land usage, globalized commerce, and constant racialized violence, all have transformed the lives of humans and non-humans worldwide. Current and past plantations provide an important note of the histories of colonialism, capitalism, and racism which can't be separated from environmental issues that made some humans more at risk to warming temperatures, rising seawater levels, toxicants, and land disposition than others.
The Companion Species Manifesto: Dogs, People, and Significant Otherness
The companion Species Manifesto is to be read as a “personal document”. This work was written to tell the story of cohabitation, coevolution and embodied cross-species sociality. Haraway argues that humans ‘companion’ relationship with dogs can show us the importance of recognizing differences and ‘how to engage with significant otherness'. The link between humans and animals like dogs can show people how to interact with other humans and nonhumans. Haraway believes that we should be using the term "companion species" instead of "companion animals" because of the relationships we can learn through them.
Critical responses to Haraway
Haraway's work has been criticized for being "methodologically vague" and using noticeably opaque language that is "sometimes concealing in an apparently deliberate way". Several reviewers have argued that her understanding of the scientific method is questionable, and that her explorations of epistemology at times leave her texts virtually meaning-free.
A 1991 review of Haraway's Primate Visions, published in the International Journal of Primatology, provides examples of some of the most common critiques of her view of science:
This is a book that contradicts itself a hundred times; but that is not a criticism of it, because its author thinks contradictions are a sign of intellectual ferment and vitality. This is a book that systematically distorts and selects historical evidence; but that is not a criticism, because its author thinks that all interpretations are biased, and she regards it as her duty to pick and choose her facts to favor her own brand of politics. This is a book full of vaporous, French-intellectual prose that makes Teilhard de Chardin sound like Ernest Hemingway by comparison; but that is not a criticism, because the author likes that sort of prose and has taken lessons in how to write it, and she thinks that plain, homely speech is part of a conspiracy to oppress the poor.
This is a book that clatters around in a dark closet of irrelevancies for 450 pages before it bumps accidentally into its index and stops; but that is not a criticism, either, because its author finds it gratifying and refreshing to bang unrelated facts together as a rebuke to stuffy minds. This book infuriated me; but that is not a defect in it, because it is supposed to infuriate people like me, and the author would have been happier still if I had blown out an artery. In short, this book is flawless, because all its deficiencies are deliberate products of art. Given its assumptions, there is nothing here to criticize. The only course open to a reviewer who dislikes this book as much as I do is to question its author's fundamental assumptions—which are big-ticket items involving the nature and relationships of language, knowledge, and science.
Another review of the same book, appearing in a 1990 issue of the American Journal of Primatology, offers a similar criticism of Haraway's literary style and scholarly methods:
There are many places where an editorial hand appears absent altogether. Neologisms are continually coined, and sentences are paragraph-long and convoluted. Biography, history, propaganda, science, science fiction, and cinema are intertwined in the most confusing way. Perhaps the idea is to induce a slightly dissociated state, so that readers can be lulled into belief. If one did not already possess some background, this book would give no lucid history of anthropology or primatology.
However, a review in the Journal of the History of Biology disagrees:
Primate Visions is one of the most important books to come along in the last twenty years. Historians of science have begun to write more externalist histories, acknowledging the possibilities of a science profoundly integrated with ongoing social agenda. Haraway's history of primatology in the twentieth century sets new standards for this approach, standards that will not be surpassed for some time to come. The book is important to students of science, feminists, historians, and anyone else interested in how the complex systems of race, gender, and science intertwine to produce supposedly objective versions of the "truth." This analysis of primatology is at once a complex, interdisciplinary, and deeply scholarly history and an imaginative, provocative analysis of the working of science in late twentieth-century Euro-America.
Publications
Crystals, Fabrics, and Fields: Metaphors of Organicism in Twentieth-Century Developmental Biology, New Haven: Yale University Press, 1976.
"Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist Feminism in the 1980s", Socialist Review, 80 (1985) 65–108.
"Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspectives", Feminist Studies, 14 (1988) 575–599.
Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science, Routledge: New York and London, 1989.
Simians, Cyborgs and Women: The Reinvention of Nature, New York: Routledge, and London: Free Association Books, 1991 (includes "A Cyborg Manifesto").
"A Game of Cat's Cradle: Science Studies, Feminist Theory, Cultural Studies", Configurations, 2 (1994) 59–71.
Modest_Witness@Second_Millennium.FemaleMan©Meets_OncoMouse™: Feminism and Technoscience, New York: Routledge, 1997 (winner of the Ludwik Fleck Prize).
How Like a Leaf: A Conversation with Donna J. Haraway, Thyrza Nichols Goodeve, New York: Routledge, 1999.
The Companion Species Manifesto: Dogs, People, and Significant Otherness, Chicago: Prickly Paradigm Press, 2003.
When Species Meet, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2007.
The Haraway Reader, New York: Routledge, 2004, .
Staying with the Trouble: Making Kin in the Chthulucene, Durham: Duke University Press, 2016.
Manifestly Haraway, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2016.
"Teddy Bear Patriarchy: Taxidermy in the Garden of Eden, New York City, 1908-36," Social Text, no. 11 (Winter 1984/1985): 19-64.
"Signs of Dominance: From a Physiology to a Cybernetics of Primate Society, C.R. Carpenter, 1930-70," Studies in History of Biology 6 (1983): 129-219.
"The Biological Enterprise: Sex, Mind, and Profit from Human Engineering to Sociobiology," Radical History Review, no. 20, (spring/summer, 1979): 206-37.
"The Biopolitics of Postmodern Bodies: Determinations of Self in Immune System Discourse," differences: A Journal of Feminist Cultural Studies 1, no. 1 (1989): 3-43.
"The Promises of Monsters: Reproductive Politics for Inappropriate/d Others," Larry Grossberg, Cary Nelson, and Paula Treichler, eds., Cultural Studies (New York: Routledge, 1992), pp. 295–337.
"Ecce Homo, Ain't (Ar'n't) I a Woman, and Inappropriate/d Others: the Human in a Posthumanist Landscape," Joan Scott and Judith Butler, eds., Feminists Theorize the Political (New York: Routledge, 1992), pp. 87–101.
"Otherworldly Conversations, Terran Topics, Local Terms," Science as Culture (London), 3, no. 1 (1992): 59-92.
Making Kin not Population: Reconceiving Generations, Donna J. Haraway and Adele Clarke, Chicago: Prickly Paradigm Press, 2018. .
See also
A Cyborg Manifesto
Cyborg anthropology
Ecofeminism
Postgenderism
Posthumanism
Postmodernism
Sandy Stone
Techno-progressivism
Feminist technoscience
Judith Butler
Sources
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Cartmill, Matt. "Book Review - Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the world of Modern Science", International Journal of Primatology, 12 (1991) 67–75.
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Hamner, M. Gail, "The Work of Love: Feminist Politics and the Injunction to Love", in Joerg Rieger (ed.), Opting for the Margins: Postmodernity and Liberation in Christian Theology, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003.
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Rua M. Williams and Juan E. Gilbert. 2019. Cyborg Perspectives on Computing Research Reform. In Extended Abstracts of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI EA '19). Association for Computing Machinery, New York, NY, USA, Paper alt13, 1–11.
Sandoval, Chela, "New Sciences: Cyborg Feminism and the Methodology of the Oppressed", in C. H. Gray (ed.), The Cyborg Handbook, New York: Routledge, 1995, pp. 407–422.
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Truman, Sarah E. “SF! Haraway's Situated Feminisms and Speculative Fabulations in English Class.” Studies in Philosophy and Education, vol. 38, no. 1, 2018, pp. 31–42, SF! Haraway's Situated Feminisms and Speculative Fabulations in English Class.
Vanderwees, Chris. “Companion Species under Fire: A Defense of Donna Haraway’s The Companion Species Manifesto.” Nebula: A Journal of Multidisciplinary Scholarship. 6.2 (2009): 73-81.
Weigel, Moira. “Feminist Cyborg Scholar Donna Haraway: 'The Disorder of Our Era Isn't Necessary'.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 20 June 2019, Feminist cyborg scholar Donna Haraway: ‘The disorder of our era isn't necessary’.
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Citations
External links
Donna Haraway Faculty Webpage at UC Santa Cruz, History of Consciousness Program
Donna Haraway: Storytelling for Earthly Survival, a film by Fabrizio Terranova
1944 births
Living people
20th-century American philosophers
21st-century American philosophers
American socialists
Colorado College alumni
American feminist writers
Feminist studies scholars
Historians of science
People from Denver
Primatologists
Posthumanists
Postmodern feminists
American socialist feminists
University of California, Santa Cruz faculty
American women philosophers
Yale University alumni
Metaphor theorists
American women sociologists
American sociologists
Philosophers of science
Philosophers of technology
Philosophers of religion
Philosophers from Hawaii
Philosophers from California
Philosophers of mind
American transhumanists
University of Hawaiʻi faculty
Johns Hopkins University faculty
American Book Award winners
American people of Irish descent
Zoology
Philosophers from Colorado
21st-century American women
20th-century American women | true | [
"\"What About Us\" is a single released by British-Irish girl group the Saturdays. Their first international single, it is the lead single from their first American-only release EP, Chasing the Saturdays (2013). It also acts as the second single from their fourth studio album Living for the Weekend (2013). The single was first released in the United States and Canada on 18 December 2012 via digital download, before being released in the United Kingdom on 16 March 2013 via CD single and digital download. The single was written by Camille Purcell, Ollie Jacobs, Philip Jacobs. There are two different versions of the track which have been recorded and released: a solo version, which was released exclusively in the US and Canada, and a version featuring Jamaican rapper Sean Paul, which was released internationally. Music critics gave the song positive feedback, but questioned the heavily auto-tuned chorus and the move away from the group's traditional sound.\n\nA music video was released for the song was published and released via the Saturdays' Vevo account on 11 January 2013. The video was filmed in Los Angeles, where the band were filming their US reality series, Chasing the Saturdays, which is broadcast through E!. An acoustic version of \"Somebody Else's Life\", which can be heard on the opening titles of the show, was released as a B-side. The Saturdays went on to a promotional tour in order to get the song \"out there\" in the United States, and appeared on a number of different chat shows including The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Jeff Probst Show, Fashion Police, Chelsea Lately and The Today Show in New York City. They later went on to a promotional tour in the UK, visiting radio stations around the country.\n\n\"What About Us\" gained commercial success, debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart to become the Saturdays' twelfth UK top 10 single and first ever number-one. In Ireland, the song debuted at number six on the Irish Singles Chart, gaining the group their fifth top 10 single there. With first-week sales of 114,000 copies and 40,000 copies more sold than their closest competitor to number one, \"What About Us\" was the fastest-selling single of 2013 in the UK until it was overtaken by Naughty Boy's \"La La La\" two months later. In December 2013, it was announced as the eleventh fastest-selling single of the year overall. As of August 2014, the song has sold over 400,000 copies in the UK. On 23 December 2013, Mollie King posted a photo on Instagram of her holding a 500,000 sales plaque from their record label, with the message that \"What About Us\" had sold over 500,000 copies in UK and USA, with 120,000 copies in the US alone even without charting on the Billboard Hot 100.\n\nBackground \n\nIn 2012, it was announced that the Saturdays had received an offer to star in their own reality television programme, Chasing the Saturdays, broadcast through E! Network. While filming their show, the band began visiting the recording studio, where they began work with Rodney \"Darkchild\" Jerkins.\n\nThe Saturdays felt comfortable with their US labels, and thanked them for not only giving them a chance in North America, but for making them feel at ease and welcome which took a lot of \"weight of our shoulders\". The band said they have always respected the labels due to the massive success they've had with artists. The band had been working with Demi Lovato in the recording studio.\n\nComposition\n\n\"What About Us\" was written and produced by Ollie Jacobs and acts as the Saturdays first single to be released in North America where it could appear on the Billboard Hot 100 and Canadian Hot 100. In America its release coincided with their TV show, Chasing the Saturdays. The track is the band's fourteenth single to be released in the United Kingdom and Ireland and the track is a dance-pop song. Before the release of the song, Mollie King said that the band were excited to share the track as they had the song \"for months\" She said: \"I can't wait for everyone to hear it and to get to perform it. I'm just so excited about this one, I think it's going down really well.\" The band said they didn't want to change their type of music just for the American public and would stick to their roots and the genre they enjoyed to perform. King spoke: \"We've always made a point that we don't want to change to go to America. We wanted to go over as we are and if they like us, they like us and if they don't, they don't!\" King said that the track is reggae pop music, a little different from what band usually record, but the track is still really \"dancey\" and \"upbeat\", as well a good song to dance to on either stage or at a club. When Una Healy was asked what the song was about she said that she \"did not know\" what the song was exactly about. \"To be honest I was trying to figure out the other day what exactly it's about. I could bullshit away telling you, but I really don't know. But I think it's all about someone driving you crazy.\" She said she \"thinks\" that 'What About Us' part means \"me and you getting together\". She did point out that she did know that the song was about \"making you happy\" and that the track was good for the summer and will get you on the dancefloor. The band teased saying that \"What About Us\" is a pop track, and that is a good indication of what the expect from the album, and that they've paired up with Diane Warren to record a few ballads and not just pop tracks. \"What About Us\" is the only collaboration on the album.\n\nRelease\n\"What About Us\" was confirmed as the Saturdays' first single to be released in North America, and would be released on 18 December 2012 to coincide with their American reality show, Chasing the Saturdays. It was also revealed that the track would be released as the lead single from the band's North America released only Extended play, Chasing the Saturdays, which was named after the show. Some critics said that releasing \"What About Us\" from an EP for the US market was a \"wise decision\". One critic said: For, throwing out a traditional release on the back of a show that isn't (yet) a hit would ultimately be setting them up for failure. What's more, the EP allows their \"storyline\" for the next season of the show (should there be one) to revolve around recording an album. In the United Kingdom, it was revealed that \"What About Us\" would be the follow-up single from \"30 Days\" in the UK and Ireland, and therefore would not be the lead single from the band's fourth studio album. The band announced that before the release of the album, there would be another single release from the album. The follow-up single was revealed to be titled \"Gentleman\".\n\nJust like all the band's previous singles, the record was accepted by all A-Lists at radio stations. The UK and Ireland version of the track features a guest rap from Sean Paul. Whereas the North American version does not feature vocals from Sean Paul and only vocals from the band. The original version of the track last 3 minutes and 24 seconds, whereas the version which features Sean Paul lasts 3 minutes and 40 seconds. The single was released with B-side, an Acoustic version of a brand new track, \"Somebody Else's Life\", which is the opening theme to Chasing the Saturdays. \"What About Us\" was released as a digital download EP, and this featured the single version which features Sean Paul, the solo version and the B-side track. Upon the release in North America, there was a digital remixes EP which featured remixes of \"What About Us\" by a number of DJs including: Seamus Haji, Guy Scheiman, the Buzz Junkies and 2nd Adventure and this was also made available to purchase on 18 December 2012. While in the UK, the CD single was made available to be from stores from 18 March 2013. On the CD single featured \"What About Us\", the B-side \"Somebody Else's Life\".\n\nThe band decided to release \"What About Us\" differently between the United Kingdom and the United States, \"What About Us\" was released onto the charts without any airplay and without a music video accompanying the release, something the band experienced in the UK, with \"Notorious\". Whereas in the UK, \"What About Us\" was released with airplay and the music video being released before the release of the single. During this time, Frankie Sandford became ambassadors for mental health after Sandford battled depression. The band said they choose \"What About Us\" to be the lead single in the US and follow-up single from \"30 Days\" because they all loved it once they demoed it and it gave them a \"really good feeling\" They also said it is a fresh start for a new album, with a \"reggae vibe\", but still a pop record. The Saturdays said that Sean Paul was \"perfect\" for the UK version of the song. They said that he was \"just so nice\" and that he would be present during some of the promotional performances when the single was released.\n\nCritical reception\nRobert Copsey of Digital Spy said that Rochelle Humes asks in a \"curious Jamaican-flecked timbre\" during the intro of \"What About Us\". During the lyrics \"Oh why are we are waiting so long I'm suffocating\", and he went on to say that it is in reference to \"man-related drama\" and also pointing out that there is plenty of that on their reality series, Chasing the Saturdays. Copsey later went on to tip the band for their first number-one single as he said: \"but we suspect it could also be a sly wink at their enduring quest for a number one single\". He said that track was \"radio-friendly\" due to the \"trace beats\" and \"demanding their contrary lover to give up the hard-to-get schtick sharpish\". Although he didn't think that the song was \"original\" enough for the band, but is \"strangely addictive\" and he would be happy to see the song at the top of the charts.\n\n4Music described the song as a \"electro-pop affair with a bucket-load of synths thrown in for good measure. It's quite good, but we wonder if they should reconsider this single choice if they truly want to launch an invasion on America's charts.\" Idolator wrote a mixed review criticizing the track for lacking the group's signature style; \"While the beat is pounding enough to nab the girls a chart hit, it doesn’t feel true to the spirit of The Sats. Then again, maybe it isn’t supposed to.\" Jessica Sager from PopCrush also touched on the departure from their original sound; \"It’s a pretty big departure from their usual sugary oeuvre, but not necessarily in a bad way.\" She went on to praise Sean Paul's feature; \"His presence on the track gives it an air of authenticity and fun, but pretty much only during his own verses and interjections.\" However, she criticised the mediocre attempt at dialect the groups sing in throughout the track; \"When the Saturdays try to emulate island tones, it sounds a little awkward and they start out like that right off the bat, but go in and out of the undistinguished dialect throughout the song.\" She also felt that the heavily Auto-Tuned chorus was not need; \"The Auto-Tune seems extraneous, because the Saturdays can actually sing well without it.\" She end the review by labeling their latest effort as \"generic\" and \"not the best the Saturdays have to offer\", also rating it two and a half stars out of five.\n\nCommercial reception\n\"What About Us\" debuted at number 44 on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs chart for the week dated 8 December 2012. This marks their first ever chart entry in the United States and it has since peaked at number twenty-seven. The song debuted at number 79 on the Canadian Hot 100, becoming the highest Canadian debut for a new artist in 2013.\n\nThe Saturdays admitted that they did not want to get their hopes up on debuting at number one on the UK Singles Charts due to being beaten to number-one three times before with \"Forever Is Over\", \"Just Can't Get Enough\" and \"Missing You\", after being number one on the Official Chart Update. During the latter two occasions, it was rapper Flo Rida who had pushed them back to numbers two and three respectively. It was revealed that the Saturdays had knocked Justin Timberlake's \"Mirrors\" off the number-one spot on the UK Singles Chart. This became the band's first ever number-one single in the United Kingdom, it also became Sean Paul's second number one in the United Kingdom after being featured on \"Breathe\" in 2003. For every one copy that Timberlake's \"Mirrors\" sold, the Saturdays sold two more copies of \"What About Us\". \"What About Us\" sold 114,000 copies in the first week of release, making it, at the time, the fastest selling single of 2013. The track sold 40,000 copies more than Timberlake, who was pushed back to number-two on the UK Singles Charts. The band said they were thrilled to be the UK's number-one with \"What About Us\". They went on to thanking their fans for supporting the single and supporting them for the past five years.\n\n\"What About Us\" debuted at number six on the Irish Singles Chart, marking the band's fifth top ten single in that country. \"What About Us\" made its debut at number thirty-six on the New Zealand Singles Chart.\n\nMusic video\nThe music video for \"What About Us\" was filmed during the summer of 2012 in Los Angeles, while the Saturdays were filming their reality television series. The North American version of the video was released via the Saturdays' official Vevo account on YouTube on 11 January 2013. A variant of the video, featuring vocals and additional scenes of the women with Sean Paul, was later released on 5 February 2013.\n\nLive performances and promotion\nThe Saturdays appeared in a number of nightclubs throughout 2012 in the United States performing \"What About Us\" along other hits. On 14 January 2013, the group made their first televised performance of the single on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. It was their first performance done on American television. On 16 January, the girls performed \"What About Us\" on The Today Show in New York City. Along with the performances, they appeared on chat shows such as Chelsea Lately, Daybreak, Fashion Police, Lorraine, The Jeff Probst Show, Loose Women, Alan Carr: Chatty Man, Sunday Brunch and What's Cooking? to promote the single.\n\nTrack listings\nUS digital download\n\"What About Us\" - 3:24\n\nCD Single - UK Version Only\n\"What About Us\" (featuring Sean Paul) - 3:40\n\"What About Us\" - 3:24\n\"Somebody Else's Life\" (Acoustic) - 3:18\n\nUS Digital remixes EP\n\"What About Us\" (Seamus Haji Radio Edit) - 3:06\n\"What About Us\" (Seamus Haji Club Mix) - 6:35\n\"What About Us\" (Seamus Haji Dub) - 6:49\n\"What About Us\" (Guy Scheiman Radio Edit) - 3:59\n\"What About Us\" (Guy Scheiman Club Mix) - 7:35\n\"What About Us\" (Guy Scheiman Dub) - 7:20\n\"What About Us\" (The Buzz Junkies Radio Edit) - 3:23\n\"What About Us\" (The Buzz Junkies Club Mix) - 4:32\n\"What About Us\" (featuring Sean Paul) - 4:32\n\"What About Us\" (2nd Adventure Radio Edit) - 4:24\n\"What About Us\" (2nd Adventure Club Mix) - 6:36\n\nEurope and Oceania EP - digital download\n\"What About Us\" (featuring Sean Paul) - 3:40\n\"What About Us\" (featuring Sean Paul) [The Buzz Junkies Radio Edit] - 3:23\n\"What About Us\" (featuring Sean Paul) [Seamus Haji Radio Edit] - 3:37\n\"What About Us\" (Guy Scheiman Radio Edit) - 3:58\n\"What About Us\" (Extended Mix) - 3:49 (only available through pre-order)\n\nUK Digital Remixes EP\n\"What About Us\" (Guy Scheiman Club Mix) - 7:35\n\"What About Us\" (2nd Adventure Club Mix) - 6:36\n\"What About Us\" (Seamus Haji Club Mix) - 6:35\n\"What About Us\" (The Buzz Junkies Club Mix) - 4:32\n\"What About Us\" (2nd Adventure Radio Edit) - 4:24\n\nRevamped Version\n\"What About Us\" - 3:24\n\"Somebody Else's Life\" (Acoustic) - 3:18\n\"What About Us\" (Extended Mix) - 3:49\n\"What About Us\" (2nd Adventure Radio Edit) - 4:24\n\"What About Us\" (Guy Scheiman Radio Edit) - 3:58\n\"What About Us\" (featuring Sean Paul) - 4:32\n\"What About Us\" (featuring Sean Paul) [The Buzz Junkies Radio Edit] - 3:23\n\"What About Us\" (featuring Sean Paul) [Seamus Haji Radio Edit] - 3:37\n\"What About Us\" (2nd Adventure Club Mix) - 6:36\n\"What About Us\" (Guy Scheiman Club Mix) - 7:35\n\"What About Us\" (The Buzz Junkies Club Mix) - 4:32\n\"What About Us\" (Seamus Haji Club Mix) - 6:35\n\nCredits and personnel\n\"What About Us\" was recorded at Rollover Studios in London.\n\nOllie Jacobs a.k.a. Art Bastian ~ Songwriter, Producer, Vocal Producer, Mix Engineer\n\nPhillip Jacobs ~ co-writer\nCamille Purcell ~ co-writer\nThe Saturdays ~ vocals\nSean Paul ~ guest vocalist\n\nCharts and certifications\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nCertifications\n\nRelease and radio history\n\nSee also\n\nList of UK Singles Chart number ones of the 2010s\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n feat. Sean Paul\n\nThe Saturdays songs\nSean Paul songs\n2012 singles\nDance-pop songs\nNumber-one singles in Scotland\nUK Singles Chart number-one singles\nSongs written by Camille Purcell\n2012 songs\nFascination Records singles\nSongs written by Ollie Jacobs",
"No Turning Back: The Story So Far is the first compilation album by Shannon Noll. The album includes tracks from Noll's three studio albums to date, That's What I'm Talking About (2004), Lift (2005) and Turn It Up (2008) and five brand new tracks. The album was released in September 2008 and peaked at number 7 on the ARIA Charts, becoming Noll's fourth consecutive top ten album.\n\nUpon released, Noll said \"It was only once we started talking about the idea that it sank in how many singles there's been, from \"What About Me\" right through to \"Loud\" and \"In Pieces\". All these songs mean so much to me and showcase a journey that I've been through with my songwriting and recording, my career in general. It's great to have the new songs on the album, as they are just a taste of what we've got planned for next year!\"\n\nSingles\nThe first single taken from the album was \"Summertime\", which was originally by 2007 Canadian Idol Brian Melo. The track peaked at number 54 on the ARIA Chart.\n\nTrack listing\n\"Summertime\" – 3:42\n\"Shine\" – 3:34\n\"Lift\" – 3:56\n\"Lonely\" – 4:42\n\"Now I Run\" – 3:44\n\"What About Me\" – 3:21\n\"Drive\" – 3:58\n\"Learn to Fly\" – 4:09\n\"Don't Give Up\" (with Natalie Bassingthwaighte) – 4:40\n\"Loud\" – 3:10\n\"In Pieces\" – 3:32\n\"Tomorrow\" – 3:57\n\"No Turning Back\" – 3:43\n\"Crash\" – 3:21\n\"You're Never Alone\" – 5:01\n\"Sorry Is Just Too Late\" (featuring Kari Kimmel) (iTunes exclusive bonus track) – 3:54\n\nDisc 2 (DVD edition)\n\"What About Me\"\n\"Drive\"\n\"Learn to Fly\"\n\"Lonely\"\n\"Shine\"\n\"Lift\"\n\"Now I Run\"\n\"Loud\"\n\"In Pieces\"\n\"Don't Give Up\" (with Natalie Bassingthwaighte)\n\nOmissions\nThe compilation omits the following singles:\n \"Rise Up\" with Australian Idol Top 12 (2003) – was a collaborative single and is not considered part of Noll's official discography.\n \"New Beginning\" (2004) – was a radio-only single release from That's What I'm Talking About.\n \"C'mon Aussie C'mon\" (2004) – was a charity single only.\n \"Twelve Days of Christmas\" with Dreamtime Christmas All-Stars (2004) – was a collaborative single and is not considered part of Noll's official discography.\n \"Everybody Needs a Little Help\" (2008) – was a radio-only single release from Turn It Up.\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nRelease history\n\nReferences\n\nShannon Noll albums\nSony BMG albums\n2008 greatest hits albums\nCompilation albums by Australian artists"
] |
[
"Donna Haraway",
"\"A Cyborg Manifesto\"",
"What was the Cyborg Manifesto?",
"In 1985, Haraway published the essay \"Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the 1980s\" in Socialist Review.",
"What was it about?",
"the Manifesto offered a response to the rising conservatism during the 1980s in the United States at a critical juncture at which feminists,"
] | C_0fe28ad9572349f8964399f82096dade_1 | What did the feminists do? | 3 | What did the feminists in "A Cyborg Manifesto" do? | Donna Haraway | In 1985, Haraway published the essay "Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the 1980s" in Socialist Review. Although most of Haraway's earlier work was focused on emphasizing the masculine bias in scientific culture, she has also contributed greatly to feminist narratives of the twentieth century. For Haraway, the Manifesto offered a response to the rising conservatism during the 1980s in the United States at a critical juncture at which feminists, in order to have any real-world significance, had to acknowledge their situatedness within what she terms the "informatics of domination." Women were no longer on the outside along a hierarchy of privileged binaries but rather deeply imbued, exploited by and complicit within networked hegemony, and had to form their politics as such. According to Haraway's "Manifesto", "there is nothing about being female that naturally binds women together into a unified category. There is not even such a state as 'being' female, itself a highly complex category constructed in contested sexual scientific discourses and other social practices". A cyborg does not require a stable, essentialist identity, argues Haraway, and feminists should consider creating coalitions based on "affinity" instead of identity. To ground her argument, Haraway analyzes the phrase "women of color", suggesting it as one possible example of affinity politics. Using a term coined by theorist Chela Sandoval, Haraway writes that "oppositional consciousness" is comparable with a cyborg politics, because rather than identity it stresses how affinity comes as a result of "otherness, difference, and specificity". Haraway's cyborg is a set of ideals of a genderless, race-less, more collective and peaceful civilization with the caveat of being utterly connected to the machine. Her new versions of beings reject Western humanist conceptions of personhood and promote a disembodied world of information and the withering of subjectivity. The collective consciousness of the beings and their limitless access to information provide the tools with which to create a world of immense socio-political change through altruism and affinity, not biological unity. In her essay Haraway challenges the liberal human subject and its lack of concern for collective desires which leaves the possibility for wide corruption and inequality in the world. Furthermore, the cyborg's importance lays in its coalition of consciousness not in the physical body that carries the information/consciousness. A world of beings with a type of shared knowledge could create a powerful political force towards positive change. Cyborgs can see "from both perspectives at once." In addition, Haraway writes that the cyborg has an imbued nature towards the collective good. Haraway explains that her "Manifesto" is "an effort to build an ironic political myth faithful to feminism, socialism, and materialism." She adds that "Cyborg imagery can suggest a way out of the maze of dualisms in which we have explained our bodies and our tools to ourselves." Haraway is serious about finding future ways towards equality and ending dominating behavior; however, the cyborg itself is not as serious of an endeavor for her as the idea of it is. Haraway creates an analogy using current technologies and information to imagine a world with a collective coalition that had the capabilities to create grand socio-political change. Haraway's "Manifesto" is a thought experiment, defining what people think is most important about being and what the future holds for increased artificial intelligence. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Donna J. Haraway (born September 6, 1944) is an American Professor Emerita in the History of Consciousness Department and Feminist Studies Department at the University of California, Santa Cruz, United States. She is a prominent scholar in the field of science and technology studies, described in the early 1990s as a "feminist and postmodernist". Haraway is the author of numerous foundational books and essays that bring together questions of science and feminism, such as "A Cyborg Manifesto: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the Late Twentieth Century" (1985) and "Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective" (1988). Additionally, for her contributions to the intersection of information technology and feminist theory, Haraway is widely cited in works related to Human-Computer Interaction (HCI). Her Situated Knowledges and Cyborg Manifesto publications in particular, have sparked discussion within the HCI community regarding framing the positionality from which research and systems are designed. She is also a leading scholar in contemporary ecofeminism, associated with post-humanism and new materialism movements. Her work criticizes anthropocentrism, emphasizes the self-organizing powers of nonhuman processes, and explores dissonant relations between those processes and cultural practices, rethinking sources of ethics. Haraway criticizes the Anthropocene because it generalizes us as a species. However, she also recognizes the importance of it recognizing humans as key agents. Haraway prefers the term Capitalocene which defines capitalism's relentless imperatives to expand itself and grow, but she does not like the theme of irreversible destruction in both the Anthropocene and Capitalocene.
Haraway has taught Women's Studies and the History of Science at the University of Hawaii (1971-1974) and Johns Hopkins University (1974-1980). She began working as a professor at the University of Santa Cruz in 1980 where she became the first tenured professor in feminist theory in the United States. Haraway's works have contributed to the study of both human–machine and human–animal relations. Her works have sparked debate in primatology, philosophy, and developmental biology. Haraway participated in a collaborative exchange with the feminist theorist Lynn Randolph from 1990 to 1996. Their engagement with specific ideas relating to feminism, technoscience, political consciousness, and other social issues, formed the images and narrative of Haraway's book Modest_Witness for which she received the Society for Social Studies of Science's (4S) Ludwik Fleck Prize in 1999. She was also awarded the Section on Science, Knowledge and Technology's Robert K. Merton award in 1992 for her work Primate Visions:Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science. In 2000, Haraway was awarded the Society for Social Studies of Science's John Desmond Bernal Prize for her distinguished contributions to the field of science and technology studies. Haraway serves on the advisory board for numerous academic journals, including differences, Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, Contemporary Women's Writing, and Environmental Humanities.
Biography
Early life
Donna Jeanne Haraway was born on September 6, 1944, in Denver, Colorado. Haraway's father, Frank O. Haraway, was a sportswriter for The Denver Post and her mother Dorothy Mcguire Haraway, who came from a heavily Irish Catholic background, died from a heart attack when Haraway was 16 years old. Although she is no longer religious, Catholicism had a strong influence on her as she was taught by nuns in her early life. The impression of the Eucharist influenced her linkage of the figurative and the material. Haraway attended high school at St. Mary's Academy in Cherry Hills Village, Colorado. Growing up around her father's adoration for sports writing is a major part of her love for writing. The two of them would have dinner conversations about words and their fascination with them. Another impact on Haraway's writing came from the wars she experienced throughout her life, considering she was born at the end of World War II and grew up during the Cold War.
Education
Haraway majored in Zoology, with minors in philosophy and English at the Colorado College, on the full-tuition Boettcher Scholarship. After college, Haraway moved to Paris and studied evolutionary philosophy and theology at the Fondation Teilhard de Chardin on a Fulbright scholarship. She completed her Ph.D. in biology at Yale in 1972 writing a dissertation about the use of metaphor in shaping experiments in experimental biology titled The Search for Organizing Relations: An Organismic Paradigm in Twentieth-Century Developmental Biology, later edited into a book and published under the title Crystals, Fabrics, and Fields: Metaphors of Organicism in Twentieth-Century Developmental Biology.
Later work
Haraway was the recipient of several scholarships. Alluding to the Cold War and post-war American hegemony, she said of these, "...people like me became national resources in the national science efforts. So, there was money available for educating even Irish Catholic girls' brains." In 1999, Haraway received the Society for Social Studies of Science's (4S) Ludwik Fleck Prize. In September 2000, Haraway was awarded the Society for Social Studies of Science's highest honor, the J. D. Bernal Award, for her "distinguished contributions" to the field. Haraway's most famous essay was published in 1985: "A Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the 1980s" and was characterized as "an effort to build an ironic political myth faithful to feminism, socialism, and materialism".
In Haraway's theses, "Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective" (1988), she means to expose the myth of scientific objectivity. Haraway defined the term "situated knowledges" as a means of understanding that all knowledge comes from positional perspectives. Our positionality inherently determines what it is possible to know about an object of interest. Comprehending situated knowledge "allows us to become answerable for what we learn how to see". Without this accountability, the implicit biases and societal stigmas of the researcher's community are twisted into ground truth from which to build assumptions and hypothesis. Haraway's ideas in "Situated Knowledges" were heavily influenced by conversations with Nancy Hartsock and other feminist philosophers and activists.
Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science, published in 1989 (Routledge), focuses on primate research and primatology: "My hope has been that the always oblique and sometimes perverse focusing would facilitate revisions of fundamental, persistent western narratives about difference, especially racial and sexual difference; about reproduction, especially in terms of the multiplicities of generators and offspring; and about survival, especially about survival imagined in the boundary conditions of both the origins and ends of history, as told within western traditions of that complex genre". Currently, Donna Haraway is an American Professor Emerita in the History of Consciousness Department and Feminist Studies Department at the University of California, Santa Cruz, United States. She lives North of San Francisco with her partner Rusten Hogness. In an interview with Sarah Franklin in 2017, Haraway addresses her intent to incorporate collective thinking and all perspectives: "It isn't that systematic, but there is a little list. I notice if I have cited nothing but white people, if I have erased indigenous people, if I forget non-human beings, etc. I notice on purpose. I notice if I haven't paid the slightest bit of attention ... You know, I run through some old-fashioned, klutzy categories. Race, sex, class, region, sexuality, gender, species. I pay attention. I know how fraught all those categories are, but I think those categories still do important work. I have developed, kind of, an alert system, an internalized alert system."
Major themes
"A Cyborg Manifesto"
In 1985, Haraway published the essay "Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the 1980s" in Socialist Review. Although most of Haraway's earlier work was focused on emphasizing the masculine bias in scientific culture, she has also contributed greatly to the feminist narratives of the twentieth century. For Haraway, the Manifesto offered a response to the rising conservatism during the 1980s in the United States at a critical juncture at which feminists, to have any real-world significance, had to acknowledge their situatedness within what she terms the "informatics of domination." Women were no longer on the outside along a hierarchy of privileged binaries but rather deeply imbued, exploited by and complicit within networked hegemony, and had to form their politics as such.
According to Haraway's "Manifesto," "there is nothing about being female that naturally binds women together into a unified category. There is not even such a state as 'being' female, itself a highly complex category constructed in contested sexual scientific discourses and other social practices". As stated, "In Simians, Cyborgs, and Women: The Reinvention of Nature (1991), Donna Haraway introduces the figure of the cyborg, an “impure” creature who scrambles orderly divisions between the natural and artificial/technical, and the human and the non-human/animal". A cyborg does not require a stable, essentialist identity, argues Haraway, and feminists should consider creating coalitions based on "affinity" instead of identity. To ground her argument, Haraway analyzes the phrase "women of color", suggesting it as one possible example of affinity politics. Using a term coined by theorist Chela Sandoval, Haraway writes that "oppositional consciousness" is comparable with a cyborg politics, because rather than identity it stresses how affinity comes as a result of "otherness, difference, and specificity".
Haraway's cyborg is a set of ideals of a genderless, race-less, more collective, and peaceful civilization with the caveat of being utterly connected to the machine. Her new versions of beings reject Western humanist conceptions of personhood and promote a disembodied world of information and the withering of subjectivity. The collective consciousness of the beings and their limitless access to information provides the tools with which to create a world of immense socio-political change through altruism and affinity, not biological unity. In her essay, Haraway challenges the liberal human subject and its lack of concern for collective desires which leaves the possibility for wide corruption and inequality in the world. Furthermore, the cyborg's importance lies in its coalition of consciousness, not in the physical body that carries the information/consciousness. A world of beings with a type of shared knowledge could create a powerful political force toward positive change. Cyborgs can see "from both perspectives at once." In addition, Haraway writes that the cyborg has an imbued nature toward the collective good.
Haraway explains that her "Manifesto" is "an effort to build an ironic political myth faithful to feminism, socialism, and materialism." She adds that "Cyborg imagery can suggest a way out of the maze of dualisms in which we have explained our bodies and our tools to ourselves." Haraway is serious about finding future ways towards equality and ending dominating behavior; however, the cyborg itself is not as serious of an endeavor for her as the idea of it is. Haraway creates an analogy using current technologies and information to imagine a world with a collective coalition that has the capabilities to create grand socio-political change. Haraway's "Manifesto" is a thought experiment, defining what people think is most important about being and what the future holds for increased artificial intelligence.
Gender, Work, & Organization's author Agnes Prasad's piece Cyborg Writing as a Political Act: Reading Donna Haraway in Organization Studies elaborates on how Haraway's writing contributes to the greater feminist community.
"This essay, almost immediately, became a watershed text for feminist theory and for, what was at the time, the inchoate field of feminist science studies. Interweaving ideas that were playful and imaginative with an incisive critique of the totalizing essentialism that was the ironic hallmark of the myriad strands of the second-wave feminist movement — encompassing, but not limited to, Marxist, psychoanalytic and radical feminist approaches — Haraway conscientiously articulates the politics of a monstrous creature of the post-gender world: the cyborg."
Cyborg feminism
In her updated essay "A Cyborg Manifesto: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the Late Twentieth Century", in her book Simians, Cyborgs and Women: The Reinvention of Nature (1991), Haraway uses the cyborg metaphor to explain how fundamental contradictions in feminist theory and identity should be conjoined, rather than resolved, similar to the fusion of machine and organism in cyborgs. The manifesto is also an important feminist critique of capitalism by revealing how men have exploited women's reproduction labor, providing a barrier for women to reach full equality in the labor market.
"Situated Knowledges"
"Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective" sheds light on Haraway's vision for a feminist science. The essay originated as a commentary on Sandra Harding's The Science Question in Feminism (1986) and is a reply to Harding's "successor science". Haraway offers a critique of the feminist intervention into masculinized traditions of scientific rhetoric and the concept of objectivity. The essay identifies the metaphor that gives shape to the traditional feminist critique as polarization. At one end lies those who would assert that science is a rhetorical practice and, as such, all "science is a contestable text and a power field". At the other are those interested in a feminist version of objectivity, a position Haraway describes as a "feminist empiricism". Haraway argues for an epistemology based in "situated knowledges," which synthesizes aspects of these two traditions. Haraway posits that by acknowledging and understanding the contingency of their position in the world, and hence the contestable nature of their claims to knowledge, subjects can produce knowledge with greater objectivity than if they claimed to be neutral observers.
Primate Visions
Haraway also writes about the history of science and biology. In Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science (1990), she focused on the metaphors and narratives that direct the science of primatology. She asserted that there is a tendency to masculinize the stories about "reproductive competition and sex between aggressive males and receptive females [that] facilitate some and preclude other types of conclusions". She contended that female primatologists focus on different observations that require more communication and basic survival activities, offering very different perspectives of the origins of nature and culture than the currently accepted ones. Drawing on examples of Western narratives and ideologies of gender, race and class, Haraway questioned the most fundamental constructions of scientific human nature stories based on primates. In Primate Visions, she wrote:
"My hope has been that the always oblique and sometimes perverse focusing would facilitate revisions of fundamental, persistent western narratives about difference, especially racial and sexual difference; about reproduction, especially in terms of the multiplicities of generators and offspring; and about survival, especially about survival imagined in the boundary conditions of both the origins and ends of history, as told within western traditions of that complex genre".
Haraway's aim for science is "to reveal the limits and impossibility of its 'objectivity' and to consider some recent revisions offered by feminist primatologists". Haraway presents an alternative perspective to the accepted ideologies that continue to shape the way scientific human nature stories are created.
Haraway urges feminists to be more involved in the world of technoscience and to be credited for that involvement. In a 1997 publication, she remarked:
I want feminists to be enrolled more tightly in the meaning-making processes of technoscientific world-building. I also want feminist—activists, cultural producers, scientists, engineers, and scholars (all overlapping categories) — to be recognized for the articulations and enrollment we have been making all along within technoscience, in spite of the ignorance of most "mainstream" scholars in their characterization (or lack of characterizations) of feminism in relation to both technoscientific practice and technoscience studies.
Make Kin not Population: Reconceiving Generations
Haraway created a panel called 'Make Kin not Babies' in 2015 with five other feminist thinkers named: Alondra Nelson, Kim TallBear, Chia-Ling Wu, Michelle Murphy, and Adele Clarke. The panel's emphasis is on moving human numbers down while paying attention to factors, such as the environment, race, and class. A key phrase of hers is "Making babies is different than giving babies a good childhood." This led to the inspiration for the publication of Making Kin not Population: Reconceiving Generations, by Donna Haraway and Adele Clarke, two of the panelist members. The book addresses the growing concern of the increase in the human population and its consequences on our environment. The book consists of essays from the two authors, incorporating both environmental and reproductive justice along with addressing the functions of family and kinship relationships.
Speculative fabulation
Speculative fabulation is a concept that is included in many of Haraway's works. It includes all of the wild facts that won't hold still, and it indicates a mode of creativity and the story of the Anthropocene. Haraway stresses how this doesn't mean it isn't a fact. In Staying with the Trouble, she defines speculative fabulation as "a mode of attention, theory of history, and a practice of worlding," and she finds it an integral part of scholarly writing and everyday life. In Haraway's work she addresses a feminist speculative fabulation and its focusing on making kin instead of babies to ensure the good childhood of all children while controlling the population. Making Kin not Population: Reconceiving Generations highlights practices and proposals to implement this theory in society.
Plantationocene
Together with scholar Anna Lowenhaupt Tsing, Haraway coined Plantationocene as an alternative term to the proposed epoch Anthropocene that centers human activities in the transformation of the planet and its negative effect on land use, ecosystems, biodiversity, and species extinction.
Tsing and Haraway point out that not all humans equally contribute to the environmental challenges facing our planet. They date the origin of the Anthropocene to the start of colonialism in the Americas in the early modern era and highlight the violent history behind it by focusing on the history of plantations. The Spanish and the Portuguese colonists started importing models of plantations to the Americas by the 1500s which they have previously developed a century earlier in the Atlantic Islands. These models of planation were based on migratory forced labor (slavery), intensive land usage, globalized commerce, and constant racialized violence, all have transformed the lives of humans and non-humans worldwide. Current and past plantations provide an important note of the histories of colonialism, capitalism, and racism which can't be separated from environmental issues that made some humans more at risk to warming temperatures, rising seawater levels, toxicants, and land disposition than others.
The Companion Species Manifesto: Dogs, People, and Significant Otherness
The companion Species Manifesto is to be read as a “personal document”. This work was written to tell the story of cohabitation, coevolution and embodied cross-species sociality. Haraway argues that humans ‘companion’ relationship with dogs can show us the importance of recognizing differences and ‘how to engage with significant otherness'. The link between humans and animals like dogs can show people how to interact with other humans and nonhumans. Haraway believes that we should be using the term "companion species" instead of "companion animals" because of the relationships we can learn through them.
Critical responses to Haraway
Haraway's work has been criticized for being "methodologically vague" and using noticeably opaque language that is "sometimes concealing in an apparently deliberate way". Several reviewers have argued that her understanding of the scientific method is questionable, and that her explorations of epistemology at times leave her texts virtually meaning-free.
A 1991 review of Haraway's Primate Visions, published in the International Journal of Primatology, provides examples of some of the most common critiques of her view of science:
This is a book that contradicts itself a hundred times; but that is not a criticism of it, because its author thinks contradictions are a sign of intellectual ferment and vitality. This is a book that systematically distorts and selects historical evidence; but that is not a criticism, because its author thinks that all interpretations are biased, and she regards it as her duty to pick and choose her facts to favor her own brand of politics. This is a book full of vaporous, French-intellectual prose that makes Teilhard de Chardin sound like Ernest Hemingway by comparison; but that is not a criticism, because the author likes that sort of prose and has taken lessons in how to write it, and she thinks that plain, homely speech is part of a conspiracy to oppress the poor.
This is a book that clatters around in a dark closet of irrelevancies for 450 pages before it bumps accidentally into its index and stops; but that is not a criticism, either, because its author finds it gratifying and refreshing to bang unrelated facts together as a rebuke to stuffy minds. This book infuriated me; but that is not a defect in it, because it is supposed to infuriate people like me, and the author would have been happier still if I had blown out an artery. In short, this book is flawless, because all its deficiencies are deliberate products of art. Given its assumptions, there is nothing here to criticize. The only course open to a reviewer who dislikes this book as much as I do is to question its author's fundamental assumptions—which are big-ticket items involving the nature and relationships of language, knowledge, and science.
Another review of the same book, appearing in a 1990 issue of the American Journal of Primatology, offers a similar criticism of Haraway's literary style and scholarly methods:
There are many places where an editorial hand appears absent altogether. Neologisms are continually coined, and sentences are paragraph-long and convoluted. Biography, history, propaganda, science, science fiction, and cinema are intertwined in the most confusing way. Perhaps the idea is to induce a slightly dissociated state, so that readers can be lulled into belief. If one did not already possess some background, this book would give no lucid history of anthropology or primatology.
However, a review in the Journal of the History of Biology disagrees:
Primate Visions is one of the most important books to come along in the last twenty years. Historians of science have begun to write more externalist histories, acknowledging the possibilities of a science profoundly integrated with ongoing social agenda. Haraway's history of primatology in the twentieth century sets new standards for this approach, standards that will not be surpassed for some time to come. The book is important to students of science, feminists, historians, and anyone else interested in how the complex systems of race, gender, and science intertwine to produce supposedly objective versions of the "truth." This analysis of primatology is at once a complex, interdisciplinary, and deeply scholarly history and an imaginative, provocative analysis of the working of science in late twentieth-century Euro-America.
Publications
Crystals, Fabrics, and Fields: Metaphors of Organicism in Twentieth-Century Developmental Biology, New Haven: Yale University Press, 1976.
"Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist Feminism in the 1980s", Socialist Review, 80 (1985) 65–108.
"Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspectives", Feminist Studies, 14 (1988) 575–599.
Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science, Routledge: New York and London, 1989.
Simians, Cyborgs and Women: The Reinvention of Nature, New York: Routledge, and London: Free Association Books, 1991 (includes "A Cyborg Manifesto").
"A Game of Cat's Cradle: Science Studies, Feminist Theory, Cultural Studies", Configurations, 2 (1994) 59–71.
Modest_Witness@Second_Millennium.FemaleMan©Meets_OncoMouse™: Feminism and Technoscience, New York: Routledge, 1997 (winner of the Ludwik Fleck Prize).
How Like a Leaf: A Conversation with Donna J. Haraway, Thyrza Nichols Goodeve, New York: Routledge, 1999.
The Companion Species Manifesto: Dogs, People, and Significant Otherness, Chicago: Prickly Paradigm Press, 2003.
When Species Meet, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2007.
The Haraway Reader, New York: Routledge, 2004, .
Staying with the Trouble: Making Kin in the Chthulucene, Durham: Duke University Press, 2016.
Manifestly Haraway, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2016.
"Teddy Bear Patriarchy: Taxidermy in the Garden of Eden, New York City, 1908-36," Social Text, no. 11 (Winter 1984/1985): 19-64.
"Signs of Dominance: From a Physiology to a Cybernetics of Primate Society, C.R. Carpenter, 1930-70," Studies in History of Biology 6 (1983): 129-219.
"The Biological Enterprise: Sex, Mind, and Profit from Human Engineering to Sociobiology," Radical History Review, no. 20, (spring/summer, 1979): 206-37.
"The Biopolitics of Postmodern Bodies: Determinations of Self in Immune System Discourse," differences: A Journal of Feminist Cultural Studies 1, no. 1 (1989): 3-43.
"The Promises of Monsters: Reproductive Politics for Inappropriate/d Others," Larry Grossberg, Cary Nelson, and Paula Treichler, eds., Cultural Studies (New York: Routledge, 1992), pp. 295–337.
"Ecce Homo, Ain't (Ar'n't) I a Woman, and Inappropriate/d Others: the Human in a Posthumanist Landscape," Joan Scott and Judith Butler, eds., Feminists Theorize the Political (New York: Routledge, 1992), pp. 87–101.
"Otherworldly Conversations, Terran Topics, Local Terms," Science as Culture (London), 3, no. 1 (1992): 59-92.
Making Kin not Population: Reconceiving Generations, Donna J. Haraway and Adele Clarke, Chicago: Prickly Paradigm Press, 2018. .
See also
A Cyborg Manifesto
Cyborg anthropology
Ecofeminism
Postgenderism
Posthumanism
Postmodernism
Sandy Stone
Techno-progressivism
Feminist technoscience
Judith Butler
Sources
Burow-Flak, Elizabeth, "Background Information on Cyborg Manifesto", 17 September 2000.
Cachel, Susan. "Partisan primatology. Review of Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science", American Journal of Primatology, 22 (1990) 139–142.
Campbell, Kirsten, "The Promise of Feminist Reflexivities: Developing Donna Haraway's Project for Feminist Science Studies", Hypatia, 19:1 (2004) 162–182.
Cartmill, Matt. "Book Review - Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the world of Modern Science", International Journal of Primatology, 12 (1991) 67–75.
Carubia, Josephine M., "Haraway on the Map", Semiotic Review of Books, 9:1 (1998) 4–7.
Clarke, Adele, and Donna Haraway, editors. Making Kin Not Population. Prickly Paradigm Press, 2018.
“Donna Haraway.” The European Graduate School, https://egs.edu/biography/donna-haraway/.
Elkins, Charles, "The Uses of Science Fiction", Science Fiction Studies, 17 (1990) 269–272.
"Feminist Epistemology and Philosophy of Science", in Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, pub. 9 August 2000, rev. 5 August 2015.
Ferguson, Anne and Hennessy, and Rosemary and Nagel Mechthild. “Feminist Perspectives on Class and Work.” Edited by Edward N Zalta, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Stanford University, 2019, Author and Citation Information for "Feminist Perspectives on Class and Work".
Franklin, Sarah. “Staying with the Manifesto: An Interview with Donna Haraway.” Theory, Culture & Society, vol. 34, no. 4, July 2017, pp. 49–63, doi:10.1177/0263276417693290.
Flanagan, Mary and Austin Booth, Reload: Rethinking Women + Cyberculture, Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2002.
Delphine, Gardey, "The Reading of an Œuvre. Donna Haraway: The Poetics and Politics of Life", Feministische Studien, 32 (2014) 86–100. doi:10.1515/fs-2014-0109
Hamner, M. Gail, "The Work of Love: Feminist Politics and the Injunction to Love", in Joerg Rieger (ed.), Opting for the Margins: Postmodernity and Liberation in Christian Theology, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003.
Haraway, Donna. “Anthropocene, Capitalocene, Plantationocene, Chthulucene: Making Kin.” Environmental Humanities, Duke University Press, 1 May 2015, https://doi.org/10.1215/22011919-3615934.
Haraway, Donna, "A Cyborg Manifesto: Science, Technology and Socialist-‐Feminism in the Late Twentieth Century", in D. Bell and B.M. Kennedy (eds), The Cybercultures Reader, London: Routledge, 2000, pp. 291–324.
Haraway, Donna. The Haraway Reader. New York: Routledge, 2003. Print.
Kunzru, Hari, "You Are Cyborg", in Wired Magazine, 5:2 (1997) 1–7.
Lederman, Muriel. “Donna J. Haraway; and Thyrza Nichols Goodeve. How Like a Leaf: An Interview with Donna J. Haraway.” Isis, vol. 93, no. 1, 2002, pp. 164–165., doi:10.1086/343342.
Library of Congress, "Books and Pamphlets Including Serials and Contributions to Periodicals: Current Registrations A–L, January–June 1973", Catalog of Copyright Entries, 3rd ser., 1, pt. 1, no. 1 (1975) 674. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
“Making Kin Not Population.” University of Chicago Press, 1 July 2018, Making Kin not Population.
Mann, Douglas. Understanding Society: a Survey of Modern Social Theory. Oxford University Press, 2011.
O'Riley, Patricia Ann, Technology, Culture, and Socioeconomics: A Rhizoanalysis of Educational Discourses, New York: Peter Lang, 2003.
Packman, Carl, [ "God(desses) and the Jouissance of Woman, or The (Cyborg) Future of Enjoyment"].
Russon, Anne, "Deconstructing Primatology?", Semiotic Review of Books, 2:2 (1991): 9–11.
Rua M. Williams and Juan E. Gilbert. 2019. Cyborg Perspectives on Computing Research Reform. In Extended Abstracts of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI EA '19). Association for Computing Machinery, New York, NY, USA, Paper alt13, 1–11.
Sandoval, Chela, "New Sciences: Cyborg Feminism and the Methodology of the Oppressed", in C. H. Gray (ed.), The Cyborg Handbook, New York: Routledge, 1995, pp. 407–422.
Senft, Theresa M. "Reading Notes on Donna Haraway's 'Cyborg Manifesto'", October 21, 2001. Retrieved February 1, 2006.
Truman, Sarah E. “SF! Haraway's Situated Feminisms and Speculative Fabulations in English Class.” Studies in Philosophy and Education, vol. 38, no. 1, 2018, pp. 31–42, SF! Haraway's Situated Feminisms and Speculative Fabulations in English Class.
Vanderwees, Chris. “Companion Species under Fire: A Defense of Donna Haraway’s The Companion Species Manifesto.” Nebula: A Journal of Multidisciplinary Scholarship. 6.2 (2009): 73-81.
Weigel, Moira. “Feminist Cyborg Scholar Donna Haraway: 'The Disorder of Our Era Isn't Necessary'.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 20 June 2019, Feminist cyborg scholar Donna Haraway: ‘The disorder of our era isn't necessary’.
Young, Robert M, "Science, Ideology and Donna Haraway", Science as Culture, 2 (1992) 165–207.
Citations
External links
Donna Haraway Faculty Webpage at UC Santa Cruz, History of Consciousness Program
Donna Haraway: Storytelling for Earthly Survival, a film by Fabrizio Terranova
1944 births
Living people
20th-century American philosophers
21st-century American philosophers
American socialists
Colorado College alumni
American feminist writers
Feminist studies scholars
Historians of science
People from Denver
Primatologists
Posthumanists
Postmodern feminists
American socialist feminists
University of California, Santa Cruz faculty
American women philosophers
Yale University alumni
Metaphor theorists
American women sociologists
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Philosophers of technology
Philosophers of religion
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20th-century American women | false | [
"Anti-abortion feminism or pro-life feminism is the opposition to abortion by some feminists. Anti-abortion feminists may believe that the principles behind women's rights also call them to oppose abortion on right to life grounds and that abortion hurts women more than it benefits them.\n\nThe modern anti-abortion feminist movement cites precedent in the 19th century; the movement itself began to take shape in the early to mid-1970s with the founding of Feminists for Life (FFL) in the United States and Women for Life in Great Britain amid legal changes in those nations which widely permitted abortion. FFL and the Susan B. Anthony List (SBA List) are the most prominent anti-abortion feminist organizations in the United States. Other anti-abortion feminist organizations include New Wave Feminists and Feminists for Nonviolent Choices.\n\nViews and goals \n\nAnti-abortion feminists consider the legal option of abortion to \"support anti-motherhood social attitudes and policies and limit respect for women's citizenship\". Anti-abortion feminists believe that abortion is an action dictated by society and legal abortion \"perpetuates an uncaring, male-dominated society.\" Laury Oaks, Associate Professor of Feminist Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara, writes that when abortion is legal, anti-abortion feminists believe, \"women come to see pregnancy and parenting as obstacles to full participation in education and the workplace,\" and describes anti-abortion feminist activism in Ireland as more \"pro-mother\" than \"pro-woman\". Oaks has written that while Irish abortion opponents valorize child-bearing and are critical of the notion that women have \"a right to an identity beyond motherhood\", some, such as Breda O'Brien, founder of Feminists for Life Ireland, also offer feminist-inspired arguments that women's contributions to society are not limited to such functions.\n\nAnti-abortion feminist organizations generally do not distinguish between views on abortion as a legal issue, abortion as a moral issue, and abortion as a medical procedure. Such distinctions are made by many women, for example, women who would not abort their own pregnancies but would prefer that abortion remain legal.\n\nAnti-abortion feminist organizations seek to personalize abortion by using women who survived abortions to attempt to convince others of their argument.\n\nProminent American anti-abortion feminist organizations seek to end abortion in the U.S. The SBA List states this as their \"ultimate goal\", and FFL President Serrin Foster said that FFL \"opposes abortion in all cases because violence is a violation of basic feminist principles\".\n\nRelationship to other movements \n\nAnti-abortion feminists form a part of the anti-abortion movement rather than the mainstream feminist movement. During the second-wave era of the late 1960s and 1970s the tenets of the emerging group of anti-abortion feminists were rejected by mainstream feminists who held that for full participation in society, a woman's \"moral and legal right to control her fertility\" needed to be a fundamental principle. From their minority position, anti-abortion feminists said that mainstream feminists did not speak for all women.\n\nHaving failed to gain a respected position within mainstream feminism, anti-abortion feminists aligned themselves with other anti-abortion and right to life groups. This placement, according to Oaks, has eroded a feminist sense of identity separate from other anti-abortion groups, despite pro-woman arguments that are distinct from the fetal rights arguments put forward by other anti-abortion advocates.\n\nArguments \nThe abortion debate has primarily been focused on the question of whether or not the human fetus is a person and whether or not the killing of humans (depending on their developmental stage) should ever fall under the umbrella of person autonomy. Anti-abortion feminist organizations do distinguish themselves as \"pro-woman\" organizations as opposed to \"fetal rights\" organizations. This sets them apart from other anti-abortion groups.\n\nThe \"pro-woman\" argument frames abortion as harmful to women. Anti-abortion feminists argue that most women do not truly want to have abortions, but rather are forced into abortions by third parties, partners or medical practitioners. They also suggest that women have been primed and socialized to believe they cannot be successful if they experience an unanticipated pregnancy and that our society continues to reflect patriarchal standards that use men as the \"basic human.\". They believe unwanted abortions, can cause physical and emotional damage to women. However, research from the Guttmacher Institute shows that the majority of women who have abortions seek the procedure for personal, financial, vocational, and/or family planning purposes rather than under coercion from third-parties. \n\nBy positing the existence of a \"post-abortion syndrome\" mental condition, which is not medically recognized, anti-abortion feminists reframe opposition to abortion in terms of protecting women's public health. The \"pro-woman\" argument has been used to sway men and women against-abortion.\n\n19th-century feminists \nFeminist anti-abortion groups say they are continuing the tradition of 19th-century women's rights activists such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Matilda Joslyn Gage, Victoria Woodhull, Elizabeth Blackwell, and Alice Paul who considered abortion to be an evil forced upon women by men. The newspaper, The Revolution, published by Susan B. Anthony and Stanton, carried letters, essays and editorials debating many issues of the day, including articles decrying \"child murder\" and \"infanticide.\" According to historians A. Kennedy and K. D. Mary, Alice Paul felt that abortion was the \"ultimate exploitation of women\" and worried about female babies being aborted. Kennedy and Mary also say that Elizabeth Blackwell, the first female doctor in the United States, became a doctor because of her passionate hatred for abortion. By way of criticism, however, sociologists Nicole Beisel and Tamara Kay have written that white Anglo-Saxon Protestants (WASPs) in the US were worried that continued abortions by their kind would endanger their position at the top of society's hierarchy, especially fearing the influx of Irish Catholics, but also concerned about African Americans, and describe Anthony and Stanton as part of this reactionary racial stance.\n\nIn arguing for \"voluntary motherhood\" (abstinence until children are wanted), Stanton said that the problem of abortion demonstrates the victimization of women by men who pass laws without women's consent. Woodhull and her sister argued that abortion clinics would go out of business if voluntary motherhood was widely practiced.\n\nA dispute about Anthony's abortion views arose in 1989: anti-abortion feminists in the U.S. began using Anthony's words and image to promote their anti-abortion cause. Scholars of 19th-century American feminism, as well as pro-choice activists, countered what they considered a co-opting of Anthony's legacy as America's most dedicated suffragist, saying that the anti-abortion activists are falsely attributing opinions to Anthony, and that it is misleading to apply 19th century arguments to the modern abortion debate.\n\nSee also \n United States anti-abortion movement\n Dorothy Day\n\nReferences\n\nFurther reading \n The Cost of 'Choice': Women Evaluate the Impact of Abortion edited by Erika Bachiochi (2004, )\n Prolife Feminism Yesterday & Today. Second & greatly expanded edition. Edited by Derr, Naranjo-Huebl, & MacNair (2005, )\n Prolife Feminism Yesterday & Today. edited by Derr, Naranjo-Huebl, and MacNair (1995, )\n Pro-Life Feminism: Different Voices edited by Gail Grenier-Sweet (1985, )\n Swimming Against the Tide: Feminist Dissent on the Issue of Abortion edited by Angela Kennedy (1997, )\n\nExternal links \nFeminism & Nonviolence Studies Association\n\nAnti-abortion movement\nFeminism and health\nFeminist theory",
"Labor feminism was a women’s movement in the United States that emerged in the 1920s, focused on gaining rights in the workplace and unions. Labor feminists advocated for protectionist legislation and special benefits for women, a variant of social feminism. They helped pass state laws regulating working conditions for women, expanded women's participation in unions, and organized to oppose the Equal Rights Amendment.\n\nThe term was coined by historian Dorothy Sue Cobble in her book, The Other Women’s Movement (2005).\n\n1920s to 1970s \n\nAfter gaining the right to vote, the National Woman's Party proposed the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). The ERA was bitterly opposed by the social feminists who saw it as undermining many of the gains they had made in the treatment of women workers. The charge was led by labor feminists, who were the successors to Progressive Era social feminists. Labor feminists did not want to end all distinctions based on sex, only those that hurt women. For example, they felt that state laws that put in place wage floors and hour ceilings benefited women. Thus, they continued to advocate for protectionist legislation and special benefits for women. In addition to state wage laws, they sought to expand maternity leave, health coverage during childbirth, and disability and unemployment coverage for mothers. Their view was that women had different needs than men and should not be penalized for performing the function of motherhood. The conflict between social feminists and equal rights feminists was exacerbated by their different identities. Social feminists tended to be working-class women of various races whereas equal rights feminists were upper middle-class white women for the most part. Their different experiences impacted the way they believed legislation should work. \n\nBy the 1940s, labor feminists began to broaden their advocacy efforts at the national level. Led by prominent labor figures such as Esther Peterson, an AFL–CIO lobbyist, and Myra Wolfgang, a trade union leader, labor feminists came together at the Women's Bureau at the U.S. Department of Labor to advance their social reform agenda. This included equal pay for comparable work, shorter workdays for women and men, and social welfare support for childbearing and childrearing. In 1945, they introduced the Equal Pay Act in Congress, which sought to abolish wage disparity based on sex. Their version of the bill, which was different than what passed in 1963, advocated for equal pay for comparable work in addition to same work because employers often undervalued the contributions of women in roles that women tended to occupy. Labor feminists re-introduced the bill every year until 1963 when the Equal Pay Act was passed.\n\nDuring this time, labor feminists also expanded women's participation in unions. They viewed union organization as an effective way to pressure employers to close the gender wage gap. In 1947, they helped orchestrate the largest walkout of women in U.S. history when 230,000 telephone operators nationwide went on strike against AT&T, cutting off telephone service at the White House. The merger of the AFL and CIO in 1955 created a unified labor movement with greater political and economic power. The AFL–CIO adopted the CIO position on equal pay, and by the late 1950s, federal equal pay legislation became a priority of the merged organization.\n\nIn 1960, President Kennedy appointed Peterson the Director of the Women's Bureau, and she became the highest-ranking woman in President Kennedy's administration. In her new position, Peterson helped draft a report for the Presidential Commission on the Status of Women (PCSW). The PCSW had been established by President Kennedy in 1961 to examine the gains of women and role of government in addressing the changing needs of women and their families. Their report American Women published in 1963 expressed a desire for the elimination of gender difference, but not where it would remove protections for working-class women. It was a far-reaching document that offered many comprehensive recommendations focused on not only working women, but minority women as well. It recommended income guarantees for pregnant and unemployed women, childcare services, better tax policies, and changes to the Social Security system. However, American Women was not free of critics and many had contrary opinions on how they viewed the document. Early critics believed it encouraged women to move away from their home responsibilities, but later critics believed that the document focused too much on mothers and not enough on working-class women.\n\nLegal debate over the ERA \nLabor feminists supported the Hayden Rider to the ERA, which said that the ERA could not impair any existing benefits conferred to women. Many labor feminists, including Peterson, believed that legislation could promote equality and special benefits for women and did not see these as incompatible. These feminists located women's rights within a framework of women's service as workers and homemakers, rather than the framework of liberal individualism used by equal rights feminists. Legal scholars challenged the idea of a legally viable model of promoting equal rights that did not erode those protections already in place for women. First, they argued that this would be problematic from an application standpoint. Legislation that afforded privileges to women that were not available to men would be valid, but disabilities imposed on women because of their sex would be invalidated. Deciding when a statute conferred a benefit rather than a disability would be difficult. Second, they argued it was problematic from a sociological standpoint. Legal constructions of difference reinforced cultural stereotypes and limited the definition of the role of women. While there were valid biological differences between men and women, it was thought that these definitions invoked generalities and ignored the capabilities of the individual.\n\nDecline in labor feminism \nThe labor movement remained a powerful presence throughout the 1950s and early 1960s. The passage of the Equal Pay Act in 1963 without the desired comparable pay language represented a significant defeat for labor feminists and shifted the terms of the debate with equal rights feminists. ERA supporters had opposed the language out of a desire for true equality. Labor feminists remained united in their opposition that the ERA would erase protectionist legislation, but split in their approach as it became apparent that they would not be able to achieve expansions of equality without sacrificing some protections. The passage of Title VII in 1963 further undermined their position. Protectionist legislation violated Title VII's prohibitions against discrimination based on sex.\n\nThe rapidly changing economic and cultural landscape of the 1960s contributed to the successes of equal rights feminists over labor feminists. One of the biggest opponents of comparable pay language had been American businesses. In the aftermath of World War II, American businesses flourished, and the power of the American business lobby grew. US business leaders opposed government support for people not in the labor force and government intervention in the labor force. As the federal government retreated from the private sector, it left the task of caring for workers to employers. In the backdrop of the Cold War, American politicians and the public interpreted this economic success as validation of American ideals of individualism and free enterprise, which provided further justification for the emerging corporate welfare state and opposition toward socialist measures.\n\nBy the 1970s, there was a decline in labor feminism. Some labor feminists hoped that the movement could regroup around an agenda of equal rights and equal opportunity. A group of labor women helped secure support for the ERA from the United Auto Workers, the American Federation of Teachers, the Newspaper Guild, and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. The Women's Bureau switched its position on the ERA in 1970. In 1971, Peterson also changed her mind, reasoning that history was moving in this direction. However, some labor feminists, including Wolfgang, remained staunchly opposed and testified against the ERA in Congress. The passage of the ERA in 1972 enabled equal rights feminism to solidify its place as the dominant women's movement in the US.\n\nReferences\n\nSources\n\nFeminist movements and ideologies\nWorking-class feminism"
] |
[
"Donna Haraway",
"\"A Cyborg Manifesto\"",
"What was the Cyborg Manifesto?",
"In 1985, Haraway published the essay \"Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the 1980s\" in Socialist Review.",
"What was it about?",
"the Manifesto offered a response to the rising conservatism during the 1980s in the United States at a critical juncture at which feminists,",
"What did the feminists do?",
"I don't know."
] | C_0fe28ad9572349f8964399f82096dade_1 | Was it well received? | 4 | Was "A Cyborg Manifesto" well received? | Donna Haraway | In 1985, Haraway published the essay "Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the 1980s" in Socialist Review. Although most of Haraway's earlier work was focused on emphasizing the masculine bias in scientific culture, she has also contributed greatly to feminist narratives of the twentieth century. For Haraway, the Manifesto offered a response to the rising conservatism during the 1980s in the United States at a critical juncture at which feminists, in order to have any real-world significance, had to acknowledge their situatedness within what she terms the "informatics of domination." Women were no longer on the outside along a hierarchy of privileged binaries but rather deeply imbued, exploited by and complicit within networked hegemony, and had to form their politics as such. According to Haraway's "Manifesto", "there is nothing about being female that naturally binds women together into a unified category. There is not even such a state as 'being' female, itself a highly complex category constructed in contested sexual scientific discourses and other social practices". A cyborg does not require a stable, essentialist identity, argues Haraway, and feminists should consider creating coalitions based on "affinity" instead of identity. To ground her argument, Haraway analyzes the phrase "women of color", suggesting it as one possible example of affinity politics. Using a term coined by theorist Chela Sandoval, Haraway writes that "oppositional consciousness" is comparable with a cyborg politics, because rather than identity it stresses how affinity comes as a result of "otherness, difference, and specificity". Haraway's cyborg is a set of ideals of a genderless, race-less, more collective and peaceful civilization with the caveat of being utterly connected to the machine. Her new versions of beings reject Western humanist conceptions of personhood and promote a disembodied world of information and the withering of subjectivity. The collective consciousness of the beings and their limitless access to information provide the tools with which to create a world of immense socio-political change through altruism and affinity, not biological unity. In her essay Haraway challenges the liberal human subject and its lack of concern for collective desires which leaves the possibility for wide corruption and inequality in the world. Furthermore, the cyborg's importance lays in its coalition of consciousness not in the physical body that carries the information/consciousness. A world of beings with a type of shared knowledge could create a powerful political force towards positive change. Cyborgs can see "from both perspectives at once." In addition, Haraway writes that the cyborg has an imbued nature towards the collective good. Haraway explains that her "Manifesto" is "an effort to build an ironic political myth faithful to feminism, socialism, and materialism." She adds that "Cyborg imagery can suggest a way out of the maze of dualisms in which we have explained our bodies and our tools to ourselves." Haraway is serious about finding future ways towards equality and ending dominating behavior; however, the cyborg itself is not as serious of an endeavor for her as the idea of it is. Haraway creates an analogy using current technologies and information to imagine a world with a collective coalition that had the capabilities to create grand socio-political change. Haraway's "Manifesto" is a thought experiment, defining what people think is most important about being and what the future holds for increased artificial intelligence. CANNOTANSWER | Haraway's "Manifesto" is a thought experiment, defining what people think is most important about being and what the future holds for increased artificial intelligence. | Donna J. Haraway (born September 6, 1944) is an American Professor Emerita in the History of Consciousness Department and Feminist Studies Department at the University of California, Santa Cruz, United States. She is a prominent scholar in the field of science and technology studies, described in the early 1990s as a "feminist and postmodernist". Haraway is the author of numerous foundational books and essays that bring together questions of science and feminism, such as "A Cyborg Manifesto: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the Late Twentieth Century" (1985) and "Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective" (1988). Additionally, for her contributions to the intersection of information technology and feminist theory, Haraway is widely cited in works related to Human-Computer Interaction (HCI). Her Situated Knowledges and Cyborg Manifesto publications in particular, have sparked discussion within the HCI community regarding framing the positionality from which research and systems are designed. She is also a leading scholar in contemporary ecofeminism, associated with post-humanism and new materialism movements. Her work criticizes anthropocentrism, emphasizes the self-organizing powers of nonhuman processes, and explores dissonant relations between those processes and cultural practices, rethinking sources of ethics. Haraway criticizes the Anthropocene because it generalizes us as a species. However, she also recognizes the importance of it recognizing humans as key agents. Haraway prefers the term Capitalocene which defines capitalism's relentless imperatives to expand itself and grow, but she does not like the theme of irreversible destruction in both the Anthropocene and Capitalocene.
Haraway has taught Women's Studies and the History of Science at the University of Hawaii (1971-1974) and Johns Hopkins University (1974-1980). She began working as a professor at the University of Santa Cruz in 1980 where she became the first tenured professor in feminist theory in the United States. Haraway's works have contributed to the study of both human–machine and human–animal relations. Her works have sparked debate in primatology, philosophy, and developmental biology. Haraway participated in a collaborative exchange with the feminist theorist Lynn Randolph from 1990 to 1996. Their engagement with specific ideas relating to feminism, technoscience, political consciousness, and other social issues, formed the images and narrative of Haraway's book Modest_Witness for which she received the Society for Social Studies of Science's (4S) Ludwik Fleck Prize in 1999. She was also awarded the Section on Science, Knowledge and Technology's Robert K. Merton award in 1992 for her work Primate Visions:Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science. In 2000, Haraway was awarded the Society for Social Studies of Science's John Desmond Bernal Prize for her distinguished contributions to the field of science and technology studies. Haraway serves on the advisory board for numerous academic journals, including differences, Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, Contemporary Women's Writing, and Environmental Humanities.
Biography
Early life
Donna Jeanne Haraway was born on September 6, 1944, in Denver, Colorado. Haraway's father, Frank O. Haraway, was a sportswriter for The Denver Post and her mother Dorothy Mcguire Haraway, who came from a heavily Irish Catholic background, died from a heart attack when Haraway was 16 years old. Although she is no longer religious, Catholicism had a strong influence on her as she was taught by nuns in her early life. The impression of the Eucharist influenced her linkage of the figurative and the material. Haraway attended high school at St. Mary's Academy in Cherry Hills Village, Colorado. Growing up around her father's adoration for sports writing is a major part of her love for writing. The two of them would have dinner conversations about words and their fascination with them. Another impact on Haraway's writing came from the wars she experienced throughout her life, considering she was born at the end of World War II and grew up during the Cold War.
Education
Haraway majored in Zoology, with minors in philosophy and English at the Colorado College, on the full-tuition Boettcher Scholarship. After college, Haraway moved to Paris and studied evolutionary philosophy and theology at the Fondation Teilhard de Chardin on a Fulbright scholarship. She completed her Ph.D. in biology at Yale in 1972 writing a dissertation about the use of metaphor in shaping experiments in experimental biology titled The Search for Organizing Relations: An Organismic Paradigm in Twentieth-Century Developmental Biology, later edited into a book and published under the title Crystals, Fabrics, and Fields: Metaphors of Organicism in Twentieth-Century Developmental Biology.
Later work
Haraway was the recipient of several scholarships. Alluding to the Cold War and post-war American hegemony, she said of these, "...people like me became national resources in the national science efforts. So, there was money available for educating even Irish Catholic girls' brains." In 1999, Haraway received the Society for Social Studies of Science's (4S) Ludwik Fleck Prize. In September 2000, Haraway was awarded the Society for Social Studies of Science's highest honor, the J. D. Bernal Award, for her "distinguished contributions" to the field. Haraway's most famous essay was published in 1985: "A Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the 1980s" and was characterized as "an effort to build an ironic political myth faithful to feminism, socialism, and materialism".
In Haraway's theses, "Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective" (1988), she means to expose the myth of scientific objectivity. Haraway defined the term "situated knowledges" as a means of understanding that all knowledge comes from positional perspectives. Our positionality inherently determines what it is possible to know about an object of interest. Comprehending situated knowledge "allows us to become answerable for what we learn how to see". Without this accountability, the implicit biases and societal stigmas of the researcher's community are twisted into ground truth from which to build assumptions and hypothesis. Haraway's ideas in "Situated Knowledges" were heavily influenced by conversations with Nancy Hartsock and other feminist philosophers and activists.
Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science, published in 1989 (Routledge), focuses on primate research and primatology: "My hope has been that the always oblique and sometimes perverse focusing would facilitate revisions of fundamental, persistent western narratives about difference, especially racial and sexual difference; about reproduction, especially in terms of the multiplicities of generators and offspring; and about survival, especially about survival imagined in the boundary conditions of both the origins and ends of history, as told within western traditions of that complex genre". Currently, Donna Haraway is an American Professor Emerita in the History of Consciousness Department and Feminist Studies Department at the University of California, Santa Cruz, United States. She lives North of San Francisco with her partner Rusten Hogness. In an interview with Sarah Franklin in 2017, Haraway addresses her intent to incorporate collective thinking and all perspectives: "It isn't that systematic, but there is a little list. I notice if I have cited nothing but white people, if I have erased indigenous people, if I forget non-human beings, etc. I notice on purpose. I notice if I haven't paid the slightest bit of attention ... You know, I run through some old-fashioned, klutzy categories. Race, sex, class, region, sexuality, gender, species. I pay attention. I know how fraught all those categories are, but I think those categories still do important work. I have developed, kind of, an alert system, an internalized alert system."
Major themes
"A Cyborg Manifesto"
In 1985, Haraway published the essay "Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the 1980s" in Socialist Review. Although most of Haraway's earlier work was focused on emphasizing the masculine bias in scientific culture, she has also contributed greatly to the feminist narratives of the twentieth century. For Haraway, the Manifesto offered a response to the rising conservatism during the 1980s in the United States at a critical juncture at which feminists, to have any real-world significance, had to acknowledge their situatedness within what she terms the "informatics of domination." Women were no longer on the outside along a hierarchy of privileged binaries but rather deeply imbued, exploited by and complicit within networked hegemony, and had to form their politics as such.
According to Haraway's "Manifesto," "there is nothing about being female that naturally binds women together into a unified category. There is not even such a state as 'being' female, itself a highly complex category constructed in contested sexual scientific discourses and other social practices". As stated, "In Simians, Cyborgs, and Women: The Reinvention of Nature (1991), Donna Haraway introduces the figure of the cyborg, an “impure” creature who scrambles orderly divisions between the natural and artificial/technical, and the human and the non-human/animal". A cyborg does not require a stable, essentialist identity, argues Haraway, and feminists should consider creating coalitions based on "affinity" instead of identity. To ground her argument, Haraway analyzes the phrase "women of color", suggesting it as one possible example of affinity politics. Using a term coined by theorist Chela Sandoval, Haraway writes that "oppositional consciousness" is comparable with a cyborg politics, because rather than identity it stresses how affinity comes as a result of "otherness, difference, and specificity".
Haraway's cyborg is a set of ideals of a genderless, race-less, more collective, and peaceful civilization with the caveat of being utterly connected to the machine. Her new versions of beings reject Western humanist conceptions of personhood and promote a disembodied world of information and the withering of subjectivity. The collective consciousness of the beings and their limitless access to information provides the tools with which to create a world of immense socio-political change through altruism and affinity, not biological unity. In her essay, Haraway challenges the liberal human subject and its lack of concern for collective desires which leaves the possibility for wide corruption and inequality in the world. Furthermore, the cyborg's importance lies in its coalition of consciousness, not in the physical body that carries the information/consciousness. A world of beings with a type of shared knowledge could create a powerful political force toward positive change. Cyborgs can see "from both perspectives at once." In addition, Haraway writes that the cyborg has an imbued nature toward the collective good.
Haraway explains that her "Manifesto" is "an effort to build an ironic political myth faithful to feminism, socialism, and materialism." She adds that "Cyborg imagery can suggest a way out of the maze of dualisms in which we have explained our bodies and our tools to ourselves." Haraway is serious about finding future ways towards equality and ending dominating behavior; however, the cyborg itself is not as serious of an endeavor for her as the idea of it is. Haraway creates an analogy using current technologies and information to imagine a world with a collective coalition that has the capabilities to create grand socio-political change. Haraway's "Manifesto" is a thought experiment, defining what people think is most important about being and what the future holds for increased artificial intelligence.
Gender, Work, & Organization's author Agnes Prasad's piece Cyborg Writing as a Political Act: Reading Donna Haraway in Organization Studies elaborates on how Haraway's writing contributes to the greater feminist community.
"This essay, almost immediately, became a watershed text for feminist theory and for, what was at the time, the inchoate field of feminist science studies. Interweaving ideas that were playful and imaginative with an incisive critique of the totalizing essentialism that was the ironic hallmark of the myriad strands of the second-wave feminist movement — encompassing, but not limited to, Marxist, psychoanalytic and radical feminist approaches — Haraway conscientiously articulates the politics of a monstrous creature of the post-gender world: the cyborg."
Cyborg feminism
In her updated essay "A Cyborg Manifesto: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the Late Twentieth Century", in her book Simians, Cyborgs and Women: The Reinvention of Nature (1991), Haraway uses the cyborg metaphor to explain how fundamental contradictions in feminist theory and identity should be conjoined, rather than resolved, similar to the fusion of machine and organism in cyborgs. The manifesto is also an important feminist critique of capitalism by revealing how men have exploited women's reproduction labor, providing a barrier for women to reach full equality in the labor market.
"Situated Knowledges"
"Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective" sheds light on Haraway's vision for a feminist science. The essay originated as a commentary on Sandra Harding's The Science Question in Feminism (1986) and is a reply to Harding's "successor science". Haraway offers a critique of the feminist intervention into masculinized traditions of scientific rhetoric and the concept of objectivity. The essay identifies the metaphor that gives shape to the traditional feminist critique as polarization. At one end lies those who would assert that science is a rhetorical practice and, as such, all "science is a contestable text and a power field". At the other are those interested in a feminist version of objectivity, a position Haraway describes as a "feminist empiricism". Haraway argues for an epistemology based in "situated knowledges," which synthesizes aspects of these two traditions. Haraway posits that by acknowledging and understanding the contingency of their position in the world, and hence the contestable nature of their claims to knowledge, subjects can produce knowledge with greater objectivity than if they claimed to be neutral observers.
Primate Visions
Haraway also writes about the history of science and biology. In Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science (1990), she focused on the metaphors and narratives that direct the science of primatology. She asserted that there is a tendency to masculinize the stories about "reproductive competition and sex between aggressive males and receptive females [that] facilitate some and preclude other types of conclusions". She contended that female primatologists focus on different observations that require more communication and basic survival activities, offering very different perspectives of the origins of nature and culture than the currently accepted ones. Drawing on examples of Western narratives and ideologies of gender, race and class, Haraway questioned the most fundamental constructions of scientific human nature stories based on primates. In Primate Visions, she wrote:
"My hope has been that the always oblique and sometimes perverse focusing would facilitate revisions of fundamental, persistent western narratives about difference, especially racial and sexual difference; about reproduction, especially in terms of the multiplicities of generators and offspring; and about survival, especially about survival imagined in the boundary conditions of both the origins and ends of history, as told within western traditions of that complex genre".
Haraway's aim for science is "to reveal the limits and impossibility of its 'objectivity' and to consider some recent revisions offered by feminist primatologists". Haraway presents an alternative perspective to the accepted ideologies that continue to shape the way scientific human nature stories are created.
Haraway urges feminists to be more involved in the world of technoscience and to be credited for that involvement. In a 1997 publication, she remarked:
I want feminists to be enrolled more tightly in the meaning-making processes of technoscientific world-building. I also want feminist—activists, cultural producers, scientists, engineers, and scholars (all overlapping categories) — to be recognized for the articulations and enrollment we have been making all along within technoscience, in spite of the ignorance of most "mainstream" scholars in their characterization (or lack of characterizations) of feminism in relation to both technoscientific practice and technoscience studies.
Make Kin not Population: Reconceiving Generations
Haraway created a panel called 'Make Kin not Babies' in 2015 with five other feminist thinkers named: Alondra Nelson, Kim TallBear, Chia-Ling Wu, Michelle Murphy, and Adele Clarke. The panel's emphasis is on moving human numbers down while paying attention to factors, such as the environment, race, and class. A key phrase of hers is "Making babies is different than giving babies a good childhood." This led to the inspiration for the publication of Making Kin not Population: Reconceiving Generations, by Donna Haraway and Adele Clarke, two of the panelist members. The book addresses the growing concern of the increase in the human population and its consequences on our environment. The book consists of essays from the two authors, incorporating both environmental and reproductive justice along with addressing the functions of family and kinship relationships.
Speculative fabulation
Speculative fabulation is a concept that is included in many of Haraway's works. It includes all of the wild facts that won't hold still, and it indicates a mode of creativity and the story of the Anthropocene. Haraway stresses how this doesn't mean it isn't a fact. In Staying with the Trouble, she defines speculative fabulation as "a mode of attention, theory of history, and a practice of worlding," and she finds it an integral part of scholarly writing and everyday life. In Haraway's work she addresses a feminist speculative fabulation and its focusing on making kin instead of babies to ensure the good childhood of all children while controlling the population. Making Kin not Population: Reconceiving Generations highlights practices and proposals to implement this theory in society.
Plantationocene
Together with scholar Anna Lowenhaupt Tsing, Haraway coined Plantationocene as an alternative term to the proposed epoch Anthropocene that centers human activities in the transformation of the planet and its negative effect on land use, ecosystems, biodiversity, and species extinction.
Tsing and Haraway point out that not all humans equally contribute to the environmental challenges facing our planet. They date the origin of the Anthropocene to the start of colonialism in the Americas in the early modern era and highlight the violent history behind it by focusing on the history of plantations. The Spanish and the Portuguese colonists started importing models of plantations to the Americas by the 1500s which they have previously developed a century earlier in the Atlantic Islands. These models of planation were based on migratory forced labor (slavery), intensive land usage, globalized commerce, and constant racialized violence, all have transformed the lives of humans and non-humans worldwide. Current and past plantations provide an important note of the histories of colonialism, capitalism, and racism which can't be separated from environmental issues that made some humans more at risk to warming temperatures, rising seawater levels, toxicants, and land disposition than others.
The Companion Species Manifesto: Dogs, People, and Significant Otherness
The companion Species Manifesto is to be read as a “personal document”. This work was written to tell the story of cohabitation, coevolution and embodied cross-species sociality. Haraway argues that humans ‘companion’ relationship with dogs can show us the importance of recognizing differences and ‘how to engage with significant otherness'. The link between humans and animals like dogs can show people how to interact with other humans and nonhumans. Haraway believes that we should be using the term "companion species" instead of "companion animals" because of the relationships we can learn through them.
Critical responses to Haraway
Haraway's work has been criticized for being "methodologically vague" and using noticeably opaque language that is "sometimes concealing in an apparently deliberate way". Several reviewers have argued that her understanding of the scientific method is questionable, and that her explorations of epistemology at times leave her texts virtually meaning-free.
A 1991 review of Haraway's Primate Visions, published in the International Journal of Primatology, provides examples of some of the most common critiques of her view of science:
This is a book that contradicts itself a hundred times; but that is not a criticism of it, because its author thinks contradictions are a sign of intellectual ferment and vitality. This is a book that systematically distorts and selects historical evidence; but that is not a criticism, because its author thinks that all interpretations are biased, and she regards it as her duty to pick and choose her facts to favor her own brand of politics. This is a book full of vaporous, French-intellectual prose that makes Teilhard de Chardin sound like Ernest Hemingway by comparison; but that is not a criticism, because the author likes that sort of prose and has taken lessons in how to write it, and she thinks that plain, homely speech is part of a conspiracy to oppress the poor.
This is a book that clatters around in a dark closet of irrelevancies for 450 pages before it bumps accidentally into its index and stops; but that is not a criticism, either, because its author finds it gratifying and refreshing to bang unrelated facts together as a rebuke to stuffy minds. This book infuriated me; but that is not a defect in it, because it is supposed to infuriate people like me, and the author would have been happier still if I had blown out an artery. In short, this book is flawless, because all its deficiencies are deliberate products of art. Given its assumptions, there is nothing here to criticize. The only course open to a reviewer who dislikes this book as much as I do is to question its author's fundamental assumptions—which are big-ticket items involving the nature and relationships of language, knowledge, and science.
Another review of the same book, appearing in a 1990 issue of the American Journal of Primatology, offers a similar criticism of Haraway's literary style and scholarly methods:
There are many places where an editorial hand appears absent altogether. Neologisms are continually coined, and sentences are paragraph-long and convoluted. Biography, history, propaganda, science, science fiction, and cinema are intertwined in the most confusing way. Perhaps the idea is to induce a slightly dissociated state, so that readers can be lulled into belief. If one did not already possess some background, this book would give no lucid history of anthropology or primatology.
However, a review in the Journal of the History of Biology disagrees:
Primate Visions is one of the most important books to come along in the last twenty years. Historians of science have begun to write more externalist histories, acknowledging the possibilities of a science profoundly integrated with ongoing social agenda. Haraway's history of primatology in the twentieth century sets new standards for this approach, standards that will not be surpassed for some time to come. The book is important to students of science, feminists, historians, and anyone else interested in how the complex systems of race, gender, and science intertwine to produce supposedly objective versions of the "truth." This analysis of primatology is at once a complex, interdisciplinary, and deeply scholarly history and an imaginative, provocative analysis of the working of science in late twentieth-century Euro-America.
Publications
Crystals, Fabrics, and Fields: Metaphors of Organicism in Twentieth-Century Developmental Biology, New Haven: Yale University Press, 1976.
"Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technology, and Socialist Feminism in the 1980s", Socialist Review, 80 (1985) 65–108.
"Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspectives", Feminist Studies, 14 (1988) 575–599.
Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science, Routledge: New York and London, 1989.
Simians, Cyborgs and Women: The Reinvention of Nature, New York: Routledge, and London: Free Association Books, 1991 (includes "A Cyborg Manifesto").
"A Game of Cat's Cradle: Science Studies, Feminist Theory, Cultural Studies", Configurations, 2 (1994) 59–71.
Modest_Witness@Second_Millennium.FemaleMan©Meets_OncoMouse™: Feminism and Technoscience, New York: Routledge, 1997 (winner of the Ludwik Fleck Prize).
How Like a Leaf: A Conversation with Donna J. Haraway, Thyrza Nichols Goodeve, New York: Routledge, 1999.
The Companion Species Manifesto: Dogs, People, and Significant Otherness, Chicago: Prickly Paradigm Press, 2003.
When Species Meet, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2007.
The Haraway Reader, New York: Routledge, 2004, .
Staying with the Trouble: Making Kin in the Chthulucene, Durham: Duke University Press, 2016.
Manifestly Haraway, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2016.
"Teddy Bear Patriarchy: Taxidermy in the Garden of Eden, New York City, 1908-36," Social Text, no. 11 (Winter 1984/1985): 19-64.
"Signs of Dominance: From a Physiology to a Cybernetics of Primate Society, C.R. Carpenter, 1930-70," Studies in History of Biology 6 (1983): 129-219.
"The Biological Enterprise: Sex, Mind, and Profit from Human Engineering to Sociobiology," Radical History Review, no. 20, (spring/summer, 1979): 206-37.
"The Biopolitics of Postmodern Bodies: Determinations of Self in Immune System Discourse," differences: A Journal of Feminist Cultural Studies 1, no. 1 (1989): 3-43.
"The Promises of Monsters: Reproductive Politics for Inappropriate/d Others," Larry Grossberg, Cary Nelson, and Paula Treichler, eds., Cultural Studies (New York: Routledge, 1992), pp. 295–337.
"Ecce Homo, Ain't (Ar'n't) I a Woman, and Inappropriate/d Others: the Human in a Posthumanist Landscape," Joan Scott and Judith Butler, eds., Feminists Theorize the Political (New York: Routledge, 1992), pp. 87–101.
"Otherworldly Conversations, Terran Topics, Local Terms," Science as Culture (London), 3, no. 1 (1992): 59-92.
Making Kin not Population: Reconceiving Generations, Donna J. Haraway and Adele Clarke, Chicago: Prickly Paradigm Press, 2018. .
See also
A Cyborg Manifesto
Cyborg anthropology
Ecofeminism
Postgenderism
Posthumanism
Postmodernism
Sandy Stone
Techno-progressivism
Feminist technoscience
Judith Butler
Sources
Burow-Flak, Elizabeth, "Background Information on Cyborg Manifesto", 17 September 2000.
Cachel, Susan. "Partisan primatology. Review of Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science", American Journal of Primatology, 22 (1990) 139–142.
Campbell, Kirsten, "The Promise of Feminist Reflexivities: Developing Donna Haraway's Project for Feminist Science Studies", Hypatia, 19:1 (2004) 162–182.
Cartmill, Matt. "Book Review - Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the world of Modern Science", International Journal of Primatology, 12 (1991) 67–75.
Carubia, Josephine M., "Haraway on the Map", Semiotic Review of Books, 9:1 (1998) 4–7.
Clarke, Adele, and Donna Haraway, editors. Making Kin Not Population. Prickly Paradigm Press, 2018.
“Donna Haraway.” The European Graduate School, https://egs.edu/biography/donna-haraway/.
Elkins, Charles, "The Uses of Science Fiction", Science Fiction Studies, 17 (1990) 269–272.
"Feminist Epistemology and Philosophy of Science", in Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, pub. 9 August 2000, rev. 5 August 2015.
Ferguson, Anne and Hennessy, and Rosemary and Nagel Mechthild. “Feminist Perspectives on Class and Work.” Edited by Edward N Zalta, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Stanford University, 2019, Author and Citation Information for "Feminist Perspectives on Class and Work".
Franklin, Sarah. “Staying with the Manifesto: An Interview with Donna Haraway.” Theory, Culture & Society, vol. 34, no. 4, July 2017, pp. 49–63, doi:10.1177/0263276417693290.
Flanagan, Mary and Austin Booth, Reload: Rethinking Women + Cyberculture, Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2002.
Delphine, Gardey, "The Reading of an Œuvre. Donna Haraway: The Poetics and Politics of Life", Feministische Studien, 32 (2014) 86–100. doi:10.1515/fs-2014-0109
Hamner, M. Gail, "The Work of Love: Feminist Politics and the Injunction to Love", in Joerg Rieger (ed.), Opting for the Margins: Postmodernity and Liberation in Christian Theology, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003.
Haraway, Donna. “Anthropocene, Capitalocene, Plantationocene, Chthulucene: Making Kin.” Environmental Humanities, Duke University Press, 1 May 2015, https://doi.org/10.1215/22011919-3615934.
Haraway, Donna, "A Cyborg Manifesto: Science, Technology and Socialist-‐Feminism in the Late Twentieth Century", in D. Bell and B.M. Kennedy (eds), The Cybercultures Reader, London: Routledge, 2000, pp. 291–324.
Haraway, Donna. The Haraway Reader. New York: Routledge, 2003. Print.
Kunzru, Hari, "You Are Cyborg", in Wired Magazine, 5:2 (1997) 1–7.
Lederman, Muriel. “Donna J. Haraway; and Thyrza Nichols Goodeve. How Like a Leaf: An Interview with Donna J. Haraway.” Isis, vol. 93, no. 1, 2002, pp. 164–165., doi:10.1086/343342.
Library of Congress, "Books and Pamphlets Including Serials and Contributions to Periodicals: Current Registrations A–L, January–June 1973", Catalog of Copyright Entries, 3rd ser., 1, pt. 1, no. 1 (1975) 674. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
“Making Kin Not Population.” University of Chicago Press, 1 July 2018, Making Kin not Population.
Mann, Douglas. Understanding Society: a Survey of Modern Social Theory. Oxford University Press, 2011.
O'Riley, Patricia Ann, Technology, Culture, and Socioeconomics: A Rhizoanalysis of Educational Discourses, New York: Peter Lang, 2003.
Packman, Carl, [ "God(desses) and the Jouissance of Woman, or The (Cyborg) Future of Enjoyment"].
Russon, Anne, "Deconstructing Primatology?", Semiotic Review of Books, 2:2 (1991): 9–11.
Rua M. Williams and Juan E. Gilbert. 2019. Cyborg Perspectives on Computing Research Reform. In Extended Abstracts of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI EA '19). Association for Computing Machinery, New York, NY, USA, Paper alt13, 1–11.
Sandoval, Chela, "New Sciences: Cyborg Feminism and the Methodology of the Oppressed", in C. H. Gray (ed.), The Cyborg Handbook, New York: Routledge, 1995, pp. 407–422.
Senft, Theresa M. "Reading Notes on Donna Haraway's 'Cyborg Manifesto'", October 21, 2001. Retrieved February 1, 2006.
Truman, Sarah E. “SF! Haraway's Situated Feminisms and Speculative Fabulations in English Class.” Studies in Philosophy and Education, vol. 38, no. 1, 2018, pp. 31–42, SF! Haraway's Situated Feminisms and Speculative Fabulations in English Class.
Vanderwees, Chris. “Companion Species under Fire: A Defense of Donna Haraway’s The Companion Species Manifesto.” Nebula: A Journal of Multidisciplinary Scholarship. 6.2 (2009): 73-81.
Weigel, Moira. “Feminist Cyborg Scholar Donna Haraway: 'The Disorder of Our Era Isn't Necessary'.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 20 June 2019, Feminist cyborg scholar Donna Haraway: ‘The disorder of our era isn't necessary’.
Young, Robert M, "Science, Ideology and Donna Haraway", Science as Culture, 2 (1992) 165–207.
Citations
External links
Donna Haraway Faculty Webpage at UC Santa Cruz, History of Consciousness Program
Donna Haraway: Storytelling for Earthly Survival, a film by Fabrizio Terranova
1944 births
Living people
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20th-century American women | true | [
"The Piano Sonata No. 6, Op. 13, by Samuil Feinberg was composed in 1923. The piece received its premiere on 4 September 1925 at the Festival of Contemporary Music in Venice. Its premiere was attended by famous composers of the time such as Igor Stravinsky and Arnold Schoenberg. Feinberg's composition was well-received, and would remain his only piano sonata to receive a wide publication.\n\nHistory\nThe sonata received its premiere on 4 September 1925 at the Festival of Contemporary Music in Venice, with Feinberg himself as the soloist. The piece was well received and even resulted in some publicity when the Dutch journal De Telegraaf pitted Feinberg's composition against the Piano Sonata of Igor Stravinsky, who was also in attendance of the festival.\n\nStructure and content\nThe 6th sonata encompasses a single movement, usually lasting around 15 minutes\n\nNotes\n\nReferences\n\nFeinberg 06\n1923 compositions",
"Goodnight Already! is a children's book series by American author Jory John, illustrated by Benji Davies and published by HarperCollins. The series includes four books: Goodnight Already! (2014), I Love You Already! (2015), Come Home Already! (2017), and All Right Already! (2018).\n\nGoodnight Already! \nGoodnight Already! was published December 2, 2014.\n\nThe book received positive reviews from Booklist and Publishers Weekly, as well as a mediocre review from Kirkus Reviews. It also received the following accolades:\n\n Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Picture Books (2015)\n E. B. White Read-Aloud Honor Book (2015)\n\nI Love You Already! \nI Love You Already! was published December 22, 2015.\n\nThe book received positive reviews from Publishers Weekly and Booklist, as well as a mediocre review from Kirkus Reviews.\n\nCome Home Already! \nCome Home Already! was published December 5, 2017.\n\nThe book received a positive review from Kirkus Reviews and was named one of Bank Street College of Education's Best Children's Books of the Year (2018).\n\nAll Right Already! \nAll Right Already! was published November 13, 2018.\n\nThe book received a positive review from School Library Journal.\n\nReferences \n\nHarperCollins books\nSeries of children's books"
] |
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