HOME
*





Short, Sharp Shock
The phrase "short, sharp shock" means "a punishment that is ... severe but only lasts for a short time". It is an example of alliteration. Although the phrase originated earlier, it was popularised in Gilbert and Sullivan's 1885 comic opera ''The Mikado'', where it appears in the song near the end of Act I, "I Am So Proud". It has since been used in popular songs, song titles, and literature, as well as in general speech. Origin Mary I of England used the phrase in 1555 to refer to what she hoped would be a brief and effective use of brutality to persuade the populace to return to Catholicism by publicly burning a small number of visible Protestant heretics, rather than making a larger more systemic purge. John Conington's 1870 translation of the '' First Satire of Horace'' includes the following lines: :Yon soldier's lot is happier, sure, than mine: :One short, sharp shock, and presto! all is done. ''The Mikado'' In Act I of the 1885 Gilbert and Sullivan opera ''The Mikado'' ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

The Mikado Chappell Vocal Score Cover (c
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the most frequently used word in the English language; studies and analyses of texts have found it to account for seven percent of all printed English-language words. It is derived from gendered articles in Old English which combined in Middle English and now has a single form used with pronouns of any gender. The word can be used with both singular and plural nouns, and with a noun that starts with any letter. This is different from many other languages, which have different forms of the definite article for different genders or numbers. Pronunciation In most dialects, "the" is pronounced as (with the voiced dental fricative followed by a schwa) when followed by a consonant sound, and as (homophone of pronoun ''thee'') when followed by a v ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Us And Them (song)
"Us and Them" is a song by the English progressive rock band Pink Floyd, from their 1973 album ''The Dark Side of the Moon''. The music was written by Richard Wright with lyrics by Roger Waters. It is sung by David Gilmour, with harmonies by Wright. The song is 7minutes and 49 seconds, the longest on the album. "Us and Them" was released as the second single from ''The Dark Side of the Moon'' in the United States, peaking at No. 72 on the ''Cash Box'' Top 100 Singles chart in March 1974. The single peaked at No. 85 in the Canadian chart. Composition Richard Wright introduces the song with harmonies on his Hammond organ, and put a piano chordal backing and short piano solo afterwards on the arrangement. The tune was originally written on the piano by Wright for the film ''Zabriskie Point'' in 1969 and was titled "The Violent Sequence". In its original demo form it was instrumental, featuring only piano and bass. Director Michelangelo Antonioni rejected it on the grounds that it ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Brewing Up With Billy Bragg
''Brewing Up with Billy Bragg'' is the second album by Billy Bragg, released in 1984. While his debut album ''Life's a Riot with Spy vs Spy'' (1983) was performed by Bragg accompanied only by his guitar, ''Brewing Up with Billy Bragg'' began to use subtle overdubs, such as backing vocals on "Love Gets Dangerous", trumpet on "The Saturday Boy" and organ on "A Lover Sings". The album also continued Bragg's legacy of political songs. "It Says Here" is a bitingly satirical attack on the British tabloid press and "Island of No Return" is a concise anti-war anthem. The album reached number 16 on the UK albums chart. The cover of the original album has the subtitle "A Puckish Satire on Contemporary Mores," a quote from the Woody Allen film ''Love and Death'', in which Allen's character reviews an army play presented to Russian soldiers to prevent them from becoming infected with venereal diseases while at war. Versions The album was originally released on vinyl in 1984 with 11 tr ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Billy Bragg
Stephen William Bragg (born 20 December 1957) is an English singer-songwriter and left-wing activist. His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, with lyrics that mostly span political or romantic themes. His music is heavily centred on bringing about change and involving the younger generation in activist causes. Early life Bragg was born in 1957 in Barking, Essex (which is now in Greater London) to Dennis Frederick Austin Bragg, an assistant sales manager to a Barking cap maker and milliner, and his wife Marie Victoria D'Urso, who was of Italian descent. Bragg's father died of lung cancer in 1976, and his mother died in 2011. Bragg was educated at Northbury Junior School and Park Modern Secondary School (now part of Barking Abbey Secondary School) in Barking, where he failed his eleven-plus exam, effectively precluding him from going to university. However he developed an interest in poetry at the age of twelve, when his English teacher chose him t ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

The Beat (British Band)
The Beat (known in the United States and Canada as the English Beat and in Australia as the British Beat) are a British band formed in Birmingham, England, in 1978. Their music fuses Latin, ska, pop, soul, reggae and punk rock. The Beat, consisting of Dave Wakeling (vocals, guitar), Ranking Roger (vocals), Andy Cox (guitar), David Steele (bass), Everett Morton (drums), and Saxa a.k.a. Lionel Augustus Martin (saxophone), released three studio albums in the early 1980s: ''I Just Can't Stop It'' (1980), ''Wha'ppen?'' (1981) and ''Special Beat Service'' (1982), and a string of singles, including "Mirror in the Bathroom", "Save It for Later", " I Confess", "Too Nice to Talk To", "Can't Get Used to Losing You", " Hands Off...She's Mine", and "All Out to Get You". Career 1978–1983 The Beat formed in Birmingham, England, in 1978, during a period of high unemployment and social upheaval in the United Kingdom. Ranking Roger, one of the band's vocalists, added a Jamaican vocal fl ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Stand Down Margaret
"Stand Down Margaret" is a song by British ska/ new wave band the Beat, released as a double A-side single with " Best Friend" in August 1980. It is one of the band's most political songs, referring to the want for the then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher to resign. Background and meaning At the time, in the UK, there was high rates of unemployment, crime and fear of nuclear war. According to Wakeling: The song was inspired by the 1978 novel ''The Third World War'' by John Hackett, where "he postulated that the first nuclear bomb would go off above Winson Green Prison", which was right above the hospital where Wakeling was born and also above the pub where the Beat formed. According to Wakeling, the band were "very much of the mind that it was apocalypso and the world was going to end. So we thought, "There's a few things that need saying and a few dances that need to be had before we go"". Wakeling has said that the song not only called for Thatcher to resign but also for ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

The Toasters
The Toasters are one of the original American second wave of ska bands. Founded in New York City in 1981, the band has released nine studio albums, primarily through Moon Ska Records. History Englishman Robert "Bucket" Hingley relocated to New York City in 1980, where he managed that city's Forbidden Planet comic book store location. Hingley formed the Toasters in 1981 after seeing the Beat perform at the Roseland Ballroom. The group's first live show was supporting Bad Brains at A7 in 1981. One of the original second-wave ska bands, the early Toasters lineup included other employees of the Forbidden Planet store. The group self-released their first single, "Beat Up", in 1983. They recorded their Joe Jackson-produced debut EP, ''Recriminations'', in 1985. After failing to find a label to release it, Hingley formed his own label Moon Ska Records. The group collaborated further with Jackson on later albums and in live shows. Jackson had known Hingley since 1978, and appeared o ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.24 million. On the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary, Liverpool historically lay within the ancient hundred of West Derby in the county of Lancashire. It became a borough in 1207, a city in 1880, and a county borough independent of the newly-created Lancashire County Council in 1889. Its growth as a major port was paralleled by the expansion of the city throughout the Industrial Revolution. Along with general cargo, freight, and raw materials such as coal and cotton, merchants were involved in the slave trade. In the 19th century, Liverpool was a major port of departure for English and Irish emigrants to North America. It was also home to both the Cunard and White Star Lines, and was the port of registry of the ocean li ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  




Short Sharp Shock (band)
Short Sharp Shock (also known as SSS) are an English crossover thrash band from Liverpool, England. They are signed to the music label Prosthetic Records. The band formed and featured members of Liverpool punk and hardcore bands Down and Outs and Walk the Plank and released a six track demo in May 2005, a four track EP the next year and their debut album '' Short Sharp Shock'' soon thereafter. Their label at the time was Thrashgig / Dead & Gone Records. Their switch to Earache Records meant the album was re-issued in early 2007 with bonus tracks. In 2008, they released their second album, ''The Dividing Line'', again on Earache Records. This also came with a free Sk8+Destroy 7" record, featuring British comedian Frank Sidebottom. In June 2011, they released their third album, ''Problems to the Answer'', on Earache Records. Upping the track count to 25 with Mark "Barney" Greenway from Napalm Death on guest vocals. Original founding members David Fergusson and guitarist Peter ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Therapy?
Therapy? are a Northern Irish rock band from Larne, formed in 1989 by guitarist-vocalist Andy Cairns and drummer-vocalist Fyfe Ewing. Therapy? recorded their first demo with Cairns filling in on bass guitar. To complete the lineup, the band recruited Larne bassist Michael McKeegan. The band signed with major label A&M Records in 1992, for which they released four albums, most notably ''Troublegum'' in 1994 and ''Infernal Love'' in 1995. Ewing's departure in early 1996 preceded the arrivals of his replacement Graham Hopkins, and Martin McCarrick on cello and guitar. Neil Cooper replaced Hopkins on drums in 2002. Following the departure of McCarrick in 2004, the band have remained a stable three-piece since. Therapy? are currently signed to UK independent label Marshall Records. The band has released 15 full-length studio albums and has sold over two million albums worldwide. History Early years (1989–1992) While attending a charity gig at the Jordanstown Polytechnic in ear ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Michelle Shocked
Michelle Shocked (born Karen Michelle Johnston; February 24, 1962) is an American singer-songwriter. Her music has entered the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, been nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album, and received an award for Folk Album of the Year at the CMJ New Music Awards. Early life Shocked was born Karen Michelle Johnston on February 24, 1962, in Dallas, Texas, at the Baylor University Medical Center. Her stepfather was in the US Army and the family moved from base to base, eventually settling in Gilmer, Texas. She was raised in a Mormon family. Johnston went through a punk rock phase, wearing a Mohawk hairdo and squatting in abandoned buildings in San Francisco, California. Career In 1984, Johnston adopted the stage name "Michelle Shocked", a play on the expression "shell shocked", she said in a 1992 interview with ''Green Left Weekly'': "The term 'Miss shell shocked' is a direct reference to the thousand-yard stare, which was a term that they firs ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]