Recording sessions.

"Infidels" was produced by Mark Knopfler, best known as the frontman of the band Dire Straits. Dylan initially wanted to produce the album himself, but feeling that technology had passed him by, he approached a number of contemporary artists who were more at home in a modern recording studio. David Bowie, Frank Zappa, and Elvis Costello were all approached before Dylan hired Knopfler.  Knopfler later admitted it was difficult to produce Dylan. "You see people working in different ways, and it's good for you. You have to learn to adapt to the way different people work. Yes, it was strange at times with Bob. One of the great parts about production is that it demonstrates to you that you have to be flexible. Each song has its own secret that's different from another song, and each has its own life. Sometimes it has to be teased out, whereas other times it might come fast. There are no laws about songwriting or producing. It depends on what you're doing, not just who you're doing. You have to be sensitive and flexible, and it's fun. I'd say I was more disciplined. But I think Bob is much more disciplined as a writer of lyrics, as a poet. He's an absolute genius. As a singer—absolute genius. But musically, I think it’s a lot more basic. The music just tends to be a vehicle for that poetry."  Once Knopfler was aboard, the two quickly assembled a team of accomplished musicians. Knopfler's own guitar playing was paired with that of Mick Taylor, a former lead guitarist of the Rolling Stones. Having been introduced to Taylor the previous summer, Dylan had developed a friendship with him that resulted in the guitarist hearing the "Infidels" material first during the months leading up to the April sessions. In addition, the sessions benefited as well from Taylor's ability as a slide guitarist.  Knopfler said about the instrument he plays on "Infidels": "I still haven't got a flat-top wooden acoustic, because I've never found one that was as good as the two best flat tops I ever played. One... was a hand-built Greco that Rudy Pensa, of Rudy's Music Stop lent me. I used... the Greco on "Infidels"."  Knopfler suggested Alan Clark for keyboards as well as engineer Neil Dorfsman, both of whom were hired. According to Knopfler, it was Dylan's idea to recruit Robbie Shakespeare and Sly Dunbar as the rhythm section. Best known as Sly & Robbie, Shakespeare and Dunbar were famed reggae producers as well as recording artists signed to Island Records.  "Bob's musical ability is limited, in terms of being able to play a guitar or a piano," said Knopfler. "It's rudimentary, but it doesn't affect his variety, his sense of melody, his singing. It's all there. In fact, some of the things he plays on piano while he's singing are lovely, even though they're rudimentary. That all demonstrates the fact that you don't have to be a great technician. It's the same old story: If something is played with soul, that's what's important."

Songs.

Beginning with "Infidels", Dylan ceased to preach a specific religion, revealing little about his personal religious beliefs in his lyrics. In 1997, after recovering from a serious heart condition, Dylan said in an interview for "Newsweek", "Here's the thing with me and the religious thing. This is the flat-out truth: I find the religiosity and philosophy in the music. I don't find it anywhere else... I don't adhere to rabbis, preachers, evangelists, all of that. I've learned more from the songs than I've learned from any of this kind of entity."  Though "Infidels" is often cited as a return to secular work (following a trio of albums heavily influenced by born-again Christianity), many of the songs recorded during the "Infidels" sessions retain Dylan's penchant for biblical references and religious imagery. An example of this is the opening track, "Jokerman". Along with biblical references, the song's lyrics reference populists who are overly concerned with the superficial ("Michelangelo indeed could've carved out your features") and more about action than thinking through the complexities ("fools rush in where angels fear to tread"). A number of critics have called "Jokerman" a sly political protest, addressed to an antichrist-like figure, a "manipulator of crowds... a dream twister".  The second track, "Sweetheart Like You", is sung to a fictitious woman. Oliver Trager's book, "Keys to the Rain: The Definitive Bob Dylan Encyclopedia", mentions that some have criticized this song as sexist. Indeed, music critic Tim Riley makes that accusation in his book, "Hard Rain: A Dylan Commentary", singling out lyrics like "a woman like you should be at home/That's where you belong/Taking care of somebody nice/Who don't know how to do you wrong." However, Trager also cites other interpretations that dispute this claim. Some have argued that "Sweetheart Like You" is being sung to the Christian church ("what's a sweetheart like you doing in a dump like this?"), claiming that Dylan is mourning the church's deviation from scriptural truth. The song was later covered by Rod Stewart on his 1995 album "A Spanner in the Works" and translated and sung by the Italian songwriter Francesco De Gregori in his 2015 album "De Gregori sings Bob Dylan". The song "Neighborhood Bully" is a song from the point of view of someone using sarcasm to defend Israel's right to exist; the title bemoans Israel's and the Jewish people's historic treatment in the popular press. Events in the history of the State of Israel are referenced, such as the Six-Day War and Operation Opera, Israel's bombing of the Osirak nuclear reactor near Baghdad on June 7, 1981, or previous bomb making sites bombed by Israeli soldiers. Events in the history of the Israelites as a whole are mentioned, such as being enslaved by Rome (commemorated on the Arch of Titus, and extensively in the Jewish Talmud), Egypt (remembered on the Jewish holiday Passover, and the Book of Exodus), and Babylon (commemorated on the Jewish holiday Tisha B'Av and the Book of Lamentations). Events in modern Jewish secular history are noted as well, such as the ridiculing of holy books by anti-semitic groups like the Nazis and the Soviet Union, and Jews' historic role in the advancement of medicine ("took sickness and disease and turned them into health"). Historic restrictions on Jewish commerce are mentioned as well. In 1983, Dylan visited Israel again, but for the first time allowed himself to be photographed there, including a shot at Jerusalem's open-air synagogue wearing a yarmulkah and Jewish phylacteries, and tallith. Dylan made some roundabout comments on the song in a 1984 interview with "Rolling Stone". In 2001, the "Jerusalem Post" described the song as "a favorite among Dylan-loving residents of the territories". Israeli singer Ariel Zilber covered "Neighborhood Bully" in 2005 in a version translated to Hebrew.  A few critics like Robert Christgau and Bill Wyman claimed that "Infidels" betrayed a strong, strange dislike for space travel, and it can be heard on the first few lines of "License to Kill". ("Man has invented his doom/First step was touching the moon.") A harsh indictment accusing mankind of imperialism and a predilection for violence, the song deals specifically with humanity’s relationship to the environment, either on a political scale or a scientific one, beginning with the first line: "Man thinks because he rules the Earth/He can do with it as he please." A skeptical opinion toward the American space program was shared among evangelicals of Dylan's generation.  "Man of Peace" is the fifth track, and deals with the concept that Satan, or evil generally, may disguise himself to mislead humanity.  "Union Sundown" is a political protest song against imported consumer goods and offshoring. In the song, Dylan examines the subject from several different angles, discussing the greed and power of unions and corporations ("You know capitalism is above the law,/ It don't count unless it sells./ When it costs too much to build it at home you just build it cheaper someplace else."... "Democracy don't rule this world,/ You better get that through your head./ This world is ruled by violence/Though I guess that's better left unsaid."), the hypocrisy of Americans who complain about the lack of American jobs while not paying more for American-made products ("Lots of people complainin' that there is no work./I say, 'Why you say that for? When nothin' you got is U.S.-made? They don't make nothin' here no more"), the collaboration of the unions themselves ("The unions are big business, friend'/ And they’re goin’ out like a dinosaur."), and the desperate conditions of the foreign workers who make the goods ("All the furniture, it says “Made in Brazil”/ Where a woman, she slaved for sure/ Bringin’ home thirty cents a day to a family of twelve/ You know, that’s a lot of money to her."... "And a man's going to do what he has to do,/ When he's got a hungry mouth to feed.").  "I and I", according to author/critic Tim Riley, "updates the Dylan mythos. Even though it substitutes self-pity for the [pessimism found throughout "Infidels"], you can't ignore it as a Dylan spyglass: 'Someone else is speakin' with my mouth, but I'm listening only to my heart/I've made shoes for everyone, even you, while I still go barefoot.'" Riley sees the song as an exploration of the distance between Dylan's "inner identity and the public face he wears".  "Infidels"' closer, "Don't Fall Apart On Me Tonight" stands out on the album as a pure love song. On past albums like "John Wesley Harding" and "Nashville Skyline", Dylan closed with love songs sung to the narrator's partner, and that tradition is continued with "Don't Fall Apart On Me Tonight", with a chorus that asks "Don't fall apart on me tonight, I just don't think that I could handle it./Don't fall apart on me tonight, Yesterday's just a memory, Tomorrow is never what it's supposed to be/And I need you, yeah, you tonight."

Final sequencing and mixing.

While Dylan was known to be prolific and had numerous outtakes for most of his albums, "Infidels" in particular garnered considerable controversy over the years regarding its final selection of songs. By June 1983, Dylan and Knopfler had set a preliminary sequence of nine songs, including two songs that were ultimately omitted: "Foot of Pride" and "Blind Willie McTell". Other notable outtakes like "Someone's Got a Hold of My Heart" (later re-written and re-recorded for "Empire Burlesque" as "Tight Connection to My Heart (Has Anybody Seen My Love)") were recorded during these sessions, but only "Foot of Pride" and "Blind Willie McTell" received serious consideration for possible inclusion.  "Blind Willie McTell" is perhaps the most heatedly discussed outtake in Dylan's catalog. "On the surface, 'Blind Willie McTell' is about the landscape of the blues," writes Tim Riley, "and the figures Dylan pays respects to on his 1962 debut. But it's also about the landscape of pop, and how an aging persona like Dylan might feel as he casts his experienced gaze over the road he's walked. Always skeptical about the quality of his own voice, he didn't release 'Blind Willie McTell' at first because he didn't feel his tribute lived up to its sources. The irony here is that his own insecurity about living up to his imagined blues ideal becomes a subject in itself. 'Nobody sings the blues like Blind Willie McTell' becomes a way of saying how Dylan feels displaced not just by the industry... but by the music he calls home." Clinton Heylin gives "Blind Willie McTell" a more ambitious interpretation, describing it as "the world's eulogy, sung by an old bluesman recast as St. John the Divine".  Both "Foot of Pride" and "Blind Willie McTell" were dropped from consideration soon after Mark Knopfler ended his involvement with the album. In later years, Knopfler claimed that ""Infidels" would have been a better record if I had mixed the thing, but I had to go on tour in Germany, and then Bob had a weird thing with CBS, where he had to deliver records to them at a certain time and I was away in Europe... Some of ["Infidels"] is like listening to roughs. Maybe Bob thought I'd rushed things because I was in a hurry to leave, but I offered to finish it after our tour. Instead, he got the engineer to do the final mix."  Dylan spent roughly a month on remixing and overdubbing, holding a number of sessions in June re-recording vocal tracks using newly rewritten lyrics. During this time, he decided to cast aside "Foot of Pride" and "Blind Willie McTell", replacing them with "Union Sundown".

Outtakes.

As with most Dylan albums, outtakes and rough mixes from "Infidels" were eventually bootlegged. This is a partial listing of known outtakes. All titles in parentheses are "working titles".  Also, alternate versions of every song on "Infidels" are in circulation as well. None of these alternate takes has been commercially released.

Reception.

While "Infidels" was better received than its predecessor, "Shot of Love", Graham Lock of "New Musical Express" still referred to Dylan as "culturally a spent force... a confused man trying to rekindle old fires." "Rolling Stone" and "The Village Voice" critic Robert Christgau was not impressed either, writing that Dylan had "turned into a hateful crackpot". Greil Marcus dismissed it many years later as another "bad [album] that made no sense, didn't hang together, had no point, and did not need to exist".  But even some of the skeptics found some merit in "Infidels". In the same review, Christgau wrote, "All the wonted care Dylan has put into this album shows." Indeed, critics were unanimous in praising the overall sound, "one case where the streamlined production doesn't seem to work against the rugged authority he can still command as a singer," wrote Tim Riley. Music critic Bill Wyman conceded that "the songs are mature and complex" even though "melodically they are similar sounding and the affair as a whole still has echoes of his crackpot Christian days."  "Infidels" would place tenth on "The Village Voice"'s Pazz & Jop Critics Poll for 1983, Dylan's highest placement since 1975 when "The Basement Tapes" placed #1 and "Blood on the Tracks" placed #4. Years later, when outtakes like "Someone's Got a Hold of My Heart", "Blind Willie McTell", and "Foot of Pride" began to circulate, the album's stature would in some ways grow, becoming a missed opportunity at a potential masterpiece to some critics like Rob Bowman and Clinton Heylin.  Without a tour in 1983, "Infidels" still generated modest sales, selling consistently through the Christmas shopping season. CBS even produced a music video for "Sweetheart Like You", Dylan's first in the MTV era. Steve Ripley from Dylan's "Shot of Love" band was one of the guitarists in the video. The female guitar player featured and who mimed Mick Taylor's guitar solo is Carla Olson. This appearance led to her recording a live album with Mick as well as numerous studio sessions with him. And Dylan gave her the unreleased song "Clean Cut Kid" for her debut album "Midnight Mission" (A&M Records). "Sweetheart Like You" was followed by a second video for "Jokerman", which CBS issued as a single in February 1984.

Aftermath.

Dylan spent the fall of 1983 recording demos and various songs at his home in Malibu, California. Rather than work alone, Dylan brought in a number of young musicians, including Charlie Sexton, drummer Charlie Quintana, and guitarist JJ Holiday. As Heylin notes, "this was Dylan's first real dalliance with third-generation American rock & rollers." These informal sessions set the stage for Dylan's first public performances since 1982.  Dylan appeared on "Late Night with David Letterman" on March 22, 1984. He performed with Quintana, Holiday (introduced by Letterman as "Justin Jesting"), and bassist Tony Marsico. Performing three songs with his band of post-punk musicians, the Plugz, Dylan delivered what many consider to be his most entertaining television performance ever. The combo first performed an unrehearsed version of Sonny Boy Williamson's "Don't Start Me to Talking", then a radically different arrangement of "License To Kill". The final song was a peppy, somewhat new-wave version of "Jokerman" that ended with a harmonica solo. At the end of the performance, Letterman walked onstage and congratulated Dylan, asking him if he could come back and play every Thursday. Dylan smiled and jokingly agreed.

Track listing.

All songs written by Bob Dylan.

Infidels is the 22nd studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on October 27, 1983 by Columbia Records. Produced by Mark Knopfler and Dylan himself, "Infidels" is seen as his return to secular music, following a conversion to Christianity, three evangelical records and a subsequent return to a less religious lifestyle. Though he has never entirely abandoned religious imagery, "Infidels" gained much attention for its focus on more personal themes of love and loss, in addition to commentary on the environment and geopolitics. Christopher Connelly of "Rolling Stone" called those gospel albums just prior to "Infidels" "lifeless", and saw "Infidels" as making Bob Dylan's career viable again. According to Connelly, "Infidels" is Dylan's best poetic and melodic work since "Blood on the Tracks". The critical reaction was the strongest for Dylan in years, almost universally hailed for its songwriting and performances. The album also fared well commercially, reaching in the US and going gold, and in the UK. Fans and critics were disappointed that several songs were inexplicably cut from the album just prior to mastering—primarily "Blind Willie McTell", considered a career highlight by many critics, and not officially released until it appeared on "The Bootleg Series Volume III" eight years later. The album was recorded and mixed entirely on digital recording equipment.

Infidels je dvaadvacáté studiové album amerického písničkáře Boba Dylana. Vydáno bylo v říjnu roku 1983 společností Columbia Records. Nahráno bylo v dubnu a květnu toho roku v New Yorku a spolu s Dylanem jej produkoval Mark Knopfler. Dylan zvažoval i jiné hudebníky, kteří by mu s produkcí pomohli – byli to Elvis Costello, David Bowie a Frank Zappa. V hitparádě Billboard 200 se umístilo na dvacáté příčce.


Album information.

According to Henley, Bill Szymczyk, who had produced their previous albums, was a producer on the album, although Henley described Szymczyk's role as that of "a mediator, a consigliere, a ringmaster" since they (Frey and Henley) had already learned how to produce records themselves.  Three studio versions of songs from "Long Road Out of Eden": "No More Cloudy Days," "Do Something" and "Fast Company" were first released in 2006 in a bonus CD of a special edition exclusive to Wal-Mart of the DVD release, "Farewell 1 Tour-Live from Melbourne".  On August 20, 2007, the song "How Long," written by J.D. Souther – who had previously worked with the Eagles co-writing some of their biggest hits including "Best of My Love," "Victim of Love," "Heartache Tonight" and "New Kid in Town" – was released as a single to radio with an accompanying online video at Yahoo! Music and debuted on television on CMT during the Top 20 Countdown on August 23, 2007. The band performed the song as part of their live sets in the early to mid-1970s, but did not record it at the time due to J.D. Souther's desire to use it on his first solo album.  The "Deluxe Collector's Edition" of "Long Road Out of Eden" was released on November 20, 2007, featuring two bonus tracks, "Hole in the World" and "Please Come Home for Christmas." This version of the CD is wrapped in a red linen cloth, screen printed with panoramic imagery, and includes a 40-page booklet with lyrics, credits, exclusive photos and desert scenes from the making of the "How Long" video.  "No More Walks in the Wood" is a song using the words from "An Old-Fashioned Song," a 21-line poem (without choruses either in the poem or song) by John Hollander. The song is in four-part harmony with guitar chords, but mostly sung a cappella.  In a 2007 interview with CNN, band member Don Henley declared, "This is probably the last Eagles album that we'll ever make." When questioned about the possibility of a follow-up album in November 2010, band member Timothy B. Schmit said, "My first reaction would be: no way. But I said that before the last one, so you never really know. Bands are a fragile entity and you never know what's going to happen. It took a long time to do that last album, over a span of years, really, and it took a lot out of us. We took a year off at one point. I'm not sure if we're able to do that again. I wouldn't close the door on it, but I don't know." In a 2010 interview with undercover.fm, Joe Walsh said that the band might be able to make one more album before the band "wraps it up".  At the 2009 Grammy Awards, the album won Best Pop Instrumental Performance and was nominated for three more: Best Pop Vocal Album; Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals for "Waiting in the Weeds"; and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals for "Long Road Out of Eden".  "Guilty of the Crime" was previously recorded by The Bellamy Brothers on their 1997 album "Over the Line". In 2009, they recorded a version with The Bacon Brothers and released it as a single, with a music video starring Shannen Doherty.  In 2009 "I Don't Want to Hear Any More" was released as the fifth single from the album. The song's writer Paul Carrack had already cut his own version, with Henley and Schmit singing backing vocals, in 2007.  For the first year after the album's initial release, the album was available in North America exclusively via the band's website, or through Wal-Mart and Sam's Club retail stores. It became the first account-exclusive album to reach number 1. The album blocked Britney Spears' "Blackout" from hitting number one, ending her record-breaking streak of number one albums as all previous four opened at the helm.

Personnel.

As listed in CD booklet.  Eagles  Additional personnel  Production

Long Road Out of Eden is the seventh and most recent studio album by American rock band the Eagles, released in 2007 on Lost Highway Records. Nearly six years in production, it is the band's first studio album since 1979's "The Long Run". In between that time the band recorded four original studio tracks for the live album "Hell Freezes Over" (1994), "Hole in the World" for "The Very Best Of" (2003) and the Joe Walsh-penned "One Day at a Time" for the "" DVD (2005), which Walsh later re-recorded for his 2012 album "Analog Man".

Long Road Out of Eden je sedmé studiové album americké skupiny Eagles, vydané v říjnu roku 2007. Jde o první studiové album kapely od roku 1979, kdy vyšla deska "The Long Run". Na produkci desky se kromě jiných podílel také Bill Szymczyk, který s kapelou spolupracoval již v minulosti. V hitparádě Billboard 200 se deska umístila na první příčce a stala se multiplatinovou. Jde o dvojalbum.


Plastic soul.

The album marked a departure from the glam rock style of Bowie's previous albums, showcasing his interest in soul and R&B music. Bowie would call the album's sound "plastic soul", describing it as "the squashed remains of ethnic music as it survives in the age of Muzak rock, written and sung by a white limey".  Initial recording sessions took place in Philadelphia with producer Tony Visconti and a variety of musicians, including guitarist Carlos Alomar, who would become one of Bowie's most frequent collaborators, and singer Luther Vandross. Bowie drew influence from the sound of "local dance halls", which were blaring with the "lush strings, sliding hi-hat whispers, and swanky R&B rhythms of Philadelphia Soul". Later sessions took place in New York City, including contributions from John Lennon.  Bowie was among the first English pop musicians of the era to overtly engage with black musical styles.

Background and recording.

Beginning on 11 August 1974, during breaks in David Bowie's Diamond Dogs Tour, "Young Americans" was recorded by Tony Visconti primarily at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia. It was agreed early on to record as much of the album as possible live, with the full band playing together, including Bowie's vocals, as a single continuous take for each song. According to Visconti, the album contains "about 85% 'live' David Bowie".  To create a more authentically soulful sound, Bowie brought in musicians from the funk and soul community, including an early-career Luther Vandross and Andy Newmark, drummer of Sly and the Family Stone. It was also Bowie's first time working with Carlos Alomar, leading to a working relationship spanning more than 30 years.  The song "Young Americans", which Bowie said was about "the predicament of two newlyweds", took two days to record. David Sanborn, at the time a session musician, is featured on saxophone.  The sessions at Sigma Sound lasted through November 1974. The recording attracted the attention of local fans, who began to wait outside the studio over the span of the sessions. Bowie built up a rapport with these fans, whom he came to refer to as the "Sigma Kids". On the final day of tracking, the Sigma Kids were invited into the studio to listen to rough versions of the new songs.  "Fascination" and "Win" were recorded at Record Plant in New York City in December 1974. Visconti then returned to London to begin mixing the album, while Bowie remained in New York. Unbeknownst to Visconti, Bowie took the opportunity to record with John Lennon in January 1975, with engineer Harry Maslin as co-producer. "Across the Universe" and "Fame" were recorded at Electric Lady Studios in New York in January 1975, with contributions by Lennon. They replaced previously recorded tracks "Who Can I Be Now" and "It's Gonna Be Me", which were later released as bonus tracks on reissues of the album. The guitar riff for "Fame", created by Alomar, was based on an arrangement of his for the song "Foot Stompin'" by the doo-wop band the Flairs. Bowie considered several titles for the album, including "Somebody Up There Likes Me", "One Damned Song", "The Gouster", and "Fascination".

Packaging.

For the album cover artwork, Bowie initially wanted to commission Norman Rockwell to create a painting, but retracted the offer when he heard that Rockwell would need at least six months to do the job. The album's cover photo was eventually taken in Los Angeles on August 30, 1974, by Eric Stephen Jacobs. Bowie's apparent inspiration for the cover photograph came from a copy of "After Dark" magazine which featured another of Jacobs' photographs of Bowie's then choreographer Toni Basil. The cover itself, as well as the cover type was designed in New York at RCA by Craig DeCamps.

Critical reception.

In a contemporary review for "the Village Voice", Robert Christgau described the record "an almost total failure" and said "although the amalgam of rock and Philly soul is so thin it's interesting, it overwhelms David's voice, which is even thinner." He nonetheless appreciated Bowie's renewed "generosity of spirit to risk failure" following "Diamond Dogs" and "David Live", which Christgau had found disappointing. "Rolling Stone"s Jon Landau praised the title-track and thought that "the rest of the album works best when Bowie combines his renewed interest in soul with his knowledge of English pop, rather than opting entirely for one or the other."  In a retrospective review, AllMusic senior critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote that "Young Americans" is "more enjoyable as a stylistic adventure than as a substantive record." Douglas Wolk of "Pitchfork" regarded it as "distinctly a transitional record," stating: "It doesn't have the mad theatrical scope of "Diamond Dogs" or the formal audacity of "Station to Station"; at times, it comes off as an artist trying very hard to demonstrate how unpredictable he is." Nevertheless, Wolk also praised the fact that "while there had already been a handful of disco hits on the pop charts, no other established rock musician had yet tried to do anything similar."  In 2013, "NME" ranked the album at No. 175 in its list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. The album was also included in the book "1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die".

Reissues.

The album was first released on CD by RCA in 1984, and then by Rykodisc/EMI in 1991, with three bonus tracks. A 1999 rerelease by EMI featured 24-bit digitally remastered sound and no extra tracks. The 2007 reissue, marketed as a "Special Edition," included an accompanying DVD, containing 5.1 surround sound mixes of the album and video footage from the Dick Cavett TV show. In 2016, the album was remastered for the "Who Can I Be Now? (1974–1976)" box set; the set also includes an earlier, rawer-sounding draft of the album, titled "The Gouster". It was released in CD, vinyl, and digital formats, both as part of this compilation and separately.  The 1991 and 2007 reissues featured, as bonus tracks, "Who Can I Be Now?", "John, I'm Only Dancing (Again)", and "It's Gonna Be Me"; the latter was released in an alternate version with strings on the 2007 edition.  The 1991 reissue replaced the original versions of "Win", "Fascination" and "Right" with alternate mixes, but later reissues restored the original mixes. Another outtake, "After Today", appeared on the 1989 box set "Sound + Vision", as did the alternate mix of "Fascination".  The bonus tracks "After Today", "Who Can I Be Now?" and "It's Gonna Be Me" were outtakes from the 1974 Sigma Sound sessions in Philadelphia.

Personnel.

Adapted from the "Young Americans" liner notes.  Additional musicians

Young Americans is the ninth studio album by English musician David Bowie, released on 7 March 1975 through RCA Records. The album was very successful in the US; reaching the Top 10 in the "Billboard" charts, with the song "Fame" hitting the number-one the same year the album was released. It was generally well-received by critics. The album has since been reissued multiple times and was remastered in 2016 as part of the "Who Can I Be Now? (1974–1976)" box set.

Young Americans je deváté studiové album anglického hudebníka Davida Bowieho. Vydáno bylo v březnu roku 1975 společností RCA Records. Jeho producenty byli vedle Bowieho také Tony Visconti a Harry Maslin. Nahráno bylo v různých studiích od srpna 1974 do ledna 1975. V americké hitparádě Billboard 200 se umístilo na deváté příčce, v britské UK Albums Chart na druhé. V několika zemích se stalo zlatým.


Background.

The team returned to France to record at the Château d'Hérouville, also known at the time as "Strawberry Studios," which was how the studio was credited in the album's sleeve; "Honky Château", the previous Elton John album, had been recorded there. The album featured horns arranged by producer Gus Dudgeon on "Elderberry Wine" (the B-side to "Crocodile Rock"), "Midnight Creeper" and "I'm Gonna Be a Teenage Idol", the latter of which was inspired by John's friend, T-Rex frontman Marc Bolan. The horn players were the same ones who were used on "Honky Château". Paul Buckmaster returned to add strings on "Blues for My Baby and Me" and "Have Mercy on the Criminal". During his Australian concerts with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra in 1986, John lauded Buckmaster's work on songs such as "Have Mercy on the Criminal", calling the string arrangements "revolutionary".  The title of the album came from friend and comic actor Groucho Marx of The Marx Brothers who referred to him as 'John Elton' whilst holding out his middle and index finger in the style of a pistol. Elton then retaliated saying "Don't shoot me, I'm only the piano player" at Marx's gun imitation.  The album was a huge hit on both sides of the Atlantic, topping the UK and US album charts. It is one of only three albums to feature just the core band of John on pianos and keyboards, Davey Johnstone on guitars, Dee Murray bass and Nigel Olsson on drums, without percussionist Ray Cooper. The other two are "Honky Château" (1972) (bar a performance by Cooper on congas on the song "Amy") and "Breaking Hearts" (1984).  An outtake of note was a re-recording of "Skyline Pigeon", which became the B-side to the single of "Daniel".  Critics at the time called some of the performances, especially "Crocodile Rock", derivative, which John freely acknowledged years later. In "His Song: The Musical Journey of Elton John" by author Elizabeth Rosenthal, John said "Crocodile Rock" was written as an overt homage to '50s records, and his vocal intentionally mimicked singer Bobby Vee. "High Flying Bird" was intended to sound like a Van Morrison record, and "Midnight Creeper" was a tip of the hat to the Rolling Stones.  John toured Australia during 1972 and was so inspired by Daddy Cool's hit single "Eagle Rock" that, with Taupin, he wrote "Crocodile Rock". The cover of this album has a photo of lyricist Taupin wearing a "Daddy Who?" promotional badge.  "Don't Shoot Me..." was also, according to John, the first album during which he felt comfortable experimenting with his vocal performances and style.

Packaging.

The album's title comes from something Elton said during an evening spent with Groucho Marx. After an evening of constant ribbing from Marx, Elton's comeback was to hold his hands up and say, "Don't shoot me, I'm only the piano player." The album's cover photograph, which shows a young couple outside a movie theatre whose marquee reads: "Don't Shoot Me I'm Only The Piano Player starring Elton John", also includes a movie poster of the Marx Brothers' film "Go West".  The title is also a play on the 1960 François Truffaut film "Shoot the Piano Player" and the original Oscar Wilde quote "Don't shoot the piano player, he's doing his best", which Wilde said he saw in a saloon on a visit to the U.S.

Track listing.

All songs written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin.

Personnel.

Track numbers refer to CD and digital releases of the album.

Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player is the sixth studio album by Elton John. Released in January, 1973 by DJM Records, it was John's sixth normal studio album release, first of his two studio albums released in 1973 (second one was "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road", released 9 months later), and was his second straight No. 1 album in the US, yielding his first No. 1 single in both the US and Canada: "Crocodile Rock". "Daniel" was also a major hit from the album, giving him his second Canadian No. 1 single on the "RPM" Top Singles Chart and No. 2 on the US "Billboard" Hot 100 and reaching No. 4 in the UK, one place higher than achieved by "Crocodile Rock".

Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player je šesté studiové album anglického hudebníka Eltona Johna. Vydáno bylo v lednu 1973 společnostmi MCA Records a DJM Records a jeho producentem byl Gus Dudgeon. Nahráno bylo v červnu 1972 na zámku Château d'Hérouville ve francouzském Hérouville. Deska se umístila na prvních příčkách hitparád Billboard 200 (USA) a UK Albums Chart, přičemž stejného úspěchu se jí dostalo i v dalších zemích.


Plot.

Rebecca Bunch is a Yale- and Harvard-educated real-estate lawyer who works for a top New York City law firm. When offered a promotion to junior partner, she panics, flees the building, and happens to encounter Josh Chan, her boyfriend from summer camp, whom she hasn't seen since her teenage years. Josh tells her that he has found life in New York City does not suit him, and he is moving back to his hometown of West Covina, California ("Just two hours from the beach, four hours in traffic"). Rebecca decides to follow Josh to West Covina in search of happiness, while telling herself that Josh had little to do with her decision to move. Arriving in West Covina, she gets a job at Darryl Whitefeather's West Covina law firm, rents an apartment, and flushes all her depression and anxiety meds down the sink. She becomes friends with the firm's paralegal, Paula, and her neighbor, Heather, and begins an on-again-off-again relationship with Josh's friend Greg, all while trying to reconnect with Josh.  In the second season, Rebecca begins a romantic relationship with Josh; meanwhile, the wealthy, amoral Nathaniel Plimpton becomes a partner at Darryl's firm. Hoping to cement their troubled relationship, Rebecca and Josh plan to be married, but Josh leaves her at the altar. In the third season, Rebecca's emotional state hits rock bottom. After attempting suicide, she receives a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder. She begins attempting to take better care of her mental health and take responsibility for her actions; meanwhile she begins a long-term casual sexual relationship with Nathaniel. In the fourth season, with all the main cast members becoming more mature and emotionally healthy, Rebecca feels pressured to choose between romance with Josh, Nathaniel, and Greg. In the final episode, she decides she is not yet emotionally secure enough for a relationship with any of them, and instead spends a year focusing on figuring out her own emotional needs and pursuing her interest in songwriting.

Production.

Development.

The series was originally developed for Showtime, and a pilot was produced, but Showtime opted not to proceed with it on February 9, 2015. The CW picked up the series on May 7, 2015, for the Fall 2015–2016 season. The series has been extensively reworked for The CW, expanding the show format from a half-hour to a full hour and adjusting the content for broadcast television, as the original pilot was produced for premium cable. On October 5, 2015, shortly before the series premiere, The CW placed an order of five additional scripts. On November 23, 2015, The CW ordered another five episodes, raising the total for season 1 to 18. On March 11, 2016, "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" was renewed for a second season, along with eleven other CW series. The second season commenced on October 21, 2016. The second season is shown in the UK on Netflix with episodes available the Saturday after the U.S. airdate. On January 8, 2017, The CW renewed the series for a third season, which premiered on October 13, 2017. The CW renewed the series for the fourth and final season, which premiered on October 12, 2018.

Casting.

On September 30, 2014, Santino Fontana, Donna Lynne Champlin, Vincent Rodriguez III and Michael McDonald joined Rachel Bloom in the series regular cast. With the move to The CW, the series went through casting changes and McDonald departed the cast. Shortly afterwards, Vella Lovell and Pete Gardner were added as regulars; with Lovell in the role of Heather, Rebecca's underachieving neighbor; and Gardner replacing McDonald in the role of Darryl, Rebecca's new boss.  In 2016, Gabrielle Ruiz, who portrays Valencia, was promoted to series regular for season two. In November 2016, Santino Fontana departed the series; episode four of the second season was his last as a series regular.  In 2017, David Hull and Scott Michael Foster, who portray White Josh and Nathaniel respectively, were promoted to series regulars for season three.

Music.

Each episode contains two to four original songs. These are usually sung by Rebecca or a character with whom she is having a direct interaction, parodying the musical theater conceit of characters bursting into song at significant moments in the plot. In "Josh Has No Idea Where I Am", it is revealed that Rebecca has these musical fantasies out of passion for her love of musical theater. In later episodes, several other characters sing while Rebecca is not present.  A few of the songs on the show are shot twice, one clean version and an explicit version. The explicit versions are posted on Bloom's YouTube channel.  ""Crazy Ex-Girlfriend: Original Television Soundtrack (Season 1 – Volume 1)"" was released on February 19, 2016 in both explicit and clean versions. It includes all the songs from the first eight episodes of season one, alongside Bloom's a cappella rough demos of "Feeling Kinda Naughty", "I Have Friends", "Settle for Me," and "Sex with a Stranger" as well as Adam Schlesinger's demo version of "What'll It Be".  ""Crazy Ex-Girlfriend: Original Television Soundtrack (Season 1 – Vol. 2)"" was released on May 20, 2016. It includes all the songs from the last 10 episodes of season one, as well as demos of "JAP Battle", "I Could If I Wanted To", "Women Gotta Stick Together", "Group Hang", and "You Stupid Bitch".  For season two, the songs were released as singles the day of their original airing. The full season two soundtrack came out on March 3, 2017. It featured every major song from season 2, as well as two deleted songs: "It's Not Difficult to Define Miss Deuche" and "Sex Toys," a solo for the recurring character Karen. It also included demos for "Santa Ana Winds", the theme song "I'm Just a Girl in Love", and "Rebecca's Reprise".  All songs in season 3 were released as singles following their airing, with the exception of "The End of the Movie" by Josh Groban, which was featured in the episode, "Josh's Ex-Girlfriend Is Crazy". The full album was released July 20, 2018 and includes a demo of "The End of the Movie" by Adam Schlesinger.

Themes.

Mental illness.

Arguably the most important recurring theme of "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" is the show's portrayal of mental illness and treatment. This aspect of "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" has garnered wide praise both throughout the film and television industry and within the show's own fandom. "Psychology Today" has also acknowledged and praised this aspect of the show as well.  In addition to the psychological evaluation and development of Rebecca, other major characters are similarly depicted as suffering from psychological traumas that influence their personalities and relationships. Such characters include Valencia, Paula, Darryl, Greg, Nathaniel, Scott, and Heather.  This has also inspired the show's fandom to engage in discussions of mental illness, specifically regarding social stigmas and treatment of said illnesses.

Female sexuality and the reproductive system.

Another defining feature of "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" is its frank portrayal of female sexuality and the reproductive system, both of which serve as sources of the show's cringe humor. In "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend", both topics are largely normalized in conversation. In particular, female characters are portrayed as being sexually liberated and unashamed of their sexuality. In the episode "To Josh, with Love", characters have frank and honest discussions regarding female sexuality and clitoral stimulation.  The reproductive system is given the same treatment in "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend". Menstruation and diseases associated with female anatomy are often discussed without judgment. The show's open and frank approach to women's health topics is evidenced best by when Paula had an abortion in the second season and her friends and family focused on the emotional impact of her decision, rather than questioning or shaming it.

Parenting.

Parenting is a major theme depicted in the show, as many of the personalities of several major characters are shaped by their parents' inattentive or cold, distant demeanors. In particular, Rebecca, Paula, Nathaniel, Darryl, and Greg are all affected by parents who exhibit these behaviors. Rebecca's overly critical and overbearing mother and negligent father has greatly impacted her sense of self and self esteem. In contrast, both Paula's and Nathaniel's fathers were revealed to have been emotionally abusive, resulting in both Nathaniel's inferiority complex and Paula's lack of self confidence. Greg's absentee mother after his parents' divorce resulted in him resenting her and helped Greg develop his cynical personality.  On the opposite end of this spectrum is the way Heather's parents raised her. Heather's parents were very attentive, loving and supportive to the point they coddled her and never encouraged her to make anything of herself. This resulted in Heather developing a lazy, aimless, unenthusiastic and somewhat apathetic personality, demonstrating the complexity of parenting.

Reception.

Critical reception.

"Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" has received critical acclaim, with critics praising the show's writing, musical numbers and Bloom's performance. At Metacritic, which assigns a rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the first season received an average score of 78 based on 23 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gave the first season a 97% positive rating, with an average rating of 7.67 out of 10 based on reviews from 58 critics, with the site's consensus stating: "Lively musical numbers and a refreshing, energetic lead, Rachel Bloom, make "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" a charming, eccentric commentary on human relationships."  The second season continued to receive acclaim, with Bloom, Fontana and Champlin earning particular praise. The season holds a rating of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, with an average rating of 9.0 out of 10 based on 15 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads, ""Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" remains delightfully weird, engaging, and even more courageous and confident in its sophomore outing." On Metacritic, it has a score of 86 out of 100 based on 8 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".  The acclaim continued with season 3; this season in particular was widely praised for its portrayal of mental illness. The performances of Bloom, Champlin and Foster were particularly praised. The chemistry between Gardner's and Hull's characters was widely praised as well. The season holds a rating of 95% on Rotten Tomatoes, with an average rating of 9.0 out of 10 based on 22 reviews.  Margaret Lyons from "The New York Times" chose "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" as one of her picks for the best TV shows of 2017. The show was also listed as one of the top shows of 2017 by numerous critics.  The critical acclaim that the show enjoyed was a factor in its renewal through four seasons, in spite of consistently low Nielsen ratings. In three of its four seasons, it finished in last place for the season in total viewers among all regularly scheduled broadcast programs. In the lone exception, the 2017–2018 season, it was next to last, behind another CW show, "Life Sentence". It was last or tied for last among adults 18–49 in all four seasons. It was ultimately one of the lowest-rated shows in television history to last four seasons.

Crazy Ex-Girlfriend is an American romantic musical comedy-drama television series that premiered on October 12, 2015 on The CW and ran for four seasons, ending on April 5, 2019. The series was created by Rachel Bloom and Aline Brosh McKenna and stars Bloom in the lead role as Rebecca Bunch, a lawyer who moves from New York City to West Covina, California to pursue her high school boyfriend.

Šílená bejvalka (v anglickém originále Crazy Ex-Girlfriend) je americký romantický hudební komediálně-dramatický televizní seriál vysílaný stanicí The CW v letech 2015–2019. Jeho autorkami jsou Rachel Bloom a Aline Brosh McKenna. Celkem vzniklo ve čtyřech řadách 62 dílů.


Function.

An etymological interpretation of the Penates would make them in origin tutelary deities of the storeroom, Latin "penus", the innermost part of the house, where they guarded the household's food, wine, oil, and other supplies. As they were originally associated with the source of food, they eventually became a symbol of the continuing life of the family. Cicero explained that they "dwell inside, from which they are also called "penetrales" by the poets". The 2nd-century AD grammarian Festus defined "penus", however, as "the most secret site in the shrine of Vesta, which is surrounded by curtains." Macrobius reports the theological view of Varro that "those who dig out truth more diligently have said that the Penates are those through whom we breathe in our inner core "(penitus)", through whom we have a body, through whom we possess a rational mind."

Public Penates.

The Penates of Rome ("Penates Publici Populi Romani") had a temple on the Velia near the Palatine. Dionysius of Halicarnassus says it housed statues of two youths in the archaic style.  The public cult of the ancestral gods of the Roman people originated in Lavinium, where they were also closely linked with Vesta. One tradition identified the public Penates as the sacred objects rescued by Aeneas from Troy and carried by him to Italy. They, or perhaps rival duplicates, were eventually housed in the Temple of Vesta in the Forum. Thus the Penates, unlike the localized Lares, are portable deities.  Archaeological evidence from Lavinium shows marked Greek influence in the archaic period, and Aeneas was venerated there as Father Indiges. At the new year, Roman magistrates first sacrificed to Capitoline Jupiter at Rome, and then traveled to Lavinium for sacrifices to Jupiter Indiges and Vesta, and a ceremonial visit to the "Trojan" Penates.

In ancient Roman religion, the Di Penates () or Penates ( ) were among the "dii familiares", or household deities, invoked most often in domestic rituals. When the family had a meal, they threw a bit into the fire on the hearth for the Penates. They were thus associated with Vesta, the Lares, and the Genius of the "paterfamilias" in the "little universe" of the "domus".

Penáti (lat. "dii penates") byla ve starověkém Římě ochranná božstva domu a rodiny, obvykle ztotožněná se zemřelými předky. Sídlila u rodinného ohniště a chránila především zásoby potravy. Úcta k penátům byla osou domácí bohoslužby a penáti také dohlíželi na provoz v domě. Před každým jídlem se jim obětoval kousek chleba, oleje a vína. Jako většina prvků domácího kultu dostali také penáti svůj společenský, městský protějšek, "Penates publici", v Římě samém "Penates populi Romani".


Life and career.

Zadeh was born in Baku, Azerbaijan SSR, as Lotfi Aliaskerzadeh, to Rahim Aleskerzade, an Iranian Azerbaijani journalist from Ardabil on assignment from Iran, and Fanya Korenman, a Russian Jewish pediatrician from Odessa and an Iranian citizen. The Soviet government at this time courted foreign correspondents, and the family lived well while in Baku. Zadeh attended elementary school for three years there, which he said "had a significant and long-lasting influence on my thinking and my way of looking at things."  In 1931, when Zadeh was ten years old, his family moved to Tehran in Iran, his father's homeland. Zadeh was enrolled in Alborz College, which was a Presbyterian missionary school, where he was educated for the next eight years, and where he met his future wife, Fay. Zadeh says that he was "deeply influenced" by the "extremely decent, fine, honest and helpful" missionaries from the United States who ran the college. "To me they represented the best that you could find in the United States – people from the Midwest with strong roots. They were really 'Good Samaritans' – willing to give of themselves for the benefit of others. So this kind of attitude influenced me deeply. It also instilled in me a deep desire to live in the United States." During this time, Zadeh was awarded several patents.  Despite being more fluent in Russian than in Persian, Zadeh sat for the national university exams and placed third in the entire country. As a student, he ranked first in his class in his first two years. In 1942, he graduated from the University of Tehran with a degree in electrical engineering, one of only three students in that field to graduate that year, due to the turmoil created by World War II, when the United States, Britain and the Soviet Union invaded Iran, whose ruler, Reza Shah, was pro-German. Over 30,000 American soldiers were based there, and Zadeh worked with his father, who did business with them as a contractor for hardware and building materials.  In 1943, Zadeh decided to emigrate to the United States, and traveled to Philadelphia by way of Cairo after months of delay waiting for the proper papers or for the right ship to appear. He arrived in mid-1944, and entered the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) as a graduate student later that year. While in the United States, he changed his name to Lotfi Asker Zadeh.  He received an MS degree in electrical engineering from MIT in 1946, and then applied to Columbia University, as his parents had settled in New York City. Columbia admitted him as a doctoral student, and offered him an instructorship as well. He received his Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Columbia in 1949, and became an assistant professor the next year.  Zadeh taught for ten years at Columbia, was promoted to Full Professor in 1957, and taught at the University of California, Berkeley from 1959 on. He published his seminal work on fuzzy sets in 1965, in which he detailed the mathematics of fuzzy set theory. In 1973 he proposed his theory of fuzzy logic.

Personal life and beliefs.

Zadeh was called "quick to shrug off nationalism, insisting there are much deeper issues in life", and was quoted as saying in an interview: "The question really isn't whether I'm American, Russian, Iranian, Azerbaijani, or anything else. I've been shaped by all these people and cultures and I feel quite comfortable among all of them." He noted in the same interview: "Obstinacy and tenacity. Not being afraid to get embroiled in controversy. That's very much a Turkish tradition. That's part of my character, too. I can be very stubborn. That's probably been beneficial for the development of Fuzzy Logic." He described himself as "an American, mathematically oriented, electrical engineer of Iranian descent, born in Russia."  Zadeh was married to Fay Zadeh and had two children, Stella Zadeh and Norman Zada.  Zadeh died in his home in Berkeley, California, on September 6, 2017, at the age of 96. He is buried in the first Alley of Honor in Baku, Azerbaijan, the city in which he was born. His funeral was well attended by "highly respected people", including the president of Azerbaijan. A month previous to his death, the University of Tehran had released an erroneous report that Zadeh had died, but withdrew it several days later.

Work.

According to Google Scholar, as of October 2019, Zadeh's work has been cited about 230,000 times in scholarly works, with the 1965 "Fuzzy sets" paper receiving more than 100,000 citations.

Fuzzy sets and systems.

Zadeh, in his theory of fuzzy sets, proposed using a membership function (with a range covering the interval [0,1]) operating on the domain of all possible values. He proposed new operations for the calculus of logic and showed that fuzzy logic was a generalisation of classical and Boolean logic. He also proposed fuzzy numbers as a special case of fuzzy sets, as well as the corresponding rules for consistent mathematical operations (fuzzy arithmetic).

Other contributions.

Zadeh is also credited, along with John R. Ragazzini, in 1952, with having pioneered the development of the z-transform method in discrete time signal processing and analysis. These methods are now standard in digital signal processing, digital control, and other discrete-time systems used in industry and research. He was an editor of the "International Journal of Computational Cognition".  Zadeh's most recent work included computing with words and perceptions. His recent papers include "From Search Engines to Question-Answering Systems—The Role of Fuzzy Logic", Progress in Informatics, No. 1, 1–3, 2005; and "Toward a Generalized Theory of Uncertainty (GTU)—An Outline", Information Sciences, Elsevier, Vol. 172, 1–40, 2005.

Selected publications.

A complete list of publications is available here.

Awards and honors.

Zadeh was a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Association for Computing Machinery, the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence and the International Fuzzy Systems Association, and a member of the National Academy of Engineering. He was also a member of the Academies of Science of Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Finland, Korea and Poland, and of the International Academy of Systems Studies in Moscow. He received 24 honorary doctorates.  Awards received by Zadeh include, among many others:

Legacy.

In 2014, the IEEE Systems, Man, and Cybernetics Society established the "Lotfi A. Zadeh Pioneer Award", which is given "To honor a person or persons with outstanding and pioneering contributions to academic and/or industrial research in systems science and engineering, human-machine systems, and/or cybernetics." The award is funding from a $100,000 donation from Zadeh's son, Norm Zadeh, which is administered by the IEEE. Nominees must have "pioneered and developed innovative research, executed in either academe or industry, and has resulted in major scientific advances that are widely recognized in systems science and engineering, human-machine systems, and/or cybernetics. Contributions must have been made at least 15 years prior to the award date."  In February 2019, ADA University in Baku, Azerbaijan presented the first "Lotfi Zadeh Scholarships", which honor the academic success of undergraduate students in the university's School of IT and Engineering. Winners of the scholarship receive a complete tuition waiver for the semester or semester-equivalent in which they achieved a 4.0 average.

References.

Notes Bibliography  Further reading

Lotfi Aliasker Zadeh (; ; ; February 4, 1921 – September 6, 2017) was a mathematician, computer scientist, electrical engineer, artificial intelligence researcher and professor emeritus of computer science at the University of California, Berkeley.

Lotfi Aliasker Zadeh (Az:Lütfəli Rəhim oğlu Ələsgərzadə; 4. února 1921 – 6. září 2017) byl matematik, počítačový vědec, elektrotechnik, výzkumník umělé inteligence a profesor počítačových věd na Kalifornské univerzitě v Berkeley.


Plot.

Love is in the air when Seymour Skinner and Edna Krabappel are finally getting married. They each have their bachelor party, with Edna having hers at the Simpson house with Duffman and a topless Chief Wiggum as strippers, and Principal Skinner having his at Moe's with Homer. However, at his party, Skinner admits that he has doubts about marrying Edna. When the wedding is held at Springfield Elementary's gymnasium, Edna learns that Skinner does not want to marry her, and runs away from the ceremony as Skinner tries to catch up with her while Nelson cannot bring himself to play a prank on her.  After the wedding is called off, Homer and Marge try to get Skinner and Edna to be engaged again, but it is halted by Homer and Marge's own marriage problems. Edna returns a wedding gift to the Comic Book Guy, and she finds him to be an interesting man. Homer gets Skinner to serenade Edna using a band made up of Bart, Milhouse, and Martin, but that fails when he learns that the Comic Book Guy and Edna are in love. The family visits the Bi-Mon-Sci-Fi-Con to confront Comic Book Guy, who proposes to marry Edna after the family sees "Futurama" creator Matt Groening. Skinner, dressed up as Catwoman (who he thought was Catman) battles the Comic Book Guy. Edna interrupts their fight to declare that she will not marry either man. When she tells the Comic Book Guy how they had fun but are very different, he accepts her decision, though Skinner is still upset. Later, at the Simpson house, Homer asks Marge to remarry him, which is done in the style of a mock Klingon wedding, and she accepts (although she accidentally agrees to give their children a Klingon upbringing).

Reception.

DVD Movie Guide's Colin Jacobson said that he "never felt particularly interested in the Skinner/Edna relationship, so [the episode] falls in the red. It never quite rebounds from that deficit, as it fails to find much inspiration". He added that "A few laughs crop up along the way, but not enough to redeem it."

"My Big Fat Geek Wedding" is the 17th episode of "The Simpsons"' fifteenth season. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on April 18, 2004. The episode was originally planned to air on April 4, 2004, but due to the voice actors going on strike, Fox aired a rerun instead.

Nevěsta na úprku (v originále "My Big Fat Geek Wedding") je 17. díl 15. řady amerického animovaného seriálu "Simpsonovi" (330. díl v seriálu). V USA měl premiéru 18. dubna 2004, v Česku 30. prosince 2006. Režíroval ji Mark Kirkland, scénář napsal Kevin Curran.


History.

In Roman times, a little village called "Arragone" existed near where the church of La Salut now stands. This grew into the town called "Arraona" or "Arrahona" in the Middle Ages. Another little village was built just on the other side of the river. This second village, called Sabadell, located on a plain, began to grow and its population was about 600 people (152 houses) in 1378. Sabadell was enclosed by a wall, but due to population growth in the 16th century, some houses were built outside the wall. At that time the first textile industries appeared in the town, devoted especially to woolen clothing. The woolen industry grew over the next centuries, and in 1800 the town's population was about 2000 people.  The 19th century brought two important developments to the town: in 1856 the railway arrived, and in 1877 the town was dubbed a "city". In the 1897 census the population of the city was 23,044 people. The city had become the most important producer of woolen clothing in Spain, and these clothes achieved worldwide fame.  The "modernisme" movement (related to Art Nouveau) had an important influence in the architecture of the city in the early 20th century and distinctive buildings such as the "modernista" Hotel Suís (1902), Despatx Lluch (1908), and the Caixa d'Estalvis de Sabadell (1915), as well as the Torre de l'Aigua (1918) and the Mercat Central (1930), were built during the first half of the century.  In the early 20th century, Sabadell, with Terrassa, was the textile city par excellence, being the driving force of a territory poor in natural resources. The population was multiplied by eight, its industry boosted, particularly textiles and metals, and its economy was modernized in the service sector. Due to this industrial activity, Sabadell received massive waves of immigration in the 1950s, 1960s and early 1970s leading to uncontrolled urban expansion and the creation of some new neighborhoods such as Ca n'Oriac and Torre-Romeu.  There has always been since those days a rivalry between Terrassa and Sabadell, because both of them wanted to be capitals of the Vallés Occidental, as both were pretty relevant while this rise textile industry. Nowadays, still there are some popular sayings: "Sabadell mala pell" (Sabadell bad skin) and "Terrassa mala raça" (Terrassa bad race).  The growth of industry and population favored the emergence of an important workers’ movement, and Catalanist, socialist and anarchist parties were very influential up until the upheavals of the Spanish Civil War (1936–39). The victory of the Fascist faction in the war was a step backwards for the city, but in the fifties industry recovered and grew once more. Industries needed workers, and many people came from Andalusia, Murcia, Extremadura, Castile and other parts of Spain to work in the textile and metal industry. Again, a new workers’ and Catalanist movement emerged, this time against Francisco Franco’s regime and with the support of the Roman Catholic Church.  Sabadell was the host of some sessions of the Assemblea de Catalunya, a multi-party organization that brought together communists, socialists, Catalan nationalists, Catholics and others against the Franco regime. The 1973 oil crisis and Franco's death in 1975 meant an important change in Spain and, of course, in Sabadell. The economic crisis compelled the city to diversify its economic activities. New commercial and leisure areas (the "Eix Macià") appeared next to the traditional industries, leading to important economic development for the city. An ETA car bombing in 1990 killed six police officers.

Geography.

Sabadell is located in the middle of the comarca named Vallès Occidental, approximately from Barcelona. It borders (clockwise, starting from the north) with Castellar del Vallès, Sentmenat, Polinyà, Santa Perpètua de Mogoda, Barberà del Vallès, Badia del Vallès, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Sant Quirze del Vallès, and Terrassa.  The city covers an area of and its population density is as of 2007. The altitude is.

Sports.

During the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games, Sabadell was one of the cities where the football competition took place. The matches were played in the Nova Creu Alta stadium, which is also home to one of the most significant of the city’s clubs: Centre d'Esports Sabadell. This local team, currently in the Segunda División B where they compete in Group 3, has played 14 seasons in the Primera División (First Division), once in the UEFA Cup and has even reached the final of the Copa del Rey.  Other major sports clubs are Club Natació Sabadell (Waterpolo and Swimming Club), with more than 30,000 members, OAR Gràcia Sabadell (Handball), currently playing in the First National Division (Group C) of the Spanish Handball League, the Unió Excursionista de Sabadell - UES (Hikers Club), with almost 3,000 associates, two basketball teams, the Sabadell Bàsquet and Sant Nicolau, both of them currently playing at EBA League, the Fourth Division of the Spanish Basketball League, and two historical tennis clubs, Cercle Sabadellès 1856 and Club de Tennis Sabadell, with 4,000 and 3,500 associates respectively.  FC Barcelona legend Sergio Busquets was born in Sabadell on 16 July 1988.

Sabadell () is the fifth-largest city in Catalonia, Spain. It is in the south of the "comarca" of Vallès Occidental and its joint capital (co-capital), on the River Ripoll, north of Barcelona. Sabadell is located above sea level.

Sabadell je město ve španělském autonomním společenství Katalánsko, žije v něm něco přes dvě stě tisíc obyvatel. Leží na říčce Ripoll asi 20 km severně od Barcelony a je spolu s Terrassou jedním ze dvou hlavních měst comarky Vallès Occidental.


Ready to Die (album, The Notorious B.I.G.)

Background and recording.

The album was recorded in New York City (mainly at The Hit Factory) in two stages between 1993 and 1994. In 1994, Biggie was 21 years old when he recorded the album. In 1992, Biggie was signed to the Uptown Records label by A&R Sean "Puffy" Combs. Biggie started recording his debut album in 1993 in New York, after making numerous guest appearances among his label-mates' singles around that time. The first tracks recorded include the album's darker, less radio-friendly content (including "Ready to Die," "Gimme the Loot" and "Things Done Changed"). In these sessions, "XXL" magazine describe an "inexperienced, higher-pitched" Biggie sounding "hungry and paranoid".  When executive producer Sean "Puffy" Combs was fired from Uptown, Biggie's career hung in limbo, as the album was only partially completed. After a brief period dealing drugs in North Carolina, Biggie returned to the studio the following year on Combs' new Bad Boy Records label possessing "a smoother, more confident vocal tone" and completed the album. In this stage, the more commercial-sounding tracks of the album were recorded, including the album's singles. Between the two stages, "XXL" writes that Biggie moved from writing his lyrics in notebooks to freestyling them from memory.  The album was released with a cover depicting an infant resembling the artist, though sporting an afro, which pertains to the album's concept of the artist's life from birth to his death. It has been listed as among the best album covers in hip hop.

Lawsuits and sample removal.

On March 24, 2006, Bridgeport Music and Westbound Records won a federal lawsuit against Bad Boy Records for copyright infringement, with a jury deciding that Combs and Bad Boy had illegally used samples for the production of the songs "Ready to Die", "Machine Gun Funk", and "Gimme the Loot". The jury awarded $4.2 million in punitive and direct damages to the two plaintiffs, and federal judge Todd Campbell enacted an immediate sales ban on the album and tracks in question. On appeal, the Sixth Circuit found the damages unconstitutionally high and in violation of due process and remanded the case, at which point Campbell reduced them by $2.8 million; however, the verdict was upheld. All versions of the album released since the lawsuit are without the disputed samples.  Although a fair use issue, Combs and Bad Boy never raised the legal concept of the fair use doctrine in their defense. This decision was questioned by some legal experts: Anthony Falzone of the Fair Use Project at Stanford Law School criticized Combs and Bad Boy for not defending the legality of sampling and suggested that they might have refused to raise such a defense because they feared it could later imperil their control over their own music.  On April 2, 2014, Lee Hutson of The Impressions filed a multimillion-dollar copyright infringement suit against Combs, Bad Boy Records, and the estate of the late Notorious B.I.G. for copyright infringement, alleging that his song "Can't Say Enough About Mom" was illegally sampled in the production of the song "The What". The estate countersued in turn, claiming the sample as used was short, adapted, and supplemented, and thus subject to fair use, a legal tactic not pursued previously.

Composition.

Production.

The production on the album was mainly handled by Easy Mo Bee and The Hitmen. Cheo H. Coker of "Rolling Stone" depicted the beats as "heavy bottomed and slick, but B.I.G.'s rhymes are the showstoppers. The tracks only enhance them, whether it's the live bass driving a menacing undercurrent or [the] use of bluesy guitar and wah-wah feedback" and that the production is used to "push the rapper to new heights." The production is mainly sample-based with the samples varying from the percussion of funk tracks to the vocals of hip hop songs. Steve Huey presented some criticism over the beats, stating that the "deliberate beats do get a little samey, but it hardly matters: this is Biggie's show".

Lyrical themes.

The Notorious B.I.G.'s lyrics on the album were generally praised by critics. Many critics applauded his story-telling ability such as AllMusic writer Steve Huey, who stated "His raps are easy to understand, but his skills are hardly lacking—he has a loose, easy flow and a talent for piling multiple rhymes on top of one another in quick succession". He also went on to mention that his lyrics are "firmly rooted in reality, but play like [a] scene from a movie". Touré, writing for "The New York Times", referred to The Notorious B.I.G., proclaiming that he stood out from other rappers because "his lyrics mix autobiographical details about crime and violence with emotional honesty, telling how he felt while making a living as a drug dealer". The album is also noted for its dark tone and sinister sense of depression. In the original "Rolling Stone" review, Cheo H Coker declared that he "maintains a consistent level of tension by juxtaposing emotional highs and lows". "Things Done Changed" was also one of the few hip hop songs in The Norton Anthology of African American Literature.  The lyrics on "Ready to Die" tend to deal with violence, drug dealing, women, alcohol and marijuana use, and other elements of Notorious B.I.G.'s environment. He rapped about these topics in "clear, sparse terms, allowing the lyrics to hit the first time you hear them". The album contains a loose concept starting out with an intro that details his birth, his early childhood, his adolescence and his life at the point of the album's release. Songs on the album range from homicide narratives ("Warning") to braggadocios battle raps ("The What," "Unbelievable"). The final song was "Suicidal Thoughts", a song where The Notorious B.I.G. contemplates and finally commits suicide.

Commercial performance.

"Ready to Die" shipped 57,000 units in its first week of release. However, it was then certified Gold by the RIAA only two months after its release on November 15, 1994. on October 16, 1995, only a year and one month after its release the album was certified double Platinum. "Ready to Die" was then certified triple Platinum on August 26, 1998 and was later certified 4× Platinum by the RIAA on October 19, 1999. In April 2018, "Ready to Die" was certified 6 × Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

Singles.

Three singles were released from the album: "Juicy", "Big Poppa", "One More Chance" and a promotional track of Biggie: "Warning". According to "XXL" the more commercial sound of the singles compared to the rest of the album was a result of encouragement by Combs during the later recording sessions in which they were recorded.  "Juicy" was released as the lead single on August 8, 1994. It peaked at number 27 on the "Billboard" Hot 100, number 14 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks and reached number 3 on the Hot Rap Singles. It shipped 500,000 copies in the United States and the RIAA certified it Gold on November 16, 1994. Produced by Combs, it features a prominent sample of "Juicy Fruit" as performed by James Mtume. AllMusic's Steve Huey stated that, along with the other singles, it was an "upbeat, commercial moment", calling it a "rags-to-riches chronicle". Andrew Kameka, of "HipHopDX", stated that the song was one of his "greatest and most-revealing songs" and went on to say it was a "Part-autobiography, part-declaration-of-success. It document[s] the star's transition from Brooklyn knucklehead to magazine cover story." Producer Pete Rock, who was commissioned to remix the track, alleged that Puffy stole the idea for the original song's beat after hearing it from him during a visit. Rock explained this in an interview with "Wax Poetics":  "Big Poppa" was released as the second single on December 24, 1994 and like the previous single, it was a hit on multiple charts. It reached number six on the "Billboard" Hot 100, number four on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks and number one on Hot Rap Singles. It sold over a million units and the RIAA certified it Platinum on May 23, 1995. Featuring production by Combs and Chucky Thompson of The Hitmen, it samples "Between the Sheets" by The Isley Brothers. The song was nominated at the 1996 Grammy Awards for Best Rap Solo Performance, but lost to Coolio's "Gangsta's Paradise". Steve Huey named it an "overweight-lover anthem".  "One More Chance" was released as the third single on June 9, 1995. The single was a remix of the album track. It was produced by Combs and featured a sample from DeBarge's "Stay With Me". It peaked at number two on the "Billboard" Hot 100 and reached number one on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks and Hot Rap Singles. It sold over a million copies and the RIAA certified it Platinum on July 31, 1995. Steve Huey labeled it a "graphic sex rap". "Rolling Stone" writer Cheo H. Coker had a similar view of the song, noting that it was "one of the bawdiest sex raps since Kool G Rap's classic, "Talk Like Sex" and continued, stating it "proves hilarious simply because of B.I.G.'s Dolemitelike vulgarity."

Critical reception.

"Ready to Die" received acclaim from music critics. In his review for "Rolling Stone", Cheo H. Coker stated ""Ready to Die" is the strongest solo rap debut since Ice Cube's "AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted". From the breathtakingly visual moments of his birth to his Cobainesque end in "Suicidal Thoughts," B.I.G. proves a captivating listen. It's difficult to get him out of your head once you sample what he has to offer". Robert Christgau from "The Village Voice" commented "His sex raps are erotic, his jokes are funny, and his music makes the thug life sound scary rather than luxuriously laid back. When he considers suicide, I not only take him at his word, I actively hope he finds another way". "The New York Times" wrote "Though drug dealing carries tremendous heroic value with some young urban dwellers, he sacrifices the figure's romantic potential. His raps acknowledge both the excitement of drug dealing and the stress caused by the threat from other dealers, robbers, the police and parents, sometimes one's own. In presenting the downside of that life, "Ready to Die" offers perhaps the most balanced and honest portrait of the dealer's life of any in hip-hop".  "Q" magazine gave "Ready to Die" three out of five stars, and stated "the natural rapping, clever use of sound effects and acted dialogue, and concept element (from a baby being born at the start to the fading heartbeat at the end) set this well apart from the average gangsta bragging". In their original review for "Ready to Die", "The Source" gave it four-and-a-half out of five'mics', stating "Big weaves tales like a cinematographer, each song is like another scene in his lifestyle. Overall, this package is complete: ridiculous beats, harmonizing honeys, ill sound effects, criminal scenarios, and familiar hooks".

Legacy.

"Ready to Die" has been highly acclaimed. In 1998, "The Source" included it on their 100 Best Rap Albums of All Time list, and in 2002, they re-rated it to the maximum five'mics'. "Rolling Stone" has also given acclaim to "Ready to Die" over the years. In 2003, they ranked it number 133 on their 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list, and 134 in a 2012 revised list. In 2004, they re-rated it to five stars. In 2011, "Rolling Stone" also placed it at number eight on their 100 Best Albums of the Nineties list, and described it as "mapping out the sound of 'Nineties cool". Kilian Murphy from "Stylus Magazine" wrote favorably of the album in a retrospective review, and concluded "Sweet, hypocritical, sensitive, violent, depressed and jubilant; these words could all fittingly describe Big at various points on "Ready to Die"."  Steve Huey from AllMusic gave it five stars, stating "The album that reinvented East Coast rap for the gangsta age, "Ready to Die" made the Notorious B.I.G. a star. Today it's recognized as one of the greatest hardcore rap albums ever recorded, and that's mostly due to Biggie's skill as a storyteller". In 2006, "Time" magazine included it on their 100 Greatest Albums of All Time list, and stated "On "Ready to Die", Wallace took his street corner experiences and filtered them through his considerable charm. The result was a record that mixed long stretches of menace with romance and lots of humor. No rapper ever made multi-syllabic rhymes sound as smooth". The album was also included in the book "1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die".

Track listing.

Sample credits.

Intro  Things Done Changed  Gimme the Loot  Machine Gun Funk  Warning  Ready to Die  One More Chance  Fuck Me (Interlude)  The What  Juicy  Everyday Struggle  Big Poppa  Respect  Friend of Mine  Unbelievable  Suicidal Thoughts  Who Shot Ya?  Just Playing (Dreams)

Ready to Die is the debut studio album by American rapper The Notorious B.I.G., released on September 13, 1994, by Bad Boy and Arista Records. The album features production by Bad Boy founder Sean "Puffy" Combs, Easy Mo Bee, Chucky Thompson, DJ Premier, and Lord Finesse, among others. It was recorded from 1993 to 1994 at The Hit Factory and D&D Studios in New York City. The partly autobiographical album tells the story of the rapper's experiences as a young criminal, and was the only studio album released during his lifetime, as he was murdered sixteen days before the release of his second album "Life After Death" in 1997.

Ready to Die je první studiové album amerického rappera The Notorious B.I.G. Vydáno bylo v září roku 1994 společností Bad Boy Records. Na produkci alba se podíleli Sean Combs (zakladatel vydavatelství Bad Boy Records), Easy Mo Bee, DJ Premier a další. Na jedné písni se podílel Method Man. Časopis "Rolling Stone" desku v roce 2003 zařadil na 133. místo žebříčku 500 nejlepších alb všech dob. Týdeník "Time" ji o tři roky později zařadil mezi sto nejlepších alb všech dob.


Album information.

Wolf Hoffmann explained the concept behind the album: "We had read an article that someone was working on an artificial heart and that one day everybody is going to have a computerized heart. It talked, in general terms, about how more and more of humanity gets sucked out of the daily life and more and more replaced by machine. It's not a new thing now, but then it was new. Humans versus machine, was the general vibe of the record." The original cover concept was for a hologram of a metal heart, until budget considerations resulted in a traditional cover. But fittingly for the futuristic theme of the album, "Metal Heart" was the first Accept album to be digitally mastered.  Hoffmann recalls Dieter Dierks as a very demanding producer: "We would do some pieces several dozen times trying to capture what he had in his mind for a specific section," adding: "Each song we tried different combinations of guitars, mic'ing and even strings!"  The song "Metal Heart" is well known for containing the cover of two famous classical themes: Tchaikovsky's "Slavonic March" (in the intro) and Beethoven's "Für Elise" in the main riff and solo. This song was covered in 1998 by Norwegian black metal band Dimmu Borgir for their album "Godless Savage Garden". "I had no idea it would become as popular as it did," Hoffmann remembers of his contribution to the song.  "Midnight Mover", about a drug dealer, is one of the more commercial songs on the album and was selected for a memorable music video that anticipates the bullet time filming technique by a full decade. "Just ahead of our time again!" jests Hoffmann.  Despite the more commercially appealing sound of the album, it fell short of the sales figures of its predecessor "Balls to the Wall" in America. Udo remembers the "Breaker" through "Metal Heart" era as the time when the band got along best together. Thus this would turn out to be the last album of Accept's golden era, as cracks were soon to appear in the band's solidarity.  The 2002 digitally remastered CD edition includes two live bonus tracks, "Love Child" and "Living for Tonite", both taken from the live EP "Kaizoku-Ban". The 2013 release from UK based record label Hear No Evil Recordings contains the live EP itself.

Track listing.

All lyrics and music written by Accept and Deaffy.

Metal Heart is the sixth studio album by German heavy metal band Accept, released in 1985. Although the group had recorded before at Dierks-Studios, this was the first album produced by Dieter Dierks himself. It marked the return of guitarist Jörg Fischer after a two year absence, with Herman Frank having been his replacement. This album was a cautious attempt to crack the lucrative American market with more accessible songcraft and emphasis on hooks and melodies. Although critically panned at the time, today "Metal Heart" is often considered by fans as one of the band's best records. It contains several of their classic songs such as "Metal Heart" and "Living for Tonite". The band also makes a detour into jazz metal territory with the unusual song "Teach Us to Survive".

Metal Heart je šesté studiové album německé heavymetalové skupiny Accept. Vydáno bylo v březnu roku 1985 a jeho producentem byl Dieter Dierks, který s kapelou spolupracoval i později. Nahráno bylo od října do prosince 1984 v producentově studiu v Stommelnu. V hitparádě Billboard 200 se umístilo na 94. místě.