Background.

After an 18-year hiatus from solo projects, Cooder returned with a trilogy of sociopolitical, Southern California-themed albums, comprising "Chávez Ravine" (2005), "My Name Is Buddy" (2007), and "I, Flathead" (2008). The albums examined various disenfranchised peoples through humorous, scholarly lyrics and esoteric musical styles. After completing the trilogy with "I, Flathead" in 2008, Cooder worked on The Chieftains' 2010 album "San Patricio".

Writing and recording.

Cooder was inspired to record "Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down" by the late-2000s economic crisis and past protest songs. In interviews prior to the album's release, Cooder expressed strong anti-Republican and anti-banker sentiments in discussion about the political and economic climate. Before conceiving the album, he wrote and recorded the song "Quicksand" in 2010, as a response to the controversy spurred by Arizona Senate Bill 1070 and other anti-illegal immigration measures in the United States. In an interview for "The Australian", Cooder said of his decision to pursue a more political direction with his songwriting:  In early 2011, Cooder was inspired to write the song "No Banker Left Behind", and subsequently the rest of the album, by a headline about bankers and other affluent people who had profited from the bank bailouts and resulting recession during the late-2000s. In an interview with Kai Ryssdal on "Marketplace", Cooder cited the song as the starting point for writing the album and stated, "'No Banker Left Behind' originated with a line from Robert Scheer's Truthdig blog. I read this pretty regularly, and when I saw this, this metric I thought 'no banker left behind.'" He compared the album's content to Woody Guthrie's songs about the Dust Bowl era during the Great Depression and said of his own songs, "What I like in the idea of these songs is if you follow the logic of each tune — this happened and this happened and you can see that at the end, this is the result, you just didn't see it this way before, you never thought of Wall Street in terms of Jesse James and bilingual heft."  Recording sessions for "Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down" took place at Drive-By Studios in North Hollywood, Ocean Studios in Burbank, and Wireland Studios in Chatsworth, California. The album was written and produced entirely by Cooder, except "Lord Tell Me Why", which was co-written by session drummer Jim Keltner. Cooder also worked with vocalist Juliette Commagere, accordionist Flaco Jiménez, bassist Robert Francis, vocalist Arnold McCuller, and drummer Joachim Cooder, Cooder's son. "Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down" was mixed by Martin Pradler and mastered by recording engineer Bernie Grundman at his Hollywood studio Grundman Mastering. Most of the album was engineered in Pradler's living room.

Musical style.

"Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down"s music is rooted in Americana and draws on a number of styles, including blues, folk, ragtime, norteño, rock, and country music. For the songs, Cooder adapted musical language from historical sources and incorporated styles from both North and South American traditions. In his interview on "Marketplace", he explained his stylistic approach for "Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down", stating "to me, these musical styles and sounds are narratives as well. I mean everything about them — if it's an accordion, horns, the banda horns for the immigrant tunes — they all are part of the story. And you can see it then, you can imagine the Arizona border that's hot, 120 degrees in the shade, dusty. The banda horns are coming from some truck over there." According to him, musical settings for certain songs were decided based on their respective compositions, such as when "the words would come to me in 3⁄4 time, that meant "corrido", that means accordion; "banda" horns because they’re exciting."  Cooder wanted the music of each song to complement the stories in his lyrics and to serve as homages to particular traditional styles. Cooder said that he did not want to "over-think it" and said of his creative process for each song's distinct style, "It’s taken a long time, but it becomes natural to combine an idea you have or a story you want to tell with whatever seems conducive." Graham Reid of "The New Zealand Herald" writes that the music "refers to the dustbowl era, rural blues, Tex-Mex (with accordionist Flaco Jimenez) and old-time folk." "The Observer"s Neil Spencer comments that it is "grounded in the blues, folk and Tex-Mex the guitarist explored in the 1970s, but its songs belong to modern times."

Lyrics and themes.

Lyrically, the album focuses on socio-political themes of power and its abuses, the struggle for democracy, the trials of the working class, and the goal of equality, with songs composed as either first-person narratives or allegories. The songs deal with contemporary subject matter and topics such as immigration legislation, the emotional and physical effects of war, the dubiousness of politics, social class and race division, and white flight. Cooder's songwriting is characterized by sardonic lyrics, satire, mordant humor, and wry observations on figures such as bankers, politicians, and militarists. Allmusic's Thom Jurek characterizes it as "overtly political" and comments that "the depth of Cooder's rage is quieter but more direct as the album draws to a close." According to Bud Scoppa of "Uncut", the album expands on Cooder's previous trilogy of sociopolitical albums and their "scholarly but humour-laced examinations" and "arcane musical modes". Journalist Alec Wilkinson comments that "what [the album] shares with them is an indignation over the economic and ethical disparities of American life and the destructive and scoundrely meanness of the privileges given to the rich."  Nick Cristiano of "The Philadelphia Inquirer" writes of the lyrics, "Cooder takes deadly aim at rapacious bankers, warmongers, land barons, and the like, showing the devastating impact of their actions on ordinary folk", adding that "He does this in a manner that mixes the scrappy populism of Woody Guthrie with the first-person narratives of Springsteen in Steinbeckian "Ghost of Tom Joad" mode." Robin Denselow of "The Guardian" notes "bleak or thoughtful lyrics [set] against jaunty melodies" and "no elaborate narratives" in the songs, while interpreting the album's motif to be that of "a broken, divided society and the gap between rich and poor, but with the anger matched against humour." Neil Spencer of "Uncut" calls "Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down" "an impassioned portrait of 21st century America and its injustices", adding that "like Guthrie, [Cooder] nails his targets with droll humour while empathising with society's underdogs."  Allmusic's Steve Huey asserts that the album "reache[s] all the way back to his earliest recordings for musical inspiration while telling topical stories about corruption — political and social — the erasure and the rewriting of American history, and an emerging class war." Peter Kane of "Q" compares it to Cooder's 1971 album "Into the Purple Valley", which featured Dust Bowl-era songs, and writes that this album's "protest songs for today's messed-up world" are "sly and humorous". Philip Majorins of PopMatters compares the album to other songwriters' "substantial statements" about the American zeitgeist, including Randy Newman's "Harps and Angels" (2008), Paul Simon's "So Beautiful or So What" (2011), and Bob Dylan's "Modern Times" (2006). However, he distinguishes "Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down" as "an attempt at the existential, providing an everyman's view of struggle during economic downturn, class disparity, injustice, and abuse of power", calling him "a direct voice of protest, both musically and lyrically, that will not be mistaken for being impressionistic."

Songs.

The opening track "No Banker Left Behind" references the financial bailout of 2007 and criticizes bankers and government. Alec Wilkinson of "The New Yorker" writes that the song "ridicules the considerations extended to the prosperous men and women who grabbed everything not nailed down during the last few years." It features marching rhythms, mandolin and banjo riffs, and electric guitar. Cooder has described the song's rhythm as "a kind of clog-dance beat". "El Corrido Jesse James" is played in waltz time with a horn section and accordion by Flaco Jiménez. The lyrics express a fictitious narrative by American outlaw Jessie James in Heaven, who claims to have never "turned a family from their house" when he was a bank robber. He asks God for his "trusty.44" to persuade bankers to "put that bonus money back where it belongs". Cooder discussed the character's perspective in an interview on BBC Radio 4's "Today", stating:  "Quick Sand" is a shuffling rock song that addresses the plight of illegal immigrants to Arizona. It depicts six migrants travelling through extreme climates in the Sonoran Desert to reach Devil's Highway in an attempt to cross the Mexico – United States border. They journey from Tamaulipas and through the mountains along Devil's Highway. Partway into the journey, the migrants are abandoned by their coyote guide and subsequently lose one another one by one. They experience thirst, hunger, injury, and fear, culminating with the only two surviving migrants being turned away by a vigilante at the border. Cooder said of the route's background and the narrative in an interview, "[I]t's been a migrant trail for 200 years. People go out there and try to do it on foot, but if you make one mistake and go five minutes out of your way, you become disorientated and dehydrated. And they find these mummified bodies out there. The heat has just baked them through. And the people who live through it often refer to having a vision of the Virgin of Guadalupe flying overhead. This is a very common vision when the dehydration sets in."  "Humpty Dumpty World" incorporates the marimba with light reggae and Mariachi influences. The song's lyrics are sung from the perspective of God, who deplores the world he created. He makes note of incitive politicians and craven television commentators, and views it as "a ball of confusion" in the chorus line, "I thought I had built upon a solid rock / But it’s just a Humpty Dumpty World". "Christmas Time This Year" is an anti-war song with a Mexican polka style, with Flaco Jiménez on accordion and Cooder on bajo sexto. Composed as a corrido, the song is about wounded soldiers returning home for Christmas, with dismal lyrics set incongruously to an upbeat Mexican melody. Cooder wrote the song in response to the Walter Reed Army Medical Center neglect scandal and previous stories of neglected soldiers returning from the Iraq War. In "Baby Joined the Army", a young man laments the departure of his girlfriend, who became uninterested in her town and enlisted in the army with the assurance that "If I get killed in battle, I still get paid." "Lord Tell Me Why" is a gospel song with a rolling funk groove, sung from the perspective of a lower class white man who has become disillusioned with the American dream. His ironic lyrics ask in the chorus, "Lord tell me why a white man / Ain't worth nothin' in this world no more." The guitar-based "I Want My Crown" was recorded with an 11-piece band and has an aggressive blues style, rumba-rock groove, and growling vocals. The song is an indictment of politicians as "Judas men" who sided with oil barons and Republicans, and their greed that leads to war. "I Want My Crown" has been described by one writer as a "Mephistopheles-as-Right-winger character study".  "John Lee Hooker for President" is a blues song in which Cooder narrates as American blues musician John Lee Hooker visiting the White House. Adopting Hooker's style and laconic vocal tone, he decides to run for the presidency after disliking what he observed in his visit, naming Jimmy Reed as Vice President, Little Johnny Taylor as Secretary of State, and proposing to have "nine fine-lookin' womens on the Supreme Court". According to Cooder, the song was inspired by blues musician Gus Cannon's 1927 song "Can You Blame the Colored Man", a satirical piece about Booker T. Washington's invitation to the White House by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1901.  "Simple Tools" is a Tex-Mex ballad about the contentment of leading a simple lifestyle, with references to the decline in traditional manual skills and the view of automated work as unfulfilling. Featuring a resounding mix of mandolin and guitar, "If There Is a God" is a satirical narrative about an afterlife in which Heaven is restricted by a government bill to the wealthy. Its lyrics criticize redistricting and Republican Party legislature. The song references "The Bourgeois Blues" by blues and folk musician Lead Belly. In "No Hard Feelings", Cooder sings from the perspective of a lowly prospector who scolds businessmen for dealing with land exclusively in business terms. He dismisses the rich and elite as "ripples" in history and is willing to tolerate them provided that they avoid conflict.

Marketing and sales.

"Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down" was released by Nonesuch Records on August 30, 2011, in the United States. It was released in the United Kingdom on September 5, and on September 9 in other European countries. Its vinyl LP release was on September 13. The album's lead single, "Quicksand", had been released as a digital download on June 29, 2010. Cooder donated the proceeds from its sales to the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund. The single's cover artwork, a piece called "Nuthin' to See Here, Keep on Movin'!", was designed by visual artist Vincent Valdez, a frequent collaborator with Cooder. Valdez contributed photography to the album's liner booklet. Cooder performed with a 17-piece band at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco, California on August 31 and September 1, 2011, to promote the album. He was not satisfied with the promotional aspect of the shows, however, and it contributed to his general disillusionment with the music industry, which he reflected on in an interview for "The Australian":  In the week of September 24, 2011, "Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down" debuted at number five on the US "Billboard" Top Folk Albums chart, on which it went on to spend seven weeks. The record also charted at number 123 on the "Billboard" 200, number 28 on the Top Rock Albums, number 15 on the Tastemaker Albums, a chart that ranks top-selling albums "based on an influential panel of indie stores and small regional chains." In the United Kingdom, "Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down" debuted at number 26 on the British albums chart, selling 6,000 copies in its first week there; it spent two weeks on the chart.

Critical reception.

"Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down" was met with widespread critical acclaim. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 92, based on 14 reviews.  The album was hailed by "Uncut"s Nigel Williamson and "The Daily Telegraph"s Martin Chilton as one of Cooder's best works. AllMusic editor Thom Jurek deemed it the musician's "most overtly political album... and one of his funniest, most musically compelling ones, too", while Daniel Paton from musicOMH said much of the record was "highly satisfying satire (although also often sensitive and affecting), combining Cooder’s transparent love for a wide range of roots music with his engagement with politics." Andy Gill of "The Independent" was impressed by how he used similar characters throughout the songs in new ways, calling the album his best since 2005's "Chávez Ravine".  Cooder received comparisons to Woody Guthrie in reviews written by Phil Sutcliffe of "Mojo", who found the lyrics sharply written, and Neil Spencer from "The Observer", who called Cooder "a Woody Guthrie for our times" and the record "a fierce state-of-the-nation album". In the opinion of "PopMatters" critic Philip Majorins, the record would not have a significant impact because of the public's predominantly commercial tastes and a "cynical" cultural climate, but concluded, ""Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down" could have tremendous cathartic power for [those] who are aware of history and its knack for repeating itself. For those who are willing, this is a good place to start an education."  At the end of 2011, "Uncut" named "Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down" the year's 20th best album, while Robert Christgau ranked it number 37 on his list for "The Barnes & Noble Review". The record was also nominated for the 2012 Grammy Award for Best Americana Album, while Cooder was nominated in the category of Best Artist for the 2012 Songlines Music Awards.

Track listing.

All songs were written and produced by Ry Cooder, except where noted.

Personnel.

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.

Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down is the fourteenth studio album by American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Ry Cooder. It released on August 30, 2011, by Nonesuch Records.


History.

The concept of probation, from the Latin, "probatio," "testing", has historical roots in the practice of "judicial" "reprieve". In English common law, prior to the advent of democratic rule, the courts could temporarily suspend the execution of a sentence to allow a criminal defendant to appeal to the monarch for a pardon.

United States.

Probation first developed in the United States when John Augustus, a Boston cobbler, persuaded a judge in the Boston Police Court in 1841 to give him custody of a convicted offender, a "drunkard", for a brief period and then helped the man to appear rehabilitated by the time of sentencing. Even earlier, the practice of suspending a sentence was used as early as 1830 in Boston, Massachusetts, and became widespread in U.S. courts, although there was no statutory provision for such a practice. At first, judges, most notably Peter Oxenbridge Thatcher of Boston, used "release on recognizance" or bail and simply refrained from taking any further action. In 1878, the mayor of Boston hired a former police officer, the ironically named "Captain Savage", to become what many recognize as the first official probation officer. By the mid-19th century, however, many Federal Courts were using a judicial reprieve to suspend sentence, and this posed a legal question. In 1916, the United States Supreme Court, in the "Killets" Decision, held that a Federal Judge (Killets) was without power to suspend a sentence indefinitely. This decision led to the passing of the National Probation Act of 1925, thereby, allowing courts to suspend the imposition of incarceration and place an offender on probation. Probation developed from the efforts of a philanthropist, John Augustus, who looked for ways to rehabilitate the behavior of criminals.  Massachusetts developed the first statewide probation system in 1878, and by 1920, 21 other states had followed suit. With the passage of the National Probation Act on March 5, 1925, signed by President Calvin Coolidge, the U.S. Federal Probation Service was established. On the state level, pursuant to the Crime Control and Consent Act of 1936, a group of states entered into an agreement wherein they would supervise probationers and parolees who reside in each other's jurisdictions on each other's behalf. Known as the Interstate Compact For the Supervision of Parolees and Probationers, this agreement was originally signed by 25 states in 1937. By 1951, all the states in the United States of America had a working probation system and ratified the Interstate Compact Agreement. In 1959, the new states of Alaska and Hawaii, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the territories of the Virgin Islands, Guam, and American Samoa ratified the act as well.

Arming and increased authority.

In the United States, most probation agencies have armed officers. In 39 states, territories and federal probation, such arming is either mandated or optional. Arming is allowed in an increasing number of jurisdictions.  Probation officers are peace officers who possess limited police powers.

Types.

Intensive.

Home detention, GPS monitoring and computer management are highly intrusive forms of probation in which the offender is very closely monitored. It is common for violent criminals, higher-ranking gang members, habitual offenders, and sex offenders to be supervised at this level. Some jurisdictions require offenders under such supervision to waive their constitutional rights under the Fourth Amendment regarding search and seizure, and such probationers may be subject to unannounced home or workplace visits, surveillance, and the use of electronic monitoring or satellite tracking. Under terms of this kind of probation, a client may not change their living address and must stay at the address that is known to probation. GPS monitoring and home detention are common in juvenile cases, even if the underlying delinquency is minor. Some types of supervision may entail installing some form of monitoring software or conducting computer searches to ascertain what an offender is doing online. Cybercrime specialist in corrections, Art Bowker, noted “This is an area more and more community corrections officers are going to have to get up to speed on, learning how to enforce conditions that restrict and/or monitor cyber offenders' computer and internet use.” Bowker, also observed "The use of social media is taking off in the field of community corrections".

Standard.

Offenders under standard supervision are generally required to report to an officer, most commonly between biweekly and quarterly, and are subject to any other conditions as may have been ordered, such as alcohol/drug treatment, community service, and so on.

Unsupervised.

Some probation does not involve direct supervision by an officer or probation department. The probationer is expected to complete any conditions of the order with no involvement of a probation officer, and perhaps within a period shorter than that of the sentence itself. For example, given one year of unsupervised probation, a probationer might be required to have completed community service and paid court costs or fines within the first six months. For the remaining six months, he or she may be required merely to refrain from unlawful behavior. Probationers are allowed to go to their workplaces, educational institutions, or places of worship. Such probationers may be asked to meet with an officer at the onset or near the end of the probationary period, or not at all. If terms are not completed, an officer may file a petition to revoke probation.

Informal.

Informal probation may occur with deferred adjudication, without the defendant's having been convicted of a criminal offense, or may occur following a guilty plea pending the completion of terms set forth in a plea agreement. As with other forms of probation, terms may include drug testing or waiver of Fourth Amendment rights for the duration of the term of probation. At the end of the informal period, the case is typically dismissed. This is usually offered as part of a plea bargain or pre-trial diversion.

Shock.

Some programs give a sentencing judge the power to reconsider an original jail sentence. The judge may recall the inmate from jail and put him or her on probation within the community instead. The courts have a theory that a short term in jail may “shock” a criminal into changing their behavior. Shock probation can be used only between a specific period of 30–120 days after the original sentence, and is not available in all states.

Grant.

Community corrections officials are key personnel in helping decide whether a criminal is granted probation. They determine whether the offender is a serious risk to public and recommend to the court what action to take. Correction officials first go through an investigation process during the pretrial period. They assess the offender's background and history to determine whether he or she can be released safely back into the community. The officers then write a report on the offender. The courts use the report to determine whether the offender shall be put on probation instead of going to jail. After the offender is found guilty, the probation officer puts together a pre-sentence investigation report (PSI). Courts base their sentencing on it. Finally, courts make their decisions as to whether to imprison the convict or to assign him or her probation. If a court decides to grant a person probation, they must then determine how to impose the sentence based on the seriousness of the crime, recidivism, the circumstances of the convict, and the recommendations from the corrections officials.

Violation.

A probation officer may imprison a probationer and petition the court to find that the probationer committed a violation of probation. The court will request that the defendant appear at a show cause hearing at which the prosecutor must demonstrate by a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant committed a probation violation. If the defendant pleads guilty to a probation violation, or is found guilty of a probation violation after the hearing, the officer or prosecutor may request that additional conditions of probation be imposed, that the duration be extended, or that a period of incarceration be ordered, possibly followed by a return to probation. No law specifies when probation violation proceedings must be commenced, although probation violation proceedings are nearly certain to occur following the defendant's conviction of a subsequent offense or failure to report to the probation officer as ordered.  If a violation is found, the severity of the penalties may depend upon the facts of the original offense, the facts of the violation, and the probationer's criminal history. For example, if an offender is on probation for a gang-related offense, subsequent "association with known criminals" may be viewed as a more serious violation than if the person were on probation for driving a car with a suspended license; the reverse may be true if the initial offense were for driving under the influence. Similarly, penalties for violation may be greater if a subsequent offense is of greater severity (such as a felony, following a misdemeanor), or if the original offense and subsequent offense are of the same type (such as a battery following an assault, or retail theft following retail theft).

Revocation.

When a probation violation is extremely severe, or after multiple lesser violations, a probation revocation hearing could be scheduled. A judge at the hearing will consider reports from the probation officer, and if probation is revoked, the probationer will often be incarcerated in jail or prison. However, the term of incarceration might be reduced from the original potential sentence for the alleged crime(s). It is possible that an innocent defendant would choose to accept a deferred sentence rather than incur the risk of going to trial. In such a case, a probation revocation can result in conviction of the original criminal charges and a permanent record of conviction.

Probation in criminal law is a period of supervision over an offender, ordered by the court instead of serving time in prison.


Plot.

Kristine Kochanski (Chloë Annett) is having a hard time on "Starbug" with no bath, poor food, and squeaking pipes in her sleeping quarters. Dave Lister (Craig Charles) arranges for her to have a bath in his quarters, and finds some extra clothing for her – gestures that worry Kryten (Robert Llewellyn) considerably. But before she can bathe, an engine failure leaves the crew trapped in Lister's quarters, and the ship is on a collision course with a meteor shower. The only way to re-fire the backup generator is by going through the service ducts.  As they navigate through the narrow ducts, Kochanski helps Lister with his claustrophobia, while Kryten and Cat (Danny John-Jules) look for any hatches that they can use to get back into "Starbug". After dealing with water flushing through the vents, and hurricane-force winds to dry the ductways, Kryten admits that he planned the whole situation. He adjusted the thermosettings so it would overload and locked them in Lister's quarters. They eventually exit the ducts but end up back in Lister's quarters. Kryten makes another admission – the doors to Lister's quarters aren't locked after all; he excluded them from the shutdown override in case anything happened. Lister goes off to steer the ship away from disaster, while Kochanski asks Kryten to repeat the squeak noises that the pipes make while repeatedly hitting his head with a spanner (which she had been doing earlier to the squeaking pipes).

Production.

The episode overran by three minutes, and had to be cut down. Rather than lose vital scenes, it was decided that the opening titles would be replaced by a caption slide, to save precious time. The scenes would be reinstated for the "X-tended" edition on VHS release. This is the third episode of "Red Dwarf" to forfeit the opening titles for the purposes of time and episode pacing (the others being series II closer "Parallel Universe" and previous series VII episode "Ouroboros").  Being the last episode written, and the fact that the series had stretched the budget at that point, "Duct Soup" turned out to be the 'bottle show', a cheap production script that replaced the initially more expensive story that was written, Identity Within.  In Series 7's bonus features, Craig Charles mentions one word has been dubbed over in the scene where he tells his story about him developing claustrophobia, as it turns out this word was left un-dubbed on the first VHS release of Series 7 and is, in fact, 'Fuck'.

Cultural and historical references.

Lister's claustrophobia is only mentioned one other time within the Red Dwarf series, in the episode "Confidence and Paranoia" when Lister and his Confidence are outside in space suits. Any other time, though, Lister is shown in closed spaces, without any fear. When the Cat questions Lister as to why he's never shown any signs of claustrophobia in other instances when they've been trapped in small places, Lister responds he only'sometimes' suffers with it, thereby avoiding a continuity error. It is also alluded to in a deleted scene for "Krytie TV" wherein Lister is sneaking through a duct to get to Warden Ackerman's quarters.  The title is a reference to the famous Marx Brothers comedy "Duck Soup".

Reception.

"Duct Soup" has received some mixed reviews. DVDActive complained that "the comedy is just not funny enough and, barring a few wonderful moments from the Cat, it's all a bit of a disappointment." Sci-Fi Online, on the other hand, called it "the best episode of the eight in this series" claiming that "as well as being a character study on a par with Series 3's Marooned, it boasts loads of great lines."

"Duct Soup" is the fourth episode of science fiction sit-com "Red Dwarf" Series VII and the 40th in the series run. It was first broadcast on the British television channel BBC2 on 7 February 1997. It was written by Doug Naylor and directed by Ed Bye.


Biography.

Eadgifu was the daughter of Sigehelm, Ealdorman of Kent, who died at the Battle of the Holme in 902. She married Edward in about 919 and became the mother of two sons, Edmund I of England, later King Edmund I, and Eadred of England, later King Eadred, and two daughters, Saint Eadburh of Winchester and Eadgifu. She survived Edward by many years, dying in the reign of her grandson Edgar.  According to a narrative written in the early 960s, her father had given Cooling in Kent to a man called Goda as security for a loan. She claimed that her father had repaid the loan and left the land to her, but Goda denied receiving payment and refused to surrender the land. She got possession of Cooling six years after her father's death, when her friends persuaded King Edward to threaten to dispossess Goda of his property unless he gave up the estate. Edward later declared Goda's lands forfeit and gave the charters to Eadgifu, but she returned most of the estates to Goda, although retained the charters. Some time after this her marriage to Edward took place. After his death King Æthelstan required Eadgifu to return the charters to Goda, perhaps because the king was on bad terms with his stepmother.  She disappeared from court during the reign of her step-son, King Æthelstan, but she was prominent and influential during the reign of her two sons. As queen dowager, her position seem to have been higher than that of her daughter-in-law; In a Kentish charter datable between 942 and 944, her daughter-in-law Ælfgifu of Shaftesbury subscribes herself as the king's concubine ("concubina regis"), with a place assigned to her between the bishops and ealdormen. By comparison, Eadgifu subscribes higher up in the witness list as "mater regis", after her sons Edmund and Eadred but before the archbishops and bishops"."  Following the death of her younger son Eadred in 955, she was deprived of her lands by her eldest grandson, King Eadwig, perhaps because she took the side of his younger brother, Edgar, in the struggle between them. When Edgar succeeded on Eadwig's death in 959 she recovered some lands and received generous gifts from her grandson, but she never returned to her prominent position at court. She is last recorded as a witness to a charter in 966.  She was known as a supporter of saintly churchmen and a benefactor of churches.

Eadgifu of Kent (also Edgiva or Ediva) (in or before 903 – in or after 966) was the third wife of Edward the Elder, King of Wessex.


Early career.

Bloodrock initially formed in Fort Worth in 1963, under the name the Naturals. This first lineup featured Jim Rutledge – drums/vocals, Nick Taylor (1946-2010) – guitar/vocals, Ed Grundy – bass/vocals, and Dean Parks – guitar. They released their first single in 1965 "Hey Girl" b/w "I Want You" (Rebel MME 1003). Shortly thereafter they changed their name to Crowd + 1 and released three more singles: "Mary Ann Regrets” b/w "Whatcha Tryin’ to Do to Me" (BOX 6604), "Don’t Hold Back" b/w "Try," and "Circles" b/w “Most Peculiar Things."  In 1967, Parks left Crowd +1 to become the musical director for "The Sonny & Cher Show" (the beginning of a long career as a session musician). He was replaced by Lee Pickens on guitar. It was also at this time that Stevie Hill joined the group on keyboards and vocals. They continued as Crowd + 1 until 1969 when they changed their name to Bloodrock, conceived by Grand Funk Railroad manager/producer Terry Knight. They also recorded their first album under Knight, "Bloodrock" (Capitol ST-435). The album, released in March 1970, peaked at 160 on the "Billboard" 200 chart.  In 1970, Rutledge moved from behind the drum set to take on lead vocal duties exclusively. Rick Cobb took over the percussive duties and added his voice to the group as well. This lineup recorded their next four albums: "Bloodrock 2" (ST-491), "Bloodrock 3" (ST-765), "Bloodrock USA" (SMAS 645), and "Bloodrock Live" (SVBB-11038).  Bloodrock opened for Grand Funk on the 1970 tour.

"Bloodrock 2" and "D.O.A.".

"Bloodrock 2" was their most successful album peaking at number 21 on the "Billboard" Pop Album Chart in 1971, mostly on the strength of their single "D.O.A.", which reached number 36 on the "Billboard" Hot 100 chart on March 6, 1971. "D.O.A." also gave the band considerable regional exposure throughout the Southwest and West, particularly in Texas and Southern California. "D.O.A." was probably the band's most well-known and well-remembered single. However, some radio stations would not play the song because of the use of sirens. The concern was that the siren sound would confuse motorists.The motivation for writing this song was explained in 2005 by guitarist Lee Pickens. “When I was 17, I wanted to be an airline pilot,” Pickens said. “I had just gotten out of this airplane with a friend of mine, at this little airport, and I watched him take off. He went about 200 feet in the air, rolled and crashed.” The band decided to write a song around the incident and include it on their second album.

Style and personnel change.

In 1972 Lee Pickens left to form the Lee Pickens Group and released the album "LPG" in 1973 on Capitol Records. Jim Rutledge also left Bloodrock in 1972, later releasing a solo album in 1976 on Capitol Records titled "Hooray for Good Times". Bloodrock replaced Rutledge on vocals and guitar with Warren Ham on vocals, flute and saxophone. Stevie Hill on keyboards adjusted to Ham's presence by shifting his own style. These changes to personnel and style moved the hard rock sound of the band in a lighter direction, more toward progressive rock, pop and jazz, alienating some fans. The subsequent album, "Passage" was the last time Bloodrock visited the charts. It peaked at number 104 on the Billboard 200 in 1972.  1973 brought another personnel change: Rick Cobb vacated the drums to be replaced by Randy Reader. This line up recorded one album: "Whirlwind Tongues" (1974).  The end of the road for Bloodrock came in 1975. Randy Reader left the group and an album, "Unspoken Words", remained unreleased until 2000, when it was included as part of the CD release "Triptych" (along with "Passage" and "Whirlwind Tongues"). "Unspoken Words" featured Bill Ham (Warren's Brother) and Matt Betton.

2005 reunion concert.

A reunion concert featuring all five members of the original lineup (Jim Rutledge, Lee Pickens, Ed Grundy, Nick Taylor, and Stevie Hill), plus Chris Taylor (Nick's son) in place of drummer Rick Cobb III from the classic six-member lineup, was held on March 12, 2005, in Fort Worth, for the benefit of their keyboardist Stevie Hill, to help with medical costs related to his combating leukemia. The reunion concert was filmed and released on DVD. Stevie Hill died on September 12, 2013, from leukemia.

Music.

Bloodrock's music has been categorized primarily as hard rock. Bloodrock's 1970 self-titled debut album was described in the context of hard rock and early heavy metal by AllMusic's Donald A. Guarisco. "Bloodrock 2" was not as morbid and heavy, and more of a chart success, while "Bloodrock 3" and "Bloodrock U.S.A." saw the band introduce progressive rock elements. The band's 1972 personnel changes shifted them toward prog rock, jazz and pop music.

Bloodrock was an American rock band based in Fort Worth, Texas, that had success in the 1970s. The band emerged from the Fort Worth club and music scene during the early to mid-1970s.


History.

Evidence of prehistorical settlement in the area dates to the Bronze Age, and a number of ringforts, mounds, enclosures and wedge tombs are located in the parish.  In antiquity, the name of the village was Cappagh (that name still present in local townlands), chiefly on the west side of the river, and Ballyarilla on the east. The name Cappagh is an anglicized form of an Irish word meaning a cultivated field, while Ballyarilla is named after the castle that once stood before Mount Ievers Court was built. An ancient name of the river appears to be Raite, today anglicised into Ratty; as the river flows past Bunratty Castle into the Shannon Estuary, it is still known as the Ratty. Kilfinaghty seemed to always be the name of the parish of Sixmilebridge. The village was under the Lordship of Thomond, especially the McNamaras and the O'Briens. It is assumed that the original local lords were the O'Garneys, but there is little reference to them in the histories. It is possible that the O'Ahernes were also ruling lords at a different time.  Coolmeen Lake, located in a valley in the hills east of Sixmilebridge, played an important part in the 13th-century "Wars of Turlough". During the fighting, Lochlainn MacNamara and his nephew were given safe conduct by the Norman De Clares, their rivals, to enter their castle without being harmed. But that was merely a trap, and the Irish were captured, marched from the Bunratty Castle to Coolmeen Lake, and executed there. Soon after, the De Clares were defeated at the Battle of Dysert O'Dea. The lake has since enjoyed a somewhat sinister reputation, with numerous legends of monstrous eels, witch-hares, and bottomless pits associated with the lake.  Sixmilebridge played a part in the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland. The following passage is from "The History and Topography of the County of Clare", by James Frost: Immediately after Ludlow returned to Limerick, the Clare forces, under David Roche, son of Lord Fermoy, sent a message from Quin, by a woman, to Hugh O’Neill, Commander-in-Chief of the Garrison of Limerick, to the effect that they were about to come to his aid, and that they would wait at Sixmilebridge to learn from him how they could best render assistance. The woman was intercepted by the English at Thomondgate, and being conducted into the presence of one of their generals whom she was taught to believe to be O’Neill, she delivered her message. The information she possessed being extracted from the poor creature, they hanged her, "for fear of giving further intelligence", as they said.  The account goes on to tell that the garrison at Sixmilebridge were to move to Limerick when a light would be exhibited from "the mountain of Glenagross", i.e. Woodcock Hill, on 31 July. When the Cromwellian forces discovered this, they strengthened their garrison at Meelick Pass in response; in that time, the Pass would have been the main road to Limerick.  The main English lords of the area were the Ievers of Mount Ievers, the Butlers of Castlecrine, and the D'Esterres of Rossmanagher. All three of their houses (two of which have been demolished) are built on the site of earlier castles. After the Ievers came, building their seat on Ballyarilla Castle, that side of the river became known as Ieverstown, the other O'Brienstown. Sixmilebridge surpassed both these names in the 18th century.  The unusual English name of the village derives, as Thomas Dineley who visited Sixmilebridge in 1681, describes: From Bunratty, the seat of the Earl of Thomond, into the town of Sixmilebridge, belonging also to that noble family, is 3 miles; from whence to the city of Limerick, to which are two ways, namely by the oil mills and the seat of the McNamaras beyond it, or over the high mountain, famous for its admirable prospect, hanging as it were over Sixmilebridge town and commonly known as Gallows Hill; this is the upper, the other the lower way to Limerick and from town to the city six miles either way, whence the town hath its name. The original village grew up around a crossing place on the O'Garney River. By the end of the 17th century development was tied to the industrialisation of the area as people of Dutch origin found the river very suitable for milling. This ended abruptly with the building of a toll bridge on the river by Henry D'Esterre (Ó Dálaigh 2004). D'Esterre's construction gained a profit from people crossing the river but halted the trading done with Holland.  According to local tradition, the famous duel between Daniel O'Connell and a member of the D'Esterre family in February 1815 arose from O'Connell's refusal to pay the toll. This conflicts with the conventional account of the duel. D'Esterre lost his life, but the toll bridge survived and remains standing to this day.

1852 election affray.

On 22 July 1852, a magistrate and eight soldiers of the 31st Regiment escorted 18 tenants of the Marquess of Conyngham to Sixmilebridge to vote for Colonel Vandeleur in the Clare county constituency at the general election. Vandeleur was a Conservative opposed to tenants' rights. A crowd of protesters, including two Catholic priests, was gathered near the ballot office, and an affray began between them and the voters' party. Soldiers opened fire, without the Riot Act having been read. Six people were killed at the scene and eight wounded, one of whom later died. At the coroner's inquest, the jury returned a verdict of murder; this was overturned by the Attorney-General for Ireland. An article in the "Anglo-Celt" accused the regiment of "willful and deliberate murder", and the editor was jailed for libel. The affair was discussed at Westminster, where Conservative members demanded the priests be prosecuted for incitement. The events generated lingering bitterness and tension.

Parishes and churches.

In 1837, the town was split between the Church of Ireland parishes of Kilfentinan and Kilfinaghty while the Roman Catholic parish of Sixmilebridge was a union of the Kilmurry-Negaul, Kilfinaghta and Feenagh parishes.  The church of St. Finnachta was built in 1812 in Sixmilebridge, a thatched building with a mud floor. In 1980 the building was reconstructed and considerably enlarged. This is the only church in use in the Catholic parish of Sixmilebridge, which is in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Killaloe. The Little Church, of Cratloe Parish, on the Limerick Road, is part of the Diocese of Limerick. It is less than away from St. Finnachta's.  The former Church of Ireland (Anglican) building on Church Street, Kilfinaghty Church, is now used as the local branch of Clare County Library.  Arguably the oldest church in the parish is that of Ballysheen, reputedly built in the 12th century by Saint Finaghta. It is in a poor state, with two of the four walls still standing. Its surrounding graveyard is still a popular burial place for people of the parish.  Feenagh church, southwest of Sixmilebridge, is also a very old church. Feenagh was once a separate parish to Kilfinaghta.

Tourism.

The Sixmilebridge Winter Music Weekend is an annual festival, held in January, which has run since 2000. It was established by the Sixmilebridge Folk Club. It hosts a range of singers, instrumentalists, dancers and storytellers in a variety of musical styles.  A decorated 'duck inn' on the O'Garney River is occupied by a thriving population of ducks. The 'duck inn' is a floating raft with glass windows and painted walls. It houses the ducks during winter and is also where their locally consumed eggs are hatched and collected. It forms part of the tourist trail of Sixmilebridge.

Societies.

Clubs and groups in Sixmilebridge include the local Tidy Towns committee, a youth club, the Sixmilebridge Variety Group, and the Bridge Complex.

Education.

There are two primary schools in the Sixmilebridge Parish, namely Sixmilebridge National School and Kilmurry National School. For secondary education, students go to schools in Limerick, Shannon, Ennis and Tulla.

Sports.

Gaelic games.

Sports are prominent in the area with locals partaking in hurling and soccer. The local GAA club is Sixmilebridge GAA and gets its players from the Sixmilebridge and Kilmurry area. The club was formed in 1904 mainly as a Gaelic football club, but also played hurling, the sport that is now most associated with the club. The land used was donated to the GAA by the Casey family. Nowadays the club participates at hurling, camogie and scór. The club is well known for its hurling and many players from there have represented their county with some having won the Munster and All-Ireland Hurling championships with Clare at Senior, Junior and Minor levels. The club also won an All-Ireland club title (becoming the first team from Clare to have won it) on 17 March (St. Patrick's day) 1996.

Football.

The local soccer (football) club is called Bridge United AFC. The club was formed in 1967. They have enjoyed success, with some players receiving trials with professional clubs in England down through the years. They won the Clare and District Soccer League Premier Division title in the 1972/73 season. They have since repeated that feat twice, in 2002/03 and 2005/06, respectively.

Other sports.

There is a pitch and putt and nine-hole golf course at Kilmurry, Sixmilebridge, which is open year-round.  There are a number of sport societies and clubs in the area which cater to Sixmilebridge and District. There is the Kilmurry Community Games, Sixmilebridge Golf Society, Bridge Milers Olympic Harriers Athletic Club {BMOH AC}, Tradaree Coursing Club, Sixmilebridge Gun Club and Kilmurry Gun Club.

Angling.

As well as the river, there are many lakes in the area such as Mountcashel lake and these waters provide a chance to catch coarse pike, bream and roach. Game fish such as trout and salmon can also be caught in the river but certain laws and rules apply. The Sixmilebridge Angling Club maintains and protects fish levels and angling throughout the Owen O'Garney River system.

Transport.

The Limerick–Athenry railway line passes through the village. Sixmilebridge railway station opened on 17 January 1859 and finally closed on 17 June 1963. It was reopened on 29 March 2010 as part of the reopening of the Western Rail Corridor.

Sixmilebridge (), colloquially The Bridge, is a small town in County Clare, Ireland. Located midway between Ennis and Limerick city, the town is a short distance away from the main N18 road, being located on the old "back road" between the two. The village of Kilmurry () is also part of the Sixmilebridge parish.


Design.

In January 1972, Saudi Arabia signed an agreement with the United States to set up a 10-year programme to greatly enlarge the Saudi Navy, previously a small coastal patrol force. The programme envisaged the construction in the United States of a series of corvettes as well as other warships such as minesweepers and amphibious warfare ships. As part of this programme, on 30 August 1977, an order was placed with the Tacoma Boatbuilding Company of Tacoma, Washington for 4 missile-armed corvettes, with delivery expected between 1980 and 1981.  The four ships, at first known by the US-Navy style designation of "PCG", and later as the "Badr"-class, are long overall, with a beam of and a draught of. Displacement was intended as, but the ships were completed significantly overweight, and were recorded as displacing standard and full load in 1995. They are powered by one General Electric LM2500 gas turbine rated at and two MTU 12V625 TB91 diesel engines (rated at a total of ) in a Combined Diesel and Gas (CODAG) arrangement, driving two controllable pitch propellers. This gives a maximum speed of when using the gas turbine and on the diesels. The ships have a range of at.  Principal anti-ship armament consists of eight Harpoon anti-ship missiles, with a gun armament of a single OTO Melara 76 mm gun forward, one Vulcan Phalanx close-in weapon system (CIWS) aft, two Oerlikon 20 mm cannon, an 81 mm mortar, and two 40 mm Mk 19 grenade launchers. Anti-submarine armament consisted of two triple Mark 32 Surface Vessel Torpedo Tubes for Mark 46 torpedoes. SPS-40B air search radar and SPS-55 navigation/surface search radars are carried, while a Mark 92 fire control radar is fitted above the ship's bridges. SQS-55 hull mounted sonar is carried to direct the ships' torpedo tubes.

The "Badr" class is a class of corvette built by the United States and operated by the Saudi Navy. The class has been relegated to a coastal defence role following the modernisation of the Saudi fleet. There are four vessels in service;,, and.


Competition history.

Keflavík have played in the Icelandic football league since 1956. The team has also taken part in every year of the Icelandic FA Cup as well as several minor competitions, including the League Cup. Keflavík has played in all the major European competitions, the European Cup, the UEFA Cup, the Cup Winners ́ Cup and the Intertoto Cup.

League history.

1956–57: Division 2
 1958–60: Division 1
 1961–62: Division 2
 1963–80: Division 1
 1981: Division 2
 1982–89: Division 1
  1990–92: Division 2
 1993–02: Division 1 (Renamed Premier League in 1997)
 2003: Division 1
 2004–15: Premier League
 2016–17: Division 1
 2018–: Premier League
 Keflavík first played league football when the team joined the newly formed second division in 1956. Keflavík was promoted in 1957 and played in the top flight from 1958–60. The team returned to the second division in 1961 but were promoted again the following year. After narrowly avoiding relegation in 1963 Keflavík won its first title in 1964. The team also won the title in 1969, 1971 and 1973. Since then the team has mostly played in Iceland's top division, Úrvalsdeild, with four spells in the second tier (1981, 1990–92, 2003 and 2016-17.)

Cup history.

The Icelandic FA Cup was established in 1960 and Keflavík entered from the beginning. The team's first cup game ended in a 0–6 defeat by ÍA. Keflavík reached the semi-final of the competition the next three years and had reached seven semis before playing for the first time in the final in 1973. That game ended in a 1–2 defeat by Fram. In 1975 Keflavík won the cup for the first time, beating ÍA by a single goal. The team reached the final again in 1982, 1985, 1988 and 1993 but lost each time. The duck was broken in 1997 when ÍBV were beaten in a penalty-shootout in a replay. Keflavík won the FA Cup again in 2004 and 2006, first by beating KA 3–0 and then KR 2–0.

European history.

Keflavík played its first European game in 1965 after becoming champions the previous year. The team were drawn against Hungarian side Ferencváros in the European Cup. The Hungarians won 9–1 and 4–1 for a 13–2 aggregate win. In the early 1970s Keflavík were the envy of other Icelandic teams when they were drawn against several top sides, including Everton in 1970, Tottenham Hotspur in 1971 and Real Madrid in 1972. Keflavík's first win in European competition came against Swedish side Kalmar FF in the 1979–80 UEFA Cup. Keflavík won the home match 1–0 and progressed to the second round for the first time, winning on away goals. Keflavík played in the UEFA Europa League in 2009–10 after finishing 2nd in the Icelandic Premier League in 2008 and lost to Maltese club Valletta with the aggregate favoring the Maltese 5–2.

Team colours.

The Keflavík football team originally played in black shirts and white shorts. In 1973, the team changed its strip to yellow shirts and blue shorts. One reason given for the change was the memory of the team's first European away match, against Ferencváros in Budapest. The Keflavík players were playing in floodlights for the first time and had trouble spotting each other in their black shirts.  In 2014 through 2016 Keflavik played in black and white home jerseys and an all-white away jersey in honor of their 100th anniversary.

Player records.

"All current players are in bold.

Knattspyrnudeild Keflavíkur is an Icelandic football team, commonly known as Keflavík. It is a subdivision of Keflavík ÍF (Keflavík, íþrótta- og ungmennafélag), based in the town of Reykjanesbær in Iceland. They play at Nettó-völlur in Keflavík.


Early life.

Mitchell was born in Southport in Lancashire (now Merseyside), England, and raised in Malvern, Worcestershire. He was educated at Hanley Castle High School and at the University of Kent, where he obtained a degree in English and American Literature followed by an M.A. in Comparative Literature.  Mitchell lived in Sicily for a year, then moved to Hiroshima, Japan, where he taught English to technical students for eight years, before returning to England, where he could live on his earnings as a writer and support his pregnant wife.

Work.

Mitchell's first novel, "Ghostwritten" (1999), moves around the globe, from Okinawa to Mongolia to pre-Millennial New York City, as nine narrators tell stories that interlock and intersect. The novel won the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize (for best work of British literature written by an author under 35) and was shortlisted for the Guardian First Book Award. His two subsequent novels, "number9dream" (2001) and "Cloud Atlas" (2004), were both shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize. In 2003, he was selected as one of Granta's Best of Young British Novelists. In 2007, Mitchell was listed among "Time" magazine's 100 Most Influential People in The World.  In 2012 his novel "Cloud Atlas" was made into a film. One segment of "number9dream" was made into a BAFTA-nominated short film in 2013 starring Martin Freeman, titled "The Voorman Problem". In recent years he has also written opera libretti. "Wake", based on the 2000 Enschede fireworks disaster and with music by Klaas de Vries, was performed by the Dutch Nationale Reisopera in 2010. He has also finished another opera, "Sunken Garden", with the Dutch composer Michel van der Aa, which premiered in 2013 by the English National Opera.  Several of Mitchell's book covers were created by design duo Kai and Sunny. Mitchell has also collaborated with the duo, by contributing two short stories to their art exhibits in 2011 and 2014.  Mitchell's sixth novel, "The Bone Clocks", was published on 2 September 2014. In an interview in "The Spectator", Mitchell said that the novel has "dollops of the fantastic in it", and is about "stuff between life and death". "The Bone Clocks" was longlisted for the 2014 Man Booker Prize.  Mitchell was the second author to contribute to the Future Library project and delivered his book "From Me Flows What You Call Time" on 28 May 2016.  "Utopia Avenue", Mitchell's ninth novel, will be published by Hodder & Stoughton on 14 July 2020.

Other works.

In 2015, Mitchell contributed plotting and scripted scenes for the second season of the Netflix show "Sense8" by the Wachowskis, who had adapted his novel "Cloud Atlas" into film. Mitchell had signed a contract to write season three before Netflix cancelled the show. He wrote the series finale special with Lana Wachowski and Aleksandar Hemon.  In August 2019, it was announced that Mitchell would continue his collaboration with Lana Wachowski and Hemon on the fourth film in "The Matrix" series, writing the screenplay with them.

Personal life.

After another stint in Japan, Mitchell currently lives with his wife, Keiko Yoshida, and their two children in Ardfield, Clonakilty in County Cork, Ireland. In an essay for Random House, Mitchell wrote: "I knew I wanted to be a writer since I was a kid, but until I came to Japan to live in 1994 I was too easily distracted to do much about it. I would probably have become a writer wherever I lived, but would I have become the same writer if I'd spent the last six years in London, or Cape Town, or Moose Jaw, on an oil rig or in the circus? This is my answer to myself."  Mitchell has the speech disorder of stammering and considers the film "The King's Speech" (2010) to be one of the most accurate portrayals of what it's like to be a stammerer: "I'd probably still be avoiding the subject today had I not outed myself by writing a semi-autobiographical novel, "Black Swan Green", narrated by a stammering 13-year-old." Mitchell is also a patron of the British Stammering Association.  Mitchell's son has autism. In 2013 he and his wife Keiko Yoshida translated a book which they claimed was written by Naoki Higashida, a 13-year-old Japanese boy with autism, titled "". In 2017, Mitchell and his wife translated the follow-up book which they also claimed was written by Higashida, "Fall Down 7 Times Get Up 8: A Young Man's Voice from the Silence of Autism". Researchers are doubtful that he wrote the book himself, with psychologist Jens Hellman claiming that Higashida's accounts "resemble what I would deem very close to an autistic child’s parents' dream".

Facilitated communication controversy.

Mitchell has translated the novels "The Reason I Jump" and "Fall Down 7 Times Get Up 8" from Japanese to English, which are credited to, a severely autistic Japanese individual. Researchers have doubted that Mitchell should give Higashida credit with writing the original Japanese versions, as those works were done through facilitated communication, which is scientifically debunked. Writing for "In-Mind", psychologist Jens Hellman is also skeptical that Higashida should get credit, claiming that Higashida's accounts "resemble what I would deem very close to an autistic child’s parents' dream". Higashida can speak but can only repeat certain phrases. Some sources have mistakenly claimed that he is mute.  Michael Fitzpatrick, a medical writer known for writing about controversies in autism from the perspective of someone who is both a physician and a parent of a child with autism, said some skepticism of how much Higashida contributed to the book was justified because of the "scant explanation" of the process Higashida's mother used for helping him write using the character grid and expressed concern that the book "reinforces more myths than it challenges". Fitzpatrick also disagrees with Mitchell's claim that this book will make parents of severely autistic children feel better, as he reinforces the myth that most severely autistic individuals have significant hidden potential.  Sallie Tisdale, writing for "The New York Times", said the book raised questions about autism, but also about translation and she wondered how much the work was influenced by the three adults (Higashida's mother, Yoshida, and Mitchell) involved in translating the book and their experiences as parents of autistic children. She concluded, "We have to be careful about turning what we find into what we want."  Mitchell has claimed in response to skeptics that there are videos of Higashida typing independently; however, Dr. Deborah Fein and Dr. Yoko Kamio claim that in one video where he is featured, his mother is constantly guiding his arm. Others, including Dr. Temple Grandin who is an autistic person writing for a National Institutes of Health journal, is "confident that Naoki... was not using the controversial method of facilitated communication, in which a person supports the wrist of the nonverbal person with autism."

List of works.

Novels  Short stories  Articles  Libretto  Other

David Stephen Mitchell (born 12 January 1969) is an English novelist and screenwriter. He has published seven novels, two of which, "number9dream" (2001) and "Cloud Atlas" (2004), were shortlisted for the Booker Prize. He has also written articles for several newspapers, most notably for "The Guardian", and translated several books about autism from Japanese to English.


Format.

Each year begins with "Blind Selections," where coaches compose their team of singers (14 in the first year, 12 in the second) with whom they will work during the competition. The coach is facing the back of the contestant in the chair, if the coach likes the show, he presses the "I want you" button and the chair immediately turns towards the contestant with the shining sign I want you to. After being cheered, the competitor is automatically assigned to the team of the coach who chose him. If more coaches have turned, the singer chooses himself to which team he will go.  The next part of the competition is "duels." Each coach will form in his team two couples who will compete in a duel and sing one common song. The coach then decides whom to keep in his team. In the first year, the coaches invited their mentor to help them in their decisions (Linda Fink, Vašo Patejdl, Tonya Graves and Tomi Popovič). Since the second year, a new element of theft has been introduced, when a disqualified competitor could take another coach to the team and save him from falling out.  The new part from the second row is "K.O." Team contestants are here again divided into pairs, but each singers sing their song. The coach decides who else to send and who will end up in the competition.  At the final stage of the Live Transmission Competition, the singers sing other songs each week, and the competitor leaves the contest for a week until the winner of the contest is announced. Their audience decides about their fate using SMS votes. The competition leaves the contestants with the smallest number of votes from each team. In the first year each week was dedicated to only two teams separately, so after 14 days each competitor left each competition from each team. Fourteen days before the final, each team participated each week. Progress was made by the competitor with the highest number of points he could get by the number of votes and points from the coach. In each team, the number of votes cast by the spectators was converted to a percentage, and then the points were scored by the coach who had a total of 100 and had to divide them between two contestants from his team. In the second year, this principle was no longer used, with four teams playing every week, and only viewers were taking their decision.

Coaches and hosts.

Coaches' teams.

Color key:

Series overview.

Colour key

The Voice Česko Slovensko (Czech and Slovak for "The Czech / Slovak Voice", literally "The Voice of Czecho Slovakia", previously Hlas Česko Slovenska) is a reality singing competition and version of The Voice of Holland for Czech Republic and Slovakia. It is broadcast on TV Nova in Czech Republic and TV Markíza in Slovakia, both stations are owned by CME. It is derived from the original The Voice of Holland. The concept of the competition consists of searching for singer talents (from the second row and duets) over 16 years of age in public casting. The winner is later determined on the basis of a voting vote by SMS, which receives financial rewards and the ability to upload his own album.


History.

1980s.

The inaugural members of the Premier Division included the League of Ireland's traditional top four clubs – Shamrock Rovers, Shelbourne, Bohemians and Dundalk plus eight other clubs. Shamrock Rovers were the inaugural champions and then retained the title in 1986–87. This saw Rovers complete a four in a row of league titles. Dundalk were champions in 1987–88 and Derry City achieved a treble in 1988–89 by also winning the League of Ireland Cup and the FAI Cup.

1990s.

The 1990s saw the re-emergence of St Patrick's Athletic following years of obscurity. During the decade St Pat's won four titles. Brian Kerr guided the club to success in 1989–90 and 1995–96 before Pat Dolan and Liam Buckley added further titles in 1997–98 and 1998–99. The 1992–93 season saw Cork City win their first title in dramatic circumstances after a series of three-way play-offs that also involved Bohemians and Shelbourne.

2000s.

The turn of the century saw Shelbourne win the first of five titles in seven years. Dermot Keely guided Shelbourne to the title in 1999–2000 and 2001–02. Shelbourne won the title in controversial circumstances in 2001–02. They were only declared champions after St Patrick's Athletic were deducted 15 points for fielding Charles Livingstone Mbabazi while he was ineligible.  The league decided to become a summer league in 2003. Pat Fenlon added further titles in 2003, 2004 and 2006. Fenlon had also been a prominent member of the Shelbourne playing squads in 1999–2000 and 2001–02. As a manager Fenlon would also guide Bohemians to title successes in 2008 and 2009. Cork City denied Shelbourne a third league title in a row when they claimed their second title in 2005, defeating fellow challengers Derry City in a last game decider at Turners Cross.  During the second half of the decade a number of Premier Division clubs suffered financial difficulties. During the 2005 season Shamrock Rovers entered into examinership and it was revealed that the club had debts of nearly €3 million. It was also discovered that Rovers were not paying PAYE and PRSI taxes. As a result of these financial irregularities, Rovers were deducted eight points. This ultimately resulted in the club being relegated to the First Division after they lost the relegation/promotion playoff to Dublin City. This was the first time Rovers' senior team had dropped out of the top level of the Republic of Ireland football league system since the club had joined the League of Ireland in 1922–23. During the 2006 season the Revenue Commissioners took High Court action and threatened to have Shelbourne wound up after the club failed to pay more than €104,000 in outstanding taxes. Shelbourne also struggled to pay its players during the season. Despite winning the title Shelbourne were subsequently demoted to the First Division due to their financial difficulties. Midway through the season Dublin City also went out of business and withdrew from the league, unable to complete the season. During the 2008 season both Cork City and Drogheda United were deducted ten points after going into administration. Following the conclusion of the 2009 season both Derry City and Cork City were expelled from the League of Ireland. Derry City were accused of making extra payments to players using unofficial secondary contracts. This was against league rules which placed limits on the amount clubs could spend on players' wages. Cork City had been in serious financial difficulties for several seasons and its holding company was eventually wound up by the High Court. However both clubs were effectively reformed and were subsequently allowed to join the 2010 First Division.

2010s.

The 2010s have been one of contrasting fortunes for Premier Division clubs. Under Michael O'Neill, Shamrock Rovers finished as Premier Division champions in 2010 and 2011. In 2011 Rovers also created history when they became the first team in League of Ireland history to qualify for the group stages of the UEFA Europa League. In 2012 Sligo Rovers won their first Premier Division title and their first top level title in thirty five years. St. Patrick's Athletic won their fifth Premier Division in 2013. Under Stephen Kenny, Dundalk emulated Shamrock Rovers, winning the title in 2014 and 2015 titles before qualifying for the group stages of the 2016–17 UEFA Europa League.  In contrast three Premier Division clubs – Sporting Fingal, Galway United and Monaghan United – all withdrew from the League of Ireland. Sporting Fingal also went out of business completely.

Europe.

The top team in the Premier Division currently qualifies for the UEFA Champions League second qualifying round. The second-placed and third placed-teams and winners of the FAI Cup qualify for the UEFA Europa League first qualifying round. Shamrock Rovers and Dundalk have both qualified for the group stages of the UEFA Europa League. In 2011, Rovers became the first team in League of Ireland history to reach the group stages and Dundalk repeated the feat in 2016. In 2018, UEFA changed the structure of qualification for the Champions League; giving an extra four automatic qualification spots to the top four leagues in Europe. To compensate for that change, an extra round was added to the qualifying stages of the Champions League and the Europa League which made qualification more difficult for League of Ireland clubs. In 2021, the league will have its Europa League qualifying places revoked and replaced by Europa Conference League places as part of UEFA's restructuring of European football.  The League of Ireland Premier Division's UEFA coefficient accumulates to a total value of 5.125 as of September 2013. Between 1998 and 2010, the league's place on the coefficient table rose 15 places, the biggest climb of any league in Europe. Its position of 29th in 2010 was also its highest since 1986. Since June 2010, the league's ranking has declined and it stood at 43rd place at the end of the 2013/2014 season, a drop of 14 places since 2010 and the league's worst ranking since 1998. In the 2000s, the Premier Division's coefficient vastly improved relative to the late 1990s, but at a cost. The introduction of full-time professional football by a number of clubs and the league's decision to become a summer league in 2003, improved the performance of Premier Division clubs in Europe. Increased fitness levels resulted from both, while full-time professionalism retained Irish players within the league, attracted foreign players to the league and generally improved the standard of football. At least one League of Ireland club has progressed to the next round of a European competition in every season from 2003 to 2014.  However, the costs associated with professional football and the pursuit of European success have been blamed for the financial difficulties suffered by Premier Division clubs. This period of improvement came to an end in 2010 with the league's ranking dropping. From 29th in 2010, it dropped to 31st in 2011, 33rd in 2012, 36th in 2013 and 43rd for the 2014 rankings. The league recovered to 40th for the 2015 rankings and finished 41st in the 2016 rankings.

Promotion and relegation.

A promotion and relegation system has existed between the League of Ireland Premier Division and the League of Ireland First Division since 1985–86. In 1992–93 a promotion/relegation play-off was also introduced. In 2008 Cobh Ramblers were relegated directly from the Premier Division to the 2009 A Championship after they failed to obtain a First Division license. In 2017, to even up the numbers of clubs in the Premier Division and First Division, the bottom three Premier League teams (25% of the current roster) were relegated and "only" the First Division champion were promoted. For 2018, this leaves each division with 10 teams, as opposed to 12 in the Premier Division and 8 in First Division previously. In 2018 the bottom team will be relegated and the ninth-placed team will take part in a relegation play-off.

Managers.

Current managers.

The Premier Division's longest current reigning manager is Ollie Horgan, who has remained in his position at Finn Harps since March 2014.

Trophy.

The current League of Ireland trophy was unveiled on 31 October 2007 by the Football Association of Ireland. It stands at 91 cm (36 inches) tall with a circumference of 83 cm (33 inches). It is a Sterling Silver trophy consisting of silver and a mass of other metals including copper. The design of the trophy consists of a silver football at the top, which is encompassed by the cup itself. Drogheda United were the first team to receive the newly created trophy on 2 November 2007.

Sponsorship.

The Premier Division has been sponsored since the early 1990s. The sponsor has been able to determine the league's sponsorship name. There have been three sponsors since the league's formation.  The league had no title sponsor in 2009, but had a number of secondary sponsors including Newstalk and Electronic Arts. As well as sponsorship for the league itself, the Premier Division has a number of official partners and suppliers. The official ball supplier for the league is Umbro. The official drink for the league is Lucozade. The official radio and newspaper partners are Newstalk and "Irish Daily Star".

The League of Ireland Premier Division (), also known as the SSE Airtricity League Premier Division, is the top level division in both the League of Ireland and the Republic of Ireland football league system. The division was formed in 1985 following a reorganisation of the League of Ireland. St. Patrick's Athletic and Bohemians are the only current League of Ireland clubs never to have been relegated from the Premier Division. Since 2003 the Premier Division has operated as a summer league.


Biography.

Early life.

Salif Keita was born a traditional prince in the village of Djoliba. He was cast out by his family and ostracized by the community because of his albinism, a sign of bad luck in Mandinka culture. In 1967, he left Djoliba for Bamako, where he joined the government-sponsored Super Rail Band de Bamako. In 1973 Keita joined the group, Les Ambassadeurs. Keita and Les Ambassadeurs fled political unrest in Mali during the mid-1970s for Abidjan, Ivory Coast, and subsequently changed the group's name to "Les Ambassadeurs Internationaux". The reputation of Les Ambassadeurs Internationaux rose to the international level in the 1970s, and in 1977 Keita received a National Order award from the president of Guinea, Sékou Touré.  He is the father of Paralympian athlete Nantenin Keita.

Career.

Keita moved to Paris in 1984 to reach a larger audience. His music combines traditional West African music styles with influences from both Europe and the Americas.  Although Keita was famous in Africa and had achieved a strong fan base among connoisseurs around the world, in 1987, "Soro" became his international-breakthrough album. The project was produced by Ibrahima Sylla, a visionary who had already discovered dozens of African stars (and would later become the driving force behind Africando). The arrangements feature the roiling rhythms, slightly nasal female backup choirs, and traditional percussion typical of Malian music.  Musical instruments that are commonly featured in Keita's work include balafons, djembes, guitars, koras, organs, saxophones, and synthesizers. He performed at the Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute concert in 1988 to call for Nelson Mandela's release from prison. In 1990, Keita contributed "Begin the Beguine" to the Cole Porter tribute/AIDS benefit album "Red Hot + Blue", produced by the Red Hot Organization.  Keita found success in Europe as one of the African stars of world music, but his work was sometimes criticised for the gloss of its production and for the occasional haphazard quality. However, shortly after the turn of the millennium he returned to Bamako in Mali to live and record. His first work after going home, 2002's "Moffou", was hailed as his best album in many years, and Keita was inspired to build a recording studio in Bamako, which he used for his album "M'Bemba", released in October 2005.  Guest artists on his albums have included Weather Report founders Joe Zawinul and Wayne Shorter, drummer Paco Sery, guitarist Carlos Santana, and percussionist Bill Summers.  Keita's album "La Différence" was produced around the end of 2009. The work is dedicated to the struggle of the world albino community (victims of human sacrifice), for which Keita has been crusading all his life. In one of the album's tracks, the singer calls others to understand that "difference" does not mean "bad" and to show love and compassion towards albinos like everyone else: "I am black/ my skin is white/ so I am white and my blood is black [albino]/...I love that because it is a difference that's beautiful", "some of us are beautiful some are not/some are black some are white/all that difference was on purpose...for us to complete each other/let everyone get his love and dignity/the world will be beautiful."  "La Différence" was recorded between Bamako, Beirut, Paris, and Los Angeles. This unique musical feel is reinforced by soulful pitches in the track "Samigna" emanating from the trumpet of the great Lebanese jazzman Ibrahim Maalouf.  In 2001, Keita's song "Tomorrow" was featured in the Will Smith film Ali.  "La Différence" won Keita one of the biggest musical awards of his career: the Best World Music 2010 at the Victoires de la musique.  In 2013, after what he described as "threats" from the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign, he cancelled a performance in Israel. He later published a letter on his Facebook page, stating that he decided to cancel the event because he was scared of "being harmed personally or professionally", but clarified that he still "love[d] Israel", slamming BDS as an "extremist group" who used "scare tactics and bullying".  In late October 2017, it was announced that Salif Keita will release a new album "soon".  In November 2018 he announced his retirement from recording. This was at a concert in Fana, Mali. The album 'Un Autre Blanc',which was released at the concert would be his last.  Many compilations are available as well

Salif Keïta () (born August 25, 1949) is an afro-pop singer-songwriter from Mali. He is notable not only because of his reputation as the "Golden Voice of Africa" but also because he has albinism. He is a member of the Keita royal family of Mali.