Slash-and-burn is an agricultural technique which involves cutting and burning of forests or woodlands to create fields. It is typically part of shifting cultivation agriculture, and of transhumance livestock herding. Slash-and-burn agriculture typically uses little technology and other tools, and is almost always done for subsistence activity. It is also commonly called swidden agriculture. Most slash-and-burn agriculture is subsistence agriculture done by farmers who plant crops and raise crops for local consumption. Very little land cleared using labor-intensive slash-and-burn methods is sold for market; rather what is grown are usually consumed on the farm.

In slash-and-burn agriculture, forest will typically be cut months before an dry season. The "slash" is permitted to dry, and then burned in the following dry season. The resulting ash fertilizes the soil, and the burned field is then planted at the beginning of the next rainy season with crop such as upland rice, maize, cassava, or other staple crop. Most of this work is typically done by hand, using machetes, axes, hoes, and other such basic tools.

Slash-and-burn fields will typically be used and "owned" by a family until the soil is exhausted. At this point the "ownership" rights are abandoned, and the family will clear a new field, and the forest is permitted to grow on the old field. After a few decades, another family or clan may then use the land and claim usufructuary rights. In such a system there is typically no market in farmland, and land is not bought and sold in the open market. Such rights are "traditional."

Historically, slash-and-burn cultivation was practiced throughout much of the world, in grasslands as well as woodlands. In regions which industrialized, including Europe and North America, the practice was abandoned over the past few centuries as market agriculture was introduced, and land came to be owned. For example, slash-and-burn agriculture was initially practiced by European pioneers in North America like Daniel Boone and his family who cleared land in the Appalachian Mountains in the late 18th and early 19th Centuries. However, the land of such slash-and-burn farmers was eventually taken over by modern systems of land tenure which focus on the long-term improvement of farmland, and discourage the older subsistence practices associated with slash-and-burn agriculture.

Today the term "slash-and-burn" is mainly associated with tropical rain forests. Slash-and-burn techniques are used by between 200 and 500 million people worldwide.

Older English terms for slash-and-burn include assarting and fire-fallow cultivation.

Slash-and-burn is a specific functional element of certain farming practices, often shifting cultivation systems. In some cases such as parts of Madagascar, as well as many other places, slash-and-burn may have no cyclical aspects (''e.g.'', slash-and-burn activities can render soils incapable of further yields for decades), or may be practiced on its own as a single cycle farming activity with no follow on cropping cycle. Shifting cultivation normally implies the existence of a cropping cycle component, where as slash-and-burn actions may or may not be followed by cropping. Slash-and-burn is typically a type of subsistence agriculture, and not focused by the need to sell crops in world markets. Rather, planting decisions are made in the context of needs of the family or clan for the coming year.

Historical background

During the Neolithic Revolution, which included agricultural advancements, groups of hunter-gatherers domesticated various plants and animals, permitting them to settle down and practice agriculture which provides more nutrition per hectare than hunting and gathering. This happened in the river valleys of Egypt and Mesopotamia. Due to this decrease in food from hunting as human populations increased, agriculture became more important. Some groups could easily plant their seeds in open fields along river valleys, but others had forests blocking their farming land. In this context, humans used slash-and-burn agriculture to clear more land, and make it suitable for their plants and animals. Thus, since Neolithic times, slash-and-burn techniques have been widely used for converting forests into crop fields and pasture. Fire was used before the Neolithic as well, and by hunter-gatherers up to present times. Clearings created by fire were made for many reasons, such as to draw game animals and to promote certain kinds of edible plants such as berries.

Ecological implications

Although a dilemma for overpopulated tropical countries where subsistence agriculture may be the traditional method of sustaining many families, the consequences of slash-and-burn techniques for ecosystems are almost always destructive. This happens particularly as population densities increase, and as a result farming becomes more intensively practiced. This is because as demand for more land increases, the fallow period by necessity declines. The principal vulnerability is the nutrient-poor soil, pervasive in most tropical forests. When biomass is extracted even for one harvest of wood or charcoal, the residual soil value is heavily diminished for further growth of any type of vegetation. Sometimes there are several cycles of slash-and-burn within a few years time span; for example in eastern Madagascar the following scenario occurs commonly. The first wave might be cutting of all trees for wood use. A few years later, saplings are harvested to make charcoal, and within the next year the plot is burned to create a quick flush of nutrients for grass to feed the family zebu cattle. If adjacent plots are treated in a similar fashion, large-scale erosion will usually ensue, since there are no roots or temporary water storage in nearby canopies to arrest the surface runoff. Thus, any small remaining amounts of nutrients are washed away. The area is an example of desertification, and no further growth of any type may arise for generations.

The ecological ramifications of the above scenario are further magnified, because tropical forests are habitats for extremely biologically diverse ecosystems, typically containing large numbers of endemic and endangered species. Therefore, the role of slash-and-burn is significant in the current Holocene extinction.

Slash-and-char is an alternative that alleviates some of the negative ecological implications of traditional slash-and-burn techniques.

References

Bibliography

Category:Agriculture Category:Environmental issues with forests Category:Tropical agriculture

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:''For the English sportsman, see Grahame Parker.''

name	Graham Parker
background	solo_singer
born	November 18, 1950London, England
instrument	Guitar
genre	Rock, new wave, pub rock, soul, rhythm and blues
occupation	Singer, songwriter, musician, writer
years active	1970s–present
label	Arista, Bloodshot, Buy or Die, Capitol, Dakota Arts, Demon, Elektra, Hannibal, Hip-O, Mercury, Razor & Tie, RCA, Rebound, Rock the House, UpYours, Vertigo Canada & UK, Windsong UK
associated acts	The Rumour, The Figgs
website	grahamparker.net }}

Graham Parker (born 18 November 1950, London, England) is a British rock singer and songwriter, who is best known as the lead singer of the popular British band Graham Parker & the Rumour.

Biography

Early career (1960s–1976)

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Parker sang in small-time English bands such as the Black Rockers and Deep Cut Three while working in dead-end jobs like a glove factory and a petrol station. In 1975, he recorded a few demo tracks in London with Dave Robinson, who would shortly found Stiff Records and who connected Parker with his first backing band of note, The Rumour. Parker had one track, "Back to Schooldays", released on the compilation album, ''A Bunch of Stiff Records'' for Stiff Records.

In the summer of 1975, Parker joined forces with ex-members of three British pub-rock bands to form Graham Parker and the Rumour. The new group consisted of Parker (lead vocals, guitar) with Brinsley Schwarz (lead guitar) and Bob Andrews (keyboards) (both ex Brinsley Schwarz), Martin Belmont (rhythm guitar, ex Ducks Deluxe) and Andrew Bodnar (bass) and Steve Goulding (drums). They began in the British pub rock scene, often augmented at times by a four-man horn section known as The Rumour Horns: John "Irish" Earle (saxophone), Chris Gower (trombone), Dick Hanson (trumpet), and Ray Beavis (saxophone).

The band's first album, ''Howlin' Wind'', was released to acclaim in April 1976 and was rapidly followed by the stylistically similar ''Heat Treatment''. A mixture of rock, ballads, and reggae-influenced numbers, these albums reflected Parker's early influences (Motown, The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Van Morrison) and contained the songs which formed the core of Parker's live shows – "White Honey", "Soul Shoes", "Lady Doctor", "Fool's Gold", and his early signature tune "Don't Ask Me Questions", which hit the Top 40 in the UK. The group made a second Australian tour in late 1979, when Parker appeared on ''Countdown'' as a guest presenter.

''Squeezing Out Sparks'' (1978–1979)

An official Graham Parker and The Rumour live album, ''The Parkerilla'', issued in 1978, saw Parker in a creative holding pattern. Three sides were live, with no new songs and with versions of previously released songs. Side four was devoted to a "disco" remake of "Don't Ask Me Questions".

Parker had long been dissatisfied with the performance of his US record company, Mercury Records, finally issuing in 1979 as a single B-side "Mercury Poisoning".

Energized by his new label, Arista Records, and with record producer Jack Nitzsche, Parker followed with ''Squeezing Out Sparks'', widely held to be the best album of his career. For this album, The Rumour's brass section, prominent on all previous albums, was jettisoned.

''Squeezing Out Sparks'' (1979) was named by ''Rolling Stone'' at #335 on its List of Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. In an early 1987 ''Rolling Stone'' list of their top 100 albums from 1967–1987, ''Squeezing Out Sparks'' was ranked at #45, while ''Howlin' Wind'' came in at #54. The companion live album ''Live Sparks'', was sent to US radio stations as part of a concerted promotional campaign.

The jettisoned brass section continued to play on other people's records credited as The Irish Horns (on the album ''London Calling'' by The Clash) or The Rumour Brass, most notably on Katrina and the Waves' 1985 hit "Walking On Sunshine".

The End of The Rumour (1980)

Bob Andrews left The Rumour in early 1980, and was not officially replaced. However, in studio sessions for the next album, Nicky Hopkins and Danny Federici (of The E Street Band) sat in on keyboards.

1980's ''The Up Escalator'' was Parker's highest-charting album in the UK and featured production by Jimmy Iovine and guest vocals from Bruce Springsteen. Significantly, the front cover of the album credited only Graham Parker, not "Graham Parker and The Rumour".

''The Up Escalator'' would prove to be Parker's last album with the Rumour, although guitarist Brinsley Schwarz would reunite with Parker in 1983 and play on most of the singer's albums through the decade's end. As well, bassist Andrew Bodnar would rejoin Parker from 1988 through the mid 1990s, and drummer Steve Goulding would play on Parker's 2001 album ''Deepcut To Nowhere''.

Commercial success (1981–1990)

The 1980s were Parker's most commercially successful years, with well-financed recordings and radio and video play. His followup to ''The Up Escalator'', 1982's ''Another Grey Area'', featured session musicians Nicky Hopkins and Hugh McCracken. This album charted at UK #40 and US #51, and spun off a Top 40 UK single in "Temporary Beauty".

1983's ''The Real Macaw'', featuring drumming by Gilson Lavis of Squeeze and the return of Brinsley Schwarz to the guitarist's spot did not fare as well, hitting US #59 on the album charts but missing the UK charts altogether. However, Parker's 1985 release ''Steady Nerves'' (credited to Graham Parker and The Shot) was a moderate success and included his only US Top 40 hit, "Wake Up (Next to You)". The Shot was a four-piece backing band, all of whom had played on either ''The Real Macaw'' or ''Another Grey Area'': Brinsley Schwarz (guitar), George Small (keyboards), Kevin Jenkins (bass), and Michael Braun (drums).

''Steady Nerves'' was recorded in New York City, and Parker began living mostly in the United States during this time.

Record label changes came quickly after the mid-1980s, partly accounting for the number of compilation albums in Graham Parker's discography. Particularly unproductive was Parker's tenure at Atlantic Records, where Parker ended the deal without releasing anything, and signed to RCA Records. He began producing his own recordings and issued ''The Mona Lisa's Sister''. The backing band for this album included former Rumour-mates Schwarz and Bodnar ; keyboardists James Halliwell and Steve Nieve; and drummer Terry Williams (replaced on one cut by Andy Duncan, and two others by Pete Thomas who, like Nieve, was a member of Elvis Costello and the Attractions). ''Rolling Stone'' magazine ranked ''The Mona Lisa's Sister'' at #97 on its list of The 100 Greatest Albums of the 1980s.

The 1990s

Parker continued to record for RCA through the early 1990s. Long-time guitarist Schwarz once again parted company with Parker after the 1990 album ''Human Soul''. Parker's 1991 offering, ''Struck By Lightning'', featured Bodnar and Pete Thomas in the backing band, as well as guest appearances from The Band's Garth Hudson on keyboards and John Sebastian on autoharp. However, the album's chart peak of US #131 saw Parker dropped by the label. 1992's ''Burning Questions'' was released by Capitol Records, who promptly dropped him after the album failed to sell.

A 1994 Christmas-themed EP release (''Graham Parker's Christmas Cracker'') was issued on Dakota Arts Records, before Parker found a more permanent home on American independent label Razor & Tie. After the movingly personal ''12 Haunted Episodes'', and 1996's ''Acid Bubblegum'' (featuring Jimmy Destri of Blondie on keyboards), Parker grew quiet in the late 1990s. However, he continued to play live fairly regularly, often working with backing band The Figgs (who, like The Rumour, when not backing Parker also issued records as a discrete unit).

To the present

Parker began a more active period in 2001, with the UK re-release of his early Rumour work, and with his third studio album for Razor & Tie, ''Deepcut to Nowhere''. In 2003, Parker collaborated with Kate Pierson of the B-52's and Bill Janovitz of Buffalo Tom to record an album of lesser-known John Lennon/Paul McCartney compositions that had never been recorded by The Beatles. The album, called ''From A Window: Lost Songs of Lennon & McCartney'', was credited to "Pierson, Parker, Janovitz". Also in 2003, Parker contributed a solo acoustic version of Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb" to the compilation album, ''A Fair Forgery of Pink Floyd''

New solo work continued with 2004's ''Your Country'', which saw Parker switch labels to Chicago-based indie Bloodshot Records and was co-produced by John Would at Stanley Recording in Venice, California. The album was recorded and mixed in two weeks.

Following in 2005 was ''Songs Of No Consequence'', recorded with The Figgs. A show from the ensuing tour with the Figgs broadcast on FM radio and was released as an album in 2006. In March 2007, a new full-length, ''Don't Tell Columbus'' was released.

In addition to his records, Parker published an illustrated science fiction novella, ''The Great Trouser Mystery'' in 1980. He published a set of short stories, ''Carp Fishing on Valium'', in June 2000. His third book, a novel, ''The Other Life of Brian'', appeared in September 2003. In July 2011, he played a private party for a Pittsburgh physician who has described himself as Parker's #1 fan.

Discography

Albums

Graham Parker & The Rumour

''Howlin' Wind'' (1976)

''Heat Treatment'' (1976) – UK #52, US #169

''The Pink Parker EP'' (1977) UK Singles Chart #24

''Stick To Me'' (1977) UK 19, US #125

''The Parkerilla'' (1978) UK #14, US #149

''Squeezing Out Sparks'' (1979) UK #18, US #40

''The Up Escalator'' (1980) UK #11, US #40

Graham Parker

''Another Grey Area'', 1982 UK #40, US #51

''The Real Macaw'', 1983, US #59

Graham Parker & The Shot

''Steady Nerves'', 1985, US #57

Graham Parker

''The Mona Lisa's Sister'', 1988 US #77

''Human Soul'', 1989 US #165

''Struck by Lightning'', 1991 US #131

''Burning Questions'', 1992

''Graham Parker's Christmas Cracker EP'', 1994

''12 Haunted Episodes'', 1995

''Acid Bubblegum'', 1996

''Loose Monkeys'' (outtakes), 1999

''That's When You Know'' (1976 demos + ''Live at Marble Arch''), 2001

''Deepcut To Nowhere'', 2001

''Your Country'', 2004 (featuring an appearance by Lucinda Williams)

''Songs of No Consequence'', 2005 (with The Figgs as his backing band)

''Don't Tell Columbus'', 2007

''Imaginary Television'', 2010 !Australia !Canada !US Hot 100 !US MOD |- |rowspan="2"|1977 | "Hold Back the Night" |align="center"| 20 |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |align="center"| 58 |align="center"| – |rowspan="2"| ''The Pink Parker'' |- | "Sweet on You" |align="center"| 20 |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |- |rowspan="2"|1978 | "The New York Shuffle" |align="center"| – |align="center"| 49 |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |align="center"| – | ''Stick to Me'' |- | "Hey Lord, Don't Ask Me Questions" |align="center"| 32 |align="center"| 24 |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |align="center"| – | ''The Parkerilla'' |- |rowspan="2"|1979 | "Protection" |align="center"| – |align="center"| 46 |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |align="center"| – | ''Squeezing Out Sparks'' |- | "I Want You Back" |align="center"| – |align="center"| 46 |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |align="center"| – | Non-LP |- | 1982 | "Temporary Beauty" |align="center"| 50 |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |align="center"| – | ''Another Grey Area'' |- | 1983 | "Life Gets Better" |align="center"| – |align="center"| 35 |align="center"| – |align="center"| 94 |align="center"| – | ''The Real Macaw'' |- | 1985 | "Wake Up (Next to You)" |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |align="center"| 94 |align="center"| 39 |align="center"| – | ''Steady Nerves'' |- |rowspan="2"|1988 | "Get Started. Start a Fire" |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |align="center"| 85 |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |rowspan="2"| ''The Mona Lisa's Sister'' |- | "Don't Let It Break You Down" |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |align="center"| 27 |- | 1989 | "Big Man on Paper" |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |align="center"| – |align="center"| 18 | ''Human Soul'' |}

Quotation

''NME'' – February 1979

References

External links

Official website

Graham Parker

Struck By Lightning: discography, gigography, bibliography, and more

[ Biography at AMG website]

Don't Ask Me Questions ? Interview with Parker edited by Toni D'Angela, on ''La furia umana'', #4, Spring 2010

Category:1950 births Category:Living people Category:English male singers Category:English songwriters Category:English rock musicians Category:Pre-punk groups Category:English New Wave musicians

de:Graham Parker fr:Graham Parker it:Graham Parker ja:グレアム・パーカー ru:Паркер, Грэм sv:Graham Parker uk:Грем Паркер