Soldiers (ABBA song)

Soldiers is an ABBA song, released on their 1981 album The Visitors. Its working title was "Peasants"

Synopsis

The song is a critique of militarism.

Billboard explains "emphasizing that although there seems to be so little one can do to prevent the machinations of soldiers and those who control them, we must "not look the other way/taking a chance/cos if the bugle starts to play/we too must dance". The Telegraph describes the premise of the song as "how warmongers convince themselves they are noble men".

Composition

The entire song rests upon a "simple two-note" statement". The song has a "string-ensemble synth arrangement". Agnetha uses a "subdued yet stoic vocal", and "the chorus vocals, while typically multi-tiered, are somewhat 'murkier' and less liberated in texture".

Critical reception and analysis

Abba's Abba Gold describes the song as "bleak-yet-catchy".Billboard notes its "simple yet ominous metaphors that envision impending nuclear holocaust". It goes on to explains "the offbeat cadence of the drumming holds dark, somber verses and the sing-song quality of the chorus together", and concludes by saying "certainly very few groups can effectively handle a subject as serious as this, and still imbue it with all the qualities of a great pop song".Billboard listed the song under the "Best cuts" section of an album review, along with four other songs from the album.ABBE: Let The Music Speak says the song has an "unsettling caution" and also "heart and humanity". The synths "gently inflame the sense of yearning throughout, driving along a backing track which features ...bass courtesy of Rutger Gunnarsson".

Full Circle (Drowning Pool album)

Full Circle is the third album from heavy metal band Drowning Pool, released on August 7, 2007. It is their first of two studio releases with Ryan McCombs, then former singer of SOiL, who joined the band after the departure of Jason 'Gong' Jones in 2005. The first single off the album, "Soldiers," is dedicated to the United States Army.

The album debuted at number 64 on the United States Billboard 200, selling about 10,000 copies in its first week. As of September 12, 2007, the album has sold around 29,000 copies in the United States.

Four singles were released to promote the album. The final single "Shame" was released June 29, 2009 almost two years after the album's release. The album wasn't very commercially successful, but was received positively by fans. Drowning Pool embarked on several tours to promote Full Circle.

Writing and recording

Full Circle is the only studio album by Drowning Pool with more than 11 tracks; it has 13. McCombs said that "Shame" was one of his favorite songs from the album. The entire band contributed to the album's writing process, as well as including an outside writer, Nikki Sixx who wrote a song for the band, entitled "Reason I'm Alive", which made it on the album. The album also includes a cover of Billy Idol's song "Rebel Yell".

Diva

A diva (/ˈdiːvə/; Italian: [ˈdiːva]) is a celebrated female singer; a woman of outstanding talent in the world of opera, and by extension in theatre, cinema and popular music. The meaning of diva is closely related to that of prima donna.

Usage

The word entered the English language in the late 19th century. It is derived from the Italian noun diva, a female deity. The plural of the word in English is "divas"; in Italian, dive [ˈdiːve]. The basic sense of the term is goddess, the feminine of the Latin word divus (Italian divo), someone deified after death, or Latin deus, a god.

The male form divo exists in Italian and is usually reserved for the most prominent leading tenors, like Enrico Caruso and Beniamino Gigli. The Italian term divismo describes the star-making system in the film industry. In contemporary Italian, diva and divo simply denote much-admired celebrities, especially film actresses and actors, and can be translated as "(film) star". The Italian actress Lyda Borelli is considered the first cinematic diva, following her breakthrough role in Love Everlasting (1913).

WWE Diva

Diva is a term used by WWE, an American professional wrestling promotion, to refer to its female performers. The term is applied to women who appear as wrestlers, managers or valets, backstage interviewers, or ring announcers.

History

Beginnings: The Moolah Days

In 1983, the Fabulous Moolah, who was the NWA World Women's Champion and legal owner of the title, joined the WWF and sold them the rights to the title after they disaffiliated from the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and recognized her as the first WWF Women's Champion. Additionally, the WWF also recognized Moolah as having been champion ever since first winning the title from Judy Grable in 1956 and disregarded other reigns or title losses that occurred during the title's existence in the NWA. Thus, The Fabulous Moolah's reign was considered to have lasted 27 years by the promotion. WWF also introduced the WWF Women's Tag Team Championship with Velvet McIntyre and Princess Victoria recognized as the first champions after also defecting from the NWA.

Diva (magazine)

DIVA is a leading lesbian magazine in the United Kingdom, published monthly. It was launched in 1994 by Millivres Prowler Group Ltd., who also produce Gay Times. The current editor is Jane Czyzselska, who has held the position since 2004. It includes many articles dedicated to lesbian and bisexual social issues, and candid interviews with gay icons and prominent lesbians alike. In November 2008, DIVA was published under the name "The Souvenir Issue" for the purpose of celebrating the 150th issue by including the cover pages of every issue that had been published since April 1994.DIVA has a dating website which was launched in 2013.

Inspired by the Everyday Sexism Project, Diva editor Jane Czyzselska launched the Everyday Lesbophobia campaign in 2013 to document instances of lesbophobia.

See also

References

External links