East side

Rat Rock is a rock formation of a schist boulder protruding from the Central Park bedrock in Manhattan. It is named after the rats that used to swarm there at night but it is also known as Umpire Rock.^[1] It is near the southwest corner of the park, north of the Heckscher Ballfields on the lines of 62nd Street and 7th Avenue. The boulder is roughly circular, about 55 feet (17 m) wide and 15 feet (4.6 m) tall with east, west and north faces that each present different climbing problems.^[2]

Boulderers congregate there - as many as fifty per day. Bouldering is the sport of climbing such large rocks.^[3] Some are regulars such as Yukihiko Ikumori, a gardener from the West Village who is known as the spiritual godfather of the rock.^[1] Others are just passing through, such as tourists and visitors who learn about the climbing spot from the Internet and word of mouth. Experienced climbers such as Mr Ikumori often show neophytes good routes and techniques. More experienced outsiders may be disappointed as the quality of the stone is poor, the setting is gloomy and the climbs present so little challenge that it has been called "one of America's most pathetic boulders".^[2]

The park police formerly ticketed climbers who climbed more than a few feet up the rock. The City Climbers Club approached the park authorities and, by working to provide safety features such as wood chips around the base, they were able to legalize climbing there.^[2]

Gallery[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Rat Rock (Central Park)

• Bouldering in Central Park
• RatRock @ ClimbNYC.com

v t e Features of Central Park Features The Arsenal • Belvedere Castle • Bethesda Terrace • The Blockhouse • Bridges • Central Park Mall • Cleopatra's Needle • Conservatory Garden • Conservatory Water • Delacorte Theater • Diana Ross Playground  • Dipway Arch  • Gapstow Bridge  • Great Lawn • Harlem Meer • Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir • King Jagiello Monument  • The Lake • Lasker Rink • Marionette Theatre • Medical Unit  • The Pond and Hallett Nature Sanctuary  • The Ramble • Rat Rock • Sculptures • Seneca Village • Strawberry Fields • SummerStage • Tavern on the Green • Wollman Rink • Zoo • Zoo York Wall Events Be-In • The Concert • The Gates • New York Shakespeare Festival  • UAE Healthy Kidney 10K  • New York Mini 10K  • Concerto: One Night in Central Park Streets Borders: Fifth Avenue • Central Park North • Central Park South • Central Park West Transverses: 79th Street • 85th Street/86th Street • 96th Street People and animals Balto • Central Park Jogger • Hal the Coyote • Frederick Law Olmsted • Pale Male • Regina Peruggi • Elizabeth Barlow Rogers • Arthur Ross • Calvert Vaux • Urban Park Rangers

Coordinates: 40°46′10″N 73°58′40″W / 40.769361°N 73.977655°W / 40.769361; -73.977655

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Badly Drawn Boy
Background information
Birth name	Damon Gough
Born	(1969-10-02) 2 October 1969 (age 42)
Origin	Bolton, Lancashire, England
Genres	Indie rock, indie folk, lo-fi
Occupations	Singer-songwriter
Instruments	Guitar, vocals, bass guitar, drums, banjo, piano, clavinet, keyboards, mellotron, organ, synthesizer, flute, harmonica, harp, celesta
Years active	1995–present
Labels	Twisted Nerve Records XL Recordings (1998–2004) EMI (2006–2008) BDB Records/One Last Fruit (2009-present)
Associated acts	Beck
Website	badlydrawnboy.muronia.com

Damon Gough (stage name Badly Drawn Boy) is an English^[1] indie singer-songwriter. He was born on 2 October 1969, in Dunstable, Bedfordshire. He grew up in the Breightmet area of Bolton, Lancashire, England.

Damon Gough chose his stage name from the title character in the show Sam and his Magic Ball, which he saw on TV at a party in Trafford, Manchester in 1995. Before he thought of using this name he made some business cards, each one unique, with a printed picture of a drawing by his nephew and a small collage by Gough. This was then laminated and given out to friends and people at clubs in Blackburn and Manchester.^{[citation needed]}

A chance meeting with Andy Votel at the Generation X bar in Manchester, where Gough's friends Scott Abraham and Damon Hayhurst were contributing to an exhibition by the Space Monkey Clothing Company and Votel was DJing, led to the foundation of Twisted Nerve Records. Badly Drawn Boy's first 7-inch single, EP1, was pressed the following year to critical acclaim, although only 500 copies were made.^{[citation needed]}

In 2002, Q magazine named Badly Drawn Boy in their list of the "50 Bands to See Before You Die", although this was as part of a sub-list of "5 Bands That Could Go Either Way" on account of Gough's tendency to talk and tell stories for extended periods in concert rather than play songs.

History[link]

Early years: 1995–1998[link]

Gough's recording career began in September 1997 with the five track vinyl release "EP1". This was distributed among friends and family members.

In April 1998 Gough released his second EP, "EP2". This featured one track less than its predecessor but twice as many copies were pressed. The highlight track "I Love You All" was later transferred to a music box which was released alongside the EP. The box plays eleven seconds of the song and is considered much rarer than the record itself due to its limited production.

Gough's third EP, "EP3", was released in November 1998 on both CD and vinyl formats, and was the first release in what would become a long-term partnership with XL Recordings. In the same year he collaborated with Unkle for their first album Psyence Fiction. "Road Movie" was released as a live recording with Gough's fellow Mancunians Doves. The B-side to the single was another track from the EP, "My Friend Cubilas". Music videos were recorded for both tracks.

Mainstream success: 1999–2002[link]

It Came from the Ground was the next EP, released in March 1999 on CD and vinyl. The style of this recording focused on woodland environments, an aspect displayed in both the cover art and the title track's video. Also released during this period was the single "Whirlpool". An instrumental was released on vinyl in April 1999.

Gough's last EP, Once Around the Block, was released in August 1999 in two vinyl formats and one CD edition. The release is almost short enough to be considered a single.

Gough playing a show in the Urban Lounge, Salt Lake City, Utah. (March 2007)

Following the success of his early EPs, Gough's debut album, The Hour of Bewilderbeast, was released in June 2000, accompanied by four singles (including a re-release of Once Around the Block).

The album was critically acclaimed and Badly Drawn Boy was successful in winning the 2000 Mercury Music Prize, beating his contemporaries Doves to the £20,000 prize. The album sold well (300,000 copies) and is widely considered to be his defining work.

The Badly Drawn Boy band throughout this successful period consisted of musicians Matt Wardle (Keyboards/Vocals) , Robin File (Guitar) , Sean Mcann (Bass) latterly replaced by ex Smiths bassist Andy Rourke , Dave Verner (Drums).

After a short break, Gough returned to score the film adaptation of Nick Hornby's novel About a Boy. Impressed by his past work, the Weitz brothers asked Gough to score the film, a task which he undertook alone. Three singles from the album were released over the course of 2002.

His third album, Have You Fed the Fish?, introduced more guitars and an increasingly mainstream pop sound which was not welcomed by all critics. The album is a play on Gough's minor celebrity status and namechecks music icons such as Madonna and John Lennon. Another three singles and a long American tour accompanied the album.

Later years: 2003–present[link]

After his long spell in America, Gough suffered from homesickness and decided to record his next album closer to home. Recorded at Moulin Rouge studios in Stockport, Cheshire, One Plus One Is One was a portrait of his personal life. Documenting a death of a close friend and the loss of a grandfather in the Battle of Normandy, the album was released in 2004. It was not a great commercial success, and Gough decided to leave his contract with XL Recordings after only one single was released. He then signed to EMI.

Two years went by before Born in the U.K., which aimed to explain Gough's experience of growing up in the United Kingdom. The album was promoted with a small UK tour, profits from which were donated to Oxfam, a charity which "offers the chance for thousands of people to use music to achieve something together, which is an idea that gets me excited", said Gough.^[2] Gough also toured the US behind the album.

The album Is There Nothing We Could Do?, featured music taken from, and inspired by, the film, The Fattest Man in Britain, was released on his own BDB Records label in 2009.

His seventh album, It's What I'm Thinking Pt.1 – Photographing Snowflakes, the first of a planned trilogy of albums all to be released under the title It's What I'm Thinking, was released in October 2010.^[3]

March 2012 saw the release of another soundtrack, Being Flynn, directed by Paul Weitz who had worked with Gough previously on the soundtrack album About a Boy.

Discography[link]

Badly Drawn Boy performing at the Tsunami Relief Cardiff concert in January 2005

• The Hour of Bewilderbeast (2000)
• About a Boy (2002)
• Have You Fed the Fish? (2002)
• One Plus One Is One (2004)
• Born in the U.K. (2006)
• Is There Nothing We Could Do? (2009)
• It's What I'm Thinking Pt.1 – Photographing Snowflakes (2010)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Badly Drawn Boy on Myspace

The Boomtown Rats
The Boomtown Rats at Knott's Berry Farm in 1981
Background information
Origin	County Dublin, Ireland
Genres	New wave, Punk rock, Post-punk
Years active	1975–1986
Labels	Mulligan, Ensign, Mercury
Associated acts	Band Aid, USA for Africa, Live Aid, Live 8
Website	www.boomtownrats.co.uk
Past members
Bob Geldof Pete Briquette Johnny Fingers Garry Roberts Simon Crowe Gerry Cott

The Boomtown Rats were an Irish punk rock band that had a series of Irish and UK hits between 1977 and 1985. They were led by vocalist Bob Geldof.^[1]

Biography[link]

All six members were originally from Dún Laoghaire, Ireland.^[1] Formed under the name "The Nightlife Thugs," the group agreed on the name change to the "Boomtown Rats" after a gang that Geldof read about in Woody Guthrie's autobiography, Bound for Glory.^[1] They became a notable band, but one whose accomplishments were overshadowed by the charity work of frontman Bob Geldof, a former journalist with the NME magazine.^[2]

The group moved to London in October 1976, and became associated with the punk rock movement.^[1] Signing a recording contract with Ensign Records, they released their debut single, "Lookin' After No. 1", in August 1977.^[1] It was the first of nine straight singles to make the Top 40 in the UK Singles Chart.^[1][3] Their debut album, The Boomtown Rats, was released in September 1977, on Ensign in the UK and on Mercury Records in the United States, and featured another single, "Mary of the 4th Form".^[1] Music journalist Martin C. Strong commented, "Geldof's moody charisma helped to give the band a distinct identity".^[2]

The second album, A Tonic for the Troops, appeared in June 1978 in the UK.^[1] It featured three hit singles, "Like Clockwork", "She's So Modern" and "Rat Trap". A Tonic for the Troops was released in the U.S. on Columbia in February 1979, with two tracks from The Boomtown Rats substituted for tracks on the UK version.^[1] Mutt Lange produced^[3] "Rat Trap", which became the first rock song by an Irish band to reach #1 in the UK, and the first of any description by an Irish band to top the official chart used by the BBC. (The Bachelors had topped the Record Retailer chart in 1964 with "Diane", but only reached #2 on the UK Singles Chart). In addition, "Rat Trap" was also the first new wave song to claim the number one spot.^[3][4]

In 1979, "I Don't Like Mondays", was released.^[1] This was written in response to a school shooting in California carried out by Brenda Ann Spencer, and also reached #1 in the UK.^[3] It was a worldwide hit, with the exception being the United States.^[5] Fears of lawsuits and charges of bad taste kept radio stations there from playing the record.^[5] The unofficial boycott was front page news in Variety Magazine, the only time the Boomtown Rats earned such prominent coverage.^[5] It was included in The Fine Art of Surfacing, the band's third album, and subsequently became the band's only U.S. Billboard Hot 100 entry.^[1] The album also contained "Diamond Smiles" and their next Top 10 hit in the UK, "Someone's Looking at You".^[1] Geldof and Fingers became the visual and musical focus of the group: Geldof with his articulate, caustic wit – which made him the delight of television talk show presenters and the bitter enemy of music journalists – and Fingers with the striped pyjamas he wore onstage.^[6]

In 1980 "Banana Republic" was released, which was their last Top 10 hit, and in the following year the Boomtown Rats' next studio album Mondo Bongo was issued.^[1] "Banana Republic" savaged their native Ireland, the "septic isle screaming in the suffering sea".^[6]

Cott's departure[link]

At this point, guitarist Gerry Cott left the group. According to Bob Geldof's autobiography, Is That It?, Cott had grown disillusioned with what he saw as the band's growing laziness in the studio and their apparent relinquishing of their early R'n'B influences for "cod-reggae". Throughout his time with the band, Cott had maintained a distance between himself and the other members and he resigned the day before the end of their 1981 world tour, only hours after the rest of the band had decided to confront him for refusing to join them and the road crew for a drink to celebrate Simon Crowe's birthday.

Cott had a short-lived solo career, releasing two UK singles, "The Ballad of the Lone Ranger" and "Pioneers" and the 1984 Canadian single "Alphabet Town".

V Deep[link]

They continued as a quintet with the band's fifth album, V Deep, being released in February 1982.^[1] The first single was "Never In A Million Years" which did not sell well, whilst the follow-up "House on Fire" made number 24 in the UK Singles Chart.

By 1984, they were touring universities after becoming unable to fund the "guarantee" required to book mainstream concert halls, having fallen victim to a demand from Inland Revenue for unpaid tax.

In January 1985, the band's sixth and final album In the Long Grass was released, although delayed by the band's involvement with Band Aid (on which they all played); and, the band performed at Live Aid's charity performance.^[1] Two singles, "Tonight" and "Drag Me Down" reached the lower rungs of the UK Singles Chart, whilst "A Hold Of Me" failed to chart.

[edit] "Dave" became "Rain" in the U.S.

"Dave" was re-recorded as "Rain" for the U.S. market. The song was about the band's saxophone player and schooldays friend Dr David McHale (died 2009), who had suffered a breakdown after his girlfriend was found dead in a public toilet next to an empty heroin bag.^[7] The 'Rain' metaphor in the altered lyrics name-checked Duran Duran's earlier song "Hold Back The Rain", where Geldof's friend Simon Le Bon pleaded with an unnamed band member to cease dabbling with narcotics.

Boomtown Rats split[link]

After this, the band was mothballed whilst Geldof wound up his affairs with the Band Aid Trust, during which time he succeeded in getting them a one-album deal with Vertigo Records. However, both Crowe and Fingers refused to rejoin the Boomtown Rats full time, preferring to pursue their own band, Gung Ho.

The band's final performance came at Self Aid, a 1986 concert featuring many Irish rock stars, to raise awareness of unemployment in Ireland.^[6] Their penultimate performance, "Joey's On the Street Again", was 12 minutes long with an extended bridge, during which time Geldof ran amongst the crowd. Following this performance, Geldof addressed the crowd, saying, "It's been a great ten years; rest in peace". The band then performed "Looking After No.1".

Following the band's break-up, Geldof launched a solo career with Pete Briquette continuing to work alongside him.

Garry Roberts co-wrote songs for Kirsty McColl before leaving the music business and going on to become a successful salesman of financial services. Roberts now presents his Guitar Workshop to schools, encouraging pupils to play the instrument and emphasising the contribution of The Blues to modern Rock and Pop music.

After Gung Ho split, Fingers became a highly successful music producer in Japan, as well as being part of the Japanese band Greengate. Simon Crowe is in the West Country-based Celtic instrumental band Jiggerypipery and has also run a clock making business.

In 2005 the band's albums were all remastered and re-released and a 'Best Of' compilation was released, along with two DVDs. Briquette mixed the live DVD and Francesco Cameli mixed the extra tracks for the re-release of the Boomtown Rats albums at Sphere Studios in London.

The Rats[link]

In 2008, Garry Roberts and Simon Crowe, who had continued playing together — in The Fab Four, with Alan Perman (ex Herman's Hermits) and Bob Doyle (who once auditioned unsuccessfully for E.L.O.), and The Velcro Flies, with Steve (Dusty) Hill and Gavin Petrie — got together as "The Rats", playing their favourite Boomtown Rats songs, with the classic line-up of two guitars, bass and drums. The band was initially fronted by Peter Barton, who has a long history, going back to the early 1980s, of playing with resurrected famous acts, including The Animals, The Hollies and Lieutenant Pigeon. Barton has been replaced on lead vocals and bass by Bob (Little Bob) Bradbury, who was the founder and main songwriter of "Hello". Darren Beale, formerly of The Caves, plays lead guitar. Saxophone player Andy Hamilton, who toured and recorded with The Boomtown Rats, including at Live Aid, has played as a guest at some gigs.

Gerry Cott and Johnnie Fingers were invited to join the band when circumstances allow. Cott attended the Boomtown Rats' second gig (at The 100 Club on Oxford Street, London). Fingers, meanwhile, works for the Fuji Rock Festival in Japan, but plans to join the band on stage when he is in the UK.

On 21 June 2009, Geldof, Roberts, and Briquette got together in Dublin to play "Dave", at a party to celebrate the life of Boomtown Rats' close friend and saxophone player, "Doctor" Dave MacHale, who had recently died of cancer in Frankfurt. "Dave" was a song Geldof wrote for MacHale in 1983, after MacHale's girlfriend died from a heroin overdose.^[8]

On 20 September 2011, Gerry Cott guested with Geldof, Briquette and the rest of Geldof's band at The Cadogan Hall, London. They played three Boomtown Rats songs together prior to the encores. Cott returned to the stage for the final encore playing on two Geldof solo songs.^[9]

Discography[link]

Studio Albums[link]

UK Top 40 Singles[link]

See also[link]

• List of artists who reached number one on the UK Singles Chart
• List of artists who reached number one in Ireland
• List of artists who reached number one on the Australian singles chart
• List of New Wave bands and artists
• List of musicians in the first wave of punk music
• List of Peel sessions
• List of acts who appeared on American Bandstand
• Music of Ireland
• List of Irish people

References[link]

• Liner Notes to The Boomtown Rats' Greatest Hits

External links[link]

• Boomtown Rats official website
• The Best Of The Boomtown Rats
• Boomtown Rats History

This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (September 2010)

Dave Rat (born David Levine) is the founder of Rat Sound Systems Inc., a sound system designer, sound consultant and live sound engineer for many well-known artists such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Rage Against the Machine, The Offspring, and Blink 182.

Dave Rat writes articles for various professional sound magazines and has been asked to speak at sound conventions and events such as AES. He has designed speakers and sound equipment such as the MicroWedge, which is manufactured by Eastern Acoustic Works and is now a familiar monitor wedge on many worldwide tours.

Dave Rat wrote a column for Live Sound International magazine entitled, "Rat Tales" in the November 2006 issue and another in the May 2007 issue.^[1]

On May 22, 2006 Dave Rat started a blog entitled "Roadies In The Midst" on the Rat Sound Systems Inc. website chronicling his experiences as Front of House sound engineer for the Red Hot Chili Peppers on their Stadium Arcadium tour. He has acted as their Front of House (FOH) engineer for the past 19 years. The tour ended in August 2007. However, Dave continues to post entries discussing the adjustment back to normal life. He went back out as Front of House engineer for the Blink 182 Reunion Tour and likewise chronicles his exploits on that long-running arena and amphitheater tour in 2009. On May 15, 2011, Dave announced through his Twitter page that rehearsals were underway for the upcoming Red Hot Chili Peppers tour, which is expected to last two years.

In December 2005 Dave innovated a unique sound system design based on two side by side speaker systems that he called The Double Hung PA. The outer stereo speakers reproduced guitar, bass, toms and cymbals and the inner speakers reproduced vocals, kick and snare. Since no single instrument or vocal was sent to both systems, comb filtering and interference issues were avoided while system clarity was increased. Red Hot Chili Peppers toured with the Double Hung System for the duration of Stadium Arcadium tour. In July 2008, the Brazil based sound company Gabisom implemented the side by side PA concept for the Rock in Rio festival in Portugal and in 2009 Pennsylvania based sound company Clair Brothers, provided touring artists U2 with an in-the-round stadium sized sound system, based on the same double hung PA concept.

In 2009 Dave began working on a several steerable sub woofer array concepts which he implemented on the Blink 182 reunion tour. The Vortex, Slotfire and V-Fire configurations describe methods of arranging and delaying conventional sub woofers such that low frequency sound bleed onto stage is reduced and horizontal subwoofer coverage to the audience is steerable.

Dave announced on his blog on June 9, 2011 that he plans on spending the next two years on the road with the Red Hot Chili Peppers. He said he expects the tour to last through 2013 but prior to that he will be working with Soundgarden in July 2011 on their North America tour. ^[2]

Dave is the holder of two patents. One is for the MicroWedge stage monitor design and the other is for the Rat Sniffer XLR cable tester.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Dave Rat's Rat Sound website
• Dave Rat's Twitter page
• Dave Rat's RHCP/Blink 182 Tour Blog
• Dave Rat site
• Guitar Center Interview 2007
• Mix website interview with Dave Rat
• SooToday.com Article on Dave Rat's unusual Ebay auction
• Meet Dave Rat commentary on Monkeyfilter.com
• Thermodynamics of a Rock Show
• Polarity to the People
• Don't Kill the Artist
• Sometimes Sound is About Time
• Fighting For Power
• When Hearing Starts To Drift
• Dynamic Versus Compressed
• A PA Evolution Odyssey
• Audio Quiz