Nutshell

A nutshell is the outer shell of a nut. Most nutshells are inedible and are removed before eating the nut meat inside.

Usage

Most nutshells are useful to some extent, depending on the circumstances. Walnut shells can be used for cleaning and polishing, as a filler in dynamite, and as a paint thickening agent. Shells from pecans, almonds, Brazil nuts, acorns, and most other nuts are useful in composting.

Their high porosity makes them also ideal in the production of activated carbon by pyrolysis.

Shells can also be used as loose-fill packing material, to protect fragile items in shipping.

Idiomatic usage

The expression "in a nutshell" (of a story, proof, etc.) means "in essence", metaphorically alluding to the fact that the essence of the nut - its edible part - is contained inside its shell. The expression further gave rise to the journalistic term nut graph, short for nutshell paragraph.

A likely source of the phrase may be found in Shakespeare's Hamlet (Act 2, Scene 2) where the title character exclaims: "O God, I could be bounded in a nutshell, and count myself a King of infinite space".

Alice in Chains

Alice in Chains is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1987 by guitarist and songwriter Jerry Cantrell and original lead vocalist Layne Staley. The initial lineup was rounded out by drummer Sean Kinney and bassist Mike Starr, who was replaced in 1993 by Mike Inez.

Although widely associated with grunge music, the band's sound incorporates heavy metal elements. Since its formation, Alice in Chains has released five studio albums, three EPs, two live albums, four compilations, and two DVDs. The band is known for its distinctive vocal style, which often included the harmonized vocals of Staley and Cantrell (and later William DuVall).

Alice in Chains rose to international fame as part of the grunge movement of the early 1990s, along with other Seattle bands such as Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden. The band was one of the most successful music acts of the 1990s, selling over 20 million albums worldwide, and over 14 million in the US alone. In 1992 the band's second album, Dirt, was released to critical acclaim and was certified quadruple platinum. Their third album, Alice in Chains, was released in 1995 and has been certified double platinum. Both albums achieved No. 1 Billboard 200 releases. The band has had 14 top ten songs on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart and nine Grammy Award nominations.

Jar of Flies

Jar of Flies is the second studio EP by the American rock band Alice in Chains, released on January 25, 1994 through Columbia Records. It is the first EP in music history to debut at number one on the Billboard 200 Chart with the first week sales exceeding 141,000 copies in the United States and was well received by critics. The EP has since been certified triple-platinum by the RIAA and has gone on to sell 4 million copies worldwide, making Jar of Flies one of the biggest sellers in Alice in Chains' catalog.

Background and recording

Following Alice in Chains' extensive 1993 world tour for Dirt and appearance at Lollapalooza, the band members returned home to Seattle to find themselves evicted from their residence after failing to pay the rent. The band then moved into London Bridge Studio feeling lonely and depressed. Vocalist Layne Staley said the band "just wanted to go into the studio for a few days with our acoustic guitars and see what happened. We never really planned on the music we made at that time to be released. But the record label heard it and they really liked it. For us, it was just the experience of four guys getting together in the studio and making some music."

Green room

In show business, the green room is the space in a theatre or similar venue that functions as a waiting room and lounge for performers before and after a performance, and during the show when they are not engaged on stage.

The origin of the term is often ascribed to such rooms historically being painted green. The modern "green room" is usually not green at all.

Source of the term

The specific origin of the term is lost to history, which has led to many imaginative theories and claims. One story is that London's Blackfriars Theatre (1599) included a room behind the scenes, which happened to be painted green; here the actors waited to go on stage. It was called "the green room". Some English theatres contained several green rooms, each ranked according to the status and the salary of the actor: one could be fined for using a green room above one's station.

Historical attributions of the term

Some theories have attempted to identify specific historical origins for the term. For example:

MTV Unplugged

MTV Unplugged is a television series showcasing musical artists usually playing acoustic instruments. The show has received the George Foster Peabody Award and 3 Primetime Emmy nominations among many accolades.

Unplugged

The term Unplugged has come to refer to music that would usually be played on amplified instruments (such as an electric guitar or synthesizer) but is rendered instead on instruments that are not electronically amplified, for example acoustic guitar or traditional piano, although a microphone is still used.

MTV launched MTV Unplugged in 1989. The show featured musicians performing unplugged versions of their electric repertoire. Many of these performances were subsequently released as albums, often featuring the title Unplugged.

Inspiration for MTV Unplugged

The underlying concept behind the Unplugged series has been attributed to the popularity among musicians of a variety of informal musical performances on stage, film, television and record in earlier decades. The casual "in-the-round" sequence in Elvis Presley's 1968 Comeback Special, and The Beatles' informal studio jams documented in the 1970 film Let It Be were both precursors of the "Unplugged" concept, though they were neither conceived nor promoted as such at the time they occurred.