David Bowie: I'm Afraid of Americans

Published on Oct 27, 2021 by David Bowie
YouTube: I'm Afraid Of Americans David Bowie Music Video HD 1080p

Uh-uh-uh uh, uh, uh-uh uh-uh-uh
Johnny's in America
No tricks at the wheel
Uh-uh-uh uh, uh, uh-uh uh-uh-uh
Nobody needs anyone
They don't even just pretend
Uh-uh-uh uh, uh, uh-uh uh-uh-uh
Johnny's in America

I'm afraid of Americans
I'm afraid of the world
I'm afraid I can't help it
I'm afraid I can't
I'm afraid of Americans
I'm afraid of the world
I'm afraid I can't help it
I'm afraid I can't
I'm afraid of Americans

Johnny's in America
Uh-uh-uh uh, uh, uh-uh uh-uh-uh

Johnny wants a plane
Johnny wants to suck on a Coke
Johnny wants a woman
Johnny wants to think of a joke
Uh-uh-uh uh, uh, uh-uh uh-uh-uh
Johnny's in America
Uh-uh-uh uh, uh, uh-uh uh-uh-uh

I'm afraid of Americans
I'm afraid of the world
I'm afraid I can't help it
I'm afraid I can't
I'm afraid of Americans
I'm afraid of the world
I'm afraid I can't help it
I'm afraid I can't
I'm afraid of Americans

Johnny's in America
Johnny looks up at the stars
Johnny combs his hair
And Johnny wants pussy in cars
Johnny's in America, uh-uh-uh uh, uh, uh-uh uh-uh-uh
Johnny's in America, uh-uh-uh uh, uh, uh-uh uh-uh-uh

I'm afraid of Americans
I'm afraid of the world
I'm afraid I can't help it
I'm afraid I can't
I'm afraid of Americans
I'm afraid of the world
I'm afraid I can't help it
I'm afraid I can't
I'm afraid of Americans

God is an American
God is an American

Uh-uh-uh uh, uh, uh-uh uh-uh-uh

I'm afraid of Americans
I'm afraid of the world
I'm afraid I can't help it
I'm afraid I can't
I'm afraid of Americans
I'm afraid of the world
I'm afraid I can't help it
I'm afraid I can't
Yeah, I'm afraid of Americans
I'm afraid of the words
I'm afraid I can't help it
I'm afraid I can't
I'm afraid of Americans

Johnny's an American
Johnny's an American
Johnny's an American, uh-uh-uh uh, uh, uh-uh uh-uh-uh
Johnny's an American, uh-uh-uh uh, uh, uh-uh uh-uh-uh
Johnny's an American, uh-uh-uh uh, uh, uh-uh uh-uh-uh

References

Wikipedia: I'm Afraid of Americans
"I'm Afraid of Americans" is a song by English singer-songwriter David Bowie, released as a single from his 1997 album Earthling. The song, co-written by Bowie and Brian Eno, was originally written during Bowie's studio sessions for the 1995 album Outside but was not released until a rough mix appeared on the soundtrack to the film Showgirls, and was subsequently remade for Earthling. A top 20 hit in Canada, the rework also peaked at number 66 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent 16 weeks on that chart. This was the final Bowie single which charted on the Hot 100 until "Blackstar" and "Lazarus" following his death.

Background: Bowie describes the feelings behind the song:
"It's not as truly hostile about Americans as say "Born in the U.S.A.": it's merely sardonic. I was traveling in Java when [its] first McDonald's went up: it was like, "for fuck's sake." The invasion by any homogenized culture is so depressing, the erection of another Disney World in, say, Umbria, Italy, more so. It strangles the indigenous culture and narrows expression of life."

IMDb: David Bowie: I'm Afraid of Americans (1997)
A paranoid man attempts to escape an insane taxi driver and deranged bystanders.
Directors: Nick Goffey, Dominic Hawley
Writer: David Bowie (song)
Stars: David Bowie, Trent Reznor

2020-05-21

Site Map - William Quincy Belle

Follow me on Twitter

Married Life and Holding Grudges

Published on Jan 3, 2013 by wasdoty
YouTube: Full video Raymond Suitcase Fork and Spoon (9:36)
I used this video in a talk to young moms to show them how they can damage not only their marriages but their own inner peace by holding a grudge. And the ending tells the whole moral of the story-I won't spoil it!

References

Wikipedia: Everybody Loves Raymond
Everybody Loves Raymond is an American sitcom television series created by Philip Rosenthal that aired on CBS from September 13, 1996, to May 16, 2005, with a total of 210 episodes spanning over nine seasons. It was produced by Where's Lunch and Worldwide Pants, in association with HBO Independent Productions. The cast members are Ray Romano, Patricia Heaton, Brad Garrett, Doris Roberts, Peter Boyle, Madylin Sweeten, and Monica Horan. Most episodes of the nine season series were filmed in front of a live studio audience, with a few exceptions.

The Daily Mail - Aug 5, 2016
Men may have evolved BETTER 'making up' skills than women
Dr Joyce Beneson, head of Harvard study:
"We believe that human social structure resembles that of chimpanzees in which males cooperate in groups of unrelated same-sex peers and females cooperate more with family members and one or two good friends who act as family. Human males form large cooperative organizations that have changed the world. Females [traditionally] invest more in families to keep their children and other family members alive and thriving."

2020-05-18

Site Map - William Quincy Belle

Follow me on Twitter

Zimoun: Sound Sculpture

Sound sculpture, an unexpected discovery. It made me think of the videos of ASMR (Autonomous sensory meridian response), or the meditation videos of rain and surf sounds, giving a hypnotic, mesmerizing experience.

"Turn off your mind, relax and float down stream."
-Tomorrow Never Knows by The Beatles.

Published on Mar 11, 2020 by Studio Zimoun
YouTube: Zimoun : Compilation Video 3.9 (2020) : Selected Works : HD 1920x1080px (22:15)
Using simple and functional components, Zimoun builds architecturally-minded platforms of sound. Exploring mechanical rhythm and flow in prepared systems, his installations incorporate commonplace industrial objects. In an obsessive display of simple and functional materials, these works articulate a tension between the orderly patterns of Modernism and the chaotic forces of life. Carrying an emotional depth, the acoustic hum of natural phenomena in Zimoun's minimalist constructions effortlessly reverberates.

References

Wikipedia: Zimoun
Zimoun (born 1977) is a Swiss artist who lives and works in Bern, Switzerland. As self-taught artist, he is most known for his sound sculptures, sound architectures and installation art that combine raw, industrial materials such as cardboard boxes, plastic bags, or old furniture, with mechanical elements such as dc-motors, wires, microphones, speakers and ventilators.

artist web site: Zimoun

YouTube channel: Zimoun

Wikipedia: Sound Sculpture
Sound sculpture (related to sound art and sound installation) is an intermedia and time based art form in which sculpture or any kind of art object produces sound, or the reverse (in the sense that sound is manipulated in such a way as to create a sculptural as opposed to temporal form or mass). Most often sound sculpture artists were primarily either visual artists or composers, not having started out directly making sound sculpture.

my blog: Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR)

my blog: The Beatles: Tomorrow Never Knows

2020-05-12

Site Map - William Quincy Belle

Follow me on Twitter

Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR)

For as long as I can remember, I've found certain sounds to be mesmerizing. It could be the sound of the rain or the surf. It could be something repetitive like a fan or a piece of machinery. New Age music can also fit in this category with its soft sounds supposedly helpful for meditation.

I ran across the term ASMR, autonomous sensory meridian response, a deliberate attempt to evoke this sensation, this hypnotic state of mind through the use of soft sounds like whispering, tapping, or scrapping. I have no idea if everyone "gets it", but this term certainly describes what I've encountered. When people have talked about an altered state of consciousness, this is it but without the use of drugs.

Wikipedia: ASMR
Autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR), sometimes auto sensory meridian response, is a tingling sensation that typically begins on the scalp and moves down the back of the neck and upper spine. A pleasant form of paresthesia, it has been compared with auditory-tactile synesthesia and may overlap with frisson.

ASMR signifies the subjective experience of "low-grade euphoria" characterized by "a combination of positive feelings and a distinct static-like tingling sensation on the skin". It is most commonly triggered by specific auditory or visual stimuli, and less commonly by intentional attention control. A genre of videos which intend to stimulate ASMR has emerged, of which over 13 million are published on YouTube.

Published on May 31, 2018 by The New Yorker
YouTube: How ASMR Became an Internet Phenomenon | Annals of Obsession | The New Yorker (7:57)
How the sounds of crinkling, whispering, and tapping induce euphoria.

Final Word
As the Wikipedia points out, there are a zillion ASMR videos published (over 13 million). Maria is but one of many.

YouTube search: ASMR

In researching this, I also discovered the following:

YouTube search: Unintentional ASMR

Unintentional? An activity, a tone of voice, meant for one thing but has a hypnotic quality to it.

The landscape painter Bob Ross produced a number of TV episodes which are classified by some as ASMR-like.
YouTube: Bob Ross

Videos of the "Alexander Technique" are also seen that way.
YouTube: Alexander Technique

I find this video of the instructor Richard Walker to be quite hypnotic. Oh, that voice!

It would seem that anything can be interpreted as ASMR by anyone.

My blog: Suminagashi: Painting on Water

Relax. Meditate. Or just drift off. Happy journeys!

References

Wikipedia: Maria Viktorovna
Maria Viktorovna, (born July 22, 1986), professionally known as Gentle Whispering, is a Russian-born ASMR practitioner and YouTuber. She has a YouTube channel called Gentle Whispering with over 1.8 million subscribers.

Twitter: Maria Gentlewhispering ASMR @GentleWhisperin

YouTube: Gentle Whispering ASMR

Vox - May 25, 2018
ASMR, explained: why millions of people are watching YouTube videos of someone whispering By German Lopez
Here’s what you need to know about the strange, tingly sensation that could help you relax.

The Washington Post - Dec 15, 2014
A whisper, then tingles, then 87 million YouTube views: Meet the star of ASMR By Caitlin Gibson
ASMR is described as a pleasurable tingling that begins in the head and scalp, shimmies down the spine and relaxes the entire body. Maria — she asked that her last name be withheld for safety reasons; her videos have sometimes attracted unwanted attention — experiences ASMR, and her YouTube channel, GentleWhispering, melds her personal tingle-triggers with others suggested by her fans. The resulting videos have drawn more than 87 million views, making Maria the premier celebrity of a controversial but increasingly recognized phenomenon.

Published on Dec 14, 2015 by Gentle Whispering ASMR
YouTube: What is ASMR? (2:00)
Hello there :) (originally requested by The Washington Post) this video is a short welcome into the online world of ASMR and my channel as a tiny spec of it. If you find yourself drawn to certain sounds, actions, voices in real life and experience a wonderful bliss while witnessing it you might be ASMR sensitive. CONGRATULATIONS! :D You might have a very unique gift in the way that you can experience the beauty of sounds, visuals and human connection by feeling pleasure/euphoria/tingles/chills/vibrations/sleepiness/deep relaxation by just having a contact with a certain trigger. There are unlimited amounts of triggers and their combinations that can be pleasant for YOU personally. EXPLORE! (check out my favorite ASMRtists on my channel side bar for guidance) :) If you feel like this applies to you and you feel excited/interested in learning more about this phenomenon, then welcome to our community :)

Above, I suggested that music can also be ASMR-like. Here are some examples of electronic music I've found mesmerizing. Enjoy.

My blog: Peter Kuli: Life Moves Pretty Fast

My blog: Malefique: Don't Go

My blog: Birocratic: Orientation

My blog: Danosongs: Mars and Stars

2020-05-11

Site Map - William Quincy Belle

Follow me on Twitter

The Beatles: Tomorrow Never Knows

Published on Jun 17, 2018 by The Beatles
YouTube: Tomorrow Never Knows (Remastered 2009)

Turn off your mind, relax and float down stream
It is not dying, it is not dying

Lay down all thoughts, surrender to the void
It is shining, it is shining

Yet you may see the meaning of within
It is being, it is being

Love is all and love is everyone
It is knowing, it is knowing...

... that ignorance and hates may mourn the dead
It is believing, it is believing

But listen to the colour of your dreams
It is not living, it is not living

So play the game "Existence" to the end...
... Of the beginning, of the beginning
Of the beginning, of the beginning
Of the beginning, of the beginning
Of the beginning, of the beginning

References

Wikipedia: Tomorrow Never Knows
"Tomorrow Never Knows" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written primarily by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was released in August 1966 as the final track on their album Revolver, although it was the first song recorded for the LP. The song marked a radical departure for the Beatles, as the band fully embraced the potential of the recording studio without consideration for reproducing the results in concert.

Wikipedia: Revolver (Beatles album)
Revolver is the seventh studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. It was released on 5 August 1966, accompanied by the double A-side single "Eleanor Rigby" / "Yellow Submarine". The album was the Beatles' final recording project before their retirement as live performers and marked the group's most overt use of studio technology to date, building on the advances of their late 1965 release Rubber Soul. It has since become regarded as one of the greatest and most innovative albums in popular music, with recognition centred on its range of musical styles, diverse sounds, and lyrical content.

Wikipedia: The Beatles
Collectively included in Time magazine's compilation of the twentieth century's 100 most influential people, they are the best-selling band in history, with estimated sales of over 600 million records worldwide.

Wikipedia: List of best-selling music artists
Currently, The Beatles are listed at the top of the list as they are considered the highest-selling band based both on sales claims and certified units. Elvis Presley, who is listed the second on the list is considered the highest-selling individual artist based both on sales claims and certified units.

2020-05-07

Site Map - William Quincy Belle

Follow me on Twitter