Tuesday, May 8, 2018

Bugs to Beatles

  •    Harlequin Bug -- They are brightly coloured and rounded shield shaped bug that grow to about 20 mm. They reproduce rapidly and females mate multiple times with many males before laying up to 150 eggs per female. Adult females are mostly orange and males are both blue and red or orange. The colours are quite variable. They live in Northern and Eastern Australia and are known as the Hibiscus Harlequin Bug or Jewel Bug .They probably get their name from the Italian comics/clowns called Harlequin’s who's costumes were usually covered with many coloured patches. The comics patches later evolved into triangles and diamond shapes. In the Americas and other tropical areas they are known as the harlequin cabbage bug, calico bug,or fire bug.
 Harlequin/Jewel Bug
 
  
 Forgiven by A.A.Milne
Alexander Beetle by Melanie Safca 
based on the A.A.Milne Poem

    •  Arthur Alexander /Another Beatle  was born 10 May 1940, in Florence, Alabama. known to his friends as “June,” for Junior. By the time he left school in his teenage years, Arthur was crazy in love with music C&W, R&B, pop. In the early 1960s, he recorded a handful of discs that inspired a generation of artists. Sir Paul McCartney once said, "If the Beatles ever wanted a sound it was Arthur Alexander. Arthur Alexanders songs recorded by the Beatles were Anna,Soldier of Love and Shot of Rhythm and Blues. He first came to fame with “You Better Move On”, which peaked at number 24 on billboard charts in April of 1962 and then covered by The Rolling Stones.  During The Beatles search for songs to perform in their stage act, they were keen to learn songs that no one else was doing. Discovering flip sides of songs they admired became part of their live performances. The flip side to “You Better Move On” was “A Shot Of Rhythm And Blues”, which was the first performed live on stage. Then Arthur's  next single, “Where Have You Been All My Life” failed to make the top 40, but its’ flip side, “Soldier Of Love”, was also performed by The Beatles on the BBC .
    Soldier of Love
    Arthur Alexander


    •  Arthur Alexanders next single, the self-penned “Anna” named after Arthur's real life wife Ann, became a top 10 hit on the Billboard R&B charts, and made an impact on  John Lennon, who suggested the song to the band and was recorded for their first album Please Please Me. “Alexanders’ R&B chart career continued for many years, but without being able to crack the Billboard top 40 again and struggling financially he decided to retire from the music business. In the late 1970's he became a bus driver in Cleveland, Ohio for a local social service organization. Arthurs final recording was Hound Dog Mans Gone Home in 1977. A tribute to the king. 
    My Favourite Beatle 
    •  George Harrison -- A master musician, best known as the lead guitarist and occasionally lead vocalist of The Beatles. He was born February 25, 1943, in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. Wonderwall was a film that George wrote the score for in 1968 and was the first solo album released by any of the band after the Beatles split and the first recorded on the Apple label. This was used as inspiration for Oasis song of the same name, according to the Gallaghers. The song Inner Light was written by George at these sessions and was used as the flipside for the final Beatles single Lady Madonna . My all time favourite album was Cloud Nine, Georges final album which included songs My Mind Set On You and Fish on the Sand
    •  Personal Experience -- Thanks for the music and memories George ! My dad had just been diagnosed with cancer and given a year to live. During the twelve months I would make the 600 km road trip on numerous ocassions. One of these was with my eleven year old daughter. I remember the talks we had and that great George Harrison album that accompanied us. His final solo album Cloud Nine was filled with beautifully crafted music. I know my daughter had a soft spot for I Got My Mind Set On You. We played that tape non stop and talked about her poppy and all the music legends that had left us. I remember discussing John Lennon's shooting and the Beatles classics. Then telling her the reasons why George was my favourite beatle. I think back to us sitting, on the beach front, at a little town called 1770 and watching the sunrise listening to Fish on the Sand. Cloud Nine will always be one of my favourite albums. A beautiful piece of artistry compiled by George and his friends Jeff Lynne,Elton John,Eric Clapton and Ringo Starr.
    Jewel Bug

    • Scarab Beetle --  This particular species of beetle is represented in numerous ancient Egyptian amulets and works of art .The amulets were often placed over the heart of the mummified deceased and called heart scarabs. The reasoning was the persons was to be weighed against the feather of truth during the final judgement. In ancient Egyptian religion, the sun god Ra is seen to roll across the sky each day, transforming bodies and souls. The beetle would roll dung into a ball as food and as a brood chamber in which to lay eggs. For these reasons the scarab was seen as a symbol of this heavenly cycle and of the idea of rebirth or regeneration. The Egyptian god Ra, the rising sun, was often depicted as a scarab beetle. The scarab was usually inscribed with designs to form an official impression seal.

     Longicorn Beetles

     
    Harlequin Bug
    Elvis Beetle




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