Smooth Operator

"Smooth Operator" is a song by English band Sade from their debut studio album Diamond Life (1984). It was released as the fourth and final single from Diamond Life (in both the United States and the United Kingdom) as a 7-inch single with "Spirit" as its B-side, and as a 12-inch maxi single with "Smooth Operator" and "Red Eye" on side A and "Spirit" on side B.

"Smooth Operator" became Sade's first Top Ten hit in the US, peaking at number 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for two weeks in May 1985. The song spent 13 weeks in the Top 40, and also topped the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart for two weeks. Although "Your Love Is King" remains Sade's biggest hit in the UK to date, "Smooth Operator" is the band's breakthrough hit on the US charts, and their most successful single internationally.

Background

Ray St. John, who co-wrote "Smooth Operator" with Sade Adu, was previously a member of Adu's former band Pride, although he was not a member of the band Sade. The pair co-wrote the song in 1982 while still members of Pride, yet did not get around to recording it because St. John left Pride shortly after Sade joined. St. John later went on to play guitar with the band Halo James, which scored a UK Top Ten hit with "Could Have Told You So" in February 1990.

Smooth Operator (Big Daddy Kane song)

"Smooth Operator" is the lead single released from Big Daddy Kane's second album, It's a Big Daddy Thing. Arguably one of Big Daddy Kane's most popular songs, the song topped the newly formed Billboard Hot Rap Singles chart and was a hit on the R&B and dance charts, peaking at number 11 and 17 on the charts respectively. The song samples "All Night Long" by Mary Jane Girls. Actor and comedian Chris Rock appears in the music video getting his hair cut. He appears 2 minutes, and 23 seconds into the video.

Single track listing

A-Side

B-Side

Chart history

References

External links

.Gabriel

.Gabriel (pronounced "dot Gabriel") is an opera in two acts (to be performed continuously) written by American composer Robert J. Bradshaw. The libretto, also by Bradshaw, was inspired by the composer's online experiences with social networking websites, instant messaging, chat rooms and email correspondence. The opera was commissioned by the Australian Trumpet Guild for performance at the 35th Annual Conference of the International Trumpet Guild, 2010, Sydney, Australia. Also in 2010, the composition was awarded an American Music Center Composer Assistance Program Grant and was named winner of a 2009 Boston Metro Opera Mainstage Award.

About the opera

Program notes (included in the published score) state:

.Gabriel is a composition where the trumpet performs as one of the main characters, interacting on stage with the vocalists. The three vocal roles represent different aspects of social interaction. "Principal represents society's dependency on the Internet, computers and electronic communication." She lives alone and is consumed by her need to be "connected". There are also two minor male roles that act as Principal's memories. One is the positive spirit of social relationships and the other is the actual situations where social interaction is required.

List of Guilty Gear characters

This is an index of characters from the Guilty Gear fighting game series.

Creation and influences

Daisuke Ishiwatari has cited Kazushi Hagiwara's manga Bastard‼, and the fighting game Street Fighter II as influence to the Guilty Gear series. However, he noted that the majority of other fighting games were just recycling the character's same skins or style, and so he wanted every character "to be unique in their own way."Kazuhiko Shimamoto's characters was also noted as an inspiration for the men characters, with Ishiwatari saying they needed to be "chivalrous person-like characters", and citing Anji Mito "the most closest to this type". The female ones, on the other hand, have not followed a standard, with he only saying that they needed look like real women.

There are many musical references in the Guilty Gear series, including various characters' names and moves, which were inspired by rock and heavy metal bands like Queen, Guns N' Roses, and Metallica. For instance, the main character, Sol Badguy, was named after Queen's lead vocalist, Freddie Mercury. Both his real name, Frederick, and his last name were influenced by the singer, whose nickname was "Mr. Badguy".

Gabriel (New-Gen)

John Gabriel is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in the NEW-GEN comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Chris Matonti, J.D. Matonti, and Julia Coppola, he first appeared in NEW-GEN #1 (2010). He is the founder and leader of the A.P.N.G., and the leading scientific mind in the field of nanotechnology on the world of New-Gen.

Fictional Character Biography

Utopia and Deadalus' Betrayal

Gabriel's long career in the creation and application of various kinds of nanotechnology on the world of New-Gen gained him a tremendous amount of success and admiration from the general populace. Through his technological advancements and careful cooperation with his wife, Thea (a guardian of the natural world), Gabriel revolutionized life on New-Gen, creating an almost utopian society. After taking on Sylvester Deadalus as an apprentice, Gabriel was able to create even more ways to make the quality of life more harmonious and comfortable for the general populace. However, unbeknownst to his mentor, Deadalus began to experiment on living things, pushing the envelope of nanotechnology and enhancing his subjects in unnatural ways. When Gabriel found out about this, he was furious and told Deadalus to stop immediately. However, Deadalus released onto the public of New-Gen, a swarm of nanobots he designed to alter the biological structure of those they infected. After the nanobots infected several children, mutating their bodies rapidly and giving them super powers, Gabriel apprehended Deadalus and banished him to the underworld as punishment. Gabriel then sent his twin sons, Sean and Chris, to present-day New York City on Earth, to protect them from further attacks by Deadalus. Before he sent them there, Gabriel expressed concern that their bodies had also been affected by Deadalus' nanobot infestation.