The Piranhas

The Piranhas were a British ska-influenced punk band from Brighton. They are best known for their cover of Jack Lerole's "Tom Hark".

Career

They were formed in 1977, and were originally part of the Brighton punk scene, first coming to prominence when DJ John Peel started playing their single "I Don't Want My Body" on his BBC Radio 1 programme, but achieved their biggest success with their cover version of the South African kwela song "Tom Hark". This had been an instrumental hit in 1958 for Elias & His Zig Zag Jive Flutes, and had already been covered in a ska style by Millie Small. With new lyrics written by the band's frontman "Boring" Bob Grover, it was a Top 10 hit in the UK in 1980. It was the first song to feature on BBC Television's pop music programme, Top of the Pops, when it returned in 1980 after being blacked out for nine weeks by industrial action. During the obviously mimed performance the drummer played using a pair of plastic fish as drumsticks. Much later it also became a popular chant amongst British football fans. It is also popular at limited-overs cricket games, often being played when a boundary is hit, and the tune was also used in the novelty World Cup song "We're England", performed by the presenters of the radio station talkSPORT with adapted lyrics for the 2006 FIFA World Cup Finals. Two years later the band's version of Lou Busch's "Zambesi" - produced by Pete Collins - was a Top 20 hit in the UK Singles Chart.

Piranhas

Piranhas is a historic municipality near the western limit of the State of Alagoas, in the Northeast Region of Brazil.

Located on the banks of the São Francisco River, on the border with the State of Sergipe, Piranhas was founded in 1891 and originally named Floriano Peixoto (in honor of the Army General who was one of the founders of the Republic and was later elected President).

It was also known as Porto de Piranhas, because fishermen caught piranhas (a carnivorous predator fish) there.

History

The town was founded in 1891.

Its architecture is typical of late Empire, Northeast style of constructions.

In the 30s, Piranhas was attacked several times by the cangaceiros, bands of marauders and bandits, commanded by the infamous Lampião, who frequently hid from the police in the rocky outcrops near the city.

Transport

Railway

Historically Piranhas was the upstream limit of navigation on the lower São Francisco River. Immediately upstream of Piranhas there were impassable rapids, and 60 km further upstream was the major falls at Paulo Afonso. Above those falls the São Francisco became navigable again for over 1500 km.

Piranhas (baseball)

"Piranhas" (also known as "Little Piranhas") was a nickname applied to a group of hitters for the Minnesota Twins baseball team. Specifically, the term applied to shortstop Jason Bartlett, third baseman Nick Punto, outfielder Jason Tyner, and second baseman Luis Castillo.

Midway through the 2006 season, the Twins opted for a lineup that included Tyner batting eighth, Bartlett ninth, Castillo first, and Punto second. Manager Ron Gardenhire said these players were like four leadoff hitters: all were fast and hit for average but not power. During the 2006 season, all four hit between .290 (Punto) and .312 (Tyner), but hit a combined six home runs.

The term "piranhas" was coined during the 2006 season by Chicago White Sox manager Ozzie Guillén. Said Guillen:

Despite the fact that the term came from a rival manager, it was quickly embraced by both the players and the fans, as well as media outlets such as ESPN. After running a popular "Twins Territory" commercial in 2007 featuring Jason Bartlett and Nick Punto at the Mall of America's Underwater World as "Piranhas" the Minnesota Twins organization marketed official T-Shirts, Hats, Signs, the team even had a "Little Piranha Night" in which piranha finger puppets were given to fans attending the game that evening.