"All right, listen up you primitive screwheads... this... this is my BOOMSTICK!"
See also Klatu Verata Nictu
Ash is an English name for the a-e ligature æ. It gets that name because in the Runic alphabet æsc was the name of the rune with the same sound as æ, and it got carried over.
(When æ is properly italicized in a serif font it looks unnervingly equivalent to the o-e ligature œ. Try not to let this faze you as much as it does me.)
According to OED, the original ash rune looked something like this:
|\ | \ |\ \ | \ | |
The ash rune was named after the ash tree, not the powdery remains of something burned or the Pokémon master.
Ash was sacred to the druids as well as the Vikings and their ilk; in Norse mythology, Yggdrasil, the world tree, was said to be an ash, and from it Odin carved the first man, Ask. The spear Gungnir, which he used to start wars on Earth, was also carved from the ash-wood of Yggdrasil. In Celtic mythology Gwydion, Odin's very approximate counterpart, made magical wands from ash. In Greek mythology, ash was sacred to the sea-god Poseidon.
Ash out of Evil Dead was apparently the model for the main characters in both Doom and Duke Nukem.
'Ash' also appears along with protein, fat and so on in the nutritional information for various snacks for pets. I have never been able to figure out why.
I had the fortune to see them at The Forum in London's Kentish Town. They totally fucking rocked, in spite of making me wait until the encore to play 'Kung Fu'. Bastards!
They released the mini-album 'Trailer' in 1994 and heavy interest in the band began.
In summer 1995, the lads finished school and turned professional. Trailer spawned the 'Petrol' and 'Uncle Pat' singles.
In Britain, Britpop fever was itching to take hold and the future looked bright for anyone lucky enough to be British and have a guitar. Evidently, being Irish and having a guitar was good enough.
The singles released from their first full album '1977' (Goldfinger, Girl From Mars, Kung Fu) catapulted Ash into the mainstream. DJ and influencer Chris Evans liked them, (which back then was a good thing) and played them lots.
1977 was so-called because not only were they born then, but it was the year in which their fave movie 'Star Wars' was released. Samples of Tie Fighters are on the album.
They played for a while as three young male rockers, but in 1997 they recruited Londoner (and very female) guitarist Charlotte Hatherly. The first sign of Charlotte on record was the title track they composed for the movie 'A Life Less Ordinary'.
In 1998 Ash released their 2nd full length album 'Nu-clear Sounds'. This was a very different sound for them. Casual music fans who had possibly been encouraged to get into the band by Britpop fever found it hard and unlistenable. While still having a solid amount of musical hooks, these were buried under brutally harsh guitars and a tough attitude.
Ash seemed to be losing their appeal to the masses.
3 long years later Ash were back on the scene with the catchy, almost poppy 'Shining Light'. The growing popularity of Nu-metal in Britain had meant that previously 'unlistenable' songs could get played on daytime radio, and be promo'd on Top Of The Pops and other chart shows.
Ash's 3rd full-lengther was 'Free All Angels'. Perhaps the most commercially viable record of their career.
1st Shining Light was the successful comeback record, followed by the gloriously pop-punk 'Burn Baby Burn'. (Cheerleaders and guitars on Top Of The Pops! Life was good).
3rd single 'Sometimes' was the crucial extra hit that warranted many people buying the new album 'Free All Angels'.
The... 'interesting'... 'Candy' is the most recent single release by Ash
You need to hear: Uncle Pat for the solos | Oh Yeah for the feelings | Submission for the funk-rock | Goldfinger for the mel-o-dee | Jesus Says for the two-chord rock | Kung Fu for the lyrics!
Phew.. my poor fingers. www.rock-planet.co.uk helped with the chronology...
Ash (#), n. [OE. asch, esh, AS. aesc; akin to OHG. asc, Sw. & Dan. ask, Icel. askr, D. esch, G. esche.]
1. Bot.
A genus of trees of the Olive family, having opposite pinnate leaves, many of the species furnishing valuable timber, as the European ash (Fraxinus excelsior) and the white ash (F. Americana).
Prickly ash (Zanthoxylum Americanum) and Poison ash (Rhus venenata) are shrubs of different families, somewhat resembling the true ashes in their foliage. -- Mountain ash. See Roman tree, and under Mountain.
2.
The tough, elastic wood of the ash tree.
Ash is used adjectively, or as the first part of a compound term; as, ash bud, ash wood, ash tree, etc.
© Webster 1913.
Ash, n.,
sing. of Ashes.
⇒ Ash is rarely used in the singular except in connection with chemical or geological products; as, soda ash, coal which yields a red ash, etc., or as a qualifying or combining word; as, ash bin, ash heap, ash hole, ash pan, ash pit, ash-grey, ash-colored, pearlash, potash.
Bone ash, burnt powered; bone earth. -- Volcanic ash. See under Ashes.
Ash, v. t.
To strew or sprinkle with ashes.
Howell.
printable version chaos
Everything2 Help
