"God Bless the U.S.A." is an American patriotic song written and recorded by American country music artist Lee Greenwood, and is considered to be his signature song. The first album it appears on is his 1984 album You've Got a Good Love Comin'. It reached No. 7 on the Billboard magazine Hot Country Singles chart when originally released in the spring of 1984, and was played at the 1984 Republican National Convention with President Ronald Reagan and First Lady Nancy Reagan in attendance, but the song gained greater prominence during the Gulf War in 1990 and 1991 as a way of boosting morale. As a result of its newfound popularity, Greenwood re-recorded the track for his 1992 album American Patriot.
"The Power of Love" is a song originally recorded and released by British band Frankie Goes to Hollywood. It was written by Holly Johnson, Peter Gill, Mark O'Toole and Brian Nash, four of five members of the band. It was released by the group as their third single.
Pendulum is an Australian drum and bass band founded in 2002. Pendulum originally formed in the city of Perth, Western Australia, by Rob Swire, Gareth McGrillen and Paul "El Hornet" Harding. The band was later expanded to include members Ben Mount, Peredur ap Gwynedd and KJ Sawka. Members Swire and McGrillen also formed the electro house duo Knife Party. The group is notable for its distinctive sound, mixing electronic music with hard rock and covering a wide range of genres.
Robert Swire-Thompson is an Australian musician, singer, songwriter, record producer and DJ, best known as the founder and vocalist of the drum and bass and electronic rock band Pendulum, as well as DJ and co-founder of electro house duo Knife Party formed of Swire and Gareth McGrillen. Originally from Perth, Western Australia, he relocated to the United Kingdom in 2003 with fellow Pendulum co-founders Gareth McGrillen and Paul "El Hornet" Harding. Swire has since fulfilled a broad spectrum of roles as a member of Pendulum, ranging from songwriting to singing while performing live with an unusual guitar-like MIDI controller – Starr Labs' Ztar Z6S-XPA. Swire also plays guitar, bass, keyboards, percussion, and other instruments. He is sometimes referred to by the stage name Anscenic.
"Merry Christmas Everyone" is a festive song recorded by Welsh singer-songwriter Shakin' Stevens. Written by Bob Heatlie and produced by Dave Edmunds, it was the fourth and last number one single for Shakin' Stevens on the UK Singles Chart.
"A Great Big Sled" is a song by Las Vegas-based rock band The Killers. It was recorded in mid-November 2006 with record producer Alan Moulder as a one-off track and the band's Christmas 2006 single. Moulder's wife Toni Halliday, the former lead vocalist of Curve, features on backing vocals.
Blood Red Shoes are an English alternative rock duo from Brighton consisting of Laura-Mary Carter and Steven Ansell. They have released five full-length albums, Box of Secrets (2008), Fire Like This (2010), In Time to Voices (2012), Blood Red Shoes (2014) and Get Tragic (2019) as well as several EPs and a number of singles. In 2014, they founded their own label, Jazz Life.
"About You Now" is a song by British girl group Sugababes from their fifth studio album, Change (2007). Written and produced by Dr. Luke along with Cathy Dennis and Steven Wolf, it was released on 24 September 2007 by Island Records as the lead single from the album, the first to feature Amelle Berrabah on all tracks. An uptempo pop track that combines heavy elements of pop rock, and dance-pop, it infuses light electronic sounds. Lyrically, "About You Now" finds the protagonist thinking deeply over her relationship with her love interest from whom she parted.
"Say It's Not True" is the first studio single by Queen + Paul Rodgers, It was released on World AIDS Day 1 December 2007. The song was available as a free download from QueenOnline.com. The track is written by drummer Roger Taylor and features all three members on vocals. The song was performed live on the Queen + Paul Rodgers 2005/06 world tour, however the live rendition was acoustic and only featured Taylor on vocals. When played on the Rock the Cosmos Tour, the song was sung by Taylor, May and Rodgers as on the single.
Friendly Fires are an English indie rock band from St Albans, Hertfordshire, England. They are currently signed to XL Recordings. Their self-titled debut album was released on 1 September 2008, and was announced as one of the shortlisted twelve for the 2009 Mercury Prize on 21 July 2009.
"Propane Nightmares" is a song by Australian drum and bass band Pendulum, released as the second single from their second album In Silico. It incorporates elements of the song "Million Miles from Home" by German happy hardcore band Dune. It has received significant airplay on BBC Radio 1, being played frequently by DJ Zane Lowe.
"The Fixer" is a song by the rock band Pearl Jam. Featuring lyrics written by vocalist Eddie Vedder and music co-written by drummer Matt Cameron and guitarists Mike McCready and Stone Gossard, "The Fixer" was released on August 24, 2009 as the first single from the band's ninth studio album, Backspacer (2009). The song debuted and peaked at number two on the Billboard Rock Songs chart and reached number three on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart.
"Doesn't Mean Anything" is a song by American recording artist Alicia Keys. It written and produced by Keys and longtime partner Kerry "Krucial" Brothers for her fourth studio album, The Element of Freedom (2009), with its lyrics speaking about the importance of love against materialism and fake needs.
Immersion is the third studio album by Australian band Pendulum. The album was announced in early 2009, with the name being confirmed in December 2009. The album was released on 21 May 2010 in Australia and Ireland, and on 24 May for the rest of the world, followed by a UK tour of the album. In January 2010, Pendulum hosted the album preview Ear Storm event at Matter in London in which many top DJs performed sets of their own with Pendulum being the headliners.
The British music charts are compiled by the Official Charts Company to measure sales of recorded music on compact disc and digital download.
Jonathan Morter is an English DJ. He is also a social media pioneer and campaigner who helped launch various internet campaigns. He launched the Condescending Corporate Brand Page, a page that harshly ridicules corporate social media techniques.
"Driving Home for Christmas" is a Christmas song written and composed by English singer-songwriter Chris Rea. The first version was originally released as the b-side to his single "Hello Friend" in 1986. In October 1988, a re-recorded version served as one of two new songs on Rea's first compilation album New Light Through Old Windows. It was issued as the fourth single from the album in December 1988, where it peaked at number 53 on the UK Singles Chart as the lead track of The Christmas EP.
"Gold Forever" is a dance-pop song by British-Irish boy band The Wanted. It was produced by Steve Mac, who also co-wrote the song with Wayne Hector and Claude Kelly. It is the band's fourth overall single, and was released as the lead single from their second studio album, Battleground, on March 13, 2011, and later as a promo single from the band's 2012 American debut release, The Wanted (EP). It was also the official 2011 Comic Relief charity single. "Gold Forever" debuted at number three on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the band's third top-ten single.
"Invisible" is a song by Irish rock band U2. Unveiled in a Super Bowl XLVIII television advertisement, it was available as a free digital download through the iTunes Store from 2–3 February 2014. Bank of America gave $1 for each download of the track to (RED), an organisation co-founded by Bono, to fight AIDS. Since 4 February, it has been available as a paid download, with all the proceeds also going to (RED). The song was later included as a hidden track on the deluxe edition of the group's 2014 studio album Songs of Innocence.
On 3 October 2015, a United States Air Force AC-130U gunship attacked the Kunduz Trauma Centre operated by Médecins Sans Frontières in the city of Kunduz, in the province of the same name in northern Afghanistan. 42 people were killed and over 30 were injured. Médecins Sans Frontières condemned the incident, calling it a deliberate breach of international humanitarian law and a war crime. It further stated that all warring parties had been notified about the hospital and its operations well in advance.
