Alphabet City is the fourth studio album by English pop band ABC. It was released in October 1987, on the labels Mercury and Neutron, two years after their previous album How to Be a... Zillionaire! Following a hiatus in which singer Martin Fry was being treated for Hodgkin's disease, it was recorded over a period of nine months between November 1986 and August 1987, in sessions that took place at Marcus Recording Studios in London, assisted by Bernard Edwards, best known for his work with the American band Chic; the album's title and the titles of several tracks were inspired by the Alphabet City section of Manhattan, New York City, where Fry and Mark White lived for a time prior to the album's release. It peaked at No. 7 in the UK, making it their first album to reach the Top 10 since their debut The Lexicon of Love. The album launched three charting singles in the UK. "When Smokey Sings", a tribute to Smokey Robinson, peaked at No. 11 on the UK Singles Chart. In 2005, a digitally remastered CD of the album was released with six bonus tracks.

All tracks are written except where noted. ABC Martin Fry – lead and backing vocals Mark White – guitars.

Fives-Lille was a French engineering company located at Fives, a suburb of Lille. It is now part of the Fives Group; the company began as Parent, Caillet et Cie in 1861 and made a joint venture with the Société J. F. Cail & Cie.. Basile Parent and Pierre Schaken were of Belgian origin; this co-operation led to the creation of several factories. One plant, located in the district of Fives, near Lille, specialized in the construction of rails and steam locomotives. Another plant in Givors on the Rhône specialized in wheelsets for railway rolling stock; the business developed and became, in 1865, the Compagnie de Fives - Lille in 1868, the limited company Compagnie de Fives-Lille pour constructions mécaniques et entreprises. It appears that the Cail company kept its separate identity and did not merge with Fives-Lille until 1958, it changed its name to "Fives-Lille-Cail" and to "Fives-Cail-Babcock" and to "Fives", in 2007. Fives-Lille locomotive no. 3716 is preserved at Train des mouettes

The Improved National Beehive was a form of Langstroth beehive standardized by two British Standards. The same standard contained the specification of the Smith beehive: these two forms represent the most popular designs used in the UK; the National hive, as it known, is based on Langstroth hive design principles: a vertical stack of modular components. Its dimensions are smaller and notably the brood chamber is shallower than the typical Langstroth hive to suit a less prolific bee strain; the original specification and the associated Ministry of Agriculture and Food leaflet detail a floor, deeper standard brood boxes, shallower honey Super boxes, a section rack, a crownboard and a roof. The main boxes are 18⅛" square in footprint: the standard brood boxes being 8⅞" tall, the shallow super 5⅞" tall; the main walls are ¾" thick. The internal frames are supported on runners on two sides of the box, in a deep rebate formed by the two-piece construction of the sides; because the boxes are square, it is possible to orient frames in two ways with respect to the entrance, either parallel to the entrance block, or perpendicular to it.

The National beehive is designed to house frames detailed in the standard. These are 14" wide, with a height of either 8½" or 5½". In brood boxes, up to twelve frames can be used, twelve frames are too tight a fit for easy use, eleven frames are more common; the National frames have a long top-bar to the frame giving them long lugs of 1½"/38mm that rest on the runners. In its original form, the National hive provides ⅜" bottom beespace—that is, the top surface of the frame bar is flush with the top of the box, the lower surface of the frame is one bee space above the bottom of the box. Thus, when two boxes are stacked atop one another, there is one beespace vertically between the frames. However, both top and bottom beespace designs may now be found in use; the roof shown in the MAFF leaflet is a telescoping cover, with internal dimensions of 18¾", meaning a loose fit over the topmost box. The total height of the roof is around 6¼", though a 4" roof is now common. Supports set into the roof create a 1¼" ventilation space above the crownboard rim: the total overlap of the telescoping cover is thus 4.5".

The roof must be covered with a waterproofing layer: this may be galvanized steel sheet. The National hive has a number of features which—in addition to the inertia of popularity—recommend it; the standard brood box is considered well suited to non-prolific bees, providing just over 63,000 cells, has sufficient space both for summer brood rearing, winter storage. There are several methods to increase the size of the brood chamber, if this is required: Use of a larger 14x12 box (where the height of the frame is 12", instead of the standard 8½", the box is thus either 12⅜" or 12½" tall. A second standard brood box, thereby doubling the size. Brood and a half chamber of a standard and a shallow box; the weight of a full honey super is still manageable by one person as the boxes have secure handholds. American Beekeeping History – The Bee Hive at John's Beekeeping Notebook Beehives – Woodworking plans. BeeSource. Com, 2004

The Genpei War was a national civil war between the Taira and Minamoto clans during the late-Heian period of Japan. It resulted in the downfall of the Taira and the establishment of the Kamakura shogunate under Minamoto no Yoritomo in 1192; the name "Genpei" comes from alternate readings of the kanji "Minamoto" and "Taira". The conflict is known in Japanese as the Jishō-Juei War, after the two Imperial eras between which it took place, it followed a coup d'état by the Taira in 1179 with the removal of rivals from all government posts, subsequently banishing them, a call to arms against the Taira, led by the Minamoto in 1180. The ensuing battle of Uji took place just outside Kyoto, starting a five-year-long war, concluding with a decisive Minamoto victory in the naval battle of Dan-no-ura; the Genpei War was the culmination of a decades-long conflict between the two aforementioned clans over dominance of the Imperial court, by extension, control of Japan. In the Hōgen Rebellion and in the Heiji Rebellion of earlier decades, the Minamoto attempted to regain control from the Taira and failed.

In 1180, Taira no Kiyomori put his grandson Antoku on the throne after the abdication of Emperor Takakura. Emperor Go-Shirakawa's son Mochihito felt that he was being denied his rightful place on the throne and, with the help of Minamoto no Yorimasa, sent out a call to arms to the Minamoto clan and Buddhist monasteries in May. However, this plot ended with the deaths of Mochihito. In June 1180, Kiyomori moved the seat of imperial power to Fukuhara-kyō, "his immediate objective seems to have been to get the royal family under his close charge." The actions of Taira no Kiyomori having deepened Minamoto hatred for the Taira clan, a call for arms was sent up by Minamoto no Yorimasa and Prince Mochihito. Not knowing, behind this rally, Kiyomori called for the arrest of Mochihito, who sought protection at the temple of Mii-dera; the Mii-dera monks were unable to ensure him sufficient protection, so he was forced to move along. He was chased by Taira forces to the Byōdō-in, just outside Kyoto; the war began thus, with a dramatic encounter around the bridge over the River Uji.

This battle ended in Yorimasa's ritual suicide inside the Byōdō-in and Mochihito's capture and execution shortly afterwards. It was at this point that Minamoto no Yoritomo took over leadership of the Minamoto clan and began traveling the country seeking to rendezvous with allies. Leaving Izu Province and heading for the Hakone Pass, he was defeated by the Taira in the battle of Ishibashiyama; however he made it to the provinces of Kai and Kōzuke, where the Takeda and other friendly families helped repel the Taira army. Meanwhile, seeking vengeance against the Mii-dera monks and others, besieged Nara and burnt much of the city to the ground. Fighting continued the following year, 1181. Minamoto no Yukiie was defeated by a force led by Taira no Shigehira at the Battle of Sunomatagawa. However, the "Taira could not follow up their victory."Taira no Kiyomori died from illness in the spring of 1181, around the same time Japan began to suffer from a famine, to last through the following year. The Taira moved to attack Minamoto no Yoshinaka, a cousin of Yoritomo who had raised forces in the north, but were unsuccessful.

For nearly two years, the war ceased, only to resume in the spring of 1183. In 1183, the Taira loss at the Battle of Kurikara was so severe that they found themselves, several months under siege in Kyoto, with Yoshinaka approaching the city from the north and Yukiie from the east. Both Minamoto leaders had seen little or no opposition in marching to the capital and now forced the Taira to flee the city. Taira no Munemori, head of the clan since his father Kiyomori's death, led his army, along with the young Emperor Antoku and the Imperial regalia, to the west; the cloistered emperor Go-Shirakawa defected to Yoshinaka. Go-Shirakawa issued a mandate for Yoshinaka to "join with Yukiie in destroying Munemori and his army". In 1183, Yoshinaka once again sought to gain control of the Minamoto clan by planning an attack on Yoritomo, while pursuing the Taira westward; the Taira set up a temporary Court at Daaifu in the southernmost of Japan's main islands. They were forced out soon afterwards by local revolts instigated by Go-Shirakawa, moved their Court to Yashima.

The Taira were successful in beating off an attack by Yoshinaka's pursuing forces at the Battle of Mizushima. Yoshinaka conspired with Yukiie to seize the capital and the Emperor even establishing a new Court in the north. However, Yukiie revealed these plans to the Emperor. Betrayed by Yukiie, Yoshinaka took command of Kyoto and, at the beginning of 1184, set fire to the Hōjūjidono, taking the Emperor into custody. Minamoto no Yoshitsune arrived soon afterwards with his brother Noriyori and a considerable force, driving Yoshinaka from the city. After fighting his cousins at the bridge over the Uji, Yoshinaka made his final stand at Awazu, in Ōmi Province, he was defeated by Yoshitsune, killed while attempting to flee. As the united Minamoto forces left Kyoto, the Taira began consolidating their position at a number of sites in and around the Inland Sea, their ancestral home territory, they received a number of missives from the Emperor offering that if they surrendered by the seventh day of the second month, the Minamoto could be persuaded to agree to a truce.

This was a farce, as neither the Minamoto nor the Emperor had any intentions of waiting until the eighth day to attack. This tactic offered the Emperor a chance to regain the

The Baroques were an American psychedelic rock band formed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1966. The band reached regional success for their transition from garage rock to the psychedelic rock genre, the controversary aroused from their single, "Mary Jane"; the band released one studio album before its disbandment in 1968. In 1966, the band formed as The Complete Unknowns, with Rick Bieniewski on bass guitar, Jacques Hutchinson on lead guitar and vocals, Dean Nimmer and Wayne Will both playing the drums; the band began as a garage rock band playing the popular songs associated with the genre during the period. Following their first tour in Wisconsin, Will was drafted to fight in the Vietnam War, so the band replaced him with multi-instrumentalist Jay Borkenhagen. With the new member, the band shifted their musical identity to accompass psychedelic rock, changed the group name to The Baroques; the band became notable for its baroque-like keyboards, fuzz guitar riffs, outright freak-out jams. The band's live performances drew the attention of Chess Records in January 1967.

The label known for releasing R&B material, signed the band in an effort to incorporate a new marketing opportunity. The band went to record their debut single in Ter Mer Studios, located in Chicago; the single, both conceived of original material by Borkenhagen, was produced by Ralph Bass. In June 1967, the band released their debut single, "Mary Jane" b/w "Iowa, A Girl's Name", banned by locals radio stations within a week of the release for perceived pro-drug references. In reality, there were no pro-drug references and the A-side, "Mary Jane", was intended as an anti-drug statement; the controversy brought regional acclaim for the band, they became known for their eccentric live performances. Following the banning of their single, the band released their only LP, The Baroques, which included the two songs from the single; the album became a regional hit, but the band was unable to branch out of state as their label was not well-known to distribute rock albums, let alone psychedelic rock. Still, the band was at its peak of popularity and was performing in an increased amount of gigs, but Chess Records dropped them from their label.

One final self-financed effort was produced in 1968, but with the small marketing the single only reached regional acclaim. The band disbanded that year. Jay Borkenhagen recorded an LP in the 1970s with a band called Feather. Jacques Hutchinson became a professor of communication at the University of Colorado. Dean Nimmer became an art professor at Massachusetts College of Art. Rick Bieniewski became a traveling salesman. In January 1995, a compilation album called Purple Day was released on the Distortion label, arranged with the help of the past band members; the compilation includes all of the tracks from their studio album along with outtakes and unreleased tracks. In 1997, "Mary Jane" was re-released on the psychedelic rock compilation, Psychedelic Crown Jewels, Vol. 1