VOA慢速英语2014 Sting, War, Lou Reed等获2015年摇滚名人堂提名

 

Sting, War, Lou Reed for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Sting, War, Lou Reed等获2015年摇滚名人堂提名

Welcome to American Mosaic¹ from VOA Learning English. I’m Caty Weaver². 

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has announced its nominees³ for induction⁴ this year. The 15 choices cover more than 50 years in music. They are Britons, Germans and Americans from across the United States. The nominees also represent many styles of rock and roll, including blues⁵, disco, electronic, hip-hop and punk.

We polled Learning English staff members to find out which artists they would choose to enter the Hall of Fame this year. Each staffer could only choose one, but several chose the same artists.

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame officials nominated Green Day, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Chic⁶, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts and Kraftwerk.  Also included were The Marvelettes, N.W.A., Nine Inch Nails, The Spinners and The Smiths.

But none of those artists made the Learning English winners list. Here are our choices.

I’ll start with myself.  I selected War, a California band that could not have been from any other American state. Its sound defines California coastal⁷ cool.  But the band combines styles from all over.  You can hear Caribbean reggae, Latin beats, funk, and rhythm and blues in War performances.

War was most active in the 1970s.  But to me its music is timeless. A favorite song is “Low Rider,” from 1975.

Adam Brock, Roger Hsu and Anna Matteo went with Lou Reed. Anna had the hardest time deciding of all of us.  She was torn by her love for the Spinners. But, in the end, she said she had to go with Reed because she is also a fan of his wife, musician Laurie Anderson.

Lou Reed was a founding member of the influential⁸ 1960s band The Velvet⁹ Underground. He also had a long and successful solo career.

Reed died in October of last year. In reporting his death, Rolling Stone magazine described Reed’s musical gift.  It said it was “marrying beauty with noise while bringing a whole new lyrical honesty to rock and roll poetry.”

His most famous song was 1972’s “Walk on the Wild Side.”

Chris Cruise and Mario Ritter were pretty quick with their choice. Both Learning English staffers chose blues musician Stevie Ray Vaughn. Vaughn’s career was short-lived. He died in a helicopter crash in 1990.  He was only 35 years old. Vaughn had recorded just five albums. However, he had also gained fame and widespread industry respect as a great blues guitarist.

Staffers Marsha James, Jill Robbins and Jeri Watson are Sting fans. The British rocker is already honored at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the group The Police. He is also a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Sting solo, and with The Police, has won 16 Grammy awards. He has 11 albums under his own name and five with his former band.

Jill Robbins says her favorite Sting song is “Fields of Gold.”

We will end with the pick from staffer Jonathan Evans.  We have more respect for his choice because he is an actual musician. Jonathan plays trombone, as well as a little piano, bass¹⁰ and trumpet¹¹. He is also a singer in a band.  And, his choice for the Hall of Fame is Bill Withers¹². The singer-songwriter had many hits during his 15 years in the music industry. And he is an extremely popular artist to cover. Artists as different as Fiona Apple, Widespread Panic, Mick Jagger and Garth Brooks¹³ have recorded versions of Bill Withers’ songs.

Bill Withers’ many hits include “Lean On Me” and “Lovely Day.”  But it all started with a song that perfectly¹⁴ expresses what it is like to miss someone. Bill Withers released “Ain’t No Sunshine,” in 1971.

So what do you think of the Learning English musical opinions?  Who would you choose to enter the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? Is there a band or an artist who was not nominated that you think should have been nominated?  Let us know. Post your answer in the comment section.

Words in this Story

poll – v. to ask (several or many people) a question or a series of questions in order to get information about what most people think about something

select – v. to choose (someone or something) from a group

solo – adj.  involving or done by a single performer instead of a group

actual – adj. real and not merely possible or imagined : existing in fact

1 mosaic   

n./adj.镶嵌细工的，镶嵌工艺品的，嵌花式的

参考例句：

• The sky this morning is a mosaic of blue and white.今天早上的天空是幅蓝白相间的画面。
• The image mosaic is a troublesome work.图象镶嵌是个麻烦的工作。

2 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

3 nominees   

n.被提名者，被任命者( nominee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She's one of the nominees. 她是被提名者之一。 来自超越目标英语 第2册
• A startling number of his nominees for senior positions have imploded. 他所提名的高级官员被否决的数目令人震惊。 来自互联网

4 induction   

n.感应，感应现象

参考例句：

• His induction as a teacher was a turning point in his life.他就任教师工作是他一生的转折点。
• The magnetic signals are sensed by induction coils.磁信号由感应线圈所检测。

5 blues   

n.抑郁，沮丧；布鲁斯音乐

参考例句：

• She was in the back of a smoky bar singing the blues.她在烟雾弥漫的酒吧深处唱着布鲁斯歌曲。
• He was in the blues on account of his failure in business.他因事业失败而意志消沉。

6 chic   

n./adj.别致(的)，时髦(的)，讲究的

参考例句：

• She bought a chic little hat.她买了一顶别致的小帽子。
• The chic restaurant is patronized by many celebrities.这家时髦的饭店常有名人光顾。

7 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

8 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

9 velvet   

n.丝绒，天鹅绒；adj.丝绒制的，柔软的

参考例句：

• This material feels like velvet.这料子摸起来像丝绒。
• The new settlers wore the finest silk and velvet clothing.新来的移民穿着最华丽的丝绸和天鹅绒衣服。

10 bass   

n.男低音(歌手)；低音乐器；低音大提琴

参考例句：

• He answered my question in a surprisingly deep bass.他用一种低得出奇的声音回答我的问题。
• The bass was to give a concert in the park.那位男低音歌唱家将在公园中举行音乐会。

11 trumpet   

n.喇叭，喇叭声；v.吹喇叭，吹嘘

参考例句：

• He plays the violin, but I play the trumpet.他拉提琴，我吹喇叭。
• The trumpet sounded for battle.战斗的号角吹响了。

12 withers   

马肩隆

参考例句：

• The girl's pitiful history would wring one's withers. 这女孩子的经历令人心碎。
• "I will be there to show you," and so Mr. Withers withdrew. “我会等在那里，领你去看房间的，"威瑟斯先生这样说着，退了出去。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

13 brooks   

n.小溪( brook的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Brooks gave the business when Haas caught him with his watch. 哈斯抓到偷他的手表的布鲁克斯时，狠狠地揍了他一顿。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Ade and Brooks exchanged blows yesterday and they were severely punished today. 艾德和布鲁克斯昨天打起来了，今天他们受到严厉的惩罚。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。