AMERICAN MOSAIC

AMERICAN MOSAIC¹
By

Broadcast: Friday, March 26, 2004

Dutch traders built a town at the end of Manhattan Island. It became a rich trading center. But the British questioned the right of the Dutch to control the area. The two nations went to war in sixteen-fifty-two.

The governor of New Amsterdam was Peter Stuyvesant. He worried that British settlers in New England would attack his town. He ordered that a protective wall be built at the north edge of Manhattan. The wall was more than seven-hundred meters long. It extended from the Hudson River to the East River.

The British never attacked New Amsterdam. So the wall was never tested in war. But the path beside it became known as Wall Street. Later, Wall Street became a street of banks and businesses.

Today, other streets in New York are known for one product or industry. Madison Avenue is the advertising² center. Eighth Avenue businesses make clothing. Fifth Avenue stores sell costly³ clothes and jewelry⁴. And Broadway is the street of famous theaters.

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

HOST:

Several famous recording⁵ artists were named to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame last week during a ceremony in New York City. The Hall of Fame honors recording artists for their importance and influence in rock and roll. Musicians can become members twenty-five years after their first recordings⁶. Shep O'Neal tells us about the new members.

ANNOUNCER:

 
ZZ Top
A group called ZZ Top became a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame last week. ZZ Top has been performing blues⁷ and rock music for more than thirty years. Here is one of its songs, "Tube Snake Boogie."

(MUSIC)

Two other groups were chosen for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this year. One is Traffic. The other is the Dells. This group has performed and recorded for more than fifty years. It is well known for its smooth soul music. Here is an example, the Dells' hit song, "Oh What a Night."

(MUSIC)

Singers Jackson Browne, Bob Seger and the late George Harrison also became members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. And Jann (Yahn) Wenner received the Lifetime Achievement Award for helping⁸ start the magazine "Rolling Stone."

We leave you now with a song from Prince, another new member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It is one of his biggest hits, "Purple Rain."

(MUSIC)

HOST:

This is Doug Johnson.

Send us your questions about American life! Be sure to include your name and postal⁹ address. We will send you a gift if we use your question.

Send e-mail to [email protected]. Or write to American Mosaic, VOA Special English, Washington, D.C., two-zero-two-three-seven, USA.

Our program was written by Nancy Steinbach. Caty Weaver¹⁰ was our producer.

I hope you enjoyed AMERICAN MOSAIC. Join us again next week for VOA's radio magazine in Special English.

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 advertising   

n.广告业；广告活动 a.广告的；广告业务的

参考例句：

• Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
• The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。

3 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

4 jewelry   

n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝

参考例句：

• The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
• Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。

5 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

6 recordings   

n.记录( recording的名词复数 )；录音；录像；唱片

参考例句：

• a boxed set of original recordings 一套盒装原声录音带
• old jazz recordings reissued on CD 以激光唱片重新发行的老爵士乐

7 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。

8 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

9 postal   

adj.邮政的，邮局的

参考例句：

• A postal network now covers the whole country.邮路遍及全国。
• Remember to use postal code.勿忘使用邮政编码。

10 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。