VOA常速英语2008年-Something for Everyone on Blue Highway's 'From

By Katherine Cole
Washington
22 February 2008

Many acoustic¹ bluegrass music fans are leary of the words "contemporary" and "modern", preferring to listen only to songs that stick to the traditional style invented by Bill Monroe in the 1940s. These fans don't want to hear new songs, electric instruments or even drums in their bluegrass. But even the most traditional of fans seem to find something to rave² about when Blue Highway releases a new CD. VOA's Katherine Cole reports on the band's eighth release, "From The Window Of A Train."

They say it's impossible to please everyone. For the past 14 years, however, Blue Highway has been releasing CDs that contain enough of the elements of classic bluegrass to keep traditionalists happy, while also injecting enough of their own style, making their sound fresh and palatable³ to those who prefer a more modern sound.

Blue Highway bassist Wayne Taylor may have gotten it right when he said, "You can't go wrong with a train song in bluegrass."  From The Window Of A Train is the title track to the band's latest CD; their second made up of all original songs.

Blue Highway has been a band for 14 years now. The members are so much in demand to play sessions in Nashville and as sidemen for singing stars that you might just get away with calling them a "bluegrass supergroup." Unusually, each of the five men in the group writes songs, and the band has three lead singers: Guitarist Tim Stafford, who won a Grammy as a member of Alison Krauss and Union Station, multi-instrumentalist Shawn Lane, and bassist Wayne Taylor, who wrote a tale of a veteran down on his luck, called "Homeless Man."

Blue Highway isn't afraid to tackle tough issues in their songs. The songs on From The Window Of A Train include that sympathetic look at the life of a homeless veteran who feels alienated⁴ from the country he defended. In Tim Stafford's "Two Soldiers," two officers on the Army's funeral detail describe their days of telling people that their loved ones won't be coming home.

The group's third singer, mandolin and fiddle⁵ player Shawn Lane, wrote a third of the songs on From The Window Of A Train, including "Where Did The Morning Go." The song, about the passage of time, showcases the exceptional vocal⁶ harmony in Blue Highway.

The singing on Blue Highway's From The Window Of A Train is every bit as exceptional as longtime fans have come to expect from the group, that also includes multi-instrumentalist Jason Burleson, and Grammy-winning dobro player Rob Ickes Newcomers will also find plenty to like on this CD, including the stellar musicianship that you'd expect from one of the most popular bands in bluegrass.

From The Window Of A Train also includes an instrumental track, "The North Cove⁷", that lets each member of Blue Highway showcase their talent.

1 acoustic   

adj.听觉的，声音的；(乐器)原声的

参考例句：

• The hall has a fine acoustic.这个大厅的传音效果很好。
• Animals use a whole rang of acoustic, visual,and chemical signals in their systems of communication.动物利用各种各样的听觉、视觉和化学信号来进行交流。

2 rave   

vi.胡言乱语；热衷谈论；n.热情赞扬

参考例句：

• The drunkard began to rave again.这酒鬼又开始胡言乱语了。
• Now I understand why readers rave about this book.我现明白读者为何对这本书赞不绝口了。

3 palatable   

adj.可口的，美味的；惬意的

参考例句：

• The truth is not always very palatable.事实真相并非尽如人意。
• This wine is palatable and not very expensive.这种酒味道不错，价钱也不算贵。

4 alienated   

adj.感到孤独的，不合群的v.使疏远( alienate的过去式和过去分词 )；使不友好；转让；让渡（财产等）

参考例句：

• His comments have alienated a lot of young voters. 他的言论使许多年轻选民离他而去。
• The Prime Minister's policy alienated many of her followers. 首相的政策使很多拥护她的人疏远了她。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 fiddle   

n.小提琴；vi.拉提琴；不停拨弄，乱动

参考例句：

• She plays the fiddle well.她小提琴拉得好。
• Don't fiddle with the typewriter.不要摆弄那架打字机了。

6 vocal   

adj.直言不讳的；嗓音的；n.[pl.]声乐节目

参考例句：

• The tongue is a vocal organ.舌头是一个发音器官。
• Public opinion at last became vocal.终于舆论哗然。

7 cove   

n.小海湾，小峡谷

参考例句：

• The shore line is wooded,olive-green,a pristine cove.岸边一带林木蓊郁，嫩绿一片，好一个山外的小海湾。
• I saw two children were playing in a cove.我看到两个小孩正在一个小海湾里玩耍。