VOA标准英语2010年-Charlie Musselwhite Draws from Life Ex

Singer Charlie Musselwhite has been at the forefront of the contemporary blues¹ scene for more than 40 years. He's recorded over 30 albums, and played harmonica with some of the greatest names in pop, rock and blues. Musselwhite is in top form on a new album that draws from his life on and off the stage.

Charlie Musselwhite delivers one of his most personal albums to date, "The Well." The title song is dedicated² to then-18-month-old Jessica McClure, who, in 1987, drew worldwide attention when she fell into a small well and was trapped for more than two days before being rescued. Charlie says her sheer³ bravery inspired him to overcome his longtime addiction⁴ to alcohol.

"She had to get out of that well. On the other hand, how brave she was being was really moving to me," he said. "And, it occurred to me what I thought of was a problem in my life really didn't amount to 'a hill of beans' compared to her problem."

Charlie admits he's always wanted to play the blues, especially after hearing it on the radio while growing up in Memphis, Tennessee.

"My dad gave me a guitar and I had harmonicas, and I had been listening to blues for a long time and I really loved it," he said. "I thought it feels so good when you listen to it, it must feel even better to play it. And I thought, 'Well, I've got a guitar and I've got these harmonicas I want to give it a whirl⁵. I'd go out into the woods with my harmonica and just make up my own blues. And it just seemed like the most natural thing, I don't know, it seemed to make sense. It just came to me very easy."

Charlie eventually made his mark on the electric blues scene in Chicago, and later, as a bandleader and recording⁶ artist in San Francisco. He says his music has taken him all over the world, and through good times and bad, the blues have magically kept him going.

"The blues is a spirit of 'keepin' on keepin' on,' and not giving up, and, 'We can do this.' No matter how bad it is, we can do it, we can get through it," he said. "And it's never about giving up or being down. It's [meant] to get rid of that feeling and be uplifting. That's why I say it's your comforter when you are down and it's your buddy⁷ when you're up. It's an all-purpose music for anything life has to throw at you."

Charlie was one of six musicians inducted into the Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2010.

His latest album, "The Well", features a song written in memory of his mother, as well as tunes⁸ about his birthplace in Mississippi, traveling, and the healing power of the blues on the track, "Where Highway 61 Runs."

1 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。

2 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

3 sheer   

adj.绝对的，全然的，峻峭的；v.躲开，躲避，使...避开； adv.完全，全然，峻峭

参考例句：

• He achieved his aim by sheer strength of will.他纯粹靠意志力达到了目的。
• I guess It'sheer waste of time arguing about it.看来争论这件事纯粹是浪费时间。

4 addiction   

n.上瘾入迷，嗜好

参考例句：

• He stole money from his parents to feed his addiction.他从父母那儿偷钱以满足自己的嗜好。
• Areas of drug dealing are hellholes of addiction,poverty and murder.贩卖毒品的地区往往是吸毒上瘾、贫困和发生谋杀的地方。

5 whirl   

v.使...旋转，急转，回旋，迅速移动；n.回旋，旋转，繁忙，混乱，尝试

参考例句：

• The dancer suddenly made a whirl.那位舞蹈演员突然做了一个旋转动作。
• My thoughts were in a whirl.我的思想一片混乱。

6 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。

7 buddy   

n.（美口）密友，伙伴

参考例句：

• Calm down,buddy.What's the trouble?压压气，老兄。有什么麻烦吗？
• Get out of my way,buddy!别挡道了，你这家伙！

8 tunes   

n.曲调，曲子( tune的名词复数 )v.调音( tune的第三人称单数 )；调整；（给收音机、电视等）调谐；使协调

参考例句：

• a potpourri of tunes 乐曲集锦
• When things get a bit too much, she simply tunes out temporarily. 碰到事情太棘手时，她干脆暂时撒手不管。 来自《简明英汉词典》