美国国家公共电台 NPR George Michael, Singer Of 'Freedom '90,' 'Faith,' 'Last Christmas,' Dies At 53

 

DAVID GREENE, HOST: 

OK, one thing 2016 will be remembered for is being a year that took away too many stars from the world of pop music. And now we have news that George Michael is dead at age 53. His manager is quoted saying the British pop singer died of heart failure at his home outside London. Now, let's remember, George Michael rocketed to stardom in the early to mid-1980s with the duo Wham!

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "WAKE ME UP BEFORE YOU GO-GO")

WHAM!: (Singing) Jitterbug, jitterbug.

GREENE: And then with monster hits like "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go," he went on to a successful solo career, selling more than 100 million records.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "WAKE ME UP BEFORE YOU GO-GO")

WHAM!: (Singing) Wake me up before you go-go 'cause I'm not plannin' on going solo. Wake me up...

GREENE: He had some monster hits with Wham! like "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go." He then went on to a successful solo career, selling more than 100 million records.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "FREEDOM")

WHAM!: (Singing) I don't want your freedom. I don't want to play around. I don't want nobody, baby. Part-time love just brings me down.

FRANK LANGFITT, BYLINE¹: George Michael rose to fame as the better half of Wham!, which he formed with guitarist and schoolmate Andrew Ridgeley. The pair had huge success with songs like "Freedom" and "Careless Whisper."

(SOUNDBITE OF GEORGE MICHAEL "CARELESS WHISPER" SONG)

LANGFITT: Critics questioned the quality of some of his early lyrics².

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "CARELESS WHISPER")

GEORGE MICHAEL: (Singing) I'm never going to dance again. Guilty feet have got no rhythm.

LANGFITT: But Michael was extremely good at writing pop hooks. He was recently nominated for The Songwriters Hall of Fame. Live audiences were drawn³ to the handsome pop duo's dynamic dance-heavy stage shows.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "EVERYTHING SHE WANTS")

WHAM!: (Singing) Everything she wants.

LANGFITT: This performance of the hit "Everything She Wants" came during an improbable visit to China in 1985 when. Wham! emphasized it's relatively⁴ clean, teen idol⁵ image, which helped the duo win approval from the communist party at a time when performances by Western pop stars in China were practically unheard of.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "EVERYTHING SHE WANTS")

WHAM!: (Singing) Somebody tell me, won't you tell me, why I work so hard for you, give you money, all to give you money.

LANGFITT: Michael was born in 1963 in north London, the son of a Greek Cypriot restaurant owner. Michael was clearly the creative force behind Wham!. And after a few years, he went off on his own. In 1987, he released the album "Faith," which eventually sold more than 25 million copies. Michael also took on a steamier persona.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "I WANT YOUR SEX")

MICHAEL: (Singing) I want your sex. I want you.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "FATHER FIGURE")

MICHAEL: (Singing) I will be your father, baby. Put your tiny hand in mine. I will be your preacher teacher, anything you have in mind.

LANGFITT: Michael's follow up, "Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1," didn't fare as well, and he got into a costly⁶ and exhausting legal battle with his label, Sony. Michael told interviewer David Frost the label had essentially⁷ enslaved him with a lengthy⁸ multi-album contract.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

MICHAEL: It's such a ridiculous - such a ridiculous situation. Firstly, you are almost always signing people in a very vulnerable position. I mean, I definitely was in a very vulnerable position.

LANGFITT: Michael lost the case. In 1998, he became tabloid⁹ fodder¹⁰ after he was charged with committing a lewd¹¹ act in a public toilet in Beverly Hills. The arrest led him to go public about being gay. Michael apologized for embarrassing his fans and went on to perform and record more albums, but he never matched his earlier success. In 2011, Michael was struck with pneumonia¹², which he described to reporters as a near-death experience.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

MICHAEL: I got streptococcus something (laughter). It's a a form of pneumonia. And they spent three weeks keeping me alive basically.

LANGFITT: An ambulance was sent to Michael's house in Oxfordshire yesterday afternoon, Christmas Day according to local police.

(SOUNDBITE OF WHAM! "LAST CHRISTMAS" SONG)

LANGFITT: On many playlists this time of year is Wham!'s holiday hit "Last Christmas," which was released in 1984.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "LAST CHRISTMAS")

WHAM!: (Singing) Last Christmas, I gave you my heart, but the very next day, you gave it away.

LANGFITT: Like many of George Michael's songs, it continues to bring joy to his millions of fans. Frank Langfitt, NPR News, London.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "LAST CHRISTMAS")

WHAM!: (Singing) Last Christmas, I gave you my heart, but the very next day, you gave it away. This year, to save me from tears...

1 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

2 lyrics   

n.歌词

参考例句：

• music and lyrics by Rodgers and Hart 由罗杰斯和哈特作词作曲
• The book contains lyrics and guitar tablatures for over 100 songs. 这本书有100多首歌的歌词和吉他奏法谱。

3 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

4 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

5 idol   

n.偶像，红人，宠儿

参考例句：

• As an only child he was the idol of his parents.作为独子，他是父母的宠儿。
• Blind worship of this idol must be ended.对这个偶像的盲目崇拜应该结束了。

6 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。

7 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

8 lengthy   

adj.漫长的，冗长的

参考例句：

• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。
• The professor wrote a lengthy book on Napoleon.教授写了一部有关拿破仑的巨著。

9 tabloid   

adj.轰动性的，庸俗的；n.小报，文摘

参考例句：

• He launched into a verbal assault on tabloid journalism.他口头对小报新闻进行了抨击。
• He believes that the tabloid press has behaved disgracefully.他认为小报媒体的行为不太光彩。

10 fodder   

n.草料；炮灰

参考例句：

• Grass mowed and cured for use as fodder.割下来晒干用作饲料的草。
• Guaranteed salt intake, no matter which normal fodder.不管是那一种正常的草料，保证盐的摄取。

11 lewd   

adj.淫荡的

参考例句：

• Drew spends all day eyeing up the women and making lewd comments.德鲁整天就盯着女人看，说些下流话。
• I'm not that mean,despicable,cowardly,lewd creature that horrible little man sees. 我可不是那个令人恶心的小人所见到的下流、可耻、懦弱、淫秽的家伙。

12 pneumonia   

n.肺炎

参考例句：

• Cage was struck with pneumonia in her youth.凯奇年轻时得过肺炎。
• Pneumonia carried him off last week.肺炎上星期夺去了他的生命。