民间摇滚:鲍勃·迪伦引领电吉他风潮

Folk to Rock: When Dylan Went Electric 民间摇滚:鲍勃·迪伦引领电吉他风潮

Fifty years ago, the well-loved musician Bob Dylan played at the Newport Folk Festival and was widely booed. The audience may have been unhappy but Dylan’s performance helped change the direction of music and culture in the United States.

The mid-1960s were a time of great change. One such place of change was the world of folk music. Music legend Bob Dylan became a symbol of change when he moved from acoustic¹ to electric guitar.

Rock music historian Elijah Wald has written a new book about the change. It is called "Dylan Goes Electric."

"There was a moment in the early sixties where you could look at the Billboard² charts and seven of the top 10 albums were folk records. And Joan Baez, Peter Paul and Mary, the Kingston Trio, all had huge, huge, huge number-one records."

And then this happened: The “British Invasion” introduced the world to the Beatles and grew a huge fan base for rock music. That worried many folk musicians, says Elijah Wald.

"In 1964, the Beatles had hit. By the summer of 1965, a lot of people in the folk scene were sort of feeling like their world was threatened."

They hoped that Bob Dylan would come to the rescue. Dylan was a major artist in folk music, a powerful songwriter and unusual singer.

In 1965, Dylan was booked to perform at the Newport Folk Festival in Rhode Island. He had performed at the festival in 1963 and 1964 with folk singer Joan Baez. The crowd was expecting to see a similar show, with a traditional sound like this.

Instead, a new Dylan sound came from the stage.  

Bob Dylan had gone electric, and the followers³ of folk music were not pleased.

“When Dylan went electric, I think one of the issues was the feeling that -- wait a minute, he's gone over to the enemy."

At first the Newport audience was quiet, seemingly in shock.  Then, the crowd began to boo.

Folk lovers had looked to Bob Dylan to save their movement from rock and roll. But, author Wald says Dylan felt differently about the music genre⁴.

"Dylan had always liked rock and roll and Dylan didn't think of rock and roll as stupid music."

In fact, Dylan was a Beatles fan. He later said that from the first time he heard the Beatles he knew "they were pointing to the direction where music had to go."

"Honestly, once the Beatles hit, I think the writing was on the wall. But when Dylan went with the Beatles on that one: that was that. That was essentially⁵ the end of the folk scene as a huge mainstream⁶ pop trend."

Beyond the music, Dylan's performance that night also marked a turn in American culture.

"Before 1965 was really a different world, and it's the '60s of the Civil Rights Movement, and of folk music and of joining arms across the generations and across the races. And after 1965 it's the world of rock…I'm not saying that Dylan created that change, but I do think that the confrontation⁷ at Newport happened because it was symbolic⁸ of that much larger confrontation, and has been remembered because it really is sort of the moment of rupture⁹ where the new '60s emerged."

Words in This Story

boo – v. to make a sound that shows dislike or disapproval¹⁰ of a performance or action by someone

genre – n. a particular type or category of literature or art

mainstream – adj. largely acceptable and widespread

trend – n. a general direction of change: a way of behaving, proceeding¹¹, etc. that is developing and becoming more common

confrontation – n. a situation in which people, groups, etc., fight, oppose, or challenge each other in an angry way

rupture – n. a break, opening or area of damage

emerge – v. to rise or appear from a hidden or unknown place or condition: to come out into view

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 billboard   

n.布告板，揭示栏，广告牌

参考例句：

• He ploughed his energies into his father's billboard business.他把精力投入到父亲的广告牌业务中。
• Billboard spreads will be simpler and more eye-catching.广告牌广告会比较简单且更引人注目。

3 followers   

追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件

参考例句：

• the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
• The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。

4 genre   

n.(文学、艺术等的)类型，体裁，风格

参考例句：

• My favorite music genre is blues.我最喜欢的音乐种类是布鲁斯音乐。
• Superficially,this Shakespeare's work seems to fit into the same genre.从表面上看， 莎士比亚的这个剧本似乎属于同一类型。

5 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。

6 mainstream   

n.（思想或行为的）主流；adj.主流的

参考例句：

• Their views lie outside the mainstream of current medical opinion.他们的观点不属于当今医学界观点的主流。
• Polls are still largely reflects the mainstream sentiment.民调还在很大程度上反映了社会主流情绪。

7 confrontation   

n.对抗，对峙，冲突

参考例句：

• We can't risk another confrontation with the union.我们不能冒再次同工会对抗的危险。
• After years of confrontation,they finally have achieved a modus vivendi.在对抗很长时间后，他们最后达成安宁生存的非正式协议。

8 symbolic   

adj.象征性的，符号的，象征主义的

参考例句：

• It is symbolic of the fighting spirit of modern womanhood.它象征着现代妇女的战斗精神。
• The Christian ceremony of baptism is a symbolic act.基督教的洗礼仪式是一种象征性的做法。

9 rupture   

n.破裂；(关系的)决裂；v.(使)破裂

参考例句：

• I can rupture a rule for a friend.我可以为朋友破一次例。
• The rupture of a blood vessel usually cause the mark of a bruise.血管的突然破裂往往会造成外伤的痕迹。

10 disapproval   

n.反对，不赞成

参考例句：

• The teacher made an outward show of disapproval.老师表面上表示不同意。
• They shouted their disapproval.他们喊叫表示反对。

11 proceeding   

n.行动，进行，(pl.)会议录，学报

参考例句：

• This train is now proceeding from Paris to London.这次列车从巴黎开往伦敦。
• The work is proceeding briskly.工作很有生气地进展着。