杰克·约翰逊：从冲浪运动员到流行音乐明星之路

 

Jack¹ Johnson: Former Surfer Takes Road to Pop Stardom

杰克·约翰逊：从冲浪运动员到流行音乐明星之路

 

Jack Johnson, 29, knows about being in the spotlight². Before breaking into the music business he was a professional surfer, riding the big waves of Oahu until a surfing accident curtailed³ his career. He then earned a degree in film, and was set on becoming a director when another career choice, music, landed him a contract to record his first album.

 

Jack Johnson sings and plays acoustic⁴ guitar with the ease of a 20-year music veteran. And he's been drawing sellout crowds. Having spent years surfing in his native Hawaii, and then studying filmmaking at the University of California, Jack is taking all the sudden attention on his music in stride.

 

Jack Johnson has released three albums since 2001, his latest titled In Between Dreams. He composed all of the songs on the CD, including "Crying Shame," a tune⁵ typical of his roots rock style: lyrical, upbeat, distinctive⁶ and tranquil⁷. One listener commented that his debut⁸ album caused "chronic⁹ head bobbing." Another wrote, "Our kids, ages six and three, ask for Jack Johnson every time we get in the car."

 

Critics are in agreement, calling him "super laid back, humble¹⁰ and understated." Not surprising, since his entire band consists of guitar, bass¹¹ and drums. And then there are times, whether it's on stage or on record, that it's just Jack alone with his guitar.

 

Surfing and film will always be Jack Johnson's passion. He's even combined them with his love for music in two movies about surfing. But for now, Jack is riding a bigger wave as he performs on his world tour. Perhaps he will find some time to surf while performing in Australia, New Zealand and Hawaii, before taking his trio to Europe and Japan. He's reserved most of his mid-year concert dates for the United States.

 

I’m Doug Levine.

 

注释：

surfer [5sE:fE(r)] n. 冲浪运动员

acoustic guitar 非电吉他

tune [tju:n] n. 曲调，调子

lyrical [5lirikEl] adj. 抒情诗调的

upbeat [5Qpbi:t] n. [音]弱拍

tranquil [5trANkwil] adj. 安静的

debut [5deibju:] n. 初次登场，开张

bass [beis] n. 低音乐器，贝斯

trio [5tri:Eu] n. 三重唱

1 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

2 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

3 curtailed   

v.截断，缩短( curtail的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Spending on books has been severely curtailed. 购书开支已被大大削减。
• Their public health programme had to be severely curtailed. 他们的公共卫生计划不得不大大收缩。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 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。

5 tune   

n.调子；和谐，协调；v.调音，调节，调整

参考例句：

• He'd written a tune,and played it to us on the piano.他写了一段曲子，并在钢琴上弹给我们听。
• The boy beat out a tune on a tin can.那男孩在易拉罐上敲出一首曲子。

6 distinctive   

adj.特别的，有特色的，与众不同的

参考例句：

• She has a very distinctive way of walking.她走路的样子与别人很不相同。
• This bird has several distinctive features.这个鸟具有几种突出的特征。

7 tranquil   

adj. 安静的, 宁静的, 稳定的, 不变的

参考例句：

• The boy disturbed the tranquil surface of the pond with a stick. 那男孩用棍子打破了平静的池面。
• The tranquil beauty of the village scenery is unique. 这乡村景色的宁静是绝无仅有的。

8 debut   

n.首次演出，初次露面

参考例句：

• That same year he made his Broadway debut, playing a suave radio journalist.在那同一年里，他初次在百老汇登台，扮演一个温文而雅的电台记者。
• The actress made her debut in the new comedy.这位演员在那出新喜剧中首次登台演出。

9 chronic   

adj.(疾病)长期未愈的，慢性的；极坏的

参考例句：

• Famine differs from chronic malnutrition.饥荒不同于慢性营养不良。
• Chronic poisoning may lead to death from inanition.慢性中毒也可能由虚弱导致死亡。

10 humble   

adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低

参考例句：

• In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
• Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。

11 bass   

n.男低音(歌手)；低音乐器；低音大提琴

参考例句：

• He answered my question in a surprisingly deep bass.他用一种低得出奇的声音回答我的问题。
• The bass was to give a concert in the park.那位男低音歌唱家将在公园中举行音乐会。