英语沙龙：永 远 的 乔 治

Forever George

George Harrison was never the world’s greatest guitarist，vocalist or songwriter．But he was as essential to the Fab Four formula as John Lennon’s rebellious¹ smile or Paul McCartney’s great cow eyes．He was“the quiet one”，the serious musician who held the beat together while John and Paul were skylarking at the mike．Beatles fans who screamed for George were a curious but dedicated² minority．

Harrison’s grievances⁴ began from the moment he joined the Quarrymen，the skiffle group that was to metamorphose into the Beatles，as15－year－old school friend of McCartney’s in1958．The story goes that they let him in only because，unlike the others，he knew how to tune⁵ guitars and he happened to know how to play a then popular instrumental number．

Harrison was lead guitarist，traditionally a starring or costarring role．But in his case it would be neither．From the very first the band was dominated by Lennon and McCartney，by their energy，their rival sex appeal and their increasingly prolific⁶ and brilliant songwriting．Harrison’s main role was painfully mastering the guitar riffs to the Chuck Berry and Buddy⁷ Holly⁸ numbers that padded out their early albums．Shy，self－conscious and undemonstrative，he found himself relegated⁹ to an inner“second division”with Starr．

Although Harrison，too，soon began writing songs they were always doomed¹⁰ to be eclipsed by Lennon and McCartney’s torrential output．

His greatest influence within the Beatles came during their“Indian”period of 1966～1968．Harrison took up the sitar，became a pupil of the instrument‘s greatest living maestro，Ravi Shankar，and brought a twangy Indian feel to Beatles tracks such as Within You Without You and Norwegian Wood．As Martin later remembered，it gave him an authority in the studio that he’d never had before．

The band’s break－up，an unofficial fact by1969although not officially ratified¹¹ until 1971，had little to do with Harrison，being predominantly a fight to the finish between Lennon and McCartney over money，leadership and their respective new wives，Yoko and Linda．

The band’ s break－up seemed to plunge¹² Harrison into depression．Ironically，in the immediate¹³ post－break－up period Harrison’s solo career seemed to leap ahead of both Lennon’s and McCartney’s．His triple album，All Things Must Pass，released in late 1970，was a massive British and American hit．With it came an international number one single，the mantra－like My Sweet Lord．A year later he conceived the two charity Concerts for Bangladesh at New York’s Madison Square Garden，persuading superstar friends such as Clapton，Bob Dylan and Leon Russell to perform gratis¹⁴ for the famine－stricken mill ions of former East Pakistan．

One tribute once called him“a great humanitarian”；if that was putting it rather strong，the Concert for Bangladesh undoubtedly¹⁵ gave rock its first inkling of social conscience，paving the way for Live Aid and similar events in the 1980s．

In the early 1980s a wholly unexpected new career beckoned¹⁶ thanks to Harrison’s friendship with Michael Palin and other members of the Monty Python team．The Pythons were in the midst of making their hilariously¹⁷ sacrilegious Life of Brian film，but suddenly had the plug pulled on them by their backers．Harrison stepped in，mortgaging Friar Park to raise enough for the film to be completed．

It was the basis of a production company，HandMade，part－owned by Harrison，which led the British film renaissance¹⁸ of the1980s with memorable¹⁹ productions such as Mona Lisa and The Long Good Friday．

With HandMade prospering，he also enjoyed a minor³ musical renaissance with a surprise hit single，Got My Mind Set on You．

Harrison’s death is a tragedy for his family and many friends．He was no giant．But he was the indispensable limb of a giant――the most powerful engine for creating human happiness that the entertainment world has ever seen．

永 远 的 乔 治

乔治•哈里森绝非世界上最伟大的吉他手、歌手或是歌曲作者，但他在甲壳虫乐队绝佳的四人组合中却是必不可少的，就像约翰•列侬富于反叛精神的微笑或是保罗•麦卡特尼的一双大眼睛一样。他是一个“沉默寡言”的人，一个表情严肃的乐师，当约翰和保罗面对麦克风激情演唱的时候，他用和谐的乐曲予以伴奏。为乔治喝彩的甲壳虫歌迷虽然不多，却是好奇而忠实的一族。

1958年，15岁的哈里森作为麦卡特尼的同学，加入了后来成为甲壳虫乐队的噪音爵士乐组合“采石工”。从这时起，他对乐队就有所不满。据说他们吸收他加入只是因为，不同于他人，他会给吉他调弦，而且他恰巧还会演奏一种后来十分流行的器乐。哈里森是首席吉他手，按惯例在乐队中应处于核心或是同属核心的位置。但他的情况并非如此。列侬和麦卡特尼以充沛的精力、无以匹敌的吸引力及其富于创造力且才华横溢的词曲创作，在乐队中一开始就占据了显著的位置。哈里森的主要职责是努力掌握如何用吉他演奏爵士乐中的连复段，来拉长他们早期唱片集中诸如《掷草莓》和《老友冬青》之类的歌曲。腼腆羞涩，拘谨矜持，哈里森发现自己实际上和斯塔尔一起被置于“乙级队”的行列。

尽管哈里森很快也开始创作歌曲，但是这些作品在列侬和麦卡特尼如激流般奔涌的创作面前，总是注定要黯然失色。

在1966到1968年这段被称为“印度时期”的时间里，哈里森对甲壳虫乐队的影响最大。哈里森对锡塔尔琴发生了浓厚的兴趣，他拜依然健在的锡塔尔琴演奏大师拉维•申卡尔为师，把有拨弦声的印度乐感带入了甲壳虫乐队的作品，如《与你相依却无你相伴》和《挪威的树林》等。后来马丁回忆，这件事使哈里森在录音棚里拥有了他以前从未有过的权威。

乐队的解散在1971年才得到官方的批准，但在1969年已是名存实亡。这与哈里森没有任何关系，主要是列侬和麦卡特尼之间由于金钱、对乐队的领导权以及他们各自的新任妻子大野洋子和琳达等问题的争执不休的结果。

乐队的分崩离析使哈里森极度消沉。具有讽刺意味的是，乐队解散后的一段时间内，哈里森的独唱生涯似乎超过了列侬和麦卡特尼。他在1970年末期发行的３张名为《一切必成过去》的唱片在英国和美国引起了巨大的轰动。与此同时，他具有曼特罗风格的歌曲《我甜蜜的夫君》成了世界排名第一的热门歌曲。一年后他在纽约麦迪逊广场花园为孟加拉国举行了两场慈善音乐会。他说服好友克拉普顿、鲍勃•迪伦及利昂•拉塞尔等超级巨星为数百万饱受饥荒之苦的前东巴基斯坦人民举行义演。

有人赞誉他是“伟大的人道主义者”。如果这样说有点言过其实的话，那么为孟加拉国举行义演无疑使摇滚乐首次与社会良知有了些许联系，也为他们在20世纪80年代举行“实际援助”等一系列类似的活动作了准备。

80年代初，一项完全出乎意料的崭新的事业开始吸引哈里森，这起因于他和迈克尔•巴林及其他巨蟒组合成员的友谊。巨蟒组合正在制作《布莱恩的一生》，一部滑稽的有亵渎神圣之嫌的电影，他们的赞助人突然取消了赞助费。哈里森介入了电影的制作，他抵押了弗拉尔庄园，筹集到了足够的资金把电影拍完。

这就是制片公司“手工制作”的开始阶段，哈里森拥有部分股权。这家公司制作了许多让人记忆犹新的电影，如《蒙娜•丽莎》、《漫长美好的星期五》等。这些电影在20世纪80年代英国电影的复兴中起到了引领潮流的作用。

随着“手工制作”的兴旺发展，哈里森在音乐方面又小有成就，一首《让我的心属于你》让人吃惊地火了起来。

哈里森的去世无论对他的家庭，还是对他许许多多的朋友来说，都是巨大的不幸。他不是巨人，但他却是巨人不可或缺的一只臂膀，而这个巨人就是娱乐界所曾见识过的创造人类欢乐的最为强大有力的发动机。

1 rebellious   

adj.造反的，反抗的，难控制的

参考例句：

• They will be in danger if they are rebellious.如果他们造反，他们就要发生危险。
• Her reply was mild enough,but her thoughts were rebellious.她的回答虽然很温和，但她的心里十分反感。

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 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

4 grievances   

n.委屈( grievance的名词复数 )；苦衷；不满；牢骚

参考例句：

• The trade union leader spoke about the grievances of the workers. 工会领袖述说工人们的苦情。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• He gave air to his grievances. 他申诉了他的冤情。 来自《简明英汉词典》

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 prolific   

adj.丰富的，大量的；多产的，富有创造力的

参考例句：

• She is a prolific writer of novels and short stories.她是一位多产的作家，写了很多小说和短篇故事。
• The last few pages of the document are prolific of mistakes.这个文件的最后几页错误很多。

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 holly   

n.[植]冬青属灌木

参考例句：

• I recently acquired some wood from a holly tree.最近我从一棵冬青树上弄了些木料。
• People often decorate their houses with holly at Christmas.人们总是在圣诞节时用冬青来装饰房屋。

9 relegated   

v.使降级( relegate的过去式和过去分词 )；使降职；转移；把…归类

参考例句：

• She was then relegated to the role of assistant. 随后她被降级做助手了。
• I think that should be relegated to the garbage can of history. 我认为应该把它扔进历史的垃圾箱。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 doomed   

命定的

参考例句：

• The court doomed the accused to a long term of imprisonment. 法庭判处被告长期监禁。
• A country ruled by an iron hand is doomed to suffer. 被铁腕人物统治的国家定会遭受不幸的。

11 ratified   

v.批准，签认（合约等）( ratify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The treaty was declared invalid because it had not been ratified. 条约没有得到批准，因此被宣布无效。
• The treaty was ratified by all the member states. 这个条约得到了所有成员国的批准。

12 plunge   

v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲

参考例句：

• Test pool's water temperature before you plunge in.在你跳入之前你应该测试水温。
• That would plunge them in the broil of the two countries.那将会使他们陷入这两国的争斗之中。

13 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

14 gratis   

adj.免费的

参考例句：

• David gives the first consultation gratis.戴维免费提供初次咨询。
• The service was gratis to graduates.这项服务对毕业生是免费的。

15 undoubtedly   

adv.确实地，无疑地

参考例句：

• It is undoubtedly she who has said that.这话明明是她说的。
• He is undoubtedly the pride of China.毫无疑问他是中国的骄傲。

16 beckoned   

v.（用头或手的动作）示意，召唤( beckon的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He beckoned to the waiter to bring the bill. 他招手示意服务生把账单送过来。
• The seated figure in the corner beckoned me over. 那个坐在角落里的人向我招手让我过去。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 hilariously   

参考例句：

• Laughing hilariously, Wu Sun-fu left the study and ran straight upstairs. 吴荪甫异样地狂笑着，站起身来就走出了那书房，一直跑上楼去。 来自互联网
• Recently I saw a piece of news on the weband I thought it was hilariously ridiculous. 最近在网上的新闻里看到一则很好笑的新闻。 来自互联网

18 renaissance   

n.复活，复兴，文艺复兴

参考例句：

• The Renaissance was an epoch of unparalleled cultural achievement.文艺复兴是一个文化上取得空前成就的时代。
• The theme of the conference is renaissance Europe.大会的主题是文艺复兴时期的欧洲。

19 memorable   

adj.值得回忆的，难忘的，特别的，显著的

参考例句：

• This was indeed the most memorable day of my life.这的确是我一生中最值得怀念的日子。
• The veteran soldier has fought many memorable battles.这个老兵参加过许多难忘的战斗。