2006年VOA标准英语-'Fifth Beatle' Billy Preston Dies at 59

By Mike O'Sullivan
Los Angeles
07 June 2006

Musician Billy Preston, a so-called "fifth Beatle," has died in Arizona at the age of 59 after a long illness. 

Billy Preston (February, 2005 photo)   
  
A native of Houston, Texas, Preston played while in his teens with Mahalia Jackson, Little Richard and Ray Charles.

He later backed up the Beatles, playing keyboards on Let It Be, The White Album and Abbey Road. He also played on the hit Beatles single Get Back.

As a soloist¹, Preston topped the record charts in the early 1970s with Outta Space, Will It Go Round in Circles, and Nothing from Nothing.

He joined the Rolling Stones on tour and backed them up on Can't You Hear Me Knocking and Heartbreaker.

He also wrote the Joe Cocker hit  You Are So Beautiful, and collaborated² with Aretha Franklin, Bob Dylan, Quincy Jones, and Barbra Streisand.

He won two Grammys, including one for his involvement in the Concert for Bangladesh, staged by ex-Beatle George Harrison in 1971. Last year, in one of his final appearances, Preston performed in Los Angeles with former Beatle Ringo Starr and Harrison's son, Dhani.

Plagued by drug and alcohol abuse, Preston had scrapes with the law on narcotics³ and other charges. He suffered from chronic⁴ kidney failure, and had been in a coma⁵ since November.

1 soloist   

n.独奏者，独唱者

参考例句：

• The soloist brought the house down with encore for his impressive voice.这位独唱家以他那感人的歌声博得全场喝彩。
• The soloist had never performed in London before.那位独唱者过去从未在伦敦演出过。

2 collaborated   

合作( collaborate的过去式和过去分词 )； 勾结叛国

参考例句：

• We have collaborated on many projects over the years. 这些年来我们合作搞了许多项目。
• We have collaborated closely with the university on this project. 我们与大学在这个专案上紧密合作。

3 narcotics   

n.麻醉药( narcotic的名词复数 )；毒品；毒

参考例句：

• The use of narcotics by teenagers is a problem in many countries. 青少年服用麻醉药在许多国家中都是一个问题。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Police shook down the club, looking for narcotics. 警方彻底搜查了这个俱乐部，寻找麻醉品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 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。

5 coma   

n.昏迷，昏迷状态

参考例句：

• The patient rallied from the coma.病人从昏迷中苏醒过来。
• She went into a coma after swallowing a whole bottle of sleeping pills.她吃了一整瓶安眠药后就昏迷过去了。