VOA标准英语2013--'God Didn’t Choose Sides' - Civil War Songs About Real People

 

'God Didn’t Choose Sides' - Civil War Songs About Real People

Sam Passamano, II, head of the Rural Rhythm Records label, is a Civil War buff. When he got to work producing an album of songs inspired by the Civil War, he had something different in mind, something other than recording¹ the traditional tunes² of the era.

“The real people who were in the trenches³. The men and women who were a major part of ‘The War Between The States.’" he said. "There are some amazing stories that need to be told about acts of kindness and brotherhood⁴ and faith and selflessness that this project really brings out and it’s a major part of what makes it special and unique.”

Such as the true life tale of John P. Parker, who was sold into slavery at the age of eight.

He learned to read and write and apprenticed⁵ as an iron worker. Parker would eventually buy his freedom, run his own iron foundry in the northern state of Ohio, and help other slaves escape from the South. Dave Adkins sings Parker’s story in “The River Man,” on “God Didn’t Choose Sides.”

Mark “Brink” Brinkman wrote “The River Man” with Paula Breedlove.  He was especially touched by Parker’s bravery and what he had to put up while helping⁶ others to freedom.

"There was a $1,000 bounty⁷ put on his head, but nobody knew what he looked like," he said. "In fact, we searched for pictures for this project and we found that there are no pictures of John Parker because he was so afraid of somebody killing⁸ him, if they knew what he looked like."

Tim Stafford and Steve Gulley also contributed a song to “God Didn’t Choose Sides.” They wrote about Tod Carter, a lawyer who left his home in Franklin, Tennessee and followed his brother into the rebel, Confederate Army.  As Gulley sings, after three years of fighting the soldier found himself just a few miles from his old home, leading a charge toward the Union line.  

“And when we got to that line [in the song] when researching the documented proof of the story, we knew we had the title," Gulley said. "We just worked from there and kind of told his story. From growing up to ending up being mortally wounded in the battle of Franklin in his front yard.  And pulled inside by his family members, saying can we just bring him inside, in the house he was born in and in the bed he was born. It was a very poignant⁹ story. But also, I think, telling of the whole war in general. There was a lot of irony¹⁰ in the Civil War and I hope we drove that point home.”

In addition to 12 original songs and one cover of a gospel standard, “God Didn’t Choose Sides” includes a 16-page booklet with photographs and notes that tell the stories behind the songs.

Rural Rhythm Records has also set up a website for the album with additional information about the Civil War and the songwriters and performers on the project. One of them is Russell Moore, who tells through song the heartbreaking true story of a woman who learns she’s a widow when she sees a photo of her family in the newspaper. The caption¹¹ explains the picture was found in the hands of a dead soldier. It’s called “A Picture of Three Children.”

1 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

2 tunes   

n.曲调，曲子( tune的名词复数 )v.调音( tune的第三人称单数 )；调整；（给收音机、电视等）调谐；使协调

参考例句：

• a potpourri of tunes 乐曲集锦
• When things get a bit too much, she simply tunes out temporarily. 碰到事情太棘手时，她干脆暂时撒手不管。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 trenches   

深沟，地沟( trench的名词复数 )； 战壕

参考例句：

• life in the trenches 第一次世界大战期间的战壕生活
• The troops stormed the enemy's trenches and fanned out across the fields. 部队猛攻敌人的战壕，并在田野上呈扇形散开。

4 brotherhood   

n.兄弟般的关系，手中情谊

参考例句：

• They broke up the brotherhood.他们断绝了兄弟关系。
• They live and work together in complete equality and brotherhood.他们完全平等和兄弟般地在一起生活和工作。

5 apprenticed   

学徒，徒弟( apprentice的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• I was apprenticed to a builder when I was fourteen. 14岁时，我拜一个建筑工人为师当学徒。
• Lucius got apprenticed to a stonemason. 卢修斯成了石匠的学徒。

6 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

7 bounty   

n.慷慨的赠予物，奖金；慷慨，大方；施与

参考例句：

• He is famous for his bounty to the poor.他因对穷人慷慨相助而出名。
• We received a bounty from the government.我们收到政府给予的一笔补助金。

8 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

9 poignant   

adj.令人痛苦的，辛酸的，惨痛的

参考例句：

• His lyrics are as acerbic and poignant as they ever have been.他的歌词一如既往的犀利辛辣。
• It is especially poignant that he died on the day before his wedding.他在婚礼前一天去世了，这尤其令人悲恸。

10 irony   

n.反语，冷嘲；具有讽刺意味的事，嘲弄

参考例句：

• She said to him with slight irony.她略带嘲讽地对他说。
• In her voice we could sense a certain tinge of irony.从她的声音里我们可以感到某种讥讽的意味。

11 caption   

n.说明，字幕，标题；v.加上标题，加上说明

参考例句：

• I didn't understand the drawing until I read the caption.直到我看到这幅画的说明才弄懂其意思。
• There is a caption under the picture.图片下边附有说明。