美国国家公共电台 NPR Turning The Tables 2018 Shows The 'Change Within Tradition'

 

NOEL KING, HOST:

Last year, NPR Music set out to make a list of the greatest albums by women, a list that was curated entirely¹ by women. It was called Turning the Tables. Today there is a new list focused on the music of the 21st century. And Ann Powers is one of the people behind it. She's here with me now. Hi, Ann.

ANN POWERS, BYLINE²: Hey, how are you doing?

KING: OK, so last year's Turning the Table (ph) list mixed some really obscure albums with classics. This year's list feels a lot more recognizable to me, anyway, in part because it's more contemporary. So why did you decide to go current?

POWERS: We wanted to look at this moment we're living in and think about how women and nonbinary artists are reshaping, revisioning and pushing music into the future.

KING: All right, so take me through the top five songs.

POWERS: OK. Number five is the song "Hold On" by the great rock band Alabama Shakes lead by Brittany Howard. Number four is Amy Winehouse's "Back To Black." Number three is by a little-known artist named Beyonce. It's "Single Ladies."

(LAUGHTER)

POWERS: Number two is the beautiful ballad³ "Maps" by the band Yeah Yeah Yeahs. And number one is M.I.A. with "Paper Planes."

KING: I have so many questions. But before I get to them, let's take a listen to some of "Paper Planes," number one.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "PAPER PLANES")

M.I.A.: (Singing) Sometimes I think sitting on trains every stop I get to I'm clocking that game. Everyone's a winner. We're making our fame. Bona fide hustler making my name.

UNIDENTIFIED SINGERS: (Singing) All I want to do is...

(SOUNDBITE OF GUNSHOTS)

UNIDENTIFIED SINGERS: (Singing) And a...

(SOUNDBITE OF CASH REGISTER OPENING)

UNIDENTIFIED SINGERS: (Singing) And take your money. All I want to do is...

KING: I love that song so much. It is such a banger. But how on earth is it number one? It's awesome⁴ but, like, Beyonce (laughter).

POWERS: Artists who have one indisputably great work might make it higher on the list than an artist who has, say, eight or nine songs or albums that are all equally pretty great.

KING: Right.

POWERS: So M.I.A. has a really rich catalog, but "Paper Planes" changed the sound of pop. And to this day it remains⁵ the jam you want to hear from M.I.A. I think.

KING: It remains the jam I want to hear at all times. Let me ask you. Why are you only dealing⁶ with songs? Why not full albums like last time?

POWERS: We were thinking about the 21st century. People now listen to playlists, and especially younger people. And so we were thinking about, how does the song operate in a world where streaming dominates? And how has that reconstituted the way we listen and the way artists make music? I believe that women are at the forefront of using these new technologies, and I think this list really proves that.

KING: So what do you think this list tells us about the first 18 years of this century?

POWERS: If you look at this top five, we have songs like the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' "Maps," which is a rock ballad, but it comes from the voice of a woman, Karen O. As an Asian-American woman, you know, she is representing identities that haven't always been heard from in rock 'n' roll. You look at Alabama Shakes, that's a band from the South remaking Southern rock in the voice of a black woman. This is what it's all about - change within tradition, change that doesn't destroy legacies⁷ but that reveals the truth behind legacies. And that's why we founded Turning the Tables. And I think it's very strong in this list, too.

KING: It's been a pretty cool century.

(LAUGHTER)

POWERS: I'm looking forward to more.

KING: Ann Powers of NPR Music - thanks so much, Ann.

POWERS: Thank you so much.

KING: Ann is one of the people behind Turning the Tables. And today you can find their list of the 200 greatest songs by women and nonbinary artists of the 21st century. That's at nprmusic.org.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "SINGLE LADIES")

BEYONCE: (Singing) Don't be mad once you see that he want it. If you liked it, then you should have put a ring on it. Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh.

1 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 ballad   

n.歌谣，民谣，流行爱情歌曲

参考例句：

• This poem has the distinctive flavour of a ballad.这首诗有民歌风味。
• This is a romantic ballad that is pure corn.这是一首极为伤感的浪漫小曲。

4 awesome   

adj.令人惊叹的，难得吓人的，很好的

参考例句：

• The church in Ireland has always exercised an awesome power.爱尔兰的教堂一直掌握着令人敬畏的权力。
• That new white convertible is totally awesome.那辆新的白色折篷汽车简直棒极了.

5 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

6 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

7 legacies   

n.遗产( legacy的名词复数 )；遗留之物；遗留问题；后遗症

参考例句：

• Books are the legacies that a great genius leaves to mankind. 书是伟大的天才留给人类的精神财富。 来自辞典例句
• General legacies are subject to the same principles as demonstrative legacies. 一般的遗赠要与指定数目的遗赠遵循同样的原则。 来自辞典例句