PBS高端访谈:双目失明的摇滚乐手（在线收听）

Amna Nawaz: Let's end this week with a little inspiration: the unlikely story of Robert Finley. In just over three years, the 64-year-old blues guitarist and singer went from working as a carpenter to performing across the country, including a recent show at Washington, D.C.'s Anthem theater, where we caught up with him. William Brangham and producer Frank Carlson bring us his remarkable story. Let's have a listen.

Robert Finley: I'm a 64-year-old great-grandfather, and I'm just getting ready to rock. My name is Robert Finley. I'm from Bernice, Louisiana. I was born and raised in a little town called Winnsboro. I'm a sharecropper's son. I guess you could say we're one of those sharecroppers that really never got their share. Started playing music. I had an interest in it all my life since I was old enough to remember. I played in the military. I happened to be the leader of the Army band when I was in Germany. But when I started to try to do the civilian band, they were not as dependable. It's always the drummer is late or the bass man can't make it and stuff like this. That got frustrating to me. And it couldn't keep me busy enough to make a decent living.

William Brangham: In the mid 1970s, Finley stepped away from music. He became a carpenter, like his father, but then, in 2015, he began to lose his sight.

Robert Finley: I got to where I couldn't see well enough to make accurate cuts. And, at the price of lumber, you can't afford to keep making miscuts. So I was forced into retirement because of my sight on the carpentry. And I just went back to my music.

William Brangham: That same year, in 2015, Finley was discovered playing on the streets of Helena, Arkansas. Before he knew it, he was recording with Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys and opening for the biggest names in music.

Robert Finley: I'm going from, how do you say, from the sidewalk to Broadway stages in less than three years. It's a whole lot different crawling up on a stage than crawling up on top of a house, I will tell you that.

William Brangham: Finley's second studio album, "Goin' Platinum!," is now out. And you can catch him live around the country. For the "PBS NewsHour," I'm William Brangham.

Amna Nawaz: That is a great way to start the weekend. And that is the NewsHour for tonight.

阿姆纳·纳瓦兹：在本周即将接近尾声时，我们将带来一些让大家颇为振奋的内容——罗伯特·芬利的传奇人生。在短短3年多的时间里，这位64岁的老人从一名木匠变成了全国巡演的蓝调吉他手和歌手。其中，最近的一次演出是在华盛顿特区圣歌剧院。也是在这里，我们对他进行了采访。我台记者威廉·布朗汉姆、制作人弗兰克卡尔松将为大家带来他的传奇故事，让我们来了解一下吧。

罗伯特·芬利：我今年64岁了，虽然已经儿孙满堂，但我还是有一颗不老的心。我叫罗伯特·芬利，来自路易斯安那州的廖碧儿。我在小镇温斯伯勒出生并长大，我的父亲是一名佃农。我猜大家一定会认为我们家就是那种永远捞不到收益的佃农家庭。说说我玩音乐的经历吧。从我记事起，我就对音乐感兴趣。在军队的时候我就玩音乐。我在德国的时候，有幸成为军乐团的负责人。但当我开始着手民间乐队的时候，我才发现并没有那么好做——不是鼓手迟到，就是男低音唱不下去，诸如此类的问题。这些事情让我感到很有挫败感。而且乐队的顾客也是屈指可数，连温饱都达不到。

威廉·布朗汉姆：上世纪70年代中期，芬利离开了音乐圈。他像父亲一样，做了一名木匠。但2015年的时候，他开始渐渐失明。

罗伯特·芬利：我当时的视力已经到了不能精准切割木材的程度。而且当时木材价格很高，不能总是切错。所以我不得不因为视力问题而退休。然后我就重新拾起了音乐。

威廉·布朗汉姆：同年，也就是2015年的时候，芬利在阿肯色州海伦娜街头上演奏时被人慧眼识珠。他当时还不知道，自己已经跟黑键乐队的丹·奥尔巴赫一起录过音，还跟很多名人一起公开表演过。

罗伯特·芬利：在不到3年的时间里，我就从街头演奏走到了百老汇的舞台上。在舞台上演奏跟在房顶上的感觉大不相同，这个我有体会。

威廉·布朗汉姆：芬利录制的第二张专辑名为《赚大钱！》，现在已经发售了。此外，我们也能看到他在全国各地巡演。感谢收听《新闻一小时》，我是威廉·布朗汉姆。

阿姆纳·纳瓦兹：一个励志的故事给美好的周末开了个头，这是今晚的《新闻一小时》节目。