2006年VOA标准英语-Singer Lou Rawls Dies of Cancer

By Doug Levine
Washington
06 January 2006

Renowned¹ rhythm and blues² vocalist Lou Rawls died of lung and brain cancer January 6 at a hospital in Los Angeles, California.  He was 72 years old.  Known for his rich, deep velvety⁴ voice, Rawls recorded more than 50 albums, made numerous television and movie appearances, and earned three Grammy Awards during a career that spanned more than five decades.

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Lou Rawls poses with his Grammy at 1972 Awards show  
  

Lou Rawls was indeed a natural, a natural-born singer drawn⁵ as easily to gospel music as he was to pop, jazz and blues.

Born in Chicago, Lou Rawls was introduced to gospel by his grandmother.  He sang in his church choir⁶ and improvised⁷ harmonies with his high school classmate, the future R&B star Sam Cooke.  Lou made his first recording⁸ with the Chosen Gospel Singers before enlisting⁹ as a paratrooper in the U.S. Army.  After serving three years, he joined another gospel group, The Pilgrim Travelers, reuniting with his friend Sam Cooke.  While on tour, Rawls was nearly killed in a serious car accident that left him in a coma¹⁰ for five days.  Sam Cooke was unhurt.

Big changes were on the way.  Rawls moved to Los Angeles in the late 1950s and began performing in small nightclubs around the city.  It wasn't long before a producer for Capitol Records spotted¹¹ him.  Executives were so impressed with Rawls' four-octave vocal³ range they offered him a lucrative¹² contract. 

His first major hit for Capitol was "Love Is A Hurtin' Thing."

After breaking onto the charts in 1966, more hits followed, including "Dead End Street" which won Rawls a Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal performance.

Some credit Rawls for being the first rap artist after the release of his monologues¹³ about love and life on "World Of Trouble" and "Tobacco Road."  The trendy disco years of the 1970s didn't cramp¹⁴ his style.  He moved to the soulful sound of the Philadelphia International label and recorded his biggest hit, "You'll Never Find (Another Love Like Mine)."

Lou Rawls sings the national anthem¹⁵ before game two of Major League Baseball's World Series in 2005   
  
Grammy Awards and hit singles aside, Lou Rawls will always be known as a generous humanitarian¹⁶.  Over the years, he helped raise million of dollars for the United Negro College Fund, and performed concerts at American military bases around the world.

Lou Rawls was actively¹⁷ touring until a year ago when he was diagnosed with lung cancer in late-2004, and brain cancer last May.  He was hospitalized for cancer treatment in December.  Rawls died at the hospital in Los Angeles on January 6.  Lou Rawls was 72.

1 renowned   

adj.著名的，有名望的，声誉鹊起的

参考例句：

• He is one of the world's renowned writers.他是世界上知名的作家之一。
• She is renowned for her advocacy of human rights.她以提倡人权而闻名。

2 blues   

n.抑郁，沮丧；布鲁斯音乐

参考例句：

• She was in the back of a smoky bar singing the blues.她在烟雾弥漫的酒吧深处唱着布鲁斯歌曲。
• He was in the blues on account of his failure in business.他因事业失败而意志消沉。

3 vocal   

adj.直言不讳的；嗓音的；n.[pl.]声乐节目

参考例句：

• The tongue is a vocal organ.舌头是一个发音器官。
• Public opinion at last became vocal.终于舆论哗然。

4 velvety   

adj. 像天鹅绒的, 轻软光滑的, 柔软的

参考例句：

• a velvety red wine 醇厚的红葡萄酒
• Her skin was admired for its velvety softness. 她的皮肤如天鹅绒般柔软，令人赞叹。

5 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

6 choir   

n.唱诗班，唱诗班的席位，合唱团，舞蹈团；v.合唱

参考例句：

• The choir sang the words out with great vigor.合唱团以极大的热情唱出了歌词。
• The church choir is singing tonight.今晚教堂歌唱队要唱诗。

7 improvised   

a.即席而作的,即兴的

参考例句：

• He improvised a song about the football team's victory. 他即席创作了一首足球队胜利之歌。
• We improvised a tent out of two blankets and some long poles. 我们用两条毛毯和几根长竿搭成一个临时帐蓬。

8 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。

9 enlisting   

v.（使）入伍， （使）参军( enlist的现在分词 )；获得（帮助或支持）

参考例句：

• He thought about enlisting-about the Spanish legion-about a profession. 他想去打仗，想参加西班牙军团，想找个职业。 来自辞典例句
• They are not enlisting men over thirty-five. 他们不召超过35岁的人入伍。 来自辞典例句

10 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。

11 spotted   

adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的

参考例句：

• The milkman selected the spotted cows,from among a herd of two hundred.牛奶商从一群200头牛中选出有斑点的牛。
• Sam's shop stocks short spotted socks.山姆的商店屯积了有斑点的短袜。

12 lucrative   

adj.赚钱的，可获利的

参考例句：

• He decided to turn his hobby into a lucrative sideline.他决定把自己的爱好变成赚钱的副业。
• It was not a lucrative profession.那是一个没有多少油水的职业。

13 monologues   

n.（戏剧）长篇独白( monologue的名词复数 )；滔滔不绝的讲话；独角戏

参考例句：

• That film combines real testimonials with monologues read by actors. 电影中既有真人讲的真事，也有演员的独白。 来自互联网
• Her monologues may help her make sense of her day. 她的独白可以帮助她让她一天的感觉。 来自互联网

14 cramp   

n.痉挛；[pl.](腹)绞痛；vt.限制，束缚

参考例句：

• Winston stopped writing,partly because he was suffering from cramp.温斯顿驻了笔，手指也写麻了。
• The swimmer was seized with a cramp and had to be helped out of the water.那个在游泳的人突然抽起筋来，让别人帮着上了岸。

15 anthem   

n.圣歌，赞美诗，颂歌

参考例句：

• All those present were standing solemnly when the national anthem was played.奏国歌时全场肃立。
• As he stood on the winner's rostrum,he sang the words of the national anthem.他站在冠军领奖台上，唱起了国歌。

16 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

17 actively   

adv.积极地，勤奋地

参考例句：

• During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
• We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。