VOA标准英语2010年-Little Big Town Releases 'The Reason W

Little Big Town's trademark¹ four-part harmony is the common thread through the latest album "The Reason Why". The group four members share lead vocals³ on the album's 12 tracks.

Karen Fairchild, Kimberly Schlapman, Phillip Sweet and Jimi Westbrook formed Little Big Town in 1998. The group signed its first deal with Monument Records in 2002. When the label closed its doors, they moved to Equity⁴ Records, which folded in 2008. That same year, Little Big Town moved to Capitol Records for the release of their third album, "A Place To Land."

In addition to challenges in their music career, the group members have faced obstacles in their personal lives. But, during the past five years, each has married and added children to their families. They say the album's title track deals with the contentment in their lives.

"It just seemed to fit a lot of different things, [the album title has] a lot of layers of meaning for us," said Phillip Sweet. "Really, the music has always been the driving force for us and the reason we do all the things that we do and keep pursuing on to strive⁵ and make better music."

"Little White Church" was the first single from "The Reason Why." It became Little Big Town's fastest-rising single on Billboard's Country chart, where it peaked at Number 6.

Although Little Big Town's sound has been compared to Fleetwood Mac and ABBA, the group has no plans to abandon its Country roots.

"Country music is our heart, and I think if the music reaches beyond those boundaries in a natural way, I think that's really cool," said Sweet. "We want our music to be heard around the world. But our heart and soul is Country music, and we love it."

Last month, Little Big Town kicked off a U.S. concert tour with Sugarland. In November, they'll head out on their own headlining tour.

For the fourth year in a row, Little Big Town is nominated⁶ for the Country Music Association's Vocal² Group of the Year Award. The CMA's will be held in Nashville on November 10.

1 trademark   

n.商标；特征；vt.注册的…商标

参考例句：

• The trademark is registered on the book of the Patent Office.该商标已在专利局登记注册。
• The trademark of the pen was changed.这钢笔的商标改了。

2 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。

3 vocals   

（乐曲中的）歌唱部份，声乐部份( vocal的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Also look out for soaring vocals on The Right Man. 另外，也可留意一下《意中人》中的那高亢的唱腔。
• Lazy bass line, lazier drums, lush violins, great piano and incomparable vocals. 懒惰的低音线，较懒惰的鼓，饮小提琴，棒的钢琴和无比的声音。

4 equity   

n.公正，公平，（无固定利息的）股票

参考例句：

• They shared the work of the house with equity.他们公平地分担家务。
• To capture his equity,Murphy must either sell or refinance.要获得资产净值，墨菲必须出售或者重新融资。

5 strive   

vi.努力，奋斗，力争

参考例句：

• Don't strive merely for quantity of production.在生产中不要单纯地追求数量。
• The scientists strive for a breakthrough in cancer research.科学家们力争在癌症研究方面有个突破。

6 nominated   

adj.被提名的，被任命的 动词nominate的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• She has been nominated for the presidency. 她已经获得了董事长职位的提名。
• The movie was nominated for an Oscar. 这部电影获奥斯卡金像奖提名。