《美國(guó)偶像》史上七大精彩瞬間

2016-09-12 02:59:12byKatyKrollDanHyman翻譯箐舞

瘋狂英語·初中天地 2016年7期

by Katy Kroll & Dan Hyman翻譯：箐舞

《美國(guó)偶像》史上七大精彩瞬間

by Katy Kroll & Dan Hyman
翻譯：箐舞

2016年4月7日晚，《美國(guó)偶像》第十五季總決賽落下了帷幕，這檔風(fēng)靡全美十五年、被譽(yù)為“美國(guó)真人秀之王”的歌唱選秀節(jié)目正式告別熒幕。《紐約時(shí)報(bào)》評(píng)論道：這是美國(guó)“一個(gè)平民選秀時(shí)代的終結(jié)”。

總決賽當(dāng)晚，幾乎所有曾經(jīng)擔(dān)任《美國(guó)偶像》評(píng)委的大牌歌手，以及各個(gè)賽季的明星選手們都一一登上了告別舞臺(tái)。看著一張張熟悉的臉孔，聽著一首首依舊震撼心靈的歌曲，不少觀眾都不禁熱淚盈眶。對(duì)大多數(shù)美國(guó)人來說，告別的不止是一個(gè)節(jié)目，還是一份美好的“集體回憶”。

American Idol has been a huge piece of our pop-culture puzzle for the past 15 years. In Season 15， it's finally leaving us. During its1）heyday， Idol was one of the hottest and widely debated shows. Let's look back at the seven best moments from the show's storied run.

Love him or hate him， Simon Cowell put American Idol to a new level with his2）harsh3）critiques. In Season 3， Cowell couldn't stop laughing as 18-year-old Jonathan Rey performed Shakira's “The One，” saying， “I think we're going to have to4）cancel this competition—that was terrible.” Jonathan then calmly walked up to the judges' table as if to shake hands， but instead he picked up a cup of water and5）threw it at Cowell.6）Security quickly came in， but by that time， Cowell had been7）soaked.

Hong Kong-born William Hung is most remembered for his performance of Ricky Martin's “She Bangs” in Season 3. “You can't sing， you can't dance， so what do you want me to say？”asked judge Simon Cowell. William Hung replied， “I already gave my best， and I have no regrets at all.”8）Off-key Hung and his “best attitude” won hearts across America in 2004.

It was the night Carrie Underwood stepped out of her9）country10）comfort zone to sing Heart's 1980s' “Alone.” She11）blew everyone away， including the mean Simon Cowell. “I will make a12）prediction，” he said confidently， “not only will you win this show， you will sell more records than any other Idol winner.” And he was right. She won， and she still stands as the top-selling Idol album—with almost 16 million sold in the U.S.

It was an very important moment for American Idol： After being13）crowned the Season 11 champ， Phillip Phillips took the stage one last time to perform his14）coronation song，“Home.” And it stands as the best-selling coronation song—or any song， for that matter， by an Idol album—with more than 5 million copies sold.

1） heyday ［'heIdeI］ n. 全盛時(shí)期，壯年

2） harsh ［ha??］ adj. 嚴(yán)厲的，刺耳的

3） critique ［krI'ti?k］ n. 批評(píng)

4） cancel ［'k?ns?l］ v. 取消，宣稱無效

5） throw at 向……投去

8） of-key 走調(diào)的

9） country ［'k?ntrI］ adj. 鄉(xiāng)村音樂的

10） comfort zone 舒適區(qū)

11） blow away（從情感上）壓倒、鎮(zhèn)住

12） prediction ［prI'dIk??n］ n. 預(yù)言，預(yù)測(cè)

14） coronation ［k?r?'neI??n］ n. 加冕禮

Rocker David Cook went from dark horse to15）leader of the pack in Season 7 of American Idol with Michael Jackson's “Billie Jean.” The slow，16）haunting17）cover took the show to a whole new level， a level where re-arranging a song could lead to a18）mind-blowing experience. And with the help of that song， Cook became the frst White Guy with Guitar注1to win Idol.

Lambert certainly isn't the only Idol19）contestant to have lost the competition and gone on to great20）commercial success， but he may very well be the one with the most talent ever to do so. It seemed like every week he was21）one-upping his22）previous performance. But his23）rendition of “Mad World” was the most memorable.

It's hard to believe that Season 1 of American Idol got things so right with its coronation of Kelly Clarkson. While other winners have24）faded into the background over the course of a decade and a half， Clarkson has remained a25）household name. Not only was Clarkson the perfect pick， but so was her coronation song， “A Moment Like This，” which is the most memorable original songs to ever come out of Idol. Some people wait a lifetime注2， indeed.