man in the music之morphine

 

中文來源：mjjcn.com 翻譯編輯：香茶7

翻譯一段man in the music中關於blood on the dance floor的文字。
我覺得man in the music一書應該是寫MJ音樂專業方面最好的一本書了。
一下截取自man in the music中研究MJ的歌曲和專輯系列part2，chapter5

People often struggle with allowing artists to grow and evolve. For Bob Dylan it was considered sacrilege by many to pick up an electric guitar; for the Beatles, the shift from sentimental love songs to social statements and psychedelia caused them to lose, in some people's minds, their initial charm and mass appeal. 人們總是對歌手的成長和進步的認同充滿掙扎。
比如說Bob Dylan，很多人認為他用電子吉他是一種褻瀆。而關於披頭士，他們唱的東西從多愁善感的情歌轉變到了社會問題和迷幻主題，一些人認為，這導致他們失去了最初的魅力和大眾吸引力。

For Michael Jackson, the conventional wisdom meant every album post-Thriller that didn't sound or sell like Thriller was considered a failure; this, in spite of the fact that some of his most significant and challenging work came later. Call it the curse of expectational stasis.對邁克傑克遜來說，一般普遍都認為在thriller之後出的專輯，唱法風格不像thriller的、或者是比thriller銷量差的都是失敗之作。
儘管在事實上，他的一些最為重要和最具有挑戰的作品是在後期創作的。
我們把這個稱為期望偏差的詛咒。

Still, for those who gave Blood on the Dancefloor: HIStory in the Mix a serious listen, it was an impressive record indeed. Containing just five new songs, the album is considered an artistic breakthrough by some. "His singing on the first five tracks of new material has never been so tormented, or audacious," wrote Armond White of Village Voice. 並且，非常認真的聽Blood on the Dancefloor: HIStory in the Mix之後會發現，這實際上是一張不同凡響的唱片。
雖然裏面只包含了5首新歌，但這張專輯被認為突破了過去的藝術表達方式。
“他在5首新歌裏有從未有過的新的東西，那是充滿了痛苦與大膽的一種嶄新的質感。”Village Voice的Armond White如此評價。

"'Blood on the Dancefloor' has the vitality of an intelligence that refuses to be placated. . .[It] is a throwdown, a dare to the concept of innocuous Black pop." In a 1997 review, The New York Times' Neil Strauss concurred: "There is real pain and pathos in these new songs... Jackson 's pain is often the world's merriment, and this is probably true of his new songs, which fret about painkillers, sexual promiscuity and public image.


“Blood on the Dancefloor”，充滿了拒絕懷柔的知性…那是對黑人流行音樂的一種無爭議的徹底的冒險。
1997年的訪談中，the new york times的Neil Strauss也有相同的意見。
這些新歌充滿了現實中的痛苦與悲哀…傑克遜的痛苦常常被作為世界中的嘲笑物件，這可能就是這些新歌裏，他把他對止痛藥，性亂交，和公眾形象的苦惱唱入歌曲中的真相。

In many of them, Jackson see***ike the elephant man, screaming that he is a human being... In keeping with Jackson 's darker mood, the music has grown more angry and indignant. With beats crashing like metal sheets and synthesizer sounds hissing like pressurized gas, this is industrial funk... Creatively, Jackson has entered a new realm."在很多歌曲中，傑克遜看起來像一個尖叫著聲稱自己是人類的象人…隨著傑克遜的黑暗模式，他的音樂變的越來越充滿憤怒。像要把金屬板破壞掉似的節拍，像是把氣體壓縮後發出的聲音。這是工業瘋克嗎……太有創造力了，傑克遜進入了一個新的領域。

In the gritty, haunting "Morphine," Jackson tackles a subject he never had before: drug addiction. To a relentless, industrial funk beat, the singer lashes out in visceral bursts of anger, aggression, and pain. "Is truth a game daddy," he screams out at one point. "To win the fame baby / It's all the same baby / You're so reliable."在充滿了砂石摩擦似的不安感的Morphine中，傑克遜涉及了一個他之前從未涉及的問題：藥物上癮。
通過不間斷的工業瘋克節拍，歌手把內心深處的憤怒，攻擊性和痛苦爆發出來，
“真相是遊戲嗎？爸爸”，他在這裏尖叫了。
“為了贏得名聲，大家都這樣。真是太值得依靠了。”

The rage and disappointment, combined with its ear-assaulting sound (music critic Tom Sinclair described it as "alternating Trent Reznor-style sturm und clang with Bacharachian orchestral pomp"), make for a jarring listening experience, particularly for those accustomed to the breezier melodic pop of Off the Wall and Thriller (though it should be noted that songs like "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" and "Billie Jean" were already beginning to uncover the complexity, paranoia and pain represented in these later tracks). 憤怒和失望混合在一起，形成衝擊耳朵的聲音（音樂評論家Tom Sinclair①將這描述為由Trent Reznor②風格的狂亂的聲音和Bacharachian風格的優雅相互交替而形成的）。
對習慣了《off the wall》和《thriller》的輕鬆的pop音樂旋律的人來說，會感到有刺耳般的不和諧感。
（儘管“wanna be startin somethin”和“billie jean”這類曲子已經非常複雜，它們也精密的把偏執和痛苦表現出來）
①Tom Sinclair在Entertainment Weekly發表的評論
EW.com（http://www.ew.com/ew/）
②Trent Reznor是Nine Inch Nails的核心人物。是好萊塢電影《lost highway》的音樂監督。

But "Morphine" is best viewed as an experiment -- both sonically and lyrically -- in representing the experience of physical / psychological pain as well as its temporary release via narcotic pain relievers like demerol and morphine (both of which Jackson has been reportedly addicted to, on and off, since the early Nineties).不過最好把“Morphine”看做為一個實驗——音樂和歌詞兩方面都是——它們表現出了因為吸食demerol和morphine而導致的身體與精神上的開放感與痛苦。
（傑克遜被報導從90年代初期開始對demerol和morphine這兩樣東西上癮）

This experience is also brilliantly conveyed in the song's form: About mid-way through the track, the grating beat subsides, symbolically representing the pacifying effect of the drug. "Relax, this won't hurt you," Jackson sings soothingly from the perspective of the drug.這種經歷通過這首曲子被精彩的表現出來。
在曲子的正中間，如同被壓軋一般節拍音開始變弱。這象徵著服用藥物後的鎮定效果。
“放輕鬆點。這不會傷害你的。”傑克遜從藥物的角度來唱著這首歌。

Before I put it in 在我給你打入之前
Close your eyes and count to ten 閉上眼睛數到十
Don't cry 別哭
I won't convert you 我不會把你改變
There's no need to dismay 沒有必要驚恐
Close your eyes and drift away 閉上你的眼睛然後隨波逐流

Demerol 杜冷丁
Demerol 杜冷丁
Oh God he's taking demerol 哦我的上帝他在用杜冷丁
Demerol 杜冷丁
Demerol 杜冷丁
Oh God he's taking demerol哦我的上帝他在用杜冷丁

He's tried 他累了
Hard to convince her 說服她太難了
To be over what he had 為了熬過他所經歷的
Today he wants it twice as bad 他今天非常想用兩次
Don't cry 別哭
I won't resent you 我不會憎恨你
Yesterday you had his trust 昨天你擁有他的信任
Today he's taking twice as much 今天他服用了兩次之多

Demerol 杜冷丁
Demerol 杜冷丁
Oh God he's taking demerol 哦我的上帝他在用杜冷丁
Demerol 杜冷丁
Demerol 杜冷丁
Oh God he's taking demerol 哦我的上帝他在用杜冷丁

These verses are perhaps some of the most poignant (and tragic) Jackson has ever sung. Beyond the literalness of the drug itself is Jackson 's persistent yearning to escape from pain, loneliness, confusion, and relentless pressure. In this brief interlude he beautifully conveys the soothing, seductive, but temporary release from reality. There is a sense of pleading, of desperation, before the high abruptly ends, and the listener is slammed back into the harsh world of accusations and anguish. 這一連串的歌詞也許是傑克遜有史以來唱的歌中，最為痛苦激烈（或者悲壯）的。
除了對毒藥的詮釋，還有傑克遜的孤獨、混亂和希望從巨大的壓力解脫出來的願望。
短暫的間奏中，他溫柔的安慰、誘導。
但是，那不過是一時的解放，興奮的狀態突然變成絕望，重新回到痛苦的現實世界。

Sputnik Music described this musical sequence as a "moment of absolute genius." The song, written and composed entirely by Jackson , is one of his most experimental and brilliant creations. It is a confession, a personal intervention, a witness, and a warning.

Sputnik Music將這種表現出連續劇場景的音樂評價為“絕對天才瞬間”。
這首歌完全是由傑克遜作詞、作曲，他最為輝煌、實驗性的創造之一，那是對罪的告白，也是作為從個人治療的證人，和一個警告。
［Note : This analysis of "Morphine" was written before Michael Jackson's death. It becomes all the more tragic given reports that narcotics like demerol and morphine may have contributed to his passing.]（注：這段Morphine的分析是在MJ死亡前書寫的。杜冷丁和嗎啡被報導可能是他的死因之後，可以說越發悲壯）


————————翻譯結束————————

Sputnik Music：英國音樂評論雜誌（http://www.sputnikmusic.com/）

source：

Michael Jackson : Man in the Music, Part 2（Morphine）
Joe Vogel（Posted: June 27, 2009 03:44 AM）
（Copyright by Joseph Vogel, from Man in the Music: An Album by Album Guide to Michael Jackson）

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jo ... in-th_b_221797.html

MJ以藥物的角度來創作了這首歌，從他歌詞裏顯露出的邪惡可以看出，他本人對嗎啡和杜冷丁的態度。

這其實就像當初BAD這首歌曲出來，很多人以為MJ想轉變形象成為壞小子，宣傳暴力一樣。
MJ在很多歌曲裏用了類似的藝術表達手法，比如這首morphine，比如bad，還有比如money等歌。

MJ在這些歌曲裏演了一個壞人。
他為什麼要這麼做？——因為苦口婆心的說教的效果不如讓你直接體驗一次這些行為帶來的痛苦。
就像是一個小孩子喜歡玩火，母親苦苦勸告可能他根本聽不進，但一旦這個小孩因為玩火而被燒傷了，我相信他一輩子都不會再玩火了——當然現實中不能這麼做，於是MJ就想到了這個絕妙的方式。

MJ的聰明才智總是讓人窒息。
每個試圖去評論MJ的專業評論家們總是帶著自以為是的偏見。
單純
什麼是單純。
就是像孩子一樣簡單的去相信，而不是存有偏見
和以單方面狹隘的角度去評價。
如果你的思想和行為舉止被固定在某一個模式之中，
你的創造力也會被局限。
在這個時刻，你將會失去新鮮感和魔力。
再次學會變的單純，那樣新鮮感永遠不會消失。
——“Innocence”（from 「Dancing the Dream」）
單純的人來看這首歌，他們看到的是在morphine這首歌裏，MJ警示世人吸毒的危害。
不單純的人來看這首歌，他們看到的是，“哦我的上帝，邁克傑克遜在用嗎啡和杜冷丁！”