哪些歌曲能让你回忆往昔？

It's funny how just the first few notes of a song can evoke vivid memories.
你不觉得一首歌的前几句歌词就能引发回忆很有趣吗？
You may associate a song, songwriter or singer with such important people as a first love, a grandparent or a best friend. Or they may bring back a particularly lonely or heartbreaking time, a great triumph or just a particularly happy day.
一首歌、作曲家或者歌手都有可能让你联想到重要的人，比如初恋、祖父母或最好的朋友，也可能让你回想起特别孤独心碎的时刻，抑或是巨大的胜利或快乐的一天。
One song I vividly remember from the time I moved to Beijing in 2014 was the theme song from the 2008 Olympic Games. The song's title, "Beijing Huan Ying Ni", or Beijing welcomes you, had great meaning for me at a time I was looking for a new home.
我在2014年移居北京，印象最深的一首歌就是2008年北京奥运会主题曲《北京欢迎你》。当时我在寻找新的落脚点，这首歌有特别的意义。
The reason all this comes to mind is that several singer/songwriters who had that ability to evoke memories from my youth died in the past few weeks. This has been a time of loss, overshadowed by a pandemic that has swept the globe like a roaring wildfire.
我之所以想写这篇文章，是因为最近几周，好几位能唤起我青年时期回忆的歌手和作曲家都去世了。
One of these musical talents, John Prine, was described by William Grimes in The New York Times as a "raspy-voiced country-folk singer whose ingenious lyrics" were at different times "poignant, angry and comic". Prine often was seen as a successor to iconic musician Bob Dylan yet never had a chart-topping tune. He died from complications of novel coronavirus pneumonia on April 7 at age 73 in Nashville, Tennessee, in the United States.
其中一位就是民谣大师John Prine，他被视为Bob Dylan的接班人。Prine于四月七日在田纳西州去世，享年73岁。
Like many of the best folk singer/songwriters, Prine's genius was in being able to distill the travails of average people in a way that showed the absurdities and humor of life. In "Sam Stone", he describes the broken, scarred life of a soldier home from a war. In "Angel from Montgomery", he writes about the hardscrabble existence of a middle-aged woman dreaming of a better life.
和很多优秀的民谣歌手一样，Prine的才华在于他能用诙谐幽默的方式展现小人物的痛苦。在Sam Sonte中，他描绘了从战场回到家乡的士兵的破碎的生活。在Angel from Montgomery中，他讲述了一个贫困中年女性梦想更好的生活。
John Prine came into my life during my years at the University of Georgia in the US. You could grab a beer and sit out on the deck of TK Harty's Saloon, our favorite bar, and listen to his tunes. I eventually listened to less of John Prine because he was the favorite of a girlfriend who broke my heart. But as I got older, I realized that breaking my heart was the greatest gift she could have given me — the relationship never would have worked — and I no longer held it against John.
我上大学时第一次听他的歌。你可以在学校酒吧里喝着啤酒听他的歌。我的一任女朋友最喜欢他，但她伤了我的心，所以我逐渐不听Prine的歌了。但随着年龄渐长，我发现前女友给我的最好礼物就是让我伤心，因为我俩根本就没有未来，所以我也不再逃避Prine的歌声。
Another great musical loss was not from COVID-19. Bill Withers, who died from heart trouble on March 30 at age 81 in Los Angeles, California, wrote such classics as "Lean on Me", about the power of friendship, and "Ain't No Sunshine", a haunting ballad of romantic longing.
另一位去世的音乐家是Bill Withers，不过他在三月三十一日因心脏病死于加州，享年81岁。他的经典作品Lean on Me是关于友谊的力量，Ain't No Sunshine则是情歌。
Still, Withers' passing had a link to the world's current problems. As Mark Kennedy wrote for the Associated Press: "His death comes as the public has drawn inspiration from his music during the coronavirus pandemic, with health care workers, choirs, artists and more posting their own renditions on 'Lean on Me' to help get through the difficult times."
不过Withers的去世和世界目前的问题相关。美联社报道称：“新冠肺炎疫情下，人们从他的音乐中汲取能量。医护人员、唱诗班、艺术家和很多人都演绎了不同版本的Lean on Me来度过困境，而此时Withers却去世了。”
Also, no one who grew up to Bill Withers' music or ever longed for a missing love could avoid relating to his soulful lyrics: "Ain't no sunshine when she's gone, It's not warm when she's away, Ain't no sunshine when she's gone, And she's always gone too long, Anytime she goes away."
听着他的歌长大的人，都会想起这几句歌词：“当她走了，没有了一点阳光。当她走了，没有了一点温暖。当她走了，没有了一点阳光。她走到很远很远的地方去。她随时会烟消云散。”
While these times of pandemic will continue to be times of loss, especially of elders who have contributed so much, it also is a good time to remember the mark they left in life.
疫情带来生命的消逝，特别是做出很多贡献的老人。这也是缅怀他们的时刻。
It's a good reason, too, to reflect on what we can contribute, what mark we can leave, while we still have time to do so.
而活着人还有时间思考，我们能做出什么贡献，能在生命中留下什么印记。