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STRING CRAZY - HISTORY OF THE ERNIE BALL / MUSIC MAN COMPANY
疯狂的琴弦 – 论ErnieBall/MusicMan公司的历史
Ernie Ball is an unlikely executive. He regards profit-and-loss statements as necessary distractions, and he never does market surveys to determine whether products on the drawing board would succeed. He has earned his reputation by following his instincts. "If it feels right, I know it will sell." Over the years, that philosophy helped Ernie turn his company into a worldwide success. The company's products can be found in more than 5,000 music stores throughout the USA, and are exported to 68 countries.
ErnieBall也许不是一个好的企业决策者。他关注自己盈亏的态度就像是在娱乐，并且他在册划阶段从不关心他的产品投入市场后是否会成功。他凭借直觉赢得了市场。即“如果感觉对了，我就知道它能卖得出去”。年复一年，这套哲学使Ernie的公司获得了国际性的成就。他的的产品可以在全美超过五千家的乐器店内被找到，并且被出口到68个国家。
His high standards and no-nonsense approach have attracted the world's greatest guitar players to his products. The list of musicians who have made music using Ernie Ball strings, accessories, or instruments includes: Pete Townshend, Jimmy Page, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Keith Richards and Ron Wood of the Rolling Stones, Glen Frey, Joe Walsh and Don Felder of The Eagles, Jeff Beck, Albert Lee, Eric Clapton, Steve Morse, B.B. King, Steve Lukather, Carlos Santana, Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits, along with members of U2, The Pretenders, AC / DC, and Fleetwood Mac.
他的标准而严谨的处理工艺，吸引了世界上最好的吉他手们的目光。这些乐手的名单如下：
Pete Townshend, Jimmy Page, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Keith Richards and Ron Wood of the Rolling Stones, Glen Frey, Joe Walsh and Don Felder of The Eagles, Jeff Beck, Albert Lee, Eric Clapton, Steve Morse, B.B. King, Steve Lukather, Carlos Santana, Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits, along with members of U2, The Pretenders, AC / DC, and Fleetwood Mac.
The new generation of guitar heroes using Ernie Ball products ensures that the company will play a vital role in the world of music throughout the 90's and into the next century. These players include Metallica, Mike McReady and Stone Gossard of Pearl Jam, Slash of Guns and Roses, Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains, Kim Thayil and Chris Cornell of Soundgarden, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, as well as members of Live, Collective Soul, 311, Bush, Nine Inch Nails, No Doubt, Smashing Pumpkins, Matchbox 20, Sugar Ray, Reel Big Fish, Social Distortion, Pennywise, Lagwagon, and the Descendents.
新一代使用ErnieBall产品的吉他英雄们使这家公司在音乐界从90年代到下一世纪都能够扮演重要角色得到了保证。这些乐手包括：Metallica, Mike McReady and Stone Gossard of Pearl Jam, Slash of Guns and Roses, Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains, Kim Thayil and Chris Cornell of Soundgarden, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, as well as members of Live, Collective Soul, 311, Bush, Nine Inch Nails, No Doubt, Smashing Pumpkins, Matchbox 20, Sugar Ray, Reel Big Fish, Social Distortion, Pennywise, Lagwagon, and the Descendents
In the past 30 years, Custom Gauge, Slinky, and Earthwood guitar strings, Earthwood acoustic basses, Ernie Ball pedals, and Music Man instruments have raised the standards of musicians around the world. All these products share the classic simplicity, solid reliability, elegant function, and fair price that are synonymous with the name Ernie Ball.
在过去的30年中，Custom Gauge, Slinky, 和Earthwood 吉他琴弦, Earthwood 电箱贝司, Ernie Ball 踏板, 以及Music Man 乐器在国际音乐家圈内成为了一面大旗。这些产品使得ErnieBall成为了简洁，优雅，华丽，价格公平的代名词。
SETTING THE STAGE
Ernie grew up in Santa Monica, California, where his father sold cars and taught Hawaiian steel guitar on the side. "I first picked up the steel guitar when I was nine because my father wanted me to," he recalls. "Bored stiff, I gave it up; but later as a teenager I got the bug and began practicing two to three hours a day. In less than a year I joined the Musicians' Union and landed a job playing six nights a week in a beer bar in south central Los Angeles."
他在加州的Santa Monica长大，他父亲在那里是一名汽车推销员并兼职教夏威夷吉他。“我第一次拿起夏威夷吉他是在我九岁的时候。因为我的父亲要我那样做”他回忆道。“无聊，于是我便放弃了。但是过了不久，在我十七八的时候，突然风狂的迷上了它并且开始每天弹奏两到三小时。差不多一年之后，我加入了乐队并且在Los Angeles市区南部的一家酒吧里每周演出六个晚上。”
At 19, he successfully auditioned for the pedal guitar slot in the Tommy Duncan band, (former lead singer for Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys.) For a year they toured the southwest until the Korean War broke out and EB enlisted in the U.S. Air Force Band. His three-year tour as an Air Force bandsman involved him in diverse musical styles that included Dixieland, concert band, jazz, classical, and big band arrangements. He formed a five-piece combo and soon was playing four nights a week right on the air base. During these years he learned to play standard guitar. When the military band played for various ceremonies or marched in parades, Ern played the bass drum.
在19岁那年，他顺利地成为了Tommy Duncan乐队的踏板吉它手，（前Bob Wills 和the Texas Playboys的主唱）一年中，他们巡演到了西南部直到朝鲜战争的爆发并且ErnieBall应征加入了美国空军乐团。在他作为空军乐团成员的这三年里，他接触到了很多不同的音乐形式，包括Dixieland, 伴奏乐队, 爵士乐, 古典音乐,以及与大乐团合作。他组建了一个5人的乐队，并且很快开始了在空军基地每周4个晚上的演出。在这几年中，他开始学着演奏标准的吉他。当军乐队为不同的仪式或者游行演出的时候，ErnieBall则演奏低音鼓。
After leaving the service Ernie returned to the honky tonks of Los Angeles, but the $53 a week take-home pay wouldn't support his wife and young sons, so he took a teaching job to supplement his playing. At that time KTLA Channel 5 was producing a popular weekly show called Western Varieties. The bandleader heard Ernie play and hired him for the staff band and two solo spots. This job increased his earnings three-fold, and better yet helped Ernie build a name for himself in the L.A. music scene. In those days TV performances were live; no tape delays and no way to dub over a mistake. "This added an element of excitement (and panic.)" Ernie recalls. He soon was getting calls for studio work, and his student enrollment ballooned to a clientele of over 80.
退役之后，Ernie 回到了Los Angeles的honky tonks。但是每周53美元的收入不能够支持他的妻子以及他的儿子的生活，所以他又找了一个教学的工作来增加他的收入。在那时，KTLA第5频道有一个很熟欢迎的综艺节目叫做Western Varieties。节目的策划人听过了Ernie的演奏之后就雇用了他来与乐队合作，并且他还有两段Solo的演出机会。这个工作使他的收入增加了三倍，并且使Ernie 在Los Angeles的音乐界名声更加响亮了。在那个时候电视节目的演出还都是现场直播的，没有后期录音，更不可能磨掉失误。“这或多或少带来了一些刺激（和紧张感）”Ernie 回忆说。他马上又被招到了录音棚工作，并且他的学生迅速的增加到了80人。
AMERICA'S FIRST GUITAR STOREIn 1957 EB opened a small music shop in Tarzana, a few miles from Hollywood. "We were the first store in the country to sell only guitars. Sales reps would come in and say, "Ern, you've got to sell clarinet reeds, drum sticks, valve oil; bla bla bla," and I'd tell them "I just want to sell guitars," and they'd argue: "There's no such thing as a guitar store; you'll never make it." But Ern wasn't interested in anything else. He knew and loved only guitars. People traveled from miles away to visit the store.
1957年，ErnieBall在Tarzana一个离好莱坞不远的地方开了一家小的乐器行。“我们是这个国家第一家只卖吉他的乐器店。”卖配件的会进来说：“Ernie！你要卖一些比如管乐器簧片，鼓棒，管油之类的东西......”我将对他们说，“我只想卖吉他，”他们将会说：“这对一个琴行来说是完全错误的。你将不可能办成”但是Ernie并不理会其他的东西。他只了解并且只喜欢吉他。人们从很远的地方来这里看他的琴行。
英语本来就不咋地。而且扔下好多年了。这阵子正在重新拾起来，所以翻译点儿东西作为练习。有翻译错误的地方，希望大家指出。 |
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发表于 2007-12-28 07:59:13
发表于 2007-12-28 10:30:42
