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西洋老歌欣賞~ A Dear John Letter

閱覽人數2055人文

今天要與看倌回憶50年代的一首算是美國鄉村歌曲的經典，A Dear John Letter, 1953年初出，即在當年夏天名列鄉村歌曲排行的首名及熱門歌曲的第四。
歌者是Jean Shepard(1933-2016) 
(photos were made on 1971 and 2006)

,

曲中獨白部份是Ferlin Husky(1925~2011).

（1962)

在Youtube找了1953年及1957年版的如下:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTvmTgVzMWs

1953 Ferlin Husky& Jean Shepard

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qx2LK8lx7Zo

(1957 published)

在原曲推出後十年的版，如下:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcNNp3-y8DU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMc0pDQ48z0

1965 Skeeter Davis

這些歌星都是我們年代裡非常受喜愛的夢中人，他們的唱腔和現在的歌者是完全不同的!

歌詞內容是個有關「兵變」的故事，內容如下, 前段是歌詞，後段是獨白:

Dear John, oh, how I hate to write
Dear John, I must let you know tonight
That my love for you has died away like grass upon the lawn
And tonight I wed another dear John
………………………………………………

I was overseas in battle when the postman came to me,
and he handed me a letter I was just as happy as I could be.

For the fighting was all over and the battle has been won,
Then I opened up the letter and that started,

Dear John,

Dear John, oh, how I hate to write, 
Dear John, I must let you know tonight
That my love for you has died away like grass upon the lawn. 
And tonight I wed another, dear John. 

Will you please send back my pictures my husband wants it now. 
And when I tell you who I'm marrying, well, you won't care, dear, anyhow

Now the ceremony has started and I'll wed your brother Don. 
Will you wish us happiness forever? dear John.
And tonight I wed another dear John

由於年代的關係，社會把50年代的韓戰及60年代的越戰套入時代背景讓聽眾各自想像，倒是歌名”A Dear John Letter”，卻演化成「關係決裂」、「斷交」等的代名詞，連商用書信中都可以沿用了!

 Husky 歿於2011年，有一則影片紀錄者這首歌最後的演唱，獨白部份仍然受到老先生老婦人的喜愛，值得回味，和各位分享:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mac5tUJ5g4c

Ferlin Husky,Jean Shepard (2011 published)