Zebra Zebra

By James & Kay Henry [US]

Zebra Zebra don’t go to sleep,

let me see your broken tail again.

I’m not trying to touch your wounds,

I just want to flip your hair.

Zebra zebra you’re back home

and I’m wasting my cold time.

Your rich city life has no open door,

eventually I’ll have to be on the road.

Zebra zebra you come from the south of red,

is it a beautiful story?

If the actor next to you can’t stay,

who will lay next to you till the sun comes?

Zebra zebra do you still remember me?

I’m the fool who sings.

Zebra zebra go to sleep,

I’ll carry my guitar and leave north.

Zebra zebra remember me,

I’m the child who talks sadness

Zebra zebra go to sleep,

I’ll carry your grass to the hometown.

—Song Dongye, “Zebra Zebra”

斑馬斑馬 你不要睡著啦

再給我看看你受傷的尾巴

我不想去觸碰你傷口的疤

我只想掀起你的頭發

斑馬斑馬 你回到了你的家

可我浪費著我寒冷的年華

你的城市沒有一扇門為我打開啊

我終究還要回到路上

斑馬斑馬 你來自南方的紅色啊

是否也是個動人的故事啊

你隔壁的戲子如果不能留下

誰會和你睡到天亮

斑馬斑馬 你還記得我嗎

我是只會歌唱的傻瓜

斑馬斑馬 你睡吧睡吧

我會背上吉他離開北方

斑馬斑馬 你會記得我嗎

我是強說著愁的孩子啊

斑馬斑馬 你睡吧睡吧

我把你的青草帶回故鄉

——宋冬野《斑馬，斑馬》

When I heard the song“Zebra Zebra,” I was intrigued. Song Dongye is a singer and songwriter from Beijing. He’s been on the scene since 2009. His 2013 album Anhe Bridge North contains one of his more popular songs “Banma Banma ( 斑 馬 斑 馬 )” or “Zebra Zebra.”

“Zebra Zebra” is a lament about a transient who falls in love with a broken girl he can’t comfort. She belongs to the “rich city world” that he is not a part of.He can’t give her what she wants so she doesn’t love him. Here it was: proof that amidst all that pragmatism there was a longing for something besides a marriage of convenience.

The wild zebra is a strong independent animal. While many species live in herds wild zebras are unique in that they wander where they like and choose their mates. The black and white markings act as a protection from predators and keep their black under skin cool. This enables them to survive in the arid wilderness. Whether you are a wild zebra or one that prefers herd life, no one goes through life alone. We need family and friends and someone we trust to possess the vast emotional wilderness that spreads through our open hearts.

Nowadays a young man in China is expected to own his own car, house, and be financially independent if he is to be considered fit to attract a “zebra.”This is a reality that weighs on many young Chinese men today.Things are not so different for the youth in North America.They are faced with the task of negotiating between their needs and wants, reconciling tradition and innovation and finding a way of life that fits sometimes contradictory values. For me, this is where music bridges the gaps.

A successful song should resonate in our soul. Past the things we think, deeper than what we feel, it should acknowledge and nurture the essence of our moral being. In this realm we process truth, love,and authenticity. When a song writer is able to accomplish these objectives they become a sort of savior. Redeeming the parts of us we’ve lost or chosen to leave behind.

Ultimately, happiness in a relationship rests on what you expect from it. Art and music are how we reconcile ourselves to the contradictions that sit uneasy within the culture that molds us. Idealism and pragmatism live in all cultures. This is a truth we share, a cord that binds us through the physical and emotional landscapes we exist in.Humanity searches for meaning in love, and music is often its voice.◆

當我第一次聽《斑馬，斑馬》的時候，立刻被歌者娓娓道來的憂傷深深吸引。歌者宋冬野，是北京的一位民謠歌手、詞曲創作人。2009年出道。2013年發行的首張個人專輯《安河橋北》，收錄了這首《斑馬，斑馬》，是專輯內較為流行的歌曲之一。

《斑馬，斑馬》是一支流浪人的挽歌。流浪歌手愛上一個受傷的女孩，卻無力安慰。她屬于“繁華的都市”，他居無定所，不能給她想要的東西，所以她不愛他。這兒體現了一個現實，盡管實用主義甚囂塵上，許多人對婚姻大事持功利態度，也有人渴望真情，企盼其他。

野斑馬是高度獨立的動物。許多物種都群居，而斑馬是獨一無二的，它們可以去自己喜歡的地方，可以選擇自己的配偶。斑馬身上那雅致的黑白條紋，不僅保護它們免受捕食者的捕食，也讓其皮膚在驕陽下保持涼爽。因為此，他們才能在干旱的原野生存。無論你是野斑馬，還是更喜歡群居，沒有人獨自度過一生。我們都需要家人、朋友，一些值得信任的人。有了他們，我們才可以敞開心扉，擁有一片開闊的情感原野。

現在，想要吸引一只情投意合的“斑馬”，中國的年輕人得先實現有車有房，經濟獨立。這副重擔壓在當今許多年輕的中國人肩頭。北美年輕人的處境，別無二致。他們都需要協調需求與欲望，在傳統思想與新觀念中找到平衡，從而找到一種適應諸多矛盾價值觀的生活方式。于我而言，這便是音樂跨越不同文化，實現互通之處。

一首好歌，應該在我們的內心產生共鳴。源于生活，高于生活，承認并潤澤精神本質。在音樂里，我們感受真與愛。當一個創作人實現了這些目標，音樂即成為一種拯救，彌補我們失去或選擇遺棄的部分。

戀愛的幸福，取決于你的期望。藝術和音樂的境界，是滋潤我們因文化塑造而不安的心靈。所有文化都存在理想主義與實用主義。這是我們共同面對的事實，也是連結我們的身體與情感的繩索。人類在愛里尋找意義，音樂常常是它的聲音。◆（譯/班超）