Music |
Nina Simone
By
Published: Jan 01, 2008
Category:
Jazz
Nina Simone
Videos
Ain’t Got No…
I Put a Spell on You
Here Comes the Sun
We were watching the preview of a movie — an emotional drama, with romance harshly tested by reality — when the music began. Nina Simone, of course. She’s the go-to singer when a filmmaker wants to go heavy and deep; you can hear her in "Any Given Sunday" and "Before Sunset." Pedro Almodovar listened to her as he wrote “Talk To Her”.
Filmmakers like Nina Simone for the same reason I do — she may sing only about very basic truths, but her range couldn’t be more sophisticated. She’s a jazz singer, a soul singer, a classical pianist, a jazz pianist, a social critic. Her left hand could root a song like Aretha Franklin. She could play piano with the physicality of Glenn Gould. She could sing about race so you forgot about Billie Holliday. And she could build a groove that drove an audience crazy.
Why is Nina Simone a cult and not a national treasure? Because, among other things, she was God’s own pain in the ass. Long before there was “black and proud”, she embodied the idea. And she never backed off — not to critics or promoters or record executives or even audiences. To go to a Nina Simone concert could mean going to a lecture. Or getting the evil eye from a performer who seemed to have been born pissed-off.
Few of us look to entertainment for a harangue. The good news is, in her recordings, Simone set aside whatever was bugging her and got right to the heart of the music. Listen to her sing Here Comes the Sun. My Lord, that is tenderness — she could coax the first shoot out of the March soil. And she gets warmer and warmer; she’s like a dimmer going from pale to brilliant. Another singer might go for the soaring finish; she sets a chorus against her voice and gets frisky and playful. I melt.
Her range was vast. Committed songs like Mississippi Goddam (“and I mean every word of it!”). Inspired versions of overdone classics like "Pirate Jenny". She recorded “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood" — The Animals followed. And "I Put a Spell on You" is wonderfully evil.
To Be Free: The Nina Simone Story is for hard-core Simoniacs. It’s voluminous: three CDs, with 24 live tracks and a generous helping of unreleased songs. For good measure, a DVD serves up 9 more live performances. As box sets go, this one scores high. Or consider Anthology, a more modestly priced two-CD set, more than enough to satisfy most listeners.
Nina Simone is an essential American artist for all the right reasons. And then for this: “To be great is to be misunderstood.” Emerson said that. She lived it. And, thankfully, recorded it.
To buy “Anthology” from Amazon.com, click here.
To buy “To Be Free” from Amazon.com, click here.
To buy “I Put A Spell On You: The Autobiography Of Nina Simone” from Amazon.com, click here.
