Provoking… Defiant… Liberating... Authentic... Nina Simone. She is an artist whose multi-faceted musical expressions pose legitimate challenges for those who attempt to categorize her style. As a result, she is best left uncategorized, and is most effectively appreciated one song at a time. From the vulnerable character of Wild Is The Wind, to the frantic vengeance of I Put A Spell On You, to the truculent sarcasm of Mississippi Goddam, Simone is unsurpassed in her ability to deliver performances with unabridged emotion. Regardless of the subject matter, she inoculates honest passion into her work, fully disregarding the judgment of others toward it.
Simone’s fearless demeanor ultimately facilitated her ability to make influential contributions to the Civil Rights Movement. To Be Young Gifted and Black, I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free, and Revolution became cultural anthems which Simone used to agitate (and in some cases celebrate) the issues affecting the world around her. Perhaps the deepest view into her being, however, comes from her version of Please Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood. Her contrite tone in this song describes a longing for acceptance that serves as the foundation of her artistic identity. Throughout the maelstrom of mood swings which permeate her music, the desire to be understood remains constant. This, ultimately, is the purpose of her expression and the source of her inspiration.
With a catalog that exceeds 40 albums, Simone’s legacy simply cannot be summarized in a single evaluation. Yet to know Simone is to know her music, where each song becomes a microcosm of the human psyche. Further, her merit lies in the fact that listeners can easily relate to the various emotions and dispositions evinced in her compositions. In many ways, she is both an unsung hero and an internationally renowned musical treasure; such is the complexity of her being. Exceptional artists are commonly described as, “Often imitated but never duplicated.” However, in the case of Nina Simone, she is neither imitated nor duplicated; she is simply that rare.
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