Nina Simone Blackbird

When Nina Simone released her first recordings for Bethlehem Records in 1958, she sounded strikingly accomplished both as a singer and a pianist, displaying the skill and the inspiration of a seasoned veteran. However, her Bethlehem sides only captured one aspect of her musical personality, and as even the most cursory examination of Simone's career makes clear, she was an artist who stubbornly refused to be pigeonholed. After Simone learned her first lesson about the vagaries of the music business when her deal with Bethlehem went sour, she signed with the Colpix label, where she recorded from 1959 to 1964, a time when jazz artists still made occasional appearances on the pop charts.

Nina Simone was one of the most gifted vocalists of her generation, and also one of the most eclectic. Simone was a singer, pianist, and songwriter who bent genres to her will rather than allowing herself to be confined by their boundaries; her work swung back and forth between jazz, blues, soul, classical, R&B, pop, gospel, and world music, with passion, emotional honesty, and a strong grasp of technique as the constants of her musical career. Nina Simone was born Eunice Kathleen Waymon in Tryon, North Carolina on February 21, 1933. Her mother, Mary Kate Waymon, was a Methodist minister, and her father, John Divine Waymon, was a handyman who moonlighted as a preacher.

Nina Simone was one of the most gifted vocalists of her generation, and also one of the most eclectic. Simone was a singer, pianist, and songwriter who bent genres to her will rather than allowing herself to be confined by their boundaries; her work swung back and forth between jazz, blues, soul, classical, R&B, pop, gospel, and world music, with passion, emotional honesty, and a strong grasp of technique as the constants of her musical career. Nina Simone was born Eunice Kathleen Waymon in Tryon, North Carolina on February 21, 1933. Her mother, Mary Kate Waymon, was a Methodist minister, and her father, John Divine Waymon, was a handyman who moonlighted as a preacher.

The breathtaking originality of the second half of the show is what makes this album great. Opening with Oscar Brown, Jr.’s “Brown Baby” and then Michael Olatunji’s “Zungo” and delivering a long version of another traditional song “Children, Go Where I Send You”, Simone makes a profound stand on the black musical tradition, drawing on her deep reading in Frantz Fanon’s auto-theory and Léopold Senghor’s ideas on négritude to create a body of work that transcends jazz styles and critical pigeonholes. She was unique, but only because she drew on multitudes." - Penguin Guide to Jazz.

Few artists in the music profession are as unclassifiable as Nina Simone. During her long career she tackled material from a variety of styles, garnering an audience that included soul devotees, folk followers, R&B lovers and even jazz buffs. Enjoy this superb 3CD set including "Forbidden Fruit", " My Baby Just Cares For Me", "I Loves You Porgy" and many more.

Vocalist Marley Munroe (aka Lady Blackbird) evokes the maverick style of singer Nina Simone on her potent 2021 debut Black Acid Soul. Produced by Chris Seefried, Black Acid Soul is Munroe's first full-length album following a handful of singles and several years of studio work and live performing.

The debut album Black Acid Soul from Lady Blackbird is one of the standouts for 2021. It's instant and within a minute you are hooked. Rough Trade Shops loves this album. Think Nina Simone, Hot Buttered Soul-era Isaac Hayes, Billie Holiday and Chaka Khan. Gilles Peterson called her "the Grace Jones of Jazz".

It always seemed that women have led the way when it came to Swing. For every Crosby and Sinatra, there was not only an Ella or a Billie, but also a Sarah and a Peggy. For each Mel Tormé or Tony Bennett, there was a Lena , an Aretha, a Nina or a Dinah. When women became band singers during the Swing era, they frequently outlasted their employers in terms of celebrity and record sales. There are many remarkable examples of female vocal art on this compilation, some by those who have achieved superstar status. So many stories, so many brilliant performances. What a way to swing!

It always seemed that women have led the way when it came to Swing. For every Crosby and Sinatra, there was not only an Ella or a Billie, but also a Sarah and a Peggy. For each Mel Tormé or Tony Bennett, there was a Lena, an Aretha, a Nina or a Dinah. When women became band singers during the Swing era, they frequently outlasted their employers in terms of celebrity and record sales. There are many remarkable examples of female vocal art on this compilation, some by those who have achieved superstar status. So many stories, so many brilliant performances. What a way to swing!