"Soon You'll See!!!"
It’s interesting when music which is so embeded in a specific period manages to influence those that come after it, or specifically me. I wasn’t even thought of back in ‘69 and yet the first time I ever heard this record it brought about the nostalgia of being there. In it I hear the energy build up of a generation of folk coming of age and realizing that unlike those that came before they were going to make a fuss about it. A big loud fuss.
My sister was around at that time, and she actually is the Nina Simone anecdote holder of our family. As the story goes as a young girl she went to visit an elder family friend who happened to be a piano teacher. I’m not sure if my sister was actively trying to learn the piano at that time, but somehow she ended up sitting on the stool next to this teacher, getting a lesson. Then the teacher asks my sister, who’s no more than 5 or 6, “is there a song you’d like to learn to play?” My sister looks up at this good church going piano teacher and says, “Do you know ‘Mississippi Goddamn’?” The woman’s jaw drops, as she looks at my mother who is of course hiding her face in shame.
So even though I may not have been thought of at the time this record was released, shall we say I came out of the womb well exposed to her music. There’s really something special about this woman and this song is an excellent example of it. While The Beatles had the more popular song about revolution at the time, I think this one had much more resonance for me. Beyond the lyrical content, what really hits me is the music. At one time it captures the whole blues rock vibe but then throws this revival southern baptist arrangement on it that is just powerful. Hands start clapping, feet start a tapping and you can’t help but wail a good “Amen!” to Nina’s soapbox preaching. This is the second part of the song short but hits you right from the jump.
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Published under: Magnetic Tape & VinylTags: mp3 • Nina Simone
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