Chanteuse

It's Friday and it's a Nina Simone kind of night. I still regret missing her Seattle concert in 1998 - I often hit myself over the head for that serious lapse in judgement and obvious brain fart. Now I'll never get to see her expressive face in person - the legend behind that soulful voice - as she pelts out bittersweet songs that ride human passion between their tremolo notes and make you glad to be alive. Sigh.

There's a great quote from Nina, "Jazz is a white term used to define Black people. My music is Black Classical Music". Whether jazz or black classical music or something else, for me her music transcends definition - it's soulful, passionate, and timeless. I hear stories in her voice beyond the words - layers of emotion like colors that weave through the notes. When I listen to her sing it's like listening to that inner voice, the part of my conscience primordially connected to my soul, like hitting the note whose vibration makes glass hum.



I have two favorite Nina songs - one of them is Mississippi Goddamn and the other is Ne Me Quitte Pas, a cover of the Jacques Brel song.