Today’s album of the day is Nina Simone’s 1966 album “Wild Is The Wind”. I don’t have very much exposure to her, but she and her band performed a song written (and I believe performed as well) the day after Martin Luther King Jr was assassinated called “Why? (The King of Love is Dead)”, that legitimately reduced me to tears upon hearing it. Given the current state of the world, and in particular the United States at this moment, I figured I’d further explore her music.
The first track, “I Love Your Lovin’ Ways”, is really neat, it’s almost a little jazzy in a sense, but mainly a bluesy classic rock and roll type of tune. Nina Simone’s voice is so silky, I feel like I’m being wrapped up by it. The band is also playing a heck of a tune that only makes Simone’s voice shine that much brighter.
The next track is “Four Women”, and Nina immediately lays herself out in the song without holding back in a smooth jazz club type tune, that slowly turns a bit bluesier as it continues, and as it becomes more of a storytelling song, giving the stories of different women that seem to have been oppressed in a number of different contexts in the intersectionality of being a colored women in the world at that moment. It finishes on such a powerful note, it’s very thought provoking, in my opinion. “What More Can I Say?” is another slow jazz club type of tune that really gives a feeling of wanting to the listener.
“Lilac Wine” is a song I listened to yesterday, which was Jeff Buckley’s version, but Nina Simone has a completely different version of Jame Shelton’s 1950 tune. Simone’s version is so slow, feeling, yet stays in motion quite well. It’s hard to comment about these songs as I keep getting lost in Simone’s sensational voice. “All That I Ask” gets the tempo a bit quicker than the previous songs. It’s ever so slightly more complex in layers, and completely brilliant in performance.
“Break Down And Let It All Out” is a tune that takes charge, in a sort of in-your-face type of way. Simone’s voice has such amazing range with her particular timbre. So soft at times, but with this track she could’ve been exclusively a blues singer if she wanted. “Why Keep On Breaking My Heart” slows it down a bit, but the instrumentation sounds like a great sort of tune out of a romance movie out of the 1950s.
“Wild Is The Wind (Live)” is up next, and it’s another slow, gently rocking jazz club tune. Simone’s voice carries incredible weight with the words she sings. Every time I listen to an album like this, I typically go on a jazz kick. And this makes me want to go see some live jazz, because this album is honestly amazing. The piano just gently dancing around behind Nina’s voice and swelling as the song reaches one if its apexes is absolutely amazing. This song really shows off how well Nina works with her band as well. The piano does an excellent job growing tension for Nina to alleviate.
“Black Is The Color Of My True Love’s Hair (Live)” is up now, and most of the tension from the last track was resolved just at the last moments, and this song starts out without necessarily releasing the last of it (in my opinion) but doesn’t really alleviate it either. It’s just sort of a weight that it carries with it. The song is changing to a major key I think, and really sort of slowly lets out that tension towards the end.
The next track, “If I Should Lose You”, starts with beautiful piano, and Simone’s voice has this wonderful tremolo or wobble to it, that really highlights Nina’s command over any song when she wants. There’s a super intriguing vocal bass thumping in the final track “Either Way I Lose”, that sort of combines that bluesy jazz voicing she can pull off with a breeze. Everything in the album feels like it’s coming to a culmination of sorts, and ends sort of abruptly as though to the further the message in the song.
All in all, I have more appreciation for Nina Simone now, and though I don’t have tears in my eyes this time, my head is still spinning regaining my thoughts after getting lost in her voice and the playing of the band. It’s a great listen for music lovers and especially those who want to get into older jazz/r&b albums a bit more.
-A