Thinking about Nina Simone

 

Nina Simone occupies a unique cultural space that cannot be claimed by any other musical artist, dead or alive. She is the patron saint of the lover and the fighter; the musical touchstone for the heartbroken; and the survivor. She was a master singer of standards and love ballads, and songs of protest. Those protest songs- Mississippi Goddamn; Strange Fruit; To Be Young, Gifted, and Black- helped galvanize the cause for civil rights around the world.

"My job is to somehow make them curious enough or to persuade them by hook or by crook to get more aware of themselves and where they came from and what is there, just to bring it out. This is what compels me, to compel them. And I will do it by any means necessary."

- Nina Simone: That Blackness

The choice to stray from love songs and popular themes cost Ms. Simone her career. There were years of exile in Barbados, Ghana and Liberia. She finally returned to public life in France in the 1980’s. Ms. Simone conducted interviews that allowed her to frame her own history. She spoke openly and passionately about her career to that point: the dreams of classical piano dashed; her rise as a singer of love songs; becoming an icon of the Civil Rights Movement; and ultimately the swift rejection by the majority of her fans.

In an expansive interview with British journalist Mavis Nicholson, Ms. Simone spoke about the great disappointment in her career:

"It is only normal to want acceptance from one's country, for one's gifts God has given me. And I am tired of begging for it. It took me twenty years of playing clubs, nightclubs, to get a decent, real accurate review of my gifts from the New York Times. It was the first time I had been compared to Maria Callas as a diva. All before that I had been labelled a Jazz singer, a Blues singer, High Priestess of Soul; which I am not sure what that is and I have studied piano for eighteen years.  Yes, I am tired. I am too old, asking for love from the industry."

Ultimately, a 1987 Chanel No. 5 commercial featuring her hit song “My Baby Just Cares for Me” re-ignited interest in her music, garnering her the love she desired and deserved.

Eighty-two years after her birth, Nina Simone remains a beatified presence in the cultural consciousness. Every time a person discovers her music, an angel gets its wings.

 



American exceptionalism is the new AP History

Oklahoma State Representative and patriot Dan Fisher (R) has rescinded his proposed bill to effectively ban AP U.S. History courses in Oklahoma public high schools. After serious prayer and hearing from outraged conservative donors who actually expect their children to learn shit, Fisher saw the shit stained light. The recalcitrant defender of the realm backpedalled faster than Rand Paul talking about the Civil Rights Act of 1964 on the Rachel Maddow show.

Before Dan Fisher pulled his bill, he commissioned independent American history experts at the local Chili's to develop the American Exceptionalism exam. The exam would use seminal sacred texts to test students on the accurate history of the United States.

Voracious DPC obtained a copy of some of the proposed questions on the American Exceptionalism exam.

1. If America were to adopt the original version of the U.S. Constitution as the law of the land, would mail order brides be considered 3/5 of a person?

2. Was President George W. Bush's use of the term 'strategerie,' an ingenious or brilliant way to confuse liberals with his greatness?

 

 

Source: The White House

 

3. Provide three examples of why God hates black people.

                     

Source: Smithsonian Digital Archive

4. Historically, what is the best way to find out if there are homosexuals and communists running rampant in the federal government?

5. When the Confederacy won the Civil War, did Jefferson Davis hang the treasonous scoundrel (and closeted Jewish homosexual) Abraham Lincoln himself, or did he ask his wife's friend's cousin Alexander Graham Bell to make Lincoln's death look like an accident?

6. Using 'The Holy Bible,' 'The Protocols of The Elders of Zion,' and 'Atlas Shrugged,' describe the key elements of the worldwide Jewish conspiracy.

7. Harry S. Truman went against the will of the people by desegregating the U.S. Armed Forces in 1948. What other treasonous actions have been taken by Democratic dictators since 1950?

True/False questions:

8. Was Harriet Tubman a voodoo terrorist who introduced AIDS to the United States?

9. Did Mexico sell the U.S. almost half of its territory in exchange for a crate of cast iron skillets?

10. Due to overforestation, too much clean water, and abundant healthy food sources, Native Americans were relieved when European colonists arrived. Weren’t they desperate to develop a large-scale market economy exploited by the few at the expense of the many?

   

Source: NYPL Digital Library

"The Great British Bake Off" is your friend

The U.S. desperately needs its own version of “The Great British Bake Off”. Desperately! Yes, that is hyperbole, but this show is good. There are twelve amateur baker contestants, two judges with irreproachable technical knowledge, and a hosting duo specializing in cheeky double entendres. The bakers are culturally and regionally diverse, and range in age from seventeen to over 60. They are passionate people who spend a lot of time thinking about sponge cake fillings. The show has established a specific menu of desserts- classic British and some continental European- that each baker must master and bake in timed competitions. There are desserts for birthday parties and holidays, and the kinds of treats one assumes royalty or billionaires consume in intimate gatherings. The show is successful for many reasons, but the affecting nature of desserts is the linchpin. Whatever the season or occasion, enjoying sweet morsels with family and friends has a lasting emotional resonance.

An American version of the show could provide a view into the evolving American experience. Is there a repertoire of desserts that can accurately represent the American tapestry? Would regional recipes still have a place at the table? And could Americans finally come to some consensus on the best kind of chocolate chip cookie?

PBS is showing “The Great British Bake Off’ as “The Great British Baking Show.”

 

J. Edgar Hoover: Art critic

When Lorraine Hansberry was writing “A Raisin in the Sun,” she could not have anticipated the FBI's interest in her work. J. Edgar Hoover was obsessed with communism. The notion that "subversive" ideas could invade and warp the minds of Americans was one of his greatest fears. Any prominent person or group that could be described as "left leaning" was investigated. At the height of McCarthyism, the FBI administered its own program to ferret out black communists in the Arts. Agents were dispatched to read literary works before they were published. Lorraine Hansberry's play was of particular interest to the FBI. In The American Reader, Professor William Maxwell reveals the agency's fear of black communism and its attempts to censor black artistic expression.

http://theamericanreader.com/total-literary-awareness-how-the-fbi-pre-read-african-american-writing/

The Guardian followed up with Maxwell about how he uncovered the depth of the FBI's surveillance and his new book on the subject, “FB Eyes: How J. Edgar Hoover’s Ghostreaders Framed African American Literature.”

http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/feb/09/fbi-monitored-african-american-writers-j-edgar-hoover

 

Links for the Voracious

Ava Duvernay on Selma and her approach to storytelling.

 

Wigs, high heels and punk rock. That’s Pure Hell.

 

The law of unintended consequences playing out on the streets of New York.

 

Poet Claudia Rankine delves into the complexities of citizenship.



The Wire and the art of sound editing.



Ayn Rand at the movies.







 

Links for the Voracious

Sometimes you don't know what you don't know. This informative piece about 18th century black fencers is fantastic.

 

When a few pictures of rooms full of books is not enough, there is bookshelf porn.

Dynamic Africa on the African influences on the cumbias of Latin America.

 

Orlando Jones (Captain Frank Irving on Sleepy Hollow) is writing, producing and plans to star in a movie about Ted Patrick, the 'father of deprogramming.’

 

Classic Ladies of Color tumblr posted a sweet 2003 video of Graciela Grillo, the ‘First Lady of Latin Jazz,’ talking about being a musician in the 1930’ and 40’s. Graciela was the first female star of the genre. She died in 2010 at the age of 94.

 

 

 

Missy's rertun

Missy Elliott's performance during the Super Bowl halftime show last Sunday was a joy to experience. It was a reminder that her music is still fresh despite her long absence. Missy’s influence on today’s hip hop can be heard in the cadence of Nicki Minaj and Kendrick Lamar. Before twerking became a sign of the impending apocalypse, Missy's dancers were doing it and nary a pearl was clutched. Hopefully the Super Bowl show was a test run for Missy Elliot's return to the music world.