Okay. For those who know me, they know that I'm a huge Nina Simone fan, as was my father.
In this post, I want to feature some very early Nina Simon in a 1960 appearance on the Ed Sullivan show (remember him?), but not for her oh so wonderful voice, as you might expect. In additional to Nina's spectacular voice, you might not know that she was a Julliard trained classical pianist.
You'll note in the middle of this video of "Love me or leave me" there's a brief piano solo that sounds surprisingly reminiscent of J.S.Bach, and Nina's elegantly long fingers make short work of point/counterpoint absolutely beautifully. Her voice is too fabulous it's almost easy to overlook her piano work, but don't. Pay close attention, because her riffing is a wonder to behold.
They just don't make 'em like Nina anymore, and the world's the worst for it. It seemed appropriate the week that we lost a legend like Tina Turner, to highlight the likes of Nina Simone, don't you think?
- 8.5
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