Nadine Cohodas: “Horace Ott and his writing partners gave this song to Nina - though the Animals took it away from her, if you will. Her version version - without that group’s bluesy muscle - has its own searing power.”

26.07.2012 | 1 note | tags:

Nadine Cohodas: “Nina’s meditation on how black women found their place in a world not of their own making. ‘I had to go into all kinds of bags to be able to compose it,’ is what she said before performing the song at the 1967 Newport Jazz Festival, a couple of years after she wrote it.”

26.07.2012 | 1 note | tags:

Ask A Sheroes Stan: Chris A. Cummings Finally Answers Super Important Nina Simone Q’s

Earlier this year, we were proud to launch our Sheroes Stan residency, a program that connects aca-fan knowledge and wisdom to the vastly growing motley crew of international and local artists that are regularly involved with Sheroes each month.

For Sheroes #12: Nina Simone, we were so glad to invite Toronto-based indie songwriter Chris A. Cummings (AKA Marker Starling, the artist formerly known as Mantler, who will also be headlining our arts & music festival Virtual Season.)

Originally a home-recording project, Marker Starling has become a regular presence on the local indie music scene for his indie-meets-R&B chunes.

He has released 4 albums: Doin’ It All (Le Systeme, 2000), Sadisfaction (Tomlab, 2002), Landau (Tomlab, 2004) and Monody (Tomlab/Tin Angel/Blocks Recording Club, 2010).

Click below for the full interview, in which Cummings illuminates on the unfairness of “Supper Club Songstress For The Elite”, Nina’s rep as a sublime interpreter, what freedom means, & more.

26.07.2012 | 3 notes | tags:

Sheroica Esoterica Nadine Cohodas Princess Noire Excerpt

We kick off our “Sheroica Esoterica” Nadine Cohodas micro interview for Sheroes #12: Nina Simone with an exclusive excerpt from Nadine’s Princess Noire.

P.S. We have to prominently display the below credit line:

From PRINCESS NOIRE: THE TUMULTUOUS REIGN OF NINA SIMONE by Nadine Cohodas. Copyright © 2010 by Nadine Cohodas. Paperback edition published in 2012 by the University of North Carolina Press, by arrangement with Pantheon Books/Random House, Inc. www.uncpress.unc.edu

OK NOW, LET’S HAVE A LONGREAD!

26.07.2012 | 1 note | tags:

Introducing A V. Special Sheroes Stan Edition: “Sheroica Esoterica”

Today is Sheroes #12: Nina Simone, and in honour of the High Priestess, we are going out w/a v. special, full-out Sheroes Stan edition.

Typically, we mark this occasion with our usual Sheroes Stan Q&A. (Chris A. Cummings, AKA Mantler, AKA Marker Starling, gave a super cerebral interview that you will DIG when we post later today.)

But! We are v. lucky to introduce to the fold author Nadine Cohodas for a special “Sheroica Esoterica” micro interview.

Nadine is the author of several books about race, politics and music. Among her books are: And the Band Played Dixie; Strom Thurmond & The Politics of Southern Change; Spinning Blues Into Gold: The Chess Brothers and the Legendary Chess Records; Queen: The Life and Music of Dinah Washington. Her most recent book, Princess Noire: The Tumultuous Reign of Nina Simone, recently came out on paperback with UNC Press.

Throughout the day — as we post GIFs from our Batshit Genius GIF Posse show! — we’ll be posting an exclusive excerpt from Princess Noire, as well as “Sheroica Esoterica” footnotes from Nadine.

You can follow this micro interview throughout the day via our “Sheroica Esoterica” tag.

26.07.2012 | 1 note | tags: