I am a little late to the party since Poem on Your Blog Weekend was last weekend. I did not want to miss out so I am posting this tribute piece that I wrote for Nina Simone shortly after death in 2003.
For She Was Nina… by james knox
You were the “High Priestess of Soul”
for who else could invoke such fire, spirit, and passion into
“I Put A Spell On You”,
“Sinnerman”,
“See Line Woman”, and
“Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstoodâ€.
You brought such warmth and love into “I Love You Porgy”,
“My Baby Just Cares For Me”, and “The Other Woman.”
You wrote Mississippi Goddam” to express your anger
over the killing of Medgar Evers and
the bombing of the four little girls in a Birmingham church.
This was a powerful testament to the times and
even more poignant coming from a black woman.
You told us the story of “Four Women”
so vividly that we knew each woman personally.
You let us know that we were “Young, Gifted and Black.”
You even sang for a King.
You sang with a vibrant voice and
traveled the world to convey
your messages of love, peace, and power.
From your piano, you gave us concertos
mixed with African rhythms,
Sunday morning gospel,
down home blues,
deep country folk,
straight ahead jazz, and a whole lot of love.
You were a musical genius from an early age and
it was reflected in everything you touched.
You showed the world
that a little black girl from Tryon, North Carolina
could be anything she wanted to be.
You overcame the obstacles and rose to greatness.
You were a warrior and activist, but
you will be most remembered
for being a strong woman
who loved us and
wanted only the best for all of us.
You were fierce and fearless and
we honor your wonderful legacy of music.
© 2003 j-notes.com – all rights reserved.