“Existential and political protestations”: the transcendental vocal evolution of Nina Simone
Wild Is The Wind is one of the most romantic records ever made. No, it might just be the most romantic record ever made, not least because the sound of it feels like the sun on your skin. Permeating the walls of this magnificent work of art is the voice of Nina Simone, her tool for human emotional representation, and all of the romance and suffering that happens throughout every single facet of womanhood.
While we’re not here to establish Simone as one of the greatest singers who ever lived—that’s a fact—her vocal evolution from her early days as powerhouse Eunice Waymon to her latter years is one that only an experienced heart could understand. It takes one to know one, and it doesn’t take extensive research to understand that Simone really, truly felt it all.
Growing up as one of eight children in Tryon, North Carolina, Simone demonstrated an interest in piano playing from the age of four, learning songs like ‘God Be With You, Till We Meet Again’. At a young age, she also learned ‘Sinnerman’, an African-American traditional spiritual song she would play at revivals and prayer meetings.
“Some of my most fantastic experiences – experiences that really shake me, now that I think of them – happened in the church when we’d have these revival meetings,” she explained to Ebony in 1969. “I’d be playing, boy! I’d really be playing. I loved it! Folks would be shoutin’ all over the place. Now that’s my background!”
During this time, it’s likely that her parents and everybody else in the room were taken aback by how mature Simone sounded. Her voice, which at the time emanated from a 12-year-old child, seemed enriched by the perils of life, shackled by innate pain yet liberated by a relentless vocal rage—something not many had ever heard or will likely ever hear again.
Even at this age, however, such experience wasn’t necessarily far from the truth, given the fact that this was the 1940s and Black people endured racial violence and societal inequalities at every juncture. Unfortunately, Simone would encounter many instances of prejudice during her lifetime, but she channelled her adversity to it in her voice, her signature rawness only growing stronger with time.
Simone also became one of the most versatile vocalists of all time, not only because of her interest in genres like classical, jazz, blues, and folk but also because she had the seemingly impossible ability to pull off a seamless blend of all of the above—something many of her contemporaries couldn’t achieve, and many that came after still attempt to emulate.
Throughout her earlier albums, like Little Girl Blue and Nina Simone at Town Hall, Simone’s voice typically appears deep and rich in tone, likely due to her classical influence from her training as a pianist. During the 1960s, Simone became heavily involved in the Civil Rights movement, and her music reflected her unwavering fiery passion, like throughout Nina Simone Sings Ellington! However, the late 1960s saw the singer incorporate more experimental elements, both vocally and viscerally, like Silk & Soul, in which she transitioned from somewhat sultry and bluesy to commanding.
This also came to the fore in certain parts of Wild Is The Wind, which incorporated Simone’s signature bluesy tone but adopted a more serious, heady register when tackling subjects closer to her heart. ‘Four Women’, for instance, demands you stop and listen, Simone’s voice appearing more cutting than the previous, more romantic sounds of ‘I Love Your Lovin’ Ways’.
Simone always sang with authenticity and contention, but this comes to its peak in Wild Is The Wind, her consistent pursuit of honesty and its presentation forcing you to confront the simultaneous comfort and discomfort of it, providing a dichotomy carried almost entirely on her voice alone. Nick Cave once described Simone’s voice as a mixture of both love and scorn, two of the strongest emotions known, and rarely has a description of such a tour de force ever appeared closer to the truth.
He said: “Even her most beautiful love songs, which I count as some of the most incandescent works of art ever recorded, were marinated in a sense of resentment and contempt for the workings of the world.” He added: “It is this exhilarating collision of opposing forces — love and scorn — that makes Nina Simone’s existential and political protestations so compelling.”
This era was Simone’s opus. The 1960s showed her darker, more compelling intonation, whereas the 1970s witnessed her adopt a softer, more traditional approach, almost like her earlier register, which showcased a more inherently introspective side. During this time, her vocal delivery became more nuanced, reflecting a maturity and depth that came with years of experience.
Although Simone experienced an array of varying vocal transitions depending on cultural, personal, and technical shifts, she never strayed from being distinctive and highly expressive, her versatility allowing her to move fluidly between genres while maintaining an endearing and resonant quality. Regardless of personal favourites, Simone’s voice always matched her emotional calibre, demonstrating her willingness to always give as good as she got.
As Cave put it: “The great Nina Simone was a living grievance machine—her race, her gender, her misused talents—and this rage infused all her work, and is what makes it so multi-layered.”
