I published four posts on my Songs and Objects Substack in May. I summarise each below. Geordie: A Song Itinerary. I follow the routes of an old English ballad that, at various points from the mid-20th century onward, has been recorded as early music, art song, folk-rock, metal, Italian canzone, Italian EDM and more. Evidence.… Continue reading Songs and Objects: May 2024
Tag: Nina Simone
Recent posts on Songs and Objects
I've been continuing to publish weekly posts to the Songs and Objects Substack. Posts since the start of this year cover topics such as seasonal songs (with a focus on January and the turning of the year), a three-parter on the songs of Mary Chapin Carpenter, a piece of life writing that maps songs on… Continue reading Recent posts on Songs and Objects
Recent posts on Songs and Objects
There are new posts available on my Songs and Objects Substack, including reflections on Grandaddy's classic Sophtware Slump album, a set of observations prompted by the recent release of Richard Dawson's The Ruby Cord Live film and a three-part analysis of the musicality of lists which previously appeared as a podcast episode, now been revised… Continue reading Recent posts on Songs and Objects
New publications on Nina Simone and clipping.
I've had two articles published recently. One is a text I've wanted to work up for some time, connecting Nina Simone to narratives of Afrofuturism. It's a topic I first considered over a decade ago when writing my book about Simone. The material didn't really fit the shape the book ended up taking (and would… Continue reading New publications on Nina Simone and clipping.
Songs and Objects podcast
I am working on a podcast that explores the materiality of song. I’ve created it to accompany a research project I have been working on for some years now and which I hope to turn into a book in the future. The podcast is called Songs and Objects and the first five episodes are available… Continue reading Songs and Objects podcast
ppp: the personal, the political and the piano
The news that today is being celebrated as National Album Day has inspired me to post the following text on Nina Simone’s 1969 masterpiece Nina Simone and Piano! It’s a text that’s being lying dormant for a few years and now seems a good time to do something with it. The concept shouldn’t have been… Continue reading ppp: the personal, the political and the piano
Nina Simone’s tribute to Martin Luther King – fifty years ago today
Fifty years ago today, Nina Simone and her band performed at Westbury Music Fair in New York. Three days had passed since the murder of Martin Luther King and Simone used her concert to stage an act of collective mourning and outrage. Below is a re-post of a 2013 entry from my blog So Transported:… Continue reading Nina Simone’s tribute to Martin Luther King – fifty years ago today
Nina Simone’s ‘Ain’t Got No / I Got Life’
A few weeks ago, I was contacted by a journalist who had seen that I'd written a book about Nina Simone and wanted to get some thoughts from me about Simone's October 1969 live recording of 'Ain't Got No / I Got Life', the one that ended up on the 1970 album Black Gold. I… Continue reading Nina Simone’s ‘Ain’t Got No / I Got Life’
Who Knows Where The Time Goes?
I have contributed to a programme on the song 'Who Knows Where The Time Goes', part of Radio 4's series Soul Music. The programme airs at 9:00am on Wednesday 14 June, then again at 9:30pm the same evening; it will also be available to download on the Radio 4 website. The song was written by… Continue reading Who Knows Where The Time Goes?
Upcoming presentation: ‘All You See Is Glory’: The Burden of Stardom and the Tragedy of Nina Simone
I will be presenting a paper at the IASPM Australia New Zealand Branch Conference at the Australian National University, Canberra, on 5 December. My paper is entitled '"All You See Is Glory": The Burden of Stardom and the Tragedy of Nina Simone' and the abstract is below. Although most often remembered as an icon of… Continue reading Upcoming presentation: ‘All You See Is Glory’: The Burden of Stardom and the Tragedy of Nina Simone
Late Voice 