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Nina Simone
"Black Is The Color Of My True Love's Hair"
The moniker "genius" is thrown around quite a bit (especially by me) but in the case of Nina Simone it's true. Since one the themes here is synthesis, I chose an interpretation she did of a traditional Irish folk song that--under her spell--is transformed into a charged, ambivalent masterpiece. Here's a pretty good synopsis of her complicated life. One of her songs actually produced a major civil rights slogan: "Say it clear. Say it Loud. I am black and I am proud."
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