1965, folks

[sonia]

Nina Simone, Mississippi Goddam. 1965.

Watch on YouTube

Lyrics from here, slightly edited where I noticed this version differs.

Alabama's gotten me so upset
Tennessee made me lose my rest
And everybody knows about Mississippi Goddam

Can't you see it
Can't you feel it
It's all in the air
I can't stand the pressure much longer
Somebody say a prayer

[Chorus]
Alabama's gotten me so upset
Tennessee made me lose my rest
And everybody knows about Mississippi Goddam

[Verse 2]
Hound dogs on my trail
School children sitting in jail
Black cat cross my path
I think every day's gonna be my last

Lord have mercy on this land of mine
We all gonna get it in due time
I don't belong here
I don't belong there
I've even stopped believing in prayer

Don't tell me, I'll tell you
Me and my people just about due
I've been there so I know
They keep on saying "Go slow!"

[Refrain]
But that's just the trouble
"do it slow"
Washing the windows
"do it slow"
Picking the cotton
"do it slow"
You're just plain rotten
"do it slow"
You're too damn lazy
"do it slow"
The thinking's crazy
"do it slow"
Where am I going
What am I doing
I don't know
I don't know

Just try to do my very best
Stand up, be counted with all the rest
For everybody knows about Mississippi Goddam

[Verse 3]
Picket lines, school boycotts
They try to say it's a communist plot
All I want is equality
For my sister, my brother, my people, and me

Yes, you lied to me all these years
You told me to wash and clean my ears
And talk real fine just like a lady
And you'd stop calling me Sister Sadie

My country is full of lies
We're all gonna die and die like flies
I don't trust anybody any more
They keep on saying "Go slow!"
"Go slow!"

[Refrain]
But that's just the trouble
"do it slow"
Desegregation
"do it slow"
Mass participation
"do it slow"
Reunification
"do it slow"
Do things gradually
"do it slow"
But bring more tragedy
"do it slow"
Why don't you see it
Why don't you feel it
I don't know
I don't know

[Chorus]
You don't have to live next to me
Just give me my equality
Everybody knows about Alabama
Everybody knows about Mississippi
Everybody knows about Mississippi Goddam

[Spoken Outro]
That's it!

Comments

On point.

[jesse_the_k]

AHHHHH.

(I was lucky to hear this music growing up. Nina Simone was amazing.)

Re: On point.

[sonia]

I didn't know about her until recently. I love how she's singing *and* playing the piano *and* clearly expressing her anger about the situation. That is an amazing performance.

ETA: Even though I meant this comment sincerely, I've been feeling uneasy about it. I hope it wasn't the equivalent of calling a Black person "eloquent." Plus there's the whole thing about "angry Black women." I'm not going to delete it, but I did want to footnote it.

[runpunkrun]

Thanks for sharing this!

[sonia]

Glad you liked it!