“a singer-songwriter of searching candor and an electric bassist of mesmerizing skill.”
-New York Times
“A fitting tribute to an icon that was unappreciated in her time by
an artist who is always ahead of hers.” – NPR
“stunningly beautiful” -Los Angeles Times
One of the great voices of contemporary soul Meshell Ndegeocello has been a pioneer for women in music. She was the first woman to be featured on the cover of Bass Player magazine and remains one of few who write the music and lead the band. Yesterday, she premiered her new video “Suzanne” off the critically acclaimed album Pour une Âme Souveraine: A Dedication to Nina Simone (“for a sovereign soul”) with USA Today. You can watch the video via YouTube.
“Suzanne” was originally written by the great Leonard Cohen and covered by Nina Simone on her 1967 studio album, To Love Somebody. Simone’s cover motivated Meshell to record her own version of the song to include in her homage to Simone. The lyrics to the song – the reference of Suzanne’s “place by the river” – inspired her to start a collaboration with her fans. People submitted photos of their own “such” places in the world, creating the visual backdrop of the world’s ever-changing landscape for the video.
For the album she was joined by musicians Chris Bruce (guitar), Jebin Bruni (keys) and Deantoni Parks (drums). The singer-songwriter, rapper, bassist, and vocalist reworked some of the tracks made famous by the iconic musician. Guests on the album includeSinead O’Connor, Lizz Wright, Valerie June, Tracy Wannomae, Toshi Reagon andCody ChesnuTT.
Pour une Âme Souveraine: A Dedication to Nina Simone, having been released late last year, is in Grammy contention for this year.
Tour Dates:
9/28 – Boston, MA @ Berklee BeanTown Jazz Festival, Multi Act Festival
10/5 – Simi Valley, CA @ RAJ 13 – The Festival of Rhythm & Joy