大象传媒

In the second episode of Clive's celebration of amazing women of jazz, he looks at the life and career of Dr Nina Simone.

Nina was part of the 1960s civil rights movement in America, a period which really shaped her art and performances. She started out as a classically-trained musician and was a pianist as well as a singer-songwriter but was denied the chance to take up the classical role due to racism and in this programme Clive hears about Nina's early struggles from her daughter Lisa Simone.

Much of her music reflected the struggles she and other black women faced in the American South. Clive plays some of her biggest hits and also hears from Al Schackman who was Nina's guitarist (and later musical director) for more than 40 years and Paul Robinson who toured as her drummer for nearly 20 years.

Al and Paul give Clive an insight into how Nina created her unique performances on stage while sharing anecdotes about her personality. Record producer Andre Fischer recalls producing Nina's final album while jazz singer Thomas Lang shares his memories of supporting Nina at the Royal Festival Hall. There are additional contributions from jazz singer and pianist Jamie Cullum, film composer John Altman, singer Mica Paris and jazz singer Dana Masters.

Some say Nina isn't really jazz, and it's true she did cross into different genres, but Clive and others featured in this programme argue that her work is definitely rooted in jazz. But what did Nina think? Her daughter Lisa tell us all.

Peppered with archive of Nina herself, Clive reflects on his love of Nina's music as we hear lots of her hits from over the decades.

Produced by Ashley Byrne
Executive Producer: Kurt Brookes
A Made in Manchester Production for 大象传媒 Radio 2