Them that's got shall have

And so, farewell, then, jazz legend and actress Miss Morgana King [whose death was only announced today, five months after her passing]...



...and her magnificent 'do!



Here she/it is in action on US variety show The Hollywood Palace:

Morgana King - I Love Paris/Meditation

...and here she is again, in some very estimable vocal company indeed!

Maxine Weldon, Carmen McRae, Morgana King, Esther Phillips, Nina Simone - God Bless the Child (Billie Holiday tribute concert, 1979)

RIP Morgana King (born Maria Grazia Morgana Messina, 4th June 1930 – 22nd March 2018)

Thought for the Day

Bad news for gayers over in the US. Again.

Nina Simone says it best:

Nina Simone - Mississippi Goddam

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

Picket lines
School boy cots
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

Oh but this whole country is full of lies
You're all gonna die and die like flies
I don't trust you any more
You keep on saying "Go slow!"
"Go slow!"

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

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

Mississippi is the first American state to pass specifically anti-gay laws in recent memory.

I got my neck, I got my boobies

"There's no excuse for the young people not knowing who the heroes and heroines are or were."

We celebrate the 80th anniversary today of the birth of another Patron Saint here at Dolores Delargo Towers, Miss Nina Simone!

A unique talent, staunch rights campaigner, all-round "difficult" diva, Miss Simone effortlessly created a sound all of her own that left a shining legacy on music for eternity. Irreplaceable.

As a little tribute here are some diverse examples of the lovely lady's work.

First up, a rare one from the archives, and a song I should live by:

Nina Simone - Mean & Evil Blues

Next, a favourite oddity:

Nina Simone - Funkier Than a Mosquito's Tweeter

And to conclude, an all-time classic:

Nina Simone - Ain't Got No, I Got Life

Read my tribute on the 75th anniversary of her birth back in 2008.

Nina Simone, aka Eunice Kathleen Waymon (21st February 1933 – 21st April 2003)

The High Priestess of Soul

That smoky-voiced diva Nina Simone would have been 75 today.

One of the most successful and well-respected black artists of the 20th century, Nina was renowned for being a bit difficult to deal with - she shot and wounded her neighbour's son with a pneumatic pistol after his laughing disturbed her concentration! - and her performances were always a bit unpredictable. One favourite anecdote of mine is from her residency at Ronny Scott's Jazz Club.

Apparently the audience had been waiting hours for the great lady to come on stage, when suddenly the doors to the club flew open and in she breezed with armfuls of carrier bags, plonked them down on the piano and just blithely launched into her opening number without so much as a nod to her waiting fans.

People adored her for it, of course. She always managed to retain an entourage of gay fans and acolytes, despite her strict religious background and perfectionism, and gained the nickname "High Priestess of Soul". When she died in 2003, Elton John sent a floral tribute with the message "We were the greatest and I love you".

Nina Simone - I Put A Spell On You

Nina Simone, Felix Da Housecat - Sinnerman

Nina Simone official website