What Happened, Miss Simone?: A Biography

Description

'From her raging, handwritten letters to late-night phone calls with David Bowie, this biography gets up close and personal with the tempestuous Nina Simone' Observer Drawing on glimpses into previously unseen diaries, rare interviews and childhood journals, and with the aid of her daughter, What Happened, Miss Simone? tells the story of the classically trained pianist who became a soul legend, a committed civil rights activist and one of the most influential, provocative and least understood artists of our time. This is the story of the real Miss Simone.

A veteran music journalist, Alan Light is the author of The Holy or the Broken: Leonard Cohen, Jeff Buckley and the Unlikely Ascent of Hallelujah and Let's Go Crazy: Prince and the Making of Purple Rain. Light was previously the editor-in-chief of Vibe and Spin and a senior writer for Rolling Stone. He is also a frequent contributor to the New York Times.

Her willingness to speak her mind shines out of every page * * The Times * * Arrestive telling of the high priestess of soul's life story...What makes this portrait so compelling are the extras; think of the book as a director's cut * * MOJO * * She is loved or feared, adored or disliked, but few who have met her music or glimpsed her soul react with moderation -- Maya Angelou Explores the huge impact [Nina Simone] made for civil rights through her music, as well as her activism * * Observer * * Traces a path through the sad and bewildering tangle that was Simone's life * * Telegraph * * Nina Simone was an overwhelming artist, piano player, and singer - the kind of artist that I loved and admired -- Bob Dylan Electrifying . . . Captures how unique and real she was on every page -- Alicia Keys Absorbing * * Craig Brown, Mail on Sunday * * A gripping (if often grim) portrait of a woman and her legend * * Louis Wise, Sunday Times * * Decent, respectful, conscientiously crafted and even-handed * * Uncut * *