Wild Is the Wind (album)
Encyclopedia
Wild Is the Wind is singer/pianist
/songwriter
Nina Simone
's (1933–2003) sixth album under record company Philips
. The album was made up of several recordings that were left over of recording sessions for previous Philips albums. Therefore it is something of a hodgepodge album (which is typical of a lot of Simone's studio albums), with tracks aimed at the popular market (such as "I Love Your Lovin' Ways") and songs that are more ambitious in nature. It is particularly the songs of this last category that give the album its standard quality.
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
/songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
Nina Simone
Nina Simone
Eunice Kathleen Waymon , better known by her stage name Nina Simone , was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, arranger, and civil rights activist widely associated with jazz music...
's (1933–2003) sixth album under record company Philips
Philips Records
Philips Records is a record label that was founded by Dutch electronics company Philips. It was started by "Philips Phonographische Industrie" in 1950. Recordings were made with popular artists of various nationalities and also with classical artists from Germany, France and Holland. Philips also...
. The album was made up of several recordings that were left over of recording sessions for previous Philips albums. Therefore it is something of a hodgepodge album (which is typical of a lot of Simone's studio albums), with tracks aimed at the popular market (such as "I Love Your Lovin' Ways") and songs that are more ambitious in nature. It is particularly the songs of this last category that give the album its standard quality.
Well known songs on this album
- "Four WomenFour Women (song)"Four Women" is a song written by singer, composer, pianist and arranger Nina Simone, released on the 1966 album Wild is the Wind. It tells the story of four different African American women...
": in this self-written and composed song Simone weaves the monologues together of four African-American women, each reflecting a common stereotype. They are: the hard working but never appreciated Aunt Sarah, the mixed-raced Saffronia, the prostitute Sweet Thing, and finally the angry and bitter Peaches, who is enraged because of her enslaved ancestry and wants to strike out. Upon its release the song was sometimes misunderstood, some black radio stations even refused to play it because they found it racistRacismRacism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
. It became one of Simone's standards, and has later been covered by Reflection EternalReflection EternalReflection Eternal is a hip hop duo composed of emcee Talib Kweli and DJ Hi-Tek. They released their first album, Train of Thought, in 2000...
. - "Wild Is The WindWild Is the Wind (song)"Wild Is the Wind" is a song written by Dimitri Tiomkin and Ned Washington. The track was originally recorded by Johnny Mathis for the 1957 film Wild Is the Wind...
" was covered by David Bowie on his 1976 studio recording Station To StationStation to StationStation to Station is the tenth studio album by English musician David Bowie, released by RCA Records in 1976. Commonly regarded as one of his most significant works, Station to Station is also notable as the vehicle for Bowie's last great 'character', The Thin White Duke...
.
Track listing
- "I Love Your Lovin' Ways" (Bennie BenjaminBennie BenjaminClaude A. Benjamin was a songwriter, often teaming with George David Weiss. He was born on November 4, 1907 in Christiansted on the island of St. Croix . At the age of twenty, he moved to New York City. There, he studied the banjo and guitar with Hy Smith...
/Sol Marcus) – 2:35 - "Four WomenFour Women (song)"Four Women" is a song written by singer, composer, pianist and arranger Nina Simone, released on the 1966 album Wild is the Wind. It tells the story of four different African American women...
" (Nina SimoneNina SimoneEunice Kathleen Waymon , better known by her stage name Nina Simone , was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, arranger, and civil rights activist widely associated with jazz music...
) – 4:24 - "What More Can I Say" (Horace Ott/Made Brown, Jr.) – 2:48
- "Lilac WineLilac Wine"Lilac Wine" is a song written by James Shelton in 1950. It was introduced by Hope Foye in the short-lived theater musical revue, "Dance Me a Song." It was covered by Eartha Kitt , by Judy Henske on her first, self-named album , by Nina Simone on her album Wild Is The Wind , was a solo hit by...
" (James Shelton) – 4:13 - "That's All I Ask" (Horace Ott) – 2:28
- "Break Down And Let It All Out" (Van McCoyVan McCoyVan Allen Clinton McCoy was an accomplished musician, music producer, arranger, songwriter, and orchestra conductor. He is known best for his 1975 internationally successful song "The Hustle", which is still played in dance halls and on radio to this day more than thirty years since his death...
) – 2:37 - "Why Keep On Breaking My Heart" (Bennie BenjaminBennie BenjaminClaude A. Benjamin was a songwriter, often teaming with George David Weiss. He was born on November 4, 1907 in Christiansted on the island of St. Croix . At the age of twenty, he moved to New York City. There, he studied the banjo and guitar with Hy Smith...
/Sol Marcus) – 2:34 - "Wild Is the WindWild Is the Wind (song)"Wild Is the Wind" is a song written by Dimitri Tiomkin and Ned Washington. The track was originally recorded by Johnny Mathis for the 1957 film Wild Is the Wind...
" (Dimitri TiomkinDimitri TiomkinDimitri Zinovievich Tiomkin was a Russian-born Hollywood film score composer and conductor. He is considered "one of the giants of Hollywood movie music." Musically trained in Russia, he is best known for his westerns, "where his expansive, muscular style had its greatest impact." Tiomkin...
/Ned WashingtonNed WashingtonNed Washington was an American lyricist.-Biography:Washington was nominated for eleven Academy Awards from 1940 to 1962...
) – 6:56 - "Black Is the Color of My True Love's Hair" (traditional) – 3:24
- "If I Should Lose YouIf I Should Lose You"If I Should Lose You" is a song composed by Ralph Rainger, with lyrics by Leo Robin. It was introduced in the 1936 film Rose of the Rancho.-Notable recordings:*Georgia Brown - Georgia Brown Sings Gershwin/Georgia Brown...
" (Ralph RaingerRalph RaingerRalph Rainger was an American composer of popular music principally for films.-Biography:Born Ralph Reichenthal in New York City, Rainger embarked on a legal career before escaping to Broadway where he became Clifton Webb's accompanist...
/Leo RobinLeo RobinLeo Robin was an American composer, lyricist and songwriter. He is probably best known for collaborating with Ralph Rainger on the 1938 Oscar-winning song "Thanks for the Memory," sung by Bob Hope in the film The Big Broadcast of 1938.-Biography:Robin was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and...
) – 3:56 - "Either Way I Lose" (Van McCoyVan McCoyVan Allen Clinton McCoy was an accomplished musician, music producer, arranger, songwriter, and orchestra conductor. He is known best for his 1975 internationally successful song "The Hustle", which is still played in dance halls and on radio to this day more than thirty years since his death...
) – 2:43
Charts
| Chart 1966 | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
110 |
| Billboard R&B Chart | 12 |