Thursday music corner: Nina Simone (b. North Carolina 1933, d. France 2003) was a classically-trained pianist and jazz vocalist whose dedication to civil rights activism became a keynote of her public persona. She released at least 32 albums between 1959 and 1993, including three in 1959 alone. Several of her releases became pop hits: I Loves You Porgy reached number 18 in the US charts in 1959, and her version of My Baby Just Cares For Me was a number 5 hit in the UK on the back of its use in a Chanel No.5 commercial. Her version of Feelin' Good was also a UK success, reaching number 40 in the UK in 1994.
Feelin' Good appeared on Simone's I Put a Spell on You album, released in June 1965. The album was named for and featured as its only single, the famed Screamin' Jay Hawkins track. Feelin' Good was originally written by Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse for a 1964 English musical, and has been covered many times by a wide variety of artists including Sammy Davis Jr, Traffic, Michael Buble, George Michael, Eels, Muse, Sophie B Hawkins, Avicii and David Guetta. Simone's version has been used in several films including Cruella (2021), A Quiet Place: Day One (2024) and Wim Wenders' marvelous Tokyo-set Perfect Days (2023).
Nina Simone - Feelin' Good (1965)
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