One of the most influential and prolific artists of all time, Bob Dylan changed the course of music and songwriting in the late 1950s and early 1960s, influencing countless bands, including The Beatles. Having been in the music business for more than six decades, he had the chance to witness the evolution of everything he helped transform—and to see many incredible musicians emerge.
Over the decades, he spoke about many of them, some of whom even covered several of his songs—including a female vocalist he said he loved and admired.
The female singer that Bob Dylan said he loved and admired
Bob Dylan praised the late legendary Nina Simone, an incredible artist who also covered some of his songs. During his speech at MusiCares in 2015, he said she was a very strong woman and a dynamite to see performing live.
“I used to cross paths with her in New York City in the Village Gate nightclub. She was an artist I definitely looked up to. She recorded some of my songs that she learned directly from me, sitting in a dressing room. (So) she was an overwhelming artist, piano player and singer. Very strong woman, very outspoken and dynamite to see perform. That she was recording my songs validated everything that I was about. Nina was the kind of artist that I loved and admired,” he said.
During the 49 years of her successful career she covered some Dylan songs. Some of them are “Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues”, “Just Like a Woman”, “The Times They Are A-Changin’”, “The Ballad of Hollis Brown” and “I Shall Be Released.”
Nina Simone
She was born in Tyron, North Carolina in 1933 and started her musical career in 1954. She initially wanted to become a concert pianist. But when she got a gig playing in a nightclub in Atlantic City, they told her that she would have to sing her own accompaniment. So that was when she started to discover that she also was a great singer.
During her really successful and influential career, Nina Simone released 19 studio albums and 14 live records. The final one was “A Single Woman”, released in 1993. Some of her biggest hits are “Feeling Good, “I Put a Spell On You” and “Sinnerman”. Some of her most praised albums are: “Little Girl Blue” (1959) and “I Put a Spell On You” (1965).
During her career, Nina Simone recorded music in many different genres, including Classical, Jazz, Folk, Gospel, Blues, Pop, and R&B
Nina was not only known for her musical talent, she was also an important civil rights activist. When she was young, she applied for a scholarship to study at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. Despite a good audition, she was denied the admission, which she attributed to racism.
Decades later, in 2003, she finally received by the institute an honorary degree, although she never had the chance to study there. Only two days later she sadly passed away, at the age of 70. She was a victim of cancer, at her home in Carry-le-Rouet, France.
