Mark "Frosty" McNeill on Nina Simone's "It Is Finished" (1974)

Explicit content warning

08/08/19 • 54 min

The Album: Nina Simone It Is Finished (1974)

It Is Finished is an ominous title, least of all given where Nina Simone was in her personal life at the time. Much of the early ‘70s had seen the High Priestess of Soul escaping to Barbados, first to avoid a troubled marriage, then to avoid the IRS. But RCA Records lured her back to New York to tape a live show, much of which would go into It Is Finished alongside a few tracks from an earlier studio session. One of those vault cuts, “Funkier Than a Mosquito’s Tweeter” would become an unlikely hit on the funk/soul dance floor circuit but It Is Finished was far more than one-tracker, especially as Simone dipped into Afro-Caribbean spirituality via the (under-credited) participation of Exuma on much of this album. Our guest, Mark “Frosty” McNeill is the co-founder of the long-running Dublab internet (now terrestrial) radio station and together, we got deep into Nina’s public and personal tribulations of that era, how the album reflects a particular moment in black cultural identity and a spirited debate about Tina vs. Nina.

Previous Episode

Summer Spectacular feat. Quetzal (redux)

Guests: Quetzal

The Albums:

Alé Kumá: Cantaoras (Alé Kumá, 2002)
Mary J. Blige: What's the 411? (Uptown, 1992)
The Smiths: Louder Than Bombs (Rough Trade, 1987)
Kendrick Lamar: To Pimp a Butterfly (TDE, 2015)

Note: This is a rerun of an episode from 2018 that has been re-edited and remastered.

We wanted to dedicate an episode to talking about the music of summer, easily the one season that people have the deepest sonic associations with. To that aim, we invited the two founding members of L.A.'s Quetzal, Martha Gonzalez and Quetzal Flores. Since 1992, the group has melded the son jarocho tradition into all manners of other genres, resulting in seven albums (and counting), including 2017's The Eternal Getdown.

Together, each of our quartet got to pick an album that we associate with the summer and as you see above, we covered a whirlwind of styles and eras that bring up all manners of thoughts and feelings for us. Summer love may be fleeting but it lingers, always.

Next Episode

Raphael Saadiq on Earth, Wind & Fire's "That's The Way Of The World" (1975) + Remembering Nipsey Hussle

The Album: Earth, Wind & Fire That's The Way Of The World (1975)

On March 15, 1975, Columbia Records released "That's The Way Of The World" the sixth studio album of Earth Wind & Fire, a band of 10 members who fused rock, jazz, funk and soul. The album sold five million units, and won a Grammy for the single "Shining Star" (Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group). Produced by Maurice White and Charles Stepney, the album focused on EWF's familiar themes, spirituality, oneness, love.

Oscar and Golden Globe nominated composer Raphael Saadiq joined Oliver and Morgan in studio to talk "That's The Way of The World" and all the things that made EWF iconic including, Philip Bailey's falsetto, Maurice White's mysticisms and drum heroics, Charles Stepney's production and the harmonies that caught his ear and his attention and the happy feelings the band's music inspired in his own musicianship as a youth growing up in Oakland.

You'll want to catch this one. Because Reasons.

And stay tuned after the interview for a special segment celebrating the life and music of Nipsey Hussle, who would have turned 34 this week. Rest in power, Nipsey.