Tuesday, October 28, 2008

“Mississippi Goddamn”

Nina Simone – "Mississippi Goddamn" (1964)
Group Members: Andrew R., Jamee S., Nicole P., Chris S.

12 comments:

Erin M. said...

The name of this tune is mississippi goddam
And I mean every word of it

Alabamas gotten me so upset
Tennessee made me lose my rest
And everybody knows about mississippi goddam

Alabamas gotten me so upset
Tennessee made me lose my rest
And everybody knows about mississippi goddam

Cant you see it
Cant you feel it
Its all in the air
I cant stand the pressure much longer
Somebody say a prayer

Alabamas gotten me so upset
Tennessee made me lose my rest
And everybody knows about mississippi goddam

This is a show tune
But the show hasnt been written for it, yet

Hound dogs on my trail
School children sitting in jail
Black cat cross my path
I think every days gonna be my last

Lord have mercy on this land of mine
We all gonna get it in due time
I dont belong here
I dont belong there
Ive even stopped believing in prayer

Dont tell me
I tell you
Me and my people just about due
Ive been there so I know
They keep on saying go slow!

But thats just the trouble
Do it slow
Washing the windows
Do it slow
Picking the cotton
Do it slow
Youre just plain rotten
Do it slow
Youre too damn lazy
Do it slow
The thinkings crazy
Do it slow
Where am I going
What am I doing
I dont know
I dont know

Just try to do your very best
Stand up be counted with all the rest
For everybody knows about mississippi goddam

I made you thought I was kiddin didnt we

Picket lines
School boy cots
They try to say its a communist plot
All I want is equality
For my sister my brother my people and me

Yes you lied to me all these years
You told me to wash and clean my ears
And talk real fine just like a lady
And youd stop calling me sister sadie

Oh but this whole country is full of lies
Youre all gonna die and die like flies
I dont trust you any more
You keep on saying go slow!
Go slow!

But thats just the trouble
Do it slow
Desegregation
Do it slow
Mass participation
Do it slow
Reunification
Do it slow
Do things gradually
Do it slow
But bring more tragedy
Do it slow
Why dont you see it
Why dont you feel it
I dont know
I dont know

You dont have to live next to me
Just give me my equality
Everybody knows about mississippi
Everybody knows about alabama
Everybody knows about mississippi goddam

Anonymous said...

Hey everyone,
My name is Nicole and I am a sophomore at JCC and my major is business management. I think this song is sort of redneck and country filled because of how it is written and what is said. It is sort of sad in a way because it says the whole country is full of lies and we are going to die like flies. Flies usually die by being squashed to death or land in some water and drown. That is not a way that I would want to die and when the song states that it seems sad and depressing. They make it very clear that Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee has upset them in some way. They say that it is a show tune, but has not been written yet. Also they state why they are so upset because a black cat crossed their path and school children were sitting in jail and hound dogs were in their trail so it makes since once you get to read that verse. So overall this song was okay, it is not something that I would listen to personally, but it has meaning just like most songs do

Anonymous said...

This song is basically about how one day its gonna be everyone ones turn to died and that you can't trust no one in this world.
"Lord have mercy on this land of mine
We all gonna get it in due time
I dont belong here
I dont belong there
Ive even stopped believing in prayer"
This quote basically saying that i don't believe in nothing no more because this world is so upset down that you can't believe in nothing anymore!!! Nina Simone was simple saying that one day our time will came and why should you turst anyone in this world with so much going on at once. And it is true. You can't trust no one for real becuase you never known whats gonna happens. Jamee' S.

Anonymous said...

Hello everyone my name is Jamee seavers. I go to JCTc and my major is Nursing!!!!

Anonymous said...

Hi my name is Chris S I am in Erin’s late morning class on Tuesday and Thursday. I have just finished reading the song lyrics to “Mississippi Goddam” by Nina Simone. To me without hearing the song and never even hearing of this song it appears to be written in the view of a black person calling for equality during the civil rights movement that is not happening. It also talks of being repressed by the children in jail, and hound dogs on my trail. The song later tells about the slowness of the process “Do it slow Desegregation Do it slow Mass participation Do it slow Reunification Do it slow Do things gradually Do it slow But bring more tragedy Do it slow Why don’t you see it Why don’t you feel it I don’t know I don’t know” It is simply saying there doing something just because we are being forced to. “Alabamas gotten me so upset Tennessee made me lose my rest And everybody knows about mississippi goddam” This part of the song is talking about the whole civil unrest that was going on in the south with most of it concentrated in Alabama, Tennessee, and Mississippi.

Anonymous said...

After listening to the song and reading your comments my opinion has changed about this song when I first read the lyrics I thought it was a song calling for equality and civil rights against the tyranny of oppression. Once I heard the song being sung it blew me out of the water with the tone of the song. To me the song was sung in a joking or not very serious manner which threw me off given the tone of the lyrics.
Nicole wrote “Also they state why they are so upset because a black cat crossed their path and school children were sitting in jail and hound dogs were in their trail”
I think these are all just metaphors talking the black cat for example is speaking of superstition and not wanting to “press their luck”, then there are the school children in jail meaning that they do not want them to be educated so they can not compete for jobs with the white children another example of oppression. Chris S

Anonymous said...

Now that I have read others comments I do believe this song is about equality. I was looking at it from a different point of view and I now understand the song a little better.
-Nicole

Anonymous said...

To compare this song to a piece of art I would have to say that there are many works of art that portray equality. Some paintings, for example, may define equality because each measure that the artist used represented a certain aspect of the painting. If it was a painting of kids playing on a playground it would define equality in its own way because they are equally able to play anywhere they want on the playground. This song definitely portrays equality as does a work of art.
-Nicole

Anonymous said...

This photo in my mind is about the same kind of mood as the song it is not anger filled as we can see it is a very peaceful march. However there are military personnel all around there even tanks. So this tells me that the government is reluctantly allowing this march to occur but the participants are on a short leach. This reminds me about the section in the song where it repeats the words “do it slow” for the reason that hopefully they will become discouraged and give up. It is quite brave for these individuals to stand up for their rights with so much opposition. Thirdly the signs they have around their necks spelling out “I AM A MAN” reminds me of the line in the song saying that there are hounds on my trail. I association with this statement is that they people photographed are saying that I am a man and not a wild animal that you hunt in the woods.
We want equality now and we are not going anywhere.
Chris S

Anonymous said...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kimberlyb/1340293354/
chris S

Anonymous said...

Reviewing your comments it appears that it is a song about the black point of view of the civil war!!! the sample fact that she was expressing her feelings about some stuff that most people wouldn't say at all but show give good reason why she did it and what was going on back then.

Jamee S.

Anonymous said...

I will compare this song to the War in Iraq because in this song she explain that everyone loosing there life for no reason and today war is about the same. people dying for the reason but at the sometime there fighting to gives us freedom. This song also say that other things are going on outside of the war that is affect people around us and the war in Iraq is doing about the same thing.

Jamee S.