(Soul, Vocal Jazz) Meshell Ndegeocello - Weather (2011), Pour Une Ame Souveraine: A Dedication to Nina Simone (2012) [feat. Lizz Wright, Sinead O'Connor, Toshi Reagon, Valerie June], WEB, FLAC (tracks), lossless

On the majority of Weather, Meshell Ndegeocello is supported by a core group that played on 2009’s Devil’s Halo: drummer Deantoni Parks, guitarist Chris Bruce, and pianist Keefus Ciancia. While Devil’s Halo was co-produced by Ndegeocello and Bruce, this set was produced by Joe Henry, who was involved in the making of 1999’s Bitter and notes in the liners here that he “pushed for songs to happen -- as much as possible -- as real-time ‘live’ performances.” Compared to Devil’s Halo, the set is a little more stripped-down with a slightly greater sense of spontaneity, and Ciancia dials down his “various soundscapes.” There’s tighter focus on romantic relationships, or maybe just one relationship, with a “you” addressed throughout on a spectrum of aching emotion that ranges from distress to desire. Radically different emotions are conveyed with minor, affecting inflections. In the dizzily swaying “Objects in Mirror,” she can’t move on (“I think about you every day/While I loiter on your doorstep”), while the somewhat similarly adorned “La Petite Mort” floats in on hushed libidinal swagger (“Arch your back and tell me the truth/Who’s your daddy now?"). The wealth of lithe, quiet backdrops played at slow tempos allows Ndegeocello, who switches between husky lower and sweet upper registers with more ease than ever, to tickle the ears. No song rocks, but a few groove, best heard on “Dirty World” (“Kick and scream and watch it burn”), featuring a stealthily furious and funky Ndegeocello bassline. This time, there are two covers, and they slip into the album’s fabric with ease. The Soul Children's 1972 Stax single “Don’t Take My Kindness for Weakness” is turned into a delicate ballad with acoustic guitar and piano but is no less assertive, while Leonard Cohen's “Chelsea Hotel” gets stately, full-band treatment with a wistful touch. Ndegeocello is making some of the finest music of her life. Given her consistency of late, it's quite possible that the same thing will be said of her output for as long as she is active. (Andy Kellman, AMG)

Canonized, marginalized or just scrutinized, Meshell Ndegeocello has given up trying to explain herself. After 20 years in an industry that has called her everything from avant garde toa dying breed, what unquestionably remains is the fearsome bassist, prolific songwriter, and the creativity and curiosity of an authentic musical force. With that, she has earned critical acclaim, the unfailing respect of fellow players, songwriters and composers, and the dedication of her diverse, unclassifiable fans.
“Pour Une Ame Souvraine” (For a Sovereign Soul), A Dedication to Nina Simone, is Meshell’s tenth record, her second for Naïve. Produced by Meshell and guitar player Chris Bruce, this album is a labor of love, a reflection of Meshell’s awe, affection, and gratitude for the pioneering work of a woman who refused to be owned by genre, industry, or expectation. Meshell and Chris turned well and lesser known songs into new experiences, inviting collaborations by Cody ChesnuTT, Valerie June, Sinead O’Connor, Lizz Wright, and Toshi Reagon, and the results are intoxicating. While Nina Simone is no longer here to pass the torch, this album, not just a tribute but a transformation, clearly nominates Meshell as her
heir apparent.
About her choice to record the music made famous by Nina Simone, Meshell says, “Nina Simone was unusual, unruly, unparalleled. She has an unmistakable voice and an unavoidable spirit - she’s terse and angry and expressive of her despair and her joy and her sexuality. She is not an industry player, she was obviously difficult and volatile. She wanted success, was pressured to make hits, but her own sound was still irrepressible. She had things to say, she protested. She was a loud, proud black, female voice during a time when black female voices were not encouraged to make themselves heard.”