To Be Young, Gifted and Black

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“To be Young, Gifted and Black”
Single by Nina Simone
Album	Black Gold
Released	1970
Recorded	album recording live at Philharmonic Hall, single was a studio recording
Genre	Soul, Blues, Gospel, Civil Rights Anthem
Label	RCA Records
Writer	Weldon Irvine
Composer	Nina Simone
Producer	Stroud productions
Cover versions
Aretha Franklin, Donny Hathaway
Black Gold track listing
The Assignment Sequence (6) “To be Young, Gifted and Black” (7)

"To Be Young, Gifted and Black" is a song by Nina Simone with lyrics by Weldon Irvine. It was written in memory of Simone's late friend Lorraine Hansberry, author of the play Raisin in the Sun. ^[1] The song was originally recorded by Simone for her 1970 album Black Gold; released as a single, it became a Top Ten R&B hit and a Civil Rights anthem. Notable cover versions of the song were recorded by Donny Hathaway (on his 1970 album Everything Is Everything), Aretha Franklin (on her 1972 album Young, Gifted and Black) and Bob & Marcia (whose 1970 recording reached number 5 in the UK charts).

Elton John recorded a version of "To Be Young, Gifted and Black" prior to his solo success. Intended to be released as a low budget sound-alike version of the original, it was later reissued on the compilation album Covers as Sung by Elton John.

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