“Bright Mississippi”

From The New York Times (gift link): “Scott Colom, a Democrat, Wins Mississippi Senate Seat in Historic Upset”: “Mr. Colom, a prosecutor, will be the first Black senator elected from Mississippi since the post-Civil War Reconstruction period.”

All I could think was Nina Simone’s “Mississippi Goddam,” with an exclamation point added to flip the title’s meaning. But Ethan Iverson made a better choice: Thelonious Monk’s “Bright Mississippi.”

Here it is in a 1963 performance: Monk, piano; Charlie Rouse, tenor; John Ore, bass; Frankie Dunlop, drums. Suitable for dancing. Extra credit if you recognize the tune’s source.