Released: January 1, 2008

Songwriter: Prince

Producer: André Fischer

In France a skinny man
Died of a big disease with a little name
By chance his girlfriend came across a needle
And soon she did the same
At home there are seventeen-year-old boys
And their idea of fun
Is being in a gang called The Disciples
High on crack, totin' a machine gun

Hurricane Annie ripped the ceiling of a church
And killed everyone inside
You turn on the telly and every other story
Is tellin' you somebody died
Sister killed her baby 'cause she couldn't afford to feed it
And we're sending people to the moon
In September my cousin tried reefer for the very first time
Now he's doing horse, it's June

Is it silly, no
When a rocket ship explodes
And everybody still wants to fly
Some say a man ain't happy truly
Unless a man truly dies
Oh why

Time, mess with your mind
Mess with your mind

Baby make a speech, Star Wars fly
Neighbors just shine it on
But if a night falls and a bomb falls
Will anybody see the dawn
Time, mess with your mind

Is it silly, no
When a rocket blows
Everybody still wants to fly
Some say a man ain't happy, truly
Until a man truly dies
Time, mess with your mind

Sign O the Times mess with your mind
Hurry before it's too late
Let's fall in love, get married, have a baby
We'll call him Nate, if it's a boy
We'll call it Nina, if it's a girl
But if it's just healthy, we'll call it anyway

And you there, sitting on the goddamn fence
Stop selling the dope!
Stop sniffing the cocaine and buying crack!
Stop using the needle!
And for God's sake, stop killing each other, this stuff is giving me nightmares!
Let no man write your epitaph, don't let this be the sign of the times


Time, mess with your mind
Say, mess with your mind
Time, mess with your mind

Nina Simone

She was one of the most extraordinary artists of the twentieth century, an icon of American music.

Simone occupied a broad range of musical styles including jazz, blues, folk, classical, R&B, gospel and more. Born in North Carolina – the sixth child of a preacher –Eunice Waymon aspired to be a concert pianist. To make a living, she decided to change her name to “Nina Simone” in order to disguise herself from family members, as she played cocktail piano in nightclubs. Until she was told she had to sing her own accompaniment, her jazz vocalist career was effectively launched.

Nina has recorded more than 40 studio albums; she was the recipient of a Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 2000 and has additionally received 15 nominations throughout her career. After nearly 3 decades, she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as part of the 2018 class.