Most known for a song written by Prince, “Nothing Compares 2 U, singer-songwriter “Sinéad O’Connor (1966-2023) was connected in activism to another singer-songwriter, Kris Kristofferson (1936-2024), who died recently. The latter was the sole artist to publicly support and defend O’Connor in 1992 at the Bob Dylan tribute concert that followed her infamous SNL performance in which she tore up a photo of the Pope in protest of child sexual abuse in the Catholic Church.
While condemned by many for this act, O’Connor was viewed by victims of sexual assault and their supporters as an important advocate. It later came to light, by the way, that O’Connor herself had survived significant childhood abuse by her mother.
Kristofferson wrote a song for her, “Sister Sinéad,” that was on his 2009 album “Closer to the Bone.”
…It’s askin’ for trouble to stick out your neck
In terms of a target a big silhouette
But some candles flicker and some candles fade
And some burn as true as my sister Sinead
And maybe she’s crazy and maybe she ain’t
But so was Picasso and so were the saints
And she’s never been partial to shackles or chains
She’s too old for breaking and too young to tame
A live performance of O’Connor’s “Nothing Compares 2 U”:
I love, for whatever reasons, the particular emphasis that’s placed on the following:
Although there have been many other covers of this song over the years, those that have sprung up more recently in tribute to O’Connor by other outspoken female artists feel particularly meaningful.
Brandi Carlile joined Pink at more than one of her concerts to sing it:
And if the above live recording isn’t as high-quality as you’d like, here’s a more clearly recorded solo by Pink, accompanied by the BBC orchestra:
Cynthia Erivo sang her heart out at The Kennedy Center:
