"I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free" is a jazz piece written by American musician Billy Taylor, originally recorded as an instrumental and later released as a song with lyrics by Dick Dallas.
His 1967 live version, from the album of the same name, was later used as the theme music for the Film... review programme series on BBC Television.
[3] A widely played version was recorded by Nina Simone in 1967 on her Silk & Soul album.
[4] Other artists who have covered the song include Don Shirley (1968), Junior Mance (1968), Illinois Jacquet (1968), Solomon Burke (1968), Marlena Shaw (1969), Cold Blood (1969), John Denver (1969), Doris (1970), Mary Travers (1971), John Fahey (1976), Jools Holland (1997), The Derek Trucks Band (2006), Levon Helm (2009), John Legend and the Roots (2010), Mavis Staples with Levon Helm (2011, released 2022), Emeli Sandé (2012), and The Blind Boys of Alabama featuring Béla Fleck (2021).
[6] The 1996 film Ghosts of Mississippi featured two versions of the Taylor composition – one sung by Dionne Farris and the other by Nina Simone.