Nina Simone - Baltimore (1978) (eac-log-cover)

Nina Simone - Baltimore (1978)

jazz, vocal | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 230MB

Sony

AMG:
After an uncharacteristic (for her) four-year hiatus from recording, Nina Simone returned to the fringes of the pop world with Baltimore, the only album she recorded for the CTI label. While it bears some of the musical stylings of the period -- light reggae inflections that hint of Steely Dan's "Haitian Divorce" -- the vocals are unmistakably Simone's. Like many of her albums, the content is wildly uneven; Simone simply covers too much ground and there's too little attention paid to how songs flow together. As a result, a robust torch piano ballad like "Music for Lovers" is followed immediately by one of Simone's more awkward moments, an attempt to keep up with a jaunty rhythm track on a cover of Hall & Oates' "Rich Girl." Still, one must give her credit for always being provocative in her cover song choices, as she clearly scores on the Randy Newman-penned title track and a dramatic reading of Judy Collins' "My Father." Her voice throughout is in fine form, even when she phones it in on the album-closing traditional gospel tunes, but arranger David Matthews is a mismatch for her: He blows the arrangements with excessive string overlays and needlessly blaring background vocals. Simone herself all but disavowed the album shortly after its release, testament to her eternally contrarian, iconic nature. Despite her misgivings, though, Baltimore is an occasionally spellbinding if erratic album, a challenging and worthwhile listen for people ready to dip into the lesser-known entries in Nina Simone's vast catalog.

Tracks:
-01. "Baltimore" (Randy Newman) - 4:39
-02. "Everything Must Change" (Benard Ighner) - 3:58
-03. "The Family" (John Hurley, Ronnie Wilkins) - 4:58
-04. "My Father" (Judy Collins) - 4:54
-05. "Music For Lovers" (Bart Howard) - 3:41
-06. "Rich Girl" (Daryl Hall) -
-07. "That's All I Want From You" (Fritz Rotter) - 2:52
-08. "Forget" (Rocky "Cole" Coluccio, David Matthews) - 2:54
-09. "Balm In Gilead" (Traditional) - 2:24
-10. "If You Pray Right" (Traditional) - 3:18

Personnel:
Jonathan Abramowitz: cello; Lamar Alsop: viola; Joshie Armstead: vocals; John Beal: bass; Alfred Brown: viola; Max Ellen: violin; Barry Finclair: violin; Babi Floyd: vocals; Frank Floyd: vocals; Jerry Friedman: guitar; Harry Glickman: violin; Milt Grayson: vocals; Chuck Israels: bass; Gary King: bass; Will Lee: bass; Charles Libove: violin; Harry Lookofsky: violin; James Madison: drums; Nicky Marrero: percussion; David Matthews: piano; Charles McCracken: cello; Deborah McDuffie: vocals; Homer Mensch: bass; Marvin Morgenstern: violin; David Nadien: violin; Andy Newmark: drums; Albertine Robinson: vocals; Al Schackman: piano, tambourine; Alan Shulman: cello; Nina Simone: keyboards, vocals; Ray Simpson: vocals; Herbert Sorkin: violin; Richard Sortomme: violin; Maretha Stewart: vocals; Emanuel Vardi: viola.

sample & buy: Baltimore

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Nina Simone - The Amazing Nina Simone & Nina Simone At Town Hall (1959) (eac-log-cover)

Nina Simone - The Amazing Nina Simone S & Nina Simone At Town Hall (1959)

jazz | 1cd (2LP) | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 320MB

Collectables |  rar +5% recovery

AMG:
The Amazing Nina Simone:
There is a remarkable amount of variety on this disc, Nina Simone's second recording. Her repertoire ranges from a swinging "Stompin' at the Savoy" and an emotional "It Might as Well Be Spring" to an English folk ballad ("Tomorrow"), spirituals, an R&B song ("You've Been Gone Too Long") and the theme song from the movie Middle of the Night. Somehow Simone brings credibility to each of these very different songs. She does not play much piano (just cameos on two songs) and is backed by a subtle orchestra arranged by Bob Mersey that is effective accompanying her vocals. This session finds Nina Simone's voice in top form and with a few exceptions is generally jazz-oriented.
Nina Simone at Town Hall:
One of Nina Simone's finest recordings, this Colpix LP features the unique singer/pianist performing classic versions of "Black Is the Color of My True Love's Hair," "The Other Woman," and "Wild Is the Wind." With supportive work from bassist Jimmy Bond and drummer Albert "Tootie" Heath, she also sounds fine on a few instrumentals. "Summertime" is performed twice, once as a vocal. From the start of her career, Nina Simone carved out her own unique niche, meshing together her classical piano technique with folk singing, civil rights protest lyrics and jazz. All of those elements are in evidence on this highly recommended set.

Tracks:
01. Blue Prelude - Nina Simone, Bishop, Joe
02. Children Go Where I Send You - Nina Simone, Simone, Nina
03. Tomorrow (We Will Meet Once More) - Nina Simone, Gale
04. Stompin' at the Savoy - Nina Simone, Goodman, Benny
05. It Might as Well Be Spring - Nina Simone, Hammerstein, Oscar
06. You've Been Gone Too Long - Nina Simone, Sellers
07. That's Him over There - Nina Simone, Keith, Marilyn
08. Chilly Winds Don't Blow - Nina Simone, Krasnow, Hermann
09. Theme from "Middle of the Night" - Nina Simone, Bassman
10. Can't Get Out of This Mood - Nina Simone, Loesser, Frank
11. Willow Weep for Me - Nina Simone, Ronell, Ann
12. Solitaire - Nina Simone, Borck, Renee
---------------
13. Black Is the Color of My True Love's Hair - Nina Simone, Traditional
14. Exactly Like You - Nina Simone, Fields, Dorothy
15. The Other Woman - Nina Simone, Robinson, J.M.
16. Under the Lowest - Nina Simone, Simone, Nina
17. I Don't Want Him (Anymore) - Nina Simone, Enloe
18. Summertime [Instrumental] - Nina Simone, Gershwin, George
19. Summertime [Vocal Version] - Nina Simone, Gershwin, George
20. Cottom Eyed Joe - Nina Simone, Traditional
21. Return Home - Nina Simone, Simone, Nina
22. Wild Is the Wind - Nina Simone, Tiomkin, Dimitri
23. Fine and Mellow - Nina Simone, Herzog, Arthur Jr.

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