Anthology

Product Description:

Recorded between 1960 and 1963. Includes liner notes by David Nathan.

This is a collection of tracks that the inimitable Nina Simone recorded for the Colpix label early in her career, spanning the years 1959-1963. Simone excels here on the many tracks where she is captured live, accompanying herself on the piano with her trio, which features the intricately beautiful guitar work of Al Shackman. There is really nothing like the fire of Simone's singing. She has the power to enter your heart and then tear it to pieces with the intensity of her emotion in song.

Her treatment of Irving Berlin's "You Can Have Him" is nothing less than breathtaking and transcendent. Even when she is gentle and tender, as in her classic version of "Wild is the Wind," the passion is always seething under the surface. She is a master musician and pianist (classically trained) and her taste in material and arrangements is always eclectic, daring, and surprising. The 19 tracks here (two of which were previously unreleased) run the gamut of jazz, folk, blues, and soul, and provide a wonderful overview of Simone's powerful artistry.