Compact Jazz

by Nina Simone

Product Description:

Personnel includes: Nina Simone (vocals, piano); Rudy Stevenson (flute, guitar); Al Shackman (harmonica, guitar); Arthur Adams, Lisle Atkinson (bass); Cornell McFadden, Bobby Hamilton (drums).

Nina Simone's specialty is the eclectic. She transcends categories by delving with equal fervor into jazz, blues, folk, soul, R&B and pop. This 1989 compilation mines tracks from the Philips catalog, where she recorded seven albums from 1964-1967 after ending her six-year association with Colpix Records.

These tracks lean towards Nina's R&B side. Included are works from her fine 1965 PASTEL BLUES album, such as her classic "Sinnerman," the sultry "Tell Me More and More and Then Some," and her stark take on "Strange Fruit." Other highlights are her odd uptempo version of Duke Ellington's standard "Mood Indigo," her compelling version of Screamin' Jay Hawkins' "I Put a Spell on You," and a swinging version of "My Baby Just Cares for Me."