Maps of Music

Nina Simone Sings the Blues (1967)

Where the lyrics of Nina Simone Sings the Blues take you, and where it was really made.

This was Nina Simone's first album for RCA Victor, yet in 1991 the label reissued it as a 17-track compilation titled The Blues.

Key places

Recorded at RCA Studio B, New York (1967)

Recording site Record Plant Studios — The album was recorded in New York City at RCA Studio B across sessions in December 1966 and January 1967. The point is shown at city-center level. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Nina Simone Sings the Blues: album by singer, pianist and songwriter Nina Simone
• First album for RCA Victor, after earlier recordings for Colpix Records and Philips Records
• Original release 1967 on RCA Victor (label RCA, 1967)
• Original edition has 11 tracks
• Reissued in 2006 with bonus tracks, including a 13-track edition
• Reissued in 1991 by RCA/Novus as a 17-track compilation titled The Blues

Background

• Simone's work in this period moved between blues, jazz and civil rights songs
• My Man's Gone Now comes from the opera Porgy & Bess by George Gershwin
• Backlash Blues is one of Simone's civil rights songs; its lyrics were written by her friend, the poet Langston Hughes
• I Want a Little Sugar in My Bowl is based on a Bessie Smith song, with somewhat different lyrics
• The House of the Rising Sun was first recorded live by Simone in 1962 on Nina at the Village Gate
• After The Animals' cover became a hit, Simone recorded the song again in the studio for this album

Recording

• Recording sessions: New York City, RCA Studio B, on 19 and 22 December 1966 and 5 January 1967
• Producer listed as Danny Davis; engineer listed as Mickey Crofford
• Musicians on tracks 1 to 12: Simone on vocals and piano, Eric Gale and Rudy Stevenson on guitar, Ernie Hayes on organ, Bob Bushnell on bass, Bernard Purdie on drums, Buddy Lucas on harmonica and tenor saxophone
• Track 13 is a larger arrangement with horns, percussion and a vocal group
• Track 13 was arranged and conducted by Weldon Irvine
• Distribution from April 1967 according to the French edition of the article

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Born Eunice Kathleen Waymon on February 21, 1933, in Tryon, North Carolina; the sixth of eight children.
• Began playing piano at age three or four and gave a classical debut recital at age 12.
• Failed to gain admission to the Curtis Institute of Music, which she attributed to racism.
• Played piano at a nightclub in Atlantic City and adopted the stage name "Nina Simone" in 1954, after which she began singing as well.

Career

• Debut album Little Girl Blue (1958) included "I Loves You, Porgy", her only Billboard top 20 single in the US.
• Recorded more than 40 albums up to 1974; her 1960s protest songs such as "Mississippi Goddam" tied her to the civil rights movement.
• Left the US in 1970 and settled in Europe, later living in Liberia, Barbados, the Netherlands, and France.
• Autobiography I Put a Spell on You was published in 1991; she continued performing until her death on April 21, 2003.
• Known as the "High Priestess of Soul"; Rolling Stone ranked her No. 21 on its list of the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time.

Members

• Solo artist; she was accompanied by percussionist Leopoldo Fleming and guitarist Al Schackman throughout most of her career.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• First album for RCA Victor, Simone's first release on that label after earlier work for Colpix Records and Philips Records
• Released in 1967; the French edition of the article notes distribution from April 1967
• Original 1967 edition has 11 tracks, listed as the 11-track edition on AllMusic

Reappraisal

• Musicians Beth Orton, Marissa Nadler, and Tanita Tikaram have named Blues among their favorite albums
• In 2017, Blues placed #28 on NPR Music's list “The 150 Greatest Albums Made By Women”

Records

• 2006 reissue with bonus tracks, listed as a 13-track reissue on AllMusic
• 1991 RCA/Novus reissue as a 17-track compilation titled The Blues
• Catalog numbers LMP-3789 / LSP-3789 for the 1967 RCA release (Discogs)

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The lyrics of Backlash Blues were written by Simone's friend, the poet Langston Hughes.
• The fast version of The House of the Rising Sun on this album differs greatly from her slow, intimate 1962 live version on Nina at the Village Gate.
• Beth Orton, Marissa Nadler, and Tanita Tikaram have each named Blues among their favorite albums.
• Track 13 is a large ensemble piece with several trumpets, trombones, saxophones and a vocal group of eight singers, arranged by Weldon Irvine.
• The 1967 RCA release carries the catalog number LMP-3789 / LSP-3789.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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