Nina Simone

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Little Blue Girl

BMG, 2021

8/10

Little Blue Girl

When Nina Simone released this debut record in 1959, she had already established herself as a significant talent who could sing, play piano and arrange music like few others. Recorded when she wasn’t even 25 years old yet, Little Blue Girl illustrates Simone’s affinity for blues, jazz and folk as well as the American Songbook.

“Mood Indigo” starts the listen with jumpy keys and frisky percussion as Simone’s inimitably soulful vocals guide the stylish climate, and “Don’t Smoke In Bed” follows with a slow burning display of sublime melody and powerful singing.

Elsewhere, the playful keys of the swinging “Love Me Or Leave Me” suite Simone’s diverse pipes in an infectious jazz climate, while the brushed drumming of “My Baby Just Cares For Me” complements the bluesy feel of the album highlight. “Plain Gold Ring” then flows with a soaring, emotive quality as bare musicianship guides a dreamy, ballad climate.

“I Loves You Porgy”, the lone track that hit the charts, lands near the end and recruits a smokey quality, and “Central Park Blues”, the only Simone original, exits the listen with a raw but meticulous instrumental that puts a firm exclamation point on the accomplished debut.

It’s amazing to think that Simone played her first gig only a few years prior to this record, as she delivers with so much poise, skill and diversity on not only an integral piece of her history, but American music as a whole. On this newly remastered stereo version, the classic sounds better than ever, which is no easy feat.

Travels well with: Coniece Washington- Shades Of Shirley Horn; Nina Simone- The Montreux Years