Nina Simone • Sings The Blues

 

Review by Thom Jurek

Nina Simone Sings the Blues, issued in 1967, was her RCA label debut, and was a brave departure from the material she had been recording for Phillips. Indeed, her final album for that label, High Priestess of Soul, featured the singer, pianist, and songwriter fronting a virtual orchestra. Here, Simone is backed by a pair of guitarists (Eric Gale and Rudy Stevenson), bassist (Bob Bushnell), drummer (Bernard "Pretty" Purdie), organist (Ernie Hayes), and harmonica player who doubled on saxophone (Buddy Lucas). Simone handled the piano chores. The song selection is key here. Because for all intents and purposes this is perhaps the rawest record Simone ever cut. It opens with the sultry, nocturnal, slow-burning original "Do I Move You," which doesn't beg the question but demands an answer: "Do I move you?/Are you willin'?/Do I groove you?/Is it thrillin'?/Do I soothe you?/Tell the truth now?/Do I move you?/Are you loose now?/The answer better be yeah...It pleases me...." As the guitarists slip and slide around her husky vocal, a harmonica wails in the space between, and Simone's piano is the authority, hard and purposely slow. The other tune in that vein, "In the Dark," is equally tense and unnerving; the band sounds as if it's literally sitting around as she plays and sings. There are a number of Simone signature tunes on this set, including "I Want a Little Sugar in My Bowl," "Backlash Blues," and her singular, hallmark, definitive reading of "My Man's Gone Now" from Porgy and Bess. Other notable tracks are the raucous, sexual roadhouse blues of "Buck," written by Simone's then husband Andy Stroud, and the woolly gospel blues of "Real Real," with the Hammond B-3 soaring around her vocal. The cover of Buddy Johnson's "Since I Fell for You" literally drips with ache and want. Simone also reprised her earlier performance of "House of the Rising Sun" (released on a 1962 Colpix live platter called At the Village Gate). It has more authority in this setting as a barrelhouse blues; it's fast, loud, proud, and wailing with harmonica and B-3 leading the charge. The original set closes with the slow yet sassy "Blues for Mama," ending with the same sexy strut the album began with, giving it the feel of a Möbius strip. Nina Simone Sings the Blues is a hallmark recording that endures; it deserves to be called a classic.

https://www.allmusic.com/album/nina-simone-sings-the-blues-mw0000768895

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Revisión por Thom Jurek

Nina Simone Sings the Blues, emitida en 1967, fue su debut en el sello RCA y fue una valiente salida del material que había estado grabando para Phillips. De hecho, su último álbum para ese sello, High Priestess of Soul, presentó al cantante, pianista y compositor al frente de una orquesta virtual. Aquí, Simone está respaldada por un par de guitarristas (Eric Gale y Rudy Stevenson), el bajista (Bob Bushnell), el baterista (Bernard "Pretty" Purdie), el organista (Ernie Hayes) y el jugador de armónica que se duplicó con el saxofón (Buddy Lucas) . Simone se encargó de las tareas del piano. La selección de la canción es clave aquí. Porque a todos los efectos, este es quizás el récord más grande que Simone haya recortado. Se abre con el original sensual, nocturno, de combustión lenta, "Do I Move You", que no plantea la pregunta, sino que exige una respuesta: "¿Te muevo? / ¿Lo harás? / ¿Te acosaré? / ¿Es emocionante? / ¿Te tranquilizo? / Digo la verdad ahora / ¿Te conmuevo? / ¿Estás suelto ahora? / La respuesta es mejor que sí ... Me agrada ... "A medida que los guitarristas se deslizan y deslizarse alrededor de su voz ronca, una armónica se lamenta en el espacio, y el piano de Simone es la autoridad, dura y deliberadamente lenta. La otra melodía en ese sentido, "In the Dark", es igualmente tensa y desconcertante; La banda suena como si estuviera literalmente sentada mientras ella toca y canta. Hay una serie de melodías de la firma Simone en este set, entre ellas "I Want a Little Sugar in My Bowl", "Backlash Blues", y su lectura singular, distintiva y definitiva de "My Man's Gone Now" de Porgy and Bess. Otras pistas notables son los ruidosos y sexuales blues de "Buck", escritos por el entonces esposo de Simone, Andy Stroud, y los azules evangélicos de "Real Real", con el Hammond B-3 volando alrededor de su voz. La portada de Buddy Johnson "Since I Fell for You" literalmente gotea de dolor y deseo. Simone también repitió su anterior interpretación de "House of the Rising Sun" (lanzada en un plato en vivo de Colpix en 1962 llamado At the Village Gate). Tiene más autoridad en este escenario como un barril de azules; es rápido, ruidoso, orgulloso y gime con armónica y B-3 liderando la carga. El set original se cierra con el lento pero atrevido "Blues for Mama", que termina con el mismo toque sexy con el que comenzó el álbum, lo que le da la sensación de una tira de Möbius. Nina Simone Sings the Blues es una grabación distintiva que perdura; merece ser llamado un clásico.

https://www.allmusic.com/album/nina-simone-sings-the-blues-mw0000768895


Tracklist:
A1 Do I Move You 2:41
A2 Day And Night 2:34
A3 In The Dark 2:53
A4 Real Deal 2:17
A5 My Man's Gone Now 4:13
A6 Backlash Blues 2:14
B1 I Want A Little Sugar In My Bowl 2:27
B2 Buck 2:00
B3 Since I Fell For You 2:44
B4 The House Of The Rising Sun 3:55
B5 Blues For Mama 3:52


Credits:
Nina Simone: vocal, piano
Eric Gale: guitar
Rudy Stevenson: guitar
Ernie Hayes: organ
Bob Bushnell: bass
Bernard Purdie: drums, timpani
Buddy Lucas: harmonica, tenor sax


Sings the Blues (1967) is an album by singer/pianist/songwriter Nina Simone.This was Simone's first album for RCA Records after previously recording for Colpix Records and Philips Records. 

 

 

 

 

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