Nina Simone Little Girl Blue (2021 Stereo Remaster) 180g LP

Little Girl Blue (also known as Jazz As Played in an Exclusive Side Street Club) is the debut album by Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Nina Simone. It was originally released by Bethlehem Records in February 1959. At the time, Simone was in her mid-20s and still aspiring to be a classical concert pianist. The album includes the classic tracks "My Baby Just Cares For Me," "Mood Indigo," as well as "I Loves You, Porgy," which was her first Top 20 hit (#18 / #2 "US R&B"). Pressed on 180-Gram audiophile vinyl. Featuring a brand new stereo mix by four-time Grammy winner Michael Graves as well as vinyl remastering by Kevin Gray. Includes new essay by author of Liner Notes For The Revolution, Daphne A. Brooks.

Simone's relationship with Bethlehem Records was a troubled one, as she believed the label didn't do enough to promote her first album. Moreover, after she left the label, Bethlehem released an unauthorized collection of left-over tracks from the Little Girl Blues sessions as Nina Simone and Her Friends. She would never record with Bethlehem again.

[Little Girl Blue] showcases her ballad voice as one of mystery and sensuality and showcases her uptempo jazz style with authority and an enigmatic down-home feel that is nonetheless elegant. The album also introduced a fine jazz pianist. Simone was a solid improviser who never strayed far from the blues.

The session, recorded in 1957, sounds as fresh as yesterday. Simone's piano bursts ahead throughout, mirroring her interests in becoming a classical performer at the time, and her syrupy contralto voice comes through in waves of slow, sweet beauty. The other players on the album, drummer Tootie Heath and bassist Jimmy Bond, do their best not to disrupt the spell she casts throughout, instead calmly fanning the flames and mopping Simone's brow throughout.