Nina Simone - Nina Simone and Her Friends (2021 Stereo Remaster) (LP)

Nina Simone - Nina Simone and Her Friends (2021 Stereo Remaster) (LP)    Jazz Vocals from Nina Simone, Carmen McRae & Chris Connor Originally released by Bethlehem Records in 1959, Nina Simone and Her Friends is a compilation album comprised of the few remaining, unreleased tracks from the Little Girl Blue recording session plus songs recorded by two other former Bethlehem artists, the powerhouse jazz vocalist Carmen McRae and the elegant song stylist Chris Connor. As Daphne Brooks explains in the release's brand new essay, "Bethlehem clustered their work—tracks that had previously appeared on the label's Girlfriends compilation—together with the younger, upstart Simone's and essentially offered up a collection of songs that span a range of genres— folk, jazz, pop song staples, and torch song laments, plus a couple of provocative original compositions by McRae and Simone. Each track is a reminder of the clear-eyed independence, verve, and confidence of three artists whose music