Baltimore

by Nina Simone

Overview

After an uncharacteristic (for her) four-year hiatus from recording, Nina Simone returned to the fringes of the pop world with Baltimore, the only album she recorded for the CTI label. While it bears some of the musical stylings of the period -- light reggae inflections that hint of Steely Dan's "Haitian Divorce" -- the vocals are unmistakably Simone's. Like many of her albums, the content is wildly uneven; Simone simply covers too much ground and there's too little attention paid to how songs flow together. As a result, a robust torch piano ballad like "Music for Lovers" is followed immediately by one of Simone's more awkward moments, an attempt to keep up with a jaunty rhythm track on a cover of Hall & Oates' "Rich Girl." Still, one must give her credit for always being provocative in her cover song choices, as she clearly scores on the Randy Newman-penned title track and a dramatic reading of Judy Collins' "My Father." Her voice throughout is in fine form, even when she phones it in on the album-closing traditional gospel tunes, but arranger David Matthews is a mismatch for her: He blows the arrangements with excessive string overlays and needlessly blaring background vocals. Simone herself all but disavowed the album shortly after its release, testament to her eternally contrarian, iconic nature. Despite her misgivings, though, Baltimore is an occasionally spellbinding if erratic album, a challenging and worthwhile listen for people ready to dip into the lesser-known entries in Nina Simone's vast catalog. ~ Joseph McCombs

Product Details

Release Date:	04/01/2008
Label:	Legacy
UPC:	0886972487526

Tracks

1. Baltimore
2. Everything Must Change
3. The Family
4. My Father
5. Music For Lovers
6. Rich Girl
7. That's All I Want From You
8. Forget
9. Balm in Gilead
10. If You Pray Right

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Nina Simone   Primary Artist,Vocals,Keyboards
Eric Gale   Guest Artist,Guitar
David Nadien   Violin
Andy Newmark   Drums
Babi Floyd   Vocals (Background)
Jimmy Madison   Drums
Jerry Friedman   Guitar
James Madison   Drums
Maretha Stewart   Vocals (Background)
Deborah McDuffie   Vocals (Background)
Alfred Brown   Viola
Charles McCracken   Cello
Charles Libove   Violin
Emanuel Vardi   Viola
David Matthews   Piano
John Beal   Bass,String Bass
Joshie Armstead   Vocals (Background)
Frank Floyd   Vocals (Background)
Max Ellen   Violin
Ray Simpson   Vocals (Background)
Milt Grayson   Vocals (Background)
Herbert Sorkin   Violin
Homer Mensch   String Bass,Bass (Upright)
Lamar Alsop   Viola
Al Schackman   Piano,Director,Tambourine,Music Direction
Albertine Robinson   Vocals (Background)
Jonathan Abramowitz   Cello
Barry Finclair   Violin
Marvin Morgenstern   Violin
Alan Shulman   Cello
Maeretha Stewart   Vocals (Background)
Alan Schulman   Cello
Gary King   Bass
Richard Sortomme   Violin
Chuck Israels   Bass (Upright)
Harry Lookofsky   Violin
Nicky Marrero   Percussion
Harry Glickman   Violin
Will Lee   Bass
Andy Newark   Drums

Technical Credits

Dee Palmer   Audio Engineer,Engineer
Joe Cohn   Assistant Engineer
Creed Taylor   Producer,Liner Notes
Fritz Rotter   Composer
Bart Howard   Composer
Chris Herles   Digital Mastering
Rocky "Cole" Coluccio   Composer
Traditional   Composer
Steven Berkowitz   A&R
Benard Ighner   Composer
David Nathan   Liner Notes
John Hurley   Composer
David Matthews   Arranger,Composer
Didier C. Deutsch   Liner Notes,Reissue Producer
Howard   Composer
Judy Collins   Composer
Rudy Van Gelder   Engineer
Ronnie Wilkins   Composer
Mark Wilder   Mastering
Matt Kelly   Tape Research
Randy Newman   Composer
Nina Simone   Arranger,Composer
Daryl Hall   Composer
Betsy Palumbo   Coordination
Sibbi Chalawick   Design
Stacey Boyle   Tape Research