Nina Simone – At Town Hall (Limited Edition 12-Inch Album on 180g Yellow/Black Splatter Vinyl)

This hand-numbered album is limited to just 500 copies.

Nina Simone at Town Hall (aka At Town Hall) is the first live album by Nina Simone, released in December 1959. The album captures Simone at one of her early pinnacles.

The album was largely recorded in concert at New York City’s prestigious Town Hall on 15 September 1959 – Simone’s New York concert debut. Three of the songs (The Other Woman, Cotton-Eyed Joe and Wild Is the Wind) featured in the concert were subsequently re-recorded in a studio the following month.

Most of the material on the album was either written or arranged by Nina herself, but there are interesting interpretations of Billie Holiday’s Fine and Mellow and the standard Summertime.

The reviews for the show, as Simone later wrote, “were the best I ever had. I was a sensation. An overnight success, just like in the movies.” Simone’s gravitas and strong self-belief made for an enthralling performance. Artists frequently bandy about the words “soul” and “passion” to compensate for their blatant lack of either. Few had both like Nina Simone, and At Town Hall is one of the greatest examples of her unique style.

It was said of Nina Simone that she performed “with heart at all times”, and that is none more evident than on At Town Hall.

Track Listing

Side One

1. Black Is the Color of My True Love’s Hair (3:30)
2. Exactly Like You (3:09)
3. The Other Woman [Studio Recording] (2:55)
4. Under the Lowest (5:24)
5. You Can Have Him (5:51)

Side Two

1. Summterime (5:37)
2. Cotton-Eyed Joe [Studio Recording] (2:54)
3. Return Home (5:23)
4. Wild Is the Wind [Studio Recording] (3:31)
5. Fine and Mellow (3:30)

Format: Vinyl / 12” Album (Coloured Vinyl)

Label: Second Records

Catalogue No: SRPD0015SP

Barcode: 9003829979633

Release Date: 30 Sep 2022