Nina Simone Emergency Ward!

Nina Simone's Emergency Ward includes live performances and several George Harrison covers. Simone further embraced George Harrison on this album devoting over half of it to his music. Another politically charged set, this part live album has it's cover daubed in Vietnam war newspaper cuttings. It may only have four songs, but the album still stretches to over 33 minutes thanks to the charged "My Sweet Lord"/"Today Is A Killer" medley.
It is fortunate that Nina Simone, despite her notorious eccentric self, perceived her musical environment with sharpened senses and used it for her own experiments. Only in this way was it possible that a lot of existing repertoire, traditional blues numbers, black work songs and proven white show melodies, provided with a deep soul feeling, reached the fans. "Emergency Ward!" is no exception in this respect: Simone borrowed George Harrison's template and David Nelson's poetry "Today Is A Killer" for the explosive live medley "My Sweet Lord". Together with a small combo and a gospel choir, Simone ignites an 18-minute continuous fire that does not lose a second of spiritual power.
Against the quiet "Poppies", which are very elaborately produced with strings, woodwinds and choir, the questioning "Isn't It A Pity" captivates with instrumental simplicity at the piano. Supported only by simple, throbbing harmonies, which occasionally cause her to swell to chord clouds, Simone places her modulating voice in the room, which, as so often, fades into nothingness as an unanswered call. An extraordinary album and an alternating bath of emotions that leaves no one cold.

Features:

• 180g Vinyl
• High Quality Pressing
• Audiophile Mastering

Musicians:

• Choral arr. & cond.: Weldon Irvine Jr. Orchestrations by Weldon Irvine Jr. Prod: Nina Simone-Andrew Stroud-Weldon Irvine Jr.
• Nina Simone, vocals, piano (1-3)
• Sam Waymon, vocals (1)
• Lisa Stroud, polyrhythms (1)
• Bethany Baptist Church Junior Choir of South Jamaica, NY, vocals (1)
• Orchestra (3)

Selections:

Side A
1. My Sweet Lord
2 Today is a Killer
Side B
3. Poppies
4. Isn't It a Pity

Track 1: Live in concert at Fort Dix, November 18, 1971.
Track 2 & 3: RCA Studio's, New York, February 17, 1971 & February 1 & 3 & 9 & 10, 1972