Diehard Nina Simone fans will doubtless already have all of the recordings from which the 68 tracks of Just Cares For You: Her Best Songs are taken. They include the debut album she cut in New York in 1957, Little Girl Blue, The Amazing Nina Simone, Nina Simone Sings Ellington, and Nina Simone At The Village Gate – the first and last of which have been reissued recently on Masterworks. For anyone coming to her work for the first time, this 3CD set presents the artist in trio (with bassist Jimmy Bond and drummer Albert ‘Tootie’ Heath), big band and live settings. Highlights include the incredibly touching title track, in which Simone deftly interweaves ‘Good King Wenceslas’ into the Rodgers and Hart ballad, a brilliant take on ‘Don't Smoke in Bed’ and two of her signature songs, ‘I Loves You, Porgy’ and ‘My Baby Just Cares For Me’. The Ellington music features some lesser-known songs such as ‘Hey, Buddy Bolden’, ‘You Better Know It’ and ‘Merry Mending’, while the compelling live material ranges from the dramatic African chant of ‘Zungo’ to the gospel-infused ‘Children Go Where I Send You’.