Just past the point where a great artist reaches too far for new material, 1971's Here Comes the Sun presented Nina Simone in a contemporary setting with eight covers of recent rock hits. Though the title track isn't very embarrassing -- her voice betrays a few technical faults -- there are few successes with the rest of the material. Simone's versions of "O-o-h Child," "Mr. Bojangles," "Just Like a Woman," and "My Way" are historical curiosities and sound terribly dated (the furious bongos and sweeping strings on the last is a d?nouement). Much of the problem lies with the arrangements, though several times these passable rock songs get the best from Simone's interpretive skills. ~ John Bush
