Geetali Norah Jones Shankar was born in New York City to a sitar player and concert promoter; her parents divorced when she was young, causing them to separate and move her and her mother out to Grapevine, Texas where they raised her together.
Producer Arif Mardin launched Norah’s career with 2001’s Come Away With Me, featuring her mellow croon over an acoustic pop-jazz blend. Subsequent releases included Feels Like Home (2004) and Not Too Late (2007).
Come Away With Me (2001)
Norah Jones’ debut album is an easygoing mix of jazz, folk and pop crafted by her New York band members. Working alongside producer/arranger Arif Mardin who had produced records by Aretha Franklin, Dusty Springfield and Laura Nyro led to classic renditions that made Norah an instantaneous fan favorite.
Blue Note A&R chief Brian Bacchus first encountered Jones at a brunch and thought she would pair well with Jay Newland, an experienced musician in jazz, rock, country and folk genres who would understand Jones’ sound better. Together they recorded nine demos; four of which appeared on 2001 sampler First Sessions while others went directly into Come Away With Me’s catalog.
Norah Jones earned three Grammy awards – album, record and song of the year – on this record night tying Lauryn Hill and Alicia Keys as female artists with three.
Feels Like Home (2004)
Jones followed her critically-acclaimed debut Come Away With Me by immediately returning to the studio, but this time with a decidedly more country sound in mind. While not an extreme shift, it does give the album its own distinct feel compared to Come Away With Me.
Even with its slight deviation from her formula, the album still provides an enjoyable listen. The songs tend to be lighter than on her previous release and she still works with an impressive ensemble – highlight being Dolly Parton dueting with her on Creepin In and an excellent cover of Duke Ellington’s Melancholia that stands out.
Begin Again (2007)
Irish director John Carney struck gold with the charming Once, and has returned to this genre with this story of struggling musicians and romantic longing. Begin Again is like a bigger budget studio remake of Once with movie star cast members and enhanced production values.
Keira Knightley portrays Gretta, an emerging songstress who meets Dan (Mark Ruffalo) an A&R rep for an unfulfilling record company at an open mic night in an East Village bar. Dan believes she possesses enough raw talent to break out into stardom, convincing her that they should release her album through their label.
Real-life musical performers add credibility to this film’s examination of the music industry, giving Jones a platform to showcase her sultry vocals among fuzzy guitars, off-kilter drums and vintage keyboards. On top of this, she performs duet with Anoushka Shankar on “Fallen Slowly”.
Pick Me Up Off the Floor (2020)
After over a decade of performing in music, Norah Jones has found comfort with her craft, enabling her to express both light and dark emotions through piano phrasing and sensuous voice harmonies that create her signature sound.
Jones discovered she had some sessions that she wanted to incorporate into an album after compiling 2019 singles collection Begin Again; these eventually evolved into what would become Pick Me Up Off the Floor.
Jeff Tweedy of Wilco is responsible for producing Jones’ album and it features Americana elements combined with her jazz-pop sophistication for an album that blends Americana with jazz-pop sophistication to produce both moody and hopeful tracks that address loss while offering hope in equal measure. With Anoushka Shankar as guest feature artist on some tracks, this work stands as one of Jones’ finest works to date.
Little Broken Hearts (2012)
Norah Jones may often be dissed for being slow tempo, but that would be like insulting juicy fruit for being juicy. Her fifth album produced with producer Danger Mouse revolutionizes her songwriting approach while expanding her palette – and results in an expansive collection that explores heartbreak from multiple angles and perspectives.
Romantic devastation certainly informed this album‘s noir-ish focus, while giving Jones a chance to push her musical limits further. Her signature smoky voice no longer feels rooted to piano as Burton incorporates fuzzy guitars and string sections into her soundscape; songs like “Miriam” even take a gothic turn as she threatens violence against anyone who wronged her; an uncompromising and powerful collection of songs!