Norah Jones is the daughter of sitar maestro Ravi Shankar and has found success as an artist across various genres. A singer-songwriter with jazz influences who draws upon country, folk and Americana music for her inspiration, she has taken an exciting musical journey so far.
She is best-known for her signature voice and reserved storytelling techniques, creating an artform that connects musical and lyrical narratives seamlessly.
Her Early Years
Norah Jones first achieved international renown with her Grammy-award-winning, multi-platinum 2002 debut album Come Away With Me. Since then she has released new music steadily while continuing her signature blend of jazz with pop, country soul and folk influences.
Jones began her musical journey singing open mike nights at Dallas coffee shops before enrolling at University of North Texas – an acclaimed school renowned for its music programs – where she continued performing and studying open mike performances.
Feels Like Home brought Jones together with producer Arif Mardin, who allowed her to continue her signature mix of 1970s singer/songwriter style songs with blues, country and piano jazz influences as well as her unique take on piano jazz.
Her Debut Album Come Away With Me
Norah Jones began her professional music career like many post-collegiates: waitressing during the day and performing at local clubs at night. But she never gave up, and on her 21st birthday an employee from Blue Note Records saw her performing and invited her to audition for their label.
Come Away With Me was her breakthrough album and sold over 18 million copies worldwide, cementing Norah as an artist who could please various audiences without compromising her sound or integrity.
This 20th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition contains Norah’s original demos submitted to her label as well as her first session demos recorded after signing with producer Craig Street. Both LP and CD versions of her remastered album are also available.
Her Second Album Feels Like Home
Feels Like Home marks a shift away from the folky, acoustic jazz of Come Away With Me. She still sings with charm but no longer seems constrained by genre boundaries this time around; including an excellent Townes Van Zandt cover (“Be Here to Love Me”) as well as a stunning duet with Dolly Parton (“Creepin’ In”).
Norah Jones also ventures into breakup funk (“Flame Twin”) and country rolling (“Staring at the Wall”). Norah co-wrote every track on this album – providing listeners with a sonic journey full of rich, intimate moments and disproving any doubters who suggested she was simply pretty face with an amazing voice.
Her Third Album Sunrise
Norah Jones has an intoxicating voice that you could listen to all day long, yet her songwriting needs some work incorporating more styles. Her latest release marked an effort in that direction.
Blue Note was her debut release and she took complete creative control of its songs, adding subtle country and other influences while remaining within the genre that first made her famous.
It turned out to be stronger than her first record: from piano pop on Those Sweet Words and Staring at the Wall to Above Ground with its teasing waltz soundscape – each track stood out from Come Away With Me counterparts in terms of sound and originality.
Her Fourth Album Pick Me Up Off the Floor
Norah Jones has always done things her way, from her debut Come Away With Me featuring jazz meets country and folk to her most recent collaboration with Danger Mouse…Little Broken Hearts she has never followed the herd or followed trends for radio hits.
Pick Me Up Off the Floor was an unexpected release in 2019, composed entirely of “leftovers” from sessions leading up to her 2019 singles collection Begin Again. Instead of leaving them languish on her shelf, Jones collected and assembled them into an album full of mood and emotion that highlights both of her greatest assets: voice and emotive songwriting. This release serves to shed light on both talents simultaneously!
Her Fifth Album Visions
Norah Jones is back with her ninth studio album Visions – her follow up to I Dream of Christmas which saw both Jones and producer Leon Michels exploring uncharted sonic territory.
Jones’ love of experimentation shines through here; she and Michels would start from an idea, jam it out garage band style, then layer on piano, guitar, bass, horns and other instruments as the song progressed.
Visions by Nora Jones shows her willingness to experiment with her established formula and it works wonderfully on this album. Tune in Monday-Friday from now until then on KAXE for Visions as our Album of the Week!