– Ana Achata, Staff Writer
This Women’s History Month, we are highlighting different women artists all month! Today, on her birthday, we chose to put the spotlight on Norah Jones. To learn more about her and her music, read this article!
To Begin with… Come Away with Me
If you ask me, Norah Jones has one of the most magical debut albums from the last 25 years. Born March 30, 1979, in Manhattan, New York, Geethali Norah Jones Shankar came into the world surrounded by music. Her mother, Sue Jones, was a concert producer, and her father, Ravi Shankar, was a musician. Her early years consisted of piano lessons and singing in churches between moves from Alaska to Texas. At age sixteen, she would legally change her name to Norah Jones. Jones took much of her inspiration from artists like Billie Holiday and Bill Evans, cherishing the bluesy-jazz sound that would eventually make its way into her own music. Jones even majored in jazz piano at the University of North Texas!
After beginning to play music with Jesse Harris and returning to New York City from Texas, Norah Jones would be discovered by Peter Malick while playing a set at the Living Room, a small music venue which, sadly, has closed down since then in 2015. Malick would approach Jones and ask her to come participate in a series of recording sessions at Room 9 from Outer Space in South Boston, which would become the album titled New York City. Norah Jones would be credited in the band name itself, which was called the Peter Malick Group Featuring Norah Jones.
Soon after her move to New York, Jones signed with record label Blue Note, where she would meet Jay Newland. Newland would become her producer and would assist her in recording her debut album, Come Away with Me, which was released in 2002. Come Away with Me would turn out to be a breathtaking, soothing blend of pop, folk, and jazz, combining into fourteen tracks that emulate love, cups of coffee, city streets, and jazz clubs. The album would land at No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and won twenty-three-year-old Norah Jones five Grammy awards. By 2005, Come Away with Me had sold ten million copies.
Next Steps
In the next several years, Jones would continue to release music, releasing three more albums in the span of five years. In order, those albums were Feels like Home (2004), Not Too Late (2007), and The Fall (2009). Feels like Home won Norah Jones another Grammy, and features a duet with none other than Ray Charles. She even earned herself a spot on Time magazine’s list of most influential people of 2004. Not Too Late was special in that it was the musician’s first album on which she co-wrote every single song. Not Too Late came leisurely, crawling its way into the world. Blue Note claims they had no idea that Norah Jones was even recording an album at that time. This album turned out to deal with more serious topics than her previous works. For example, Jones noted that the track “My Dear Country” was written before the 2004 presidential election. But very much like her previous work, Not Too Late reached No. 1 in several countries.
The Fall, album number four, would be the preset for her fourth world tour in 2010. Two years later in 2012, would come album number five, titled Little Broken Hearts, followed by yet another world tour shortly after its release. Day Breaks, number six, came in 2016 with tracks like “It’s a Wonderful Time for Love” featuring bluesy piano melodies that had been less prominent in Jones’ last few albums. Begin Again, released in 2019, contained collaborations with Jeff Tweedy and Thomas Bartlett. This album was a compilation of singles recorded between 2018 and 2019.
Since then, Norah Jones has released three more albums: Pick Me Up Off the Floor, I Dream of Christmas, and Visions. Jones is still active, and if we’re lucky, we may get more musical gems from this fabulous woman. Despite small divergences from her jazz sound towards pop and folk elements, Norah Jones has remained true to her roots and still possesses the same sweet and smooth voice that we fell in love with almost 25 years ago.
Some Tracks to Get You Started!
“Feelin’ The Same Way” – Come Away with Me
This one is one of my personal favorites out of all of Norah Jones’ music. This track feels like sitting in your childhood bedroom and feeling the same way you did when you were sixteen years old. That may not be the most appealing feeling in the world, but Jones does a wonderful job of capturing the nostalgic, yearning feeling that comes with stealing back those same feelings after years of absence. I like to take it as a more hopeful song, and as a message on the importance of returning back to yourself even if it’s uncomfortable.
“Sunrise” – Feels like Home
A cryptic, poetic description of a relationship. I’m torn between the beautiful lyric of “Sunrise, sunrise, looks like mornin’ in your eyes,” and, later, “Surprise, surprise, never something I could hide, when I see we made it through another day.” Even though this track is riddled with melancholy, Norah Jones’ voice is incredibly sweet and perfect in this track.
“Sleeping Wild” – Day Breaks
“Sleeping Wild” is a fantastic example of the jazz element to Jones’ music. Slow and deep, the lyrics are few to make way for a handful of instruments, from strings to keys. This track is reminiscent of old jazz ballads and old noir films about tragic couples. The entirety of Day Breaks might be for you if you’re seeking modern jazz musicians!
