Artist of the Week- Norah Jones

Come away with me english dissertation and we’ll kiss
On a mountaintop
Come away with me
And I’ll never stop loving you

Those lyrics are from our Artist of the Week: Norah Jones. Ahh, where do I begin? I have been in love with Norah since my eyes first saw her! She is by far the most beautiful singer on the planet, with one of the best voices ever! She has a jazz style, but also mixes in some country and with her new release The Fall, she mixes in some Top 40 Rock.

Norah exploded onto the music scene in 2002 with her debut album Come Away With Me. Almost overnight she became a musical success. She won seven Grammy Awards, including Best New Artist and Album of the Year. She was 24 years old at the time and already had achieved more than many singers twice her age. The album sold over 10 million copies in the United States, making it one of the most successful albums of the year. “Don’t Know Why” is the song that put her on the map but there are many other hits on the album which were just as good: “Come Away With Me,” “One Flight Down,” “Cold Cold Heart” and “Feelin’ the Same Way.”

Her sophomore album, Feels Like Home, sold more than 1 million copies in its first week but only sold 4 million copies total. People were expecting another pop-filled album, but Norah delivered a more country-sounding album. I personally think this album was very good because it was mostly country-ish but still blended a pop sound to it. Songs like: “Sunrise,” “Toes,” “Those Sweet Words” and “What Am I To You” are excellent tracks. Norah was growing as an artist and finding a niche audience. Her first single “Chasing Pirates” has a soft-rock sound. It sounds a lot like the Rolling Stone’s “Miss You.”

Jones released her third album, Not Too Late, in 2007 but it did not do so well. It managed to only sell 2 million copies in the United States. Like many artists, we gravitate to them because someone calls them the next whatever, but we quickly leave them behind when they don’t make an exact duplicate album. Not Too Late was a very strong album, but because it didn’t have the commercial appeal of the idiotic radio companies it performed poorly. I don’t really believe that Norah ever imagined that her style of music would sell tons of records and I honestly feel that she is happy as an artist to be doing the songs she wants to be doing.

Her latest album, The Fall, has been improperly labeled as her first attempt at rock. Anyone who has followed Norah knows that she is often doing rock songs on tour. Many of her B-Sides have a rock sound to them, while a few songs from her albums have a rock sound too. She has also been known to cover acts like: The Band, Bread, Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash and Bob Dylan, as well as working with acts like Outkast, Q-Tip and the Foo Fighters. No doubt Norah has street cred, but she is a unique artist that got respect from the start. Unfortunately, it has wavered over the years, but I am here to tell you that she rocks!

Her newest album should appeal to a larger audience, but who knows what these morons running radio stations will make the public believe! Another reason I love her is because she loves doing cover songs. Like our little Sara, I too love cover songs and my all-time favorite cover is one that she does of Patsy Cline. She covered a Patsy Cline song called “Why Can’t He Be You,” and it just causes me to get goose bumps whenever I hear it! Another one is “Wulitzer Prize,” which I featured here. I love her voice; Willie’s voice sounds pretty crappy, but Norah is spot on! Please check her out. If anything, just to look at her because she is smoking hot and has one of the sexiest voices ever! Rock on Norah!