Hello everyone, and welcome back to another blog post. Today I will be discussing another OG Lydia's Girls: Norah Jones. Norah has been a part of the Lydia's Girls gang since the beginning. I enjoy listening to Norah's music and am excited to be writing about her.
Norah's full name is Geethali Norah Jones Shankar. Her mother, Sue Jones, was a music producer, and her Father, Ravi Shankar, was an Indian musician (Who taught George Harrison how to play sitar). Her parents split up when Norah was nine years old, and she lived with her mother in Grapevine, Texas. Norah's interest in music started when she was young. Norah loved listening to artists like Bill Evans and Billie Holiday. She sang in church and took piano and voice lessons. Norah joined the choir in high school and played the alto saxophone in the band. She won musical awards like Best Jazz Vocalist twice and Best Original Composition. With her parent's permission, Norah changed her legal name to Norah Jones when she was sixteen. After high school, Norah attended the University of North Texas and majored in jazz piano. At UNT, Norah met Jesse Harris, who gave her sheet music of his songs. In 1999, Jesse and Norah moved to New York City and started a band. Norah soon signed with Blue Note. They weren't sure about her music's direction but knew she was very talented and believed in her. Norah worked with producer and engineer Jay Newland to create nine demo songs. Four of the songs were on her first EP, First Sessions, and the others were featured on her first album, Come Away with Me. This album was a massive success with hits like I Don't Know Why. Norah was also nominated for nine Grammys and won five. The album is certified Diamond for selling over ten million copies. Norah has released several more popular albums, including, Feels Like Home (2004), Not Too Late (2007), The Fall (2009), Little Broken Hearts (2012), Day Breaks (2016), Pick Me Up Off The Floor (2020). She has collaborated with a number of other artists, like Billie Joe Armstrong. They recorded a cover album of songs The Everly Brothers sang called Songs Our Daddy Taught Us. I highly recommend this album because Norah and Billie's voices sound absolutely fantastic together.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of Come Away with Me. So, naturally, I will be writing about one of her songs off of the Super Deluxe Edition. This edition is unique because it has the recordings of her demos and The First Sessions EP tracks. I will review one of her famous (and my favorite) songs, Don't Know Why, written by Jesse Harris. Jesse originally released the song on his 1999 album Jesse Harris & the Ferdinandos, but this is one of those times you could say it's Norah's song because she performs it so well. I love the instrumentation for this song. Norah's piano playing is absolutely breathtaking, and the acoustic guitar pairs with it so well. These two instruments sound like they are having a conversation throughout the song. When Norah starts singing, her voice is soft and angelic, which is instantly relaxing for the listener. Throughout the first verse, Norah doesn't play any piano. She uses the piano to add accents like an electric guitar into the second verse. One of my favorite lines is, "When I saw the break of day. I wish that I could fly away. Instead of kneeling in the sand. Catching teardrops in my hands." This phrase has so much imagery and emotion; catching teardrops in my hands. That is a fantastic line. The following line is also great: "My heart is drenched in wine. But you'll be on my mind forever." She's trying to forget about this person by drinking, but that person will always stay with her no matter how much she drinks. Before the fourth verse, Norah has a piano solo that shows off her piano skills and completes the song.
Even though Norah didn't write this song, her vocals and piano add a uniqueness and an identity to the music. I recommend listening to the new re-release album if you enjoy Norah's music. It will bring you back, and it's interesting to see the demo songs and how Norah found herself in music.
Spotify Music Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6ETYI6A3dsOe9fJTBQVWg8?si=48f5c5aaef5b4ddf
Chief Editor: Jacob Tomeny
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