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Currently, the album of the week is Norah Jones - "Feels Like Home" The rise of the Texas born, jazz-infused singer songwriter Norah Jones over the past 18 months has been truly remarkable. Her debut album ‘Come Away With Me’ has sold by the truckload and has been awarded countless prizes including eight Grammys. Anticipation for a second album has reached fever pitch and finally the long wait is over…
‘Feels Like Home’ does exactly what it says on the tin. From the opening bars of first single ‘Sunrise’ through to the final track ‘Don’t Miss You At All’ (a reworked version of Duke Ellington’s ‘Melancholia’) the album makes you feels comfortable. Jones’ voice is as warm as a log fire and the songs wrap around you like the cosiest of sheepskin rugs. This is a work of gorgeous familiarity that greets you like an old friend that has dozens of new stories to tell you.
Although the album enlists the help of several esteemed guests including Dolly Parton, Jesse Harris, Levon Helm and Garth Hudson (of the Band) it is not the all-star backslapping exercise that so many artists pander too when they become successful. Instead Jones’ retains the services of her trusty backing band and only sprinkles the songs with the extra star quality intermittently. Jones herself explains:
“I didn’t want to make some big recording that was over-produced. Besides, the band has been playing together steadily for two years now and it feels good…We picked good songs, many of which were written by the band, and tried to get the best takes of them we could.”
The album covers the well trodden stylistic bases of her debut where country, pop and jazz are all embroidered into a patchwork sound that is truly unique and often breathtaking. However, this album attempts to up the tempo from its predecessor, moving away from “mellow” to encompass funk (Above Ground) and blues rock (In The Morning). Dolly Parton’s contribution is added vocals to the upbeat, live favourite ‘Creepin’ In’ and the Band duo of Helm and Hudson appear on the folksy ‘What Am I To You’.
Overall, Norah Jones has done the impossible; she has improved on the near perfection of her debut. ‘Feels Like Home’ is an accomplished sophomore effort that will consolidate Jones’ position as one of the greatest singer-songwriters of her generation.
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