Norah Jones
' debut on
Blue Note
is a mellow, acoustic
pop
affair with
soul
and
country
overtones, immaculately produced by the great
Arif Mardin
.
Jones
is not quite a
jazz
singer, but she is joined by some highly regarded
talent: guitarists
Adam Levy
,
Adam Rogers
Tony Scherr
Bill Frisell
, and
Kevin Breit
; drummers
Brian Blade
Dan Rieser
Kenny Wollesen
; organist
Sam Yahel
; accordionist
Rob Burger
; and violinist
Jenny Scheinman
. Her regular guitarist and bassist,
Jesse Harris
Lee Alexander
, respectively, play on every track and also serve as the chief songwriters. Both have a gift for melody, simple yet elegant progressions, and evocative lyrics. (
Harris
made an intriguing guest appearance on
Seamus Blake
's
Stranger Things Have Happened
.)
, for her part, wrote the title track and the pretty but slightly restless
"Nightingale."
She also includes convincing readings of
Hank Williams
'
"Cold Cold Heart,"
J.D. Loudermilk
"Turn Me On,"
Hoagy Carmichael
"The Nearness of You."
There's a touch of
Rickie Lee Jones
in
' voice, a touch of
Bonnie Raitt
in the arrangements; her youth and her piano skills could lead one to call her an
Alicia Keys
for grown-ups. While the mood of this record stagnates after a few songs, it does give a strong indication of
' alluring talents. ~ David R. Adler