$9.99  Norah Jones - Come Away with Me |
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$11.99  U2 - How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb |
 [Larger view] | Norah Jones - Feels Like Home
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 norah's best | |
| the sophomore album from the daughter of the great ravi shanker is absolutely melodious and great and is as good as superb debut.thankfully there are no beats or dance songs in this great album.very highly recommended.five stars.please get both norah albums but avoid the lousy goodies album from the horrible ciara. | |
| The Miseducation of Miss Shankar, Part Two | |
| "Feels like Home" is a great choice if you're looking for more of the same from Norah Jones, but with a twist. It follows the same formula that Norah incorporated on 'Come Away with me', but is infused with more a jazz-meets-country vibe that can take some getting used to. Its not as sunny as first single 'Sunrise' might imply. Some of the themes are darker and the vocals are more hushed and plaintive than the debut record, but it is still as effective as ever. That said, its easy to see why this album hasn't been as much of a runaway success as 'Come away with me'. I attribute it in part to the song choices - Norah could certainly have used some richer material for her sophomore effort - and some tracks sound like weak replays of the slower tracks on the debut CD, which may give the listener the feeling that buying one album by the artist is enough. Some have called this album an unnecessary sequel. Thats rather unfair considering the artistic merit of the recordings here, but its easy to see why.
Norahs' vocals have certainly improved, though the sparse arrangements could have been enhanced a little more this time around. Its ironic that Dolly Parton guest stars on this record. In fact, 'Feels like Home' feels very much like when Dolly Parton made her foray from country music into bluegrass territory (most notably on 'The Grass is Blue'). Thats because its very telling that with this work, Norah has moved from the jazz scenario to the country-western stage (duets with Willie Nelson only add to this notion), and many songs here would fit perfectly on a Lee Ann Womack catalog. Thats not a bad thing, but for those of us who approach this CD expecting more of that Billie Holiday vibe, we might want to reconstruct our approach. I think Norah doing country is fine, and shes mighty good at it, especially on tracks such as 'Humble Me' which to me is out and out country. Her duet with Dolly Parton, 'Creepin' In' is a lovely melody - a fusion between world music, country and jazz. All of this works in the nicest possible way, but that might just be the problem. I don't see the artist stretching herself to explore her own outer limits. Rather, the album seems like another exercise in reconfirming the theory 'If it ain't broke, don't fix it'. I wonder what the third album will sound like. Looking back upon artists who had a great debut album, such as Alanis Morissette, one can say with certainty that the freshness and uniqueness of that 'first sound' can never be replicated. But Norah does a pretty good job here. If you're into jazz music, or are even a casual listener to the works of Diana Krall or Nina Simone, chances are that you will love this CD. But in case you're a country music lover whos just beginning to explore new territory, this is a nice new place to start. For fans of Jones, this album only confirms that she is very much a master of her art, as well all suspected. While 'Feels like Home' doesn't really break new ground in terms of the artists' growth sonically, it is a testament to the fact that she is a bright light in our music industry, and has carved a niche for herself, and a genre, that is all her own. Buy this just for that, and you'll love it. kabitat@gmail.com | |
| A Great Follow-Up Album | |
| In "Feels Like Home" Norah Jones displays her incredible talent in writing, arranging, playing and singing songs that have a bluesy, country feel. Some reviewers liked her first album better, mostly because it had less of a country sound. But an artist has to experiment, explore and grow or else that artist will be impugned as repetitive and irrelevant. The common thread in both albums is Norah Jones' exquisite voice, so airy and controlled. The last song, "Don't Miss You At All" is alone worth the price of admission; it's so lovely. |
