...Featuring Norah Jones

Review

by Stephen Thomas Erlewine

In the wake of her 2002 blockbuster debut, Norah Jones became an in-demand duet partner, popping up on albums from all manners of musicians. The 2010 compilation, …Featuring, helpfully rounds up 18 of these guest appearances, including a cut by the Jones-fronted country cabaret outfit the Little Willies, and what impresses is the range of collaborators and the consistency of the music. Anybody who called Norah up for a duet was clearly smitten by her way with slow-burning seduction, as they almost without fail cast her in that role for their own recordings, smoothing out rough edges or adding some sultry sophistication. This would seem like a limited specialty, but Featuring proves it’s not. Jones sounds as comfortable trading verses with Willie Nelson and Ray Charles as she does acting as a counterpoint to Q-Tip and Outkast, providing alternating contrasts according to the setting; she freshens the veterans and provides a touch of timeless elegance to her modern rock peers. It may all be variations on a theme, but the sounds and songs change just enough for the music to be quietly absorbing. Better still, when these side shows are grouped together as a main attraction, they manage to sound of a piece. These may be songs that appeared on other artist’s albums, but when presented as a collection, they seem to belong only to Norah Jones.

Tracks

				Title	Composer	Time
		1		Love Me	Leiber, Stoller	3:53
		2		Virginia Moon	Grohl, Hawkins, Mendel, Shiflett	3:51
		3		Turn Them	Bones	4:05
		4		Baby It's Cold Outside	Loesser	4:00
		5		Bull Rider	Crowell	2:58
		6		Ruler of My Heart	Neville	3:00
		7		The Best Part	Borger, Jones, Oda	3:25
		8		Take Off Your Cool	Benjamin	2:38
		9		Life Is Better	Fareed, Fareed, Glasper, Glasper	4:26
		10		Soon the New Day	Charles, Greene	4:04
		11		Little Lou, Ugly Jack, Prophet John	Colburn, Cooke	4:25
		12		Here We Go Again	Lanier, Steagall	3:57
		13		Loretta	Van Zandt	3:22
		14		Dear John	Adams, Jones	4:36
		15		Creepin' In	Alexander	3:03
		16		Court & Spark	Mitchell	7:36
		17		More Than This	Ferry	4:12
		18		Blue Bayou	Melson, Orbison	3:44

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