Norah Jones

Norah Jones trades in her piano for the guitar, and not only do her Texas roots shine through more, her connections to indie songstresses like Cat Power, Jenny Lewis and Feist become all the more apparent. Her spacious, laid-back style still rules the day, but a darker mood takes hold on songs like "Even Though" and "I Wouldn't Need You." Her Old World ballad mastery glimmers on "Back to Manhattan," and "Man of the Hour" reveals a bit of Ms. Jones' goofy side. Backing her are simpatico musicians from the bands of Tom Waits, Johnny Cash, Elvis Costello, Joe Strummer and Al Green.

When you've sold 36 million albums, you can afford to reinvent yourself endlessly. But
Norah Jones' blessing, or curse, is how she remains her imperturbably chill self in any of
her guises, be it hip-hop soul diva (Q-Tip's "Life Is Better") or jilted lover drifting through an
art film (My Blueberry Nights). For her fourth LP, her liveliest, she rolls with producer
Jacquire King (Tom Waits, Modest Mouse) and hires feisty session men, including... More >