Bringin It All Back Home

Call it a phenomenon or a coincidence: beautiful young women with beautiful voices and matching skill on the piano have become the queens of popular music in the early 21st century. It's a formula that has worked across musical genres from R&B, to pop, to jazz. And Norah Jones is arguably the most talented to emerge from this group, which includes notables like Michelle Branch and Alicia Keys.

Both Jones and Keys overpowered their competition at the Grammy Awards in consecutive years. But Norah seems to have the greater gift with a striking voice that has drawn comparisons to Billie Holiday and Nina Simone with her 2002 debut "Come Away with Me." In fact, Norah was special enough to be signed to the esteemed Blue Note Records which distributes the music of artists including Al Green and Miles Davis. Yet, with all this potential, Norah Jones refused to realize her gift on her second album release.

The beautiful New Yorker was poised to continue her incredible 2002 debut success. Instead, she rejected the spotlight and the airplay to create the country and folk plagued "Feels Like Home." The substitution of jazz for a country music sound is most painfully clear on the duet with Dolly Parton, "Creepin' In". It's barely a duet as Jones allows her voice to be completely concealed by Dolly's louder and higher pitched warble. Unfortunately, "Creepin' In" is typical of an album in which Norah Jones rejects being the center of attention.

Producer Arif Mardin, who also produced Jones' first album, is the natural target of blame. Blame him for letting Norah sound amateurish in what was supposed to be a successful duet with Dolly Parton. Blame him for encouraging an indifferent sound in Norah's voice. Her voice is always aesthetically beautiful, but emotion and passion seem to lack from it in all but a few tracks. And blame the producer for hiding Jones' other great talent -- her jazz piano. This time around, Norah plays the Wurlitzer piano instead of the Grand. This change helps relay the more country/blues sound to "Feels Like Home." Even so, his musical arrangements (while professional) give the piano a secondary role when it isn't ignored altogether.

A track like "The Long Way Home" exemplifies what the album itself is lacking. Start with Norah's voice. It's as beautiful and intimate as ever, but she doesn't seem to care. She's not connected to the lyrics and you can hear it in her singing -- it's almost tiresome. Turn to the production. A monotonous and simple bass line rambles from beginning to end with no piano accompaniment. The final product is boring and distant background music, characteristic of an album which Norah Jones seems to have slept through.

There are some exceptions. The first track, "Sunrise," is reminiscent of the best kind of lullaby. Norah's voice is soothing and infectiously happy, and her piano playing serves to increase the tempo and keep the track lively. The piano saves "Sunrise" from actually being the kind of lullaby it evokes.

Jones finds her calling on the last track, "Don't Miss You at All." Norah's piano/vocal interpretation of Duke Ellington's "Melancholia" with her own lyrics is the most soulful work on the entire album. Norah's voice reaches full potential, unhindered by her band, while calling up a jazz sound that, perhaps unconsciously, releases the passionate character of her voice.

Norah Jones can be praised for following her musical ideals. Certainly, a formula existed for continued success. She found that formula in 2002 with songs like "Don't Know Why." Instead, she made "Home" to represent the musical direction she's following now, to acknowledge the country and bluegrass influences she might have had growing up in Texas before returning to New York. She spurned a formula that would have necessarily thrust her into the focus once again and left her band to serve as as the focus. But the album is billed to be by Norah Jones not The Norah Jones Band and listeners will find her absence obvious. Compared to Norah, her band is like a candle in the sun, but unless Norah accepts her brilliance, albums like "Home" could decrease her exposure.