After her debut album, Come Away With Me, with its Jazz, Blues, and Soul influences, Norah Jones has returned with a second album with a much more Country feel. Although the track 'Lonestar' hinted at this kind of direction on her first album, it was ostensibly the only overtly country flavoured tune on the album.

Whether as a result of Jones' own conscious shift in artistic direction, the much greater share of the songwriting being taken up by bassist Lee Alexander, or the total absence of Jessie Harris' creative influence, this album fails to deliver the sumptuous qualities which were so ubiquitous in Come Away With Me.

There are some genuine highlights on what is an otherwise uninspiring album though. Most notably, 'In The Morning' which was written by guitarist Adam Levy is an undeniably catchy bluesy number with a really solid groove and some great dynamics. Additionally, the song pushes Norah Jones' voice in a slightly unfamiliar direction; Instead of the usual… more »

After her debut album, Come Away With Me, with its Jazz, Blues, and Soul influences, Norah Jones has returned with a second album with a much more Country feel. Although the track 'Lonestar' hinted at this kind of direction on her first album, it was ostensibly the only overtly country flavoured tune on the album.

Whether as a result of Jones' own conscious shift in artistic direction, the much greater share of the songwriting being taken up by bassist Lee Alexander, or the total absence of Jessie Harris' creative influence, this album fails to deliver the sumptuous qualities which were so ubiquitous in Come Away With Me.

There are some genuine highlights on what is an otherwise uninspiring album though. Most notably, 'In The Morning' which was written by guitarist Adam Levy is an undeniably catchy bluesy number with a really solid groove and some great dynamics. Additionally, the song pushes Norah Jones' voice in a slightly unfamiliar direction; Instead of the usual softly, softly approach which she employs so seductively, 'In The Morning' gives a brief (if understated) insight into how Norah might perform as the lead singer in a real band rather than as the focal point of the Norah Jones show. It's a really nice change of pace.

Other highlights include 'Those Sweet Words', 'Sunrise', and to a lesser extent 'What Am I To You' which is just a bit too Country for my taste. As ever though, Norah Jones' reworking of Duke Ellington's 'Don't Miss You at All' is one of the highest highlights on this album and showcases Norah's talents in the kind of setting with which fans of the first album will be much more familar and arguably more comfortable.