TORONTO - From the onset, Norah Jones asked her fans to come away with her with the appropriately titled Come Away With Me. And for the next 90 delightful minutes, the sold-out audience at Massey Hall Friday evening more than obliged. The 28-year-old singer, touring in support of her latest album Not Too Late, started off her set with the title track off her 2002 debut.
Backed by a tight supporting cast better known as The Handsome Band, Jones and company weaved through the set of nearly two dozen songs like a well-oiled machine. The opening song was also a hint at what was to come, with Jones still getting used to her electric guitar she dubbed her "little red monster." The result was the song having more of a feel along the lines of Lucinda Williams than the jazz stylings of Diana Krall.
"Thank you! How are you? It's nice to be here," Jones said following the warm Those Sweet Words which quickly led into The Sun Doesn't Like You, a folksy number thanks to drummer Andrew Borger's subtle brushes.
Jones wisely mixed material from all three albums throughout the show, although the new songs seemed to shine a bit more than others. While Sunrise was an obvious crowd favorite, it almost felt a bit ordinary compared to the adventurous, ragtime-influenced Sinkin' Soon. The latter song in particular would make one think Jones was the daughter of Tom Waits and not sitarist Ravi Shankar.
Perhaps the finest part of the show was how Jones mixed the jazz-oriented tunes with tracks that could be found in nearly any Nashville bar. A great example of this was near the homestretch of the main set with the slow dance feeling of Until The End that brought to mind Emmylou Harris. Another number with the same feel was Little Room which had bassist Daru Oda whistling the middle section.
Yet for each tune that had Jones branching out from behind the security of her ebony piano, there was one which slowed the tempo down such as the politically charged My Dear Country, Rosie's Lullaby and the short but sweet Painter Song. Although the singer belted out certain songs like a cover of The Dixie Cups' I'm Gonna Get You Yet, Jones generally kept the between song banter to a minimum. One exception was informing someone that she didn't know the score of the Blue Jays game.
"This is a music show! What the heck are you talking about?" Jones quickly replied.
And with fans eager to hear the almost obligatory Don't Know Why, Jones kept them waiting a little while longer with a cover of Willie Nelson's Hands On The Wheel. Opening for Norah Jones was M. Ward, who performed a brief set featuring some songs off his latest album Post-War along with some fine covers.
Ward, who dazzled the crowd with some fine guitar playing, also made an appearance later during Jones' set during the country toe-tapper Creepin' In. Those who were smart enough to also arrive early were treated to Jones, dressed down in a t-shirt and jeans, duetting with Ward for three songs, including On Blue Bayou.
News RSS