Norah Jones

The original album, produced by Arif Mardin, includes Don’t Know Why, Come Away with Me and an interpretation of Hank Williams’s Cold, Cold Heart. The repertoire brings her own writing into conversation with songs by other writers rather than presenting every track as an individual composition. The later anniversary archive makes the making of the record especially interesting, preserving earlier demos and another studio version before the familiar final album.

Feels Like Home in 2004 continues the early recording sequence through songs including Sunrise and Those Sweet Words. The instrumental warmth remains, with the vocal phrasing able to carry feeling without asking for a constant increase in volume.

Little Broken Hearts in 2012 is a collaboration with producer Danger Mouse, giving the songwriting and vocal presence a markedly different surrounding atmosphere. Happy Pills, Miriam and After the Fall have their own emotional and instrumental identities within that record. The difference is useful to hear beside the debut, whose apparent ease can sometimes make the artist’s later choices seem less substantial than they are. The catalogue contains an ongoing interest in what an ensemble or production partnership can bring out of a song. Live recordings supply another perspective, allowing material from separate albums to meet within the same performance. The continuity comes from a singer and pianist attentive to the scale of a phrase, while the musicians and songs around her keep opening different possible routes.