San Diego Reader

On the eve of the release of Norah Jones's latest album, The Fall, Jazz 98.1 played a syndicated interview with the jazz-pop artist in which she discussed the disc song by song. Jones said that the theme of the collection is relationships.

Compared to her debut record, it's a graduated sound and style. At close listen, piano keys can be heard, but not as much as one has come to expect from Norah Jones. Comparatively, her previous CDs were more eclectic, with a little twang from collaborative artist Dolly Parton here, and a blues shuffle there. You’ll find The Fall in the pop-rock bins at your local shop.

Her writing style also takes a different tack than her previous efforts: there’s no emotive "toes just touched the water," no abstract "spoiled son of a poet." This time, the content is concrete, simple, with the exception of one song, the last track, "Man of the Hour," which definitely required the explanation from the radio interview. Jones said, "in the end, she chooses her dog."

Album title: The Fall

Artist: Norah Jones

Label: EMI

Songs: (1) Chasing Pirates (2) Even Though (3) Light as a Feather (4) Young Blood (5) I wouldn't Need You (6) Waiting (7) It's Gonna Be (8) You've Ruined Me (9) Back to Manhattan (10) Stuck (11) December (12) Tell Yer Mama (13) Man of the Hour