Brenda wrote: > > Hearing Norah live makes it evident to me how much the debut misses in terms of > how she is using elements of country, blues and jazz together. Alicia Keyes isn't > even in the same league....the only thing she has in common with Norah is that > they've both put out records around the same time. Norah is a recording artist. > Alicia is a recording act.
Well, you see then how superficial my experience is of them both. When I have seen Norah on tv she was playing piano and the set-up and sound reminded me a lot of Alicia Keyes. > I think to compare any young artist's debut to Hissing is a bit unfair. Hissing was > Joni's seventh studio album. It's nearly impossible for a debut artist to reflect >years > of recording experience in their first record. Norah is younger than Joni was when > STAS was recorded and has far less experience than Joni had up to that point. I say > give her a few years and see where she goes. When listening to Norah's cd it didn't occur to me that I didn't like it because Hissing is so much better, so it wasn't a comparison at the time. I listened to several songs and then got completely turned off while listening to one she'd written because the lyrics were so simplistic. Next time I listen (a live performance would be a good idea) maybe I'll pay more attention to her voice, which is what seems to be grabbing lots of people. If we do compare debuts, then STAS, when Joni was 24?, would get my vote every time. I won't completely write Norah off. I'm just surprised at all the positive hype she's getting for her debut cd. Debra Shea
