Review
by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
In the wake of her 2002 blockbuster debut,
Norah Jones
became an in-demand duet partner, popping up on albums from all manners of musicians. The 2010 compilation,
…Featuring
, helpfully rounds up 18 of these guest appearances, including a cut by the
Jones
-fronted country cabaret outfit
the Little Willies
, and what impresses is the range of collaborators and the consistency of the music. Anybody who called
Norah
up for a duet was clearly smitten by her way with slow-burning seduction, as they almost without fail cast her in that role for their own recordings, smoothing out rough edges or adding some sultry sophistication. This would seem like a limited specialty, but
Featuring
proves it’s not.
Jones
sounds as comfortable trading verses with
Willie Nelson
and
Ray Charles
as she does acting as a counterpoint to
Q-Tip
and
Outkast
, providing alternating contrasts according to the setting; she freshens the veterans and provides a touch of timeless elegance to her modern rock peers. It may all be variations on a theme, but the sounds and songs change just enough for the music to be quietly absorbing. Better still, when these side shows are grouped together as a main attraction, they manage to sound of a piece. These may be songs that appeared on other artist’s albums, but when presented as a collection, they seem to belong only to Norah Jones.