流行爵士小天后诺拉·琼斯

Norah Jones was born in New York City in 1979. Her mother， Sue Jones， is a nurse and music promoter. Her father， Ravi Shankar， is a legendary and world-famous Indian musician. Shankar became widely known for his association with the Beatles and other Western musicians； he taught Beatlesguitarist George Harrison how to play the sitar， a long-necked Indian stringed instrument， of which Shankar is considered a master. As early as age three， Jones began showing a keen interest in music， closely watching her father when he played his sitar. At age five she began singing in her church choir. She learned to play several instruments in her youth， primarily studying piano.

Shankar and Sue Jones， unmarried when Norah was born， separated when she was still a young child. Sue took her daughter to live in Texas in a suburb of Dallas called Grapevine. Jones lived there for much of her childhood， having no contact with her famous father for ten years. Her musical influences during that time came from her mothers record collection. She felt especially affected by the works of great jazz， soul， and blues singers. Jones also spent countless hours listening to recordings of musicals such as Cats and West Side Story.1

During her high school years at Dallass Booker T. Washington School for the Performing and Visual Arts， Jones explored her developing passion for jazz. On her sixteenth birthday she gave her first solo performance， singing and playing piano at a coffeehouse on open mic night， when anyone brave enough can try his or her hand at performing for the public.2 During that period Jones also played in a band called Laszlo and tried her hand at composing jazz tunes. She earned recognition from the highly respected jazz magazine Down Beat， winning their Student Music Award （SMA） for Best Jazz Vocalist two years running and also winning an SMA for Best Original Composition.

After graduating from high school， Jones enrolled at the University of North Texas. She spent two years there， studying jazz piano3 and giving solo performances at a local restaurant on weekends. She also became reacquainted with her father， and the two developed a close relationship. The summer after her sophomore year Jones decided to head to New York City and try her luck making it as a musician there. Working in a restaurant during the day and performing in downtown clubs by night， Jones felt excited to be part of the citys jazz scene， rather than just studying music in a classroom. She decided to stay in New York， forming a jazz trio， and also performing with other jazz groups.

On the evening of her twenty-first birthday， Jones gave a performance that connected deeply with a notable member of her audience. Shell White， an employee in the accounting department of the revered jazz label Blue Note， was so struck by Joness talents that she arranged for a meeting between the young singer and the labels CEO， Bruce Lundvall. After meeting Jones and hearing her sing， Lundvall signed her to a record deal on the spot. Lundvall described the essence of Joness appeal： “Norah doesnt have one of those over-the-top instruments. Its just a signature voice， right from the heart to you. When youre lucky enough to hear that， you dont hesitate. You sign it.”

Jones began her relationship with Blue Note by releasing a six-song EP4. When she began recording her debut full-length recording Come Away with Me in May of 2001， Jones showed a preference for a spontaneous style in the studio， aiming to capture the intimate and natural qualities of live performance.

Released in early 2002， Come Away with Me earned positive reviews. Music critics expressed appreciation for her distinctive voice and authentic， understated style. Many critics wrote of Jones as a promising new artist， a refreshing change of pace from the slick5 packaging of pop stars. Come Away with Me became so successful that it seemed to be everywhere： on the radio， on television， playing over the public address system in shopping malls. Jones recalled that she heard one of the albums tracks in an unexpected place： “Once on a plane—you know how they play elevator music6 before you take off？—they played one of the songs.”

The “insanity，” as Jones frequently characterized the buzz surrounding her debut， seemed to reach a peak when the album was nominated for eight Grammy Awards. In February of 2003， the album won all eight awards. Among Joness victories were trophies for Album of the Year and Best New Artist. Jones began to feel overwhelmed，“I felt like I was in high school and all the popular kids were in the audience and were， like， ‘Whats she doing up there？ I felt like I had gone in a birthday party and eaten all the cake before anyone else got a piece.” So she retreated from the spotlight. She preferred the idea of being a member of a group rather than a solo star， “Deep down， in my gut， all I want to be is part of a band.” Jones sought a quiet and low-key lifestyle， unexpected for such a young musician.

When work began on a follow-up album， Feels Like Home， many music-industry insiders speculated that it would take a miracle for the second album to sell as well as the first. Such predictions did not faze Jones. Her primary focus was the music； she was eager to branch out on her second album and explore different styles， having shifted away from jazz and toward country in her listening habits and writing. For Feels Like Home， Jones took a greater role in the songs composition， writing or co-writing six of the albums thirteen tracks. Released in early 2004， Feels Like Home was snapped up by one million buyers in its first week， resulting in an instant rise to the number one position on Billboards album chart.

Millions of fans find Jones to be a breath of fresh air in a stale pop landscape. She is a musician who has sought success but not necessarily stardom， and who seems more likely to share the spotlight than grab it for herself. At a time when young pop singers belt out every note with over-the-top passion， Jones opts for subtlety， understanding that a low-key voice stripped to its essence can pack a greater punch than one bellowed out at top volume.7 She may prove to be the most natural singer of her generation.

诺拉·琼斯1979年出生于纽约市，她的母亲苏·琼斯是个护士兼音乐爱好者，她的父亲拉维·香卡是个传奇人物，一个世界知名的印度音乐家。他因与披头士和其他欧美音乐家的交往而名声大振；他教过披头士乐队的吉他手乔治·哈里森如何演奏西塔尔琴（一种长颈印度弦乐器），香卡被普遍认为是演奏西塔尔琴的大师。琼斯早在三岁时就开始表现出对音乐的浓厚兴趣，当父亲弹奏西塔尔琴时她总是全神贯注地看着。五岁时，她开始在教堂的唱诗班演唱。青年时期她学习演奏了几种乐器，主要是学习钢琴。

诺拉出生时香卡和苏·琼斯还未结婚，而当她还是个小孩儿的时候，两人就分开了。苏带着女儿来到得克萨斯州达拉斯郊外的格雷普韦恩生活。琼斯大部分童年时期都生活在那里，和她著名的父亲十年来都没有联系。那时，她音乐方面所受的影响来自于母亲的唱片收藏，特别是受到了著名爵士乐、灵魂乐及蓝调歌手的作品的影响。琼斯还花大量时间听诸如《猫》、《西区故事》等音乐剧的唱片。

在达拉斯布克·华盛顿学院主修表演和视觉艺术的高中时期，琼斯挖掘了她对爵士乐的热情。16岁生日时，她首次独自演出，在开麦之夜（任何一个有足够勇气的人都能为公众表演）在一家咖啡馆演唱并演奏钢琴。那段时期，琼斯还在一个名为“拉佐罗”的乐队里演奏，并尝试创作爵士乐曲。她得到了备受尊崇的爵士乐杂志《重拍》的认可，连续两年荣获学生音乐奖最佳爵士乐歌手奖，并且获得了学生音乐最佳原创奖。

高中毕业后，琼斯进入了北得克萨斯大学。她在那儿上了两年学，学习爵士钢琴，周末就在当地一家餐馆进行个人演唱。她还和父亲重新熟悉起来，建立了亲密的关系。大二的暑假，琼斯决定前往纽约碰运气，看看是否能成为一名音乐人。琼斯白天在一家餐馆工作，晚上就在市中心的俱乐部里演唱，她觉得很兴奋能够成为纽约爵士乐界的一部分，而不是只在课堂里学习音乐。她决定留在纽约，组了一支三人的爵士乐队，还会和其他爵士组合一起演出。

21岁生日晚上，琼斯进行了一场演唱，她的表演深深打动了观众席中的一位名人。谢尔·怀特——备受尊崇的爵士唱片公司蓝调会计部的一名员工——被琼斯的才华所吸引，于是她为这位年轻歌手和公司首席执行官布鲁斯·伦迪沃尔安排了一次会见。见到琼斯并听她演唱之后，伦迪沃尔当场与她签了一份唱片合约。伦迪沃尔描述了琼斯魅力的精髓：“诺拉没有夸张的乐器，只有独特的、发自内心的歌声，当你足够幸运能够听到，你不会犹豫，而会与她签约。”

琼斯与蓝调唱片的合作始于一张六支歌曲的密纹唱片。2001年5月开始录制她的首张全长专辑《远走高飞》时，琼斯就展现了对自然风格的偏好，即使是在录音室也力求抓住现场演唱的那种亲密、自然的特质。

《远走高飞》于2002年初发行，获得了一致好评。音乐评论家对她独特的嗓音以及真实、朴素的风格表示赞赏。许多评论家把琼斯描述成一个前途无量的新星，一个摒弃了流行乐明星光鲜包装的清新转变。《远走高飞》获得了巨大的成功，似乎到处都在播放她的歌曲：在广播、电视里甚至在购物中心里播放。琼斯记得她曾在一个意想不到的地方听到过专辑中的一支单曲，“有一次在飞机上——你知道在飞机起飞前他们播放的那些乏味的音乐吧？——他們播放了专辑中的一首歌曲。”

这种“疯狂”——琼斯经常用这个词来描述她首张专辑所引起的轰动——在专辑获得八项格莱美奖提名时，达到了顶峰。2003年2月这张专辑将这八项大奖都收入囊中，包括年度最佳专辑奖和最佳新人奖。琼斯开始感到不知所措了，“我感觉像是在高中一样，所有受欢迎的学生都在观众席里，说‘她在那上面干什么？我感觉像是在一个生日派对上，在其他人拿到一块蛋糕之前我就把蛋糕都吃了。”因此她从聚光灯下退开了。她更喜欢成为团队中的一员，而不是形单影只的明星，“在我内心深处，我所渴望的是成为乐队的一部分。”琼斯寻求的是一种安静、低调的生活方式，对于一个如此年轻的音乐人来说，这是人们所想不到的。

第二张专辑《家的感觉》制作工作开始时，许多音乐圈业内人士都猜测第二张专辑想要像第一张专辑卖得那么好的话则需要依靠奇迹。这些预测并没有让琼斯担忧。她的精力主要集中在音乐上。她渴望在第二张专辑中扩大音乐范围并探索不同的风格，在听歌和写歌上从爵士乐转向了乡村乐。为了制作《家的感觉》，琼斯在歌曲创作上参与了很多，创作或是共同创作了专辑13首单曲中的六首。《家的感觉》于2004年初发行，第一周就售出一百万张，转瞬间就登上《公告牌》专辑榜的冠军宝座。

上百万粉丝都发现琼斯是陈腐的流行乐坛中一股清新的空气。她是一个追求成功但未必追求明星身份、更愿意分享舞台灯光而不是独占的音乐人。在一个个年轻流行歌手以过度的激情拉开嗓门演唱的时代，琼斯选择了细腻精巧，她知道剥至精髓的低调歌声比大声歌唱更为有力。到最后，她可能会成为同时代歌手中最自然纯朴的一个。

Norah Jones

1. Cats：《猫》，是作曲家安德鲁·韦伯根据T. S. 艾略特的诗集《老负鼠的猫经》及其他诗歌所编写的一部音乐剧。1981年在伦敦首演，是历史上最成功的音乐剧之一；West Side Story： 《西区故事》，讲述了曼哈顿西区的一对青年男女玛利亚和托尼的悲剧爱情故事。

2. open mic： 一般指给一些乐队或艺人的自由开放演出时间；try ones hand at sth. ： 初试身手。

3. jazz piano： 爵士钢琴，是一种特制演奏钢琴，供专业乐手演奏爵士乐使用，特点是手感偏重，低音浑厚饱满。

4. EP： 即Extended Play的缩写，意为“慢速唱片，密纹唱片”。每张EP所含曲目量比CD少，一般有三首歌左右，价位也比CD低。很多公司在给一个歌手或乐队出专辑前会发一张EP，算是投石问路，看看市场反应。

5. slick： （事物）徒有其表的，华而不实的。

6. elevator music： 商店或公共场所播放的乏味音乐。

7. belt out： 拉开嗓门唱，热情演唱；pack a punch： 击出有力的一拳；bellow out： 大声喊叫。