October 11, 2010 | 11:28 am

Rocking it quietly with Norah Jones.

Posted by Noa Tishby

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Norah Jones

I remember the first time I heard Norah Jones’s first record ‘Come away with me’. I was out with a group of friends and we all went back to the house of a friend, who was also an ex boyfriend. It was a late winter’s night and we had already had a drink, and then my ex said, “Listen to this”. He put on a CD that sounded like nothing I have ever heard before. We all crashed on his lush living room sofas, stared at the ceiling and listened to the whole record beginning to end. It was magical. Her sultry voice and authentic lyrics sounded like something from the forties, not a Gen Y artist. Naturally, I bought the record immediately. Norah Jones went on to become a worldwide phenomenon. She won eight Grammies in one night and has since sold nearly forty million records.

The other night we went to see Jones at the world-famous Greek theater in Los Angeles. Norah Jones is the real deal. She is so talented, so authentic, so herself. She is like the In Treatment of the music industry. Watching her show requires work on your behalf, she does not give it away. Watching a Norah Jones show is not like watching a Gaga show, much like watching In Treatment isn’t like watching How I met your mother. It doesn’t come to you - you have to grab it. Jones does not try to make you like her. She does not seem bothered by that at all. The show was mellow and laid back. She only sang three songs off of her hit album, improvising them in a way that prevented you from easily singing along to them, and casually inserting them into her set without making a big fuss out of it, opting instead for new material and some Willie Nelson covers. She barely smiles, is introverted and in her own head. She is not trying to please you. You just happened to be at the same space while she is jamming with a group of talented musician friends - so just sit quietly and say thank you for being there. She is so consumed by her craft, that you almost forget that we are also dealing with a dark-skinned Linda Evangelista level of beauty. I don’t know if it is real or not, but she is doing a good job making it seem like she does not give a s#*t about being SO pretty.

I do like to see my artists sweat it out a bit for me however, the show is recommended for a mellow and melodic night. Perfectly put by Jones herself in response to a screaming fan: “You rock Norah!” she replied: “Yes, but I rock quietly”.