I have been listening to this album for 15 years. “In the Heart of the Moon,” by Ali Farka Touré and Toumani Diabaté I believe the lyrics are based on a poem by Arthur Rimbaud, which I read online, and it’s opened me up to that poetry as well.ģ. These lyrics are so beautiful, the song is very hypnotic, and I just love the way he sings. You find meaning in lyrics that is super relevant. It’s interesting how music really hits you in a different way when you’re in situations like we’re all in. This is a song I discovered in quarantine - I think it was on some playlist I was listening to - and I’ve basically been listening to it on repeat. “Song of the Highest Tower,” by Cut Worms This album is one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever heard: part Duke Ellington, part modal scales, part the blues, part church music. And one that really stood out to me was this piano player. It’s this incredible compilation of music, all by different artists. It’s this whole catalog of music from Ethiopia, mostly from the 1960s and ’70s. And I’m like, OK, I have to go find that.
I was at a party and somebody was playing something from the “Ethiopiques” series. These are edited excerpts from the conversation. In a May phone call, Jones, 41, discussed the 10 cultural items, people and pastimes that are keeping her grounded during the pandemic. And at home with her family (and a couple of close friends who became quarantine roommates), she’s been leaning on some new musical discoveries of her own. “Pick Me Up Off the Floor” has more songs written by Jones alone than any previous album, not to mention more than a couple of hooks - sung in her famous, dusty-rose sigh - that rest gently on the ear, then wriggle inside your head. “It’s a nice way for me to do it without having to respond or be all over social media in that way.”
“We all want to connect with each other right now,” she said. Instead, the nine-time Grammy winner has been livestreaming weekly “micro-sets” from her home, usually about 15 to 20 minutes each, accompanying herself on guitar and piano as she sings a mix of originals and covers. And on June 12, Jones will release her eighth album as a leader, “Pick Me Up Off the Floor” that too was supposed to be accompanied by concerts throughout the spring and summer, this time alongside Mavis Staples. On Valentine’s Day, she put out “Sister” with Puss n Boots, her easy-rocking trio featuring Sasha Dobson and Catherine Popper. With plans to release two albums in the first half of the year alone, Norah Jones expected to be busy this spring playing for live audiences.