Norah Jones gives headlining concert at SPAC
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. » Norah Jones gave a headlining concert at Saratoga Performing Arts Center on Monday night as she celebrates the 20th anniversary of her debut album Come Away with Me.
Fans spent the beautiful August evening enjoying the smooth sounds of Jones, as well as her supporting act Regina Spektor, at the Spa City venue.
Returning to the SPAC stage for the first time since the 2019 Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival, the popular singer-songwriter and pianist gave a performance featuring material from throughout her 20-year musical career.
First, Spektor — also a singer-songwriter and pianist — started the show with a solo set, playing a selection of her numbers including her best-known 2006 single “Fidelity,” fan favorite “Sampson” and “Becoming All Alone” off of her recently released Home, Before and After.
Accompanied by three band members — Chris Morrissey on bass, Brian Blade on drums and Dan Iead on guitar and pedal steel — Jones took the stage to an enthusiatic applause as she kicked off her set with “Just a Little Bit” from 2019, followed by 2007 single “Thinking About You” and her 2004 hit “Sunrise.”
Attendees were delighted when Jones invited Spektor back on stage for a rendition of Tom Petty’s “Angel Dream.”
Jones also took the opportunity to share some songs from her most recent 2020 album Pick Me Up Off the Floor, such as “Hurts to be Alone” and “I’m Alive.”
Monday’s crowd was most eager to hear Jones play her Come Away With Me tunes. Released just more than 20 years ago, on Feb. 26, 2002, when Jones was an unknown 22-year-old artist, the hard-to-categorize album was originally presented with modest expectations, but steadily grew into a global phenomenon, reaching #1 in 20 countries, selling nearly 30 million copies, and sweeping the 2003 Grammy Awards with eight wins including Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best New Artist.
Two decades later, audiences still love listening to those songs. For the SPAC show, Jones and her band played “Nightingale” “Don’t Know Why” and, of course, the title track “Come Away With Me.”
During an encore, Jones ended the night by giving a solo performance of “Ripple” by The Grateful Dead, a song she intentionally chose on what would be late bandleader Jerry Garcia’s 80th birthday.
From behind her piano, Jones managed to make the large SPAC amphitheater feel like an intimate venue on Monday — interacting with concertgoers and capturing their attention with each note and every poetic lyric.
As her musical ventures enter a third decade, there’s no doubt that Jones still holds a special place in the hearts of her fans, and seeing her perform live serves as a great reminder of that long-lasting admiration.