The Fall (Norah Jones album)

The Fall is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter Norah Jones, released November 17, 2009, by Blue Note Records. The album debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, selling 180,000 copies in its first week. As of August 2012, the album has sold more than three million copies worldwide.[1]

The Fall
Studio album by
ReleasedNovember 11, 2009 (2009-11-11)
Recorded2008–2009
GenrePop
Length45:49
LabelBlue Note
ProducerJacquire King
Norah Jones chronology
Deep Cuts
(2009)
The Fall
(2009)
iTunes Originals
(2010)
Norah Jones studio album chronology
Not Too Late
(2007)
The Fall
(2009)
Little Broken Hearts
(2012)
Singles from The Fall
  1. "Chasing Pirates"
    Released: October 13, 2009
  2. "Young Blood"
    Released: February 16, 2010
  3. "Stuck"
    Released: March 5, 2010 (UK)
  4. "It's Gonna Be"
    Released: April 2010

Background and production

Before the album's release, Jones' website stated that she had taken a new direction, with new collaborators and producer Jacquire King. King hired songwriters Ryan Adams and Will Sheff, in addition to drummers Joey Waronker, James Gadson and Marco Giovino, keyboardist James Poyser, and guitarists Marc Ribot, Smokey Hormel, Lyle Workman, and Peter Atanasoff and bassists Frank Howard Swart and Dave Wilder. The album cover was taken by photographer Autumn de Wilde.[2]

Singles and promotion

  • The first single, "Chasing Pirates", was released on October 13, 2009.
  • "Young Blood" was released as the second single in North America, Europe (minus the UK), and Japan. The music video was made available at iTunes on 30 March 2010. The song has reached No. 33 on the Japan Hot 100.[3]
  • "Stuck" was released as the second single on March 5, 2010 in the UK (digital download only).[4]
  • "It's Gonna Be" was released as the third single in North America in April 2010.[5][6] It charted on the Billboard Triple A Chart and peaked on the airplay chart at No. 11 in April 2010. Jones performed the song on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.[7]

To promote the release of the album Jones appeared on:

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic73/100[9]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[10]
The A.V. ClubB[11]
Chicago Tribune[12]
Entertainment WeeklyB-[13]
PopMatters(5/10)[14]
Robert Christgau[15]
Rolling Stone[16]
Slant[17]
USA Today[18]
The Washington Post(mixed)[19]

The Fall received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 73 out of 100, which indicates "generally favorable reviews" based on 22 reviews.[9]

Billboard gave the album a score of 83 out of 100 and stated that "Jones ditches the gentle piano-playing of her previous work and rises to a new level of creative boldness."[20] The New York Times gave it a favorable review and called it "the sonic and emotional expansion [Jones'] music needed, and it's tied to some of her most unguarded songs."[21] Uncut gave it four stars out of five and said that "The emotional imprint... moves beyond the pining, wistful tones that are [Jones'] trademark in favor of Sex And The City scenarios bursting with heartbreak, regret and emotional devastation."[22] Q also gave it four stars out of five and praised the album for its "copper-bottomed classics".[9] musicOMH likewise gave it four stars out of five and said, "Less predictable was her now clear desire to take risks and step off the all-too-well-forged path of safe, agreeable background music. Instead, on The Fall Norah Jones chooses to defy categorization."[23] Hot Press gave it a score of four out of five with the header: "Easy listening princess goes indie-goth."[24] The Boston Globe gave it a favorable review and stated that Jones "seems liberated from the expectations of what her music is supposed to sound like, and the album is flush with fresh production ideas and a varied sonic palette."[25]

Filter gave the album a score of 78% and stated that "unlike Not Too Late, Jones’ latest decision to ditch her keys for strings is a poor one. In a way, she has indeed found a different beat to groove to, and if anyone can play in a piano bar without a piano, it would certainly be Norah Jones."[26] Paste gave it a score of 7.6 out of 10 and stated that "Jones is clearly comfortable with where she’s arrived, and is ready to throw open the doors for a party."[27] Spin gave it a score of seven out of ten and said that the album "has been billed as Norah Jones' rock album. In fact, it's something even more surprising: a hot-blooded soul record from the queen of the even keel."[9][28]

Other reviews are average or mixed: The Austin Chronicle gave the album three stars out of five and said it "offers many new sides to Jones while remaining comfortably close to the jazz diva many adore."[29] Yahoo! Music UK gave it six stars out of ten and stated that "If the hardcore fanbase feel a blanch coming on, this isn't all wilful eclecticism gone mad. [Jacquire] King's work is The Fall's unifying factor that keeps it cohesive."[30] Mojo gave it three stars out of five and said that "The wrong kind of sonic adventure undermines about half the songs."[9] The Guardian also gave it three stars out of five and stated that "Jones's cashmere voice sounds more polite than ever, creating an overriding impression of a nice girl keeping dirty company."[31] Under the Radar gave it five stars out of ten and called it "intelligent, tasteful, and well-executed music. But it ain't rock 'n' roll, not even a little, and damn Jones for trying to pretend that it is."[9]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Chasing Pirates"Norah Jones2:40
2."Even Though"Norah Jones, Jesse Harris3:52
3."Light as a Feather"Norah Jones, Ryan Adams3:52
4."Young Blood"Norah Jones, Mike Martin3:38
5."I Wouldn't Need You"Norah Jones3:30
6."Waiting"Norah Jones3:31
7."It's Gonna Be"Norah Jones3:11
8."You've Ruined Me"Norah Jones2:45
9."Back to Manhattan"Norah Jones4:09
10."Stuck"Norah Jones, Will Sheff5:15
11."December"Norah Jones3:05
12."Tell Yer Mama"Norah Jones, Harris, Richard Julian3:25
13."Man of the Hour"Norah Jones2:56
Total length:45:49

Bonus tracks

Target + iTunes/Japan/Brazil deluxe bonus disc (Live at The Living Room)
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."It's Gonna Be"Jones3:25
2."Waiting"Jones3:33
3."You've Ruined Me"Jones2:56
4."Jesus, etc." (Wilco cover)Jay Bennett, Jeff Tweedy3:46
5."Cry! Cry! Cry!" (Johnny Cash cover)Johnny Cash3:15
6."Strangers" (The Kinks cover)Dave Davies3:35
Japan
No.TitleLength
14."Her Red Shoes"3:14
15."Can't Stop"4:02
AmazonMP3
No.TitleLength
14."Can't Stop"4:02

Personnel

On Live at The Living Room
  • Norah Jones – vocals, piano (2, 3, 6), Wurlitzer electric piano (1), electric guitar (4, 5)
  • Sasha Dobson - electric guitar (13), acoustic guitar (46), backing vocals
  • Smokey Hormel - electric guitar
  • Gus Seyffert – bass (exc. 6), acoustic guitar (6), backing vocals
  • Greg Wieczorek - drums (exc. 5)
Production
  • Jacquire King - producer, recording, mixing
  • Brad Bivens - additional recording
  • Brian Thorn, Morgan Stratton - recording assistants
  • Tom Schick - additional production (6, 9), additional engineer (3, 6, 9, 11), mixing (Live at The Living Room)
  • Jon Stinson - mixing assistant
  • Stephen Clemmer, Jimi Zhivago - recording engineer (Live at The Living Room)
  • Steven Ha - live sound mix (Live at The Living Room)
  • David Schoenwetter, Chris Allen - mixing assistants (Live at The Living Room)
  • Greg Calbi - mastering
  • Eli Wolf - A&R
  • Zach Hochkeppel - product manager
  • Autumn de Wilde - photography
  • Gordon H. Jee - creative director
  • Frank Harkins - art direction, design

Charts

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Argentina (CAPIF)[86] Platinum 40,000^
Australia (ARIA)[87] Gold 35,000^
Austria (IFPI Austria)[88] Gold 10,000*
Belgium (BEA)[89] Platinum 30,000*
Canada (Music Canada)[90] Platinum 80,000^
France (SNEP)[91] Platinum 156,000[92][93]*
Germany (BVMI)[94] Gold 100,000^
Hungary (MAHASZ)[95] Gold 3,000^
Italy (FIMI)[96] Gold 30,000*
Japan (RIAJ)[97] Gold 100,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[98] Gold 7,500^
Poland (ZPAV)[99] Platinum 20,000*
United Kingdom (BPI)[100] Gold 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[101] Platinum 1,000,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Country Date Label(s) Format
Japan November 11, 2009[102] EMI CD
180-gram vinyl
Digital download
Germany November 13, 2009[103]
The Netherlands November 13, 2009[104]
United Kingdom November 16, 2009[105]
France[106]
United States November 17, 2009[107] Blue Note
Brazil November 30, 2009[108] EMI

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