Not Too Late (album)
| Not Too Late | ||||
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| Studio album by Norah Jones | ||||
| Released | January 30, 2007 | |||
| Recorded | Summer 2005–Fall 2006 | |||
| Studio | The Coop, Brooklyn Recording New York City, New York |
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| Genre | Jazz, blues, folk | |||
| Length | 45:22 | |||
| Label | Blue Note, EMI | |||
| Producer | Lee Alexander | |||
| Norah Jones chronology | ||||
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| Alternative cover | ||||
Deluxe edition cover
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| Singles from Not Too Late | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Aggregate scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 68/100 |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   |
| Entertainment Weekly | B− |
| The Guardian | |
| Los Angeles Times | |
| The Observer | |
| PopMatters | (7/10) |
| Rolling Stone | |
| Slant Magazine |
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| Sputnikmusic | |
| Stylus | B− |
Not Too Late is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter Norah Jones, released on January 30, 2007, through Blue Note Records. It was produced by Lee Alexander, the songwriter and bassist featured on Jones's previous albums, Come Away with Me and Feels like Home. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, making it Jones' third consecutive number one album.
Jones wrote most of the songs on the album when she was on tour during 2004 and 2005; for example, "Until the End" was written in the South Pacific, "Rosie's Lullaby" in Australia, and "The Sun Doesn't Like You" in Brazil. Jones wrote "Thinking About You" in 1999 with Ilhan Ersahin, her then-bandmate in Wax Poetic, but she thought it was too much of a pop song for her to record and rejected a version she recorded for Feels like Home. Jones had an acoustic guitar with her on the tour and wrote more songs with it than she previously had: "The guitar is simple and a lot easier to carry than a piano", she said.
After the tour concluded, Jones began recording the album with Alexander, who "tweak[ed]" the lyrics of the songs and "pulled [them] into better shape", according to Jones.Not Too Late was mostly recorded at Jones's home studio and is the first album Jones recorded without producer Arif Mardin, who died in the summer of 2006. Jones described the sessions as "fun, relaxed and easy" and without a deadline; executives at Blue Note Records reportedly did not know they were recording an album. Many of the sessions were "spur of the moment", with friends of Jones and musicians they recommended being asked to play. The album features guest appearances by organist Larry Goldings, singer-songwriter M. Ward, and Kronos Quartet cellist Jeff Ziegler. Jones said the songs on the album are "not so cut-and-dried" compared to her earlier material and have "a twist to them". In contrast to her previous albums, the piano, organ and Wurlitzer are not as prominent as the guitar: "the piano is always loud in the mix, but I've never been into it being the main rhythm instrument unless we're playing something funky. I've always liked the guitar as the rhythmic instrument", Jones explained.
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