Review

Go away with her

[Times photo: Lara Cerri] Grammy winning singer-pianist Norah Jones performed a free concert in Clearwater's Coachman Park on Wednesday night.

CLEARWATER - What was more enjoyable at Wednesday's free Norah Jones concert in Coachman Park: the singer-pianist's stellar performance or her charming stage patter? In the first concert of the Verizon Music Festival, Jones, winner of five Grammys this year, was magnetic from the get-go.

She played in front of a crowd of 15,000, according to police and city officials.

Dressed in red and white pin-striped pants and a sleeveless red shirt, Jones, 24, looked as cheery as she acted. You wouldn't know it from the singer's sophisticated, sublime debut Come Away With Me, an album of sultry jazz-pop numbers, but Jones is a regular goofball in between songs.

"I'm so hot, I almost fell off my chair!" Jones said, wide-eyed, after slipping on her piano bench while finishing opening number Cold Cold Heart. Accompanied by her five-member Incredibly Handsome Band, Jones gave the song such a sexy, torchy spin, not even its writer, Hank Williams Sr., would have recognized it.

Jones cracked jokes after performing Turn Me On, watching as her set list flew from her piano. (A roadie brought her a replacement.) The singer made repeated references to the mosquitoes eating her alive throughout the 90-minute set. She even showed the crowd the "bug juice" on her finger from the mosquito she killed on her piano keys during one number. (Later, Jones stopped the show, accepted a can of bug spray from a fan, and drenched herself with the stuff.)

Jones hilariously mimicked the crowd's cat calls. When fans screamed her name - and they did repeatedly - Jones didn't miss a beat. "What's my name again?" the singer queried, eyebrows furrowed in mock confusion.

Jones shone most when she sang. On the tender Nightingale, her voice fluttered as much as the bird. She switched from piano to organ for One Flight Down, a song steeped in 1970s soul. Jones was generous with compliments to her band, letting the crowd know which members wrote each song.

Jones told the crowd it was the largest the band had ever played for. If Jones is caught up in the post-Grammy hype surrounding her, she certainly isn't showing it. After one fan screamed that he'd like to kiss her, Jones quipped, "No you don't. My breath is really bad right now." She laughed and immediately began playing Come Away With Me.

Jones took a solo moment at the piano to perform Hoagy Carmichael's jazz classic The Nearness of You, and performed the hit Don't Know Why toward her set's end.

Opener Gillian Welch and partner David Rawlings treated the crowd to an excellent set of fine roots music. The duo proved that two acoustic guitars, skintight harmonies and superb songcraft can take you all over the country.

To contact Gina Vivinetto, e-mail gina@sptimes.com

© 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111

Contact the Times | Privacy Policy
Standard of Accuracy | Terms, Conditions & Copyright