After enjoying chart-topping success with her 2002 debut, Come Away with Me, Norah Jones returned to No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with her second album, Feels Like Home.
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That record began a run of six weeks at the top of the chart 20 years ago this week. Here are five fascinating facts about Feels Like Home.
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Feels Like Home Was a Huge Success Right Out of the Gate
Released on February 10, 2004, the album sold 1,022,000 copies during its first week, debuting at No. 1. Feels Like Home’s six-week stint atop the Billboard 200 came to an end in April, when it was replaced by Usher’s Confessions. Confessions was the only album to spent more weeks at No. 1 than Feels Like Home in 2004, with nine.
Feels Like Home went on to sell more than 4 million copies in the U.S.
The Album Included Two Chart-Topping Singles
While no song from Feels Like Home made a dent on the Billboard Hot 100, a pair of tunes did hit No. 1 on the Billboard Adult Alternative Airplay (AAA) tally—“Sunrise” and “What Am I to You?”
“Sunrise,” the album’s lead single, was co-written by Jones and her frequent collaborator Lee Alexander. The song also was a No. 1 hit in Croatia and reached No. 4 in Canada.
[RELATED: Norah Jones Announces New Studio Album Visions and Spring Tour Dates]
Jones wrote “What Am I to You?” by herself. The Band’s Levon Helm and Garth Hudson played drums and organ, respectively, on the track.
Jones Duets with Dolly Parton on the Album
Jones teamed up with Dolly Parton to sing a duet on the album titled “Creepin’ In.” The tune was written by Alexander.
“Her energy is just so great, and she giggles in the mic and it’s just so cute,” Jones recalled about recording the song with Parton in a video interview. “I was really surprised at how our voices sounded together, because they’re very different.”
She continued, “[Dolly] has an incredible voice, and it’s so high and kind of girly, but also very strong at the same time. My voice is different from that, I guess, but I think it all worked out really well.”
You can check out a video of Jones and Parton singing the song live together in 2004 at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville on YouTube.
Grammy Win and Nominations
In 2005, “Sunrise” took home the Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. Also at the event, Feels Like Home was nominated for the Best Pop Vocal Album prize and “Creepin’ In” received a nod in the Best Country Collaboration with Vocals category, but neither won.
Cover Songs Featured on the Album
Feels Like Home features covers of the 1969 Townes Van Zandt song “Be Here to Love Me” and the 2001 Tom Waits tune “Long Way Home.”
Hudson contributed accordion to Jones’ version of “Be Here to Love Me.” Waits’ original recording of “Long Way Home” first appeared on the soundtrack to the 2001 film Big Bad Love.
The final track on Feels Like Home is “Don’t Miss You at All,” which features lyrics by Jones set to the music of late jazz legend Duke Ellington.
Up Next for Jones
Jones will release a new album titled Visions on March 8. She also has a variety of concerts lined up for 2024. Her itinerary includes several festival appearances, as well as shows with Mavis Staples, Emily King, Hurray for the Riff Raff, and others.
Her next scheduled performance will take place April 18 at the YouTube Theater near Los Angeles at a star-studded 85th birthday tribute show for Staples.
Tickets for Jones’ concerts are available now via various outlets, including StubHub.
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