Norah Jones - Covers Covers (Japan Edition) (2012)

Released exclusively to Target stores in America in January 2013 (it had previously shown up in other territories, either as a bonus disc as part of a career-encompassing box set or as a separate release in Japan), Covers rounds up stray covers Norah Jones has released over the years, adding a couple of unreleased cuts in the process. This runs the gamut from classic country covers to Wilco, taking detours for Tom Waits and Horace Silver along the way (the latter is an especially appealing left turn). Nothing here is especially surprising, either in execution or selection, partially because many of these versions date from earlier in her career, appearing as B-sides and bonus tracks for various editions of Come Away with Me, Feels Like Home, and The Fall. Jones has gotten looser and more adventurous as the years passed, a shift that's evident when these perfectly pleasant covers are compared to the swinging, earthy Little Willies, but she's always had immaculate taste and that's evident throughout this enjoyable, lightweight addendum to her first decade of recording. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine