Watch Norah Jones Deliver Aching Neil Young Cover on ‘Corden’
Norah Jones chronicled a tale of musical dreams and disappointments with her gorgeous cover of Neil Young‘s “Don’t Be Denied” on The Late Late Show With James Corden Monday.
Jones flips Young’s ragged, autobiographical tune into a shuffling piano ballad about a woman from a broken home who finds solace in music and eventually hollowness in success. Jones delivers the song’s aching final verse with a brutal delicacy as her band swoops in with stunning harmonies: “She’s a pauper in a naked disguise/ Millionaire through a businessman’s eyes/ Oh friend of mine/ Don’t be denied.”
“Don’t Be Denied” appears on Jones’ latest album, Day Breaks, and in a recent interview with Rolling Stone, she spoke about relating to Young’s musings on fame and growing up with a largely absent father (the late sitarist Ravi Shankar). “I don’t think I’ve ever been at the place where Neil was, but I can relate to that part of the song for sure,” she said.
Day Breaks follows Jones’ 2012 album Broken Little Hearts. The LP features nine new songs alongside “Don’t Be Denied” and covers of Horace Silver and Duke Ellington. Jones has a handful of live dates left in the United States this month before embarking on a European tour in November; she’ll return to the U.S. for another leg November 28th at Ulster PAC in Kingston, New York.