Norah & John

Two amazing concerts. Two different approaches

Greetings!

Thanks for reading! Ahh… the power of live music! There is nothing else like it, especially when the performers are completely on their game. I had the pleasure of seeing Norah Jones and John Legend recently. Two amazing concerts. Two different approaches. Read on…

I had the pleasure of seeing two great concerts the past few weeks - Norah Jones (Finally!) at the famed Apollo Theater in New York City and John Legend at Wolf Trap (a favorite summer venue) in N. Virginia. Both were absolutely amazing! And both were very different…

Norah was all about craft. All about the aesthetic of the art. She was all about the music. And wow… the music! It just flowed out of her and her amazing band. Her sweet and sultry tinged voice was like honey with a touch of chili pepper, and it was as if she were singing to just one person. (Me! Sing to me Norah!)

And John Legend… we went to church. And I’m still feeling like I converted to the religion of Legend! By his voice. By his vibe. He was full-on revival and as I’m writing this I still want to shout “halleluiah!” It was all led by his voice; a voice that could power over—at full on belt or subtle falsetto—a 50-piece orchestra with horns, a 20-member gospel choir, 3 backup singers and a plugged in 4-piece rhythm section. Power and beauty. Fireworks and a soft kiss.

Norah doesn’t banter or ‘play’ to the audience. She doesn’t need to. Yet, she connects on such a personal level. You feel important to her. You are at one with her. Norah is art defined. She lets you in just enough to continually want more. She’s definitive ease, like a silk web being spun by a colorful spider in the glow of a sunrise. She was dreamy and sexy at the same time… girl-next-door looks laced with exotic overtones. She replicated her new material to the recordings and added slightly different arrangements to the songs we know so well. She knew how she wanted to present, and she gave us everything that we needed from her and the music. It felt as though we could have been in a small coffee house or a living room or a big theater. When Norah came out for an encore, she allowed herself to revel in our applause a bit and give a soft, wistful smile, almost as if surprised by the reaction, but at the same time, not. She softly said, seemingly fully noticing the collective all of us for the first time, “Wow… thank you.” When can I go see her again??? (No, I’m not obsessed.)

John told stories and let us in. He told of how music helped him discover himself when he was a shy boy. And how music was there for him when his grandmother, a huge influence on him both personally and musically, passed away. And how music saved him when his mother suffered through mental health and addiction issues. (He happily reported that she is doing great now.) He said that music was his “therapy” (What???), that it helped him process things and to express himself. He shared it all with the audience, as if we were one big family. He also spoke of the power of music in justice and acceptance, speaking of Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks, finally bringing it all to fruition with an awe-inspiring almost spiritual version of Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On. You felt yourself pulled up onto your feet by some higher power. Arms raised overhead, singing along. All inhibitions lost. He was ‘feel’. He was impromptu. He was fueling us as much as we were fueling him. If there were a full roof overhead, we would have blown it completely off. He was the leader as he pounded or caressed the piano and sang from deep within. Every musician on stage was locked in and following him. He was leading them and us to the feel-good musical promised land. When John finished his last song, he simply got up and strutted off the stage. He didn’t need to come back. His work was done. He knew he had us in his electric cult. Legend has left the building.

Norah was more inner… John was more outer.

Norah gave and shared… John shared and gave.

Norah was craft with feel… John was feel with craft.

Norah was a fine wine that lingers on the palate and you savor… John was a shot of artisanal tequila that crashes your gut and warms your soul.

Both Norah and John gave us exactly what we needed from them, driven by the music. The power of music. And boy… the power of live music! That was the therapy that I so much needed.

Thank you Norah and John.

What concert have you seen recently that really spoke to you, took you to a new place? Made you feel something more? Let me know in the comments.

Raymond Leone, MMT, MT-BC is a board-certified music therapist and the director of Medical Music Therapy at A Place To Be in Northern Virginia

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