Don't Know Why
Encyclopedia
"Don't Know Why" is a jazz
song written by Jesse Harris
which originally appeared on his 1999 album, Jesse Harris & the Ferdinandos. It was the second single
by Norah Jones
from her breakthrough 2002 album Come Away with Me
. Although Jones's version only peaked at number thirty on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100
, it was a critical success for her that helped established her as a respected new artist, and subsequently her album sold extremely well. The single went on to win three Grammy Awards in 2003 for "Record of the Year
", "Song of the Year
", and "Best Female Pop Vocal Performance". It remains Jones's biggest hit single in the USA to date, and her only one to reach the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100. The single was also a hit internationally and reached Top 10 in several countries. The song charted at 459 in Blender
magazine's 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born.
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
song written by Jesse Harris
Jesse Harris
Jesse Harris is a Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter. He has collaborated with several musical artists including Norah Jones, Melody Gardot, Madeleine Peyroux, Nikki Yanofsky, and Lizz Wright.-Early life and education:...
which originally appeared on his 1999 album, Jesse Harris & the Ferdinandos. It was the second single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
by Norah Jones
Norah Jones
Norah Jones is an American singer-songwriter and occasional actress.In 2002, she launched her solo music career with the release of the commercially successful and critically acclaimed album Come Away With Me, which was certified a diamond album in 2002, selling over 20 million copies...
from her breakthrough 2002 album Come Away with Me
Come Away with Me
Come Away with Me is the debut album of pianist and singer Norah Jones, released February 26, 2002 on Blue Note Records. Recording sessions for the album took place at New York City's Sorcerer Sound Studio and Shokan's Allaire Studios in 2001...
. Although Jones's version only peaked at number thirty on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
, it was a critical success for her that helped established her as a respected new artist, and subsequently her album sold extremely well. The single went on to win three Grammy Awards in 2003 for "Record of the Year
Record Of The Year
Record of the Year may refer to:*Grammy Award for Record of the Year*The Record of the Year, a British award based on public polling...
", "Song of the Year
Grammy Award for Song of the Year
The Song of the Year is one of the four most prestigious awards in the Grammy Awards ceremony, if not in all of the American music industry. It has been awarded since 1959 and unlike the Record of the Year award, which goes to the performer and production team of a single song, Song of the Year...
", and "Best Female Pop Vocal Performance". It remains Jones's biggest hit single in the USA to date, and her only one to reach the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100. The single was also a hit internationally and reached Top 10 in several countries. The song charted at 459 in Blender
Blender (magazine)
Blender was an American music magazine that billed itself as "the ultimate guide to music and more". It was also known for sometimes steamy pictorials of celebrities....
magazine's 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born.
Covers
- Pat MethenyPat MethenyPatrick Bruce "Pat" Metheny is an American jazz guitarist and composer.One of the most successful and critically acclaimed jazz musicians to come to prominence in the 1970s and '80s, he is the leader of the Pat Metheny Group and is also involved in duets, solo works and other side projects...
: JazzJazzJazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
guitaristGuitaristA guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
played "Don't Know Why" on his 2003 solo album One Quiet NightOne Quiet NightOne Quiet Night is a solo album by Pat Metheny, released in 2003. The album was recorded in one night and provides a raw sample of Metheny's skill on acoustic and baritone guitars. It features interpretations of Norah Jones' hit "Don't Know Why" and Gerry & The Pacemakers's "Ferry Cross the...
. - Smokey RobinsonSmokey RobinsonWilliam "Smokey" Robinson, Jr. is an American R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, and former record executive. Robinson is one of the primary figures associated with Motown, second only to the company's founder, Berry Gordy...
covered the song on his 2009 solo album Time Flies When You're Having Fun. - Aya MatsuuraAya Matsuurais a Japanese pop singer from Himeji, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan.-2000–2009: Hello! Project:Aya auditioned in 2000 for the fourth Morning Musume & Heike Michiyo Protegee Audition and was selected along with Sheki-Dol to become a part of what was later known as Hello! Project. It is a common...
covered the song for her album Naked Songs. - Ken HiraiKen Hiraiis a Japanese R&B and pop singer. Since his debut, Hirai has worked as a model, actor, composer, lyricist, singer, and spokesperson.During his career, Hirai has released 32 singles and 11 albums up until October 2010. According to Oricon, his single Hitomi Wo Tojite became the best-selling single...
: Japanese R&B singer performed the song on his album of covers entitled Ken's Bar. - JUJU: Japanese jazzJazzJazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
/soulSoul musicSoul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
/R&B singer included the cover on her single "Donna ni tokutemo" as a B-side. - Vania Borges covered the song on the compilation album Rhythms del MundoRhythms del MundoRhythms del Mundo is a nonprofit collaborative album, which fuses an all-star cast of Cuban musicians including Ibrahim Ferrer and Omara Portuondo of the Buena Vista Social Club with tracks from US, UK and Irish artists such as Dido, Arctic Monkeys, U2, Coldplay, Sting, Jack Johnson, Maroon 5,...
. - Aliya Parcs covered the song on the compilation album Jam and Jive.
- It was featured on the video game Karaoke RevolutionKaraoke RevolutionKaraoke Revolution and its many sequels are video games for the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Nintendo GameCube, Wii, Xbox, and Xbox 360, developed by Harmonix Music Systems and Blitz Games and published by Konami in its Bemani line of music games. The Original Concept for Karaoke Revolution was...
as a cover. - The sketch comedy show MADtvMADtvMADtv is an American sketch comedy television series. It licensed the name and logo of Mad, but otherwise had no connection with the humor magazine outside the animated Spy vs. Spy and Don Martin cartoon shorts and images of Alfred E. Neuman that the show featured during the late 1990s. Its first...
parodied the song in a commercial for the fictitious album Monotonous. The joke of the sketch is that the song sets the mood for wild parties despite its slow pace. - Jazz fusionJazz fusionJazz fusion is a musical fusion genre that developed from mixing funk and R&B rhythms and the amplification and electronic effects of rock, complex time signatures derived from non-Western music and extended, typically instrumental compositions with a jazz approach to lengthy group improvisations,...
\contemporary jazzSmooth jazzSmooth jazz is a genre of music that grew out of jazz fusion and is influenced by R&B, funk, rock, and pop music styles ....
pianist David Benoit covered the song from his 2003 album "Right Here, Right Now." - Saxophonist Jimmy Sommers covered the song from his 2007 release "Time Stands Still."
- AsaroCatherine AsaroCatherine Asaro is an American science fiction and fantasy author. She is best known for her books about the Ruby Dynasty, called the Saga of the Skolian Empire.- Biography :...
and WolcottDonald Wolcott- Biography :Donald Wolcott began training as a pianist at age five. He initially studied classical piano, but became more interested in jazz by the time he reached middle school. In high school, he was the pianist for the jazz ensemble, a position he held until graduation...
covered the song on their 2010 EP Goodbye Note - Martin Taylor (guitarist) included this song on his album The Valley, and in a number of concerts including his performance at The StablesThe StablesThe Stables is a music venue situated in Wavendon, a small village on the south-east edge of Milton Keynes....
on the day John DankworthJohn DankworthSir John Phillip William Dankworth, CBE , known in his early career as Johnny Dankworth, was an English jazz composer, saxophonist and clarinetist...
died
"Don't Know Why"
| Chart (2002/2003) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart | 5 |
| Austrian Singles Chart | 56 |
| Dutch Singles Chart MegaCharts MegaCharts is responsible for the composition and exploitation of a broad collection of official charts in the Netherlands, of which the Mega Top 50 and the Mega Album Top 100 are the most known ones. Mega Charts also provides information to the Stichting Nederlandse Top 40, of which the Dutch Top... |
86 |
| French Singles Chart Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
74 |
| German Singles Chart | 82 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 24 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
30 |
| U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary | 4 |
| U.S. Billboard Adult Top 40 Hot Adult Top 40 Tracks Adult Top 40 is a variation on the United States Billboard charts... |
8 |
| U.S. Billboard Top 40 Mainstream | 32 |
| U.S. Billboard Top 40 Tracks Top 40 Tracks Top 40 Tracks is a defunct airplay chart from Billboard Magazine. It was created in 1998, when Billboard Magazine changed the airplay profile of The Hot 100 Airplay to include more R&B, Country, and Rock stations to its profile . To preserve the notion of the former chart, Top 40 Tracks was... |
21 |
| U.S. Billboard Adult Top 40 Recurrents | 1 |
"Don't Know Why" / "I'll Be Your Baby Tonight"
| Chart (2003) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
67 |
External links
- "Don't Know Why" reviewed by Ted Gioia (Jazz.com)