From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base

Don't Know Why

Song written and composed by Jesse Harris, popularized by Norah Jones

Summary

Song written and composed by Jesse Harris, popularized by Norah Jones

Field	Value
name	Don't Know Why
cover	Don't Know Why (Norah Jones single - cover art).jpg
type	single
artist	Norah Jones
album	Come Away with Me
released
* Jazz pop<ref>{{cite web	url	https://www.allmusic.com/song/dont-know-why-mt0009279331	title=Norah Jones – Don't Know Why	last=Mason	first=Stewart	publisher=AllMusic	access-date=October 24, 2021}}
length	3:06
label	Blue Note
writer	Jesse Harris
next_title	Feelin' the Same Way
next_year	2002
misc	{{Extra chronology
type	single
prev_title	Turn Me On
prev_year	2003
title	Don't Know Why
title2	I'll Be Your Baby Tonight
year	2003
next_title	Sunrise
next_year	2004
header	Alternative cover
type	single
cover	Illbeyourbabysingle.jpg
caption	Cover art for "Don't Know Why" / "I'll Be Your Baby Tonight"
type	single
file	Don't Know Why sample.ogg

| B-side =

"Lonestar"
"Peace"
"Cold Cold Heart"
"I'll Be Your Baby Tonight"
"Crazy" (live)
Sorcerer Sound (New York City)
Allaire (Shokan, New York)
Jazz pop
Norah Jones
Arif Mardin
Jay Newland "Don't Know Why" is a song written and composed by American singer-songwriter Jesse Harris that originally appeared on his 1999 album, Jesse Harris & the Ferdinandos. A cover of the song later appeared on Norah Jones' debut studio album, Come Away with Me (2002), and was released as her debut single on January 28, 2002.

Jones' version of "Don't Know Why" peaked at number 30 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and was a critical success, winning three Grammy Awards in 2003 for Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance at the 45th Annual Grammy Awards. "Don't Know Why" was also successful abroad, reaching number five in Australia, number six in Croatia, and number 24 in New Zealand. The song was ranked number 459 in Blender magazine's "500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born".

Jones' piano-playing has been compared to that of Floyd Cramer, having a "style and grace, a musical maturity not found in many keyboard players today."

Music video

A music video directed by Anastasia Simone and Ian Spencer was filmed in February 2002 and released later that year. It features Norah Jones performing the song on a gray beach at sunrise, on a rocky pier, and at a beach rental stand accompanied by a wooden piano while undersea images are projected onto the walls.

Track listings

UK CD single

"Don't Know Why" – 3:05
"Lonestar" – 3:05
"Peace" – 3:51

Dutch CD single

"Don't Know Why" – 3:05
"Cold Cold Heart" – 3:38

French CD single

"Don't Know Why" – 3:05
"Lonestar" – 3:07

Australian CD single

"Don't Know Why"
"I'll Be Your Baby Tonight"
"Lonestar"
"Peace"

UK CD single (2003)

"Don't Know Why" – 3:05
"I'll Be Your Baby Tonight" – 3:16
"Crazy" (live) – 3:29

Credits and personnel

Credits are lifted from the Come Away with Me album booklet.

Recording

Recorded at Sorcerer Sound (New York City) and Allaire Studios (Shokan, New York)
Mixed at Sear Sound (New York City)
Mastered at Sterling Sound (New York City)

Personnel

Jesse Harris – writing, acoustic guitar, electric guitar
Norah Jones – vocals, piano, production
Lee Alexander – bass guitar
Dan Rieser – drums
Arif Mardin – production, mixing
Jay Newland – production, mixing, engineering
Mark Birkey – assistant engineering
Ted Jensen – mastering

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2002–2003)	Peak
position	Croatia (HRT)
6

Chart (2022)	Peak
position	Japan Hot Overseas (Billboard Japan)
20

Year-end charts

Chart (2002)	Position	US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)	US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)	US Triple-A (Billboard)
38
25
5

Chart (2003)	Position	Australia (ARIA)	US Billboard Hot 100	US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)	US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)
77
97
7
25

Certifications

Release history

Region	Date	Format(s)
January 28, 2002	Triple A radio	Blue Note
May 13, 2002	CD	Parlophone
June 24, 2002	Hot adult contemporary radio	Blue Note
August 5, 2002	Contemporary hit radio
February 24, 2003	CD	Parlophone
September 1, 2003

References

Mason, Stewart. "Norah Jones – ''Don't Know Why''". [[AllMusic]].
(March 6, 2009). "The 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born: 51-100 Article on Blender :: The Ultimate Guide to Music and More".
"'Norah Jones' Articles at know your music".
(January 17, 2003). "Come Away With Me Has Never Sounded Better".
(November 28, 2017). "Who's Floyd Cramer?". [[Magnolia Banner-News]].
(February 18, 2002). "CMJ New Music Report". CMJ Network, Inc..
(2002). "Don't Know Why". [[Parlophone]].
(2002). "Don't Know Why". [[EMI Records]].
(2002). "Don't Know Why". [[Blue Note Records]], [[Capitol Records]].
(2003). "Don't Know Why". Parlophone.
(2003). "Don't Know Why / I'll Be Your Baby Tonight". Parlophone.
(2002). "Come Away with Me". Blue Note Records.
"HR Top 20 Lista". [[Croatian Radiotelevision]].
"''Billboard'' Japan Hot Overseas: October 19, 2022". Billboard Japan.
(December 20, 2002). "Most-Played AC Songs of 2002".
(December 20, 2002). "Most-Played Adult Top 40 Songs of 2002".
(December 20, 2002). "The 2002 Allstars: Most-Played Triple-A Songs".
"ARIA Top 100 Singles for 2003". [[Australian Recording Industry Association.
"Billboard Top 100 – 2003".
(December 27, 2003). "The Year in Music: Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks".
(December 19, 2003). "The Year in Charts 2003: Most-Played Adult Top 40 Songs".
(January 25, 2002). "Going for Adds".
(May 11, 2002). "New Releases – For Week Starting 13 May 2002: Singles".
(June 21, 2002). "Going for Adds".
(August 2, 2002). "Going for Adds".
(February 24, 2003). "The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 24th February 2003". [[Australian Recording Industry Association.
(August 30, 2003). "New Releases: Singles".

Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

1999-songs 2002-debut-singles blue-note-records-singles grammy-award-for-best-female-pop-vocal-performance grammy-award-for-record-of-the-year grammy-award-for-song-of-the-year norah-jones-songs parlophone-singles song-recordings-produced-by-arif-mardin songs-written-by-jesse-harris

Want to explore this topic further?

Ask Mako anything about Don't Know Why — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.

Research with Mako

Free with your Surf account

Content sourced from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.

Report