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New Tunage – The Norah Jones is so boring I now call her “Snore-ah Jones”; the Katharine McPhee is not what you would expect, and it is neither good nor bad; and why is Madonna still releasing CDs?!?!

New Releases, Jan. 30: Norah Jones, Katharine McPhee, Madonna
Norah Jones “Not Too Late”
The jazzy songbird returns with her third studio set. It follows 2004’s quadruple-platinum-selling “Feels Like Home,” a work that nabbed Jones a Grammy in the Best Female Pop Vocal Performance category (her eighth Grammy overall).
The singer, the daughter of sitar great Ravi Shankar, wrote or co-wrote all of the album’s 13 tracks. The disc was produced by Jones’ bassist and songwriting partner, Lee Alexander.
According to her publicist, Jones is the best-selling female artist of the 21st century, with more than 15 million in sales over the course of the decade, and 30 million worldwide.
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Katharine McPhee “Katharine McPhee”
The runner-up to Taylor Hicks in last year’s “American Idol” competition drops her self-titled debut album. The CD’s first single, “Over It,” hit radio earlier this month.
The Southern California native worked with a number of collaborators on this disc, including producer Nate ‘Danja’ Hills, a man nominated for two Grammys this year for his efforts on Justin Timberlake’s “FutureSex/LoveSounds.”
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Madonna “The Confessions Tour–Live from London”
This two-disc CD/DVD combo was filmed at London’s Wembley Arena during the Material Girl’s highly successful Confessions Tour.
The set focuses largely on material from Madonna’s “Confessions on a Dance Floor” CD, but also includes a few old hits, including “Like a Virgin” and “Lucky Star.”
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Celtic Woman “A New Journey”
The money-making machine that is the Celtic Woman returns with a follow-up to its 2006 holiday offering, “A Christmas Celebration,” a work that debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard World Music chart back in November.
The female Irish vocal ensemble–featuring Chloe Agnew, Lisa Kelly, Meav Ni Mhaolchatha, Orla Fallon, Mairead Nesbitt and recent addition Hayley Westenra–will launch a lengthy North American trek in support of the album in mid-February, starting off in Tampa, FL.
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Art Garfunkel “Some Enchanted Evening”
Following in the footsteps of such pop stars as Bryan Ferry and Rod Stewart, Garfunkel mines the Great American Songbook on this new album. The disc includes such all-time classic songs as “Someone to Watch Over Me,” “Let’s Fall in Love,” “I’ve Grown Accustomed to Her Face” and the title track.
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More new releases:
Lily Allen, “Alright, Still” (Capitol)
Tommy Castro, “Painkiller” (Blind Pig)
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, “Some Loud Thunder” (Clap Your Hands Say Yeah)
Harry Connick Jr., “Chanson du Vieux Carre” (Marsalis)
Harry Connick Jr., “Oh, My Nola” (Sony)
Bill Kirchen, “Hammer of the Honkey-Tonk Gods” (Proper)
Dave Koz, “At the Movies” (Capitol)
Paolo Nutini, “These Streets” (Atlantic)
Pain of Salvation, “Scarsick” (Inside Out)
Rockabye Baby!, “Lullaby Renditions of U2” (Baby Rock)
Xavier Rudd, “Food in the Belly” (Anti)
Jill Scott, “Collaborations” (Hidden Beach)
Skinny Puppy, “Mythmaker” (Synthetic Symphony)
Tin Hat, “Sad Machinery of Spring” (Hannibal)
X Clan, “Return From Mecca” (Suburban Noize)
Various Artists, “Endless Highway–The Music Of The Band” (Savoy)