Sinkin' Soon
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"Sinkin' Soon" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter
Norah Jones Norah Jones ( ; born Geethali Shankar; March 30, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She has won several awards for her music and, , has sold more than 53 million records worldwide. '' Billboard'' named her the top jazz artist of ...
for her third studio album '' Not Too Late'' (2007). It was written and produced by Lee Alexander, and co-written by Jones. A
cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, casino, hotel, restaurant, or nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or drinking, ...
-influenced
lounge Lounge may refer to: Architecture * Lounge, the living room of a dwelling * Lounge, a public waiting area in a hotel's lobby * Lounge, a style of commercial alcohol- bar * Airport lounge or train lounge (e.g., Amtrak's Acela Lounge), a premium ...
-
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
track, it is driven by a piano interspersed with a muted trombone. Lyrically
sociopolitical Political sociology is an interdisciplinary field of study concerned with exploring how governance and society interact and influence one another at the micro to macro levels of analysis. Interested in the social causes and consequences of how p ...
, it describes the state of the US at the time of the song's writing through the metaphor of a sinking ship. The song was released as the second single from ''Not Too Late'' outside the US on March 26, 2007, by
Blue Note Records Blue Note Records is an American jazz record label now owned by Universal Music Group and operated under Capitol Music Group. Established in 1939 by History of the Jews in Germany, German-Jewish emigrants Alfred Lion and Max Margulis, it deriv ...
. Upon release, "Sinkin' Soon" received widespread acclaim from
music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on ...
, predominantly directed towards Jones' progressed songwriting. However, it was a commercial failure, solely reaching the top 40 in Italy. Its accompanying music video, directed by
Ace Norton Ace Norton (born May 24, 1982, in Venice, Los Angeles, California) is a Japanese American filmmaker and artist born and raised in Venice, California. Norton creates music videos, commercials, fashion films, and movies. Biography Norton grew up ...
, incorporates
stop motion Stop-motion (also known as stop frame animation) is an animated filmmaking and special effects technique in which objects are physically manipulated in small increments between individually photographed frames so that they will appear to exh ...
and shows Jones in various miniature settings. Since the song's release, Jones has included it on set lists for all her concert tours.


Writing and recording

Lee Alexander wrote most of "Sinkin' Soon", with Jones composing the
bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...
. According to Jones, they were unable to play the whole song before they recorded it, so they went out for dinner and drank beer. "I guess we needed a little bit of that drunken sailor vibe because we came back and recorded this on the first take", she elaborated. Jones' old friend J. Walter Hawkes contributed a
trombone The trombone (, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's lips vibrate inside a mouthpiece, causing the Standing wave, air c ...
solo, while
M. Ward Matthew Stephen "M." Ward (born October 4, 1973) is an American singer-songwriter, Grammy nominated producer and guitarist from Glendale, California. Ward's solo work is a mixture of folk and blues-inspired Americana analog recordings. He has r ...
performed backing vocals. Furthermore,
Andrew Borger Andrew Borger is an American drummer. Biography Born in Littleton, Colorado, Andrew Borger went to UC Berkeley and played extensively in the San Francisco Bay Area club scene before being recognized by Tom Waits and later Norah Jones. Andrew's ...
used pots and pans, including Jones' own
teapot A teapot is a vessel used for steeping tea leaves or a herbal mix in boiling or near-boiling water and serving the resulting infusion called tea; usually put in a teacup. It is one of the core components of teaware. Teapots usually have an ...
, as
percussion instrument A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...
s.


Music and lyrics

"Sinkin' Soon" is composed in the key of
E minor E minor is a minor scale based on E, consisting of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has one sharp, on the F. Its relative major is G major and its parallel major is E major. The E natural minor scale is: Change ...
, according to the sheet music published by
Faber Music Faber Music is a British sheet music publisher best known for contemporary classical music. It also publishes music tutor books, and in 2005 acquired popular music publisher International Music Publications. Faber Music has close relations with ...
. Critical commentaries identified the song as a
cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, casino, hotel, restaurant, or nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or drinking, ...
-influenced
lounge Lounge may refer to: Architecture * Lounge, the living room of a dwelling * Lounge, a public waiting area in a hotel's lobby * Lounge, a style of commercial alcohol- bar * Airport lounge or train lounge (e.g., Amtrak's Acela Lounge), a premium ...
and
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
track. Its musical style received frequent comparisons to works of composer
Kurt Weill Kurt Julian Weill (; ; March 2, 1900April 3, 1950) was a German-born American composer active from the 1920s in his native country, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for hi ...
and singer-songwriter
Tom Waits Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on society's underworld and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He began in the American folk music, fo ...
, while Dan Aquilante of the ''
New York Post The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates three online sites: NYPost. ...
'' compared it to
Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...
's early recordings. The track's instrumentation incorporates a piano interspersed with a muted trombone,
banjo guitar Banjo guitar, also known as banjitar or ganjo, is a six-string banjo tuned in the standard tuning of a six-string guitar (E2-A2-D3-G3-B3-E4 from lowest to highest strings). The instrument is intended to allow guitar players to emulate a banjo, wi ...
, and pot-and-pan percussion. The song's
tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for 'time'; plural 'tempos', or from the Italian plural), measured in beats per minute, is the speed or pace of a given musical composition, composition, and is often also an indication of the composition ...
is a moderate 100 beats per minute in
common time A time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, and measure signature) is an indication in music notation that specifies how many note values of a particular type fit into each measure ( bar). The time signature indicates the ...
, while Jones' vocal range spans one
octave In music, an octave (: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is an interval between two notes, one having twice the frequency of vibration of the other. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been referr ...
and three
semitone A semitone, also called a minor second, half step, or a half tone, is the smallest musical interval commonly used in Western tonal music, and it is considered the most dissonant when sounded harmonically. It is defined as the interval between ...
s, from the low note of E3 to the high note of G4. Sociopolitically-themed, "Sinkin' Soon" lyrically compares the United States and its
government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...
to a sinking ship. Nick Cowen of '' Drowned in Sound'' further insinuated that the song was directed to
George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
, then-
President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...
, while
Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and later became a ...
, writing for ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
'', speculated that the lyrical content referred to
Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a powerful, devastating and historic tropical cyclone that caused 1,392 fatalities and damages estimated at $125 billion in late August 2005, particularly in the city of New Orleans and its surrounding area. ...
.


Critical reception

Upon the release of ''Not Too Late'', "Sinkin' Soon" received widespread acclaim from
music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on ...
. Nick Cowen of ''Drowned in Sound'', John Fordham for ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'', and the website Sputnikmusic all highlighted it as a standout track from the album. Staff of ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
'' emphasized the song as a testament to Jones becoming "an entirely different singer, with an edgy tone and an animated personality". Sarah Liss of ''
Now Now most commonly refers to the present time. Now, NOW, or The Now may also refer to: Organizations * Natal Organisation of Women, a South African women's organization * National Organization for Women, an American feminist organization * Na ...
'' listed the track among examples of Jones' evolution as a songwriter and a musician, as did ''
Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New Yor ...
''s Jonathan Keefe, who further called it "as feisty as anything in Jones' solo catalogue". Writing for ''Entertainment Weekly'', Sia Michel also praised the song, labeling it as a "catchy hobo-cabaret jam", while Elizabeth Newton from ''
PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, ...
'' complimented its "sassy, mourning" trombone instrumentation.


Music video

The accompanying
music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
for "Sinkin' Soon" was directed by
Ace Norton Ace Norton (born May 24, 1982, in Venice, Los Angeles, California) is a Japanese American filmmaker and artist born and raised in Venice, California. Norton creates music videos, commercials, fashion films, and movies. Biography Norton grew up ...
, who also directed the music video for Jones' previous single "
Thinking About You Thinking About You may refer to: Music * '' Thinkin' About You'', a 1995 album by Trisha Yearwood * ''Thinkin' About You'', a 1998 album by Rita Coolidge * "Thinking About You" (Elvis Presley song), 1975 * "Thinking About You" (Whitney Houston s ...
". It was shot in one day in November 2006, at an industrial strip south of
downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles (DTLA) is the central business district of the city of Los Angeles. It is part of the Central Los Angeles region and covers a area. As of 2020, it contains over 500,000 jobs and has a population of roughly 85,000 residents ...
, and incorporates special effects and
stop motion Stop-motion (also known as stop frame animation) is an animated filmmaking and special effects technique in which objects are physically manipulated in small increments between individually photographed frames so that they will appear to exh ...
. The video premiered via
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
on March 1, 2007. The music video for "Sinkin' Soon" begins with various household items in a darkly lit utility room assembling themselves into Jones's backing band. Jones performs the song with the band, as a doll in a doll's house and on a miniature stage, and she dances with an empty
tuxedo Black tie is a semi-formal Western dress code for evening events, originating in British and North American conventions for attire in the 19th century. In British English, the dress code is often referred to synecdochically by its principal ...
before performing the song in a mouse hole, dressed in a mouse costume. The video ends with the items assuming their original positions in the room.


Live performances

In 2007, Jones performed "Sinkin' Soon" in concerts promoting ''Not Too Late'', and included it on the set list for the Not Too Late Tour; a live rendition was included on Jones'
live album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track or cassette), or digital. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th centur ...
''Live from Austin, TX'' (2008). In October 2010, she performed it at Farm Aid 25. The song was further included on the set lists for The Fall Tour (2010), Little Broken Hearts Tour (2012–2013), Day Breaks World Tour (2016–2017), and Visions Tour (2024–2025). Jones also performed the song with
Sasha Dobson Sasha Dobson (born March 31, 1979) is an American jazz singer from Santa Cruz, California. Early life Dobson comes from a musical family. Her father, Smith Dobson (Smith Weed Dobson IV, 1947–2001) was a pianist who recorded with Mark Murphy ...
during one of Jones' "Live from Home" concerts, in July 2020; the performance was included on the deluxe edition of Jones' seventh studio album '' Pick Me Up Off the Floor'' (2020).


Track listings and formats

2-track digital single and European CD single #"Sinkin' Soon" (album version) – 4:38 #"Sinkin' Soon" (live from Rehearsals.com) – 4:17 3-track digital single and European maxi CD single #"Sinkin' Soon" (album version) – 4:38 #"Sinkin' Soon" (live from Rehearsals.com) – 4:17 #"Rosie's Lullaby" (live from Rehearsals.com) – 4:10 Japanese promotional CD single #"Sinkin' Soon" (radio edit) – 3:57


Credits and personnel

Credits are adapted from the liner notes of '' Not Too Late''. * Lee Alexander – bass, mixing, songwriting, production *
Andrew Borger Andrew Borger is an American drummer. Biography Born in Littleton, Colorado, Andrew Borger went to UC Berkeley and played extensively in the San Francisco Bay Area club scene before being recognized by Tom Waits and later Norah Jones. Andrew's ...
– drums, pots and pans, slit drum * Kevin Breit – mandolin * J. Walter Hawkes – trombone *
Jesse Harris Jesse Harris (born October 24, 1969) is an American singer-songwriter, producer, and guitarist. He has worked with Norah Jones, Melody Gardot, Madeleine Peyroux, and Lizz Wright. Early life and education Harris and his twin sister were born i ...
– banjo guitar *
Norah Jones Norah Jones ( ; born Geethali Shankar; March 30, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She has won several awards for her music and, , has sold more than 53 million records worldwide. '' Billboard'' named her the top jazz artist of ...
– piano, songwriting, vocals * Daru Oda – backing vocals * Tom Schick – engineering, mixing *
M. Ward Matthew Stephen "M." Ward (born October 4, 1973) is an American singer-songwriter, Grammy nominated producer and guitarist from Glendale, California. Ward's solo work is a mixture of folk and blues-inspired Americana analog recordings. He has r ...
– backing vocals


Charts


Release history


References


Notes


Citations

{{Authority control 2007 singles American jazz songs Norah Jones songs Songs written by Norah Jones Songs written by Lee Alexander (musician) 2007 songs Blue Note Records singles