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It’s mid-morning in a quiet hotel restaurant and Diana Krall is having a love affair with an artichoke. One by one, she peels off the leaves and dips them into a small bowl of balsamic vinegar before gently lifting them to her mouth and slowly pulling the tender flesh off with her teeth. It’s a ritual she clearly relishes, washing down each morsel with a sip of chardonnay. But for Krall, this is also lunch. Having already done a photo shoot, and with an in-store appearance scheduled for noon, the Canadian jazz star is taking her meal while she can—even if it means being interviewed at the same time. Briefly distracted as she finally reaches the artichoke’s prized heart (“Pardon me,” she says...

The world’s top female jazz artist, Krall has achieved many milestones, from winning five Grammy Awards to producing the great Barbra Streisand. After recording 11 studio albums, the last of which, Glad Rag Doll, explored vaudeville tunes from the 1920s and ’30s, the Canadian-born star now turns her attention to her favorite pop songs from the ’60s to the present. Produced by David Foster, the album showcases the pianist’s voice, amid both spare and lush arrangements, in all of its beautiful, ragged glory. She duets with Michael Bublé on Gilbert O’Sullivan’s “Alone Again (Naturally)” and Ryan Adams on Randy Newman’s “Feels Like Home.” But Krall is at her best on her own, singing stark rendit...