For some unknown reason I am in a piano jazz blues kind of place today - not melancholia, mind you - just something low down and gritty. It feels rather like Dave Brubeck's incredible groove building to a crescendo on "Travellin' Blues." Maybe you've felt this way, too? (Check it out here: man, can this cat play!)
Another absolutely sublime meditation in music is the Bill Evans classic: "Peace Piece." There may not be another jazz piano composition quite like this in all creation. It speaks to me of inner refreshment, the ups and downs of being real in a broken world and the quiet longing to hold on to awe for just a moment longer in this life even while knowing that is impossible. For my soul, this is what heaven sounds like.
And I would be foolish to miss including Ahmad Jamal's most recent composition: "Saturday Morning." It was my big find last year in Montreal. This is the "reprise" take of the much longer version from the CD of the same name. In both the melody and interplay of instruments, this tune speaks to me of resting in the gentle beauty of the warm sun. It hints at love, too without a trace of sentimentality. It is truly a beautiful and playful work of art.
WHEN LOVE COMES TO TOWN: REFLECTIONS ON TENDERNESS IN A CHAOTIC CULTURE
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