Jon Batiste is known for his jubilant jazz, while Cory Wong specializes in the type of music that makes you want to nod your head and make the kind of face usually reserved for having eaten too much sour candy.
But listening to Jon Batiste and Cory Wong’s collaborative 2020 effort Meditations is like watching hyperactive kids sleeping peacefully after a busy day.
The entire album was improvised. Conceptualized in Batiste’s dressing room while he was at The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, where Wong would sometimes join as a band member, the LP was recorded, in Wong’s words, “straight through without stopping.” The type of musicianship this requires is profoundly impressive.
It was then released at the end of May 2020, perhaps the lowest point of that low-point of a year, and I wouldn’t be surprised if listening to this record played a significant role in getting some people through.
What makes this a beautiful song:
1. Those two notes on the piano get the listener’s attention while also rocking them to sleep.
2. The organ provides a soft blanket on which the piano dances.
3. In the final minute, some bizarre noises emerge in the background. I think it’s just instrumental manipulation, but it sounds like voices. It reminds me of those nights when my parents had friends over, and they’d all be talking downstairs while I was up in bed. I couldn’t hear their conversations, but the low-end rumblings and occasional laughter kept me feeling safe.
Recommended listening activity:
Buying a night light.