You Finally Knew Chad Lawson

• 1 What Gorgeous Thing 03:00
• 2 Stay 03:21
• 3 One Day You Finally Knew 02:58
• 4 Waltz in B Minor 04:20
• 5 Across the Distance 02:54
• 6 Rain 03:24
• 7 Ballade in A Minor 04:32
• 8 She Dreams of Time 03:22
• 9 In the Waiting 02:39
• 10 Prelude in D Major 02:53
• 11 I Wish I Were Close 01:40
• 12 I Wrote You A Song 03:10
• Total Runtime 38:13

Info for You Finally Knew

Steinway artist & composer, Chad Lawson's solo work has a relaxed, meditative feel that draws on both the sonorities of classical music and the freeform nature of jazz improv. You Finally Knew, his debut solo piano album for Decca US, was recorded at Abbey Road Studios and features ten pieces he wrote to inspire listeners to take time every day to consciously be still for mental clarity and overall wellness of being.

Recorded at the famous Abbey Road Studios, the track is the first single from the second half of Chad’s forthcoming album, You Finally Knew, out September 11. The first half, Stay, was released earlier this year.

Explaining the link between the performance and his music, Lawson quotes painter Edgar Degas: “Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.” He continues: “This captivating choreography of Jason Rodriguez and José Lapaz Rodriguez illustrates how art is received, interpreted, and expressed as uniquely beautiful as the persons themselves.”

A former jazz musician who spent two years touring stadiums as part of Julio Iglesias’ live band, Lawson began his solo career in 2009 when the stress took a toll on his own health. He wrote his debut solo piano album, Set On A Hill, while suffering from ulcerative colitis, a chronic condition that had left him bedridden. In 2011, his album The Piano attracted mainstream media attention in the US. Two years later, Chad repeated the feat with The Bach Variations. Today, Lawson is a streaming star with tens of millions of followers and a staple of some of the world’s most popular playlists, introducing new generations to classical music with contemporary techniques, modern-day interpretations, and an emotive, arresting signature sound.

“A simple melody will always be the heart of every song, regardless of instrument,” says Lawson. “I sat without pencil and paper and sang each part before placing a single finger on a piano key. If I could not sing the melody and retain it in my ear, it didn’t make the cut. Only after the melody had become so ingrained in memory did I dare commit it to paper. Once the melody was in place, the chords and flourishes practically painted themselves.”

Chad Lawson, piano

Chad Lawson
is just about the polar opposite of every other solo pianist out there. He has toured the world with Julio Iglesias, is an official Steinway performing artist, recipient of “Album of the Year” on Whisperings Solo Piano Radio and has scored several films.

Earlier, Lawson’s trio recorded two wildly-successful albums for Summit Records. Dear Dorothy; the Oz Sessions—brought music from the Wizard of Oz to the national jazz charts. The CD was featured in Starbucks, showed up in Dawson’s Creek, and the trio even toured Japan. Unforeseen, their second album, jumped to #8 on the national jazz charts, and included songs by the Police, Soundgarden, and the Beatles. However, all these successes were a blur, leading up to one night on tour in Spain with Iglesias—in yet another sold-out 10,000 seat venue. It was here that Lawson suddenly felt absolutely alone on stage and said, “It’s time to do my own thing again.”

Imagine standing in the middle of NYC, engulfed by all its energy. That same pulse stems from Lawson’s music, in a more slow-burn sorta way. That’s the kind of music Lawson writes: with listening—real listening—in mind. Listeners get the feeling they’re participating in a musical conversation. That’s because—unlike just about every other solo pianist out there—Lawson’s music has a strong organic, improvisatory element to it. Chad Lawson is sort of like George Winston, but the audience Lawson’s going for probably won’t get that reference anyway. (Lawson has always made a habit of bringing jazz to new audiences, as if you couldn’t tell by his credits.)

All Lawson’s songs, in fact, give you the chance to hear the music, and simply exhale, to breathe. His music affords the time that most of us never take in the day to rest our mind—as if to say, things can be put on pause—even for just a few moments.

This album contains no booklet.